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“The Missing” by Beverly Lewis

This is the 2nd book in the Seasons of Grace series by Beverly Lewis. The first book in the series has been reviewed here:  https://kbook-reviews.blogspot.com/2025/11/the-secret-by-beverly-lewis.html Recommended Age : 14+ (not due to negative content but merely for comprehension of difficult topics) 332 pages Description :  A Painful Absence, a Desperate Heart . . . Is It Too Late to Find Lettie Byler? Grace Byler longs to uncover the secret that drove her mother to leave the family weeks ago. When all hopes are dashed for such a search, an unlikely friendship leads to a surprising invitation.  Meanwhile, the young Amishman Grace thought was courting her best friend takes a sudden interest in her, and Grace's decision to remain single is challenged even as her determination to find her mother grows. My Rating 5/5 To be honest, I enjoyed this one more than the first. Yes, the first book laid out the storyline, but it felt like it was dragging. This one had much more action...

“Spiritual Discipleship” by: J. Oswald Sanders

Recommended Age : 13+ 240 pages Description :   As J. Oswald Sanders points out, true discipleship is more than intellectual assent to a belief in Christ; it involves the whole person and lifestyle. True disciples pursue their Master. They know that God is watching over their faith, but they also take Scripture’s command seriously: “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you.” They take pains, by His power, to look more and more like Jesus.  This book will help you to be such a disciple. It examines Jesus’ teaching on what it means to follow Him, helping you become the kind of Christian Jesus wants you to be—not one devised by man or even other Christians. You’ll learn: The profile of an ideal disciple Conditions for discipleship The tests that disciples endure How disciples pray and grow The posture and practices of a disciple And more For anyone who wants to be not just a believer in Christ, but an  imitator   of Him, this b...

"Banersnatch" by: Diana Pavlac Glyer

Recommended Age : 16+ (not due to negative content, but for comprehension) 224 pages Description :  An inspiring look at the creative process C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and the Inklings met each week to read and discuss each other's work-in-progress, offering both encouragement and blistering critique. How did these conversations shape the books they were writing? How does creative collaboration enhance individual talent? And what can we learn from their example? Featuring full-page illustrations by James A. Owen, Bandersnatch offers an inside look at the Inklings of Oxford, and a seat at their table at the Eagle and Child pub. It shows how encouragement and criticism made all the difference in The Lord of the Rings , The Chronicles of Narnia , and dozens of other books written by the members of their circle. You'll learn what made these writers tick, and more: inspired by their example, you'll discover how collaboration can help your own creative process and...

“Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus” by: Nabeel Qureshi

Recommended Age : 17+ (not because of negative content but for comprehension) 384 pages Description :   Providing an intimate view into a loving Muslim home, Qureshi shares how he developed a passion for Islam before discovering, almost against his will, evidence that Jesus rose from the dead and claimed to be God. Unable to deny the arguments but not wanting to deny his family, Qureshi struggled with an inner turmoil that will challenge Christians, Muslims, and all those who are interested in two of the world's greatest religions and the quest for truth. Qureshi--with great courage and intimacy--wrote this book with three major purposes in mind: To tear down walls between two of the world's major religions by giving non-Muslim readers an insider's perspective into a Muslim's heart and mind. To equip the reader with facts and knowledge, showing the strength of the case for the gospel contrasted with the case for Islam. To portray the immense inner struggle of Muslims gr...

“The Secret” by: Beverly Lewis

This is the first book in the Seasons of Grace series by: Beverly Lewis. Recommended Age : 17+ 364 pages Description :   The loving hand of God is at work in even the most unsettling circumstances . . .   In the seemingly ordinary Amish home of Grace Byler, secrets abound. Why does her mother weep in the night? Why does her father refuse to admit something is dreadfully wrong?  Then, in one startling moment, everything Grace assumed she knew is shattered. Her mother's disappearance leaves Grace reeling and unable to keep her betrothal promise to her long-time beau. Left to pick up the pieces of her life, Grace questions all she has been taught about love, family, and commitment.  Heather Nelson is an English grad student, stunned by a doctor's diagnosis. Surely fate would not allow her father to lose his only daughter after the death of his wife a few years before. In denial and telling no one she is terminally ill, Heather travels to Lancaster County--the last place...

“A Time for Courage” by: Kathryn Lasky

Recommended Age : 12+ 217 pages Description :   As the fight for women's suffrage heats up, Kathleen"Kat" Bowen gets to participate as her mother and her sister, and many others close to her organize and act to win the right to vote. January 19, 1917 The picket line has been going on for over a week! And people said they would not last a day and the weather still has not broken. What's more is news of the picket is spreading and more and more women are coming from other parts of the district and some from as far away as Maryland and Virginia. President Wilson felt so sorry for them in the cold that he invited them in for coffee but they refused. They said they would only come in to talk about a federal amendment for the women's right to vote. No coffee! This made me think of Sojourner Truth's words about men who help lift women into carriages and over mud puddles--that of course is the easy part, just like giving them coffee. Giving them the vote is the hard p...

"The Case for Christ" by: Lee Strobel

 Recommended Age : 17+ 303 pages Description :  Is there credible proof that Jesus of Nazareth really is the Son of God? In The Case for Christ , Lee Strobel, former legal editor of the Chicago Tribune and New York Times bestselling author, retraces his own spiritual journey from atheism to faith and builds a cap tivating case for Christ's divinity. In this revised and updated edition of The Case for Christ , Strobel cross-examines a dozen experts with doctorates from schools such as Cambridge, Princeton, and Brandeis, asking hard-hitting questions--and taking a deeper look at the evidence from the fields of science, philosophy, and history. In his comprehensive investigation, Strobel doesn't shy away from challenging questions, including: How reliable is the New Testament? Does evidence for Jesus exist outside the Bible? Is Jesus who he said he was? Is there any reason to believe the resurrection was an actual event? What does all of the evidence point to--and what does ...