Book Review: Jockey Hollow by Rosalie Lauerman

Reviewed for Readers' Favorite

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Jockey Hollow was a pleasure to read and was packed with historical facts and intriguing stories. Jockey Hollow, a lesser-known area from the Revolutionary War era, was indeed worse than Valley Forge. The book explains the difficulties the soldiers of the Revolution faced, including low temperatures, winter blizzards, no good shoes, thin blankets, and little to eat. Author Rosalie Lauerman has constructed an engaging book that does not read like a boring history book, but is filled with facts, tidbits, illustrations, and quotes. There is side information as well, such as the beacon fires and the youngest soldier (ten years old!). The day-to-day functions of the soldiers during the Revolutionary War are also listed, and it was fun to learn how they played checkers, cards, and darts to pass the time. This book is also a great resource for the entire war, as it covers much of what went on, including civilian life, diseases faced during the era, and the history of Benedict Arnold and others. Included at the end are war hero bios and resources.

Jockey Hollow was a short read but packed with valuable information. The book is immaculately edited, and all quotes are credited. I especially enjoyed the timeline at the end of the book, as it’s a little easier for me, personally, to follow timelines rather than war moves and strategy narratives. It was interesting to learn about the mutiny due to bad conditions, no food, and lack of warm clothing. It was inspiring, however, to learn how many soldiers did stick around despite these conditions to fight for a cause they believed in—American freedom. Author Rosalie Lauerman follows the Revolutionary period from Jockey Hollow to the triumphant end of the war, noting fun information with a clear passion for the topic. I would recommend this book to history fans!

Book Review: Cook & Chatter: A Trip Down Memory Lane by Jill Peck Vona with Nancy Fuller

Reviewed for Readers' Favorite

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Cook & Chatter: A Trip Down Memory Lane was an absolute delight to read. With a clear, simple theme of family, tradition, and wonderful food, this cookbook will remain close to my heart long after reading. The cookbook opens with a Forward by Food Network’s Nancy Fuller, then goes on with notes about the recipes and traditions listed inside. From there, author Jill Peck Vona gives us helpful tips, such as placing water inside a measuring cup first so oil doesn’t stick, and continues with cute little stories about family and small-town living. The recipes are fun with no pressure—these are just family recipes to play around with and enjoy. Some of the included recipes are mouthwatering molasses recipes, cakes, pumpkin breads, pickles, blueberry muffins, an interesting recipe called Tomato Soup Cake, and Jell-O recipes that harken back to the fifties and sixties era of baking and family get-togethers. Many of the recipes are handwritten, and there are pictures and cute little cooking quotes sprinkled here and there as well.

My family and I are huge fans of the Food Network and watch it continually, so I was excited to read the opening by Nancy Fuller. After that, I was really drawn into the theme of family life throughout Cook &Chatter: A Trip Down Memory Lane, and loved the recipes. As a vegetarian, I appreciated the Garden Burger recipe, though there certainly is a variety of all recipes here! I’m excited to try many of these, and hopefully will someday get the courage to make the Men’s Salad! There is a definite feel of family recipes, family love, and community—there’s even a one-hundred year old recipe included. Author Jill Peck Vona did a superb job collecting recipes, photos, and quotes and putting them together in a cohesive theme. I highly recommend the book to home cooks, bakers, and anyone interested in nostalgic recipes!

Book Review: Writing Memoir by Jerry Payne

Reviewed for Readers' Favorite

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

In a short amount of space, Writing Memoir: The Practical Guide to Writing and Publishing the Story of Your Life, educates the aspiring memoir writer on every aspect of book construction, including pitches, themes, writing techniques and publishing. Author Jerry Payne does not sugarcoat the facts of book publishing but holds the reader’s hand as they start with a concept for a memoir and develop a manuscript. Included in the book are reasons why people might write a memoir, advice on how to stick to the facts of a story while honoring private names and places, writing tips, examples of story structures, and how to outline. There are invaluable examples of other memoirs, as well as what to do when you are finished writing. Writers, experienced and new, should find something helpful in this book.

Reading the book Writing Memoir: The Practical Guide to Writing and Publishing the Story of Your Life happened to coincide with a class I’m taking on memoir writing and nonfiction. I have to say that this book is more straightforward and entertaining than my class textbook, and I indeed learned more through Jerry Payne’s examples and advice. Some of the highlights would include the perfect start to finish structure of the book, the advice to connect with a reader and make the memoir less about you, and the editing and publishing advice toward the end of the book. Many books of this kind do not offer that kind of help for the reader. All in all, this book was a delight to read, extremely informative, and will no doubt help me with my own writing endeavors. I recommend it to anyone looking to start a memoir for any reason, whether as a family keepsake or to sell to the public. 

Book Review: Discover Your Master Chakra by Stephanie S. Larsen

Reviewed by Carla Trueheart for Readers' Favorite


Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I don’t know if I’ve ever been so perfectly matched with a book as this one! Discover Your Master Chakra by Stephanie S. Larsen touched on everything I’m interested in, the science of color, chakras, and connecting all of this with a person’s personality. I was absorbed within the first dozen pages, drawn in through the descriptions of types of chakras and personality types associated with colors. Not only will the reader learn about chakras, but also about the types of personalities that match each color. For example, yellow people are thinkers, green people are healers. There are specific traps people of a certain color personality can fall into, as well as various gifts they might have. The list of famous people under each color helped me understand the traits of the color as well, and I enjoyed reading personal accounts of people who were a specific color personality.

