"Radiant" by Ashley Bustamante

About this book:

  “Secrets Come in Every Shade
    After the introduction of Yellow magic in a society accustomed to only Red and Blue magic, the world inside the barrier has become more complicated than anyone imagined. Ava, Elm, and the former students of Prism navigate life in hiding. They face discord, secrets, betrayal, and danger that looms ever closer as the Benefactors narrow in on their hideaway.
    Ava is determined to keep everyone protected, even at the cost of her own safety. She explores dangerous aspects of her new Mentalist abilities—against Elm’s dire warnings.
   Tensions escalate when a new visitor arrives claiming to know a way out of the barrier. While this may be the only way to escape the Benefactors, what awaits them on the outside? Will they gain allies or make an entirely new set of enemies?”


Series: Book #2 in “The Color Theory” series. Review of Book #1 Here!


Spiritual Content- N/A; 
             *Note:  There are magic and spells in this book and those words are used frequently: Everyone is classified into a type of color magic (Red, Blue, & Yellow) and have a special stone they wear to be able to draw from it’s power (they can also draw from items around them in their color); When all three color magics are used together, it can summon White Magic; Those with Yellow magic are able to get into someone’s head and plant suggestions to do something (similar to mind control and are also able to permanently destroy someone’s mind), do illusions (including to deceive others), & go into someone’s dreams; Yellow magic users’ abilities have been outlawed/banned because of the possible mind control; It’s said that any magic can be dangerous and throughout the book, there’s those who use it for good and for evil (and for self-defense and priorly used in a war); Ava casts spells for agility, strength, & healing (for herself and others, up to semi-detailed); Ava and other Yellow magic users are able to control someone’s mind or putting a suggestion in their mind to do something and create illusions; Ava goes into someone’s dreams & it has side effects (including seeing someone turn into “bloody nothingness”, barely-above-not-detailed on that and elsewise is up to semi-detailed); At one point, Ava struggles with the fact that those with Red magic (like her) could be the most powerful (*Spoiler* This is the side effect of going into someone’s dreams who has this opinion *End of Spoiler*); The school was indoctrinating and controlling the minds of their students; A few mentions of Elm liking to cook with a big black cauldron as it feels “mysterious”; A couple mentions of luck; A couple mentions of evil; A mention of someone’s devil-may-care attitude; A mention of the air in a place feeling magical. 
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘dang it’, a ‘give a rip’, a ‘my word’, a ‘shoot’, two forms of ‘blast’, two forms of ‘heck’, two ‘idiot’s, two ‘shut up’s, four forms of ‘dumb’, nine ‘stupid’s, and ten ‘drat’s; A few mentions of curses (said, not written); Some eye rolling; Being attacked, Fighting, Pain, Injuries, & Blood/Bleeding (up to semi-detailed); Being locked in a prison; Seeing someone being attacked and injured by those with Yellow magic in a dream & that person injuring another in self-defense (recalling events that happened, up to semi-detailed); Ava and the group steal food to survive (she feels guilt about it, but as it’s the only option for them to get food other than to turn themselves in, she deals with the guilt and that maybe someday when everything is over, she will return to the story and repay what they took); Ava isn’t sure if betraying the bad guys “really counts as betrayal” but Elm says it does and is his favorite betrayal; Ava lies to keep secrets (a few times); Some of the group wants to kill the Benefactors for what they’ve done, but Ava struggles with that thought (*Spoiler* While at first she agrees, she changes her mind at the last minute because she can’t do that, even if it’s for the greater good because she doesn’t “want the weight of any lost life if [she] can help it”*End of Spoiler*); Going to a club & seeing others having fun (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of wars, rebellions, battles, people being captured, & murders/deaths; Mentions of others being held captive, tortured, murdered, & threatened (for their magic, barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of a body tearing spell & deaths (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of the possibility of someone getting seriously hurt or killed when messing with different magic; Mentions of fighting, pain, injuries, & blood/bleeding (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of attacks & vandalism; Mentions of a prison; Mentions of people disappearing; Mentions of stealing & stolen items; Mentions of lies, lying, & deceit; Mentions of hatred; Mentions of a club, tattoos, piercings, & someone having a fizzy drink and looking relaxed; A handful of mentions of grief (for a mother, for a normal childhood, & parents for their child/children); A few mentions of abusive parents (including a mother making her daughter punish her brother for breaking something); A few mentions of criminals & crimes; A few mentions of an analogy about a sheep being taken down by a pack of wolves; A couple mentions of jealousy; A mention of how some places have tried to commit genocide towards those with Yellow magic; A mention of a nightmare; 
             *Note: Mentions of mental illnesses (it’s said that mental illnesses were treated before with medicines and therapies, but “those were genetic and situational issues” and that the doctors who work with magic haven’t been able to fix a person’s mind *Spoiler* But they are able to heal Ava’s mental distress which was a side effect for using her magic in someone’s dream *End of Spoiler*); Mentions of prejudice towards those with Yellow magic; A couple mentions of a place being like a haunted house; A mention of Elm’s parents taking his mother’s name as their family name. 
 
