Home and Family Books

I can not tell you how this book has me slow down and really appreciate the relationship I have with God. Keri Wyatt Kent says that often times others base your spiritual life on how many times you read your Bible, how often you spend in prayer etc. Not that these things aren't important but we can find God in the everyday things that life presents us with if we just take a few moments to listen and be still. I have 2 young boys so I don't have alot time for myself. This book showed me that I can worship God in the little things day to day.

This was the first book (besides a children's book) that I read cover to cover after becoming a mom. As wonderful as being a mom is, I was rather overwhelmed during the first year. I began to wonder if I would ever find my way back to peace and calm. This book helped me not only to realize that I was not alone, but also to learn practical steps I could take in order to draw closer to God in this new and busy season of my life. I highly recommend it to all moms out there.

This book is well worth the price! Keri Wyatt Kent is a gifted writer and this book is well written, east to read, and thought provoking. I highlighed much of it knowing I would refer to it again and again. Thanks to Keri, I'm able to more fully enjoy my moments as a mother and I've learned to hear God's whisper even in the most frustrating, unexpected moments. This is a must read for anyone with small children.

Many mothers desperately want to spend time with God but lack the energy or time to implement spiritual disciplines. For those moms, Kent's book will be a breath of fresh air. By honestly revealing her own struggles and the answers God gently led her to, the author helps moms realize that we can pray through the day (while washing dishes, driving carpool, sorting laundry) and that our spiritual life doesn't have to suffer because we don't have hours to devote to Bible study. What a relief!

As we weather the more difficult aspects of motherhood, sometimes the cold winds of challenge, disappointment (mostly in ourselves), and downright struggle can drive us to a place of despair and isolation. By her vulnerable writing in God's Whisper in a Mother's Chaos, Keri Kent wraps us in the warm blanket of discovery that we are not alone...

She follows that profound gift with a cup of hot chocolate in the form of practical tips on how to hear that gentle Voice that helps us rise above mere survival and become more fully be present to celebrate the miracle of motherhood.

God's Whisper is easy to read yet filled with authentic treasures the author undoubtedly acquired by listening to Jesus.

This is a great book for anyone looking for ideas and thoughts on how we can strengthen family relations at home and in our communitites. It taught me principles that I will use not only in my relationships now with my parents and siblings, but for future days when I will have kids of my own. This is a fantastic read and is highly recommended.

This book is a wonderful example of how the moral of the family should. It brings us back to basics, things that most of us have forgotten in this busy world of ours but things that are still so important. Wonderful for parents or even for young married couples like myself. Not too heavy a read and gets your opinions going. Thoroughly enjoyable.

This is a nice collection of essays that will help get you started on your way to thinking about what it takes to build a stronger family, community, and country.

Looking forward to the next book!

This book is an ideal source for parents. This book is great for both male and female parents who want to make the most of their family times. A MUST read!

This book really gets one thinking about the role family plays amidst the confusion and chaos of the world in which we live. As a newly-wed man in my late 20's I was pleased to read a book that gives me hope that I can positively affect my future children's future.

If you are a stay-at-home mom, and you want to fully live your Christian values, there is no better book than "Home Is Where the Mom Is". This comprehensive guide covers every aspect of motherhood, parenting, child raising and family relationships and offers tons of valuable insight, wisdom and advice from a woman who knows her stuff.

Shelly Burke is a stay-at-home mom, but don't ever entertain the thought that she isn't active and busy and involved, for she cares for a family as well as a plethora of animals (horses, too!) and she is a Registered Nurse and widely published writer of articles and the book "How To Find Your Perfect Job In Nursing". Burke shares her vast knowledge of navigating the parallel worlds of taking care of yourself while taking care of a family, a home, and sometimes even a home-based career, all based upon Christian values and principles.

This is a big book, 367 pages of tips, ideas, suggestions, techniques, and processes that cover the entire gamut of being a mom, from dealing with postpartum depression to PMS to how to talk to your child about sex. The book is broken down into sections, including "Taking Care of Yourself" - caring for your body, mind and spirit; eating and exercising for optimal health; learning how to say no; being good to yourself. Section Two focuses on "Taking Care of Others" - caring for your spouse, children, family and friends. Section Three is all about "Organizing Your Life" - managing your time, your home, and your finances.

