Book Reviews – Page 2 – Laurel Luehmann

Book Reviews, Journaling, Personal, reading

May memories – 2025

June 2, 2025by Laurel LuehmannLeave a Comment

Let your care and wish be to glorify God by your life here as long as He pleases, even though it be in the midst of toil, and conflict, and suffering, and leave Him to say when “it is enough”.
charles spurgeon

Things worth remembering…

finding rue anemone in the woods
a small road trip with my mom
COUSIN TIME!!!
guacamole
blossoms on the tree in the front yard
Reading Poppleton and Alfie with the aforementioned cousin
a random child at the lake sitting down next to me while I was reading
printing off a copy of Beauty Even Here for edits (!!!)
experiencing the temporary tattoo parlor that popped up around the dining room table one night
finding a solution for my lack of bookshelves problem…three cheers for double decker coffee tables!
watching Mrs. Miniver with Grandma and finding that it’s a new favorite
noodle soup and FaceTime with a dear friend
High, Low, No Goat
the first cutting of hay this year
an Anne of Green Gables movie night with friends
RASPBERRY CORDIAL ❤
hiking and good conversation

Now through a frosted pane we trace
The outline of His perfect will,
Content to trust His love until
We know and see Him face to face.
Amy carmichael

What I’ve been reading…

If I Live – Terri Blackstock

This was the final book in the If I Run Christian mystery and suspense trilogy. I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as the first two…it got into the mind of one of the villains while he was doing his bad things and that’s something I personally don’t care for. I was grateful for resolution at last, though!!😅

Disclaimer: due to thematic elements, I personally will not recommend this series to anyone younger than 18.

The Lost Rose – Victoria Lynn

I got a hundred pages in (it’s ginormous!!) and it just wasn’t clicking with me yet so I set it down. I definitely want to come back to this one of these days because I’ve enjoyed the previous two books in The Chronicles of Elira, but I guess that day is not today!

The Cost of Discipleship – Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Still on my end table, hehe!

Do Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly: How Ordinary People Can Change the World – Savannah Jane McCrary

I did a book swap with Savannah, and her book has been my tractor companion recently!

you only live twice – Hosanna Emily

Still reading through this one!

Dead and Buried – Cydnie Trenholm

Ahhh!!! I’m so glad I’m finally into this book. It’s a YA thriller, and a sequel to a book I really enjoyed. The banter is so. much. fun.

The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD,
Like the rivers of water;
He turns it wherever He wishes.
Proverbs 21:1

From the journal…

My life is not my own. It rests in the hands of my omniscient, omnipotent Father, who loves me so deeply, more deeply than I can be loved by anyone else. Therefore I don’t have to wonder if there is meaning or intention in where He has me now. I don’t need to fear that I’ve somehow missed an exit or an on ramp. I am not overlooked or crowded out by other items on His to-do list.

May I pursue You as You pursue me, day after day after day, filled with Your goodness, lost in Your love.

I thank You that Your goodness and Your mercy are truly running after me every day of my life…even on the ones when I feel that I’ve botched it.

O royal Giver, blessed be Thy choice.
Amy carmichael

What made your May memorable?

❤ Laurel

This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase something through one of the links I share in this post, I receive a small commission…at no extra cost to you.:)

Book Reviews, Journaling, Personal, reading

April memories – 2025

May 5, 2025by Laurel Luehmann2 Comments

Our own humour and appetite must not determine our practice, but the honour of God and the good and edification of the church. We should not so much consult our own pleasure and interest as the advancement of the kingdom of God among men.
Matthew henry

Things worth remembering…

my sister’s cinnamon rolls…AHHH!
announcing my next poetry collection
writing a bit more poetry
a race with my sisters
thrifting with sisters
playing Sorry with sisters
basically any time spent with sisters…XD
leading worship with a dear friend again
the firecrackers my brother set off outside my window
working in the woods with the aforementioned brother
the Christian Seder meal shared with family
listening to this album on the drive home from a Good Friday Service
Easter morning at home with the traditional Easter morning songs
walks and hikes and chats with friends
watching the world green up again
for some reason having a coffin recommended on Facebook Marketplace??
the smell of freshly-worked earth

Happy are they who know that discipleship simply means the life which springs from grace, and that grace simply means discipleship.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer

What I’ve been reading…

If I Run – Terri Blackstock

I listened to this one in two days during work. XD I hadn’t read a thriller/suspense novel in a while, and this was a fun one to get me back into that genre. You can read my full review here!

Disclaimer: due to thematic elements, I personally will not recommend this series to anyone younger than 18.

If I’m Found – Terri Blackstock

Of course I had to listen to the sequel…

The Cost of Discipleship – Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Still reading through this one very slowly and sporadically, heh!

The Boys in the Boat – Daniel James Brown

I’ve come back to reading this one and am almost done!! It’s gotten me so interested in rowing that I’ve looked up videos of Olympic regattas on YouTube. XD

you only live twice – Hosanna Emily

One of my dear friends released an Easter-y poetry collection this April!! I’ve been enjoying reading through it…I love both her imagery and her heart for Jesus!

and the waiting will be remembered as
a very little while.
hosanna emily

From the journal…

Lord…You know what must be done, and You are never short on time.

