Oh hello there July! I guess we are at the halfway point for our 2024 reading challenge! I read quite a few books that have been on my to-read list and I didn’t love them all – every book can’t be a winner right? I’m also realizing that books our book tastes can change depending on seasons and circumstances and stages in life. So just because a book is a miss for me, it may not be for you! I just tend to be a bit opinionated in my book reviews – but I feel like it is a good place for that!
The Call of the Wild + Free by Ainsley Arment
5 Stars: This is hands down the best homeschool book I’ve read yet – it was delightful! I was so encouraged and inspired by the writing, the stories, and – of course- the photos. The author does an amazing job of advocating childhood and sharing how you can nurture & educate your children and build your own family life/culture. It was filled with educational information on homeschooling, plenty of encouragement, and practical advice. This book was huge for me as a new to homeschool mama and I am glad to own it so I can read it again! Grateful for a book that wasn’t “my way or the highway” and advocated for finding the best education/ methods for your family. I even was inspired to find and join a Wild + Free group in my neighborhood after reading this book. I recommend it to anyone who homeschools or is curious about it!
The Words We Lost by Nicole Deese
5 Stars: Can it really be?!?! A modern “love story” that I absolutely adored?! This book is about books (got to love a book for book lovers!) and I was thoroughly caught up in the whole story! The way this book brings together multiple storylines is very unique – I’ve never read a book that does it this way before – and I loved it! This heartwarming book touches on grief, brokenness, redemption, new beginnings, hope, and love (not just the romantic kind but also of family, friends, etc.) I’m looking forward to reading the next book in this series. I went into this book blind and I think that is part of what made it so beautiful, so I’ll try to do that for you too!
A Botanist’s Guide to Society and Secrets by Kate Khavari
4 Stars: This is the third book in this series (I read and reviewed the first two in March 2023 & July 2023 ) and I started off a bit confused about what exactly was going on not remembering how things ended last time! Haha. But pretty quickly, things started to fall into place and the love triangle I thought was being set up, resolved itself a couple chapters in (much to my relief!) This was a great third and the mystery was very surprising! I didn’t realize where things were going for a good chunk and still have some questions (but I bet that is leaving space for another instalment!) For some reason I didn’t love it as much as the first two – I think because it felt a bit slow for the first part – but overall, still enjoyed it and was grateful for a conclusion to the will we date/ will we not date in the first two books!
The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes
3 Stars: Sigh, I should have known better. I knew that the worldview written into this book wouldn’t be one I agreed with (because of the glorification of assisted suicide in the author’s other book Me Before You,) but I think it is important to read lots of stories with a critical mind. This book is filled with anti-Christian cliches, lots of drama, and undeveloped characters. I love a historical fiction novel and the setting of Depression-era Kentucky and women bringing books to families in the mountains is perfection. However, the story itself misses the mark. All the bad-guys are Bible-reading, sexist, racist, heartless, abusive, horrible men, who hate literature. All the good guys are anyone who rejects the traditional Biblical world view on marriage and/or rejects the expectations of the bad guys. I know that 1930’s Southern America had a lot of unbiblical tradition/ expectations and people who used Christianity for their own selfish gains, but not every “Christian” was evil and this book definitely writes it that way. There are only two men who are not sexist and they both fall in love with the main characters (awe.) Very little character depth in the Library women/ slue of characters and everything we learn about Alice and Margery (the main leads) doesn’t really build their character but is supposed to make us feel sorry for them. I found many of the main plot points to be odd (like Bennett being afraid of sex – presumably because He is a “Christian” and sex is sinful even in marriage) and Margery’s refusal to marry the love of her life because “she is a strong woman!” I read it all and was glad to see the heroines get their happy ending but I wish the book was more about the lives that were changed through the generosity and time of these mountain librarians who brought literature to the underserved, than the “not-traditional” sex lives of two women in 1930.
PS: This book has affair vibes but gets away with it because “annulment!”
Bridge to Haven by Francine Rivers
3 Stars: I typically enjoy Francine Rivers’ writing and this book was no exception. This book was well-written, engaging, and the characters were true-to-life. This book is one of those redemption focused stories where the main character spends the entirety of the book making all the wrong decisions until the very end which I find emotionally exhausting and hard to read – you just know things will get worse until they get better. The content was also pretty heavy (as you would expect from poor choices) so keep that in mind for younger readers. Also an oddly descriptive married sex scene at the end (maybe PG13?) that I really could have done without. Overall, I am glad for the happy ending but I wouldn’t ever reread this – makes sense why I picked it up in a little free library in my neighborhood!
The Brave Learner by Julie Bogart
2 Stars: Honestly a bit underwhelmed. I heard this book recommended by several other homeschoolers and it just was a big miss for me. I found a lot of of the content pretty obvious (like you can’t treat homeschool like a public school setting, kids enjoy learning when it is fun, museums/ field trips count as education, work with your kids and engage with them, your kids model your behavior), lots of repetition (not always bad but a bit tedious), a couple little nuggets I plan to store away for the future, but there were several chunks of content I just straight up disagreed with. This isn’t a Christian perspective so there are a couple of world view / lifestyle choices that come up that I differ with the author on (like laughing off a punched hole in the wall caused by a frustrated teen, not expecting your children to help out around the house or requiring them to take responsibility and care for their things, not making your kids share things and, instead, have multiple gaming sets/ tvs so everyone can always do what they want without taking turns, or even her comments on letting your kid stay up all night playing video games if they want to.) It is very kid focused, which I do think is very important in home education – knowing your kids, including your kids, and teaching towards their strengths, but this book encourages the “cool big sister” role over mom/ parent. I feel like you can have great healthy relationships with your kids without relinquishing your role as a parental authority. It is kid focused while also being self focused and it just rubbed me the wrong way.
She also mentions several times that her only goal of homeschooling is “a college ready education” and I just think a goal like that misses out on other goals you can have for your kids. This statement (and others) really shows that she was homeschooling in the 90’s/00’s and I honestly thought this book was written in the early 2000’s based on her examples and perspective, so I was surprised to see it is more recent (2019!)
I did like her emphasis on homeschooling not needing to be perfect and to let it flow with the goals and seasons of your family. I also love how she says the house you have is the perfect place for your homeschool – you don’t need to try to fit into everyone else’s homeschool boxes but embrace your unique family and location and home. I also love the importance on creating a healthy family and home environment. But beyond that, I don’t think she offers much new or encouraging for homeschooling.
PS: Beyond the content, this just felt like a hodge-podge book. It didn’t feel organized, cohesive, or intentional. I think the editor really missed the mark in trying to bring this book together.
According to my Goodreads tracker, my current count is 47/75! All books that I have rated 4 or 5 stars are added to my Amazon lists here where you can look for even more recommendations than this list! Follow me on Goodreads to see what I am reading, what I want to read, some of my favorite books, and every review I write! Any other books I should add to my list? Leave a comment and let me know!