The Mighty Blue Saves Christmas by M. A. Baer

The Mighty Blue Saves Christmas is an enjoyable children’s book written by M.A. Baer and illustrated by Marita Gentry.

An elderly man in Alaska receives an unexpected visitor, a beautiful white kitten, one snowy night.  He names it Blue and it brings playfulness, excitement, and happiness into his life. However, there is more to little Blue than being sweet and playful, he can also pull a sled fast like a powerful white tiger.

Then, something very special happens and it reveals the true power Blue has and the man finally learns whose gift his sweet little kitten really is.

This is a sweet and enjoyable children’s book set at the happiest time of the year, Christmas. It depicts happiness people get from companionship and helpfulness. Most importantly, it shows that the best gift a person can have is a friend.

I enjoyed the book a lot, not only the mystery that surrounds Blue but also the colorful pictures that grace every page.

Congratulations to M. A. Baer on such a beautiful and enjoyable book!   

Ink by Amanda Anderson

Ink is Book 9 of the Defenders MC Book Series created by Amanda Anderson.

Ink is keeping a secret from Angel. It pains him to do this to her, and though it entails a great risk to the life he has built with her, he knows he has to do the right thing.

Unbeknownst to Ink, Angel is keeping a secret of her own. When it is made known, Ink is too pressed for time and too preoccupied with his own sin to deal with it. He leaves Angel drowning in guilt and their relationship hanging by a thread.

This is a moving and touching story of true love. It shows what someone is willing to do and how far he/she is willing to go for the person he/she loves. It depicts how love gives someone the power to forgive the most painful betrayal and how forgiveness can heal the deepest wounds.

The book is told in the third-person perspective. It is an easy read with vividly described scenes. The characters are well-developed and the dialogues of each are quite fitting. Though the premise is not extraordinarily unique, the plot is well-presented and the ending is satisfactory.

Overall, this is an interesting and enjoyable book. However, there are already too many books with this theme. Moreover, though this book may be enjoyed as a standalone, the readers are strongly advised to read the entire series and in proper order, to appreciate it fully.

Congratulations to Amanda Anderson (@AAndersonBooks) on such an interesting and enjoyable book. For more books by the author, click HERE.      

The Influence of Military Strategies to Business by MD White

The Influence of Military Strategies to Business: Skills to Help with Problem Solving and Decision Making is an informative and helpful book by M.D. White.

It is divided into twenty-five chapters in addition to the Introduction. It is written to present the parallels between war and business planning based on the principles of the Chinese military strategist, Sun Tzu. These principles are divided into two components: knowing oneself and knowing the enemy.

Among the topics discussed in the book include strategic surveillance, transformational leadership, business models, and innovation. Moreover, the author expounds on C3I (command, control, communication, information) as the basis to managing crises, the three most critical market factors (accelerating change, increasing competition, increasing complexity), as well as various defensive and offensive strategies and the application of the Principles of Sun Tzu in business. Furthermore, by analyzing the similarities between an airplane and a company, he is able to emphasize the importance of business models.

Basically, this is an interesting, informative, helpful, and, apparently, well-researched book. It is organized and academically written with a consistently formal tone commonly used in textbooks. By citing internationally recognized brands like Coke, Pepsi, Xerox, Ford, Colgate, Nike, and Adidas, the author is able to reach out to ordinary people, and by sharing the stories of Xerox, Sears, Ford and the battle between Coke and Pepsi, and Nike and Adidas, he makes this book difficult to put down.  

Needless to say, this is one great book that even a non-military and non-business minded person like myself is able to appreciate it. However, with its textbook tone, other readers may find this book not an easy read. In addition, there are a few errors within the entire book which some readers may find distracting.

Congratulations to MD White on such a great book!

Messed Up Men of the Bible by Tina Samples and Dave Samples

Messed Up Men of the Bible: Seeing the Men in Your Life through God’s Eyes is an eye-opening, insightful, inspiring, and encouraging book written by Tina Samples and Dave Samples.

With each chapter discussed alternately between Dave and Tina Samples, the book has twelve chapters that feature twelve messed up men from both the Old and the New Testament including King David, King Solomon, Samson, and Judas, among others.

Among the issues explicated include the conceited men, the control freak, the angry, the depressed, the traitor, the physically ill, the wayward, and the lustful, as well as those men who lack integrity, men who lack courage, those with father issues, and those possessed by various demons.

By citing specific verses in the Bible, the authors explain the behaviors of each messed up man and even present reasons that may justify these behaviors. Similarly, the authors illustrate how these messed up men in the Bible behave exactly the same way as the men in our lives. Moreover, they share how the women (mother, wife, lover, and daughter) in these messed up men’s lives dealt with the situations they found themselves in.    

The book offers practical and important advice on how to help these men: to how to live with a controlling man, ways to relax when dealing with an angry man, and the dos and don’ts of living with an angry man.

Each chapter ends with a list of questions for the readers to answer which makes the book interactive and personal, and by sharing their own experiences, the authors make this book very relatable.

Needless to say, I enjoyed this book immensely. It is an easy read, informative, inspiring, and encouraging.

However, some parts may require not just familiarity with but ample knowledge of the Bible. Though regular Bible readers may not find that much of an issue, non-Bible readers may find it a little bit bothersome.

Congratulations to Tina Samples (@tinasamples) and Dave Samples (@davesamples) on such a great book! To know more about the authors, visit Healing Hurting Hearts and DAVE SAMPLES.