My goodness, I can't believe so much time has passed! I was out on travel during the week for 3 out of the 4 weeks in October and weekends were my own time to rush around doing normal home chores! My apologies to everyone for being "missing" from book club duties.

Now that I'm settled this week I remembered that we had one more meeting planned before the end of the year. I know it's kind of late, but is anyone interested in having a final, "pre-Thanksgiving," end of year dinner?? I'd be willing to host and anyone is welcome. Either November 17,18, or 19 would be available. We can discuss plans for next year to make it bigger and better, how to reach out to more women readers alike, how we should run our discussions (possibly more structured than just open thoughts), and of course, what books we should consider trying.

Let me know if anyone is interested. If not, then I pray that all of you would be blessed, and that you would honor the Lord with all of your heart, soul, strength, and mind as the holidays arrive. Stay tuned either way for updates in January about starting the book club back up for 2010, revamped and full of ideas!

With Joy & Hope,
~Christina

September Reading

For September, we'll be reading Whispers of the Bayou, By Mindy S. Clarke. Our next meeting will be Tuesday, October 6, 2009 at 7pm at Bay Area Community Church. I hope you enjoy it!

From the author of the popular Million Dollar Mysteries and Smart Chick Mysteries comes a new stand–alone novel full of hidden staircases, buried secrets, and the promise of hope found in knowing God.
Miranda Miller wasn’t looking for the news the day the letter came. But, trying to survive in troubled circumstances, she welcomes the chance to change her location for a period of time. The letter informs her that her grandparents’ estate is finally about to become hers. She immediately heads down to Louisiana and the old house by the bayou. There Miranda finds secrets that lead to life–changing revelations.
This suspenseful story reminiscent of old Gothic tales has a complex mystery and a vivid sense of the Deep South. It shows how God can take the darkest circumstances and use them to light a bright path leading to the future.

September Meeting

Our next meeting will be TUESDAY, September 1, 2009, at Bay Area Community Church at 7pm in room 236. The book we'll be discussing is non-fiction, entitled The Road to The UnAfraid, by Jeff Struecker. I hope you can join us and bring a snack to share!

Jeff Struecker, a "Black Hawk Down" hero, the Army's Top Ranger, now an Army Chaplain, relates his own tales from the frontlines of every U.S. initiative since Panama, and tells how God taught him faith from the front in fear-soaked times. As readers go on-mission with Struecker through his harrowing tales, they will learn how to face their own fears with faith in a mighty God. Just as he told one of his charges in Mogadishu: "The difference between being a coward and a hero is not whether you're scared, it's what you do while you're scared."

July Book Reading

Wow! What a great inspirational book from "The Heavenly Man!" I hope everyone was blessed through his relationship with God as something to learn and grow to aspire to, truely a man after God's own heart!

Our book for July is called "The Red Tent" by Anita Diamant. Our next meeting will be at my house on TUESDAY, August 4th at 7pm. It is a potluck dinner, so bring something to share!

The red tent is the place where women gathered during their cycles of birthing, menses, and even illness. Like the conversations and mysteries held within this feminine tent, this sweeping piece of fiction offers an insider's look at the daily life of a biblical sorority of mothers and wives and their one and only daughter, Dinah. Told in the voice of Jacob's daughter Dinah (who only received a glimpse of recognition in the Book of Genesis), we are privy to the fascinating feminine characters who bled within the red tent. In a confiding and poetic voice, Dinah whispers stories of her four mothers, Rachel, Leah, Zilpah, and Bilhah--all wives to Jacob, and each one embodying unique feminine traits. As she reveals these sensual and emotionally charged stories we learn of birthing miracles, slaves, artisans, household gods, and sisterhood secrets. Eventually Dinah delves into her own saga of betrayals, grief, and a call to midwifery.

June Book

Ok, here is our book for June, sorry it's a little late. We will be discussing May's book (The Note, by Angela Hunt) and June's book stated below. We'll have a potluck dinner like usual at Bay Area Community church at 7pm. NEXT MEETING, Thursday, July 2nd at 7pm.

A dramatic autobiography of one of China's dedicated, courageous, and intensely persecuted house church leaders.

