Soldier's Wife, Crazy Life

books

Parable of the Sower and Reading Dystopian Books in a Time of Crisis

by Leave a Comment

Parable of the Sower and Reading Dystopian Books in a Time of Crisis

I read my first Octavia Butler book, Kindred, a few years ago and loved it. I figured it was time to read Parable of the Sower. Originally written in 1993, this dystopian story is set in California in 2024. Although Octavia Butler passed away in 2006, she seemed to have predicted some of what we are going through currently.

Now, our world isn’t exactly like the world in the Parable of the Sower, but some of it rings true. California is undergoing a crisis, and getting water regularly is a problem. The young protagonist, Lauren, is 15 years old and lives with her family behind a makeshift wall of their neighborhood. If you leave the neighborhood, you are putting yourself at enormous risk. They try not to go out unless necessary. When they do, they take a lot of precautions.

Everyone is trying to survive, and Lauren is trying to figure out what she believes about God and the universe. She can also feel other people’s pain, which can be challenging at times.

The Parable of the Sower was one of those books where you go on a journey with the main character. She experiences a lot of tricky situations you have probably never experienced. It makes you think about what you would do and what decisions you might make.

In addition to this book, I am drawn to different dystopian novels. There is just something about them that pulls me in. I don’t see them as guidebooks for the future, well maybe a little bit sometimes. I do want to see how people handle these environments. I like how they strive for freedom and battle the ones in charge.

What can the “little guy” do when faced with such a change from the norm? What do relationships look like in this environment? How do they grow as a person through what they are going through?

Not everyone likes to read these types of books during our current unprecedented times. However, I find them comforting for some reason. I plan to read or re-read several other books this year. These include The Handmaid’s Tale, 1984, The Hunger Games, and The Parable of the Talents. It is the sequel to Parable of the Sower.

What’s on your reading list?

Soldier’s Wife, Crazy Life is looking for guest posts!

✍️

 Have something interesting you want to write about the military spouse community? 

🌻

 Have advice for new military spouses? 

🌸

 Want to share about your duty station? 

🏡

If so…head on over to my Soldier’s Wife, Crazy Life Guest Post Form to get started.

Parable of the Sower and Reading Dystopian Books in a Time of Crisis

Why You Should Dive Into Books During Your Next Deployment

by

Why You Should Dive Into Books During Your Next Deployment

This post does contain affiliate links!

Twilight. I read all the Twilight books during one of our deployments. A friend told me about them, and even though I was already 30 years old, I dove right into that series.

I am a huge reader. I usually average about 70 books a year and would love to read more. I always have a couple of books going and always aware of some of the newest books that are out there.

I love most types of fiction, from a sweet romance to a crazy sci-fiction story. I read paper books, on my Kindle, and audiobooks. I always have at least one book with me. I also enjoy certain types of non-fiction, such as memoirs or fun topics that interest me.

There is not one day that goes by where I don’t read some part of a book, I just can’t do it. Reading is like brushing my teeth for me. Reading is just something I always do.

During deployments or any time my husband has been away from us, books have become even more important. I love to get lost in a series, read about some other time in history, or another place that I can’t physically visit at the moment.

I love a good binge-watch but there is something about getting lost in a good book that just takes me away from what I am dealing with and heals my soul a little bit. Stories are so very therapeutic and perfect to dive into during a deployment.

A good book can warm your heart, allow you to put yourself in someone else’s shoes, and distract you from something you would rather not think about.

Reading a good book can be a form of self-care and as military spouses, we know how important that is. Reading can keep you busy and staying busy is a must during a deployment.

If you haven’t picked up a book for a while, maybe now is the time? There are so many good ones. So many books to get lost in. So many books that will take you to another place.

If you are feeling lonely and missing your spouse, a book can put you in a better mood. If you are having a rough time with the kids, a book can make you laugh, and help you feel better. If you are dying to be somewhere else, a book can take you all over the world.

On a practical level, reading a book before bed can make you sleepy. If you are having trouble falling asleep when your spouse is deployed, try reading in bed. My Kindle is right by my bed so if I wake up in the middle of the night and can’t get back to sleep, I can read for a bit in order to do so. Works about 90% of the time 🙂

If you would love to read and feel like you don’t have any time, let me make a few suggestions.

