Everything She Didn't Say, Jane Kirkpatrick. (Book Review)

About the book:


In 1911, Carrie Strahorn wrote a memoir entitled Fifteen Thousand Miles by Stage, which shared some of the most exciting events of 25 years of traveling and shaping the American West with her husband, Robert Strahorn, a railroad promoter, investor, and writer. That is all fact. Everything She Didn't Say imagines Carrie nearly ten years later as she decides to write down what was really on her mind during those adventurous nomadic years.

Certain that her husband will not read it, and in fact that it will only be found after her death, Carrie is finally willing to explore the lessons she learned along the way, including the danger a woman faces of losing herself within a relationship with a strong-willed man and the courage it takes to accept her own God-given worth apart from him. Carrie discovers that wealth doesn't insulate a soul from pain and disappointment, family is essential, pioneering is a challenge, and western landscapes are both demanding and nourishing. Most of all, she discovers that home can be found, even in a rootless life.

With a deft hand, New York Times bestselling author Jane Kirkpatrick draws out the emotions of living--the laughter and pain, the love and loss--to give readers a window not only into the past, but into their own conflicted hearts. Based on a true story. 


My thoughts: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
An interesting and intriguing story. Had me laughing and at times had my heart breaking.
My heart ached for a woman who died nearly 100 years ago as she faced the hardships of life in the West with a strong-willed husband.
A beautiful woman who lived an extraordinary life. One of the most selfless, caring woman I have ever known through the pages of a book.
Carrie inspired me to stay positive, or in my "Happy lane," as she would have said.
She dutifully cared for others, and put everyone before herself. She was a great example of a Christian woman.
The author, Jane Kirkpatrick, has a beautiful talent of description. I felt like I was with Carrie and Robert at Yellowstone. I could see the grandeur mountains. I could see the 26 men they had to bunk down with. I could hear the water dripping and could smell the earthy must as Carrie was lowered into a mine shaft.
Jane is very talented author. Bravo!

What I really longed for was purposeful activity. A life without a purpose is a story without an ending. - Carrie Adell Strahorn 

Landscapes ask us to ponder our inner being. Dutch painters coined that word- landscape-when they moved from painting seascapes to capturing the beauty of the interior of a land, her mountains and valleys and rivers. Wish I could paint what feelings the West's grand landscapes inspire in me. October 10, 1880

I felt such clarifications with that statement. Because that is what happens in my soul when I look across an open field that goes as far as the eye can see.
I connected with Carrie on a deeper level.
She spoke not only to my heart, but to my soul.

Get your copy here.
I looked around a bit and this is the best price I could find :)

Not the Boss of Us, Kay Wills Wyma (Book Review)

• My thoughts: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

  It orginally took me a bit to get into this book, I guess I just wasn't very inspired. But that all changed quickly!

  This book was so beautiful, and so, well, life changing. It has given me a new passion for life with Jesus and just being a kind person in general.

  Laced with some heartache, but joy in the midst of pain, this book was encouraging. I am completely in awe of how Kay Wyma puts overwhelmed in its place.

    I actually requested to review this book at a time when I was feeling overwhelmed, about book reviewing i

  ironically.

  This book was a reminder that people are just people. We all struggle with the same things. We have the same joys, hurts, expectations and Longing to belong  We all struggle with the same self worth issues and peer pressures.
• in the after math of devastation, a battle cry has gone out and a line has been drawn in the sand, at least in our house. We're suck of Overwhelmed. Tired of it weighing down the people with whom we live life. Tired of it labeling people, then duping them into thinking all is okay only if or when. Worn out by the stress bombs that steal life and replace it with scrambling at best--isolation at worst. We say no more to stress induced  pressure laden Overwhelmed. It is not the boss of us. Every aspect of Overwhelmed, the big, the small, and all its sneaky attempts to steal peace and joy--has been put on notice. - Kay Wills Wyma.
  
  I urge you to put overwhelmed in its place and be overwhelmed by God and His truth.
  
  
  Prayerful yours,
  Rebekah❤️
• 
  

Author Interview: Annie Louise Twitchell.

Today I'll be interviewing Annie Louise Twitchell, Author of Through the Pages.

Welcome to the blog Annie!
Q: What most inspired you to write Through the Pages ? 

• Last summer, my mom and I got a bunch of old, old books from my grandparents barn. They were from my great-grandmother Stella, who I never met, and had been sitting in their hay loft for years and years. While sorting them, I found myself wondering about old books in general, and then I started to visualize someone who watched out for the old, old stories. Someone who treasured them. Someone who probably liked the books more than the people around them. 

  
  

  When I asked God "What do I write next?", He said, "Write a book for your mother." And I knew it would be a story about books, and a book about stories. I knew that person who kept the old books would be in it. And I knew it was a terribly important story for me, for my mom, and maybe for other people.

