My Mom loved books. She almost never watched television, but she was constantly reading a book. She got up each morning, read her Bible, had her cup of tea, and started cleaning the house. She made being a stay-at-home mom an art form. In the evenings, when dinner was done and the clean dishes were put away, she’d again sit down with a cup of tea and whatever book she was reading at the time. There was usually more than one.
Back “in the day”, the 80s, when the shopping mall was at its delicious peak, we’d travel an hour to the big city mall. My siblings and I would scatter to our favorite stores (Just Jeans, Camelot Music, Circus World…) and we’d find my Mom hours later still in the bookstore, right where we left her. My Dad, having gotten his fill of tool shopping in Sears, would camp out in the mall lounge nearest the bookstore, patiently waiting. He knew how much Mom adored books and rare it was she got to shop for them. He never complained about the time she spent in the bookstore, carefully selecting the best books for her and the perfect ones for gifts.
I love getting and giving books as gifts. There is a book for every subject under the sun. There’s a book for every person. I’ve chosen 7 favorites from my personal bookshelf that I hope you’ll consider for your holiday gift giving! It’s a lovely idea for when the holiday festivities have slowed down, winter has set in, and we have time to relax again (especially if we’re snowed in, right?!)
Here are my first 4 (in no particular order)!
Salt to the Sea is by Ruta Sepetys, author of the bestselling book Between Shades of Gray, which is an incredibly well written, heartbreaking but inspiring story of a family forced from their home in Lithuania to try to survive the brutal elements and mistreatment by the Soviets in Siberia.
This is my daughter’s pick. She’s a college student and read this book a few years ago and is so passionate about it that I wanted to include it. This is what I will be reading next (as in tonight!). Sort of a followup to Between Shades of Gray, Salt to the Sea is an unbelievable historic adventure for the history lover on your list who enjoys a dramatic story of overcoming and persistence.
Stumbling Along: One Woman’s Journey of Falling into Embarrassing and Hilarious Moments by Laurie Yost has some of the best chapter names. Do Tarantulas in the Toilet, Hubcaps in the Desert, Making Friends with the Police Twice in One Day, or I Almost Killed the Pastor’s Wife sound intriguing to you?
This book is funny. The author is a hilarious speaker, talented singer, and diverse writer. She was voted class clown in college and is a secondary education teacher in northern Michigan. Laurie has been married to her prince charming for almost three decades and is the mom of three children and a daughter-in-law. She has experienced some fascinating, heartwarming, and hysterical situations as a pastor’s wife and missionary in Mexico.
You will laugh until you cry and receive an encouraging lesson all at once. You can find Stumbling Along on Amazon and find Laurie online at her blog. Anyone in your life you loves a good laugh will be happy to see this book under their tree on Christmas morning.
Hope Prevails: Insights from a Doctor’s Personal Journey Through Depression is authored by Dr. Michelle Bengston, a neuropsychologist. Dr. Bengston is married and she and her husband have two sons. She has an unstoppable attitude, great faith, and sincere ability to inspire. This would be a great book for the nonfiction fan in your life. Chapter titles include Reclaim Your Peace, Know Your Worth, God Uses Your Pain, and The Way to Hope.
This book is written from a professional and spiritual perspective by a doctor who has “been there.” Hope Prevails can be found on Amazon and is a wonderful book to encourage those (or you) who have a struggle with depression. Be encouraged. Hope prevails!
What Hope Remembers by author Johnnie Alexander is clean romantic fiction. Johnnie is an award-winning author and some of her other titles include Where She Belongs and Where Treasure Hides. Book three in the Misty Willow series, What Hope Remembers finds Amy Somers leaving her job as a lobbyist and moving to Misty Willow, where she burned bridges years before. She knows the chances she’ll find love are slim, but maybe that will change when her first crush, former Marine Gabe Kendall, resurfaces. This would be a lovely gift for the fiction romance fan in your life!
Here are four of my 7 picks. Come back Thursday for part 2 and a special surprise – there will be a giveaway of brand new, signed book! Come back for that post and to enter. It’s easy to enter the giveaway by commenting on the next post! Don’t miss it!
What is your favorite book? Did you ask for any new picks for Christmas? Comment below!
Love Brave and Live Wise,
