Fog Harbor Series by Nicole Deese

Every once in a while, we find an author that speaks to us…Nicole Deese is one of those authors for me. As often happens, I was first attracted to the cover of The Words We Lost. As I picked it up two things stood out on the front, first she is a Christy Award-Winning author and second, she was endorsed by one of my favourite authors.

The back cover reads Three friends. Two broken promises. One missing manuscript. Obviously, the book made it into my purse and arrived on my side table that very night. As a book-buyer I have hundreds of books come across my desk each year and simply cannot read them all (but I would sure like to!)  This book however seemingly had it all and I was completely hooked within the first couple of pages!

We start at Fog Harbor Books, a publishing company located in San Fransico where Ingrid Erikson is a Senior Acquisitions Editor. After the death of her best friend, she has lost her ability to escape into the manuscripts she represents jeopardizing her career. Her only hope is to find best-selling Cecelia Campbell’s lost manuscript. Then arrives the letter, will Ingrid be up to the challenge of having to solve the riddle with the help of her ex-fiancé Joel Campbell as they strive to honour the last wishes of their beloved friend Cecelia?

I could not put this book down...it was a rich, vibrant, emotional work that resonated with me and tugged at my heart strings. Nicole tackles many tough subjects in this novel with the utmost care and understanding and reminds us that many lives are full of circumstance and past traumas others might not see or understand.

Last week I was able to get a copy of The Roads We Follow which is the second book in the series. I was pleasantly surprised to find it was just as compelling as the first…I cannot wait to finish the last few chapters. Nicole is masterful in carving out journeys of grief and complicated relationships. Her prose is almost poetic at times, her pacing impeccable, and her characters are deep and complex. You cannot help but lose yourself in her beautifully crafted stories of loss, love and healing. If you are willing to pick one up, I am positive you will not be disappointed!

He Knows Your Name

     Working in a bookstore means that you have many options for your next book. This can be influenced by cover or title, author however sometimes it only takes a quick scan of the introduction to seal the deal. That is how started reading He Knows Your Name by Paige Allen, the subtitle How 7 Nameless Women of the Bible Reveal Christ's Love For You, caught my attention but the introduction had me hooked.

But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. Isaiah 43:1

    Regardless of where we are in life, woman (and men) long to be loved and appreciated, yet so often can feel invisible even with the promise of God's presence and salvation. Allen's book invites us to take a look at the life changing moments of 7 unnamed women in the Bible encountered when they came face to face with Jesus. I will admit that growing up I never really gave much thought to the idea that many women of the Bible were not named. These women (and their stories) made it into God's Word so they were obviously important, but why? As I read, Allen's ability to weave personal stories along with Biblical truths allowed me to clearly see how these women were known and loved by Jesus. Although the world around them did not know their names, Christ did, He called them daughter.

When thinking of our identity, we know that God’s word tells us we are precious and worthy but it can be difficult to fully digest and believe at times.  Allen says, “I believe we are in a season where God wants His daughters (and sons) to wake up to the truth that He knows us better than we know ourselves. He sees, He listens, He comes close, and He understands” and she does an amazing job of outlining those truths through her thoughtful and relatable prose. The stories she shares are both funny and touching, now that I have read through it once I think I will go back with my pretty purple highlighter and spend a bit more time with these women as I gain a deeper understanding of what they endured, why the stories were told and the love that they felt by being both seen and loved by Christ. I am so glad that I picked this book up, it was a wonderful read that gave me opportunity to take a deeper look at who I am and how God sees me, even when I feel anonymous.  I look forward to seeing what she writes next. What is on your reading pile this week?

Year of Jubilee by Cindy Morgan

"Grace Mockingbird is an independent 13-year old girl growing up in the tumultuous southern town of Jubilee, Kentucky. This is the time of integration, and most folks around her seem dead set against  change. Not her mixed-heritage father, though. And not her brave new teacher, Miss Adams, who speaks about equality in a way that Grace has never heard before.  This is a coming-of-age story as well as a heart wrenching and harrowing example of how God can grow beauty from sorrow, and how often we misjudge those around us. Forgiveness also plays a big part in this story; Grace struggles with the lack of forgiveness and love she receives from her mother, and even has a hard time forgiving God when her beloved younger brother suddenly falls ill. Her family attempts to maintain normality as their relationships wear thin amidst both the racism and violence outside the house, and the emotional struggles going on within.  This book gripped me right from the prologue, and although at first I wasn't sure what kind of voice the author was going for, in the end I was hooked and grew very attached to the characters and world that Cindy Morgan built. It's important to note that with the story being set in 1960's America, it contains some dark themes, crude words, and heavy conversations. This era of change is an important part of America's history and is portrayed realistically. Overall, 'The Year of Jubilee' is a fast-paced and charming book that leaves the reader with the lingering warmth of a Kentucky summer on their skin and the heartening feeling that change is possible, no matter how heavy the storm."

Reviewed by Erin

Birds of Pray

We have a new reviewer in the house! Twelve-year-old Logan Klassen, grandson of Barb, (she's been here for over 20 years!) who loves to read, has wanted to review some books for us and we're very excited about that!
Some things to know about Logan are: he goes to Abbotsford Christian School and is in grade 7. He LOVES sports and dreams of one day being a sportscaster (I've heard he's very good at it already). He's involved in ball hockey, basketball, volleyball, cross country and track!

"In 2017, when the Eagles (being the underdogs), won the Super Bowl, the team had many Christians on their team and they prayed regularly as a team. The team grew closer because of their faith. This book is good for sports fans who would like to read how faith and prayer can have a positive effect on a team."

