Clean Books

I thought that the books where wonderful!!! I loved them, great story line, and plot. Love it!!!

I've loved the Hallmark Movies and now am reading the books. The print size makes them easy reading and who would not enjoy a Janette Oake story. Amazon pricing also makes them a excellent value.

these books are so wonderful, and makes you feel like you are in the book itself.

The movies of these books are good; however, these books are better and wroth of your time to read. If you like reading books, you should concider reading these series.

I loved this series of books! Janette has such a magnificent way of drawing her readers into the past! Love it!

A must to complete the set. For some reason, I bought volume 2 first. As an aficiando of Mary Oliver, I am very happy to have both volumes now.

I love Mary Oliver's poetry - it always puts me into a better frame of mind, and makes me slow down and breathe. Her poetry is so lyrical and evocative, I am transported straight to the wonderful natural world, and am able to view my struggles and petty difficulties through a calming and peaceful lens. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys poetry, and to anyone who hasn't yet fallen in love with poetry - Mary Oliver is one of the best poets ever, in my opinion!

This is a collection of her poems, old and new. She is an outstanding poet, and one cannot do better than have her book of poems by your bedside, to read before going to sleep or when you awake in the night, or first thing in the morning.

The Pulitzer Prize winning poet, Mary Oliver, finishes her poem,"What Have I Learned So Far" with the line, 'Be ignited, or be gone.'To me, this conveys the passion she brings to life and poetry. What comes through clearly in her poems is her reverence for nature.
New and Selected Poems, Volume Two, is a moving collection of her past works combined with many new poems. There is a Zen isness that permeates her work.Haiku like parsimony with no embellishment. Nature does not need anything extra. For example, writing about what she saw after a storm -
And this detail: the body of a duck, a golden-eye; and beside
it one black-backed gull. In the body of the duck, among the breast
feathers, a hole perhaps an inch across; the color within the hole
a shouting red. And bend it as you might, nothing was to blame:
storms must toss, and the great black-backed gawker must eat, and
so on. It was merely a moment.
I recently saw Mary Oliver at the 92nd Street 'Y' in New York City where she was reading from this collection. See her if you can. She reads as she writes, with dignity and with passion and wisdom. This is an extraordinary collection of poems.

I have about 5 of her poetry books. I feel that her poetry has gotten more and more beautiful over time, and believe that this collection is better than Volume 1. Mary Oliver is definitely my favorite poet - much of her writing is about a thirst for growth and spirituality, and finding peace in nature and love (friendships and relationships). I have given this book to a number of friends, who are also touched by her gift of expressing the unexpressable. Some of my favorite poems in this book: the Percy series (her dog), Why I Wake Early, and The Whistler.

My other favorite book of Mary Oliver poems is her most recent one: "Thirst". It deals with grief at the lost of her long-time partner and is quite beautiful. For those looking for a really good book of poems in general, I *definitely* recommend "Good Poems," compiled by Garrison Keillor; and "Risking Everything: 110 Poems of Love and Redemption" compiled by Roger Housden. Enjoy!

I purchased this book as a gift for an elderly friend, who is familiar with this series. She thoroughly enjoyed it.

I absolutely loved Bostwick's other book, River's Edge and was eager to read this book. Like River's Edge, this book is beautifully written and has wonderful, expressive characters. However, the first 100 pages contain such a sappy love story and I was so disappointed. Once I got past that part, it became a much better read and surprised me with a few plot twists. All in all, a good book but not 5 stars.

I'm a tad late reading this book but it didn't diminish from the wonderful story and great writing.
Filled with emotion and characters that felt like I knew them. I was very impressed with the way the author took a real person and weaved a clever plot of fiction.
Now I need to "catch up" and get the rest of Bostwick's books that have been released since this one.
If you haven't read Fields of Gold yet....don't wait any longer!

Loved it, loved it, loved it. I couldn't put it down. I am an avid quilter, so I loved reading how she made that into a business for herself. The book includes great themes, love, true love, friendship, hope, hopes crushed, and a few surprises to boot. I look forward to reading her other novels and am excited to have found another author to list among my favorites.

