A polished volume of Christian spiritualism.
A debut Christian work encourages faith in the face of doubt.
Duckett begins this inspirational book with the story of her son getting hit by a car. The author was on her way home with supplies for the 9-year-old’s birthday party when she saw his mangled bike lying by the road. The boy had been mercifully thrown free of the wreckage, requiring stitches but sustaining no serious damage. According to Duckett, God spoke to her after the accident, directing her to Psalm 91:11-12: “For He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways. They will bear you up in their hands, that you do not strike your foot against a stone.” God, the author believes, sent his angels to lift her son away from harm. But why her son and not the children of other parents? “It is impossible to find ‘because answers’ that make sense of the ‘why questions’....There are mysteries not meant to be solved, but God’s sovereignty is there to be found.” God does not always interfere in such direct ways, but Duckett encourages readers to open their minds and hearts to the intervention that God offers. Using events from her own life as a guide, the author explores the often unexpected means through which God makes his love known to humans, imperfect recipients that they are. Duckett is a strong writer, expressing her beliefs in a refined yet conversational prose that expresses her devotion with occasional flair. The way she roots her ideas in incidents from her own life keeps the work mostly compelling, though some readers may be incredulous at just how often God seems to intercede directly on her behalf. This is assuredly a work for a certain type of Christian audience, and anyone with a theological worldview much different from that of the author’s will likely be dissatisfied with its relative simplicity. That said, for books of this genre, Duckett’s is well-written and well-meaning, and like-minded Christians should find much in her story to inspire and invigorate their faith.
A polished volume of Christian spiritualism.Pub Date: April 20, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-5127-8235-6
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Westbow Press
Review Posted Online: Aug. 4, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
DePaola is irresistible. In this simply told memoir, aimed directly at the hearts of his young readers, he follows 26 Fairmount Avenue (1999) and Here We All Are (p. 630) with more stories of his childhood. In this volume, his baby sister Maureen contracts pneumonia and has to be hospitalized, he gets a new outfit for the family’s trip to the 1939 World’s Fair in New York, and he’s in a tap dance recital. He longs to get Miss Kiniry to be his first-grade teacher, even though she, like the principal, insists on spelling his first name “Tommy.” Other remembrances include a family outing to the beach, a “Tiny Tot” wedding, and getting his first library card. DePaola spins out these recollections with pitch-perfect intensity, warmth, energy, and a precise sense of how it felt to be a kid. Almost a primer on how to write with emotional directness for young people, this will also teach its readers a little on how to tell their own stories. Best of all it gives value to the comings and goings that make up a life, even one as unique as dePaola’s. Abundantly illustrated with wonderful vignettes and spot drawings of the cast of characters that includes all his friends and relations, it begs to be continued. More please. (Biography. 7-10)
Pub Date: March 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-399-23583-3
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2000
Brilliantly colored photos and a lively text explore the human body from the outside in: muscles, bones, inner organs, eyes, ears, and much more. ``Your skin is like a stretchy bodysuit just your size,'' and ``Your blood is a kind of cell soup...''—just enough information is presented to pique the curiosity. The author concludes, ``There's a great body inside this book—yours! Take good care of it.'' Many of the photos are color-enhanced and enlarged; body parts have never looked so good, though it would have been helpful if degrees of magnification had been included. A beautiful book with special pizzazz. Glossary; index. (Nonfiction. 6-10)
Pub Date: May 30, 1991
ISBN: 0-312-05938-8
Page Count: 288
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1991
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
bookshelf
