On the Stack // September

Ahh, September!  My birthday month, the beginning of my favorite season, officially sweater/jeans month, and cooler temps.  I love this month.  I have even more reason to love it this year especially because I have some awesome books on the stack to read! (see what I did there?)  I'm so excited!

Two of the books I have read in the last month, and one of them I just got last week at Barnes & Noble.  I am planning to reread the two again so they are fresh in my mind.  The third one was actually an accident altogether.  I hadn't planned to buy/review it, but I couldn't find the book I was looking for in B&N, and I've heard good things about it, so I got it!  I may or may not have flipped it open and read a couple pages in the middle, and I know it's going to be awesome.  Let's get to the books.

link to purchase

The first book is one by C.S. Lewis.  I am trying to read all of his stuff, and I'm chipping away a little at a time.  I was not familiar with this book at all.  I knew it was about heaven and involved a bus, but that was about the extent of it.  So I didn't get the fact that it was based on a dream until about halfway through the book, (duh) and after that, it all made more sense.  I really liked it, and I'm excited to review it.  Here's a description via Amazon:

C.S. Lewis’ The Great Divorce is a classic Christian allegorical tale about a bus ride from hell to heaven. An extraordinary meditation upon good and evil, grace and judgment, Lewis’s revolutionary idea in theThe Great Divorce is that the gates of Hell are locked from the inside. Using his extraordinary descriptive powers, Lewis’ The Great Divorce will change the way we think about good and evil.

link to purchase

Alright, I have to apologize, but the second one is... it's about the Hobbit.  There, I got it out.  I won't normally review two books about the same topic after each other like that, but this one is so drastically different than last month's book about LOTR/The Hobbit, that I decided it would be okay to review it.  Unlike Dickerson's very deep, intellectual book, this one is fun and lighthearted, and I read it in an evening.  It is a very enjoyable book.  If you liked Tolkien's tale about Bilbo, the dwarves, and the dragon, but wouldn't consider yourself a devoted fan, this book is for you.  It's awesome.

Lessons on joy, friendship, dedication, sacrifice, and more will appeal to Hobbit fans, parents, teachers, librarians, graduates—and anyone looking for a creative way to explore timeless life lessons and important values of faith.

Millions of fans worldwide have been attracted to The Hobbit for its unique combination of high adventure and profound truths. Tapping the excitement around the highly-anticipated Hobbit movie trilogy, Tolkien-scholar, Devin Brown, now presents a fast-paced and easy-to-follow presentation of timeless spiritual messages to help navigate your journey. Peppered with illustrations throughout, Hobbit Lessons offers troll-sized portions of relevance and regular nuggets of good Hobbit sense. The result is a collection of tangible bites of wisdom that are not only deeply moving but also great fun.   

link to purchase

I am absolutely pumped about this last book.  I first heard about Let's All Be Brave/Annie Downs on Ann Voskamp's blog (she was a guest writer), and Ann went on and on about her.  After following her on Twitter and reading the introduction to her newest book, I can definitely see why.  Annie is funny, her joy is infectious, her sincerity convincing – and that's just from reading a few pages!  I could not be more excited to read this book; I'm so glad I picked it up!

 Annie Downs admits she’s not exactly the bravest girl in the world. She still cries sometimes when she leaves her parents’ home in Georgia, she’s never jumped out of a plane, and she only rides roller coasters to impress boys. But Annie knows that courage resides inside each and every one of us, and she’s on a mission to triumph over her own fears while encouraging the reader to do the same.

As a single young woman, writer, speaker, and blogger, Annie Downs shares her journey toward bravery with honesty and humor. Using wonderful stories from her own life, contemporary real-life examples, and fascinating historical and biblical references, Annie encourages readers to grab hold of the brave life that they desperately desire.
How often does fear hold us back from the very things we most want to taste, touch, and experience? The call to be brave isn’t just for one person—it’s for everyone. Let’s All Be Brave is more than a book, it’s a battle cry. Annie challenges us to live boldly, she calls us to step into those places that require courage, and she gives us the help to take the next step forward—even when it’s scary.

I hope you're as excited about these books as I am!  Look for reviews beginning the middle of this month.  Thanks for reading!  xo, Ella