Discover the love of books with A Simply Enchanted Life. We review a variety of books, typically family friendly though not always in the Christian Genre. Book content will be thoroughly outlined and teen friendly books will be marked with an easy to find seal of approval.
In edition to books you will also find product reviews, recipes, occasional posts about my life, and information on my handmade shops.
I usually can’t stand true stories/autobiographies but this one pleasantly surprised me! WOW! What an inspiration and a reminder that we are all precious in God’s eyes. I think this book would be perfect for a young girl or even an older girl who is struggling with her body image.
There is a lesson we can learn about beauty in the modern world and how what we see is not really a reality and how our perception is skewed based by media and modern photoshop tools. Most importantly we are reminded that beauty comes from within because God looks upon our heart and not upon our physical appearance.
"God sees everyone one of us as beautiful. We are, after all, made in His image. We make ourselves ugly by turning away from Him and getting entangled in things He despises, like pride, greed and lust. But the more we cling to virtues like humility, selflessness, modesty, and purity, the more beautiful we become--not only in His eyes, but also in the eyes of others. You can't airbrush that."
Definitely 5 stars! I loved the honesty and the Godly principles. I will be keeping this book for future discussions about body image and modesty with my children.
In December 2011, 21-year-old Victoria's Secret Runway Angel Kylie Bisutti stunned the fashion industry when she chose faith over fame and fortune and made the switch from supermodel to role model. In "I'm No Angel," Kylie shares her story--from her early years struggling to make it big in the cut-throat world of modeling, her "big break" winning the Victoria's Secret Runway Angel competition, and the disillusionment and spiritual warfare that followed, to the moment she realized that she could no longer reconcile her career with her Christian beliefs, surrendered her life to God, and dedicated her life to preaching a message of modesty and inner beauty. Along the way, Kylie talks about her personal struggles with inadequacy, low self-esteem, and her near-constant quest for approval in a world where you can never be thin enough, pretty enough, or sexy enough. She helps readers understand that true beauty lies within and that real fulfillment comes from knowing, loving, and serving Christ View all my reviews
Kylie Bisutti is an American model who won the 2009 Victoria's Secret Angel. At 19, she beat out 10,000 other girls to win a modeling contract with Victoria's Secret,,"Victoria's Secret Model Search" competition,broadcast online through CBS and concluded during the December 1st airing of that year's Fashion Show. Placing first through fan voting over fellow contestant Jamie Lee Darley in the final round earned Bisutti, nineteen years old and a newlywed at the time of filming, the prize of walking in the annual show alongside Victoria's Secret Angels like Heidi Klum, Miranda Kerr and Doutzen Kroes.
Although Bisutti continues her career in the entertainment business,she did not work with Victoria's Secret after the show. She later said lingerie modeling conflicted with her Christian values: "My body should only be for my husband and it's just a sacred thing." Bisutti states that she will only choose wholesome jobs that will honor her Christian beliefs.
I received this book free from Tyndale House Publishers in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
I was so excited to read this book—the cover is just gorgeous and that was the sole reason I was compelled to read this book. Well, I won’t lie; I am a huge fan of fantasy, fairy tales and the show Once Upon a Time. So, when I saw this cover I had to have this book and luckily my dad got it for me for my birthday. I enjoyed the book well enough though I do wish there had been less realistic situations and more fantasy. Really, despite this being a retelling of a fairy tale there wasn’t a fantasy element to it at all and I really missed that. A fairy tale just needs a good dose of magic in my opinion and that was seriously missing in this story. Otherwise it was pretty good!
Sophie has been raised as a lowly scullery maid for an overbearing and evil duchess. She wishes for nothing but to please the Lord and to live her life serving others and being a blessing. Now, I really thought this was an unusual element to this story. I knew going into it that it was Christian fiction but I’m used to Christian fantasy using allegory rather than actually saying “Jesus Christ” or quoting the scripture. I’m not sure why but this element just didn’t seem to flow with the theme. Perhaps that’s just because I have a preconceived notion of how a fairytale typically reads…
Anyway, Gabe is nobility from a neighboring kingdom and he learns of Sophie’s plight and of her true origin as the daughter of the late Duke and though she was betrothed to his older brother in her infancy—Gabe is determined to rescue her and steal the glory that would belong to his brother.
However, it was never Gabe’s intention to fall helplessly in love with Sophie and when they find themselves in the Cottage of the Seven while Gabe recovers from an injury—Sophie finds she can no longer deny her attraction to the handsome Gabe. This provides quite a problem as Gabe is already engaged to another and of course there is the problem of the legally binding betrothal of Sophie to his brother.
As always the story wraps up with a fairytale ending but I thought this one was almost a little too clean of a wrap up. I can’t quite put a finger on what I would change as I really did enjoy the story but there were little things I felt made the story disjointed or perhaps out of place? As a Christian I really do enjoy a book that pulls in a Christian element but it just didn’t seem to fit in well in this story. Otherwise, it was a really good read and I do think I’ll pick up a few more of her books to check them out. View all my reviews|Read an Excerpt
Melanie Dickerson is a two-time Christy Award finalist and her book, The Healer's Apprentice, won the National Readers Choice Award for Best First Book. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) and Romance Writers of America (RWA). . Melanie earned a bachelors degree in special education of the hearing impaired from The University of Alabama and has worked as a teacher and a missionary. She lives with her husband and two children in Huntsville, Alabama. Find out more about this author by visiting her website at http://www.melaniedickerson.com
I really loved this book. It's a funny thing how God works His will and direction into our lives without our ever understanding unless He shows us.
Cindy Woodsmall is my favorite author of the Amish genre. Month's ago I bought the book "Plain Wisdom" I had been so excited to purchase it and surprisingly the book made its way to my shelf without being read. I kept going to my shelf of books and pulling out books to read and for some reason I kept putting off reading this book.
I picked up the book this week. I am going through a very trying time right now...one of the lowest points of my entire life. I began to read and then to cry as the realization that God had this all in his plan for me. He didn't want me to read this book months ago. He knew I needed to read it now!
This book has little nuggets of wisdom through the entire book. I was so blessed by the insight that was shared by co-authors, Cindy Woodsmall and Miriam Flaud. If you are looking for encouragement or if you're questioning life in general, this is a good book to read. With heartwarming stories, admittance of failures and scriptures to back up the truths that God has shown to them, this book is sure to touch your soul and life your spirits.
"God knows how to heal the brokenhearted and how to give beauty for ashes" -Plain Wisdom p. 143
"Heaven in Her Arms: Why God Chose Mary to Raise His Son and What it Means for You" is written by Catherine Hickem - a licensed psychotherapist, an author, speaker, coach, and counselor with years of experience. This non-fiction story is a look into the heart and life of Mary. Why exactly did God choose Mary to be the mother to His son? Did she share the same anxiety and fears that any other mother faces? How did she deal with those fears and anxiety? All of these questions (and more) are presented in this book. By looking at how Mary dealt with her fears and insecurity we can learn how to emulate her and to develop our own close relationship with the Lord. "Heaven in Her Arms" is absolutely fantastic for any mother or mother-to-be. I thoroughly enjoyed this book as well as the study guide in the back. I typically do not enjoy non-fiction or self help books but this one is worth the read!
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255
I'm No Angel: From Victoria's Secret Model to Role Model by Kylie Bisutti