I just loved this! Unlike anything I have ever read. I had to go buy copies for each member of our book club, and thank you Marie, for signing the book-plates for each one. A good choice for a readers group, there is much to discuss - relationships, history, values, etc. We had a wonderful discussion about this book last night at our meeting.

Marie is an amazing writer. I read her newest first, River's Edge, 2006 which was so very good, that led me to seek out her first effort. It did not disappoint. In this historical fiction, the author meshes a main fictional character to a significant historical character, and with well-researched accuracy. The unfolding storyline grabs the reader at the onset and doesn't let go. You will be reading far into the night.

The main character is Evangeline (Eva) an innocent and crippled young woman who was born with a physical defect. You will admire her, and love her parents - her mother's determination and her fathers love as they raise her. You will get attached to all of the wonderful characters in this novel, which is primarily set in the time prior and during WWII and revolves around historical events of the era. Eva is a talented quilter, and throughout the novel we see how quilting helps her deal emotionally and financially with the events of her life, and assists in her maturity as she struggles with her parents to survive the hardships on her parents Oklahoma farm.

I had one slight complaint about the ending - I wanted more information about one conversation. I was pleased to hear from the author that this is being addressed in the sequel which should come out in fall of 2007. One of the things I loved best was at the end of the book there is a section called "A Chat with Marie Bostwick" that gives the reader so much insight into the writing, the research and the author. I highly recommend this book, and her River's Edge as well, for anyone who appreciates a well-written novel, and a whole lot more than just "romance" - don't miss this. Both these novels make my "favorites" list.

Gloria Bernal
January 2007

If you care about the environment and/or your health (or your family's health) you'll find the cleaning recipes in this book very useful. I remembered some of the cleaning techniques from my grandmother when I was a little girl, then they were all forgotten until now. You can find all the ingredients in your grocery store, borax f.e. is in the laundry isle. These ingredients used in this book work just as good if not better than the store bought. My grocery store offers nowadays eco-friendly cleaning products but they are very expansive, your home made version will cost you very little to make, and it's very easy. The A-Z cleaning key section is a quick way to look for a cleaning problem you have with the necessary ingredients and a link to the pages where it describes more about it. If you ever got a headache using those toxic shower cleaning products, think again, your body is telling you something...use nature's own...

"Clean" is a true gem. When I first read the book I thought to myself sure, sure baking soda and lemon is going to do the job of the store bought cleansers I've been using for years. Well imagine my surprise when I gave it a half-hearted whirl and soon found myself surrounded by a wonderfully fresh and spotlessly glistening bathroom and kitchen. And here is the part I really enjoyed, that overbearing scent of the cleanser I normally use wasn't there. I'm sold. I've mixed up my own batches of cleansers, refer to the book on a regular basis and am converted. Thanks to Michael DeJong's book not only is my home bright and clean and I am saving money but I can help save the environment.

I keep a copy of this book on my coffee table in my country house. I always enjoy it when my guests are curious and I can share this precious gem of a book with them. The author is genuine and exremely knowledgeable.
I have incorporated several of the recipies and they work without hurting me or our planet. I have purchased several copies to give to friends when I visit their homes.

This is a great book. Fun to read with fabulously fresh methods for cleaning the house. It truly is a ZEN experience. I read it quickly and refer to it often. Fully recommend it!!!

"CLEAN" is an amazing example of how each of us can take responsibility for our environment--home, neighborhood, city, state, country, planet. It provides easy and safe recipes that replace commercial products, but more than that, it's creating a grassroots environmental movement. We all hear about Global Warming and figure, "What can I do?" or even worse, "the government will fix it." Environmentalism begins at home, and "CLEAN" is a great guidebook to get us started--if everyone exchanged just ONE commercial product for ONE "CLEAN" recipe, the process of de-toxing our planet would begin. And we all have the ingredients in our homes already--baking soda, salt, lemon juice, white vinegar and borax (OK, so maybe you don't have borax, but believe it or not--it's in every grocery store right beside the commercial laundry detergents and bleach!) You have to clean anyway, so why not do it in a way that is safer for your family, pets, neighbors and the other billions of people who share our planet!

