Procrastination? Fear? Perfectionism? Time Management? Willpower?
All these words and then some are addressed in Glynnis Whitwer's new book, "Taming the To Do List" and when I saw the title up for review, I thought, "yeah that might be good for me." I guess based on the title I thought that it would actually give pointers to refine, breakdown, organize--"tame"--my to-do list. I was pleasingly......disappointed. While Whitwer does address what I thought the book would be about in a small portion, she actually addresses more the psychology behind why the list can or cant' be tamed. Namely, a lot of those words at the top of this review.
You can tell that Whitwer definitely did her homework siting references from books and studies she used to educate herself on this topic. Not only were there scholarly references, but she took it a step further to use biblical references as well.
As a christian, I often wonder how I am doing on God's to-do list for me. For example, she sites fear as one of those reasons we may procrastinate and then sites verses to help us combat that feeling.
There are end of chapter self-help sections where the reader is asked to "list" things and apply what you just read.
All in all, I was pleasantly surprised by this book! It definitely helped me recognize some things about myself that I can improve on. Like this review for example. This was the last day for reviews to be submitted. Its 7:30pm...Can we say, this was a good book for me to read? 5 stars!!!
(I was given this book for free by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
"Last Chance Hero" Book Review
Jessica MacLeod arrives in Last Chance, New Mexico with hopes of finally having her own medical practice and living part of a childhood dream. She quickly realizes that her city ways, unfamiliarity with small-town high-school football and whether she wants "red" or "green" puts her in the minority.
New head football coach for Last Chance High, Andy Ryan returns to his hometown of Last Chance a hero of the "glory days" of football and Puma Pride. Andy soon finds that the memories and expectations of the past--on and off the field--still linger.
Can this newcomer and a high-school golden boy share enough interests to be friends and possibly more? Or will expectations fizzle this relationship before love has a chance in Last Chance?
Cathleen Armstrong threw me right in to the middle of the Last Chance series. This is the fourth book in A Place To Call Home series. This is a novel on its own, but reading the others in the series would have been helpful just to get a better feel for the town and residents.
The book itself, I felt, was a little more on the lighter side of what I'm used to reading. However, the characters do have internal struggles and issues to overcome. I wouldn't say the the characters are multi-dimensional, but they are easy to relate to--especially since the storyline does take place in modern day.
There were several characters to keep track of, but not too difficult to do so. There are the usual characters that are endearing and the ones you question motives. The setting is in a small town, so characters and their relationships overlap.
Overall, the book moved along at a nice pace.
One thing I experienced while reading this book was an absolute craving for green chile! ("Red" or
"green" is an accompaniment at the local restaurant, The Dip-n-Dine) Literally, I would be reading and my mouth would water! So if you like Mexican food, beware!!
My only disappointment was nearing the end, I was left asking lots of questions of "what happened to..." However, for Armstong to structure her novel that way was a clever tool to lead you to want to read the next in the series. Kudos on that!
Overall, I would give this a 4 stars out of 5.
(I was given this book for free by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)
New head football coach for Last Chance High, Andy Ryan returns to his hometown of Last Chance a hero of the "glory days" of football and Puma Pride. Andy soon finds that the memories and expectations of the past--on and off the field--still linger.
Can this newcomer and a high-school golden boy share enough interests to be friends and possibly more? Or will expectations fizzle this relationship before love has a chance in Last Chance?
Cathleen Armstrong threw me right in to the middle of the Last Chance series. This is the fourth book in A Place To Call Home series. This is a novel on its own, but reading the others in the series would have been helpful just to get a better feel for the town and residents.
The book itself, I felt, was a little more on the lighter side of what I'm used to reading. However, the characters do have internal struggles and issues to overcome. I wouldn't say the the characters are multi-dimensional, but they are easy to relate to--especially since the storyline does take place in modern day.
There were several characters to keep track of, but not too difficult to do so. There are the usual characters that are endearing and the ones you question motives. The setting is in a small town, so characters and their relationships overlap.
Overall, the book moved along at a nice pace.
One thing I experienced while reading this book was an absolute craving for green chile! ("Red" or
"green" is an accompaniment at the local restaurant, The Dip-n-Dine) Literally, I would be reading and my mouth would water! So if you like Mexican food, beware!!
My only disappointment was nearing the end, I was left asking lots of questions of "what happened to..." However, for Armstong to structure her novel that way was a clever tool to lead you to want to read the next in the series. Kudos on that!
Overall, I would give this a 4 stars out of 5.
