23: Bread of Angels

Tessa Asfar has done it again!  Through these pages, one journeys back..all the way back to New Testament times, to re-meet through the genre of historical fiction the lovely Lydia, the maker of purple. 

My third Afshar read, I continue to be amazed at the Biblical connections, the adherence to history, and the characters who come alive in my head...and heart.   For these reasons, I now know to clear my calendar for the hours I will need to devote to the immersion into the culture of the times and characters. Always a great journey!

In Bread of Angels, Lydia endures much as she fulfills her destiny as the first documented Christian convert.  Wow!  And what an example she is!  Learning from her mistakes, the reader witnesses the maturation and leadership of one who lived, learned, and learned on the pages of the Bible...and in Afshar’s novel. 

Afshar enlivens this novel even more as she introduces Paul, Silas, and Luke...and others, embedding the prison scene that involved an earthquake. Remember that one?  I enjoyed the shaking!  Well written this scene is. 

As a testament to how much I enjoyed this and the other Afshar novels, my selection for my local book club will be Bread of Angels.  I look forward to the discussion!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ = 5 Stars!

Enjoy!  Happy reading!

22: Thief of Corinth

Tessa Afshar, award-winning author of Harvest of Gold and Pearl in the Sand, does it again:  she captures a Biblical narrative and paints the details of these people's lives onto the pages for the readers to get to know, creating a masterpiece, humanizing those mentioned within the chapters of the books of the Bible.

In the Thief of Corinth, Afshar introduces fictional characters Ariadne and her father Galenos, who in some ways takes on the theme of Robin Hood, as Ariadne soon learns, after coming to live with her father, that he is the Honorable Thief of Corinth.  Quickly, she becomes involved in his adventures, soon meeting Paul and continuing to struggle with the decisions being made and her increasing knowledge of the message Paul shares, who message assists in bringing healing to the torn relations among the family members, including foster brother Theo and biological brother Dionysus.

A stand-alone and one that requires little Biblical background, this novel keeps the read engaged with vivid details and descriptions as the culture and setting are experienced firsthand through the lens of Ariadne, who also trains much for a race in which she will enter, resulting in more than one raised eyebrow.

What a grand journey to travel back into time and learn more about first century Corinth, so, yes, plan some time to dive into this one, for reading cover to cover quickly becomes the goal as adventure, danger, travel, and mystery all wrap around the characters.

21: The Forgotten Road

Review coming soon!

20: Dead in the Shadow of Doubt

Such a fun read...for two reasons (and more)...this one was written by my creative writing teacher in college...and the setting is our hometown (renamed...to protect?...!)

More review coming...

How Challenging Should a Good Challenge Be?

This year, I have challenged myself to average reading one book a week.

As of now, I have read 18 books; therefore, I am one book short of my goal thus far.

But...my goal, too, was to read an average of one book EACH week.  That I have not been able to accomplish for a couple of reasons:  busy schedule and too much time spent on my phone(!)...I actually do read much on my phone, but this is just not the same as picking up one of my books!

Back to my question:  how challenging should a good challenge be?

The answer:  any challenge that encourages us/anyone/me to read is a good challenge.  Right?  Absolutely!

I take this same approach with my students:  better to read a little than to read not at all, for, hopefully, a little will become more which adds up to completing a book!  Success!

BUT...challenges do encourage me, motivate me to read more that I would have.  Just as creating my reading lists here encourages me to read more. 

May I encourage YOU to keep a list of what you read, week by week, month by month?  Amazingly, this time passes and quickly adds up to  year!  Then, the years roll by, and you have all kinds of data about your own...probably changing...reading habits.  Pick up a notebook, create a blog, add the titles to a calendar.  For you, as this has been for me, will become a challenge that is just right for you!

Start now, today, this week.  Just start!  Challenge yourself!   Good luck!

My Spring Reads...so far...

Check out this eclectic array of books.  Fun!

1. In the Field of Grace by Tessa Afshar
• Love this author.  I am so looking forward to diving into Afshar's advanced reader's copy of Thief of Corinth that I received!  Happy dance!   In the meantime, I have been sharing this one with friends...and encouraging them to read others by this author.  She takes you right there...and we live and breathe with these characters from the Bible.
2. On Calvary's Hill by Max Lucado - March 31
• This and the next one I read as part of 40 days of Lent.  I simply devoted more Quiet Time in the mornings.  I enjoyed it!  These were very short reads but offered different insights that I had not considered.  
3. 40 Days of Decrease by Alicia Britt Chole - March 31
• This one I would re-read next year; just soooo much within these pages, including much history about Lent.  I enjoyed it...highly recommend this one.
4. The Secret of the Scarab Beetle by William Meyer - April 15
• This one I read for Arkansas Reading Association's April Book Club where we met online in a closed Facebook Group Page live with the author William Meyer who is a wealth of information.   This type of meeting I also highly recommend!  Written for young readers and the first in a series of two, Meyer creates interesting characters and takes them on even more fascinating adventures.
5. Solo by Krame Alexander - May 1
• For our BHS Faculty Book Club, we read this one for the month of April as its genre is poetry...and kids LOVE this author's books as read alouds.  I place the texts under the document camera, and the kiddos read along.  Fun!  Love the rhythms and the various genres the author used throughout this one as we are introduced to main character Blade whose father is a famous rock star.
6. Awaken by Priscilla Shirer - May 8
• This devotional book consists of 90 reads...took me just a bit longer than that as I picked up the two reads for Lent.  This one also includes pages for journaling, which I attempted, giving myself the time to reflect, which is powerful (just as blogging is, also!).
7. - 8.  Fear Nothing (May 12) and Seize the Night (May 14) both by Dean Koontz 
• I discovered this trilogy (Koontz still has yet to write book three) recently while I was in a peer's classroom and looking over her collection of fiction in her science classroom (yes, very excited to see books in the teacher of another curriculum's classroom!).  I ended up leaving without borrowing, so I decided to just purchase and read, which I did...rather quickly...and enjoyed.  This series encourages one to think about what the government does in those secret hideaway places...seriously!  Also...I enjoyed underling some powerful references to God...was very please about that!  Yes.   

What's up next?  Local author Sandy Barnett's Dead in the Shadow of Doubt (for next Monday's BHS Faculty Book Club meeting!) and Tessa Afshar's Thief in Corinth...two of my next in quiet the pile to be read.  Summer is off to a grand start!  Yes!

Please share!  Which title are you most excited to read this summer?