Book Review: The One Year Devos for Teen Girls

First off I'd like to say how thrilled I am to now be reviewing books for Tyndale House Publishers! I'm excited to be getting into more non-fiction and to be able to hopefully give you some honest and helpful insight into what's out on the market today!

I chose to review "The One Year Devos for Teen Girls"  by Dannah Gresh and Suzy Weibel for a couple of reasons. First, I work with a pre-teen/teen girls discipleship group called Bright Lights. At the moment I am responsible for mentoring around 30 girls and I thought that I'd love to be able to recommend a good devotional to them. Though I have never read Dannah Gresh's work I know it is well recognized and praised within the Christian community and I wanted to see what she had to offer. Additionally, I hoped to be able to use this devo as a jumping off point or for illustrations in my BL lessons.

Each devotional is set up on a single page and includes a header, single scripture verse, and a large several paragraphed section of commentary followed by a small "Action Point" for the girl to put into practice what she learned that day. The format is easy to follow and is easily read and finished in 5-10 minutes depending on the reader. As stated in the title of the book this is a One Year devotional and thus there are entries for every day of the year (excluding leap year).

As I began reading through this book I soon grabbed a pad of sticky note flags and started marking up my book! I had pink flags for excellent, Biblically sound, entries; purple for ones that I would use with my BL girls; and yellow for ones that set off cautions in my mind. I did not mark every passage- just the ones that really stood out to me as I read. By the time I was done I took a look at what I had and thought it really was a mixed bag. In this devotional there are some really great spiritual insights, and entries that are great teaching tools. However, there are also some things that shocked me! Especially as this books is aimed at 12 years old and up! (Per Amazon).

Perhaps I shouldn't be shocked, after all the introduction does tell you that the topics were gleaned from 100 college girls that they contacted and asked what as younger teens did they most want/need to know or have addressed. The thing is that they have ended up with numerous entries discussing topics that I would never find appropriate to discuss with the girls I mentor. In these discussions I really felt like the authors missed the mark. I felt like they were trying to answer the World and throw and Christian 'spin' on something instead of showing from Scripture the Biblical standard and encouraging girls to rise to meet it. Some of the most objectionable entries are found in the May and July portions of the book and include topics on how much touching is ok in a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship, oral sex (!), pornography, and an entry on homosexuality that I found truly troubling as it begins- and immediately ends- the discussion with 'science' and not the Bible. Another entry I had trouble with is from March 22 and discusses "Is Eating Meat Okay?" the authors argument is misleading as she uses 1 Corinthians 8 (which speaks on meat offered to idols) to give vegetarianism preference. The Action Point for this entry encourages girls to try a vegetarian diet for a month or more! Maybe I'm old fashioned but it is my opinion that a child living in their parent's home should not be dictating the menu or placing financial strains on the family budget but be thankful for whatever is served.

On the flip side when the book is good it's really good! I enjoyed the entries on widows (3/15), where are the real men (7/24), lying in friendships (9/5), and even the entry on gendercide (9/25) that helps to expose the terrible and tragic realities of the world around us.

In the end, every parent is responsible for the discipleship of their own daughter. If you pick this book up and give it to you your girl as an easy check mark then you are doing your daughter a great disservice. If you pick it up and read every passage before hand and believe that the topics contained therein are good for your daughter- and discussion that you are willing to keep on top of- then go ahead. For me the standard has to be drawn at 'could I hand this out to the girls I mentor?'  For me the answer was an absolute no. While I can see myself using portions as lesson points, as a whole I know that it would not meet the standard of the parents that I partner with in the important task of drawing their girls to Christ.

Rating: 2

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review and opinion of the product.

Book Review: Understanding World Religions in 15 Minutes a Day

I have high standards for the books I read. Whether fiction or non-fiction a great book is one that shows understanding and respect of the craft itself and one that gives the reader something in return for the time they have invested in reading. All too often today I find that even though I read a lot and a wide variety that even the best looking books have some serious shortcomings.

When I first saw this book as an option on the blogggers review list I was really excited! The subject of world religions is an interesting one to me and I have done a little reading on some of the prominent ones but I really liked the idea of having a guidebook that would give me short overviews of many different ones and could be an easy reference book anytime I encountered something 'new'.