(I was given this book for free by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)
Tuesday, September 29, 2015
"The Memory Weaver" Book Review
In this coming-of-age story of Eliza Spalding, we watch a girl become a woman in the fairly untamed region of the Pacific northwest. Daughter of missionary parents, Eliza carves out her way. Always dogged by memories of abduction from an Indian tribe close to the settlement where her parents ministered, can she find her way and heal from that incident so long ago?
This is the first novel I've read by Jane Kirpatrick. She clearly took great effort in researching the life and times of Eliza Spalding and her family and that of Marcus and Narcissa Whitman and the mission establishments in what is now Washington state and surrounding areas. The characters were real and Kirpatrick gave them voice and humanized them, even though this is a work of fiction.
I really appreciated the map and the cast of characters section at the beginning of the book. I'm not familiar much with the locale of the setting in the story and this greatly helped paint a picture in my mind's eye.
The structure of the book was a little confusing for me to follow. The "memory weaving" was done strategically using Eliza's mother's diary to almost preface or mirror what was going on in Eliza's life at the time. So, there was a lot of back and forth between memories and current story line. Then nearing the end of the book, Eliza has an epiphany...I can't say much more than that. But, by the end of the book, I found myself wanting to know "so what really happened"? Maybe a short blurb at the front of the book with the actual history surrounding the abduction, etc. would have been good. There was information at the back of the book, but I discovered this after the fact.
The characters of Eliza's sisters, father and Andrew were nicely peppered and unique in their own way adding spice to the story. They too have their own struggles we see.
The book is written in the first person. A nice touch given the intimacy (non-romantic) of the story line between mother and daughter and the inner struggle they each had.
This was a storyline that makes you think and puts you into the minds of two strong women. Put it during an exciting time of our nations growth and in a rare setting as well, you have the makings of an interesting read. I give it 4 stars out of 5.
(I was given this book for free by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)
This is the first novel I've read by Jane Kirpatrick. She clearly took great effort in researching the life and times of Eliza Spalding and her family and that of Marcus and Narcissa Whitman and the mission establishments in what is now Washington state and surrounding areas. The characters were real and Kirpatrick gave them voice and humanized them, even though this is a work of fiction.
I really appreciated the map and the cast of characters section at the beginning of the book. I'm not familiar much with the locale of the setting in the story and this greatly helped paint a picture in my mind's eye.
The structure of the book was a little confusing for me to follow. The "memory weaving" was done strategically using Eliza's mother's diary to almost preface or mirror what was going on in Eliza's life at the time. So, there was a lot of back and forth between memories and current story line. Then nearing the end of the book, Eliza has an epiphany...I can't say much more than that. But, by the end of the book, I found myself wanting to know "so what really happened"? Maybe a short blurb at the front of the book with the actual history surrounding the abduction, etc. would have been good. There was information at the back of the book, but I discovered this after the fact.
The characters of Eliza's sisters, father and Andrew were nicely peppered and unique in their own way adding spice to the story. They too have their own struggles we see.
The book is written in the first person. A nice touch given the intimacy (non-romantic) of the story line between mother and daughter and the inner struggle they each had.
This was a storyline that makes you think and puts you into the minds of two strong women. Put it during an exciting time of our nations growth and in a rare setting as well, you have the makings of an interesting read. I give it 4 stars out of 5.
(I was given this book for free by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Roscoe
A good walking buddy and awesome frisbee catcher! Life cut short by a brain tumor.
Tuffy
If ever there was a candidate for Dog Heaven, it would be Tuff. Tuff was put to rest December 7, 2012. At almost 14 years old, he threw the longevity curve for dogs of his breed-makeup and size. He battled 2 types of cancer and Cushing's Disease as well as arthritis. Faithful to the end and never grumpy, depite the constant care and nagging from me. Always the protector, gentleman and companion--you will be sorely missed by all who had the opportunity to know you.
Cranky Thomas
Ever wonder why it's called "Life On CT Farm"? The horse you see in the pictures is Cranky Thomas, a registered quarter horse gelding. He was born May 5, 1980 in Galion, Alabama and passed away August 3, 2004 on CT Farm--his farm. He originally belonged to my husband, but I adopted him and I think he adopted me. We competed together in contest classes at local horse shows. But, an old injury finally slowed him down and I retired him in 2000. He was a loving and patient being that I completely trusted and admired. There will never be another like him, never. He meant so much to me that I named our farm after him as well as my company, Cranky T. LLC. He's gone now, but is still with me and now you.
