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Amalyah’s Search for Love

December 22, 2016 by Emma Filbrun · Leave a Comment

22 Dec

Amalyah's Search for Love by Harvey Yoder

Title: Amalyah’s Search for Love
Author: Harvey Yoder
Major Themes: Israel, Kibbutz, Mexico, Orphanages, United States
Synopsis: After growing up in a kibbutz in Israel, Amalyah finds herself endlessly searching for love-can she ever find what she needs?

I found Amalyah’s Search for Love quite fascinating. The first part of the book was so intriguing because of the description of life on a kibbutz in Israel; I had never read much of anything about a kibbutz before. The rest of the story was interesting because Amalyah’s life took so many different paths. It was amazing to see God at work in her life.

Amalyah was born on a kibbutz in Israel; she lived in a house with other children her own age and visited her parents in their room in the evenings. Occasionally, she was privileged to sleep in their room, but she always yearned for more love. As she grew older, this yearning began to express itself in a desire for a boyfriend; she had one boyfriend after another as groups of young volunteers came from all over the work to work for short periods in the kibbutz. However, this never satisfied Amalyah.

Amalyah next moved to America, where she found herself still in bondage to various people until one day she was able to turn her life over to Jesus. Her subsequent journey took her to Mexico and to Israel; she continued to learn more and more about Jesus and His love for her and plan for her life. As we all need to do, she had to keep laying down her own wishes.

I had a hard time putting this book down. Harvey Yoder has a way of writing a story that keeps you turning pages. Once you begin reading Amalyah’s story, you will want to see where her search for love takes her. Can she ever allow Jesus to totally satisfy that longing?

No warnings!

Age levels:

Reading Independently—Ages 15 and Above, Adults

Links to buy this book:

Amazon: Paperback | Kindle
AbeBooks: View Choices on AbeBooks.com

The Treasure Hunt

December 21, 2016 by Emma Filbrun · Leave a Comment

21 Dec

Title: The Treasure Hunt
Author: Rebecca Martin
Series: Amish Frontier series, book 2
Major Themes: Amish, Colorado, Pioneer Life
Synopsis: After the Yoder family’s move to Colorado, Joe searches for treasure until he learns what the true treasure is.

My younger children have been enjoying the Amish Frontier series by Rebecca Martin. These stories are turning out to be good to read to them after finishing the Grandma’s Attic series. The older children are enjoying listening in, too!

The Treasure Hunt begins in 1809, about 16 years after the first book, Blossoms on the Roof, ends. The Yoder family has been living in North Dakota for all those years, and now they are threshing a good crop of wheat. However, prices are low, and farms are too expensive for young couples to buy, so when people start talking about cheap land in Colorado, it is enticing. Ten-year-old Lydia Yoder doesn’t want to move, but her older brother Joe does! He has heard about the gold that miners have found in Colorado, and he wants to find some for himself.

After the Yoder family move to Colorado, they find that things are not as good as they sounded. Unexpected droughts and fires dampen their enthusiasm for their new home, but they don’t have much choice except to stick it out. Joe finds excitement, however, with a door built into a creek bank and panning for gold in the creek.

This is the kind of Amish fiction that I like. Most “Amish fiction” seems to try to portray the Amish in a cute way, emphasizing the ways in which they are different from most of modern culture. These books, though, were written by a woman from a “plain” church, and she just portrays her characters as real people trying to lead their lives in a way that glorifies God. I find these stories very refreshing. They are great to read to children who enjoy reading simple tales of pioneer life, and important lessons are woven in along the way.

No warnings!

Age levels:

Listening Level—Ages 5 – 8, 8 – 12, Family Friendly
Reading Independently—Ages 8 – 12, 10 – 12

Links to buy this book:

Amazon: Paperback | Kindle

Out of the Depths

December 20, 2016 by Emma Filbrun · Leave a Comment

20 Dec

Title: Out of the Depths
Author: Rachael Lofgren
Major Themes: Russia, Ukraine, World War II
Synopsis: Ludmilla’s story is of a life of sorrow, redeemed by love.

On a recent visit to us, my sister brought Out of the Depths to loan to me. I really enjoyed reading this true account of a woman in Ukraine. She was born soon after World War II, and grew up in Stalin’s Soviet Union.

One tragedy after another…that was the description of Ludmilla’s life. Her life nearly ended in tragedy when she was very young, but an unlikely rescuer saved her life. Then, when she was 18 and about to be forced into a marriage she dreaded, her parents both died tragically the same night. Throughout her life, she faced one terrible loss after another until, finally, she learned about Jesus and yielded her life to Him. Even that yielding, however, took a lot of time and a lot of disappointments as she searched for the truth. When she did find peace with God, however, heaven came down and she was happy for the first time in her life.