What an amazing transformation. Jorge is man who has the intelligence to run a legitimate business at an early age. Dealing drugs offers him more money then he can fathom. His newly discovered faith turns him on the straight, narrow and happier path. The old saying is true, money cannot buy happiness.

I had to go to jail for possession and happened to come across this book in the library there. I found it impossible to put down once I started to read it. If you get a chance I suggest to anyone to give this book a chance.

I am not a book reader, George gave me a copy of the book when I visited him in Atlanta and the following week I was on vacation in Florida picked up his book and read the entire book could not find a stopping point may God continue to bless his works as he is now touching so many lifes. It took Jesus Christ plus a lot of courage George to write this book.

When I saw this book on the shelf at my local library, I assumed this would just be some preachy, manipulative work in which a drug dealer tries to make his past vanish by finding God. As a lapsed Catholic I found this concept rather weak, but I picked up the book with a (reasonably) open mind, and started reading.
By the time he was in his twenties Jorge Valdes was a cocaine dealer on the rise, dealing to the rich and famous, the living embodiment of wealth and power and luxury; leading a life most of us can imagine only in our wildest dreams. The life of the rich with all the negative excess that goes with it: drugs, pornography, prostitution, infidelity, murder, double-crosses, torture, kidnapping. Enough drama and suspense for a Robert Ludlum novel. The only difference is, this is the real deal. But, as Valdes soon disovers there is a price to all this; and he finds the courage and committment to steer his life onto a new, positive path.
Reading this stirred my intense interest in the good and evil that all human beings are capable of, what Karl Jung called "the shadow". Obviously some of the content of this book is tough to take (Especially Valdes' graphic account of him and an associate being tortured by police for refusing to leak info), but the honesty with which Valdes tells his story and the glimpse the reader gets into his former life makes for fascinating and sometimes horrific reading.
Even though I gave up my religious faith long ago, I still found myself moved by Mr Valdes's committment to his beliefs and how dramatically his life has changed for the better because of his faith. COMING CLEAN is quite simply a remarkable story. I challenge anyone to read this book and finish it without feeling affected. A very moving and powerful work that could only have come from the pen of someone who has lived and breathed the life... and survived to help prevent others from making the same mistakes he did.

From the very first page the reader is drawn into this first person account of the life of Jorge Valdez, former drug smuggler and money launderer.This is a compelling story of intrigue, corruption, power, and greed.

Valdez describes the culture, family life and values of a Cuban family trying to find their dream in America. Valdez emigrated from Cuba with his family when he was 10 years old. He was an honor student and was planning a career in banking and accounting.
A series of events changed his life. He became involved with a drug cartel. By age 20, Valdez was in charge of the entire U.S. operation that included smuggling, distributing drugs, and money laundering.
Valdez eventually got caught and spent a total of 11 years in federal prison. The account of his family's support during his trial and imprisonment is especially touching.

The story is written by author Ken Abraham. The reader is given insight into the world of drug dealers, the prison system, and Valdez's personal ethical values. The book is a well-written account of the dramatic change in the life of Jorge Valdez. This is the testimony of a man freed from the power of sin by the transforming power of Jesus Christ.

Vignettes of fellow prisoners help the reader understand the consequences of bad judgment and wrong choices. The story takes you behind prison walls. The contrast of life in prison before and after Jorge's conversion give solid evidence of a man changed by the power of Christ.
While in prison Jorge earned an undergraduate degree from Southeastern Bible College and most of his credits for a graduate degree from Wheaton College. After his release Valdez completed his graduate studies at Wheaton College and went on to Loyola University to earn a doctorate in New Testament theology.
Valdez has made himself vulnerable in this honest portrayal of his strengths and weaknesses. It is a story of depravation, faith, forgiveness, and a new start. I am looking forward to another installment relating the miracles of Coming Clean Ministries in Tyrone, a nondenominational Christian ministry. This ministry seeks to intercept youth who are on destructive paths by redirecting their lives to become productive members of society.