  
  

  Q: What is your number one inspiration when it comes to writing? 

  
  

  The world around me. I live in a little village and I grew up with books, and I wander around the woods and fields and the riverbanks around here. I watch for things and people that are interesting, exciting, and I make notes of things that catch my fancy. 

  
  

  Q: How did publishing your first book change your process of writing? 

  
  

  Well, Through the Pages is my first novel, but actually my seventh published solo piece. The others are poetry books and short stories and a novella. Way back in May 2017 when I published Spinner of Secrets, my entire world flipped upside down. I wasn't writing just for myself anymore. I mean, I always write for myself, but after publishing that first book I was writing for other people to read, too. I had to change how I communicated through my writing, so I made more sense. And I had to learn to actually follow through with a project. 

  
  

  Q: What does literary success look like to you? 

  
  

  Oh goodness, I don't know. 

  
  

  I want to impact people's lives. That was the biggest goal when I decided to become an author and have that be 'what I do'. I want to touch them. And I guess I've done that already. I just want to reach more. 

  
  

  Q: How do you select the names of your characters? 

  
  

  I don't. They usually walk on page and inform me what their name is. Occasionally they change names partway through. In Through the Pages, for example, Misty's real name is Miranda, but she won't be called that. I couldn't write her like that. She's Misty, all the way through. 

  
  

  Q: What advice do you have for writers? 

  
  

  There's a blog post I wrote for a teen group I'm involved in, that's here. I also would tell them that it's okay to fail. It's okay to have bad reviews. It's okay to fall down. But that's not the end of the story for you. Cry a bit, be hurt and disappointed, then take a deep breath and stand up and own it. If you do the best you can do, that's all anyone has a right to ask of you. Do your utmost and no more. Don't push too hard for perfection. That's a relatively unimportant thing.

  
  

  Q: What's next for you?

  
  

  My mind is buzzing with possibilities. I've spent much of the summer working on a YA urban fantasy duo of books, and while I'm making progress, it's going slow. I've also been working on my contemporary novella series, The Importance Books. 

  
  

  What's most likely to be published next? I have no idea. At this point I just follow where the wind blows. 

  
  

  I'm really hoping I'll be able to present at my state homeschool convention next spring. I want to talk about doing something even when it's hard and you think you'll fail. We'll see if I get to!

I wish you all the best of luck Annie! 

Through the Pages (Blog Tour), Annie Twitchell (Book Review)

Through the Pages is on tour!

You can check out the launch post and the other stops Here! :)

About the book:

Spring will always follow Winter.
Misty doesn't know who she is. Nineteen years old, she's trapped inside who she has been, with no idea who she could be.

When she goes to Mill's End to take care of her stubborn, book-loving grandmother, she finds herself torn between past and present. The answer to who she is lies hidden in her grandmother's library. Her path to find herself takes her through the fading pages of dusty books and the memories of a woman who has lived a full life. It is up to Misty to write the final chapter to the dearest story of them all.

This first novel from Annie Louise Twitchell has been described as "stunning..." "a heartfelt story of finding yourself..."

My thoughts: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Annie. You. Have. Outdone. Yourself. 
 I can't even describe how much I love this book!!!! It is so amazing!!
It was beautiful and magical, and soulful, and just incredible.
 This was definitely my kind of book! I felt like God had put this book in my hands at just the right moment.
I loved the characters  Misty, Jeremiah, Gamma, and all of those other spectacular characters sprinkled in. They were so fun and quirky!

Misty had so much soul, so much potential for becoming an amazing person. I loved her character growth throughout the book. 

Jeremiah was a good character. Maybe a teensy bit too pushy at times  and he occasionally treated Misty like a child. But I guess sometimes she acted like a child. Hmmm. 🤔😂

Gamma was an incredible and very odd person. I definitely loved her love of books. A great character with a whole lot of soul! 

The only thing I didn't like about the book was some of the language. A few of the characters would say God's name in vain. But if you don't mind that than all is great. And it only happened a couple of times :)
But all in all this was a clean, deep, soulful, eye-opening book about finding yourself and your place in this world. It was so good. I adored it!! Absolutely stunning!! 


About the Author:

Annie Louise Twitchell is a homeschool graduate who is obsessed with dragons and fairy tales. She enjoys reading, writing, poetry, and many forms of art. When she’s not writing, she can often be found reading out loud to her cat, rabbit, and houseplants, or wandering barefoot in the area around her Western Maine home. In addition to seven published works, she has several poetry awards and pieces in four anthologies.

Links:

Annie Louise Twitchell Blog

Amazon – Annie Louise Twitchell

Facebook__Annie Louise Twitchell

If you're looking to buy Through the Pages, Annie has lowered the ebook price to $2.99 for the tour! Definitely go grab your copy now!! :)