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Back Porch Book Chat: Mark Hunt (Author), Part 1
Back Porch Book Chat: A casual, virtual conversation about books. Join us as we chat with book lovers like ourselves about a topic we all love! Our guest today is Mark Hunt, son of the late Gladys Hunt. He chats with us about Gladys Hunt’s legacy, his own work, and more! Interview conducted by Janie. Note: this interview was first published, in part, for our print magazine, The Redeemed Reader Quarterly. Generally, our print content does not also appear on the website, but we had two delightful interviews we just had to share with our web readers. Enjoy, and know that this is a taste of what comes in the…
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The Bletchley Girls by Anna Stuart
So Brave, So Skillful The Bletchley Girls by Anna Stuart is a marvellous historical novel that I just could not put down. Whilst World War II was undoubtedly absolutely awful, it did provide opportunities for woman. Previously expected to marry and reproduce, now women could have positions of responsibility and really make a difference to […]
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Back Porch Book Chat: Meghan Cox Gurdon (Book Reviewer, Author)
Back Porch Book Chat: A casual, virtual conversation about books. Join us as we chat with book lovers like ourselves about a topic we all love! Our guest today is Meghan Cox Gurdon. She chats with us about reading with her family, her new book, and more! Interview conducted by Betsy. Note: this interview was first published, in part, for our print magazine, The Redeemed Reader Quarterly. Generally, our print content does not also appear on the website, but we had two delightful interviews we just had to share with our web readers. Enjoy, and know that this is a taste of what comes in the Quarterly! Getting to Know…
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Home Library Management: Heart Issues
Help! I have too many books! Is this a familiar concern? Of course you wouldn’t want to blame the books. An abundant home library is a good thing…isn’t it? Isn’t the problem really not having enough shelves? Like yours, my beloved bookshelves are painfully overflowing, and when our home library outgrows its boundaries, the shelves no longer invite browsing. Our family does not gratefully appreciate what the Lord has blessed us with, and I cannot maintain order in the midst of excess, even when the abundance is good books. Libraries regularly “weed” the books that no longer fit their collection in order to make room for the ones that do.…
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Lines of Courage by Jennifer A. Nielsen
Lines of Courage follows five young protagonists through the epoch-making carnage of World War I. Lines of Courage by Jennifer A. Nielsen. Scholastic Press, 2022, 380 pages. Reading Level: Middle Grades, ages 10-12 Recommended for: ages 10-15 Lives Upended In spite of his father’s reassurances, Felix Baum felt uneasy that day in Serajevo. Papa’s business had brought them from Austria to Serbia, where the movement for independence from the Austro-Hungarian empire was growing. Still, neither Felix nor his father were prepared for the shock when a Serbian patriot shot and killed the Archduke Francis Ferdinand and his wife. And though neither expected it at the time, within months Europe would…
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Saving Geraldine Corcoran by Hazel Ward
So Powerful Saving Geraldine Corcoran by Hazel Ward is the third book in the Netta Wild series but can be read as a stand-alone. It was such a powerful read that totally consumed me. I did not so much read the book – I ‘lived’ it. The story has a dual timeline – now and […]
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Harold The British Bulldog by Monica Ann Fourie
Bringing Harold To Life Harold The British Bulldog by Monica Ann Fourie is a wonderful book for children that surrounds choosing and owning a new pet – in this case, Harold the British Bulldog. The book is suitable for our children aged over three years old – either to read to them or for more […]
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The Invitation by Diana Gordon
All Welcome The Invitation by Diana Gordon is a beautiful tale for the under fives based on Luke 14: 15-24 and Matthew 22: 2-14. The original Bible story can be read alongside the children’s book so that the children realise that the invitation is issued to them whoever they are – Jesus asks them to […]
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The Visible Hand by Matthew Hennessey
The Visible Hand introduces teens to basic free-market economics in a way that’s accessible and entertaining. The Visible Hand: A Wealth of Notions on the Miracle of the Market by Matthew Hennesey. Encounter Books, 2022, 220 pages. Reading Level: Teen, ages 16-18 Recommended for: ages 15-up Who says we can’t have everything? What’s the problem with a minimum wage? Why can’t we afford a vacation this year? If gas prices go too high, isn’t there something the government can do to fix it? These are legitimate questions that even teenagers may be starting to ask. Mark Hennessey is a journalist, not an economist—in fact he never even thought much about…
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Brand New Kid by David Almond
Brand New Boy explores the “humanity” of manufactured humans through the eyes of curious middle-school students. Brand New Boy by David Almond, with pictures by Marta Altés. Candlewick, 2022, 304 pages. Reading Level: Middle Grades, ages 10-12 Recommended for: ages 10-14 What to make of the New Kid? Daniel and his mates at Darwin Avenue Primary Academy are intrigued when the headmistress, Mrs. Hoolihan, announces a new boy at school. Her excitement indicates more than an ordinary transfer student, and indeed, George is peculiar. He doesn’t have a last name, doesn’t appear to have a family, and doesn’t respond to normal kid interaction. But on the second day his ear…