I found this story to be very encouraging. Hard times are never pleasant to endure, but God uses them to work good in our lives, if we let Him. Ludmilla’s life was incredibly hard, but God brought blessing to her in the end. I also found the description of life in Ukraine under communism quite interesting. I hadn’t realized how much people could move around under communism; it seemed like they could decide for themselves where they wanted to live. Finding housing and a place to work seemed more challenging.

WARNING: Chapter 7 shows the brutal murder of Ludmilla’s mother by her father. In chapter 19 she fights with her live-in boyfriend and is nearly killed.

Age levels:

Reading Independently—Ages 15 and Above, Adults

Links to buy this book:

Amazon: Paperback
AbeBooks: View Choices on AbeBooks.com
CAM Books: Paperback

Crossroads in Galilee

December 19, 2016 by Emma Filbrun · Leave a Comment

19 Dec

Title: Crossroads in Galilee
Author: Elizabeth Raum
Series: Choose Your Journey
Major Themes: Jesus
Synopsis: Three different stories, written in choose-your-adventure format, tell the story of Jesus’s early ministry.

When I was younger, I greatly enjoyed books that let me choose my own adventure. My little boys love that kind of story now. This Bible story, which lets you choose many different outcomes, is very well-done.

Crossroads in Galilee allows children to experience stories of Jesus’s ministry in Galilee in a fresh, new way. When you start reading the book, you can choose from three different characters—do you want to be a boy or a girl? A fisherman’s sister, or the brother of a despised tax collector? After you choose your character, you make decisions about the various situations you find yourself in. For example, do you go home after hearing John the Baptist preach, or do you want to be baptized? Each choice you make leads to other decisions to make, and your choices determine the outcome of your story.

As you follow the various paths through this book, you will read about a number of different miracles of Jesus. You will also witness the calling of several of the disciples, and hear Jesus give the Sermon on the Mount—and have the choice to make whether to apply those teachings or not.

I found this story to be very accurate. Though a novel, it tells the stories as they are related in the New Testament. I also appreciated the pictures. They are simple black-and-white drawings, not cartoonish in style but fairly realistic.

I received a free ecopy of this book from NetGalley and chose to review it.

No warnings!

Age levels:

Listening Level—Ages 3 – 4, 5 – 8
Reading Independently—Ages 7 – 9, 8 – 12

Links to buy this book:

Amazon: Paperback | Kindle
AbeBooks: View Choices on AbeBooks.com

All the Dirt: A History of Getting Clean

December 16, 2016 by Emma Filbrun · Leave a Comment

16 Dec

All the Dirt: A History of Getting Clean by Katherine Ashenburg

Title: All the Dirt: A History of Getting Clean
Author: Katherine Ashenburg
Major Themes: Cleanliness, Health, Science
Synopsis: In a quick trip through history and around the world, learn about customs and ideas of cleanliness.

All the Dirt is quite a different trip through world history. I never would have thought of this topic, but I found it very interesting. The story starts around 2000 BC, with the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans, and quickly moves along to the Middle Ages. That was where I found it especially interesting. I read one story aloud to my daughter, about how the king of France, in 1610, was so horrified that one of his ministers took a bath that he cautioned him to stay home, in his robe and nightcap, for several days, to ensure he didn’t become sick from such a rash act as taking a bath. We were both laughing so hard over the story that a man who came to the door just then wanted to know what the joke was! Another memorable tidbit was that the reason the Aztecs burned incense before their Spanish conquerors was to block out the smell from their unwashed bodies.

I was intrigued by the development of ideas of cleanliness, and the role advertising has played in our perceptions of being clean. The last chapter brings balance to the whole discussion by relating how being ultra-clean can be unhealthy.

This would be a good science or health book for a preteen to read. Children who enjoy nonfiction will enjoy it, especially if they like topics that are slightly gross (read, boys!). Yes, a few chapters discuss bodily functions. It was not done offensively, more matter-of-factly.

I received a free ecopy of this book from NetGalley and chose to review it.

WARNING: Page 12 mentions the Greeks exercising in the nude. Page 27 shows an adult taking a bath (viewed from the back). Page 34 tells a story about a man going to hell and back again. Page 50 shows a group of women bathing.

Age levels:

Reading Independently—Ages 8 – 12, 10 – 12, 12 – 15

Links to buy this book:

Amazon: Paperback | Hardcover
AbeBooks: View Choices on AbeBooks.com