alltheradreads's Reviews (1.9k)

This is a much more adventurous tale, with less about the world of Narnia and more about the searching for the 7 lost lords around the world -- not my favorite of the Narnia books (I'm partial to the 4 siblings, and only 2 were in this one, with the addition of their cousin!), but still great.

This one is even less about the 4 siblings, but still exciting and engaging and wonderful. Really, you just can't go wrong with Narnia. Reading them all in order (chronological, this time!) was so good.

This wasn't my favorite of the Narnia series, in all honesty, but I can't deny that the symbolism and metaphors throughout this one were stunning still. It was a great conclusion to the series, just not my persona favorite overall. I think if I had read them with more space in between instead of back to back all in the same morning, I would have loved this one and been able to appreciate the nuance so much more!

This was a random Barnes and Noble grab quite a while ago, but I'm so glad I read it. It was such a fascinating look at the lives of the staff who work at the White House. I knew next to nothing about that world, and it was so interesting to meet these people (many who have been there through several presidents!) and learn about both their work and their lives as well as to hear about the human sides of the most powerful families that live there. I was surprised at how private and loyal the White House staff is as a whole, and found this book so intriguing as a result-- it's not like these people WANT to gush about what they really think of the President or his family, so what they did share was rare and enlightening. If politics interests you at all (or even if it doesn't and you just are curious about what happens behind the scenes in the White House), definitely grab this one! You'll learn a lot. It's well-written and easy/fun to read too, not like a boring or stuffy textbook or anything at all.

This one wasn't really what I expected. I had heard great things about it from several really talented creatives I know, but found that it was so much less about creativity than I expected and so much more about Pixar specifically. It was really cool to read more about how Pixar operates, how their popular movies came to be, and how their staff works, but I didn't find that much was applicable to my own life or work necessarily. An interesting peak behind the scenes, but nothing I found particularly amazing.

I first heard about Mo Isom on Annie Downs' podcast, and loved how she spoke about her life, faith, and her story. I saw this one on our massive stack of books at the office and grabbed it, and read through it quickly. Her story is a unique one with many unexpected components, and I was really drawn in by that and wanted to know more about her. I will say, though, I found it much more interesting listening to her talk on the podcast than in writing. So-- I suggest listening to this instead!

I love Wendell Berry. I read his words and it's like I'm seeing the world in a way that is how God intended it to be-- where we are good stewards of this planet, where our priorities are into order, where we care for ourselves and all creation well, and where things are beautiful and thriving. These essays are great ones, and they're a much needed reminder to be intentional about how I live and to advocate for this one and only world we have around us. Grateful for these words, and for the gentle boldness of Berry to share them.

I think it was through Krista Tippett (go read/listen to everything by her!) that I heard about this book. It's a collection of writings on everyday words, and it's really beautiful. So many of the thoughts on these words resonated deeply with me, and I loved the deep dive into trying to wrap up complex emotions and feelings and words into words. This one is a must-read if you're a words lover!

I am a big advocate of reading books about faith from people who believe and live differently than I do, and this was a great example of that. Much of what I read in this book differed from my own beliefs, but I appreciated reading Nadia's perspective and seeing how she built community with unlikely people in unconventional ways. I was challenged to better love the people around me even when they are different from me as I read this book, but it wasn't one I really could click with or really loved in the end.

I liked this book more than anything else I've read from Judah Smith -- it was insightful, still had his signature flavor of humor and lightness, but was more meaningful and relatable to me than Jesus Is___ was. I'm a big fan of books that look at faith through the deeper lens of the soul instead of just what's on the surface, so I found this to be a solid read (although nothing totally blew me away) and one I'd happily share with friends. I think our culture really overlooks the importance of soul-care, and this was a great reminder that our souls are where our true identity and meaning and worth lie, and that we should pay better attention to them.