Welcome to the June 2021 edition of An Open Book, hosted both at My Scribbler’s Heart and CatholicMom.com!

In a Far-Off Land by Stephanie Landsem is a loose retelling of the story of the prodigal son set in Hollywood amidst the Great Depression. I think it’s worth sharing my review:

Wonderfully researched, beautifully written, with mystery, romance, and a touch of classic Hollywood mystique! I was immediately drawn into Mina’s story as she leaves America’s heartland for Hollywood, where she finds little success, few friends, and mounting troubles culminating in her becoming a suspect in a high-profile murder.

Equally as engaging are the two men, Max and Oscar, who, despite their own flaws, failures, and troubled pasts, risk their lives to keep her safe from harm.

I’m left with a fresh appreciation for the love and mercy of God the Father, the persistent, if difficult, call to forgive, and a deeper curiosity about an age in American history marked by poverty, discrimination, and determination.

Jennifer Rodewald continues to impress me five books into the Murphy Brothers series, both for the speed at which she’s produced these books and the depth of the characters. Stubborn Love is a second chance romance that delves into loss, addiction, and heartache. It leans heavily on Scripture and highlights the beautiful and fruitful practice of being intentionally grateful for all things.

My daughter’s clarinet instructor offered me Strange Planet by Nathan W. Pyle to read while waiting during her lesson. I’d seen snippets of Pyle’s comics on social media, but I never really connected with them. Reading them together gave me a better sense of what he’s doing. He has a keen eye for the absurdity that gets lost in familiarity.

Barb Szyszkiewicz’s The Handy Little Guide to Prayer is just what you’d expect from the title! It’s a wonderful overview of prayer with many wonderful suggestions as to how to pray and overcome obstacles to prayer. I’d recommend it for just about anyone: those new to prayer or those stuck in a rut, converts or cradle Catholics. This is one to keep on hand and pass out to friends.

Like many, I’ve found the sinking of the Titanic to be an engrossing historical event. Ashlee Cowles delivers a split-time story, The Poppy and the Rose, aimed at young adults that takes the reader back on board the doomed ship. The past and present characters share a similar wound regarding their fathers that ties nicely together in the end. Spiritualistic/occult practices crop up in the story, and they are condemned soundly in the end, though for young people not well-grounded in that teaching, I think a conversation about them would be beneficial while reading the book.

My middle school-daughter began reading The Black Arrow by Robert Louis Stevenson. She loved reading Treasure Island, and selected this book to accompany her History studies. Straight from the book description: “Originally serialized in a periodical of boys’ adventure fiction, The Black Arrow is a swashbuckling portrait of a young man’s journey to discover the heroism within himself. Young Dick Shelton, caught in the midst of England’s War of the Roses, finds his loyalties torn between the guardian who will ultimately betray him and the leader of a secret fellowship, The Black Arrow. As Shelton is drawn deeper into this conspiracy, he must distinguish friend from foe and confront war, shipwreck, revenge, murder, and forbidden love, as England’s crown threatens to topple around him.”

At the recommendation of Katie at Read-At-Home Mom, I’ve been reading A Family of Poems: My Favorite Poetry for Children by Caroline Kennedy aloud to the younger children. I’m not well-versed in poetry (See what I did there?), but I’ve found many poems to enjoy in this collection. Robert Frost’s poetry is a favorite, and the kids loved re-reading “The Owl and the Pussycat” by Edward Lear, which I sung to each of them as babies. I’m glad I decided to read through these poems with them.

I had a large influx of Catholic children’s books to review recently, and one of our favorites has been My Little Catholic Encyclopedia by Marie-Christine Vidal & Robin. While not organized like an encyclopedia, it’s filled with lots of useful information about the faith and the Catholic Church. It’s a bit almanac, a bit catechism, and a bit encyclopedia. We’ve been reading a few entries each day, and even I find some of the precise definitions and demographic overviews useful.

While My First Interactive Mass Book by Jennifer Sharpe is for children younger than my own, I really appreciated its usefulness for families with little children. This sturdy board book is brightly illustrated and includes features kids love, like lift-the flaps, tracing, and a spinning wheel. It’s ideal for preparing children for Mass, familiarizing them with the sequence and meaning of what happens there, or occupying them during the Mass itself in a way that is still focused on what’s taking place.

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Welcome to the May 2021 edition of An Open Book, hosted both at My Scribbler’s Heart and CatholicMom.com!

