Monthly Bookshelf Review - September 2021

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It appears that I read more during September, but I should qualify that a little. One title is a novella, one is a children's book, and one is a graphic novel! Since we've started school, my time is a bit more at a premium with grading and all. And of course, I want to read the assigned novel along with my Fiction Writing students! I suppose I need to manage my expectations of how much reading I can do and still be able to enjoy it!

September's Books Completed and Reviewed

Snow White: A Graphic Novel by Matt Phelan - a retelling of the fairy tale in a 1920s setting, with beautiful artwork. (Read my full review HERE)

A Pressing Engagement by Anna Lee Huber - Kiera and Gage follow clues about an unusual piece of jewelry she receives as a wedding gift. (Read my full review HERE)

Undercurrent of Secrets by Rachel Scott McDaniel - Devyn and Chase look for information about a young woman in an old photo, while in the 1920s timeline, Hattie's life on the steamboat is interrupted when a new first mate joins the crew. (Read my full review HERE)

The Twenty-One Balloons by William Pene DuBois - This Newbery Award winner is a whimsical tale of a professor who crash landed his balloon on the island of Krakatoa and was surprised to find it was inhabited. (Read my full review HERE)

During September I started reading:

As Death Draws Near by Anna Lee Huber - Kiera and Gage are called away from their idyllic honeymoon to investigate a murder at an Irish abbey. (Having caught up with the rest of the group, I hope to stay up to date with the Lady Darby Read-Along group on Facebook as we continue reading together through the series)

Speechless: Controlling Words, Controlling Minds by Michael Knowles - It took me awhile to get started on this, but it's very thought-provoking so far. I suspect I'll move pretty slowly though.

   

At the Edge of the Orchard: A Novel by Tracy Chevalier - This novel was picked for its inclusion of Johnny Appleseed, and because it has apples on the cover. All for the September book club theme. I'm only a few chapters in, so don't expect a review for awhile, but it's good so far!

During September I continued reading:

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell - I had set this aside for a little while, but picked it up again this month and am determined to finish, even if it takes me a couple more months of reading a little here and there.

 

Coming Up in October!

The Last Book in the Universe by Rodman Philbrick

A Corner of White by Jaclyn Moriarty

Come Back to Me by Jody Hedlund

An Unexpected Peril by Deanna Raybourn

   

   

On my blogs recently . . . 

Besides the reviews, here on Just A Second you'll find:

Scripture and a Snapshot posts

Friday Fun posts - The Friday 56 and First Lines

What I'm Reading - September 13, 2021

And on HS Coffee Break:

I Spy posts (#35-#38)

Five Minute Friday posts

How Do You Keep Records and Calculate Grades?

Online Book Club - September Theme: Apples

Online Book Club - Wrapping Up August: Newbery Medal Books

Currently . . . September 1st

This post will be linked at the September 2021 Monthly Wrap-Up Round-up Link-up and Giveaway hosted by Feed Your Fiction Addiction; and at the weekly reading list meme hosted at Book Date.

 

©2008-2021 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. 

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Scripture and a Snapshot - Remember the Wonders

Give praise to the LORD, proclaim his name;

make known among the nations what he has done.

Sing to him, sing praise to him;

tell of all his wonderful acts.

Glory in his holy name;

let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.

Look to the LORD and his strength;

seek his face always.

Remember the wonders he has done,

his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced,

you his servants, the descendants of Israel,

his chosen ones, the children of Jacob.

Sing to the LORD, all the earth;

proclaim his salvation day after day.

Declare his glory among the nations,

his marvelous deeds among all peoples!

For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise;

he is to be feared above all gods.

For all the gods of the nations are idols,

but the LORD made the heavens.

Splendor and majesty are before him;

strength and joy are in his dwelling place.

Ascribe to the LORD, all you families of nations,

ascribe to the LORD glory and strength!

Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name;

bring an offering and come before him!

Worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness.

Tremble before him, all the earth!

The world is firmly established; it cannot be moved.

Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;

let them say among the nations, "The LORD reigns!"

Let the sea resound, and all that is in it;

let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them!

Let the trees of the forest sing,

let them sing for joy before the LORD,

for he comes to judge the earth.

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;

his love endures forever.

Cry out, "Save us, God our Savior;

gather us and deliver us from the nations,

that we may give thanks to your holy name,

and glory in your praise."

Praise be to the LORD, the God of Israel,

from everlasting to everlasting.

Then all the people said "Amen" and "Praise the LORD."

