My goal for 2025 was to read 30 books, and I barely made that goal…just hours to spare on New Years Eve, I finished the last one! Here’s a list of what I read, with some short reviews.
Fiction
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. I actually can’t believe that this was the ONLY book from World War 2 that I read this year! I think maybe I forgot to log something in my goodreads. Anyway, there’s a reason this is a bestseller and a medal winner. It’s an often heartbreaking story of a young blind girl in France during the war with the Nazis and a young German boy who gets shipped off as a Nazi soldier and what happens when the two of them cross paths.
The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim. A delightful tale of a spring vacation where strangers become friends. It made me want to take a girls trip away somewhere peaceful with beautiful flowers! I also watched the movie, and it was fairly accurate to the book.
The Lost Clue by O.F. Walton. This book is from the Lamplighter collection of rare books, which strives to find books that tell good stories and display good Christian values. This one is a tale of reversed fortunes that hinges on a mysterious letter.
The Spiral Staircase by O.F. Walton. This book also comes from the Lamplighter collection, and it was one of mystery and suspense. It’s definitely a quick read, but has a good plot, fun characters, and a good moral lesson.
A Month of Summer by Lisa Wingate. A small town full of sour memories. Hurt and betrayal. Forgiveness. These seem to be common themes in much of Lisa Wingate’s fiction, and this book was no exception. Predictable? Maybe. Good lessons? Yes.
The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien. This was a re-read for me. I set out to read one classic this past year (as you’ll see below I read a few more), and I picked this one. I never get tired of reading Tolkien and picking up more hilarious one-liners and key details. Also, I love that in Tolkien’s world, no matter how dark it seems things are getting (and at times, very dark!), good always wins over evil in the end.
Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins. Honestly, I don’t remember too much about this book (granted, I listened to the audiobook at the beginning of the year…so it’s been a while!). I remember that it made me sad, and I remember thinking (as I have with all the Hunger Games books), “wow, it doesn’t feel like our world is too far from doing this.”
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne. In high school, I took a World Literature class (where I read some interesting things, but not the “normal” literature you read in a high school lit class), and I never had to take literature in college. So, I’ve been spending some time playing catch-up and reading some of the classics I never read. This included this book. There were definitely some twists and turns that I didn’t expect as the plot unfolded. It made me wonder what the RIGHT way to handle public sin is (because I don’t think this is it). If you read this book, you can skip the long introductory chapter. It sets up the background of how the narrator stumbled across the story he’s about to tell, but adds absolutely nothing to the story itself.
The Courage of Sarah Noble by Alice Dalgliesh. I’ve read this one before (probably multiple times), but I re-read it as my husband and I prepared to teach an English class overseas. We hoped to use this book to read and discuss with our students (spoiler: we didn’t end up doing it). It’s a young reader chapter book, with a good lesson about what courage is.
Water from my Heart by Charles Martin. This book (and the next few) I read over the summer while flying to and from Europe and dealing with morning sickness. I needed something lighthearted and easy to read. Easy to read, yes (definitively page-turners). Lighthearted? Not entirely. Charles Martin is a master at creating characters and plots that have many dimensions to them. He is a Christian, and his Christian values come out, but not as overtly as other Christian authors. His books are full of themes of redemption and reconciliation, without being preachy. This one told the story of a cutthroat businessman who has to come face to face with the people his shady practices have hurt.
The Mountain Between Us by Charles Martin. Pro Tip: don’t read this while pregnant, when your husband is hoping for twins, and you are embarking on an airplane ride across the world. This book deals with miscarriage, death, and a devastating airplane crash. It also deals with hope, life, and finding peace after terrible circumstances.
The Dead Don’t Dance by Charles Martin. Ok, this is another one you probably shouldn’t read while pregnant. A man faces terrible tragedy in what should be one of the happiest moments of his life. Can he find the peace and comfort he needs to move forward?
Larkspur Cove by Lisa Wingate. As with all her other books, this is a cute Christian romance. Struggling single mom trying to build a life for herself in a small town meets a local game warden trying to escape his past. These two end up working together to try to help a young girl…and, predictably, fall in love.
Blue Moon Bay by Lisa Wingate. Heather returns to the small town she grew up in to try to quickly tie up loose ends for the sale of her parents’ property. She doesn’t want any ties back to this small town and the memories it holds for her. But when things take longer than expected and she stumbles across secrets and shady dealings, she must find out the truth before it’s too late. Another easy-to-read novel from Lisa Wingate.
The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This was another classic that I read to “catch up.” I picked it because it’s one of my husband’s favorite books…and I will never understand why. I hated it. I can’t even tell you what the point of the plot was!
John Halifax: Gentleman by Dinah Maria Mulock Craik. My husband read this book over the summer and then told me I should read it. It was a very good book. I think I’ll require it as reading in high school for our kids! It’s the story of a man named John Halifax who begins his life in poverty, but through hard work and good integrity, he rises up in the social ranks and becomes a gentleman. His actions throughout the book show what it means to be a man of integrity. I was personally convicted by the way his wife treated him…she loved and honored and respected him and never thought anything but the best about him. I thought (more than once) that I need to strive to be like Mrs. Ursula Halifax.
The Dreamkeeper Saga: The Dragon and the Stone by Kathryn Butler. I listened to this audiobook because someone had recommended it as a “if you liked the Wingfeather Saga, you might like this…” The Wingfeather Saga was better. This one is a little bit too fantastical for my liking. However, there was nothing objectionable in the book, so if my kids grow up liking more in the fantasy genre, I’d be happy to let them read this one.
