{Meme} It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Yay! It's November; a month of colder weather (depending on which country you're in), bonfires, camping, falling leaves and, if you're lucky, snow! It's also NaNoWriMo month, so a lot of reading may not be accomplished. Here's what we're trying to get read so far ...

Mandy:

For Review

Where are the Christians? Despite numbering two billion worldwide, this question is being asked with more frequency given the eroding moral state of society. This ground breaking book explores the dynamics of American Christianity offering unique and timeless insights into one of the world's most prevalent religions. Whatever the reader's beliefs, this book will challenge conventional notions and broaden ones understanding of Christianity's past, present and future.

Where are the Christians? uses the classic format of who, what, where and how to explore Christianity and the dynamics that unite and divide the religion into the unrealized potential it suffers from today. The book enlightens the reader as to who the Christians are from a historical perspective; what a Christian is from a spiritual perspective; where the Christians are from a behavioral perspective; and how Christianity can be strengthened and more united from a societal perspective. Where are the Christians? examines hundreds of Biblical and scholarly sources, analyzing data from a multitude of studies and interviews leading to unique perspectives and solutions to the challenges facing Christianity in the modern era.

For Review

Incredibly, more than 3,000 women in the United States military report Military Sexual Trauma (MST) each year. Yet, to date, the military seems unwilling or unable to provide its own woman soldiers with the care they deserve – and unable to prevent these atrocities from occurring in the first place. With The Female Veteran, female military veteran Ty Will tells her own deeply personal account of rape at the hands of her sergeant, and her experience with seeking treatment from a VA ill-equipped to deal with the pervasive issue.

The Female Veteran is a must-read for all veterans and their families – particularly those with a mother, daughter, aunt or sister in the armed forces -- as well as those considering entering the military.

Kathy:

Jess Aarons' greatest ambition is to be the fastest runner in his grade. He's been practicing all summer and can't wait to see his classmates' faces when he beats them all. But on the first day of school, a new girl boldly crosses over to the boys' side and outruns everyone.

That's not a very promising beginning for a friendship, but Jess and Leslie Burke become inseparable. Together they create Terabithia, a magical kingdom in the woods where the two of them reign as king and queen, and their imaginations set the only limits. Then one morning a terrible tragedy occurs. Only when Jess is able to come to grips with this tragedy does he finally understand the strength and courage Leslie has given him.

For 2013 TBR Pile Challenge

In the summer of 1953, two eleven-year-old boys—best friends—are playing in a Little League baseball game in Gravesend, New Hampshire. One of the boys hits a foul ball that kills the other boy's mother. The boy who hits the ball doesn't believe in accidents; Owen Meany believes he is God's instrument. What happens to Owen, after that 1953 foul ball, is extraordinary.

In The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, author Stephen R. Covey presents a holistic, integrated, principle-centered approach for solving personal and professional problems. With penetrating insights and pointed anecdotes, Covey reveals a step-by-step pathway for living with fairness, integrity, service, and human dignity--principles that give us the security to adapt to change and the wisdom and power to take advantage of the opportunities that change creates.