Gravel Road Musings

  Kim Vogel Sawyer has a talent for writing in a style that I love and always want more of. This book was no different and I read it in a matter of a couple of days. Of course, being on vacation certainly helped me be able to read it faster.  Fanny is an indentured servant on a river boat. Indentured servant is a nice term, basically she was a slave. She finds a chance to flee because she knows that her master is not going to give her her freedom when her time is up. I don't want to give a lot of spoilers, but there is, of course, the happy ending and the suspenseful moments before you reach the happy ending that keep you on the edge of your seat. But there's something I want to focus on and I hope I don't give away any spoilers in doing this. There is a point, towards the very end of the book, when Fanny's freedom is once again endangered and she is not sure she will remain a free person physically. It is at that point that she realizes something very profound. She rea...

  This historical fiction opened up a whole new area of history for me that I was very unaware of. I knew of the Indian schools that the white people had established and how awful it was for the Indians, how they were to give up their own culture to embrace the white man's way of life, but what I didn't know was that there was someone who was taken in by their singing and who set about to preserve it for generations to come. Enter Natalie Curtis. She hears one elderly Indian woman singing a song and she is transfixed and given a purpose that she pursues with intensity for the next couple of years. This purpose helps to restore the health and vigor that had been stolen from Natalie at the beginning of her music career. While historical fiction, Jane tried to stay as true to the story as she could. There really is a book called "The Indians' Book" edited by Natalie Curtis and filled with songs, legends, stories and more that tell of numerous Indian tribes at the tur...

  Illustrated by Guy Wolek This is the story of a crab who loves adventure. He will go where ever he can in his quest to see what he can discover. But one day, he is lifted out of the water and taken away and what will happen to him now? I got this book last week in the mail and I have read it aloud at least four times. My four-year-old son loves the story.  I like how Kevin and Layla made the story their story showcasing their biracial family. I thought the illustrations were also well done. But in all honesty, the story doesn't grab me like it grabs my four-year-old son. I feel like there's something missing. Other than the crab being happy there is no real moral to the story, it's just a nice story. And while I have no problems with just a nice story, I like when stories drive home a truth that I hope will stick with my kiddos. However, as it stands now, I have many more readings of this book to undergo until my son tires of it.  I received this book from Bethany House...

  Making prayer the first and best response to motherhood.  This is the second book of Brooke's that I have read and it was every bit as good as the first. It took me a bit to get into it, but that was due in part to it not being a great book to read when you are really tired. But once I had time and energy, the book was super good and just what I needed to kick start me back into working on being an intentional mom.  Brooke attacks some of the common excuses and challenges that she hears from moms that are preventing them from praying. Excuses like I don't know if my prayers really matter or I don't know what to pray and others. I don't have to wait until I have all my ducks in a row to pray and Brooke does a good job of showing you that. I think one of the most powerful things for me in reading this book was the way she prays the Bible. She will take a Bible verse and just pray it back to God as it pertains to a circumstance she is facing. It really makes the Scriptur...

  5 Skills Every Child Needs in a Tech-Driven World A few years ago, Gary and Arlene wrote a book called, "Growing up Social" on how to raise relational kids in a world dominated by screens. You can read my review about that book  here . Now they have written another book, an updated version if you will, because of the increase in screen use over the last few years.  "It's time to treat our kids with more respect and attention than we give our phones. And we must fight for our kids to experience childhood before experiencing devices." This book is an excellent read for any parent that is concerned about what, if any, effect screens will have on their kids. It's sobering and creates a huge responsibility for me as a mom to create a culture in our home that doesn't place so much attention on screens. I use my phone a lot and, since reading this book, I have been trying to be more intentional about when and how I use my phone. I need to be modeling for my c...