mentoring digital wordsmiths
The Printed Letter Bookshop–a bookshop, not a bookstore, mind you–is where Aunt Maddie invested everything, including the money from Uncle Pete’s life insurance. And while it may not have shown great monetary profits, the close-knit community of friends she’d made is priceless.
The debut novel had a beautiful cover. But the title tricked me into thinking it was another of those dime-a-dozen Jane Austen spin-offs that I saw every time I went to Hallmark. Emma is inimitable–why would I want to read anyone’s attempt? But then my friends started talking about this new book by Katherine Reay. And I discovered it was…
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I still remember my aunt’s phone call that summer of 2006. My cousin Brian had met a girl. I was newly married myself. And I couldn’t have been happier that my strong but tender-hearted cousin had found the girl he wanted to marry. There wasn’t a dry eye in the room the next January. Heartland’s “I Loved Her First” played…
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“Letter writing is such a heartless method of communicating. First, one has difficulty putting into words what he really feels—then he must worry for fear what is written is misunderstood—and that for a good long time, since he cannot erase once the post-box has banged shut, and then he must wait—and that is worst of all.” (Jim Elliot) Waiting is…
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“I cannot remember the books I’ve read any more than the meals I have eaten; even so, they have made me.” As much as I love to give book recommendations to my friends, I can identity all too well with this quotation which has often been attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson. Ask me for my favorite authors, and I can…
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Dear family and friends, “Momma, when I grow up, will you ask Daddy to help me build a house?” Our Sara Bear loves to talk about plans for her future house. “Which color do you think my house should be? Pink and black?” You’re never quite sure when the subject is going to come up. The other day, it was…
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“Tell me honestly, do you really believe one word of all that?” The skeptic’s question to the curate was a staggering blow to someone whose occupation presupposes faith in God—rather like assuming a child brought up in a Christian home will automatically become a child of God. The story of Thomas Wingfold, Curate (republished in the 1980s as The Curate’s Awakening) awakened…
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I was Lucy the Valiant, Queen of Narnia. In one hand I grasped my shield–a metal garbage can lid–and in the other I held a wooden sword. Together with my brother, Peter, High King of Narnia, we vanquished the White Witch and brought spring to Narnia once again. The books I read as a child came alive to me as…
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Dear Reader, Larkin is one of my favorite games, stories, and dreams. Alan W. Harris’ The Tales of Larkin are adventurous, exciting, and comical. All four books are perfect for the whole family to read aloud. Hawthorn, a young Larkin, is off on his first hunt when he is ambushed by the Renegades. He is not quite successful in his…
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Dear Everyone, My name is Sara. My family calls me Sara Bear or just Bear. Sometimes they try to call me other things like Cutie or Pumpkin or something silly like that. But I always remind them, quite emphatically, “I’m Sara!” This year was a busy one for me. I had to help Daddy with a lot of the work…
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“A children’s story which is enjoyed only by children is a bad children’s story. The good ones last.” -C.S. Lewis If a good children’s story is one that can be enjoyed by all ages, then Love, Mary Elisabeth is a good children’s story indeed. In Love, Mary Elisabeth, Christy Martenson has given us a winsome and delightful tale. Written in…
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Dear Reader, Since my mother first got Love, Mary Elisabeth on my Kindle, I have been a TOTAL fan! Love, Mary Elisabeth is a heart-warming story of a young girl who, after her mother is diagnosed with Tuberculosis, is whisked off to her uncle’s farm where she is safe. Imagine, a simple farm about one mile from Barstow, Washington. A dusty…
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