Last night, I was comparing some of Roald Dahl's books to the Mysterious Benedict Society books by Trenton Lee Stewart. I have heard people say the two are similar, but I was wondering why I liked Mr. Stewart's books more. After some thought, I kept coming back to how the different authors describe their characters. Roald Dahl loves exaggeration. I can't think of a single villain in his books that doesn't look disgusting. Even the way the bad guys talk is revolting. (Properly so. They are villains, after all. I'm just saying it's a different style.) In contrast, Mr. Stewart's characters are pretty normal. At least, they are more normal. Mr. Curtain's wheel chair and narcolepsy is more believable than Agatha Trunchbull's habit of throwing children out of windows. 

By making his characters more realistic, Mr. Stewart has made them relatable. When I read a story, I like to be able to imagine myself in the characters' shoes. I still like Roald Dahl's books, but I think it's fun to compare different writing styles. 

Have you read any of Roald Dahl or Trenton Lee Stewart's books? What do you think? Which were your favorites?

So... I kinda started reading too late this week. (Note to self - start reading before Thursday afternoon, if you are trying to finish by Saturday!) I did manage to read one book, and am very close to finishing a couple others. I read Uninvited by Lisa TerKeurst. 

The subtitle of this book is "Living loved when you feel less than, left out, and lonely." I have to admit, I was pretty skeptical about this one. It sounded okay, but I wasn't sure how it would deal with the idea of rejection. Thankfully, it pointed back to God's Word at every turn. 

​I liked this one, and I'll give it four stars. 

How's it going, my fellow readers? I think the hardest part this week was deciding what to read. I originally started on Knowing God, by J.I. Packer, but soon found that I won't be able to read in a week. I still plan to read it this year, but will probably have to spread it out. Anyway, I ended up reading The Princess Adelina and The Great Divorce.

A friend of mine had given me this book, and I was eager to start it. The cover makes you think it's going to be a princess fairy tale... until you read the first couple chapters. No princess story gives so much context right at first. After that, it kind of settled into the rhythm of a story, and I found myself enjoying it.

The story is set in what is now Germany. The main character is a beautiful Christian girl named Adelina. The king falls in love with her, and promises to allow the Christians to worship freely, if she will marry him. She accepts, but has to battle fierce opposition from her mother-in-law, who is a pagan. 

I'm sure the original story was different, but there was quite a bit of interesting information about the missionaries living in Germany at the time. I enjoyed it. I think this book will fall under  "A Book of Your Choice".  Overall, this gets 3 stars out of 5.

The Great Divorce is a fictional book about a man who takes a bus ride from heaven to hell. As C.S. Lewis says in the beginning, it is not meant to be a description of heaven or hell. I found it very insightful, once I started looking at it as a series of character sketches of different types of people, and particularly the parts of their personalities that cannot enter heaven. For example, a man is shocked to find he must leave his tragic manipulating ways behind, because in heaven no one can steal another's joy. There are at least half a dozen or so sketches like this. I found it thought provoking to look at traits in myself that I often overlook and do not see the sin or futility in. 

​I would definitely recommend this, and I will probably read it again sometime. This will be put under the category of either "A book you own but have never read," or "A book written by an author with initials in their name." The Great Divorce earns 4 stars. 

The morning before Christmas, everything was covered in frost, and I took a few pictures. Hope you like them!

"He gives snow like wool; He scatters the frost like ashes"
Psalm 147:16

P.S. I will be posting a reading challenge update on Saturday!

Am I seriously talking about 2017 already?! I guess it's time to, seeing as there are only 11 days until Christmas!  Anyway, I'm getting ready to participate in the 2017 Reading Challenge by Tim Challies. (Click here for the book list.) I will be posting every week about my progress, and I will do a brief review of every book that I read. 

Is anyone interested in doing it with me? Or does anyone have book suggestions? I'd love to hear from you!

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Advent. It means coming. Many things come. Family, gifts, and snow. We look forward to all of these, especially during this time of year. Of course, we also look forward to celebrating the coming of Christ. After all, that is the whole point (or at least should be) of Christmas. Christmas is about celebrating the work of Christ at the cross, in our lives, and the work still to come. 

Whatever we do this season, let us remember and rejoice in how Christ has come, how he is changing us, and how he is coming again. Such thoughts certainly live up to Paul's admonition in Philippians 4:8!

​"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things."

My son, eat honey, for it is good,
and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste.
Know that wisdom is such to your soul;
if you find it, if you find it, there will be a future,
and your hope will not be cut off. 

Lie not in wait as a wicked man against the dwelling of the righteous;
do no violence to his home;
for the righteous falls seven times and rises again,
​but the wicked stumble in time of calamity. 
​
Do not rejoice when your enemy falls,
and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles,
lest the Lord see it and be displeased,
and turn away his anger from him.

Fret not yourself because of evildoers,
​and be not envious of the wicked,
for the evil man has no future;
​the lamp of the wicked will be put out.
Proverbs 24:13-20

No matter what happens, God is good. 
No matter how bad I mess up, God forgives.
And no matter what I am afraid of, God is Lord.

Did you know that Sunday marked the 66th anniversary of when The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe was published? Pretty cool, right? Speaking of books, Daddy made me a new bookshelf last weekend, and I have enjoyed filling it up. The bookshelf is made out of our old deck, except for the top, which is wood from my great grandma's farm. It fits perfectly in my room, and I love how pretty it is! (Thank you, Daddy!) 

Every fall I am reminded of how much I love this time of year. Everything about it is just so... comfy! Some of my favorite things about fall are:

​The sounds
Raindrops on the roof.
Leaves crunching under my feet.
Rooster sighing sleepily.

The smells
Bonfires.
The smell of honey cinnamon butter on toast. I know that might sound random, but you won't doubt me once you try it.
Peppermint tea.
Rain.

The sweaters and blankets
Need I say more?

The books
I know books aren't exclusively fall-ish, but I always enjoy them more when I'm curled up with a blanket. And that's not exactly comfortable in the summer. :-)
To be more specific, I love the book I just finished reading. It's called The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart, and is the first book in the series. I highly recommend it!

The colors
Green leaves turning to red and gold.
Red flames licking the edges of brown logs.

What are your favorite things about fall?