 
Sexual Content- A blown kiss, a forehead kiss, an almost (barely-above-not-detailed) kiss, five barely-above-not-detailed kisses, and a semi-detailed kiss; Touches, Embraces, Dancing, Hand holding, & Smelling (up to semi-detailed); Blushes; Noticing (barely-above-not-detailed); Jealousy; Seeing a couple embrace & kiss (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of touches, embraces, dancing, & hand holding; Mentions of jealousy; Mentions of crushes; Some love, being in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: A mention of a girl wearing a too-tight shirt; A mention of butting into a conversation. 
 
-Ava Locke, age 18
                                       1^st person P.O.V. of Ava 
                                                        304 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

{Ratings are based on content, not the magic elements as every family has different views on magic in books.}

Soooooo….when is the third book coming out? 

(Please don’t say next year, I beg you.)

Compared to the first book, this second book fell short, but by the end I enjoyed it. I think my enjoyment was affected mainly because Ava annoyed me a lot more, to be honest. The character development took a while and I’m not going to lie, it was painful until we finally got there. It definitely had more YA angst than the first book. Unlike how I was expecting, there was no love triangle in this book, though, so yay for that! 

As far as the magic and those elements, I do feel uncomfortable with Ava and the others using their powers to lie or get those on the villain’s side to do what they want (via their magic powers). Ava feels bad about it at times, but deems that it’s for the “greater good”. Which to be frankly honest, I don’t know how I would handle all of this if I was her, but I’m not a big fan of that phrase to begin with. 

The magic system isn’t perfect in my opinion—but it could be my non-fantasy brain’s fault—and there was a few times that it felt like “magic” was the answer to whatever question, which I felt during the first book as well. I wish it was a little more fleshed out and detailed to be able to easily understand it, but can you explain magic well? I’m not sure. Some events and plans were a bit too easy for our main characters, however this book is barely 300 pages, so that makes sense, I guess. 

All that said, it’s definitely an angsty YA book that some might like and others be annoyed at. But I’m curious to see what will happen next so I’m looking forward to the next book for sure!
 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

"Cooking the Books" by Vera Dodge

About this book:

  “When Mary's friend Henry calls her one spring afternoon, she assumes he's calling to invite her out for ice cream. Instead, he needs her sleuthing help. As a member of Grace Church's financial team, Henry was going over the church's accounting records and getting everything in order when he realized that fifty thousand dollars had gone missing!
   Mary and Henry investigate who could have taken the money, even though neither one of them can believe someone from Grace Church would do such a thing. But who else except staff or a few parishioners had access to the funds? Mary clings to the hope that there is an explanation, but Henry only gets more upset the more they learn. Can they find the missing money while still showing grace toward whoever might be responsible?”


Series: Book #19 in the “Secrets of Mary’s Bookshop” series. Please click on the number to be taken to that review: 

Book #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12, #13,#14, #15, #16, #17, #18, and #19.