I was astonished by the sheer volume of information Burke brings to her readers, doing so with warmth, humor, and a real understanding of the challenges moms face. There is a definite Christian angle to the book, with plenty of Biblical examples and quotes and references, but this is truly a book chock full of wisdom for moms from all backgrounds. The philosophies Burke presents can truly help any woman make better sense of being a mother, whether it be finding the right balance or keeping priorities or simply managing time and money. What it all comes down to is creating a day-to-day life that mirrors inner values, supports growth, and focuses on what is most important. Family.

"Home Is Where the Mom Is" is an excellent resource, and a warm and compassionate field guide to motherhood for the Christian mom.
MARIE D. JONES

I gave this book to my wife who stays at home, and it is a great resource and read. Chock full of information and as stay-at-home Mom's know, a much needed uplift in dealing with the daily needs of supporting the family.

Highly recommended.

Reviewed by Kelli Glesige for Reader Views (9/06)

If you are a stay-at-home mom, this book is for you! Shelly Burke is a registered nurse and a stay-at-home mom herself, and her goal in writing "Home Is Where the Mom Is" has been to help another stay-at-home mom improve all areas of her life while remaining committed to God, her family and her home.

Shelly Burke appears to be a very knowledgeable writer and has completed a wide array of research in putting together "Home Is Where the Mom Is." The "Appendix of Resources and References" used to compile the book is quite sizeable and allows the reader who wants to delve further into a certain subject to do just that. The book is very well-organized, has an extensive index, and covers a great deal of information.

This comprehensive resource is broken into three sections: "Taking Care of Yourself," "Taking Care of Others," and "Organizing Your Life." Each section offers complete and in-depth information relevant to the section. Shelly Burke will show you how to make decisions based upon Christian principles and what you know about your unique family.

So many aspects of being a stay-at-home mom are covered, including:
Caring for your own spirit, mind, and body first so you can meet your family's needs.
Maintaining your relationship with your husband.
Developing a philosophy of parenting.
Dealing with extended families.
Keeping finances in proper perspective.
Setting, keeping and working toward attainable and realistic goals.

At the end of each chapter, goals are offered and additional Bible verses are listed to further accommodate the intended purpose of the chapter. And, Shelly Burke writes with a pleasing sense of humor too!

I highly recommend this book to all new mothers and stay-at-home moms, but if you have been a mother for some time, you can find helpful information also. This is the type of book you read and then refer back to when a certain area of life needs a refresher. The book is so well-organized; one should have no trouble finding a particular subject. To add to the benefits this work will bring, Shelly Burke is a Christian and refreshingly writes her book from a Christian perspective. "Home Is Where the Mom Is" is a resource I recommend all moms have in the home to refer to often.

Shelly Burke has created a comprehensive, beautifully written guide for At-Home Moms. As a Registered Nurse, she knows the importance of caring for yourself physically, emotionally and spiritually before you'll have the energy to care for others. And, as a mom herself, Shelly understands the demands of a family and a part time career. I wish I'd had her book to read when our children were still at home, but find that many of her helpful suggestions are still beneficial when our children and grandchildren visit.

She'll help you set your goals and priorities, and she offers a wealth of helpful suggestions for dealing with all that At-Home Mom's encounter - fussy or ill kids, tired and hungry husbands, extended family challenges, demands from friends, the difficulty of running a house-hold, and good advice for handling your finances. Shelly covers it all and ends each chapter with an uplifting Bible verse to nourish your soul.

If you are an At-Home Mom, a Mom working out of the home, or a Grandma, you'll gain a wealth of information from reading Home is Where the Mom Is.

This is a comprehensive resource that is worthwhile for any mom, new or old. Written from a Christian perspective by a registered nurse, the book offers helpful down-to-earth tips, healthful advice, and spiritual insights that make it valuable on many levels. Shelly Burke's style is very comforting--like sitting down with a friend over a cup of coffee and discussing everyday home life issues. She doesn't preach or overwhelm with unrealistic advice, but speaks from experience and her own faith. This book would make the ideal gift for an expectant mother!

I am very much in love with this beautiful work. Many of the passages left me in tears. A call to arms for all Christians. My huband and I decided to give this book as wedding and baby shower gifts from now on. Stirring and well writen...read it, read it again, and again.

I think this book would be great for Newly Married couples. Dont let the girly looking cover fool you. Its packed full of examples on how to treat others. In the intro it said "the aim is to mark out duties and responsibilities of each member of the household..." I really enjoyed it and will have my children read it too.