  • Try audiobooks. You can listen to these while you are doing chores, while driving, or going on a walk. Use your library card with either Overdrive or Hoopla to check them out for free.
  • Always have a book handy. Put one in your car, put the Kindle app on your phone, or stick one in your purse. There are so many times you might have to wait somewhere and if you have a book on you, you can read a chapter or two. Jessica Turner’s book, The Fringe Hours: Making Time For You is a great read all about finding those extra moments.
  • Don’t think you have to read a book all in one sitting. I think part of the reason I can read so much is that I don’t feel the need to finish a book all in one sitting. If that were the case, I would never finish anything. Be okay with a chapter here and there, whenever you have time, and you will be able to get your reading done.
  • Read in front of your kids. Reading in front of your kids is totally fine. Just make sure they are safe, and you should be okay. You can read while you nurse, read while they are at the playground, or whenever you feel comfortable. Obviously, this is going to be an age thing and things will change as your kids get older but I don’t think kids growing up watching their parents read is ever a bad thing.
  • Join a book club. If you are really struggling, join a local book club. Usually, a book club will have one book you are supposed to read each month. Beyond that, at your book club, people will be talking about all the amazing books they are reading, and that can get your inspired too.
  • Join Bookstagram. Did you know that there is a name for all the accounts that share books on Instagram? Bookstagram is a wonderful place. I started an account just for books called The Fiction Book Cafe last fall and so glad that I did. I can talk about all the books I am reading and learn about what other book lovers are reading too. Make sure to join me over there 🙂

Need some suggestions on what to read?

For a sweet love story, check out One Day in December by Josie Silver, One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid, or The Bride Test by Helen Hoang.

For a book with a twist, check out The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine, Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell, or Lock Every Door by Riley Sager.

For an amazing story that spans many years, check out Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens, the Great Alone by Kristin Hannah, or Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane.

For a fantastic historical fiction book, check out Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate, Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly, or The Last Year of the War by Susan Meissner.

For an emotional story, check out An American Marriage by Tayari Jones, This Is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel, or The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne.

For a really amazing memoir, check out Educated by Tara Westover, Becoming by Michelle Obama, or Maid: Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother’s Will to Survive by Stephanie Land

For a book about time travel, check out the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon, The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, or 11/22/63 by Stephen King. 

Looking for more suggestions? Check out my Goodreads and connect with me there too 🙂

How has reading helped you during a deployment?

 My Friends and I For Military Children

by Leave a Comment

 My Friends and I For Military Children
I receive a free copy of this book for review!
This post contains affiliate links!

A Book for Military Children

Last year, friend of the military Birgit Sund published her book, “My Friends and I” and I think it is perfect for military children. The book is considered a “friendship book” and is modeled after the popular German book, “Freundebuch.”

 My Friends and I For Military Children

Within the book, your child will find a bunch of pages that they can have their friends fill out. Each page has questions such as where they live, what pets they have, and what their favorites are. There is also a place for a photo. This book would make the perfect memory book for your child as you or their friends move around during military life.

From Amazon,

“My Friends and I is a one-of-a-kind, fun, interactive, timeless memory book for children ages 5-12, that travels from friend to friend, who will answer questions like: What is your favorite food? What do you like to do in your free time? What songs do you like to listen to? What books do you like to read? What do you want to be when you grow up? A picture box allows them to insert a photograph of themselves or to draw a picture of their own. The book has room for 40 family members, friends, classmates, teachers, coaches, or any other person in the little book owner’s life.”

 My Friends and I For Military Children

And the illustrations are so cute too!

Where can you buy My Friends and I?

Visit the website, use the code: JULIE, and receive 20% off or you can purchase from Amazon!

Top 20 Fiction Books of 2021

by Leave a Comment

Top 20 Fiction Books of 2021

Last year was a GREAT reading year for me. I had the goal of reading 100 books and I read 112. This was the first time I had hit my goal of 100 books for the year. As the year wrapped up, I wanted to figure out what my top books were in 2021. I couldn’t narrow down my list since I read so many amazing books during the year, so for fiction books I have a list of my top 20. All of them were 5 stars for me!

This post contains affiliate links!