Spiritual Content- 1 John 4:18 at the end in bonus content; Set around Easter; A couple Scriptures are mentioned; Prayers & Thanking God; Talks about God, praying, & the meaning of Easter; 'H's are capital when referring to God; Church going & Prayer meetings; All about many mentions of churches, church going, church events, pastors, & sermons/services; Mentions of God & faiths; Mentions of Thanking God, blessing over food, prayers, praying, & a prayer group; Mentions of Easter; A few mentions of someone saying another has become “religious”; A couple mentions of missionaries; A couple mentions of blessings; 
             *Note: A mention of bad luck.
 

Negative Content- All about many mentions of stealing, theft, missing money, crimes, & the culprit; Mentions of cybercrimes & hackers; Mentions of embezzlement; Mentions of gambling & debts; Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of gossip; A couple mentions of a father not being around his son much; A couple mentions of tattoos; A mention of addictions; A mention of struggling marriages; 
             *Note: Mentions of Boy Scouts; A few mentions of a social media site (Facebook); A couple mentions of brand names (Tiffany and Co & Post-it notes).
 
 
Sexual Content- A few mentions of dating; A couple mentions of seeing a married couple kiss (twice); A mention of a blown kiss.
 
-Mary Fischer, 
                                P.O.V. of Mary 

                                                        240 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

Despite one of the possible culprits of the missing money having my name, I did like this book. Particularly Mary and that there was a lot the faith content. I will say that Henry frustrated me a bit at times, but I could understand where he was coming from with the seriousness of the situation. I wasn’t positive on the culprit, so the ending had a good reveal. 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

"Before Your Tween Daughter Becomes a Woman" by Robin Jones Gunn

About this book:

  “Your little girl is growing quickly. You want to prepare her for the changes that are already happening to her body. But how?
    In Before Your Tween Daughter Becomes a Woman, bestselling author Robin Jones Gunn provides heart-level mentoring that will help you and your young daughter grow closer rather than drifting apart as she reaches adolescence. This is your chance—not for having “the talk”—but for beginning a conversation that will continue as your daughter grows into the beautiful young woman God created her to be.
   Talking about periods and other natural changes doesn’t have to be awkward. Even if your own experience was less than ideal, there’s no need to be nervous. Instead, you can make it a fun, memorable occasion that helps to strengthen the bond between you and your daughter. In each chapter, you’ll find ideas to boost your confidence as you create a pathway into this next season for your young girl.
   This book includes
   -ideas for how to broach the subject with your daughter,
   -pitfalls to avoid, and
  -encouraging stories from other moms.”


Series: As of now, no. 


Spiritual Content- Scriptures are referenced, quoted, & discussed; Many talks & many mentions of God, raising your daughter to love Jesus, being specially created for a divine purpose, & honoring God’s design for women; 'H's are capital when referring to God; Mentions of those & events in the Bible (including Esther); Mentions of thanking God, prayers, praying, & blessings over food; Mentions of churches, church going, church events, & services; Mentions of blessings & being Blessed; A few mentions of blessing your children (the author would typically use one based off of “May the Lord bless you and keep you” with her children); A mention of a Bible study; A mention of Mass; 
             *Note: Mentions of Jewish customs (including Bar Mitzvahs & Bat Mitzvahs) & High Church customs; A few mentions of some cultures observing menstruation with the moon, Zodiac signs, or praying to Mother Earth; A couple mentions of angels. 
 

Negative Content- A few mentions of wars; A few mentions of jealousy; A few mentions of eye rolling; A mention of a car accident & major injuries; A mention of childhood abuse; A mention of prison; A mention of lies; A mention of being made fun of at school; A mention of hearing people use God’s name in an unsacred way; A mention of gossip; 
             *Note: There is a story shared about a young girl disliking the mole on her face and being very happy and improving her self-image after her mother lets her get it removed; Mentions of being a safe haven for your daughter to come with questions and support (including a positive part of doing that is so the daughter has a less likely chance of sneaking around or gaining answers from other sources that don’t have her best interest at heart); Mentions of books, movies, fictional characters, & actresses/actors; A few mentions of Google & Siri; A mention of a twelve-year-old telling her mother she wanted plastic surgery and a tattoo; A mention of a teen girl “waiting and hoping for the day her mother would start being her friend as well as her mother”.
 
 
Sexual Content- This book is not about having “the birds and the bees” conversation, but discussing about puberty and upcoming changes with your daughter; Many mentions of puberty, periods, developing breasts and hair, hormones, organs and body parts, reproduction, & the honor of being a woman; Mentions of biology books, male and female organs and body parts, & the author explaining to her daughter “how a husband and wife bring their bodies together”; Mentions of period pain and seeing a family physician to “eliminate any potential issues, which can range from endometriosis and cysts to ovarian tumors and cervical cancer”; Mentions of dating; A few mentions of the sacred gift of marriage and sharing your body in it; A few mentions of some family members not being the safest place for your kids to be around & hinting to sexual abuse; A few mentions of having conversations about sexual intimacy & sex; A few mentions of having “the talk” or “the birds and the bees” conversation; A few mentions of eggs & sperm; A few mentions of a young teen pregnancy and the mother making the fear-driven choice to end the pregnancy (& later discussing it with her daughter); A few mentions of kisses & saving those kisses; A few mentions of crude and sexual words or terms being used (by young adults and teens that do not know what it means, none of the words are written); A couple mentions of sexuality & it being sacred; A couple mentions of seeing a man grab his wife’s breast in public and speaking to her in a derogatory way (the wife laughed it off, saying that “boys will be boys”; the author was in shock and sad to see that); A couple mentions of blossoming & late bloomers; A couple mentions of premenopausal; A couple mentions of boys not having something (like a period) that happens to them every month; 
             *Note: A letter is shared from a woman who was a tomboy growing up and her mother would affirm her (female) identity and that she “wasn’t confused about the way God created me because my mom made it clear that it was okay to be a strong, capable, no-frills, athletic woman”; Mentions of a girl’s privacy and teaching her that no one should touch or see the parts of herd body that are covered by underwear or a bathing suit & teaching her self-defense; A few mentions of a mother referring to menstruation as “the curse”; A few mentions of bras; A couple mentions of some people today having trouble defining the word woman; A mention of female circumcision that has “long been common in parts of Africa and the Middle East”; A mention of a harem (in the Bible); A mention of a girl’s first period being healthy, normal and natural but being shrouded in silence in Western culture; A mention of bachelorette parties; A mention of a daughter possibly being concerned over her weight after a comment from someone; A mention of a girl believing she had a flat rear end; A mention of shaving; A mention of swooning over Gilbert Blythe.

                                  Non-Fiction Book for Parents 
                                                        176 pages

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This book is for mothers, so the ratings here are for moms of these age groups:

For Moms of Pre Teens- 

For Moms of New Teens- 

For Moms of Early High School Teens- 

For Moms of Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

This is probably the second book I’ve ever reviewed on BFCG that is aimed specifically for mothers, but I think this guide is a great idea and since I’ve enjoyed many of Robin Jones Gunn’s other books (fiction and non-fiction), I decided to review it. 

Let’s first note: This book is not for young girls, it’s for their moms, grandmothers, aunts, dads, and other parental figures in their lives that want to encourage, uplift, and be able to explain things to their loved girl during an important time in their lives. 

Personally, I thought this book was interesting because of the advice and ideas in it. Now, I can’t say I would have loved all of these ideas as a tween (it truly depends on each girl!), but I can see the heart and thought process behind them and was glad to see alternate ideas given as well. 

I feel like topics were handled very delicately with the honor that should be there on these important topics, and I really appreciate seeing that. It should be noted that while this book does discuss a lot about talking to your tween, it’s not too late to start a conversation if she’s older or the mother feels like it’s “too late”. Since you’re reading this content review, I’m going to assume that you care about what she reads and consumes—whether that be fiction or otherwise. I’d like to encourage you, mothers, to be that safe place for your girl to discuss things with you, no matter her age. 

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

*I received an Advance Reader Copy of this book for free from the Publisher (Tyndale) for this honest review; Some things may be different or missing in the final edition, but I hope and pray this review covers the main content well. 

"A Royal Quest" by Melody Carlson

About this book:

  “Two princesses…one crown.
The royal twins have battled it out for almost eighteen years, but Princess Heather is firstborn and her ailing father’s first choice to inherit his throne. Princess Rose is not a bit pleased, and the Kingdom of Raspen is not in good shape.
Before Heather takes on the kingdom responsibilities, she is determined to venture beyond the palace gates to see how her people really live. To do this, she chooses to disguise herself as one of them and, accompanied by her royal instructor and his son, sets out, hoping for a memorable adventure.
    Her well planned excursion quickly unravels when she is separated from her traveling party by bandits. ‘Aided’ by a handsome but mysterious young man, her journey grows even more perilous. By the time Heather makes it back to the kingdom, everything has been turned upside down by her sister’s rivalry and Princess Heather’s biggest battle has just begun.”


Series: Book #1 in “The Princess Wars” duology. 


Spiritual Content- Mentions of God; Mentions of praying; A mention of a blessing; 
             *Note: Mentions of a woman being called evil & a witch because of what she’s done; A few mentions of a forest that’s said to be haunted (with ghosts and goblins); A mention of trusting in fate; A mention of a woman possibly being a witch (not confirmed or denied).
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘blooming’, an ‘oh my word’, two ‘stupid’s, and six forms of ‘shut up’; Some eye rolling; Almost drowning, Being kidnapped, Being tied-up, Being slapped, & Fighting (self-defense, all up to semi-detailed); Sibling bickering, fighting, & harsh comments (verbally and some objects thrown at the other); Heather lies & feels pride and guilt over how easy it was to do; Heather lets someone believe something she didn’t correct (not an outright lie, but not the whole truth); Mentions of a deaths & grieving (for parents); Mentions of war; Mentions of fights, fighting, & thugs; Mentions of thieves, bandits/robbers, stealing, criminals, crimes, & prisons; Mentions of a kidnapping & ransom; Mentions of ale, drinking, & hangovers; Mentions of lies, lying, & deception; A few mentions of rumors; A few mentions of jealousy & hatred; A few mentions of hunting; A couple mentions of murderous thugs & possible murder; A couple mentions of threatening someone with death; A couple mentions of slavery; A couple mentions of believing a beloved horse has died (he is fine); A couple mentions of eavesdropping; A mention of thugs being willing to slit a throat; A mention of when Heather would sneak out when she was younger; A mention of nightmares; A mention of bullies; 
             *Note: Mentions of Gypsies.
 
 
Sexual Content- A barely-above-not-detailed kiss and a semi-detailed kiss; Recalling a kiss (barely-above-not-detailed); Touches & Tingles (barely-above-not-detailed); Blushes; Noticing (barely-above-not-detailed); A suggestion of Heather sharing a bed with two men (due to lack of space and the speaker not knowing she’s a girl); Mentions of flirting & a woman at an inn trying to proposition herself (talking about spending the evening with men, being good company, having an expensive dress and will always be paying for it, etc.); A few mentions of kisses & kissing; A couple mentions of a husband possibly finding himself in hot water with his wife or having to sleep outside; A mention of a dreamy guy; Love, falling in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: Heather dresses as a man for her journey for safety & she’s very excited about it (calls it “exhilarating”because she’ll basically be invisible); A mention of Heather wondering if men created sidesaddles “just to make like harder on women”; A mention of curves.
 
-Princess Heather, age 17
                      P.O.V. mostly of Heather but switches to a couple others at times
                                               Medieval Time Period
                                                        203 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

This book has been on my radar for years, ever since the author independently published it. I didn’t love the story, as it had a pretty simple and predictable storyline, but it was a princess story, so I honestly didn’t expect greatness. Heather thought a bit too much of herself and her skills, which irked me a bit, I’ll admit. The romance felt out of leftfield, personally, but I expect more to come from that in the second book—either the guy being better or being the suspicious guy I think he may be. I do plan to read and review that one when it releases in 2024.

All that said, I do think younger teen readers would enjoy this book especially those that have enjoyed Melanie Dickerson’s princess/fairytale retellings books. 

I am marking the rating for Pre Teens a bit lower because of the suggestions of an older teen girl flirting with men and staying with them for the evening; it’s handled lightly and may go over younger readers heads, but it is there, nonetheless. 

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

"The All-American" by Susie Finkbeiner

About this book:

  “It is 1952, and nearly all the girls 16-year-old Bertha Harding knows dream of getting married, keeping house, and raising children in the suburbs of Detroit, Michigan. Bertha dreams of baseball. She reads every story in the sports section, she plays ball with the neighborhood boys--she even writes letters to the pitcher for the Workington Sweet Peas, part of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
   When Bertha's father is accused of being part of the Communist Party by the House Un-American Activities Committee, life comes crashing down on them. Disgraced and shunned, the Hardings move to a small town to start over where the only one who knows them is shy Uncle Matthew. But dreams are hard to kill, and when Bertha gets a chance to try out for the Workington Sweet Peas, she packs her bags for an adventure she'll never forget.”


Series: As of now, no. A stand-alone novel. 


Spiritual Content- Church going; Talks about God; 'H's are not capital when referring to God; Bertha wonders if it’s okay to bother God with silly prayers as she heard in a sermon not to do that, but also remembers the Scripture about casting out cares on Him; Bertha’s father believes in God and reads his Bible, but dislikes the socializing and singing part of church so he times it where he avoids those; Mentions of God; Mentions of praying, prayers, & blessings over food; Mentions of churches, church going, sermons, hymns, & Sunday school classes; Mentions of different denominations & a Jewish synagogue; A few mentions of those & events in the Bible; A few mentions of Easter Sunday; A few mentions of blessings; A few mentions of sins; A couple mentions of thanking God; A couple mentions of Bible & Bible reading; A couple mentions of Christians; A mention of getting right with God; A mention of it being said that a birthmark is where an angel kissed the baby; 
             *Note: A few mentions of reading tea leaves, palm reading, crystal balls, & tarot cards. (in terms of someone not putting much stock in that kind of thing); A couple mentions of ghosts & witches (in terms of types of monsters/scary things); A couple mentions of some people believing toads have a gem in their head that has magical powers; A mention of the green earth that God made (used in the way of the phrase “no way on God’s green earth…”); A mention of an “ungodly” hour; A mention of a bad word being “sinful” (in Flossie’s eyes); A mention of a rumor of a woman being a wicked witch and turning into a spider (a rumor from a group of children); A mention of a haunted house; A mention of a goddess of chaos.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘Geeze Louise’, an unfinished ‘hell’, a ‘nuts’, a ‘what in Sam Hill’, two forms of ‘idiot’, two ‘shucks’s, three ‘drat’s, four ‘dumb’s, five ‘darn’s, five ‘shoot’s, six ‘stupid’s, eight ‘heck’s, nine ‘gosh’s, ten ‘golly’s, and twelve forms of ‘doggone’; Mentions of curses & mentions of profanity in books (In one classic book, Flossie thinks that “it was probably the very worst word someone could say other than taking the Lord’s name in vain” but then whispers the word to herself so she can know “what it felt like to say something so wicked” and knows that her Sunday school teacher would be disappointed in her but her curiosity got the better of her; She asks her mother what it means and is told that it means she’s too young to read or say it, so she asks her mother what would happen if she said it and her mother didn’t hear her to which her mother says not to test her; Her mother implies that Flossie is told not to read it, but she continues the book anyway; A bit later, Flossie reads another book with cursing and tries to hide it); Eye rolling; Pain & Injuries (up to semi-detailed); Bertha’s family are accused of being communists (they are not); Flossie is teased, bullied, chased by bullies, & also pushes a bully when she’s mean (up to semi-detailed); Bertha’s father helps her sneak out passed her mother to go try-out for a baseball team (her mother told her to wait to tryouts; Bertha knows that her mother will be livid, but goes anyway with the help of her father); Flossie is excited to receive two quarters for herself & decides not to tell her mother about it; *Major Spoiler* Towards the end, Bertha and Flossie’s father is killed in a car accident; Lots of grief from their family is shown *End of Spoiler*; Many mentions of communism, communists, & Stalinist sympathies (Bertha’s father used to know some and calls them “good people with good intentions” and that they wanted things to be better and had some funny ideas on how to do that); Mentions of the Great Depression & wars; Mentions of vandalism neighborhood boys fighting; Mentions of pain, injuries, & blood/bleeding; Mentions of rumor of a principal paddling naughty children & how the story has grown dramatically (that the paddle has been made to leave welts, a boy peeing himself because of it, etc.); Mentions of bullies & their mean teasing (including Flossie wetting herself from being scared & another group of bullies picking on a girl for her scar); Mentions of a group of children singing a song about hanging a communist (Flossie is scared at one point that they may actually do that to her); Mentions of alcohol, mixed drinks, drinking, & Bertha’s father swearing off of alcohol when he became a father (including a mention that some men can stop at one or two drinks, but he couldn’t so he drinks a lot of coffee now instead; He does have a drink to celebrate something and her mother is upset about it since he promised not to touch it; Bertha recalls when her father drank a lot after the death of a loved one and how that earned him a lot of nights locked out of the house; A mention of a man saying he can drink alcohol because he’s an adult); Mentions of smoking & cigarettes (both Bertha’s father and uncle smoke); Mentions of lies/fibs, lying, & liars; Mentions of gossip & rumors; Mentions of hatred; Mentions of grief (for a son/brother, in a book for a brother, & a couple families for their husband/father leaving them or passing away); Mentions of bathroom humor & using the bathroom (barely-above-not-detailed); A few mentions of being very upset about a death in a book (Of Mice and Men); A few mentions of possibly poisoning others & having to hide the bodies (in a book); A few mentions of slaves & slavery to the Vikings (family history); A few mentions of a father leaving his family; A few mentions of taxidermy; A couple mentions of mobs & gangs; A couple mentions of threats of burning a family’s home down; A couple mentions of Flossie slapping another student for her mean tease; A couple mentions of a female teacher who is rumored to have a drinking problem; A couple mentions of boys excluding girls from their baseball games; A couple mentions of a butcher & skinned animals (barely-above-not-detailed); A couple mentions of jealousy; A mention of a note telling someone to die; A mention of a death in a fire (fictional); A mention of Flossie doing another student’s homework a couple times to become friends with her; A mention of a cow dying after being hit by a baseball; 
             *Note: Many mentions of books, authors, & fictional characters (including some quotes from books); Many mentions of brand names (Crisco, Levi’s, Tootsie Rolls, Lucky Strike cigarettes, Cracker Jacks, Coke, Charleston Chews, Doublemint gum, Lifebuoy soap, Aqua Velva, Oscar Mayers, Charles Chips, See-Em-Walk dog toy, Mary Janes, Wonder Bread, Buster Browns, Vernor’s, Old Spice, Encyclopedia Britannica, & Merriam-Webster); Mentions of a young girl (who’s implied has a clef lip and palate) wishing she was normal & crying because of people treating her differently; Mentions of movies, actors, & actresses; Mentions of singers & songs; Mentions of car brands; A few mentions of a baby suddenly passing away in the night; A few mentions of a teacher not allowing Flossie to read a book as it’s about war since “books about war were for boys” (so Flossie goes to the library to check it out); A couple mentions of the Boy Scouts; A mention of Girl Scouts; A mention of zombies; A mention of Frankenstein; A mention of Halloween; A mention of Norman Rockwell.
 
 
Sexual Content- A not-detailed kiss; A bit of Hand holding, Butterflies, & Nearness (barely-above-not-detailed); Wanting to hold hands (once, barely-above-not-detailed); Noticing (barely-above-not-detailed); Blushes & Winks; Flossie is eleven and wears a full face of makeup & stuffed her shirt with toilet paper to “make up for her lack” and to look older (she is sent to the principal’s office because of it and when she needs a tissue, she grabs one of her “toilet paper bosom” for her tears); An arrogant guy asks a girl if she’s sweet on Bertha since he was turned down for a date with her (no, obviously, neither girl liked his attitude); Mentions of kisses, kissing, married couples kissing, & parents showing affection (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of a dance, dates, & dating; A couple mentions of girls making eyes at some boys; A mention of a couple having to get married (implied she’s expecting); A mention of newlyweds needing privacy & the wife turning bright red when it’s mentioned; A mention of seeing a couple kiss (barely-above-not-detailed); A mention of a first kiss; A mention of the k-i-s-s-i-n-g song; A mention of swooning; A mention of a woman being called a ‘broad’; Being friends with a guy & possibly being more someday; 
             *Note: A guy rudely teases Bertha for playing baseball on a boys’ team (pandering and asks another teammate if it’s because she’s plain and wants to be a man instead of a woman); Mentions of the expectations of a wife and mother (have a clean kitchen, have dinner on the table when her husband wants it, and chasing a toddler while wearing high-heels) & a woman believing that All-American girls are “at their best when living a life of married domesticity”; Mentions of bikinis (one girl at school says her mother will allow her to wear one and Flossie thinks about her mother telling her that she “might as well just sit around in my underwear because it covered more than a bikini would”, so Flossie is jealous about the other girl being allowed to wear one); Mentions of brassieres, strapless ones, & getting a new one to give a girl “a little more shape”; A couple mentions of a strapless dress; A mention of stuffing a bra; A mention of Flossie being teased about her flat chest (from another female student); A mention of a teacher being called “Old Wigglebottom” (her last name is Higginbottom); A mention of some boys wiggling their behinds when batting; A mention of a woman swinging her hips; A mention of Flossie thinking about Gilbert Blythe and getting weak in the knees over him; A mention of a man heckling a female baseball player that she should “pursue a barefoot and pregnant life”.
 
-Bertha Harding, age 16
-Florence “Flossie” Harding, age 11
                               1^st person P.O.V. of Bertha & Flossie switches between them 
                                           Set in 1952 (Epilogue in 1968)
                                                        340 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

The ending wrecked me more than I ever expected in a book I thought was mainly about baseball.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s discuss other parts first.

Baseball. It’s the only sport I personally like and it’s a sport I rarely see in Christian Fiction, which is a crying shame, in my opinion. I was instantly interested in this book because of that and it being set in the 1950s since it sounded like I book a would enjoy. 

However, this book is more about family than baseball, I would say, in general. The family content and the importance of family in this book was so lovely and heartwarming. They weren’t a perfect family, but they did their best for the others and loved each other a lot. It was so precious. I really enjoyed the characters and writing style so much. I couldn’t help but cheer for Bertha and her baseball dreams and then Flossie is just something else, I’ll say. I really liked both of them and never felt disappointed when the chapter would switch and change point of views. I really appreciate that while Bertha loves baseball and isn’t good at cooking or all the normal “girl” things, this book didn’t ever come across as belittling or making light of those who do choose to be housewives and raise a family. Bertha is grateful for her mother doing all of that and it’s never written off, which I really appreciate seeing because this book could have had a totally different view on it. 

How did this book feel so nostalgic? Is it the vintage charm? It perfectly felt like the 1950s and added such a neat charm to the story. 

I will say that the faith content was light and I think there could have been more naturally added at certain parts throughout the book. The back-cover synopsis gave more than I think it should…it took a bit over hundred pages to get to the accusations and another hundred to get to the adventure. Sometimes I would forget what would be coming and just enjoy the story where it was at, but I did find myself anticipating the adventure and future events at times.

The ending and twist. My heart. I needed that last chapter to go on a little bit longer—just a little bit—because I was sniffing back tears. My heart is aching right now as I sit here after finishing this book, I’ll be honest. 

I see why so many of my book friends have raved about this author’s books…this was my first one by her but definitely not my last.

 

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

*I received this book for free from the Publisher (Revell) for this honest review.