This is probably one of the best books I have ever read. Despite the title, it is not just for housewives, it speaks intimately to each of the various roles within a home. To the husband, the wife, the parents, the children, brothers and sisters. Encouraging each member of the family to work together to make their home blessed retreat. Practical and poetic, it simultaneously presses my nose to the grindstone and sends my heart soaring with joy. A must read for the serious Christian family!

This book succinctly describes the beauty of the role of each member in the biblical family. It has been a source of hope and encouragement, in my walk as a Christian mother. Homemaking dwells on the importance of raising a godly family today, to reap the blessings therein, tomorrow.

I have purchased 3 of this book and given them all away - two for wedding showers and one for my daughter's hope chest. It is a wholesome and biblically-based treatise for the centrality of home in a woman's life and focus. J.R. Miller does an excellent job at extolling the virtues of homemaking in a way that draws young women's hearts - sometimes challenged by the outward call of the culture- to whole-hearted preparation of the sanctuary of home for their families. Older women can be rekindled in their passion for their families and serving them in the God-honored position as mother and wife.

Never again wonder if that stain will come out. This reference book will show you how to get that stain out.

This book is full of interesting material and helpful hints to relieve the pain of housework.

This book is the most useful book on cleaning I have read. The author owns a cleaning business and shares tips on how to very efficiently and effectively both clean and de-clutter your home. He also discusses ways to keep the house from getting dirty to start with. I've used his tips for years now and have just re-read my copy of this and refreshed my memory [and got even more ideas!].

The author also writes very humorously, so it is an easy and fun book to read. Nothing too heavy but full of great ideas and suggestions. He is writing to an older generation perhaps, his ideas about housewives seem a bit out of date, but otherwise it is an enjoyable and extremely helpful book.

I always enjoy reading Don Aslett books. He is an excellent writer with a keen ability to keep the reader interested while imparting cleaning and organization wisdom. Having owned and managed businesses I thought I knew quite a few professional secrets, but Don was able to teach me even more secrets and give me the little push I needed to step things up a notch. One thing I find quite funny is that he only mentions wearing shoes while cleaning once in the book, which is so important, even at home. It can save you from slips, plus your feet will not be tired at the end of the day if you wear proper shoes. However he mentions time and time again to use a lambswool duster to remove cobwebs. I found that to be enduring and cute as obviously cobwebs are a pet peeve of his.

This book is ideal for people wishing to do a better job cleaning their house in less time, semi-professional and professional cleaners, as well as those looking to enter the cleaning business. The final chapter is so eloquent and from the heart it made the book worth so much more than just a cleaning book. Filled with humor, wisdom, and tried and true cleaning methods, this book is sure to delight all readers who care about a clean environment.

One thing I should add is that there is a newer edition of this book. For the few extra dollars, I would recommend the newer version for more up to date information.

If you've ever wondered how to remove a stain, clean your carpet, or de-lime your shower, it's because you don't have this book. I bought Aslett's book a few years ago and still keep it handy as a reference guide to cleaning procedures. His recommendations on getting the house to clean itself have saved me hours of housework.

This book has wonderful, colorful pictures that captivate my nephew. The story is fun to read and entertaining for him. The characters spark a lot of questions from the little guy which makes it a great book to read to him. He's only 2 and loves reading it daily. My older 6 year old cousin likes reading it himself and it's one of his favorites too. We'd really like to see more stories from the characters at Junkyard Junction.

We thought this book was very good, we all enjoyed reading this and have read it several times since receiving it.
The pictures are very interesting and the characters are so cute. This would be a very helpful book for any child moving to a new home and needing to make new friends. It helps kids learn how to help each other out when you really need it. Really enjoyed it! Wonderfully done!
When is the next book?

This is truly a wonderful book, with a great story and beautiful pictures. I know that my great nieces and nephews will enjoy this (as I will) for many years to come.

This book is such an amazing example of pure creativity that any child would be delighted to read it. Because of the imaginative quality of the entire book I am left to believe that the authors have a deep understanding of the imaginary nature or essence of childhood. This book won't disappoint you.

This is a wonderful book with great illustrations. It is the perfect Christmas gift for any child. This story about a little bug named Squirt finding a new home in the country and making new friends is great for all ages. I hope there will be more stories to come.

I loved this book as much as I loved Funny in Farsi, a book our whole book club enjoyed immensely. If I had to pick one person to sit next to on a plane it would be Firoozeh Dumas. She's witty, warm, honest, and very real.

This book is jam packed with hilarious, sad, hopeful and inspiring short stories which I really enjoyed. My favorite one is when she spoke before a bunch of evangelicals at Palm Spring. Honestly, I can't think of many writers that can describe an experience as neat as her....
This book is addictive! You just can't put it down until the short story ends and then next one is even better than the last ones.....so, I was caught reading "Laughing without an accent" skipping my lunch and laughing hysterically in my office!!
What a fantastic follow-up to "Funny in Farsi"....Can't wait for another marvelous book by Firoozeh....

I just had the privilege of meeting Firoozeh Dumas and her stories are so real. Laughing without an Accent is a great follow up to Funny in Farsi; it's a bit more serious and brings us to into Firoozeh's family in recent years. She is a master storyteller, sharing her thoughts, her perceptions and most importantly, her feelings about life, family and the American way. Reading Laughing is like spending a few hours with the author. It leaves you wanting more.

I just purchased this book and read it while commuting on the NY subway. It made my commuting experience a pleasure.

Both books are very human and also very funny. Almost every paragraph has a surprise. She is finely attuned to the differences between Iranian and American culture. She does succeed in having us "laugh with her." I have read both of her books and highly recommend them.

I have zero sympathy with the Iranian regime, but we do need more "cultural ambassadors" like Ms. Dumas who can maintain perspective and a sense of humor, and fewer Reading Lolita in Tehran's.

As an expatriate like Firoozeh Dumas, but not Iranian and in my case living in Europe, I was thrilled to hear that Firoozeh had written another memoir.
Laughing Without An Accent continues to delight and amuse, much like her earlier book Funny In Farsi. Each of the stories seem to somehow touch the heart and can connect with people of any culture. She tells her stories about her family with wit and affection.
Many of my friends live outside of the country they were born in. All found Funny In Farsi to be right on the mark and they could really relate to the situations and family issues in the book.
If you're reading Laughing Without An Accent as you relax on vacation, you should know that people will constantly be asking what you're reading that's so funny.

I am a clinical psychologist specializing in working with families making international transitions. This book encourages communication about a life event that evokes a multitude of emotions while providing a structured and fun format for dealing with them. Bravo.

This is a wonderful book for young families that are relocating! It makes a great gift for a friend who's moving out of the neighborhood. The companion books are also perfect gifts, Look Who's Going to be a Big Sister/ Brother.

This book was so helpful during a move my daughter and I were making. It made her transition into our new home easier.

I gave this book as a gift and it was welcomed with love and enthusiasm!

I love this book! Moving with small children can be difficult; this journal can certainly make a move less stressful and more enjoyable for children and their parents. I highly recommend it.

We live in a life-care community. I shall try to give this book to our health care center activities person, and to anyone I know who is having difficulties with dementia in a loved one, as well as to the active clergy of our acquaintance. The point Hill makes--requesting equal rights for the demented dying as for those who are in full possession of their mental faculties--is one that had never occurred to me before I read this book. I kept thinking (naturally) of my own mother, who for at least six months, and perhaps longer, didn't know anyone, and who seemed not to have anything at all to "get off her chest." Hill's entertaining (yes, it is) story of her wonderfully eccentric and charming parent made it clear that no matter what is happening, the person it's happening to is still somehow the same as in years past, at least enough so that it is cruel to ignore his or her need for expression. Whether there are old wounds to heal or bridges to mend is really secondary. Read this lovely essay and learn!

This is the most moving memoir I have ever read. The intimacy Sheridan Hill shares with her readers and close attention to details is breath taking. I could not put it down. Astonishing and simply beautiful.

This is a must read for the hospice community and the families they serve.

I could not put this book down, so real, taking us to that uncharted territory, the death of our mother. How do we stay present, how do we understand our relationship, how do we face death and find life?
Sheridan Hill tells her story with such detail and honesty. I am no longer afraid of death, for my parents or myself after reading this book.

Refreshing for the heart -- as eternal family values wait til the end of one's life to come to light. I want my siblings to read this. How I wish I had had time with my own mother before her passing!