~I Chronicles 16:8-13, 23-26~

<div style='width:100%;text-align:center;'> <span style='margin:5px;padding:5px;border-radius: 5px;border:1px solid lightgrey;display:inline-block;'><a rel=_nofollow href='https://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/search/label/Scripture%20and%20a%20Snapshot'> <img style='border: 1px solid gray;width:330px;height:330px;' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBkEsmWJLn1f3VqhfaylcSn7IABJxDE4XrGPLFjO1V9xTM3ozVgjnerdCaVUqCwcRPIiwfqTfFqk4du0DK8acoLtyo-qFBOeBIKDwilTJVyIcRXpdYZC2QcFtMnVXKNk4Q1SLHMCX7SPU/s320/scripture+snapshot.jpg'><p style='align: center;'> </p> </a></span>

Thank you for joining Scripture & A Snapshot. Leave a link to your own post sharing a Scripture and a Snapshot. Take time to visit some of the other links and bless each other with comments.

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I also link up at Sunday Scripture Blessings, hosted by Peabea's Photos 'n Scribbles, and at Selah, hosted by A Spirit of Simplicity.

 ©2008-2021 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Friday Fun - The Friday 56 and First Lines for September 24, 2021

This post contains affiliate links - using affiliate links from Just A Second helps supply books and coffee. 

Little Face tries to follow us. He's running along, leaping from one junk pile to the next, making a game of it. "Chox!" he sings out. "Chox!"

He knows I haven't got any more. It's like he gets as much pleasure out of saying the word as eating the actual choxbar.

~from page 56 of The Last Book in the Universe by Rodman Philbrick

This fast-paced action novel is set in a future where the world has been almost destroyed. Newbery Honor Author Rodman Philbrick is at his very best.

Nobody around here reads anymore. Why bother, when you can just shoot all the images and excitement straight into your brain? I've heard of books, but they were long before I was born, in the backtimes before the Big Shake . . . In a world where people only use mindprobes for entertainment, a teenaged boy is one of the rare human beings who can see life for what it really is. Cruelly nicknamed "Spaz", he is subject to random seizures that make it impossible for him to use the brain-drain tech. But what sets him apart eventually becomes his salvation. After meeting an old man called Ryter, Spaz begins to learn about how the world used to be before the catastrophic earthquake that changed everything. There is a story of a promised land, rich in its bounties, that can cure any ailment and more beautiful than any place left in the desolate wasteland humanity calls home. The two set off to find Eden in the hopes of saving Spaz's dying sister, and together, seek to bring some good back to the world. 

The Friday 56 is hosted at Freda's Voice

*Grab a book, any book.

*Turn to Page 56 or 56% on your e-reader.

*Find a snippet, short and sweet.

*Post it, and share in the Linky.

***************

If you're reading this, it must be a thousand years from now. Because nobody around here reads anymore. Why bother, when you can just probe it? Put all the images and excitement right inside your brain and let it rip.

~From the beginning of The Last Book in the Universe by Rodman Philbrick

Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader.

*It's Book Beginnings on Fridays! Time to gather with our fellow book lovers and share the opening sentence (or so) of the books we are reading this week. Or share from a book that is on your mind right now -- whatever catches your fancy.

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First Line Fridays is hosted at Reading is My SuperPower

*Share the first line or two of the book closest to you, then visit other FLF participants.

*Please keep posts family friendly or clean reads.

*Link back to Reading is My SuperPower within your post or grab a button.

©2008-2021 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Recent Reads - Snow White: A Graphic Novel

This post contains affiliate links - using affiliate links from Just A Second helps supply books and coffee. 

Snow White: A Graphic Novel by Matt Phelan - I'm not usually one to choose graphic novels, but this caught my eye when I was looking for something to read that had an apple theme for the Online Book Club. I had resorted to search terms of novels with apples on the cover, and this was one of them. The cover appealed to me with its bold colors and art deco style lettering, and that is clearly an apple.

Author and illustrator Matt Phelan brings his creativity to the well-known fairy tale of Snow White. He tells the tale mostly in pictures, with a minimum of dialogue. The drawings are grayscale with just hints of color here and there, and yet they have a watercolor feel. 

In this retelling, the story is set in 1920s New York City. Samantha (nicknamed Snow) loses her mother when she's young, and her banker father eventually marries a Ziegfeld Follies star who convinces him to send Snow away to school. Snow returns after her father dies - and perhaps the Queen of the Follies had something to do with that? - and is soon driven from her home by her stepmother. There's an attempt on Snow's life, but seven young street urchins rescue her. They strike up a friendship but the stepmother finds out Snow is still alive and takes matters into her own hands. 

