Skip to main content

About Me

woman reading a book on a swing against city skyline

I normally shy away from sharing too much about myself as I stopped being active on social media almost a decade ago. When I mentioned that I casually browsed Bookstagram, I had been doing it with an account that contained zero content and zero followers at the time. This is now (slowly!) changing as I become more active on this blog. Because I would like to maintain my anonymity as much as possible, my biographical information will be scant, although I am sure that aspects of my life will emerge the more I share.

Just so there is some context, here are some details about me:

  • I am Canadian. I feel the need to mention this first as most of the Christian reading community seems to be American, and there is not always the same access to information, book promotions, and even vendors for those of us up north (there are many publishers that do not ship books or send advanced reader copies to Canadians, but I hope this will change).
  • I am an avid reader. I have averaged over 100 or more books a year for the past decade, with a few years where I have exceeded 200 or 300 books. With the emergence of audio book availability, this number has increased substantially for me over time. I do not always read Christian materials and tend to read quite widely, but a significant portion is Christian—hence the blog 😀
  • I have worked in a number of libraries (and one bookstore) throughout my life. Seeing the other side of books makes me even more thrilled that books remain popular and widely available.
  • I am a published author (non-fiction). This is another side of books that has helped me appreciate reading even more. Though this is relatively recent for me, if God opens the door for me to write more, I would happily pursue those opportunities. I have also been a casual book reviewer, starting about 15 years ago. As I begin to catch up to a lot of ARCs, I am striving to get better at completing these in a timelier manner.
  • I am both a Bible college and seminary graduate. This has shaped how I approach reading Christian books, which may explain my thought process when I go into them a bit more. At the very least, I hope it lends me a slight bit of credibility!

I look forward to sharing more thoughts as time goes on, and if this blog does end up growing, to be able to meet other like-minded readers.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

All the Cheese

I've been coming across content within the past several weeks that has stereotyped Christian books (and other mediums) as being cheesy on Christian accounts. While this isn't a new label or even a new topic, what has surprised me somewhat has been seeing more Christian authors jump into this conversation who wholeheartedly agree with this sentiment. Although some authors will name others whom they believe are writing non-cheesy fiction, I feel as though the damage has been done by repeating this blanket statement. While readers have freely been engaging in this type of commentary for some time, it's been interesting to see authors chime in, where in some cases, there seems to be an emphasis on self-promotion over reflection. I'm not stereotyping and saying that all authors or even the authors I'm connected to respond with this tactic (because I really don't think they do!), but there are a few out there from my limited experience who seem to respond to this disc...

Mortality and Reading

This is a topic that has been resonating for me over the past few days, ever since I saw James Trevino's Instagram reel about why you shouldn't finish every book you start. In it, he breaks down the math of how many books we'd be able to read in a lifetime, based on reading a set number of hours per day and the average lifespan. He then compares this number to the number of books that are available worldwide. At first glance, it made me realize that I would have a lot of unread books, no matter whether my life is short or long. There's just too many books to read. Thinking about when my life might end led me to think about the types of books I read and how I'm currently filling my time. I don't think it's a coincidence that right after this crossed my mind, I was listening to  The Weight of Glory by C.S. Lewis where he espouses a simple but profound line that stopped me in my tracks: "If you don't read good books, you will read bad ones." Thi...

Review: Fear Full

Fear is a topic that is usually brought up among Christians in that we're reminded not  to fear. However, the fear of the Lord is also a teaching that is found throughout the Bible. Reconciling these two types of fears, Fear Full by Ryan McIntosh seeks to help Christians appreciate and understand the beauty and power of fear in a new light. Many thanks to the author for providing a complimentary copy of this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own. Book Synopsis What do you know about the fear of God? This book is a journey of discovering biblical and beautiful fear of the Lord. We must crave a proper fear of God if we are to live the Christian life that God desires for us. Using truths straight from the Bible, Ryan McIntosh defines the fear of the Lord, gives life applications, discusses God-centered fear as it relates to the Trinity, and offers valuable commentary on what Scripture tells us about fearing God. You are invited to feast on what it means to fear...