Book Review: Courageous by Randy Alcorn (Based on the Screenplay by the Kendrick Brothers)

Title: Courageous

Author: Randy Alcorn, based off the screenplay of Alex Kendrick and Stephan Kendrick

Publish Date: August 1, 2011

Genre: Christian Fiction

Why I Read this Book: I have wanted to read this book since I saw the movie a few years ago. I read the audiobook version of this book that I found at my local library.

 

 

 

 

 

About the Book (from Goodreads):  

From the creators of "Fireproof" comes an inspiring new story about everyday heroes who long to be the kinds of dads that make a lifelong impact on their children. As law enforcement officers, Adam Mitchell, Nathan Hayes, and their partners willingly stand up to the worst the world can offer. Yet at the end of the day, they face a challenge that none of them are truly prepared to tackle: fatherhood. While they consistently give their best on the job, good enough seems to be all they can muster as dads. But they're quickly discovering that their standard is missing the mark. They know that God desires to turn the hearts of fathers to their children, but their children are beginning to drift farther and farther away from them. Will they be able to find a way to serve and protect those who are most dear to them? When tragedy hits home, these men are left wrestling with their hopes, their fears, their faith, and their fathering. Can a newfound urgency help these dads draw closer to God . . . and to their children?

Review

Adam Mitchell and his law enforcement partners constantly face the challenge of being Godly fathers. They seek to find a way to protect those that are closest to themselves. Courageous is all about striving to be all that God wants us to be.

I watched the movie Courageous a few years ago and fell in love with the way the screenplay writers mixed comedy with a very serious topic: fatherhood and being what God wants you to be. At the end of the Audiobook version, there is an interview with the author of the book, Randy Alcorn. In the interview he discussed how he struggled to create a full length novel out of only a few hours of screenplay. I believe one of the most amazing aspects of this book is the additional content that Alcorn provides. There are many additional or lengthened scenes that stay true to the original feel of the movie. He adds much more laughter, many more heartfelt moments and keeps the overall message just as hard hitting.

I would recommend this book to anyone who needs encouragement, laughter, or a good crying session.

Final Statements

Recommended Reading Age: Any

Overall Rating: 5/5

Book Review: Chosen by Ted Dekker

Book Title: Chosen

Author: Ted Dekker

Publish Date: April 13, 2010

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy, Christian Fiction

Series Name: Lost Books (#1)

Plot (from Goodreads):

Think with your heart and prepare to die . . . for you have been Chosen.

Thomas Hunter, supreme commander of the Forest Guard, has seen a great evil decimate much of his beautiful world. With a dwindling army and an epic threat, Thomas is forced to supplement his fighters with new recruits ages 16 and 17. From thousands, four will be chosen to lead a special mission.

Unknown to Thomas, the chosen four are redirected to a different endgame. They must find the seven lost Books of History before the Dark One. For these seven books have immense power over the past, present, and future, controlling not only the destiny of their world . . . but that of ours as well.

Why I Read this Book: I love Ted Dekker novels.  This book is a re-read for me.  I have read the first 4 books in this series, but I have not read the last 2 books in the series.  I intend to re-read this first 4 books in order to refresh my memory in preparation for the last two books in the series.

 

Review 

Full of action and adventure, Ted Dekker's books never fail to deliver.  There is a slight minor plot that involves romance, but the major plot is full of adventure, excitement, and fighting.

There is also some comic relief present in the form of the rouch, Michal and Gabil.  I talked about this some in my epic bookish battle royal for the Bout of Books read-a-thon.

I also like the Christian allegories that are present.  Most of the time, these allegories are very subtle.  One of the main allegories is to God through Elyon who is the loving God in this series.  Although there are Christian allegories, I believe that this series would be great for anyone who loves fantasy, action, and/or adventure.

One last comment: the cover.  Have you seen the new covers for this series?  They are gorgeous.  I cannot keep my eyes off of them.  The original covers were not bad, but the new covers are AMAZING.  Here is a peek at the old covers:

The new covers are so pretty and not as plain as the old covers.   I also think that the new covers appeal more to both males and females; whereas, the old covers appeal more to a male audience.