The GlassHaus "Constructing Accessible Web Sites" book has been a great find. I began working to build sites and applications for use in Web browsers that had to be used by individuals with disabilities in 1997. Over these years I picked up a lot of hard won knowledge and experience, but have never run across a resource that fully backed what I had gathered. The GlasHaus Accessibility book not only echoes what I have learned, but has provided new insights to improve upon what I already have. The best part of this book is that I can point others to it and I am assured they will be able to build an accessible site or Web applications that can meet high standards.

Many folks think accessibility is a great inconvenience, but it takes a little thinking and planning to do it right from the beginning. Having a great resource at hand makes the process a cake walk. Not only are the processes and guides helpful for creating sites that are accessible for those that are disabled these steps outlined also make the information in the site future ready. Sites that are accessible are much easier to use with a handheld PDA device or from even a cell phone browser. Accessibility for everybody in more situations improves with structuring the information properly, which is all making Web enabled information really requires to get it ready to be consumed. Is your information ready to be consumed by everybody?

I don't usually come it the "lyrical type", but to find such a worthwhile book on such a worthwhile topic is a breath of fresh air!

Above all else, it offers practical advice on how to actually do the right thing. Unlike certain titles with animals on their covers, there's more here than just reams and reams of tables containing cut-and-pastes from the man pages on the subject.

It's also of a nice size. (I know that would be no recommendation, if the book didn't actually teach you anything, but it does - and you don't feel intimidated, like you can when you pick up some dirty great Red tome from a Certain OtherPublisher.) You feel as if the subject is managable. Knowable. It may be just me, but if a book is smaller than my own head, I generally feel that there's an outside chance I may be able to fit the contents inside my own skull!

I'll have to keep an eye open for these blue things... they're quite good.

Of the books and resources that I've read on accessible web sites, this is by far the best - especially from a UK perspective.

The main UK legislation that specifically mentions web sites and accessibility comes into force in October 2004 which, at the time of writing this, is still over two years away. This means that there isn't a great deal of information and certainly no legal cases that we can draw on from our country, so we have to look elsewhere to see what is happening.

This book benefits in that, although it does cover Section 508 and other already in place legislation, it also gives a great all round understanding of the topic, and is very easy to read. Having chapters written by different authors means that you get a far greater depth of experience and information, which can only benefit the reader.

If you're going to buy one book on accessible web sites, this should be at the top of your shopping list.

Two new words have joined the vocabulary of web designers in recent years - usability and accessibility. You will often come across them used in tandem.

Usability really became an issue when Jacob Nielsen infamously denounced Flash as 99% bad. Accessibility became a priority for web developers working on government projects after Section 508 was brought into law in the United States.

Accessibility became an issue in Australia during Maguire vs SOCOG in 1999, when a blind man filed a complaint with the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) that neither Olympic Games tickets purchasing information nor the souvenir programme were available in Braille. Most importantly he alleged that the SOCOG website was not accessible, and to make it so would have been well within budget. SOCOG was found to have discriminated against the complainant and damages were awarded against the organization.

Accessibility is now a civil rights issue. It is also not that difficult to implement on a website, once you learn how it can be done. This excellent book, Constructing Accessible Web Sites, teaches you all that and more. It is the first on its subject, and will not be the last, but it is damned a good beginning.

All eight co-authors have been pioneers in the field of accessibility, and Glasshaus deserves praise for having assembled such a team. They cover more than website accessibility - their expertise extends to the accessibility of web design tools themselves. An apt reminder that the web is as much about reading as writing, for writers as much as readers, a real medium of two-way communication.

All websites can now be made accessible to varying degrees, even Flash websites since Flash MX, as Macromedia Senior Product Manager for Accessibility Bob Regan demonstrates in Chapter 10. So there are no excuses for failing to add increased accessibility, and usability for that matter, to that new project you are just about to commence.

Ensure you have a copy of Constructing Accessible Web Sites at hand when you begin. And also take a look at another equally essential reference on the subject due out any day now, Joe Clark's Building Accessible Websites. Accessibility is the newest and most necessary website building skill. There are no excuses now.

