I believe that reviewing for Inspirational authors is my calling and ministry. The desire of my heart is that my blog is a light and source of encouragement for both readers and authors.
Since my reading has been more less than more since I've been sick my quote choices you've probably seen before, but they are some of my favorites from some of my favorite authors.
I know there is more than ten, but I couldn't help adding them all.
Happy Tuesday and welcome to another edition of Top Ten Tuesday sponsored by That Artsy Reader Girl. Today's topic is books with travel. I of course believe that whenever I read I travel somewhere. I've tried to pick various books that have travel part of the story.
Bus
I hope you found a book or two to add to your TBR. This was a fun post to create. Have you read any of these books? Let me know in the comments.
Happy Thursday! I really wanted to do the Top Ten post but I was occupied with family things. So, since Thursday starts with a T I'm going to post today.
I'm going to do a twist on the series prompt The Artsy Reader Girl scheduled for Tuesday. It was choosing our favorite book out of a series. My twist . . . this was going around Instagram a few weeks ago it was choosing the first book you read by an author and then your favorite. Since I read a lot of series I thought this would be a fun way to spotlight different books.
Have you read any of them?
Title: The Ark and the Dove (The Story of Noah's Wife)
Author: Jill Eileen Smith
Genre: Historical Biblical Christian Fiction
Zara and Noah have walked together with the Creator for their entire lives, and they have done their best in an increasingly wicked and defiant world to raise their three sons to follow in their footsteps. It has been a challenge--and it's about to get much, much harder.
When the Creator tells her husband to build an ark to escape the coming wrath against the sins of humankind, Zara steps out with him in faith. But the derision and sabotage directed their way from both friends and extended family are difficult to bear, as is knowing that everyone she interacts with beyond her husband, her sons, and their wives is doomed to destruction. And when the ark is finally finished and the animals have been shut up inside, Zara and her family embark on an adventure that will test their patience and their faith as they await deliverance and dry ground.
Experience the story of Noah and the flood like you never have before. With bestselling and award-winning author Jill Eileen Smith as your guide, you'll never look at a rainbow the same way again.
Goodreads || Baker Book House || Amazon || Barnes & Noble
My Thoughts:
Close your eyes and imagine watching animals walking up a ramp two by two into an ark that can not only hold elephants, giraffes, hippos, and lions; but also your family.
We've heard and read the story of Noah and the ark, there was even a toy ark with animals when my girls were kids, but we've never heard the story of Noah's wife; now we have one.
With her amazing research and imaginative skill for the first time, we have a story about the woman who stood by Noah during the heckling he received while building the ark and endured the time spent on the ark.
Ms. Smith takes us both inside the ark and the family dynamics of Noah's family. And boy were there a lot of family dynamics; mainly between the wives of Shem, Japheth, and Ham.
Reading about the ark's interior with not only sleeping and eating quarters but pens for the animals, feeding, and waste management systems was absolutely fascinating.
I felt Zara's frustration with her three daughters-in-law and her sons. Being a Mama is hard at times and we see her struggle.
I love biblical fiction for a lot of reasons, the main reason is I am always pulled back to the Bible story. Last night as I was finishing I re-read the passage in Genesis 6:20-29 where Ham humiliates his father. I never really understood that, but Ms. Smith wrote it beautifully. It was sad as well.
Bottom Line:
This is a beautiful story about Zara, Noah's wife, and her children. The struggle is everyone's struggle. Learning to walk by faith is not new and we see that in this beautiful story.
A couple of my favorite quotes:
"I should not doubt. The Creator may not speak to us in an audible voice or fill our dreams with visions, but He speaks in His creation. He speaks to our conscience what is true and good and what is a lie and evil. If we seek Him, we will not be easily deceived."
"To think that the Creator is not able to do something different than what has always been done is arrogant because it puts us above Him."
About Jill Eileen Smith
Jill Eileen Smith is the bestselling and award-winning author of the biblical fiction series The Wives of King David, Wives of the Patriarchs, and Daughters of the Promised Land, as well as The Heart of a King and Star of Persia: Esther's Story. She is also the author of the nonfiction books When Life Doesn't Match Your Dreamsand She Walked Before Us. Her research into the lives of biblical women has taken her from the Bible to Israel, and she particularly enjoys learning how women lived in Old Testament times. Jill lives with her family in southeast Michigan.
You can learn more about Jill at her website and follow her on the following social media platforms. Facebook || Instagram || Twitter
Happy Tuesday and welcome to my first top ten . . . actually eleven. . . of 2024. I hope your first week and a couple of days of the new year are going well and you're not socked in with snow. We have snow, UGH, and more is on the way!! I'm in a perpetual snow globe until about May because you never know when we'll get more weather.
Happy Tuesday, and welcome to another edition of Top Ten Tuesday blog link-up sponsored by That Artsy Reader Girl. Today's theme is a Ha...
