Diva Nash Vegas

Diva Nash Vegas is another book by Rachael Hauck, author of Love Starts with Elle. It is about a hit country singer as she goes through some major changes in life and discoveres what is really important--faith, family and friends. I enjoyed the book, though it was nothing extraordinary.

The Rosary

I just don't "get" the rosary. Yes, I know how to say it. Yes, I've said more than a few of them in my life. I know you are supposed to meditate on the mysteries while saying the prayers. I know some studies have shown that saying the rosary alters brain wave activities. I also know that when I say a rosary, the main thing that seems to be on my mind is finishing. I can meditate of the mysteries, but not while repeating the prayers. I can think about the prayers, but not while trying to think about the mysteries.

We are preparing to enthrone the Sacred Heart in our home. Part of that process is saying the rosary as a family for nine days. So far my kids have been pretty cooperative. I'll be glad when the nine days is over, but I am going to try to move our family prayer up a little from where it hs been since the big kids were the baby's age. Anybody got any family prayer practices they'd like to share?

Remember Me

Remember Me by Deborah Bedford is my latest read. It is about a preacher who has had a lot of things go wrong in his life lately and who returnes to a favorite childhood haunt, re-meets his first love and re-connects with God. Some Christian fiction is basically regular fiction about Christians--such as a chaste romance novel where one or both main characters are Christian but where their Christianity doesn't really play that big a role in the book. Other books are sermons packaged as stories with characters too good to be true who talk about God and quote scripture so much that anyone who doesn't share their faith is likely to be off-put. The best Christian novels, in my opinion are those in which people wrestle with God and where He fits in their lives and how they are to live out His call. Maybe I feel that way because that is my struggle. In any case this book is one of those. No one has a lightbulb salvation moment. Life doesn't get all better because someone returns to God, but God is present and the characters realize it.

My Sushi Review

Sushi for One is the story of a thirtyish Asian-American woman whose grandmother has decided needs to marry sooner rather than later. The woman, who was once sexually assaulted, is an avid volleyball player and a volunteer coach of a volleyball team for underprivilged girls, a team whose expenses are underwritten by her grandmother. Her grandmother threatens to pull funding unless she finds a serious boyfriend--and then makes sure that no one else in the community will fund it either. I didn't like Grandma. The book involves the heroine's search for a husband and her search for funding for the team.

On the religion front, since it seems I've decided my niche in the First Wildcard group is to review this Protestant literature from a Catholic perspective, I found it interesting that the catalyst for one character's religious conversion is a large picture of the crucifixion which was found in the pastor's office. Looking at that graphic picture and seeing the pain of Christ turned this unbeliever into a believer--and the Protestants wonder why we Catholics fill our churches with statues and other images.