Book Reviews

I finished the most delightful book last week: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. It is set in England just post WWII. The main character is an authoress who is trying to figure out what to write about now that the war is over. For me it was a fascinating picture of what WWII was like in an aspect I've never studied before. The format was very conducive to my reading schedule - all letters, which made it easy, because of their length, for me to be able to stop and start whenever. And the romance woven into the storyline didn't hurt either! I'd definitely give it a "read again" rating.

I've also finished two other books since the beginning of the year. The first one was The Strong-Willed Child by Dr. James Dobson. Dad thought it was one that I needed to read (I can't imagine why!). It was really a great book. It was very insightful. He first explains about the will of a child and helps you understand what a strong-willed child is and why. Then he goes through the different ages/stages from toddler to teenager, describing what is going on in their mental development and how to best discipline them and help them. I need to remember to reread that one in a few years! I'd give that one a "buy and hilight" rating.

The second book was The Continuous Atonement by Brad Wilcox. This one was given to all of us kids by my mother-in-law for Christmas. The best way to describe it is to say that Brother Wilcox teaches complex concepts the atonement in a simple way. It could be considered an easy doctrinal read (larger print, more white space on a page, chapters broken down into sub-topics, many stories to illustrate his points), but the concepts he talks about, with regards to the atonement of Jesus Christ, taught me how Christ did so much more than just suffer for my sins to enable me to return to Father in Heaven. He made it very real and accessible for me, the reader/regular, run-of-the-mill member of the Church. Definitely a "buy and highlight".