Bookish links- July 2026

Happy July! I hope this is a good month for you- health, growth, learning, feeling God's presence and love.

July New releases I'm excited about: Bookmarked for Love // The Spy Keeper of Marseille 

There's a 5 Love Languages card game! I don't actually remember where we saw this but the barcode situation has me pretty confident that's a Walmart? 

If you struggle to find time to read your Bible, maybe one of these ideas will help! 

I was looking for a zippered pouch last month and Amazon tried to trap me with this cute number! But I am smarter than the algorithm so I didn't buy it! (Clap, please) 

How to make a mini book... cute doll project :)

12 Christian fiction beach reads for your summer 

I think all children's librarians should wear this fairytale dress on the first day of school 

Neuroscience proves that this Biblical habit rewired your brain 

Ooooh, this might be fun... Popular Christian fiction from the 1990s and 2000s 

14 must-read Christian books for teens and 30+ Christian fiction suggestions for your 10-15 year old boys 

This artist makes it look so easy to quickly create some lovely bookworm art. 

Mother child reading art print- lovely! 

9 audio books that will immerse you in the story 

How singing in class may support early reading skills and brain development 

14 of Crystal's favorite nonfiction books  

Cozy summer reading corner reset guide 

LOTR fans, how cute are these (expensive) Hobbit playhouses? 

8 Christian books every faith-filled family needs 

Emily Lex says these 10 commandments podcasts by The Bible Project were fantastic 

I really enjoyed this video and its comments talking about Christian fiction and why it gets labeled "cringe" or "preachy."

If any of you have PureFlix on Prime, Meet Me in the Margins was a fun book and will probably be a fun movie, too! 

I loved this post- Unsung elements in Christian fiction 

If you're looking for a book to match your travels or to let you explore a new place from the comfort of your own home, check out my location-themed book lists! Adult fiction  // YA // Middle Grade // Picture Books 

Non-book things I loved in June: planning and booking a fun trip for later this year // our 16th wedding anniversary  // starting summer break // listening to my kids giggle as they run through the sprinklers // butternut squash and red lentil curry... we are huge fans of Indian food around here! // legs up the wall (I want to be clear that I'm recommending laying on the ground with your legs up becauseit has benefited my lymphedema problems, NOT religious yoga practices) // walking every chance I get because it's about to be too hot and sunny for two months! 

Love Like a Mother

I've been reading a new nonfiction in the mornings recently, Love Like a Mother: How the Sacred Work of Motherhood Reveals the Maternal Heart of God. Right off the bat, I very much appreciated the short snippet sections that made it easy for me, as a mom, to read in the short bits of time I had available and then pick it back up at a convenient time.

This is not my first time encountering writing that shows the way God mothers Us and highlights the way we Mother as a result of being made in His image. I strive to be more like Jesus in my life here as a human, wife, and mother so this makes sense in a lot of ways.

However. I did grow up in a conservative Baptist church and occasionally bristled so I'm sure some of you will, too. I agree with the reality that God is a spirit rather than a y-chromosomed human male... but I guess my mind is like, "Riggt, exactly! A chromosomed SPIRIT male!" She does choose to use the he pronoun for God and only to show mothering traits, not to call Him "the divine earth mother' or something, too.

This was my first time encountering this author and I thoroughly enjoyed her lovely writing style. She paints some gorgeous word pictures! I immediately found her Coffee + Crumbs essays, too. I felt touched and moved by her imagery many times. I love motherhood and I appreciate her love for it, too.

I'll be very curious to hear your thoughts if any of you try this one.

* I received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

Middle grade Christian fiction about animals

🐾Brightwing Tales: Mole's Misadventure...  I do believe this was the very first time I'd ever read a story about a mole! There were of course other animals too. 

🦗 The Bug Bandits... Maybe it's cheating to put a bug book on an animal list but I don't think so! My nature child really enjoyed this one. 

🦎A Chameleon, a Boy, and a Quest... This one was set in Africa and, as the title suggests, heavily featured a chameleon. It's a four-book series but I've only read book 1 so far. This one is for older kids, more middle school age, and does contain some sad content. 

🐇Green Ember... This series, with three spin-off series, is all about rabbits. These are favorites among my children.

🦁The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe... This famous classic Christian fantasy series is full of animals. Along with Aslan the great lion we also see beavers, a mouse named Reepicheep, a horse, and so much more.

🐇Little Pilgrim's Progress... The original version of this book is about a human child but this newer version is about a young rabbit!

🐕Operation: Happy... This one is published by a Christian publishing house but didn't feel very Christian. This one features a dog.

🐕Road Trip Rescue... This trilogy is my girls' favorite and is fully focused on a dog story.

🐕The Sapphire Sword... another fantasy series, another dog! But this one talks.

🐕SAVE Squad #1: Dog Daze... Again, a dog story! This one is a series where each book is about a different animal but we've only read the first one, the dog story.

🦡The Shadow and the Promise... This series explores biblical stories through the animals who were there! This one is an Eden story from the perspective of rock badgers. We've only read the first book so far but look forward to more!

🐎Winnie the Horse Gentler... Horses, of course! We've read the Horse Gentler in Training chapter book series but only book one of this older series. 

Summer 2026 Bucket List

✔️ 🍉 Drink watermelon slushies
⛱️ Find our new swim beach
📖 Finish my buddy read with my second-born, start my buddy read with my oldest
✔️ 👗 Fix my denim sundress- it got caught on a nail at an event and I neeeed it fixed for summer fun! 
🍦 Make these ice cream cones with my kids
🍑 Make a peaches & cream smoothie bowl (We always add granola to our smoothie bowls, too)
🎨 Paint summer art together
💧 Play in the sprinklers with my loves
📖 Read the Nicole Deese novela I got free for the Kindle, A Summer Remade... and maybe a Christiansen novel?! 

✔️ 🌳Set up a cozy, shady reading spot outside

🎮 Surprise my kids with a day focused on their favorite video game
🍔 Try five different veggie burger recipes and vote for our favorite 

🎁 Turn in summer reading program sheets for prizes + free kid books! 

Bookish weekend fun

We had another fun weekend! Mostly what made it fun was just that it was low-key and we were able to just enjoy each other. Minimal obligations, a hilarious game of Spy Alley, cleaning + yard work, good food and conversation, foosball, a Tetris competition... but also an outing where I took pictures of several fun things to remember and I thought I'd share! 

 

Also. We try so hard to eat homemade and unprocessed foods the majority of the time but these two processed snacks were so delicious! Highly recommend.