May Favourites

via Unplash

Hello darlings!

I am back with you to wrap up the month of May and share of few of my favourite things from this month.

May has been a pretty good month, with glorious Autumn weather. It has been warm, sunny, and the leaves have been softly falling everywhere.

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Books

A Rose for the ANZAC Boys by Jackie French
Those of you who have been around here for a while might remember me talking about this book before. This was my second time reading A Rose for the ANZAC Boys and it certainly won't be the last!
I loved it just as much if not more this time. It is so well written and captures the pain, tragedy, and loss of World War 1.
Movies and books seldom make me cry, but I teared up a tiny bit when reading this book.
I can't recommend it enough and I really must get my own copy to display on my shelf!




Music & Podcasts

A Mother Like You by JJ Heller ~ This is just the sweetest song from a child to her mother!

Is He Worthy? by Shane & Shane ~ I heard this song for the first time around Easter and this month I listened to it repeatedly.

Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus by Lauren Daigle ~ Lauren Daigle's take on this older song is just so good. I'll leave it here so you can give it a listen. Her arrangement is soothing and 'jazzy' (listen to it and you'll understand!).

How Can You Truly Please God (Revive Our Hearts podcast episode) ~ This one was just really good and I plan to listen to it a few more times yet!

Sweater Weather Instrumentals Playlist ~ This playlist popped up one day on my Spotify and I'm listening to it now and loving it. It is the perfect acoustic guitar, cosy, Autumn playlist!



Movies

Emma 1996

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I really liked this adaptation of Jane Austen's Emma! I have a whole post of my thoughts here!



Our Zoo

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Thanks to the blogging world, I had heard about this charming mini-series and then I stumbled upon it in our local library I grabbed it and triumphantly exclaimed to my mum that we must see it because a blogger I knew had raved about it!
It did not disappoint and was a great watch for our whole family. (I will not promise it, but I will hopefully post a full 'review' of this series soon...)



Other bits & pieces

- A Mother Like You music video

Here is the cutest, loveliest and sweetest music vid that accompanies the song A Mother Like You!


- Can We Be Pro-Love and Pro-Life?

I love this girl's Youtube channel and this video is great. She is encouraging everyone to stand up and speak for the unborn and act on their beliefs on being pro-life. In this video, Becca shares some ways that you can help and show your support for the pro-life movement.


That's all for this month folks!

Did you discover anything new and amazing this month?

Keep on blooming,

xoxo
Hannah



Note: All images all my own unless credited to their source.

Of Fire and Lions // Book Review

Hello darlings!

It has been a hot minute since I've written a book review for you and I am glad to be sharing one today.

I had seen this book getting a lot of hype in the bookish community I am part of on Instagram, so when I saw it sitting on a shelf in the library I decided to give it a go.
This was my first time ever reading a biblical fiction novel and also my first from the author Mesu Andrews.

So what did I think? Let me tell you but first here is what the book is about.

• • • •

Back Cover Synopsis
"Belili wears her children's disdain like a heavy cloak. The weight of their contempt threatens to crush her spirit, but she has perfected the art of survival.
She learned it when she escaped death nearly seventy years ago after the Babylonians ransacked Jerusalem and took its finest young people as captives.
Years later she survived among idol worshippers and in King Nebuchadnezzar's court by donning an identity that shrouded her with guilt and shame.

She's kept secrets from Daniel, her childhood friend and love of her life, but as the Medo-Persian army invades, the thread of Belili's deception unravels and her tightly wound secrets begin to unfurl.

When tensions mount in the land of their exile, Belili will do anything to keep her family safe even though each step leads them closer to the truth.
Will Daniel die in a pit of lions before she can make things right between them?
Or will the God who rescued Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego save her husband and replace her spirit of heaviness with a garment of praise?"

• • • •

We are introduced to our main character, Belili, when she is an elderly woman and throughout the book, she has flashbacks to events in her past that link up to her current circumstances.
At first, though I knew they were there, these flashbacks confused me but as I got deeper into the book everything fell into place and made sense.