One of the best parts of the book was a quiz to determine your color. I was a violet, though I thought for sure I was a blue until I read further into the descriptions! The book goes on with these color descriptions of personalities, side chakras and light partners (how the colors work together), jobs for each color personality, and Master Chakra Workbooks. I can’t say enough about how much I enjoyed this book. Discover Your Master Chakra is interesting and informative while remaining entertaining and enlightening. Author Stephanie S. Larsen concludes with an appendix: the days of the week associated with each color, crystal colors, and key characteristics. Basically, everything is included here, and the reader should have a great time determining their color! Highly recommended!

Book Review: The Ghost of Christmas Past by Michael Hebler

Reviewed for Readers' Favorite

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

With an old-fashioned writing style and a connection to the beloved Dickens’ story A Christmas Carol, The Ghost of Christmas Past by author Michael Hebler is a must-read for the Christmas season or any other time of the year. The story opens with The Ghost of Christmas Past attempting to save a suicidal woman, but when the spirit fails, it is sent on a journey to view the life it led in the past. While the spirit does not initially know if it was, in life, a female or a male, it learns the truth about its upbringing, including the relationship it had with its father. The spirit, after witnessing its own life and death, journeys back to the earthly world to try to save the suicidal woman and show her the truth about her own past. 

There is much to love about The Ghost of Christmas Past. While I was initially drawn to the book because of the connection with A Christmas Carol, I quickly learned that the story stood on its own but still retained the old-fashioned writing style associated with Dickens. My favorite part of the book was when The Ghost of Christmas Past traveled back to its own beginnings. The scene of the spirit’s death was one of those rare book moments when you read through the pages without being aware of anything else around you. Also of note was the mention of Ebenezer Scrooge, which was greatly appreciated, and the Ghost of Christmas Future. At the root of the story is family misunderstandings, a connection author Michael Hebler constructed with ease, showcasing the theme without hitting the reader over the head with it. The writing was beautiful, the story was reminiscent of the original, and there was a believable backstory for the Ghost of Christmas Past. I would recommend the book to fans of A Christmas Carol or anyone who is interested in this genre. 

Book Review: Color Your Chakras by Susan Shumsky, DD

Reviewed for Readers' Favorite

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Color Your Chakras by Susan Shumsky is a highly unique and informative interactive coloring book. I’ve seen many adult coloring books, but I have not seen one like this before. It is like getting two books in one, with one part information on the different chakras located in the body, and one part interactive coloring book. There is so much information on these pages! Each bit of instruction on the chakras precedes an intricate coloring page for your use. Within these coloring pages and instructions, the reader will find yin and yang, deities, doorkeepers to each chakra, hieroglyphics, meditations, and mantras. This will aid in memorizing the chakras and also serves as a fun way to use the colors and your own imagination.

While I chose this book assuming it was an adult coloring book, I was pleasantly surprised at all of the information provided about chakras, the main energy centers in the body, and the lotuses. Author Susan Shumsky explains so many different energies of chakras that I could hardly believe it was so involved! There are chakras in your skull— who knew? I also enjoyed the information about the deities, and especially liked the Color Wheel and the Wish-Fulfilling Tree. It was a brilliant idea to link a coloring book with the chakras! Color Your Chakras should be a welcome addition to any spiritual library, and I recommend the book to readers interested in chakras or those who would like to use their imaginations for coloring beautiful images while learning something new. 

Book Review: Finding the Raven by Patty Dickson Pieczka

Reviewed for Readers' Favorite

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I don’t remember the last time I was so absorbed in a book. Finding the Raven by author Patty Dickson Pieczka is a page-turning novel set in the year 1904, around the time of the World’s Fair in St. Louis. The book revolves around Julia and Rose, two women who find themselves in difficult situations. Julia has just lost her father, an actor, in a stage accident, while Rose, a well-off woman from a wealthy family, is sent away to a boarding house when her father learns of her pregnancy. After losing her father’s inheritance, Julia winds up at the same boarding house, and the two become instant friends. From there, Julia tries to find work while falling in love with the charismatic Monroe, and Rose goes through her pregnancy without the man she loves—the father of her baby. Rose ends up married to another man she believes is wealthy and will take care of her and the baby honorably. Through all of this, Julia finds a black crystal inside her father’s Buddha figurine, and the crystal, through vivid visions, shows her many interesting things that pertain to her life.

There are many twists and turns in this beautifully-written story. Author Patty Dickson Pieczka held my attention the entire time, but most importantly, the characters in Finding the Raven felt so real to me that I was sorry when the story ended. In particular, the author did a wonderful job balancing the romances and pacing the story. People were not always who we thought they were, and this made for an interesting tale. I enjoyed the friendship between Julia and Rose and loved that they could fall back on each other through the difficulties in their lives. The crystal visions were done just right—believable and not straying from the reality of the story and the reality of the time period. A great book that is highly recommended!