Some Favorite Books

(Alexandra here, posting this for Elly. It's been a busy weekend for us both so sorry this is late! Hope you enjoy a list of her favorite books!)

It's summer, and the perfect time to read! I'm on vacation and don't have much time to write, but I've compiled a quick list of book recommendations for some excellent summer reading. Enjoy!
Ender's Game
A Wrinkle in Time
The Giver
Fahrenheit 451
Mockingbird (different from to kill a mockingbird)
The Republic
Code Name Verity
Time to Die
Pathfinder
Arsenic and Old Lace
From Homer to Harry Potter (DISCLAIMER: I've not completely finished this one)
Keepers of the Lost Cities
Both of us will be at One Year Adventure Novel's Summer Workshop so we will be taking a short break from posting for three weeks.

Stay foten,
Elly Toast

Comment and let us know if you have been or will be at the SW this week!

Review: A Time to Die

    You know those books you stay up all night reading? Yeah. This is one of those. (Disclaimer: I didn’t stay up all night reading it, but I did read for hours at a time when I picked it up, and I stayed up pretty late a couple times.) A Time to Die by Nadine Brandes is about the pilgrimage of a girl whose death clock is ticking. I rarely read YA Dystopian, but this one was impossible not to finish. I enjoyed every ounce of it. 

    I had been wanting to read A Time to Die since summer 2016, when Nadine Brandes spoke at the One Year Adventure Novel’s Summer Workshop for teen writers. I’d actually been curious about it before that, but her talks solidified the urge to read the book in me. I especially appreciate how much Nadine represents Christ.

    As a Christian writer, I’m told all the time “No! Don’t make your character a Christian! You can still teach a good lesson without shoving it in anyone’s face!” but this is one piece of advice I’m glad Nadine chose not to follow. Parvin’s faith is present through the story, and the growth she experiences in her relationship with God was completely realistic. It made me identify with Parvin even more than I would have already, and I didn't feel that it was being shoved in my face at all.

    The time spent developing each character is obvious. All the characters in the book felt three-dimensional, and one night, I almost said something to someone about Jude as if he was a real person. The loss experienced by characters made me sympathize with them so much that I almost felt it myself. Emotions from the characters flowed right into me; and I am often a fairly stoic reader.

    Possibly my favorite aspect of A Time to Die was the themes running through it. Making the most of your short life, the pursuit of Shalom, sacrifice. They all resonated with me in different ways. When I finished reading, I felt full, and ready to go live.

     Even though I somewhat knew what was going to happen at the end, it was still 100% worth the read, and the ending still came about in a way I never could have predicted. I recommend this book to anyone. (Although if you’re sensitive to description of wounds and stitches and minor operations like that, be warned that there’s some of that in there.)

     I also recommend checking out Nadine’s website and blog! She writes really great posts, and sometimes she gives away prizes. :D 


Stay foten! 
~Alexandra