I'm one of the "baby boom" generation, we who once shouted "never trust anyone over twenty-five!" And now we are in our forties, fifties, and sixties, often facing alone the crisis of the death of a parent or loved one. Our culture has ill prepared us for this passage, a society that dwells on youth and so carefully hides away death. I lost both of my parents several years back and only wish I had first read Ms. Hill's book, it would have served as a guide, and reaffirmed as well the rightness of decisions I made for the sake of my mother and father. It is not a book about death, it is a book about living and sharing to the fullest one's final journey with a parent.

I will freely admit I wept repeatedly as I read Ms. Hill's beautifully crafted tome which honors and celebrates her mother's final months. Reading it made me realize that so much of what I experienced was valid, that I was not alone in my feelings and gave me new and hopeful insights into my own life and the spiritual journey of my mother and father.

If you just read these reviews and do not buy the book, please heed her advice from this reviewer. Listen to your parents now, talk with them, share and recall all the moments, good and bad, and fight with all your passion to insure their time of passage is a time that is respectful of their dignity. Though I do hope you purchase this work even though the subject might be the last one on your mind at this moment. For someday it will occupy your life front and center and Ms. Hill is a guide you can turn to and trust.

I grew up in neighboring Illinois not far from `Pig Boy'. So, in reading this lovely memoir I found myself transported back into my own childhood memories of growing up. I was tired of reading at the time and therefore hesitant to give this memoir a chance. When I finished, I found that the author had reignited my passion for reading. This memoir will make you want to read again...to write again. The author truly captured the very humorous and.... yes poignant business of growing up, families and the unique value that every person brings to this world. Get this book, you will be glad you did.

There is a distinct nostalgia in Pig Boy's Wicked Bird. The peculiar power in this depiction of an American family is relevant to anytime, place, or condition. The author uses beautiful language and rhythmical sentences to creat a compact telling of this humorous and poignant memoir. The business of living can be lonely. The reader can make profitable use of the insights illuminated throughout this story.

First of all, I really enjoyed this book. I was skeptical going in, thinking it was just another outbreak in the rash of memoirs that has erupted on the best seller lists. This one is different. On the surface, it's a coming of age story, a story about self worth, self awareness, and the impact of family (the family in question being "the seven D's" - all of Doug Crandell's brothers, sisters, and even his parents have names that start with D.) But it turns out that what the story is really about is the three D's: disability, disfigurement, and just being different.

Two of the author's fingers are essentially severed in a childhood farming accident, leaving the boy disabled, disfigured and different. This leads to an awareness and an appreciation of those three D's -- that turn out to be everywhere in young Crandell's world: his mother who is "no longer a woman" due to a hysterectomy, a man with cerebral palsy who connects with the author, the runt pigs destined to be destroyed but saved by Crandell, a grandmother with a humped back, a sister with scoliosis, even the oldest brother is left changed by a never fully explained abduction reminiscent of Mystic River. (Most everyone in the book is marked in some critical, defining, and not always obvious way. Some, like the landlord's son, are, to quote John Lennon, crippled inside.)

Sherwood Anderson and his collection of grotesqueries, Winesburg, Ohio is the influence pointed out by Doug Crandell for helping him sort out his confused world of being marked different as well as leading him on the path to becoming a writer. What I noticed were the influences of William Faulkner, Flannery O'Connor, and in particular Carson McCullers. For a story of the Midwest, Pig Boy's Wicked Bird has a distinct Southern Gothic feel. (One person's physical characteristics are described as "crooked," "twisted," and "warped" in the space of a single paragraph). Like The Member of the Wedding, or even Truman Capote's Other Voices, Other Rooms, these disabled, disfigured, and different people will live with you forever.

There is a wealth of people out there who have grown up in a family that doesn't seem just right. Television for a lack of decent material exploits the dysfunctional family as it exaggerates the flaws of family life in America. "Pig Boy's Wicked Bird" by Doug Crandell tells a different side of the story. Yes, life is full of absurdity and tragedy but what comes out of this book is a recollection of our own past growing up and as weird as it seemed...it was wonderful too. Intelligently written and a delight to read I give it 2 thumbs up and a nub for good measure! This is a great life story!

Doug Crandall, former little Pig Boy of the Heartland, brings us a heart-rendering, oftentimes snorting food-out-the-nose-from-laughing memoir of friendship with farm animals and dealing with life's tragedys. Poetically written by the now grown up Mr. Crandall, even city girls like me can appreciate his love of family, roots and Jimmy Carter. If you love crusty old men, goofy dogs and little piglets, you'll love this story as I did.