  • #20 Surviving Savannah by Patti Callahan – this novel is a dual timeline with one time in the 1800s, about a ship that sank off the coast of Savannah, called the “Titanic of the South” and modern times where Everly, a researcher, tries to figure out the mysteries of the ship and the sinking. I loved the dual timelines and the history of Savannah in this one.
  • #19 We Were Never Here by Andrea Bartz – this book was about best friends Emily and Kristen who take annual trips around the world. They are in Chile and Kristen ends up killing a man in self-defense. The odd thing about this is, something similar happened the year before, to Emily. This was a fast-paced thriller, making you wonder what is going on the whole time.
  • #18 People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry – Poppy and Alex have nothing in common, but they are the best of friends. They take a vacation together every summer…until two years ago when they ruined everything. I loved this romance and the timeline.
  • #17 The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed – This story is about a black high school student in LA in the 1990s. She and her friends just like to have fun but everything changes when the four LAPD officers were acquitted after beating Rodney King. I loved this one because although I was about an hour away from when this really happened, I do not have the same perspective of what it meant as the main character, Ashley, has in this book.
  • #16 The Last Summer at the Golden Hotel by Elyssa Friedland – This is the story of two families, the Goldmans, and the Weingolds, who have owned the Golden Hotel together in the Catskills. However, the Catskills have changed, and so have the families. Can the hotel be saved? This was such a fun summer read!
  • #15 A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas – This is the 2nd book in the ACOTAR series, which starts off as a Beauty and the Beast retelling. The 2nd book was my favorite in the series, and I loved it so very much!
  • #14 When the Stars Go Dark by Paula McLain – This book is about a missing girl in Northern California in the 1990s. This book takes place close by where I used to live and mentions the real-life Polly Klaas case that happened in Petaluma in 1993. This is a must for any true crime fans!
  • #13 28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand – In the summer of 1993, Mallory inherits a beachfront cottage on Nantucket from her aunt. She then agrees to host her brother’s bachelor party. His friend Jake attends and a bond is formed that lasts decades. I loved how this book went year to year from the 1990s to modern times, sharing the story of Mallory and Jake.
  • #12 Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid – Nina is the daughter of legendary singer, Mick Riva. It’s 1983, and the day of her annual end-of-summer party. The book is all about Nina, her parents, and her siblings, all coming together on an unforgettable night. I loved how we got to go back and forth from the party to the Riva’s past, and learn about their family dynamics.
  • #11 The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes – Avery Grambs just wants to get through high school, but all that changes when billionaire Tobias Hawthrone dies and leaves her almost all of his fortune. Only, she has no idea who he is. I loved the puzzles and mysteries with this one.
  • #10 The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner – Sophie is a young Irish immigrant, who answers a mail-order bride ad and agrees to marry a man she has never met who needs a mother for his 5-year-old daughter. This all takes place around the time of the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco. I loved this book because of the setting and the characters. Susan Meissner is one of my favorite authors too.
  • #9 Yellow Wife by Sadeqa Johnson – Pheby is born on a plantation in Virginia and has lived a pretty sheltered life. She is shielded because of her mother’s position as the medicine woman on the plantation. She is then forced to leave her home and finds herself at the infamous Devil’s Half Acre, a jail in Richmond. This book was tragic and heartbreaking, but such a good read and an important story to be told.
  • #8 Kindred by Octavia E. Butler – Dana, a modern black woman is celebrating her birthday with her new husband when she suddenly goes back in time to the Antebellum South. I love this story of time travel and survival and the realities of the past.
  • #7 Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir – Ryland Grace is the only survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission. If he fails, humanity is doomed. Except, he doesn’t know any of this and can’t even remember his name. This book drew me in and I didn’t want to put it down. What a fantastic story!
  • #6 Falling by T.J. Newman – This heart-stopping novel is about a pilot whose family gets kidnapped and he is given a choice. Crash the plane and save his family, or not and they die.
  • #5 The Lighthouse Witches by C.J. Cooke – Two sisters go missing on a remote Scottish island. 20 years later, one is found, only she is the exact same age she was when she left. I loved the setting of this book as well as the plot.
  • #4 Legendborn by Tracy Deonn – 16-year-old Bree Matthews ends up in a residential program for bright, high school students at UNC-Chapel Hill after her mother dies in an accident. She soon finds out there is something magical going on there. This one was such a great story, within the setting of an older college. I can’t wait for the next book in the series!
  • #3 The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah – Elsa Wolcott, who is looked at as too old to marry in 1921, meets Rafe Martinelli, and decides to change the direction of her life. It is then 1934, and the world has changed. Elsa works tirelessly to help her family survive and has to decide to fight for the land she loves or travel to California to find a better life.
  • #2 From Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout – Poppy has been chosen from birth to be a Maiden. The entire Kingdom is on her shoulders. But…that isn’t what she really wants, is it? I LOVED this fantasy book and so glad it is a series.
  • #1 The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood – Olive Smith is a 3rd year Ph.D. candidate who doesn’t believe in long-lasting romantic relationships. Adam Carlsen is a young hotshot professor. Olive convinces him to become her fake boyfriend. I loved this romantic comedy so much! 