May Book

Description:

En route from New York's LaGuardia Airport to Tampa International, Flight 848 bursts into flames and crashes into Tampa Bay. For one week, Peyton MacGruder and her fellow reporters cover one of the nation's worst air disasters in years with overwhelming and numbed emotions. Then a woman Peyton's never met gives her a plastic bag that washed up behind her house. The bag contains a note, almost certainly from the doomed flight, with a simple yet wrenching message: “T- I love you. All is forgiven. –Dad.” Combing through the passenger list, Peyton is determined to deliver the note to its proper owner. It's a quest that will prove as important to Peyton's own life as to the mysterious T. Women of Faith has shared the message of hope and grace with millions of women across the country through conferences and resources. When you see the words "Women of Faith Fiction" on a novel, you're guaranteed a reading experience that will capture your imagination and inspire your faith.

NEXT MEETING:

We will be meeting on Thursday, May 14th, 2009 at 7pm at Bay Area Community Church in room 234. Come for some dinner, discussion and fellowship!

April Book

THANK YOU Leslie, Mary, Maredith, and Joyce for the great meal they helped out with for our March meeting! It was great fellowship time on a very good book.

For April, our Non-Fiction book is

"The Same Kind of Different As Me," by Ron Hall and Denver Moore.

Denver Moore grew up in Louisiana in the 1960's, working on a plantation as a modern-day slave. Ron Hall is an international arts dealer who moves between upscale New York galleries and celebrities. It seems unlikely that these two men would meet under normal circumstances. Until Deborah Hall, Ron's wife meets Denver and sees him through God's eyes of compassion. When Deborah is diagnosed with cancer she charges Ron with the mission of saving Denver. From this request, an extraordinary friendship forms between Denver and Ron, changing them both forever. A remarkable true story of friendship and unconditional love!

OUR APRIL MEETING WILL BE ON THURSDAY, April 23, 2009 at 7pm.

COME for a potluck dinner, book discussion, and great fellowship!

Book for March Meeting

The book we've selected to read for March is "Piercing the Darkness," by Frank Peretti.

Sleepy little Bacon's Corner seems like a picture-perfect farming community. But appearances can be deceiving. An attempted murder, a case of mistaken identity, and a ruthless lawsuit against a Christian school are tearing the town apart as angels and demons battle for victory---and the soul of young loner Sally Beth Roe. 544 pages.


We're meeting on Thursday, March 26th at 7pm in room 234 at Bay Area Community Church. Come join us for a potluck dinner, dessert and some great fellowship time!

Happy New Year!!

Happy 2009 Ladies! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and is holding up with their New Years Resolutions!! I'm writing because as we're embarking on a new year to make changes and start new traditions, I'd like to get some feedback from those of you who have been in book club for all of 2008 and those of you who have interest but little (or no) time.

Here is what I'd like you to email back to me (if possible):
- Your name
- Do you plan on participating in book club this year
- What types of genres are you interested in (non-fiction, fiction, romance, historical, self help, etc.)
- The best weekday to meet that is convenient for you
- Any book titles that you'd like to add to our list to cover this year
- Any ideas or comments you have to spice up and encourage others to join book club



My thoughts:
I think this Christian book club idea is a really great one but I understand how difficult it is to find time for reading. I also LOVE to have a place to try new recipes for every ones kitchen (my own twist on the club). I want a friendly, non-threatening fellowship place for new church goers and old church goers to enjoy literature, make new women connections in the church, and of course try out some new food!

You DO NOT need to be a believer to come to book club but we will cover only Christian Literature to get discussions going so bringing your non-believing friend or neighbor isn't a stretch. I would like to incorporate more structure to our discussions, even though it is nice to just say whatever is on your mind. At the end of last year I tried some discussion guides and silly question games. I would like to build on that more and take any suggestions you have to do so.

If I have a lack of interest for Book club, which is very understandable during the busy new year, then I will discontinue the monthly meetings. God has a calling for all of us and maybe serving and reaching out to His people through literature is not my calling right now. Please get back to me when ASAP so I can make arrangements for a meeting place (maybe not at the church...) and select books for the upcoming months!

Have a great week everyone!
God Bless!