This book is divided into 40 brief chapters that cover about the same number of religions from around the world. The chapters are uncomplicated and entirely readable within the advertised 15 minute window. The chapters are largely historical in nature and provide the background story for the beginnings of each religion. In this context the book does live up to it's informational promise.

What I found lacking in the chapters was more information on the specific beliefs and tenants of the specific religion. I really hoped to find in these short chapters more info and discussion on the human side of things, what people believed and what their motivations (be it cultural or other) are for their belief and this book just didn't deliver on that. While in some context it is helpful to know the historical  background I think it really would have been more practically useful to include more of each religion's dogma.

Something that I came to suddenly realize after getting several chapters into the book was that there are no footnotes in this book. I flipped through the pages looking for some reference, or at the very least- bibliography that would allow the reader to verify the content or do further study on their own and there is none. This fact was extremely disappointing to me. As far as I am concerned a non-fiction 'study' book with no footnotes or reference to original source documentation/content is as good as fiction, or at the very least, opinion. As the book is not billed as opinion I am given no choice but to question the accuracy of the material it contains. One glaring example of the un-sourceable material was on page 83 where the categorization of the Islamic branches being described is noted as being derived " from a conversation with Samer Abdulraman" with no information as to who this person is or why he is an authority on the subject being discussed.

I had two other real issues with this book. One being that I assumed coming from a Christian publisher that this book would be written from a Christian perspective- I really didn't feel that was true. I wanted to hear a good explanation of these other religions with the starting point of a Christian worldview. What else would you expect from a Christian book- right? Part two of my disappointment was that throughout the book the author uses God with a capitol G in describing all of the gods of the world. I don't remember ever seeing this type of usage before. As far as I was aware the capitalization of God refers specifically to the singular Christian God where as the lowercase usage of god referred to the wide multitude of pagan deities. To put all "God's" on the same plane is not consistent with Christian beliefs.

In the end the concept of this format- that one could get a lot of info in a short-read time commitment- is a great one. While much of the information contained in this book seems to be accurate (from my admittedly limited knowledge) I have no way of confirming that without footnotes. A book that I hoped to be a great reference for my library and something that I could turn to over and over again has not completely measured up and that's the most disappointing thing of all because I think that with just a little more work this could have been a great reference book- even if I didn't completely agree with the author's perspective.

Final rating: 2

I received a copy of this book for free from the publisher in exchange for a honest review and opinion of the product.

Book Review: "The Messenger"

"The Messenger" by: Siri Mitchell

I chose to review this book because I had confused the author with Syrie James whose book "The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen" I had read, and I wanted to see what that author could do with more original material. Unfortunately, I only realized my mistake after I had finished reading "The Messenger"! Oh well!

This book is the story of Hannah Sutherland a Quaker in the midst of the American War for Independence. The story takes place in Philadelphia over the winter of 1778- the winter of Valley Forge's almost starvation... Hannah and her family are forced to quarter British troops in their home and live side by side with men who they want nothing to do with. These circumstances quickly force Hannah and her family out of their home and they take refuge in the home of her affluent aunt and uncle. In the midst of the upheaval in her life Hannah and her family has learned that their son, Hannah's twin brother, who fights for General Washington has been captured and thrown in jail but as part of the Quaker mandate they choose to let him rot in jail as part of the 'consequences' and 'just punishment' for the action he has chosen in going to war.  Hannah, having a deep connection to her twin begins feeling the specter of her brother and the deplorable conditions he is living in and is determined to do something to help him even though she knows it is forbidden by her 'Meeting'.

Enter Jeremiah Jones, a former British soldier in Pontiac's War. Jeremiah lost his hand in a skirmish during that war and now runs a tavern and lives in bitter resignation that he will never lead the life that he thought he would, the life that he desires to live with a wife and family. Jeremiah is a mercenary with no true loyalties and uses his tavern, as a bustling center of activity and gossip, to pass that information on. At the moment he is working to pass information to Washington through an intermediary- but finds himself on his own as the man feels the risk is becoming too great for him to continue. This leaves Jeremiah the recipient of a message planning a jail break to liberate Washington's captured soldiers with no one to work with and no means to deliver it...

