Saturday, December 3, 2011

Book Review: The Volga Flows Forever

About the Book:
The Meiningers had set out for Russia seeking to improve their lives, to escape the political and religious turmoil often surrounding their otherwise picturesque German homes and villages. They dreamed of the faraway place awaiting them. They colored the soil beneath the vast steppe rich and black in their minds ready to be tilled. And there would be a neat little house ready to receive them. In their wildest dreams, they could not have imagined what actually awaited their arrival. There were no houses, no fields nothing but grass as far as the eye could see. It was almost evening; they were hungry, wet and cold and felt like orphaned children.
These German immigrants and their descendants civilized this bleak Russian frontier, converted the harsh steppe into fields of waving grain dotted with wind-driven flour mills, and in this isolated place, developed a culture that was uniquely their own. They survived savage attacks of marauding tribes, the unpredictable often harsh climate, and the vagaries of tsarist edicts. Sigrid tells the fascinating story of these remarkable people in The Volga Germans.
The Volga Germans is the second volume in Sigrid Weidenweber’s trilogy The Volga Flows Forever. Catherine, the first volume, brings to life the fascinating historical character of Catherine the Great who invited her native countrymen to settle the Russian frontier. In the final volume, From Gulag to Freedom, she follows the Volga Germans through the hardships of collectivization and deportation during the Soviet years to finally immigrate to the San Joaquin Valley of Central California.

My Review
I loved the first book in this series (you can read my review of it here). I was really wondering could the second book be as good as the first. Well it was!  Sigrid Weidenweber outdid herself!  I thought the story flowed better in this book. Again I love the detail she put into the book. She really put in a lot of time and effort researching the story and it shows! As a history buff I loved learning more about Russian history-particularly that of the serfs. I was able to draw a lot of correlation between the life of the sefs and that of early Americans.

The Author
  Born in Germany in 1941, Sigrid Weidenwber remembers the horrific aftermath of fascism. At the end of the war, she found herself living under communism. After the Berlin Wall was built, she managed to escape the repressive environment with the help of friends and a French passport. To this day she does not speak French.
She holds degrees in medical technology, psychology and an Honorary Doctor of Letters from Concordia University of Portland, Oregon for her trilogy “The Volga Flows Forever.” In her trilogy she brings to life Catherine the Great in her multiple roles as monarch, woman, lover, mother, grandmother and head of the general staff of the army, in Volume one. The following two historical volumes deal with the Volga Germans brought to Russia by Catherine’s edict.
Three years ago she moved to Santa Rosa Valley, California from Portland Oregon. She has passionately embraced California together with her family that also resides here.







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Friday, December 2, 2011

I never leave His hand

Most of you know I have ALOT going on right now. I'm just so thankful and blessed that He is with me through it all! I just wanted to share a picture I drew a few days ago. It show's how I feel right now. I hope you enjoy it.


I also want to share a song with you that has ministered to me during this time. It's called Your Hands by JJ Heller.  Thanks everyone for your love, prayers and support. I'll write more soon!

 Love, Hugs and Prayers

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Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Crazy Holidays

Hello everyone.  I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Ours was bittersweet. My husbands great uncle passed away just before the Thanksgiving. It was so good to see everyone and remember uncle Lewis. We thankful for life and memories.Things have be once continues snow ball since then. Thankfully God has given me his peace as long as I choose to recieve it.
We had noticed a leak in the guest bathroom. My hubby turned the water off and promised to fix it after the holidays. Well when we got home the floor out of bathroom had fallen because of the drought and the leak! We are staying with my mother in law until the matter is fixed.
Then yesterday i went to the doctor and found out my liver enzymes were 3x what they should be. The doctor thinks this is because of my Burns and the medications. However if it doesn't get better i will have to have a liver biopsy in a couple months.
God is being my Prince of Peace in the midst of all of this as long as I keep my mind on Him and not on the craziness of this world. How was your Thanksgiving? How do you keep your peace this fast paced often crazy season?

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Monday, November 28, 2011

Book Review:Precisely Terminated by Amanda L. Davis


About the Book:
Monica, a noble disguised as a slave girl, escaped the chip implantation process that the slaves of Cantral and Cillineese were subjected to at birth. As a result, she alone holds the ability to find a paper bearing instructions for shutting down the mind-­controlling computers and execute the paper's directives. But the Cillineese rulers discover Monica's existence and move to seal the city. They plan to gas all the inhabitants before Monica can set them free. The ensuing race against time pits one girl against the tyranny of powerful nobles...with an entire city's inhabitants hanging in the balance.

My Review: 
I love this book. The author had me hook trom the word go. I felt like I was with the Monica every step of the way rich throughly detailed world. The book also gives a wonderful example of love and sacrifice. Amanda put a lot tme and thought into this book and you can definately tell it. I can't wait for the next booik in the series.


About the Author:
Amanda L. Davis is an award-­winning writer who spends her spare time spinning yarn, sewing, quilting, and embroidering. She honed her writing craft while attending writers conferences with her father, award-­winning fantasy novelist Bryan Davis, and through years of participating in Cleanplace, an online writers group for teens. Amanda is available to speak about her process of living with dyslexia, excelling in a homeschool environment, and chasing your dreams-no matter what your age.

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