Mesu's writing was captivating in the first half and then for some reason in the second half of the book I became less engaged.

The book of Daniel is a story I only know vaguely and it was interesting seeing the author link her story to the true events that I was familiar with from the Bible. Like Daniel and his friends being favoured among all the young men as the most knowledgeable, skilful and wise, the men walking in the blazing fire, and Daniel being thrown in the lion's den.

It made me curious about this rather well-known man from the Bible and about the ancient Bible times and the culture.

A note on the sexual content, there were a couple of parts where a comment made me a little uncomfortable but that was it.

Belili or Abigail is Daniel's wife in this fictional glimpse into what might have been what Daniel's life was life.
She is imprisoned by her secrets and the guilt and shame of her past. Her children especially her eldest daughter Kezia cannot forgive her for abandoning them when they needed her.
Belili experiences various trials in her life as well as marvellous displays of God's power but finds it hard to believe that He hears her prayers despite her tainted past.

Rating

So my overall thoughts are that I did enjoy this book, the plot, the setting and the characters. I don't really see myself rereading it in the future though. But I have to mention that I think they did a great job with the cover design!

As for my thoughts on the genre of biblical fiction, I think its quite interesting and cool to imagine what a persons life might have been like.

Keep on blooming (and reading),

xoxo
Hannah

Flowery Books ~ Flowering Fridays

I was at a loss for what to post today for Flowering Fridays, and then I decided to chat a bit about some of my favourite flowery books I've found.

As a photographer myself, one thing that attracts me to a book is stunning images. And these books all fit that requirement!

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The Cut Flower Garden by Erin Benzakein

My sister and I can't stop flipping through this one and staring at all the gorgeous photos of many types of flower. We want to save up together and buy it!
Along with the stunning pictures, Erin has also provided a ton of tips and information on growing, caring and harvesting the rewards of your flower garden. There are vase life tips as well so you can get the most out of all your blooms!

Dahlias: Beautiful Varieties for Home & Garden by Naomi Slade

This one is also absolutely stunning. The photos are by Georgianna Lane who is a super talented photographer. She brings out the best in the dahlias of this book.
Dahlias are becoming one of my favourite flowers and this book is full of so many varieties I was adding a bunch to my wishlist.

I would love to have this one in my garden!

Isn't the one just beautiful?

The Cut Flower Patch: Grow your own cut flowers all year round by Louise Curley

This one is a bit more of an information resource and less of a coffee table flipping through book.
It takes you through some flowers you can plant, how to get started in making your garden and some inspiration for arranging your blooms once picked.

I love all of these books and I hope to add them to my personal collection someday (these are library copies).

Here are the links in case you want to check them out:
The Cut Flower Garden
Dahlias: Beautiful Varieties for Home & Garden
The Cut Flower Patch

Keep on blooming darlings!

xoxo
Hannah

My favourite hymns

I feel like the younger generation has lost its admiration for these old songs, what with more modern music being produced by artists like Chris Tomlin, Hillsong and Lauren Daigle.

I enjoy listening to some of these modern worship songs, but they don't have as much depth as the hymns of old that tell of tested faith, God's faithfulness and His love.

The people who wrote these hymns wrote from life experiences and so these hymns are comforting in uncertain times. They remind us who God is and what He has done.


So here is a list of my personal favourite hymns in no particular order whatsoever!
And I'll include a favourite line or verse from each song.

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1. Wonderful, Merciful Saviour

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Okay, maybe this one is at the top because it is one of my top favourite hymns. 

"Counselor, Comforter, Keeper

Spirit we long to embrace

You offer hope when our hearts have

Hopelessly lost our way

Oh, we've hopelessly lost the way"

2. Be Thou My Vision

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I adore this hymn! It makes a beautiful prayer of the heart and soul. My parents, auntie, and friend all had it sung at their weddings and I think I want it at mine too!

"Riches I heed not, nor man's empty praise

Thou mine inheritance, now and always

Thou and thou only, first in my heart

High King of heaven, my Treasure Thou art"

3. Abide with Me

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Another really good one! My favourite version is sung by Audrey Assad and her lovely voice.

"Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes

Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies

Heaven's morning breaks, and the earth's vain shadows flee

In life, in death, o Lord, abide with me.

Abide with me, abide with me"

4. Come Thou Fount

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I love it and that that is all I have to say! The words also make a great prayer to pray.

"Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it

Prone to leave the God I love

Here's my heart, oh, take and seal it

Seal it for Thy courts above" 

5. Christ the Lord is Risen Today

It is all wonderful, triumphant and joyful so I don't have a favourite line!

• • • •

What is your favourite hymn?

xoxo

Hannah

Favourite book covers of my TBR

The old saying is that one should not judge a book by its cover, but really, who doesn't eye up the cover first and judge the contents of the book?

The cover is what's meant to draw you in and what most of us gush over!

Today my darlings, I am going to compile a list of some of the most beautiful book covers on my Goodreads TBR.

Now just a disclaimer, I am not recommending these books as I have not read them yet. I am just going to gush over the pretty cover designs!

Let's get started! These are in no particular order of course.

• • • •

The Bridge to Belle Island by Julie Klassen

I love the rosy colour scheme, the misty background, the little faint border around the edge and the font is nice and simple.

Yours Truly, Thomas by Rachel Fordham

This one is so beautifully simple! I love how the model is dressed and how she holds the letter in her hands. The colour palette is muted and soft which is lovely.

Also, I love the sound of the plot! Letters, Dead Letter Office, romance, it's bound to be interesting!

The Lost Castle Series by Kristy Cambron

I hadn't seen the cover for the first book until now, and I think it has to be my favourite! But aren't they all just gorgeous?
I love the pink tones on The Lost Castle, the cool window and pops of yellow(I thought they were lemons from far off!)on Castle on the Rise, and just the whole cover of The Painted Castle.

A Dangerous Engagement by Melanie Dickerson

I love most of Melanie Dickerson's book covers but this one is just beautiful! It looks mysterious intriguing. I love the starry sky and most of all her dress!

The Road to Paradise by Karen Barnett

I don't think I need to tell you why I like this cover so much! It looks like a vintage postcard, how cool it that? I love the pops of purple and the car too.




Frenchman's Creek by Daphne du Maurier

I just love the design of this cover, the intricate font, all the curly cues, and the little man in the bottom right corner. My mother used to read this author and recommended this book to me so I hope to read it soon (which is basically what I say about EVERY book on my never-ending and ever-growing Goodreads TBR...).



Miles from Nowhere by Amy Clipston

This cover feels so free, summery and breezy! I have a little obsession with red hair, I think it is absolutely beautiful. I like also that the cover is extremely simple and minimal.



• • • •

I want to know, have you read any of these? Which of these covers is your favourite?

xoxo

Hannah

A Little Chat about Classic novels

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Classics. The books that are written in days gone by, by people who lived in a world very different from our and yet a lot the same. Books that many of us hold dear and fondly remember reading them.
Classic books are books written with a real talent for the use of words and the writers' love of words and writing them, poured out over the pages.


Now I have a little confession to make. I have not actually read many classic novels.
But in this post, I will explain why I intend to make myself read them more often.


You see something I think that some of the more modern books lack are good writing, depth and genuine talent in the wonderful art of storytelling.

I am not saying that all modern books are badly written, in fact, most of my reading material is written in more recent years and there are some very good writers around.

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I was thinking about this the other day and I decided that I was going to challenge my brain. The old classics are written in a way that may sometimes be a little difficult to comprehend, but this means your mind is working harder. You are putting it to work and that is healthy.

So a few of the books on my old, classic, brain exercising book list are:

• A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

• Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens

• Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

• Lark Rise to Candleford by Flora Thompson

• Frenchman's Creek by Daphne du Maurier


There are also many great benefits to reading classic literature.

They will make you smarter, improve your vocabulary, and you'll get insight into history and culture from a writer who lived during those times. You'll understand history better as well.