So begins an unlikely partnership of convenience. Through a series of events Jeremiah is able to get Hannah into the prison to visit her brother- and pass messages and materials- in the hopes of making the jail break possible and in the process save Hannah's brother from certain death. Hannah and Jeremiah constantly butt heads and fight over the things he asks of her and what she is willing to do for him. In the midst of this Jeremiah falls in love with Hannah, but although he feels the effects of her kindness and self-sacrifice that warms his hardened heart and causes him to become a better man he continues to believe that no woman will ever want him. Hannah, in seeing the effects of war up close and personal, begins a tortured journey of conscience that eventually separates her from her 'Meeting' and her family as she can no longer stand by and remain neutral.

I really wanted to like this book as I have always enjoyed 'Revolutionary War' fiction but I kept putting the book down in disappointment... I did feel that the book is well researched but try as I might I just couldn't connect with the story. The storyline itself could have been workable and good but the narrative throughout feels really off as it is told in a really odd first person voice which also switches back and forth between the two main characters perspectives.
Much of what Hannah struggles with throughout the book stems from philosophies and theologies that I know are integral to the Quakers but are so opposite of what I myself believe that it was difficult to see that played out without wanting to throttle a few people! I was glad to see her reach a point of decision and action that allowed her to move forward with her life in a direction that she knew to be right.
Something that really grated on me was the actions of Hannah's parents, particularly her father. As they are living as guests in the aunt's home they repeatedly make a nuisance of themselves by refusing the help of the household servants/slaves or by trying to do their work. This action does nothing but make life more difficult for the servants as it brings attention and hardship to their usually unnoticed lives/work. This is always done in the name of abolition with the reasoning that 'these people are made in God's image and should not be owned by any one' (which is true) but the sentiment is curiously laughable in the face of their refusal to take sides and help those- like their own son- who are dying in the prison or are fighting to free the country from being under the tyrannnical rule of the British!!  
The thing that was extremely frustrating was the book's abrupt ending! After more than 350 pages we finally get to the big event and the reader feels that the wrap up is about to begin- then you turn the page and find you are at the end without even an epilogue! So many things are left up in the air and without answers that it really cheats the reader out of a truly happy ending! With good resolution this book could have had a strong ending that would have left the reader more satisfied.

So, in the end this is a story with good potential that never lives up to what it could be and leaves readers wanting what they should have gotten after so many long pages!

This book gets a disappointed 2 out of 5 stars.


I received a copy of this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review and opinion of the product.

Book Review: "Behind the Veils of Yemen"

A while back I found out that Bethany House publishers have a cool program where you can sign up to get books from them in exchange for an honest review on the product.
To a book lover like me it sounded like heaven!
So now from time to time I'll be posting reviews of the books I've selected to read.

We will begin with: "Behind the Veils of Yemen: How an American Woman Risked Her Life, Family and Faith to Bring Jesus to Muslim Women" by Audra Grace Shelby.


To begin: When we consider the title of the book- or more specifically the subtitle- a myriad of questions spring to mind.
*Why would an American family go to Yemen as missionaries?
*How were they put into life threatening situations?
*How was her faith risked? and
*How did she reach out and reach behind those veils?
Those questions along with the cover art immediately drew me in and made me eager to discover what was inside. Unfortunately, by the time I reached the end I really wasn't sure what to make of what I had just read and I can't say I had any of my questions answered satisfactorily.