I’ve been reading a couple of circus-themed books to round out an upcoming book review post. The Haunting of Bonaventure Circus by Jamie Jo Wright is a spooky split-time story set at the winter home of a traveling circus. Both timelines center around an unassertive woman struggling to find her footing and be recognized as competent and worthy. There’s a murder mystery that both timelines share related to a sketchy figure known as The Watchman. The author excels at creating a creepy mood and employing atypical heroes.

The Ringmaster’s Wife by Kristy Cambron is the other circus book on the docket. I’m only several chapters in and trying to get a handle on the shifts in timeline and continent. The writing is lovely, and the characters are intriguing. I’m looking forward to discovering what has become of the main character circus stars.

I won a copy of Myra Johnson’s The Rancher’s Family Secret, and it was a quick read for me on a quiet Saturday. A family dispute put Spencer and Lindsey at odds years ago, despite their childhood and teenage friendship. Spencer’s now trying to balance his family ranch obligations with his mission to foster abused and neglected horses and nurse them back to health. Lindsey is back at her widowed aunt’s neighboring ranch, trying to keep it afloat and in their possession. It’s a well-written contemporary romance.

I didn’t know Corinna Turner had planned on adding to her Three Last Things: or The Hounding of Carl Jarrold, Soulless Assassin novella, but A Changing of the Guard takes the story in a new direction following the poorly executed state execution in the first novella. This book, too, examines life, death, moral responsibility, and the capacity to change. Spiritual thriller is about an apt a description of the genre as any.

My older children both have an interest in mythology. My oldest, looking to wrap up school-related reading, checked Neil Gaiman’s Norse Mythology out of the library. He was slightly deterred by the knowledge that the author is responsible for Coraline, the movie adaption of which he wants no part of. (Not a Tim Burton fan. at. all.) Despite learning that fact, he’s looking forward to reading this. It may also have something to do with the Marvel Loki movie coming out.

My daughter and I have both been reading Our Constitution Rocks! by Juliette Turner. The book, written when the author was a teen, examines the United States Constitution and its amendments in a detailed fashion, providing explanation and historical context with words from the Founding Fathers. I was not as well-educated on our Constitution as I would have liked, but both my daughter and I have learned a lot from this book. It could use an update, as the world has changed since this was published in 2012. It’s almost amusing reading the hypothetical abuse of free speech that she mentions that has come to pass. 

My seventh-grade daughter is working on a report on Louis Pasteur, the scientist who gave us the pasteurization process and the rabies vaccine. The Life of Louis Pasteur by Marcia Newfield is one of her resources. She’s only just begun the book and is learning about Pasteur’s childhood. The book, which she found at the library, seems to have limited availability (hence no cover image).

For St. George’s feast day, I read Saint George and the Dragon by Margaret Hodges aloud to the kids. This was unlike the saint stories they are accustomed to – more legend than biographical sketch. They identified it as a fairytale, and it is a retelling from Edmund Spenser’s The Faerie Queene. The Red Cross Knight slays a fierce dragon and gets the girl. The book is also a Caldecott Award winner.

My third-grade daughter read a more traditional style saint story, The Sword and the Cape by Pamela Love. This softcover picture book tells the story of St. Martin of Tours, who was a Roman soldier. As the description says, “Using the sword and cape from his Roman soldier’s uniform, he encounters Jesus in an unexpected way.”

The 3 Little Dassies by Jan Brett is a retelling of The Three Little Pigs. A dassie, also known as a hyrax, is smallish African mammal. As with other Jan Brett books, the illustrations are charming and share a familiar format—a main illustration on each open page with a preview of what’s happening next in a separate panel.

We also read Jan Brett’s Honey . . . Honey . . . Lion!, another African story. The story is about the cooperation of a honeyguide bird and a honey badger who share their sweet bounty. But what happens when the Honey Badger keeps all the sweet treat for himself?

Want more details on An Open Book? You can also sign up for An Open Book reminder email, which goes out one week before the link-up. No blog? That’s okay. Just tell us what you’re reading in the comment box.

THANKS FOR STOPPING BY! STAY A WHILE AND LOOK AROUND. LEAVE A COMMENT. SHARE WITH A FRIEND. IF YOU LIKE WHAT YOU SEE, PLEASE SIGN UP FOR MY AUTHOR NEWSLETTER TO KEEP UP-TO-DATE ON NEW RELEASES, EXTRAS, AND HOT DEALS!

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.