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These old writings could be thought-provoking as a lot of writers tried to get a certain point or idea across to you through their work of fiction.

Like I mentioned before, reading these books is a challenge. Challenges are good for your mind.

A study also shows that reading classic literature improves your social skills.
And these are only a few of the benefits!


So take this as a challenge and get ready to explore the wonderful world of classic lit with me!
Of course, I will try and post more reviews of books and give you my thoughts on the classic that I read.

Tell me some classics that are on your reading list!


xoxo
Hannah

Emma 1996 Ramble

Hello darlings!

It has been a hot minute since I've seen a period drama and let me tell it, it was really nice to once again indulge in elegant dresses, tea in the garden, balls and parties, and the pretty English houses.

The story of Emma is familiar to me as I did read half of the book once and I have seen the mini-series adaptation.

But I enjoyed this version a lot!

Gwyneth Paltrow was a brilliant Emma!
Ahh, all the aesthetic of a period drama...

In particular, I kept an eye on all of Emma's dress, and they are mostly what I want to ramble about today!

Warning: There are lots of pictures!!! Don't say I didn't warn you!

This one I think is one of my most favourites of all Emma's wardrobe! The yellow colour is so cheery and the stripes are just adorable.

It looks like those are little flowers on her sleeves too, just to add a cherry on the top!

I couldn't find a better picture, but I love this little capelet that Emma wears here. It is so pretty with all the small details.

One of the things I suppose I 'miss' from these eras gone by is all the attention to detail on the fashion alone. The tiny stitching, itty bitty beads and fine lace, all painstakingly made by hand made each garment special. Whereas now, most of our clothing is made speedily with machines and trends changes almost with each passing day.

This pink dress is also very pretty. Honestly pretty much anything pink pleases me though!

There were two rather aesthetic scenes in the film, one being this scene with Emma and Harriet in an apple orchard. The arched branches made it seem like a tunnel of trees and the little pops of red were lovely.

I can't help but pity and like Harriet. Emma confuses her so and she is eager to please so she goes along with it. She may be a little cringy but I think she is sweet and I am glad she gets her own happy ending!

The other quite aesthetic bit was when Mrs Weston and Emma are talking about Mr Knightley amongst some gorgeous pink roses (I think they're roses).  

See how pretty?

Oh and this scene where everyone is picking strawberries is rather lovely too.

Now onto some of the more romantic bits!

I do think that Mr Knightley is one of my favourite Austen heroes. I love his "Men of sense do not want silly wives!" and "Try not to kill my dogs."

He is an exceptionally good sort and not as mushy and 'heroic' as some others. He does not make Emma swoon at his dashing acts of chivalry. They were good friends, to begin with, and I believe there is no sweeter foundation for a romantic relationship than to be very good friends first.
Knightley is also quite sensible, gentlemanly, honest, and full of many other genuine qualities.

I think one of the most popular Emma and Knightley moments is probably when Knightley is reprimanding Emma about her rudeness to Mrs Bates.

Oh, the feels! It must have been horrible for Emma to have such a close and loyal friend as Knightely to scold her so. 

But the best of friends do scold you when you need it and in the end, it will help you. He gave Emma what she needed. 

I loved it when they danced together. Dances are always quite fun parts to watch and in this scene, you can tell they actually begin 'noticing' each other, if you understand my meaning.

Look at all the Emma & Knightley sweetness! *reminds herself for the millionth time that she should read these novels for herself*

To give me some credit I did actually get about halfway through Emma, but then another book caught my attention...

Of course, it wouldn't be an English period drama without some gorgeous British outdoors(especially rose gardens and the like). 

Every time I see the lovely countryside and old houses in England it makes me want to travel there even more.

A perfectly dreamy photo of our dear Emma!

And with that, I hope I have convinced you that this is a wonderful Jane Austen adaptation. I liked it more than the mini-series, to be honest. 

You know this is my first period drama post since January when I wrote a little review on Berkeley Square!

xoxo

Hannah

P. S

*awwww* Your welcome!