Not Until Christmas Morning by Valerie M. Bodden. This was just a cute little Christmas Romance where a man running from his past (and from God) lands as a Nextdoor neighbor to a woman who wants to make a difference in the life of a young foster boy. As she and her new neighbor continue to get to know each other, he ends up helping her connect with the twelve-year-old boy she has decided to adopt, and she helps him find God again. Predictably, they fall in love…basically a Christian hallmark movie. I needed a lighthearted read, and it fit the bill.
Memoir
Becoming Free Indeed by Jinger Duggar Vuolo. I listened to this audiobook while disassembling furniture in my room and getting ready to move. So it will forever be associated with stubborn screws, haha! Even though there are many parts of Jinger’s story that I can’t relate to, I can relate to her tendency toward legalism and perfectionism. Thus, this book was a helpful reminder of what the gospel is and what the gospel is not.
My Vietnam, Your Vietnam by Christian Vo. This is a dual memoir written by a daughter and father. The Father: born in Vietnam, had to leave during the war, longs to go back. The Daughter: born in the U.S., goes to Vietnam to try to connect to her past, and finds it vastly different from her father’s memories. Can the shared experience of time in Vietnam, despite the differences of decades between them, help to restore this father-daughter relationship? I found myself wondering as I read this book how many of the father’s experiences my in-laws would relate to. I hope to be able to hear some of their stories from before they came to the U.S.
Biography
The Hidden Smile of God by John Piper. Piper highlights the lives of three Christian heroes of history in this book. He unpacks who they were and how God worked in and through them. He doesn’t write biographies in my preferred style, but it was a decent introduction to John Bunyan, William Cowper, and David Brainerd.
R.C. Sproul: A Life by Stephen J. Nichols. I cannot recommend this book enough. I knew very little about R.C. Sproul before marrying my husband, and before reading this book. But now, I greatly admire this man. He was a steadfast warrior for the truth in the midst of an evangelical culture trying to make compromises for the sake of “unity.” He was serious when it came to the word of God, but still had plenty of time for jokes, laughter, and good fun. He was a prolific writer, a thorough theologian, and an excellent teacher. If I had to pick one book that was my favorite I read this year, I think it would be this one.
Theology & Christian Living
Five Points by John Piper. I never took systematic theology in college, so I didn’t have a very good understanding of things like soteriology. I certainly didn’t have a good grasp on the Doctrines of Grace (TULIP). This short book helped to unpack those doctrines for me. Piper explains not only the doctrine (from scripture) but also why it matters. Through this little book, he helped me to see the beauty and loveliness of the gospel more clearly.
God’s High Calling for Women by John MacArthur. If you have known me at all in the past six years, you’ll be surprised to hear that I actually appreciated this book. It’s a very small book expositing the section in 1 Timothy where Paul prohibits a woman from teaching or exercising authority in the church. I appreciated this book because 1) he explained what “saved through childbearing” means; 2) he exposited scripture, not opinions; and 3) he didn’t apply this sweepingly to all spheres of life (like one book I read years ago did). It was a very helpful book for me as I seek to practice submission to my husband and my elders.
Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands by Paul David Tripp. I read this book and discussed it with one of the women in my church. At times it feels like Tripp is writing too specifically for a counseling room situation, even though throughout the book he repeats over and over that this kind of counseling is not just for the formal counseling room but should be practiced in everyday life by everyday believers. I found it to be most helpful in providing a framework for understanding my own heart and examining why I respond to my husband the way that I do.
Labor with Hope by Gloria Furman. I picked up this devotional on sale, hoping it would help me to spiritually prepare for my upcoming baby. It was a little hit-or-miss…some of the devotionals were powerful reminders for me, while others seemed too repetitive or else too surface-y. Overall, though, it was a good read, and there are several devotionals I’ve flagged to go back to as my due date gets closer.
Delighting in the Trinity by Michael Reeves. As I was preparing to teach a lesson on the trinity to young children, I skimmed this book for a deeper understanding of this doctrine and how to explain it to them. I found this book to be a helpful explanation of the Trinity and why the doctrine matters.
This Momentary Marriage by John Piper. I read this shortly before getting married, and I wished I had read it sooner. So many of the things my husband says and believes about marriage come directly out of this book. It would have been so helpful for understanding him months earlier than I finally got to it! It will be a book that I will need to come back and read again and again to remind myself of the biblical foundations for marriage.
The Gospel Comes with a House Key by Rosaria Butterfield. This book shaped my thinking on hospitality, which proved to be a good thing right before getting married and stepping into ministry with my husband that has involved having a LOT of people in our home. There’s more from her book that I would love to put into practice, but it’s just a matter of figuring out our priorities in our marriage and family.
Why Should We Love the Local Church? By Dustin W. Benge. This was a very quick read, and very helpful as I prepared to step into local church ministry alongside my husband. I’ve had many times over the past few years where I’ve wondered if the local church is even worth it. By God’s grace, he has kept me in the church and has shown me again and again why it is important. This book was one helpful tool to cement in my mind the purpose and value of the local gatherings of the body of Christ.
Well, that’s it for 2025! In 2026, I’m setting a much lower goal (18 books), and for the first time I’ve actually picked out ahead of time which books I want to read, in three categories: Theology/Christian Living, Biography/Memior, and Classic. I’m looking forward to many of these reads in the new year!
