BookTok led me here, and honestly, I should have paid closer attention to the demographics of who was raving about this book. Looking back, the passionate recommendations came overwhelmingly from readers who clearly love their romance—and there's absolutely nothing wrong with that! I just went in expecting epic Greek mythology and found myself reading what's essentially a beautifully written romance novel with ancient warfare as backdrop.

The Lord carefully words his law to teach principles. The scriptures give knowledge of the Lord's will but without coercion or compulsion. It enables us to become engaged in the "good cause" and allows us to do so with our free will. We are stewards of all we have; the Lord created it all, and our choices allow us to decide on how we will be as stewards.

I really loved reading this book. It is a fast read. I was stuck in Boston’s Logan Airport due to flight delays, and I read this while there in a few hours. I had to stop a few times to think and ponder on some of the concepts, but even with that, I got through it fairly quickly. I highly recommend this one.

I put together this guide to help you focus a little each day on Christ and the last week of his mortal ministry, leading to the glorious atonement and resurrection. This gift of love from the Father and Christ is given to all who have ever lived. The guide includes scriptures to read each day, ideas for prayers that may help you get closer to Christ, interfaith practices to help us understand and love our neighbors, and activity ideas for each day of the week.

If all learning—whether through mistakes, refinement, or friction—requires some form of trial and error, then the Atonement transforms that process from merely painful to something redemptive. Without the Atonement, mistakes and failures might seem like dead ends, sources of despair. But because of Christ’s infinite sacrifice, they become steppingstones to growth, wisdom, and ultimately, eternal progression.

If you don't read this entire review, know this - I loved it and would recommend this book to almost anyone. I can't be sure that everyone will love it as much as I did, but the writing is so good that it is hard to think of anyone who should not read it. This is a character-driven novel, not plot-driven. Yes, many things happen and there is plenty of action, love, travel, fights, and much more, but this is all about the characters and the world they live in - not about the plot.

This book came up in an article or another book I read (though I can’t seem to find or remember which one), and it sounded interesting enough to add to my want-to-read list. I was curious about how different cultures raise children, hoping it might shed some light on the anxiety and behavioral challenges we see so often in the U.S.—problems that don’t seem nearly as common in other parts of the world

We live in a time where wealth disparity has reached staggering levels, with billionaires wielding more power than many nations. We call our system a democracy, but is it really? When those with immense wealth control the levers of power—politics, media, and public discourse—can we still claim that the people rule? To understand this troubling trend, let’s compare one of the wealthiest figures in history, King Solomon, and one of the richest individuals today, Elon Musk.

It is up to us to see it. We are not required or forced to see it; it is always a choice. Beauty comes and goes quickly. You have to look AND see it. What is there now may not return in that exact form ever again. We are blessed with a world that is ever-changing and ever-wonderful.

Percival Everett reimagines Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from the perspective of Jim, the enslaved man who accompanies Huck on his journey. In Everett's retelling, Jim, who prefers to be called James later in the novel, is portrayed as literate and resourceful, further exploring his character and experiences. "By giving Twain’s secondary character much-deserved agency, Everett allows him to be something he couldn’t be before: the hero.”

In short - I thought this was a wonderful read. 5 star read for me. It was not a light read because of the topics and trauma in the lives of its characters, but it was those characters who pulled me in. I cared about them before I knew how it would all tie together. As the history, secrets, trauma, and wonderful parts of their past unfolded, it brought more light to who they were. The book made me think, feel, and learn, all while being highly entertaining to read.

“A kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys.” Fred, from “A Christmas Carrol”.

As children learn to speak, they may babble as the desire hits them, even at seemingly the wrong times. As children grow, they speak out as thoughts hit them. We should think of our prayers that way. When the thought hits you, pray about it. You don't need formality to speak with God.

“Tales from the Hudson,” released in 1996, stands out in Michael Brecker’s discography. The album showcases Brecker’s virtuosic saxophone work and gathers some of the most influential jazz musicians of the time. This star-studded lineup, filled with my all-time favorite musicians, is one of the album’s features that sets it apart.

I was talking with some family the other day on a long drive about how being a millionaire was the mark of the easy life when we grew up. Having a few million made you ultra-rich. It was the dream of all monetary dreams. The difference in our world today is the growing number of billionaires.

Simplifying means doing or experiencing less in the moment. It also removes things from your life to make that more manageable, but it does not need to mean having less in total.

Would I listen or be more like the Nephites, pushing him out of the city and ignoring his warnings?

My wife and I went to see Marcin Wasilewski Trio last Saturday night. It was a small place - Paderewski Symphony Orchestra Academy of Music. We had never heard of the place; it seemed like a small private school affiliated with the Orchestra. Everyone there - everyone - spoke Polish. The entire audience seemed to know each other, and we did not hear a word of English from the crowd. We both loved the show, and I could not have asked more of a group I had wished to see live for a long time.

Mirrors do not just reflect our faces back at us; in countless other ways, they help us see things that would otherwise be invisible.

I was told something once, or maybe I read it—it doesn't matter, but it has always stuck with me. It is both simple and very complicated. It is easy to understand, yet it can take a lifetime to figure out. I was told, "You are not your feelings."