Book Review~Faithful Finance

About the Book: 

From the back cover: Learn how to handle your money so you can have more of it. Financial advisor Emily G. Stroud is a mom, businesswoman, and entrepreneur who has two decades of experience helping people make smart choices about money. In Faithful Finance, she shares ten secrets she's learned along the way and will help you to: 

*Develop a personal savings plan based on your unique goals

*Make a monthly budget that actually works for you

*Reduce your overall debt burden

*Plan for your children's college years

*Insure your life without fear

*Leave a lasting and generous legacy

*And most important, discover the source of true wealth

With engaging stories and practical examples, Emily empowers you to make choices that will give you and your loved ones financial freedom for years to come. 

What I Thought:

Written from a Christian perspective with plenty of scripture throughout, Faithful Finance:10 Secrets to Move from Fearful Insecurity to Confident Control, is a great all-around lesson on finances. The author has many years of experience as a financial planner and touches on everything from insurance to retirement. Although I didn't feel the author went into any subject very deeply, she gave the basics on a lot of topics. I feel like I have quite a bit of knowledge on finances, but it is always good to get a refresher course on things! As a Christian, tying finances in to my life biblically is important to me as well, and the author does delve into this. Ms. Stroud included great information and I would recommend Faithful Finance. I look forward to checking out the resources at the back of the book, with several websites to help with different areas of your financial life. 

*I received a copy of this book from Handlebar Publishing in exchange for my honest review. 

Book Review~A Place at our Table

About the Book: 

Along with his volunteer work at the local fire department, running his Amish farm keeps Jamie Riehl busy. He barely has time to eat at the family table, never mind find someone to date. But when he meets Kayla Dienner, he is smitten.

Kayla tries hard to deny her attraction to Jamie. After all, she’s spent the last year discouraging her younger brother, Nathan, from becoming a firefighter. The death of their older brother in a fire a year ago is fresh in her mind—she can’t bear the idea of putting her heart on the line every time the sirens blare.

Then tragedy strikes, and Jamie wants to extinguish any flame between him and Kayla. Can Kayla set aside her own fears to save the love she was determined to deny?

The first book in the Amish Homestead series, A Place at Our Table invites us to a quiet community in Lancaster County where love burns brightly no matter the cost.

What I Thought: 
A Place at our Table is the first book in author Amy Clipston's new series, An Amish Homestead. I have read several books by this author and always enjoy them. A Place at our Table was very easy to get caught up into immediately because of the action going on with the fire at the Dienner's. The story continues on with lots of activity, mostly because Jamie is a firefighter. His occupation definitely added some energy to the book. Both Kayla and Jamie's families having suffered tragedy in the loss of a close family member pulls them together. The story focused a lot on grief and the different ways people deal with it. It was inspiring that people can feel like their lives cannot go on, yet they manage to continue and even be happy. The characters' strong faith was definitely the reason for their strength.

I definitely enjoyed and recommend A Place at our Table, and I look forward to the next book in the series. Along with the story, A Place at our Table includes a helpful glossary of Amish words, a family tree relative to the story, discussion questions, and an excerpt from the author's book The Forgotten Recipe, the first book in her Amish Heirloom series.

*I received a copy of this book from BookLook Bloggers in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Book Review~Fliers

Book Description: 
The perfect present for buds and dormroom inhabitors, this collection of viral fake fliers is at once strange, thought-provoking, and hilarious. Printed on heavy, cardstock-like paper, these 20 "fake" fliers both celebrate and embody surreal posters--like the kind plastered all over college campuses, only taken to the next level. As a bonus feature, the sturdy paperback comes with a french-fold jacket that, when removed, opens up to reveal a larger poster. Images include a photo of a found duck mistaken for a dog that the poster is now keeping and an anonymous group posting about a quiet universe. There is something in this collection for everyone who ever looked at a postered telephone pole or coffee house bulletin board and wondered "is there more out there?"

My Review: 

Fliers: 20 Small Posters with Big Thoughts sounded intriguing to me. I thought it would be full of funny fliers. As it turns out, I only thought a handful were kind of funny.  Maybe its that I'm from an older generation and just didn't get it. I just didn't find the fliers that interesting. Things I did like were the heavyweight cover, the heavy cardstock used for the fliers, and the pretty pastel color assortment used for the posters. If one really enjoyed a poster, they could pull it out of the book to keep, which is a nice feature. This might just be a great coffee table-type book for the right person, it just wasn't for me. 

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.