The GlassHaus "Constructing Accessible Web Sites" book has been a great find. I began working to build sites and applications for use in Web browsers that had to be used by individuals with disabilities in 1997. Over these years I picked up a lot of hard won knowledge and experience, but have never run across a resource that fully backed what I had gathered. The GlasHaus Accessibility book not only echoes what I have learned, but has provided new insights to improve upon what I already have. The best part of this book is that I can point others to it and I am assured they will be able to build an accessible site or Web applications that can meet high standards.

Many folks think accessibility is a great inconvenience, but it takes a little thinking and planning to do it right from the beginning. Having a great resource at hand makes the process a cake walk. Not only are the processes and guides helpful for creating sites that are accessible for those that are disabled these steps outlined also make the information in the site future ready. Sites that are accessible are much easier to use with a handheld PDA device or from even a cell phone browser. Accessibility for everybody in more situations improves with structuring the information properly, which is all making Web enabled information really requires to get it ready to be consumed. Is your information ready to be consumed by everybody?

Loved this, all of it, especially the beautiful and smart poetry.

This anthology is not particularly erotic, literate, clever, amusing, or original. If you think it is, you need to read better erotica. There's a boring lecture about abstinence, a fishy story about a cat and canned tuna, a geography lesson that features a woman reciting the capitals of countries, and a simply uninspired recipe for a human strawberry shortcake. The quality of the book is poor, too; after a single reading the binding came apart. Maybe my hands got too excited from reading it? Nah!

I think that what I most enjoy about the "From Porn to Poetry" books, as well as CleanSheets.com, the magazine they originate from, is that you can say something like "sexy, classy, hot, wild, and true" and be accurate in your description. The editor's name, Susannah Indigo, represents authenticity in writing to me, and all of her projects that I've read have been a cut above ordinary erotica. The mix of material in this book ranges from the down and dirtiest stories to elegant, sexual poems, and there's nowhere else you can read that kind of pleasurable mix. The subtitle is "Clean Sheets Celebrates the Erotic Mind," and that's how it felt to me after reading the book - like my "erotic mind" had been thoroughly and joyously "celebrated," honored, turned-on, and was raring to go.

Nothing in the book resembles cheap "Penthouse" stories; stunning stories by writers like Kim Addonizio, Maggie Gray, Mike Kimera, Greg Wharton, and Susannah Indigo herself simply leave you begging for more. I can't recommend these books enough to anyone interested in erotica; I've gifted friends with them and they all agree. They wonder, in fact, where I found them, since there's nothing in big bookstores done as well as this. Thank heavens for the web and the ability for small book publishers to put this cornucopia of erotica out there for us!

I love the mixture of fiction and non-fiction and poetry in this book. All of it is sexy, interesting, fresh and new. Highly recommended, and a great gift for a love to get them talking about what they like.

This is a terrific book, it's sexy and smart and unusual. Some great stories and sexy poems, much better than many erotic books.

By nature I am an organized person but for some reason I have had trouble translating that organization to my home and specifically with my children. This book lays out very practical steps in guiding your kids in being a part of keeping your house clean and orderly. There are some excellent lists of 'age appropriate' chore suggestions as well as many ideas for implementing and encouraging your kids to be a part without whining and complaing.

Excellent Book! A lot of great ideas to get the house in order. One of the things I especially like are her suggestions for including kids of all ages in practical matters around the house. Get your two year old to clean?! She offers many idea on how to do it. From that angle, her ideas are rather "Montessoriesque", giving kids a challenge and a sense of accomplishment when their task is acheived.

I do agree, however, that some of her idea will not work with every house and family. (She really does like those disinfectant clothes. Not very economical.) But, if you take what you need and adapt if for your own needs, this book offers much.

Thank you, Tara Aronson! As the mother of a four-year-old, who is on the cusp of being able to do so many things for himself -- but who doesn't -- your book was immensely empowering for me to take control of the situation. It gave me the tools to teach my child how to take reponsibility for himself and help keep this house running smoothly. Your book is so easy to read and spells things out succintly -- and with wit. Your book is now my new gift to all my mommy friends. Thank you!

