Unofficial Book Club: April Edition

I have to be honest.

I couldn’t remember what I read, or if I even read, last month so had to turn to Goodreads for a refresher.

Is that a good read on how busy last month was?

Was I puny there, or what? That’s enough of that. Let’s get to it.

West With Giraffes

West With Giraffes by Lynda Rutledge was a sweet novel inspired by the true story of two giraffes who survived a hurricane while crossing the Atlantic Ocean. After Woodrow Wilson Nickel, the main and fictional character in the novel, learns that giraffes are going extinct while living in a nursing facility, he takes readers on a past-to-present journey of his first meeting of the giraffes and the chaos that ensued as he snuck his way into driving the animals cross-country to the San Diego Zoo. Bring in a cranky old man, a redheaded photographer, and Woodrow’s own past, and there’s a lot that takes place between New York and San Diego.

Overall, the book felt a little long. But as it progressed, the author did a great job at sharing some of the realities the country encountered in a near post-Depression, pre-war world. I will also say that the way the book wrapped up gave my heart the warm, fuzzy feels I look for when reading. I recommend it. And I especially recommend it if you love giraffes.

The Keeper

In my Unofficial Book Club: March Edition, I shared of my love for the Murphy Shepherd series and the release of Charles Martin’s fourth book, The Keeper.

Maybe it was because too much time has passed since my original read of the series, but I had a very hard time remembering who was who in Murphy’s family and how they all came to join it. I spent some time googling just to be reminded! Big whoops for a book series I love. I will also say, there was a lot of reading about different types of guns and how they worked, and, honestly, I skimmed through all of those parts and felt like there was almost too much of it.

Those things aside, it was a good read, albeit hard with the subjects of human trafficking, kidnapping, and the darkness of that world. There was also a huge surprise near the end of the book that shocked me and, like West With Giraffes, gave my heart the ending (or in this case, twist) I was looking for. Well done, Charles Martin.

Knowing Jesus as Servant

I’m really excited about this read that I finished in April, one that I started earlier this year as part of a women’s Bible study. Knowing Jesus as Servant: A 10-Session Bible Study on the Gospel of Mark by Tara-Leigh Cobble was a full read through the second of the four Gospels with daily readings, passage-by-passage teaching, and discussion-based questions with writing space.

If you’re looking for a new study, I recommend this one! I appreciated that each day was more than just reading for the sake of checking my quiet time off the list, but a deep dive into the content I was reading and the context of the time. It pushed me to read the Bible differently, and to see Jesus in a way I hadn’t before. More than that, it reminded me of the sacrifice Jesus made for you and me.

If you remember, I’m currently going through The Bible Recap: A One-Year Guide to Reading and Understanding the Entire Bible this year, and it was great to do a second study by The Bible Recap. I’ve already added the rest of their Knowing Jesus Series to my list for future studies!

Next up for May?

I’m currently deep into Vera Wong’s Guide To Snooping (On A Dead Man) by Jesse Q. Sutanto and just received Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Mass (Throne of Glass series) via Libby. Also Emily Henry released a new book (Great Big Beautiful Life) which you KNOW I immediately requested and can’t wait to get my hands on.

We’ll see how those go and the places they take me this month. Until then, happy reading, friends!