In the first two chapters of the book we are introduced to several different story lines. As the book opens Audra and her family are flying to the Middle East to begin their missionary journey. The story then jumps back to Audra's response to her husband feeling God's call to overseas missions- in Yemen. We discover that although she was raised on the mission field she is incredulous that God would be calling her husband- and her- to that as well. She resents this new direction and digs in her heels not wanting to follow her husband or God. When she finally 'gives in' it seems it is still with gritted teeth- an attitude I think continues in different ways throughout the book. From there the narrative again jumps, forward a bit, to the Shelby's missionary board candidacy interview where Audra's husband suddenly and unexplainable falls gravely ill. Audra is sent into a tailspin of doubt and anger with God, not understanding what is happening and why. As Audra prays in the hospital chapel she has a vision of God saying her prayers will be answered so she returns to her husband's bedside where he begins to improve. While I firmly believe that God speaks to us through His word and that 'still small voice' I don't know that today He reveals Himself literally as she seems to describe. For me it was rather uncomfortable reading such an 'experience'.
Overall, I'm not sure what this beginning part of the book is meant to convey and how it adds or becomes pertinent to the rest of the story as she only relates them as pre-events and not as a real means to say this is how God changed my heart and led us to his will for our future.

The next section of the book is chapters 3-10 and focus on an 18 month period where the Shelby's are in language school. Audra takes lessons with a newly married young local women, Fatima. This section, which is the bulk of the book, follows Fatima and Audra's relationship. They shop together; attend a Muslim wedding (where the men and women never meet and celebrate separately); they visit other women together and deal with Fatima's marriage, extended family and sick newborn problems together. Sometimes her attempts at influencing Fatima are good. When she discovers Fatima's husband is addicted to pornography -a vice that hurts his wife deeply- she reacts as any of us would condemning the action as wrong for any husband of any culture. When Fatima's first child is born with health issues that would be treatable here in the US but was ignored and passed over with a promise that if Allah willed the child would get better Audra is appaled. The diagnosis (or lack of one)breaks both women's hearts and for the first time Fatima opens up and asks Audra to pray for her son because she believes in the power of and behind her prayers.                 
This middle part of the book is mostly filled with stories that touch the reader as you get glimpses into the life of a Muslim women and wonder at the hopelessness and bondage of a culture against Christ.

The final four chapters of the book center around the Shelby's finishing language school and beginning over in their permanent city of ministry before going back to the States for Audra to give birth to their fourth child.   

When I finished the book I thought "Behind the Veils of Yemen" read more like a excerpts from a personal journal than a inspiring missionary story. To begin with it isn't until the publishers note at the very back of the book that we begin to understand who Audra Grace Shelby is. From the beginning of the book we are thrown into her story without knowing or understanding any of her background that led her to this point in her life. Even after making plain her fighting to stay 'home' we are never given the whole story on how she and her husband came to the decision to go to the field. Once on the field we never settle into her life there and only get snippets of how her family functioned in a very foreign land.  Through the course of the book it is never explained how Audra befriended the women she met/ministered to until the end when we learn it was through sewing- a detail that would have made so much more sense if explained earlier.    
Also, Audra's attempts at sharing the Gospel and influencing Fatima with Western thinking often come off heavy handed (for lack of a better term) and she scares Fatima off in the beginning. Audra seems to expect instant results and that bothered me. Shouldn't a missionary know ministry on a field like this one is a long term thing where you build bit by bit? Also troubling to me was her seeming forgetfulness/lack of knowledge of some cultural customs that led to roadblocks. It made me wonder if they had been properly prepared for immersion into the culture. On the other hand I was suprised at her acceptance of customs like wearing the hejab and balto (cloak) which are religous symbols of Islam and mark her as being a subject of the very false religon that wars against Christianity. I believe she could have dressed in a completely modest way, giving deference to the culture, without compromising her own religous beliefs- and I wonder at the mission board (assumably) asking this of her.


In the end I felt that "Behind the Veils of Yemen" was not about any of the things I was promised in the title/subtitle. While I did learn a little more about Middle Eastern women this story isn't about these women- it's about Audra. Much of the story I was supposed to get is eclipsed by Audra's fighting God, Audra's fighting the culture, Audra's crises of faith,
and Audra's family's multiple health crises. It leaves the reader wondering where is Audra's relationship with God? Where is Audra showing He makes a difference as she reaches out to these Yemeni women?  Where is the hope that sharing Christ should bring? And what was/has been the fruit if the Shelby's labour?
"Behind the Veils of Yemen" causes the reader to ask many questions but leaves them with answers to few of them.

Final Rating: Two Stars  (out of five)