This has been a pretty crazy year. As the holidays are upon us, you may be looking for a book for a friend, child, family member, or yourself…My assistant Rachel and I are here are some of our favorites this year!
This year I was struck with the call to be more purposeful in my love for people of color, so I’ve read a few books with that aim. Be the Bridge was the first, and it really helped open my eyes to the truth about diversity. It’s really approachable and easy to read, and it encourages what I think is the absolute most important step: to open a dialogue with people who don’t look like you and just be honest and open and loving.
One of the most fabulous suspense novels I’ve read in a long, long time! It was unique, SO well written, and is seriously one of the only books this year that lured me into reading past my bedtime.
If you have a teen girl in your life–or just a lover of princess stories–then Heart of a Royal and Heart of a Princess are a MUST! Hannah Currie writes with a wonderful voice, and the stories are the sort to take you by the heart as well as the imagination. And book 3 will be out in the new year!
Maybe you’re not one to usually read fantasy–I know I don’t very often–but oh my gracious. This trilogy is SO GOOD! Start with the first and, now that they’re all out, read them all together! The premise is that our heroine is from a family who can walk in other people’s dreams. The imagery used for the faith in this fantasy world…the themes explored…the adventure…the love. So good!
Both Benjy books (the first is Benjy and the Belsnickel) are wonderful reads for the middle schoolers in your life, especially the boys! My son absolutely loved these fun-filled stories of Benjy, a boy in the 1930s who wants to be good but just keeps falling into mischief. Highly recommended!
I’ve loved all of Bob Goff’s books, but this one is special; it gives actionable ideas and steps for turning our lives into bold, daring witnesses for the Lord. For searching for and finding the big dreams He instills in us and then running after them. I’m recommending this book for absolutely everyone! But don’t just read it. Do the work he challenges you to do. Make lists. Write down your actual thoughts and dreams. And then go out and chase them.
I’ve decided that I want to be Lisa Wingate when I grow up. 😉 Seriously, her books are all amazing. My fangirling really started with Before We Were Yours, which millions of other people have read and agree with me on how flawless it is. I found The Book of Lost Friends to be just as compelling and beautifully written, and so very timely. I listened to it in audio, but I’m going to be asking for a paperback for my keeper shelf for Christmas!
Any romantic comedy fans out there?? If so, you’d adore the three wedding-themed books by V. Joy Palmer. The series just came to a hilarious conclusion with this one, and it will so have you laughing and flying through even the pages, even while she deals with serious topics like forgiveness and overcoming some mental/emotional addictions. I loved all three of these books!
I read the first book in this series soon after it released and then had the honor of reading book 2 for endorsement. Can’t wait for the final installment! Jocelyn Green is one of my favorite authors, and these two books set in Chicago–first one during and after the Great Fire and the second during the World’s Fair–are just stunningly written, fully-engrossing stories. Veiled in Smoke and Shadows of the White City definitely need to go on your list!
If anyone on your list is a fan of snark and sarcasm, then this young-adult book will be right up their alley. The voice is hilariously filled with it, and the story itself is one of stretching ourselves and discovering that building relationships is worth more than anything else in life.
Rachel Dixon here…You might know me as Bookworm Mama…I am also Roseanna’s Virtual Assistant. I am so excited for Christmas this year! Our family has decided to start a new tradition of exchanging books on Christmas Eve! Our boys are 8 and 6 this year and they both love books as much as my husband and I do…So with our help, we all drew names and picked out a book for that person. 🙂 Here are some of my favorite books this year.
One of the best Young Adult books I have read. This novel blew me away! Clean fantasy, this story was a finalist for the Christy Award! The Winter King is a great story that had me on the edge of my seat till the final page.
Do you (or the person you are shopping for) enjoy a good suspense novel? The Haunting at Bonaventure Circus was a FABULOUS read! I adore everything that Jaime Jo Wright has published. And this newest book of hers really kept me guessing. Creepy and full of mystery!
If you have a child in your life that still likes picture books…You need this book! It is so.much.fun! You have to “rock” the dragon at one point, “knock on the door” to ask the neighbors to be quiet. OH it is so much fun!!!
This book made my soul and heart happy! A split-time romance with adventure and mystery. So good! And I highly recommend it! Amanda’s first novel won TWO Christy Awards this year too! Yay!!!
This was one of the first books I read this year…And WOW! This Austen inspired story has mystery, romance, and a healthy dose of Austen references and quotes. Young Adult genre.
My 8-year-old loves books! But trying to find books that he can read on his own easily, has not been easy. This book was in book box we received this summer and he has been devouring these books! This line of books (Harper Chapters) is a new type of book that is making our transition to chapter books easier for us all! The publisher recommends these books for ages 5-8.
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary.