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Gina Holmes' first novel is just fabulous. I will say that sometimes I am skeptical of Christian fiction - it can be so predictable that it just doesn't keep my interest. That is NOT SO with Crossing Oceans. If I thought I had it figured out in the first few pages, I would have been very wrong. It takes twists and turns and all the while kept me in tears or smiling at the antics of Grandma Peg. This is the gut-wrenching story of Jenny Lucas, a single mom, who has just found out she is dying of a form of stage 4 cancer. She chooses to fore go any treatment and takes her daughter, Isabella, to meet her birth father so that they can form a relationship that will continue when she dies. It really is a powerful read - it makes you think about relationships in general, but also family and the important ties there. Another great read - I have really hit the jackpot of books this past week!!

I am part of a blog tour for Susan May Warren's latest release Double Trouble - with her previous novel, Nothing But Trouble, thrown in for good measure!
I have to say - I may not normally pick this style of book up for a read, but I am glad I did.  Warren has come up with a character, PJ Sugar, that is an absolute riot!  She kept me laughing and yet compelled to finish to find out how she solves her mysteries.  What a great series - I am hoping there are more to come!  I know our library patrons will think this one is a hit so I will be waiting to share this hilarious series with them!!  (Thank you to the blog tour for sending me both copies to read and review.)

Having just finished The Shack by William P. Young, I am left with LOTS of questions. Has anyone else read this?? It is incredibly popular right now - we can hardly keep it in at our library - and with a review from Eugene Peterson like this, "This book has the potential to do for our generation what John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress did for his. It's that good!" I just had to read it. So, I read it - I am finished I just have a million questions!

Please go play FreeRice right now. It’s a great example of using gaming for some serious good.

• Click on the answer that best defines the word.
• If you get it right, you get a harder word. If wrong, you get an easier word.
• For each word you get right, we donate 20 grains of rice to the United Nations World Food Program.

“FreeRice has a custom database containing thousands of words at varying degrees of difficulty. There are words appropriate for people just learning English and words that will challenge the most scholarly professors. In between are thousands of words for students, business people, homemakers, doctors, truck drivers, retired people… everyone!

FreeRice automatically adjusts to your level of vocabulary. It starts by giving you words at different levels of difficulty and then, based on how you do, assigns you an approximate starting level. You then determine a more exact level for yourself as you play. When you get a word wrong, you go to an easier level. When you get three words in a row right, you go to a harder level. This one-to-three ratio is best for keeping you at the ‘outer fringe’ of your vocabulary, where learning can take place.

There are 50 levels in all, but it is rare for people to get above level 48.”

Proving that even testing your knowledge of the placement of U.S. states can be a fun game, Marylaine Block’s Neat New Stuff points us to Stateris-USA. I finished in 11 minutes on medium, mainly because I wasn’t sure which way to turn Rhode Island. You can also test your knowlege of Africa, Europe, France, the Netherlands, and the UK.

There are some fun links in the lefthand navigation, too, that create maps with a message of your choosing using smoke signals, crop circles, and the “Hollywood” sign.