I was struck yesterday by the poetry in John’s gospel of Jesus drinking sour wine before declaring “It is finished.” He drank to the dregs the cup from which He had begged to be delivered. Thank You, thank You, my precious Jesus. “Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.”

Oh, Father! May it be enough for me to be held in Your hand, smack-dab in the middle of Your will.

…the demand and the gift of Christ.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Stay the course!

❤ Laurel

This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase something through one of the links I share in this post, I receive a small commission…at no extra cost to you.:)

Book Reviews, Journaling, Personal, reading

March memories – 2025

March 31, 2025by Laurel Luehmann2 Comments

Happy Monday, friends! And happy last day of March! It’s hard for me to believe that we’re already one-fourth of the way into 2025…I think my concept of time needs some help. XD

Anyway! Here’s a recap of this month. I always love putting these together and remembering the random wonderful (and wild!) moments that may have slipped my mind. I hope you can enjoy it a bit, too!

God is wise in heart and mighty in strength.
job 9:4a

Things worth remembering…

random FaceTime messages from my brothers
tapping season and time in the woods with siblings
quite literally spilling the tea with a dear friend
working on poetry things behind the scenes
the magic of fresh flowers in bringing homeyness to a new space
culinary adventures, in which chicken cooks faster than anticipated…numerous times
reading Bonhoeffer while babysitting the boiling sap
late night ice cream and chats with sisters
watching the grass begin to green up
setting a reading goal for myself at last and meeting it
sharing one of my favorite poems from Clarion Hope in video form
community.🫶🏼
spaghetti and a steer chases with sisters
sitting on the floor with my journal and a guitar

Lord, I would not be a citizen where Jesus was an alien.
Charles Spurgeon

What I’ve been reading…

The Colors of Rain – Abigail Hayven

I read this book last summer, but reread it this month, marking it up with colored pencils to gift to a sister. It was so much fun to read it again, not just to enjoy the story but to savor the beauty of the prose and the nuances of the characters’ personalities. I highly recommend…again!

My Dearest Dietrich – Amanda Barratt

I listened to the audiobook, and shocked myself by giving it five stars. XD (If you’ve been around for a bit, you know I don’t usually enjoy romances.) I appreciated the historical richness of this book and the glimpse of the moral difficulties that were faced by German Christians during WWII, and the courage with which the Bonhoeffers met them. And Dietrich’s intolerance of misunderstanding?? It delighted my soul.

The Cost of Discipleship – Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Yes, the audiobook inspired me. I’m only on the first chapter…it’s so rich!

Little House in the Big Woods – Laura Ingalls Wilder

I’ve started crocheting and listening to audiobooks most evenings, and I’m working through the Little House series. It was such a delight to revisit this book! It’s interesting to listen to it now, being closer to Ma and Pa’s ages, and seeing it with new (or older? Ha!) eyes. It really makes me remember just how much the ordinary moments and rhythms of life mean to young children.

I know whate’er befall me
Jesus doeth all things well.
fanny Crosby

From the journal…

Jesus, I leave regrets in the Hands that work outside of time…

Nothing is too hard for the Lord…if He wants something mended or fulfilled in this moment, He will make it happen. But there has never been a circumstance in my life in which He can only sigh and say, “That’s really too bad.”

Awaken in the hearts of Your people a remembrance of the glory of Who You are. Break us out of the ruts of our self-importance…

Open eyes! Heal breaking hearts. Show us a way out of this brokenness, and show us You in the midst of it.

Is not God enough for thy need, or is His all-sufficiency too narrow for thy wants? Dost thou want another eye beside that of Him who sees every secret thing? Is His heart faint? Is His arm weary? If so, seek another God; but if He be infinite, omnipotent, faithful, true, and all-wise, why gaddest thou abroad so much to seek another confidence?
charles spurgeon

Stay the course!

❤ Laurel

P.S. If you’re newer here, here’s a reminder to sign up for my weekly newsletter! That’s where I share the majority of what I used to share on the blog…plus this week’s newsletter *may* have an announcement…👀 You can join the newsletter gang here! (You get a free short story, too.🤭)

This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase something through one of the links I share in this post, I receive a small commission…at no extra cost to you.:)

Book Reviews, Journaling, Personal, reading

February memories – 2025

March 3, 2025by Laurel LuehmannLeave a Comment

Four short and everlasting weeks later…

There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations – these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit – immortal horrors or everlasting splendors.
c.s. lewis