What did you read in 2021? What were your favorite books???

Your Bookish Gift List For This Holiday Season

by

Your Bookish Gift List For This Holiday Season

Books have an amazing way of transporting us on journeys and adventures that we would never be able to experience if not for these amazing stories. No matter who we are or where we are located in the world, a good book, audiobook, or poem can transform and enhance our everyday experience.

Hopefully, this bookish gift list sparks some ideas for that special book lover in your life.

Your Bookish Gift List For This Holiday SeasonJ.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan is timeless tale for all ages. This tote bag comes in a yellow golden print with a forest green background. Each tote bag in the collection comes in three distinct sizes. They are lined with cotton handles to carry all your books and other sundries to and from the library, bookstore, or wherever you like to read!

Your Bookish Gift List For This Holiday SeasonIf you are looking for a witty and unique shirt that will bring a smile to any book lover’s face, look no further than the Book End T-Shirt. When you try to think about which phrases many books share, ‘Once Upon A Time’ is one that comes easily to mind, but what about ‘The End’? Whether it is a book, novel, or poem, the last lines and the final pages always arrive. The women’s shirts come in sizes XS – 3XL, there are a wide variety of color options to choose from, for this shirt, in particular, there are 14 different color options available.

Your Bookish Gift List For This Holiday SeasonEach design that is available for women is also available in a men’s or unisex sizing. This Typewriter T-Shirt is made for not only the reader, but also the writer in everyone. The typewriter is in a black print and slightly distressed for a vintage look. Each shirt is 100% cotton fabric which wears great over time. There are a few heathered colors, such as the heathered grey that have varying amounts of polyester.

Use the exclusive code SoldiersWifeCrazyLife20 at checkout to receive 20% off on your order! This coupon code does not expire.

Written by Melissa Chan, lifelong book lover and designer at Literary Book Gifts.

Santa’s Dog and Bandana Giveaway

by

Santa’s Dog and Bandana Giveaway

If you caught me on social media in September, you might have seen a post about Santa’s Dog. This book was written by JoAnn Sky and illustrated by Ed Koehler. JoAnn has offered up an awesome giveaway for my readers 🙂

Santa’s Dog is a rhyming story about the adventures of Santa’s best dog, Lance. He falls from the sleigh on Christmas Eve and is taken in by the animal shelter and then brought home by a military family who needs some help as Dad is called to serve his country. When Christmas Eve comes, Lance must decide whether to return to the North Pole with Santa or stay with the family.

Santa’s Dog is perfect for all children, dog lovers, and military families.

JoAnn Sky is an award-winning author who writes adult contemporary romance, young adult romance, and children’s stories. Originally from the midwest, JoAnn lives in Northern Nevada with her family and three crazy rescue dogs. 

Now for the giveaway. We will be giving away TWO copies of the book Santa’s Dog, each one with a bandana. One will be red, one will be green.

Santa'a DogHow do you enter?

Simple, leave a comment letting me know how old your military children are 🙂 US/APO addresses only! 

This giveaway will go until Thursday, October 26th, 2018, 11:59 pm and a winner will be picked the next day!

Good luck 🙂

And if you would like more information about Santa’s Dog, please visit Dogs and Books 🙂

You can also visit JoAnn Sky’s site or Ed Koehler’s site. 

A Super Long List of Fiction Books to Keep You Busy During a Deployment

by

A Super Long List of Fiction Books to Keep You Busy During a Deployment

I love to read, I have as long as I can remember. My dad was a librarian when I was born and I guess it was just meant to be. I read about 40-70 books a year and wish it could be 100. Seriously. Books are amazing! I love how you can get truly lost in a story, learn more about something you didn’t, or connect with characters and hear their stories.

Getting lost in a book is a good way to handle those deployment days. Books can be so healing in this way, whether they simply take your mind off of your own situation or allow you to experience a story that touches your heart.