I'm one of those moms who found it easier and faster to do all the housework myself. Now with teens in the house who won't lift a finger, I wish I'd read this book 10 years ago!
What's best about this book?
* Chore lists broken down by age brackets that make cleaning fun, even for toddlers.
* Surprising storage ideas for my always-cluttered garage.
* Smart ways to reorganize your kitchen to cut cooking time in half.
If you're starting a family, buy this book first. You'll thank yourself some day in the not-too-distant future when your kids not only take part, but have fun, sharing housework.

She has some good chore charts that are organized by the age of the child. Some very good room ideas too, but they're not always easy to find in the chapters.

However, some of her ideas on things other than cleaning are just bizarre.

For instance, she discusses carpools in great detail, even going so far as to say you should inquire about insurance levels of all the drivers. Well, gee, if you're going to do that, shouldn't you go as far as getting driving records from DMV too? And if you're really that worried about it, should you be doing the carpool thing at all?

And, be forewarned, this author has apparently never lived outside of a large metropolitan city, because for her, cell phones are a fact of life--she apparently has never lived nor traveled where there is no coverage. She is so dependent upon them, that when there was a minor injury to a friend's child, had practically a panic attack when she couldn't reach the parents (either didn't have the phone with them or turned it off). Cell phones are not foolproof, folks--they stop working, there are areas with no coverage, people turn them off, people leave them behind in the car or at home, people actually choose to ignore the ring, really! For someone so "organized", in this situation she came across as fairly helpless. Hopefully she learned her lesson and has a signed medical release form for her friend's kids somewhere, or better yet, taken a Red Cross First Aid class.

If she stuck to the cleaning issues only, the book is okay, although she seems very into disposable anti-bacterial wipes. Her other advice, well, it's good for a laugh. Buy used, after checking it out of the library first.

The projects are wonderfully oversized and adventurous. I'd like to remove the word messy, because all art is a bit messy, and this one is really ADVENTUROUS more than messy. It's fantastic art fun! The kids I work with beg me for projects from this book, and are delighted when I join in the fun. Highly recommended. I believe the publisher's website has free projects from this book for your viewing as does the author's website.

This book has been out in the hands of good teachers/parents/child care folks/kids for awhile now, but I've found that it is new to many kids who are just discovering it. One little guy I worked with recently as a visiting author to his school told me: "I didn't know a tennis ball could be so interesting, did you?" He was referring to painting with tennis balls. Our group tried several approches with painty tennis balls....rolling them around in a wading pool covered with paper, tossing them at a wall of paper outdoors, holding and pressing on paper, bouncing on paper on the floor, and a few other ideas that kids thought up that are NOT in the book, but should have been. Read on: The little guy who told me tennis balls are interesting had thought up a idea where he rolled the ball deliberately through paint and then along the border of large paper. Within the border, he made dot-prints with different colors of paint. When it was dry, he outlined each dot with a black marker. The result was a huge bubbly design painting. I was impressed with his process, and the resulting painting was delightful and all his own! I love when my books give kids a boost to be their own artists and live in their own creativity. What a great day spending time with kid-artists. Someday I'll collect all their unique ideas and write a new book called "Kids Are More Artistic Than I Am!" Keep having fun with kids, from your friend, MaryAnn Please visit my website for free art ideas: www.brightring.com.

THIS BOOK IS A FOR-SURE WINNER. IT ENABLES THE KIDS TO HAVE FUN AND GET DIRTY AT THE SAME TIME. I AM NO LONGER AFRAID FOR MY CHILDREN TO GET DIRTY! IT'S CLEAN UP IS EASY TOO. IT'S AN ULTIMATE GUIDE FOR FUN.

This book is my kids' favorite! Everything is either very LARGE and exciting, or SILLY and exciting, or ADVENTUROUS and exciting, or extremely INTERESTING and exciting. Don't buy this if you want your child to sit in a corner with crayons for the rest of her/his life and never look beyond the expected. This is for the kids that will challenge their imaginations and explore art from a new view, building who they will be as adults.

I am a special education teacher and I am always looking for new ideas to enhance my sensory awareness program. This book has some awesome ideas and I can't wait to start using them this year.

This is a great book! I felt like I was in New York City. It is so nice to have good Christian fiction to read. My thanks to the authors!