-Logan Klassen-

For more information on Birds of Pray by Rob Maaddi, visit us in store or visit our website here.

Camp Average

Why be number one when you can be number two?
 
Sports summer camp Camp Average (officially Camp Avalon) loves to boast about being in second place. Their team chant is “we’re number two!”. They never win at any sport, and Mack and the other boys of cabin 10 are quite happy with it that way. But this summer is different. This summer, they have new camp director, and this guy is hyper competitive and has one goal for their camp: to win. In an attempt to reclaim their easy going summer routine, Mack tries to lead the whole camp in a rebellion of utter failure. The boys will have to work together, and push through the torturous training Winston insists on putting them through in order to win back their Camp Average fun.
 
I picked up this book at the recommendation of a customer, and it was well worth it. Craig Battle, a Canadian author who has written for OWL magazine and has worked as a camp counselor, writes a great story. While I am in no way a sports fan, I found myself getting pulled into the boys story and the hi-jinks, plotting, pranks and struggles that ensued. The boys of the cabin are well varied in character and can appeal to a wide variety of readers. Battle’s writing is simple, concise but clear, and does an excellent job of conveying enough for the reader to have a vivid picture of the campers and their camp life without being overly wordy.
 
For a kid struggling to get into reading, or someone who loves a good sports story, I recommend this fun Canadian read. 

--Lauryssa--

For more information on Camp Average by Craig Battle, visit us in store, or visit our website here. 

Far Side of the Sea

Colin Mabry was briefly introduced in Kate Breslin's other WWI novel Not By Sight as the brother of Grace, that novels' heroine. In that story, he goes missing in action in the chaos of the European front.

Picking up several months later, we find Colin attempting to come to terms with his new reality as an amputee; having lost his left hand in a tunnel collapse and haunted by memories of the terror he experienced. Colin is tasked with decoding messages delivered by carrier pigeons from France and he is shocked to receive a missive from Jewel (the woman responsible for once risking her life to save his, and one he long thought lost). Gathering the tattered remnants of his courage, Colin returns to France, determined to keep his youthful promise to rescue Jewel from the horrors of war.

But instead of Jewel, another woman awaits him in Paris--Jewel's half-sister Johanna, who is determined to find her long-lost sister with the help of the soldier who had once captured her sister's affections. Convinced her sister is in the clutches of a German spy, Johanna is desperate for Colin's help to find and free her sister. Colin reluctantly agrees to become Johanna's ally, and the two embark on a quest to find Jewel across France and Spain. But Johanna's fervor to find her remaining family, conceals secrets of her own. Ones if revealed, would threaten the tenuous connection building between herself and Colin.

This book is a combination of stunning historical detail, (the pieces regarding carrier pigeon use during WWI are fascinating) full of action, adventure, suspense, mystery and romance. Breslin seamlessly weaves together all of those elements, leaving you frantic to read the pages as quickly has possible. The emotional themes Breslin deal with in these pages are gutting; (i.e. PTSD, illegitimacy, violent rebellion) and in lesser hands would risk seeming melodramatic of cheap. But Kate Breslin is a master at unraveling emotional turmoil and depth with nuance and compassion, leading her characters through their respective valleys toward hope and restoration.

I loved the characters and how their faith and stumbles helped them grow and change throughout the story. Despite his disabilities and the challenges those pose to him in his everyday life, Colin forges through, trusting God is good even when things seem dark. A lesson we all need to be reminded of.

--Candace--

For more information on Far Side of the Sea by Kate Breslin, visit us in store, or visit our website here. 

Within These Lines

How can someone be loyal to a country that has cast him out? How can love survive when all the odds stand against it? How can goodness prevail when those fighting for freedom also violate the virtue they've gone to war to protect?

In 1941, Evalina Cassano is an Italian American teenager living in San Francisco. Her family owns a very successful restaurant and she has a bright future ahead of her after being accepted to attend Berkley. But the heart wants what the heart wants and hers belongs to a young Japanese American boy named Taichi Hamasaki, the son of the produce farmers that help supply her parents’ restaurant. The relationship is difficult enough as it is, but on December 7th, the Japanese struck Pearl Harbor and overnight America develops an anti-Japanese sentiment. As the days continue, his family volunteers to go to Manzanar Internment Camp for the duration of the war. Communicating via letters, they at first seem sure their love will survive the separation. But Taichi's life in the camp is far from okay.

 I found it tremendously moving to see how Taichi, his family, and the other brave Japanese families worked to maintain a sense of dignity and order and community in the midst of terribly heartbreaking conditions. Within These Lines deals with many things, but mainly daily life in internment camps. I knew a little bit of what life was like in internment camps during this time, but this book shines a light on the living conditions, the day-to-day activities, and the conflicting beliefs of the interned people throughout the camp. It was incredibly heartbreaking and often hard to read at times. But very important. This is one of the only times I’ve seen books approach this topic so closely and so raw and near to the matter, and I love that the book wasn’t shrouded in depression and darkness, but rather in hope – even though the situation was full of despair.

This quote from the book resonated with me, "As the brilliant sunset cools to gray, I vow my anger over blatant discrimination will not cool. As these rocks stay steady through season changes and time, so I will remain steady. I will not be silent. I will not let this go.” Stories like this remind me not to judge neighbors based on fear and assumptions. Stories like this inspire me to be courageously compassionate, fiercely loyal, and graciously determined. And stories like this remind me that holding to one's convictions and moral compass is always the right course of action, even when your pride is bruised and your loyalty tested.

-- Candace --

For more information on Within These Lines by Stephanie Morrill, visit us in store, or visit our website here .