 

Final Statements

Recommended Reading Age: 13+ for intense action scenes

Overall Rating: 5/5

Book Review: My Name is Chloe by Melody Carlson

Book Title: My Name is Chloe

Author: Melody Carlson

Publish Date: January 10, 2003

Genre: Young Adult Christian Fiction

Series Name: Diary of a Teenage Girl: Chloe (#1)

Plot (from Goodreads): Chloe, Josh Miller's younger sister, is a free spirit with funky clothes and dramatic hair. She struggles with her own identity, classmates, parents, boys, and -- her biggest question -- whether or not God is for real. But this unconventional high school freshman definitely doesn't hold back when she meets Him in a big, personal way. Refusing to change her image to fit into the "stereotypical Christian preppy mold," Chloe expresses God's love and grace through the girl band she forms, Redemption. In her development as a musician and performer, tender-hearted Chloe will learn tough lessons about following God, her heart, and her dreams.

Why I Read this Book: I found this series at my local Goodwill and they looked really interesting.

 

Review 

My favorite part about this book is that I learned more about God while reading it.  Chloe, although a new Christian, has wonderful incites about God and His love.  For more about this, read my post on my other blog, God Speaks Through Everyday Things.

The writing style for this book was very simple and plain.  There were some really slow parts in the book and there did not seem to be a strong central plot.  The book is written as a series of diary entries in which Chloe tells about what is happening in her life.  The plot seemed to be the act of Chloe discovering what it means to be a Christian and to have a relationship with God.  

I do plan on continuing with this series.  I think that it is intended that the reader reads the Diary of a Teenage Girl: Caitlin series before the Chloe series, so I think I will read the first Chloe book next and continue from there.

 

Final Statements

Recommended Reading Age: 13+ for mature and appropriate discussion about sex

Overall Rating: 3.5/5

Children's Book Review Tuesday: The Bad Beginning (A Series of Unfortunate Events Book 1) by Lemony Snicket

Book Title: The Bad Beginning

Series Title: A Series of Unfortunate Events (Book 1)

Author: Lemony Snicket

Publish Date: September 30, 1999

Genre: Children's Fantasy, Humor

Similar Author/Books: The Spiderwick Chronicles by Holly Black

Find It Here: Amazon (affiliate link)

Plot (from Goodreads):  

Dear Reader, 

I'm sorry to say that the book you are holding in your hands is extremely unpleasant. It tells an unhappy tale about three very unlucky children. Even though they are charming and clever, the Baudelaire siblings lead lives filled with misery and woe. From the very first page of this book when the children are at the beach and receive terrible news, continuing on through the entire story, disaster lurks at their heels. One might say they are magnets for misfortune.

In this short book alone, the three youngsters encounter a greedy and repulsive villain, itchy clothing, a disastrous fire, a plot to steal their fortune, and cold porridge for breakfast.

It is my sad duty to write down these unpleasant tales, but there is nothing stopping you from putting this book down at once and reading something happy, if you prefer that sort of thing. 

With all due respect,

Lemony Snicket

Why I Read this Book: I have been wanting to reread this series for a while now.  I saw this book at my local Goodwill and it was in great condition so I picked it up.

Review

I enjoyed rereading this book!  Rereading a book that you read when you are a child is like visiting a friend that you have not seen in a few years.  When I see my friends from high school that I have not talked to in three of four years, I am excited to see them, but I hope that we will be able to get along like we did in high school now that we have both changed some.  When I picked up this book, I was really excited, but I was also nervous.  What if this book was not as good as I remembered it to be and that great memory that I had was tarnished by rereading the book?

This book lived up to those extremely high expectations that I had from reading the book when I was a child.  Lemony Snicket's writing style is cynical, yet completely hilarious.  He has a subtle humor that is difficult to get used to at first, but I quickly remembered my love for it.  After I had begun reading the book again, I remembered parts of the plot, but I could not wait to read the ending.  I am glad that I reread this book.

I believe that this book would be great for children who want to read their first chapter book.  Although some of the vocabulary is advanced, the author has a great way of introducing new words to children by defining them, but not making the child feel uneducated.

Final Statements

Recommended Reading Age: 7 and up

Overall Rating: 5/5