A Super Long List of Fiction Books to Keep You Busy During a Deployment

This post contains affiliate links! 

If you are looking for a book to read this deployment, here are some fiction books to add to your list. Enjoy!

Fiction with a Military theme

Up in Smoke by Hannah R. Conway

Don’t Mean a Thing by Renee Conoulty

Blue Stars by Emily Gray Tedrowe

Full Measures by Rebecca Yarros

Historical Fiction

Some Luck by Jane Smiley

As Bright as Heaven by Susan Meissner

The Ship of Brides by Jojo Moyes

Commonwealth by Ann Patchett

A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner

Barkskins by Annie Proulx

The Girls by Emma Cline

A Bridge Across the Ocean by Susan Meissner

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

Secrets of a Charmed Life by Susan Meissner

Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly

The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

A Hundred Summers by Beatriz Williams

The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton

Fall of Giants by Ken Follett

The Rose Garden by Susanna Kearsley

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

A Super Long List of Fiction Books to Keep You Busy During a Deployment

Thriller/Suspense/Mystery

The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine

All the Missing Girls by Megan Miranda

The Girl in the Red Coat by Kate Hamer

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Grave Sight by Charlaine Harris

Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

Women’s Fiction

Forever, Interrupted by Taylor Jenkins Reid

One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan

The Secrets of Midwives by Sally Hepworth

The Red Door Inn by Liz Johnson

Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty

The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty

The Wednesday Sisters by Meg Waite Clayton

Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks

The Swimmer’s Assistant by Amber Myers

I’ve Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella

One for the Money by Janet Evanovich

A Super Long List of Fiction Books to Keep You Busy During a Deployment

Contemporary Fiction

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng

Beartown by Fredrik Backman

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Perfect Little World by Kevin Wilson

Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult

Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal

Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes

The Girls from Corona del Mar by Rufi Thorpe

Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult

YA Fiction

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

The Selection by Kiera Cass

Just One Day by Gayle Forman

Paper Towns by John Green

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Science Fiction/Dystopia

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Matched by Ally Condie

11/22/63 by Stephen King

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Open Minds by Susan Kaye Quinn

Divergent by Veronica Roth

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

What are your favorite books???

A Bridge Across the Ocean by Susan Meissner

by Leave a Comment

A Bridge Across the Ocean by Susan MeissnerThis post does contain affiliate links!

A Bridge Across the Ocean by Susan Meissner

I have been on a huge historical fiction kick lately. I read the book, The Secrets of a Charmed Life by Susan Meissner and loved it. I wanted to read the other books she had written. Looking online I came across her newest book, due out in March, A Bridge Across the Ocean.

I received a free copy of A Bridge Across the Ocean for review from Netgalley! 

About the book:

February 1946. World War Two is over, but the recovery from the most intimate of its horrors has only just begun for Annaliese Lange, a German ballerina desperate to escape her past, and Simone Deveraux, the wronged daughter of a French Resistance spy.

Now the two women are joining hundreds of other European war brides aboard the renowned RMS Queen Mary to cross the Atlantic and be reunited with their American husbands. Their new lives in the United States brightly beckon until their tightly-held secrets are laid bare in their shared stateroom. When the voyage ends at New York Harbor, only one of them will disembark…

Present day. Facing a crossroads in her own life, Brette Caslake visits the famously haunted Queen Mary at the request of an old friend. What she finds will set her on a course to solve a seventy-year-old tragedy that will draw her into the heartaches and triumphs of the courageous war brides—and will ultimately lead her to reconsider what she has to sacrifice to achieve her own deepest longings.

My Thoughts:

I was born in Long Beach, where the Queen Mary is today and reading about the War Brides was so very interesting! I would love to plan a visit to see the Queen Mary again the next time I am in California.

The War Brides were foreign wives of US Military men who married during WW2. They had been separated from their American husbands and their trip across the ocean was going to reunite them after the war. Some of these women hadn’t seen their husband in months or even close to a year. As a military spouse myself, I can imagine how excited these women felt but also how nervous they must have been getting ready to start their new lives in America.

The only thing about this book is the multiple storylines. I felt like there was one too many. It made the book a little more confusing than it needed to be. But other than that, this book was another amazing read!

I am now on my library’s waiting list for A Fall of Marigolds, another one of Susan Meissner’s books!

A Bridge Across the Ocean will be published on March 14, 2017 🙂