Things worth remembering…

fake snake shenanigans
having an all-sisters outing to a favorite coffee shop
finding that the instant camera I dug out of a thrift store actually works (!!!)
skating past bloody ice 👀
getting a dear friend‘s poetry book in the mail
getting to use a new skid loader for work
being pleasantly surprised by a successful attempt at adapting a cheesecake recipe
finding out that Amazon had significantly marked down Clarion Hope (!!!)
writing strange typewriter haikus about my siblings
surviving The Coldest Day
finding that the combination of gravy, pasta shells, and mozzarella cheese tastes way better than it looks
a weekend near Duluth with friends…so very good for the soul🫶🏼
creating the Play-Doh Red Sea crossing
seeing Lake Superior for the first time
all of the memories made on the road…and on the side of the road…and in the ditch…
the world smelling like spring again
picking up crocheting again
time in the woods

We are full and we forget God: satisfied with earth, we are content to do without heaven.
Charles Spurgeon

What I’ve been reading…

Three Men in a Boat – Jerome K. Jerome

To be honest, I didn’t read much this month. But I did start reading this book, and the humor is so much fun!

In the Shadow of a Sunbeam – Rachel Rowbottom

I have mixed feelings about this book. I did break them down a bit in my Goodreads review, though, so you can check that out if you’d like.

What We Hide – Colleen Coble, Rick Acker

THE EPILOGUE, PEOPLES!!!

I enjoyed the mystery aspect of this story, but I was really disappointed with how the issue of divorce was handled so flippantly by a Christian couple. The “do I love him, do I not, should I divorce him, should I not,” was littered with Scripture references, and that really saddened me. I know that approach isn’t unrealistic in the least, but I would have appreciated a wiser character being able to bring some clarity to the situation and to the reader. Please and thank you.

(I did get invested in Hez’s story, though, and the epilogue got me, so I may give the sequel a listen when it comes out…)

He satisfies the longing soul,
And fills the hungry soul with goodness.
psalm 107:9

From the journal…

The Fall came because Eve was not satisfied with the abundance God had allowed her. Oh, Jesus, let me not fall into the same trap of believing that my ways are better!

It is a gift to suffer and long deeply on this earth, for in doing so we are given a clearer picture of the brokenness of this world and our sinful nature, and our desire for our Redeemer and Savior is strengthened in a way that those who know little trial can only dream of. Thank You for this opportunity, Lord, to know just how deep Your love for me runs.

Let me expect my daily sustenance from You and You alone so that I may be able to love deeply and truly with no conditions.

What’s the best that could happen?
Many people, I’m sure, but one of my dearest friends in Particular 🙂

Ah, February…the month in which joy and struggle love to coexist.:) What thoughts/memories are you taking away from this past month?

Stay the course!

❤ Laurel

This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase something through one of the links I share in this post, I receive a small commission…at no extra cost to you.:)

Book Reviews, Journaling, Personal

What I’ve Been Reading (+ Journal Snippets!)… October 2020 Edition

October 29, 2020November 20, 2020by Laurel Luehmann2 Comments

Good morning, all! Unbelievably, October is nearly over… which means it’s time for a review of my literary diet this month.

Quite honestly, I’m not very proud of the amount of reading I did this month. For writers, reading is like fueling up… so I guess I’ve been running close to empty for basically the whole month. Ah, well. Next month is fresh… with no mistakes in it! Yet.:)

Anyway… without further ado, here are my October reads!

Desiree’s Baby

Oh, man… if you want to read something short and extremely moving, here you go. This story is heartbreaking.

The Romance of a Busy Broker

Since O. Henry wrote The Gift of the Magi – one of my very favorite stories ever – I jumped at the chance to read another one of his works. The way this short story ended cracked me up!

Great Expectations

After hearing one of my brothers raving to me about it night and day, and even after being utterly traumatized and confused by the BBC film adaptation, I decided to give this book a try… and, oh, am I glad I did!

Dickens’ descriptions are incredible, and inspire me to be more creative in the way that I write my own descriptions. And his plots – oh, his plots!!! I don’t think I will ever be able to plot so masterfully as Dickens did.

Footprints of a Pilgrim: the Life and Loves of Ruth Bell Graham

My mother gave me this book a few years ago when I was researching Ruth Bell Graham for a school project, and I dug it out again recently after one of my sisters gave me one of Ruth Bell Graham’s poems.

This book is so beautiful… a fun mashup of an autobiography and anecdotes. I think what I loved the most, though, is the poetry scattered throughout. Her poetry is just so lovely and effortless… and it has inspired and influenced my own way of writing poetry.

Journal Snippets

I thought it might be fun to include some glimpses into my October 2020 journaling here…

“Seeking You (God) is all that will truly satisfy… all that will truly last.”

“Oh, God! I want You to be far more dear to me than that which I stubbornly clench in my fist. In all my desires… all my hopes… all my ambitions… may YOU – only You – be the One I seek.”

“Acts 20 – Paul may have been seen as something of a babbler… keeping back ‘nothing that was helpful’. But he served the Lord ‘with all humility’… and that makes all the difference.”

More journal snippets… yea or nay? Let me know in the comments below.:)

This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase something through one of the links I share in this post, I receive a small commission… at no extra cost to you.😊

Photo by Alisa Anton on Unsplash