This is by far the authors' best work to date - I couldn't put this one down. It was so easy to identify with Jane and root for her character along the way. I especially loved the character, Coates...(I usually try to put actor's faces to the characters I am reading and I could totally picture Patrick Dempsey in this role :))

It was much more emotional than I expected - more so than any other chick/lit book I've read...I was actually sad to see it end. Here's to more from Dayton & Vanderbilt!

Every book I've read by these authors gets better and better. I was pretty disappointed by Emily Ever After, as I felt that he protagonist was unlikeable and hypocritical. But I saw enough positives in the writing to check out their next book, Consider Lily, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I picked up The Book of Jane the following week, and I absolutely loved it. Jane was real, relatable, and likeable. The plot is a contemporary retelling of the book of Job, and is an encouraging read for anyone who knows what it's like to question your faith when life seems to fall apart. There were actually moments in the book that made my eyes well up: just little kernels of wisdom in there that spoke to my heart. I highly recommend this book, and look forward to the next novel by these authors.

Jane had it all. Great job, wonderful boyfriend, good apartment. Everything was going well for her. But then it all comes crashing down. Her boyfriend dumps her. She loses her job. Her apartment gets halfway destroyed. Rumors are spread about her. And she has this weird rash on her face that won't go away. It's enough to make anyway jump off the deep end. But thanks to her faith in God and a cute guy who seems to pop up at the right moments, Jane learns how to get through it all.

Christian chick lit just keeps getting better and better these days. It's great to read about stories about young women who are Christians with strong faith yet still like to shop for shoes and hunt for guys. Dayton and Vanderbilt's characters live like real people do without being all high and mighty or overly trying to witness to others. They show their faith by their actions, not trying to convert everyone they see. This book was tons of fun to read. Jane is a great character, very multi dimensional and easy to relate to. I felt for Jane especially during the scene where she tries to call her friend for help. Curse words would have uttered out of me at that point. I love the scenes in the hotel. I felt happy that something finally good was going for her. The storyline is a chick lit parable of the book of Job, but luckily Jane doesn't have it half as bad as he did (although the rash on her face would cause her to think she did). She handled things better than I would have in her situation. I would have been faced with the urge to throw something at the perpetrator of all the rumors about her. And her boyfriend: ARGGGHH! I have no complaints at all about this book. I couldn't stop reading it and now I want everyone else to. A funny hip read with a strong message about faith and belief in God. This is a book I could pass along to others even those who don't normally read Christian fiction. Highly recommended for a good time.

I enjoy "chick-lit" that is light, fun and entertaining. And if the aforementioned novel has an uplifting message to boot... well, that makes it perfect. The Book of Jane is a modern-day look into the Bible's book of Job, and the novel enthralled me, touched me, made me smile and at times laugh out loud all at the same time. Twenty-eight-year-old New Yorker Jane Williams has it all. She has a chic apartment in the Village, a fabulous PR job, a great boyfriend, wonderful friends and an awesome hobby as a leader of the Girl Scouts. She is also a devoted Christian. But it's easy to be a Christian when one's life is going well. Will Jane's faith falter if she were to suddenly lose it all? Well, she's about to find out. Jane goes through a tough road to self-discovery, and with an arrogant and coaxing jerk like Coates Glassman to test her, the road gets even bumpier.

I LOVED reading this! Anne Dayton and May Vanderbilt know how to fuse an inspirational, Christian message with a fun and sassy voice without being preachy or judgmental. Most people are under the impression that Christians are a strict, joyless bunch. A novel like this proves them wrong. Jane is a great character. She is sweet and grounded. Her flaws and cries for help humanize her. She is a character that all women could relate to. The secondary characters are wonderful as well. I loved Lee, Jane's next door neighbor and best friend. I thought Matt, the movie star, was a tad stereotyped, but that was the one of the very few flaws in this book. The novel starts out a little slow, but it soon becomes impossible to put down. Yes, The Book of Jane is a modern take of Job and how God tested him, and the results are wonderful. Dayton and Vanderbilt are authors whose work I'll look closely from now on. In the meantime, I highly recommend this gem.