Blog

Born for This: My Story in Music is the memoir of Benjamin, “BeBe”, Winans. Born into the large Winans family of Winans Family Singers fame, BeBe was the youngest son of ten children. BeBe watched his older brothers work diligently under the tutelage of their father David, or “Skippy”, first in the church choir and then as they formed their own Gospel group.  

Skippy was strict but loving. They had to give their best for God, but there was to be no boastful pride should they succeed. BeBe longed to join his older brothers on the stage, to make singing his career too.  He worked hard and begged God and his parents for his chance, but was told he wasn’t ready yet.

Finally BeBe and his younger sister CeCe were allowed to travel from Detroit to North Carolina to audition for Jim and Tammy Bakker’s televised PTL program. To BeBe’s dismay his sister made the cut, but he didn’t. Since CeCe was still shy of 16 years old, BeBe offered to go to North Carolina to live with her so she could follow her dream.

The book’s title, Born for This, comes from a song BeBe wrote out of his disappointment. It is an affirming lyric proclaiming that God gave him the talent and would indeed use him as a singer.

BeBe was eventually hired by PTL to sing with CeCe, but he continued to work through the dissonance of desiring to be a star while staying humble. BeBe and CeCe matured in their professional lives while at PTL, also learning how to navigate in the sometimes tricky non-African American world outside of Detroit.

BeBe has an engaging story that I’m sure would be of interest to many, but his book is presented as a rambling, scattered tale that would make it easy to not finish. With some better editing this could become a first-rate memoir.

Thanks to my reading friend Elyse who recommends the BEST books! This book was narrated by Elyse’s high school admirer, “Tommy” Hanks.

Many reviews have already been written on the Dutch House, so I won’t rehash what everyone else has already said. I only want to touch on one element, the symbolism of the house as wealth, verses love.

****SPOILER ALERT****

Cyril wanted the love of his wife Elna, so he gave her the Dutch House, but she despised the ostentation the house represented and wanted to serve the poor.

If only Mother hadn’t gone; perhaps Maeve wouldn’t have gotten sick, Cyril wouldn’t have been hoodwinked by Andrea; Danny could have taken over his father’s business (the love of buildings) which Danny loved instead of being made to study medicine out of spite.

Elna first moved into Maeve’s house to nurse her, and then into the Dutch House to nurse Andrea. She made remarks to the effect that she was paying for her mistakes, a very Catholic idea. However, after Andrea’s death Mother stayed on at the Dutch House, appointing herself as caretaker, apparently having lost the self-righteous attitude that compelled her to forsake her family and leave the opulent mansion.

Danny wanted a way to thank Maeve for all the work she did for his business, when she refused to cash the checks he made out to her. Danny bought the small rental house where Maeve lived and gave her the deed. This she accepted with magnanimous gratitude.

The children, Maeve and Danny, wanted the love of their mother and father, but grew to despise the house when it became a symbol of Andrea’s hatred toward them

Andrea wanted the Dutch House, and feigned love to get it.

Andrea sweetly and manipulatively handed out invectives like lunch money to kids heading to school. Sometimes Andrea lost her temper and hurled the hatred. Didn’t Andrea know that people in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones?

Norma was forced into taking Maeve’s bedroom in the house, and she felt guilty about it. Norma loved Maeve and was still apologizing as an adult, for taking her room and for taking their house.

Only in the end is this juxtaposition of wealth and love resolved in Danny’s daughter. She fulfills her childhood dream of becoming an actress, falls in love with the Dutch House, and buys it from Norma. The book culminates in a lavish party at the house, even summoning the spirit of Maeve, and a tender father-daughter moment.

My husband was the first to use these gloves, and he said he loves the fit; they come up the arm far enough to keep water from getting down inside the glove. He also likes the grip pads on them. He has plans to use them as liners in his winter gloves when he needs to clean the snow off of his windshield.
I like that they are ergonomically paired into right and left hand gloves. I also like that they are reusable. That’s important when you are watching your pennies!

Barry Zito’s family was steeped in the occult from two generations back on his mother’s side. Barry’s father made it his mission to train Barry and manage his baseball career, which he did from the time Barry was a young boy. Barry’s dad taught him he could control everything with his mind. When his game was “on” Barry was full of confidence. When he was losing, Barry couldn’t figure out how to make his thoughts be in charge.

Berry fell into the same sins many ball players and others with an excess of money face. Because he was one of the highest paid pitchers in baseball, he felt he had to justify his outrageous salary with wins. This was a self-imposed pressure that only made his game worse.

Read Curveball to find out if Barry was able to pitch his way out of the slump, or if he got help of another kind.

#Curveball #NetGalley @ThomasNelson @barryzitomusic 

The audio book, The Battle for Bonhoeffer: Debating Discipleship in the Age of Trump, by Stephen R. Haynes, opened my eyes to possible dimensions of Dietrich Bonhoeffer of which I was heretofore unaware.  Indeed, now there’s a chasm looming wide full of phrases supposedly connected to Bonhoeffer, like same sex marriage, abortion, evangelical agenda, Bonhoeffer Moment, religion-less Christianity, Critical Patriot, Righteous Gentile, Moral Hero, and Evangelical Bonhoeffer.

But perhaps the book is not so much about Bonhoeffer as it is about picking apart Eric Metaxas’ book, Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy. At some points Haynes goes after Metaxas himself, calling him a non-theologian and accusing him of having an evangelical agenda. I’m not that fond of arguments or “debating”, so listening to this audio book made me feel…icky. If you relish a good back-and-forth you may enjoy this exchange of ideas, if that is what it is. It’s not for me.

