At the beginning of 2022, I decided that this year I would read at least 25 books (because 50 seemed close to impossible) and write a review on each one. Not all New Year's resolutions come true and mine is not an exception. In 2022 I ended up reading over 50 books but wrote less than 25 reviews!
I will not bore you with descriptions of all my reading adventures - instead I will share a few books that I liked and could recommend. I also added a few authors that I discovered this year and added to the list of my favorites.
The Birth Order Book by Kevin Leman
If you ever noticed that the youngest kids in families are usually a little spoiled and pretty creative and the oldest children like order and control, you might like this book. Dr. Leman in detail explains how your birth order defines your character, your habits, and your peculiarities. Moreover, he also gives advice to parents on how to teach and build relationships with their children depending on their birth order.
What surprised me in this book is that the author doesn't give a simple formula that would give all the answers to people's personalities. Except for birth order, other factors influence us such as gender, age differences, relationships with parents, health issues, etc. In addition, Dr. Leman brings up many nice examples including famous people and presidents.
By the way, I've heard many good reviews on other books by this author, though I haven't read many myself. One of his popular books, Sheet Music, is my top recommendation for married couples (and couples getting ready for marriage).
The Wedding Collection by Rachel Hauck
This collection consists of three books: The Wedding Dress, The Wedding Chapel, and The Wedding Shop. These fiction books describe stories of different women characters that intertwine with the lives of many other people. The wedding theme is not the only thing in common - we also are constantly reminded of the gospel, forgiveness, and God's love. My favorite one was the first book of the series.
At first, the stories might seem a bit dragged out but if you keep reading the actions unfold and by the end of the book you are surprised and amazed. Though the faith theme does not dominate, the beautifully designed storyline reminds me of how God can skillfully intertwine our life stories into a wonderful picture.
Counted With the Stars by Connilyn Cossette
Some time ago I wrote a review on a different book series by the same author - The Cities of Refuge - and it was not very positive. But I decided to give this book another chance and was pleasantly surprised. The first book of the Out From Egypt series allows the readers to take a peak into the story of the Exodus through the eyes of an Egyptian slave girl. We are used to reading the Bible's interpretation of the negotiations between Moses and Pharaoh but did you ever wonder what the ten plagues felt like for ordinary people?
I really appreciated the fact that the main character is not a jew but an Egyptian. Her view of the God of Israel, her relationship with the Hebrews, and the slow growth of her faith impressed and inspired me. The words of the law and the Old Testament in general really come alive in those books.
I've only read the first book out of three but I've heard they're also good - the story continues around the same characters in the desert. But even the first book is a finished story by itself.
Tessa Afshar
After reading the Exodus book I realized that I like biblical fiction. In search of more books like that, I discovered Tessa Afshar and have already read several books that she wrote. Land of Silence gives us the backstory of the woman suffering from bleeding for twelve years and healed by Jesus. Thief of Corinth uses fictional characters to let the readers meet with Paul and his ministry. Daughter of Rome immerses us in the story of Priscilla and Aquila and their relationship with the apostle Paul. The last book I read is called Bread of Angels and tells the story of Lydia mentioned in the book of Acts. The author also has Old Testament books but I haven't read any yet.
Tessa Afshar has a long experience in ministry as well as a Master of Divinity degree and all her books are heavily based on thorough Bible research. I am amazed by well-thought-through details, the reality of certain times and regions, characters' lifestyles and ways of thinking. At the end of each book, the author leaves a commentary explaining certain details and characters, giving some background and letting the readers know which parts of the books are Bible-based and which ones are fictional. Thanks to her books, Bible stories come alive in your imagination.
Janette Oke
The final author of this article has appeared in my blog before. Her series Love Comes Softly is by far one of my favorite books. This year I've also read Centurion's Wife and The Canadian West series.
Centurion's Wife is the first book of a historical fiction series, that covers the time between Jesus' crucifixion and the day of Pentecost. It is written from a point of view of a Pilat's slave that is supposed to marry a centurion. What I liked about this book is how the disciples and followers of Jesus are described and also the centurion whom the main character fell in love with. The book was written in collaboration with Davis Bunn who I think was responsible for the historical research part of it. This is why I found the descriptions of battles and politics a little too detailed for my taste.
The Canadian West series reminded me of the Love Comes Softly book but it's not as good. The first book - When Calls the Heart - is probably my favorite. It's a combination of North America's pioneers and a teaching career/calling. Three of the following books describe the main character's married life in the North, and the last two covers the stories of their two adopted children.
Other Books
Out of the books that I did write reviews on, I can recommend the following:
Created to Be His Help Meet by Debi Pearl,
Mere Christianity by C.S Lewis,
The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer,
As well as The Scarlet Thread and The Masterpiece by Francine Rivers.
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