The unique take on the setting and characters is remarkably true to the original story, and there is a little magic thrown in as well. And yes, there is definitely a fairy tale happy ending!

This review will also appear on HS Coffee Break as part of the Online Book Club for September 2021.

The curtain rises on New York City. The dazzling lights cast shadows that grow ever darker as the glitzy prosperity of the Roaring Twenties screeches to a halt. Enter a cast of familiar characters: a young girl, Samantha White, returning after being sent away by her cruel stepmother, the Queen of the Follies, years earlier; her father, the King of Wall Street, who survives the stock market crash only to suffer a strange and sudden death; seven street urchins, brave protectors for a girl as pure as snow; and a mysterious stock ticker that holds the stepmother in its thrall, churning out ticker tape imprinted with the wicked words: "Another . . . More Beautiful . . . KILL."

©2008-2021 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Scripture and a Snapshot - Two Are Better Than One

Two are better than one,

because they have a good return for their labor;

If either of them falls down,

one can help the other up.

But pity anyone who falls

and has no one to help them up.

Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.

But how can one keep warm alone?

Though one may be overpowered,

two can defend themselves.

A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

~Ecclesiastes 4:9-12~

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Thank you for joining Scripture & A Snapshot. Leave a link to your own post sharing a Scripture and a Snapshot. Take time to visit some of the other links and bless each other with comments.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

I also link up at Sunday Scripture Blessings, hosted by Peabea's Photos 'n Scribbles, and at Selah, hosted by A Spirit of Simplicity.

©2008-2021 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Friday Fun - The Friday 56 and First Lines for September 17, 2021

This post contains affiliate links - using affiliate links from Just A Second helps supply books and coffee. 

Right away I got that soarin feelin of not havin to think or make any decisions, jest answerin with the crowd what the preacher and God wanted me to say. Thats what I loved about camp meetings - lettin go of my whole life so I didnt have to think about James or the children or what we were gonna eat or the hardship of livin in the Black Swamp. I could jest be.

~from page 56 of At the Edge of the Orchard: A Novel by Tracy Chevalier

1838: James and Sadie Goodenough have settled where their wagon got stuck - in the muddy, stagnant swamps of northwest Ohio. They and their five children work relentlessly to tame their patch of land, buying saplings from a local tree man known as John Appleseed so they can cultivate the fifty apple trees required to stake their claim on the property. But the orchard they plant sows the seeds of a long battle. James loves the apples, reminders of an easier life back in Connecticut; while Sadie prefers the applejack they make, and alcoholic refuge from brutal frontier life. . .

The Friday 56 is hosted at Freda's Voice

*Grab a book, any book.

*Turn to Page 56 or 56% on your e-reader.

*Find a snippet, short and sweet.

*Post it, and share in the Linky.

***************

JULY 1831

KESWICK, ENGLAND

It began with a letter. Or perhaps, more accurately, a messenger. Though I suppose it's pointless to quibble over such a triviality.

~From the beginning of As Death Draws Near by Anna Lee Huber

July 1831. In the midst of their idyllic honeymoon in England's Lake District, Kiera and Gage's seclusion is soon interrupted by a missive from her new father-in-law. A deadly incident involving a distant relative of the Duke of Wellington has taken place at an abbey south of Dublin, Ireland, and he insists that Kiera and Gage look into the matter.

Intent on discovering what kind of monster could murder a woman of the cloth, the couple travel to Rathfarnham Abbey school. Soon a second nun is slain in broad daylight near a classroom full of young girls. With a sinful killer growing bolder, the mother superior would like to send the students home, but the growing civil unrest in Ireland would make the journey treacherous.

Before long, Kiera starts to suspect that some of the girls may be hiding a sinister secret. With the killer poised to strike yet again, Kiera and Gage must make haste and unmask the fiend, before their matrimonial bliss comes to an untimely end . . .

Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Rose City Reader.

*It's Book Beginnings on Fridays! Time to gather with our fellow book lovers and share the opening sentence (or so) of the books we are reading this week. Or share from a book that is on your mind right now -- whatever catches your fancy.

***************

First Line Fridays is hosted at Reading is My SuperPower

*Share the first line or two of the book closest to you, then visit other FLF participants.

*Please keep posts family friendly or clean reads.

*Link back to Reading is My SuperPower within your post or grab a button.

©2008-2021 Just A Second. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. http://justasecondblog.blogspot.com/ 

 We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.