Deborah Barr, author of Grace for the Unexpected Journey: A 60-Day Devotional for Alzheimer’s and Other Dementia Caregivers, says the caregiver can sometimes face spiritual and practical challenges others do not face.

Barr had the caregiver in mind as she wrote this devotional. Each day’s devotion starts with a passage of scripture, followed by a few thoughts by Barr. She then asks a couple questions related to the scripture and how they apply to you. There is a journal section with blank lined writing space for you to record your own journey as a caregiver, or anything else you want.

Each day Barr focuses on a different topic, with titles such as Why?, Irritations, Cherish What Remains, What About Me?, The Power of Music, Feeling Guilty, Gratitude, Caregiver Depression, Bitter or Better?, Live in Peace, The Loss of “Us”, and Silver Lining.

This is a quality hardback book put out by Moody Publishers, suitable as a gift for someone faced with the overwhelming task of caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s or dementia.

Anne Graham Lotz is very open and vulnerable in her book, Jesus in Me. The title comes from the simplified way she describes the Holy Spirit. She says the Holy Spirit is God, the same as Jesus without skin, living inside of me.

In her many personal illustrations, Anne is candid and vulnerable, writing about the Holy Spirit’s work in her life during some of the most traumatic and emotionally disruptive changes she has recently experienced.

Anne blamed herself for not going out to the pool sooner to check on her husband, who she found drowned. But the Holy Spirit helped her work through the false guilt. She misses her husband of 49 years, but realizes God is bringing her into a new season of relying on Him.

Anne felt like not only a widow after her husband’s death, but when her father, famous evangelist Billy Graham, died, she also felt like an orphan because her mother had passed away by then too. Anne says the Holy Spirit helps us cope with our loneliness.

Almost a year ago Anne announced she had been diagnosed with breast cancer. She has needed to rely on her “Constant Companion” even more during this time of treatment. She has solicited prayers from Christians world-wide, and she anticipates a good outcome. She wants others who are going through similar trying circumstances to know that “Jesus living on the inside” will be there for them too.

Jesus in Me is a good resource for those wanting to learn more about the Holy Spirit, and especially for those who may be experiencing trials like Anne and want the closeness of God living inside them.

No one took the fire alarms seriously on April 29, 1986 at the Main Branch of the Los Angeles Public Library, because the alarms were always going off without provocation. People left their personal belongings and exited the building. They knew the drill; most of them had been through this before. The firemen would come and reset the alarms and give the all-clear for everyone to reenter the building.

Even the firemen thought it would be a routine trip to the library, and at first they couldn’t understand why the alarm wouldn’t reset. But this time was different. This time there was a real blaze, and the library’s old fashioned configuration helped feed oxygenated air to the flames as over a million books were damaged or consumed.

Susan Orlean picks through the ashes, picks through history, and picks through lies to try to find out what happened. You’d think a fire like that would make international headlines. But a problem in the Chernobyl nuclear power plant diverted everyone’s attention. So if you missed it when it happened, or if it was before your time, pick up The Library Book.

@simonschuster @SimonBooks @susanorlean

The Essential Jonathan Edwards: An Introduction to the Life and Teaching of America’s Greatest Theologians, is a biography of one of America’s best known early ministers. Edwards, who came from a line of ministers, was schooled in Latin and other subjects by his father from a young age. Edwards took his faith and his schooling seriously, giving the valedictory address in Latin.

Edwards is perhaps best known for his sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”. It is said that while his delivery may have been dry, the congregants cried out in fear at the picture he painted of their nearness to hell.

Edwards was a part of several revivals and spiritual awakenings of his day. Still he met with frustration in matters such as his parishioners assigning seats in the church based on wealth, his inability to force a young man to marry the young woman he had impregnated, and negotiating for a salary raise.

Besides being a biography of the famous preacher, this book also takes a look at Edwards’ doctrinal positions. The information is presented in a scholarly manner, citing references. If you want to read about early American church history or about Jonathan Edwards this book affords a great opportunity.

Ruby’s Hope: A Story of How the Famous “Migrant Mother” Photograph Became the Face of the Great Depression, by Monica Kulling and Illustrated by Sarah Dvojack, is a 9.75×11 hardback with “bleak yet beautiful illustrations” which were drawn with graphite and colored digitally.

Kulling calls this children’s book a “biography of a photograph”, and a “partially imagined” story about real people, or historical fiction.

The story is built around the American Depression of the 1930s and the drought and dust storms that made it difficult for farmers to make a living. Many families packed up everything they could and moved west, looking for work along the way. (Think: The Grapes of Wrath)

Photographer  Dorothea Lange was taking pictures as part of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Farm Security Administration (FSA) program. When the Migrant Mother picture was published in the newspapers, people saw the hunger and need of the migrant workers in the camp. Soon the federal government sent 20,000 pounds of food for the people in the camp.

A real family left Oklahoma during the drought of the 1930s. The mother of the family is the one whose image became known as the Migrant Mother. She was Florence Owens Thompson, a Native American of the Cherokee Nation, born in Oklahoma in 1903.

Kulling used the real names of the people in this family, but imagined the events that led up to the taking of the picture. In real life, by the time the food arrived in the camp, the family had already left.

Teach the children what their ancestors went through to survive in this land. Teach them the cultural significance of a photograph. Teach them that they have a heritage. 5 Stars.