Hey guys!

I have a very ambitious reading list for the month of November. In addition to this terms textbook ( Creative Bible Teaching) I am going to try and read 4 books…… We’ll see how that goes! This is what I’m trying to get through this month:

1. Sing, Unburied Sing: By Jesmyn Ward

   I absolutely love this author. I have read a few of her other books and have yet to be disappointed. This book has been on my to read list for quite some time so what a delight it was when I received a copy from my friend Jen as a gift! ( Thanks girl!) 

   Jojo is thirteen years old and trying to understand what it means to be a man. He doesn’t lack in fathers to study, chief among them his Black grandfather, Pop. But there are other men who complicate his understanding: his absent White father, Michael, who is being released from prison; his absent White grandfather, Big Joseph, who won’t acknowledge his existence; and the memories of his dead uncle, Given, who died as a teenager.

   His mother, Leonie, is an inconsistent presence in his and his toddler sister’s lives. She is an imperfect mother in constant conflict with herself and those around her. She is Black and her children’s father is White. She wants to be a better mother but can’t put her children above her own needs, especially her drug use. Simultaneously tormented and comforted by visions of her dead brother, which only come to her when she’s high, Leonie is embattled in ways that reflect the brutal reality of her circumstances.

   When the children’s father is released from prison, Leonie packs her kids and a friend into her car and drives north to the heart of Mississippi and Parchman Farm, the State Penitentiary. At Parchman, there is another thirteen-year-old boy, the ghost of a dead inmate who carries all of the ugly history of the South with him in his wandering. He too has something to teach Jojo about fathers and sons, about legacies, about violence, about love

   

2. Far From The Tree: By Robin Benway

   I saw this book on somebody’s Youtube channel and it sounded pretty interesting. This is a young adult fiction book. 

   A contemporary novel about three adopted siblings who find each other at just the right moment.

   Being the middle child has its ups and downs.

   But for Grace, an only child who was adopted at birth, discovering that she is a middle child is a different ride altogether. After putting her own baby up for adoption, she goes looking for her biological family, including—

   Maya, her loudmouthed younger bio sister, who has a lot to say about their newfound family ties. Having grown up the snarky brunette in a house full of chipper redheads, she’s quick to search for traces of herself among these not-quite-strangers. And when her adopted family’s long-buried problems begin to explode to the surface, Maya can’t help but wonder where exactly it is that she belongs.

   And Joaquin, their stoic older bio brother, who has no interest in bonding over their shared biological mother. After seventeen years in the foster care system, he’s learned that there are no heroes, and secrets and fears are best kept close to the vest, where they can’t hurt anyone but him.
   
   

3. A Lesson Before Dying: By Ernest J. Gaines
   A classic book that I have never got around to reading. No time like the present right? 🙂
   
   A Lesson Before Dying is set in a small Cajun community in the late 1940s. Jefferson, a young black man, is an unwitting party to a liquor store shoot out in which three men are killed; the only survivor, he is convicted of murder and sentenced to death. Grant Wiggins, who left his hometown for the university, has returned to the plantation school to teach. As he struggles with his decision whether to stay or escape to another state, his aunt and Jefferson’s godmother persuade him to visit Jefferson in his cell and impart his learning and his pride to Jefferson before his death. In the end, the two men forge a bond as they both come to understand the simple heroism of resisting and defying the expected. Ernest J. Gaines brings to this novel the same rich sense of place, the same deep understanding of the human psyche, and the same compassion for a people and their struggle that have informed his previous, highly praised works of fiction
   

   
   

4. Dusty Crowns:  By Heather Lindsey
   I absolutely love Heather Lindsey and I am making my way through all of her written work!

   Have you ever felt like you are completely inadequate and regardless of what you do—you still don’t feel good enough? Well, Heather Lindsey felt the same way for years and she would try to earn God’s love and affirmation. After searching to fill her “God voids” in things, she learned what it meant to be the crown of her spiritual husband, God. Instead of chasing after unhealthy relationships, money and things, she sought a relationship with Jesus and He dusted her past off and made all things new. This book is a reminder that regardless of how far you have gotten away from God, He is still right there, ready to dust you off and make you whole.

   In this book, you will:

   • Learn what it means to be the crown of Jesus Christ and the crown of your physical husband, from the inside out.

   • Learn to protect your heart, mind and life from distractions.

   • Learn to enjoy the current season of your life and develop into the woman God called you to be.

   • Learn to refuse to settle for anything or anyone less than God’s best for your life.

   • See yourself how God sees you—valued, beautiful and special in His eyes.

   • Take advantage of the tests and trails and develop in patience

   Join Heather Lindsey on a heart-to-heart journey to becoming who God called you to be from the inside out. Dusty Crowns challenges women, whether single or married to be beautiful from the inside out and to accomplish the will of God for their life.
   

   That’s it folks! Wish me luck! What are you guys reading this month?

   Till next time,
   xoxo