July reads

This was a great month for kid books! Adult books, not so much. I spent a lot of time on/procrastinating my book club's read this month (Life, and Death, and Giants) which I ultimately did not finish and was a bit uncomfortable with. There were mixed feelings. Two women loved it, one didn't finish it either and doesn't plan to, and two did finish it but didn't necessarily enjoy the process. I'm super excited for our next read!

GROWN-UP READS:

📖 Bible study: 2 Peter // Ephesians using Worthy // Slowly studying Ezekiel with my husband 

📖 The Girl From Tomorrow's Town* (Christian, historical fiction)... I still have yet to meet a circus book I didn't enjoy. This one got a full review here.  

📖 Your Life Signature* (Christian, nonfiction)... What a book! This book made me think and reflect so much, which I always love. The author uses a lot of imagery and illustration to express his points so it was really jam-packed with gold that led me down some wonderful paths, my favorite being the story of Sir Nicholas Winton in the beginning or middle of the book. I have thought a lot about my purpose for years and this book only made me that much more excited to see what else God has planned for me and my one little life. 

YA & MIDDLE GRADE READS 

📖 Falling Out of Time (secular, fiction)... Another Margaret Peterson Haddix- this one is a sequel to Running Out of Time I never knew existed! I enjoyed it and then my oldest did, too.

📖 Game Changers (secular, middle grade, fiction)... Truthfully, I didn't like it. I'm not into sports books. There was a bit of rudeness but not too bad and I do think kids who like sports books will probably like it.
📖 Hand Lettering God's Word for Girls* (Christian, middle grade, nonfiction)... I enjoyed this kind of art book-devotional combo and put up a full review here. 

 📖 Island Dreamer (Christian, YA, fiction)... This is the 5th book in the Christy Miller series and I still find them compulsively readable. I do think I would have loved it as a teenager.

📖 The Legend of Bluebell Forest (secular, middle grade, fiction, TGTB)... This was the free book from the TGTB summer reading program. I liked it and think my daughter will like it, but we'll see if she wants the second!
📖 The Nine Moons of Han Yu and Luli (secular, middle grade, historical fiction, time slip)... I really enjoyed this ancient China / 1930s Chinatown time slip! I can't wait for a few of my kids to read this one.
📖 Nory Ryan's Song (secular, middle grade, fiction, TGTB Book List)... This is a historical fiction about the Irish potato famine, a subject I've only encountered in fiction one other time. I found it interesting, though it wasn't a new favorite or anything, and I'll be curious to see what my oldest thinks if/when he picks it up!
📖 Raising Dragons (Christian, YA, fantasy, fiction)... I mean, fantasy is not for me so I kind of hated it but I get the appeal and can see that my oldest will love it. There was a bully teasing a girl and implying that she isn't a virgin, and later that girl implies that she was abused in a specific way by her father. Both issues are one single line and are implied, not said. I decided I'm okay with it for 8th grade but I do wish those things weren't in there. 

📖 Resist (secular, middle grade, historical fiction)... This was a short but good WWII resistance story and I'll definitely try more Alan Gratz books.
📖 The Story of Simone Biles (secular, chapter book, nonfiction, TGTB book list)... I liked Simone Biles' memoir and I enjoyed this version for the younger crowd.
📖 A Summer Secret (Christian, upper middle grade / YA, Amish fiction)... This was a good 8th grader-ish story. I thought it would be more of a mystery but the mystery is solved pretty quickly and then it becomes more of a social dilemma. I liked it and will definitely try book 2.  

📚 PICTURE BOOKS WE LOVED: God Bless You and Goodnight (not new, but this is the current favorite bedtime book) // The Heart Who Needed a Friend (full review here) // Play With Me (this month's Imagination Library gift) // Thank You Bear 

* I received a free copy of The Girl From Tomorrow's Town, Your Life Signature, and Hand Lettering God's Word for Girls in exchange for an honest review.