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Take the Horse and Run

April 8, 2026 by Esther Filbrun · Leave a Comment

8 Apr

Title: Take the Horse and Run
Author: Haylee Graham
Major Themes: Memoirs, Horses, Friendship, Faith
Synopsis: After her parent’s divorce and with a tumultuous home life, Haylee’s best friend was her horse—and then a lawyer, once a family friend, took them to court to seize the horse in an effort to settle outstanding debts, turning Haylee’s life upside down.

Over the years, as my reading tastes have expanded, memoirs and other nonfiction have become frequent in my reading diet. I saw Take the Horse and Run several times when looking at other ARC offerings, and something about the title grabbed my attention. I’m so glad I took the time to look into this one more deeply—it ended up being a gripping, almost-unbelievable, but very, very good read!

Publisher’s description:

How far would you go to save your best friend?

When her parents’ divorce turns her entire world upside down, the only place Haylee Graham feels safe, happy, and seen is in the company of her beloved horse, Cartier. So, when a ruthless lawyer threatens to seize ownership of Cartier and sell him to a slaughterhouse to settle the family’s outstanding legal debts—Haylee’s mother urges her daughter to do the unthinkable: Take the horse and run.

That night, under cover of darkness, 18-year-old Haylee stages a daring escape, unaware that a shady private investigator is hot on her trail. Life on the run quickly turns dangerous, and Haylee and Cartier are soon separated, setting off a chilling chain of events that almost costs both of them their lives.

Packed with unforgettable characters, gripping suspense, and heart-wrenching twists and turns, Take the Horse and Run is an extraordinary story of loyalty, courage, the unbreakable bond between a girl and her horse, and the redemptive power of faith.

My thoughts:

I didn’t intend to read this story quite this early. As I write this review, it’s November 2025, and this memoir doesn’t publish until next April. I intended to wait until maybe a month before the publication date to read this story, but one evening when I wanted something to read, and this was the only book handy, I picked it up. The story gripped me from the first page, and I quickly realized that this wasn’t one I’d set down and finish in a few months—it almost demanded I finish now! Graham did a great job writing her story without getting bogged down in too many facts; she made me feel like I was there, experiencing everything with her, even though I’ve never had much interest in horses or show jumping.

Several times, while reading this book, I thought, “This is so crazy, it’s almost hard to believe!” But yet there was always a ring of sincerity and truth in the words, so I couldn’t dismiss it.

Two things particularly stuck out to me: 1) How much our decisions affect others, and 2) the beautiful transformation the Lord can bring to our lives, no matter how imperfect we are. Much of the premise of this book wouldn’t have happened except that a desperate woman, the author’s mother, made the wrong decision, which ended up costing her and her family much grief and pain for years to come. (By the way, I loved the grace Haylee showed her mom—I didn’t detect any bitterness there at the end of the story, which is a near miracle, in my opinion!) It was also incredible to see the ways the Lord cared for Haylee, even when she was depressed and struggling.

If you’re looking for a memoir that will touch your heart, I’d recommend Take the Horse and Run. In some ways, it’s not an easy read—Haylee lived in a very dysfunctional household for many years—but it’s also a beautiful story of friendship, redemption, and hope. I loved this read, and I’d definitely be curious to read some of Graham’s other books if she ever publishes more!

I was given a complimentary copy of this book, and this is my honest opinion of it.

WARNING: Chapter 2: Drinking (this is mentioned several other times, as well; one character is almost perpetually drunk). Chapter 5: Mom pregnant out of wedlock. Chapter 6: Physical abuse because of drinking, girl thinks about suicide. Chapter 7: Lying, a woman hits a man in self-defense. Chapter 11: Lying, drinking, taking pills to knock her out (almost an overdose). Chapter 15: Girl overdoses on purpose but survives, Oh my God. Chapter 16: Woman boasts about knocking a man out, lying. Chapter 17: Good God, I swear. Chapter 18: I swear. Chapter 22: Brief mention of nightclubs and wearing provocative clothing, my God. Chapter 23: Lying.

Age levels:

Reading Independently—Ages 15 and Above, Adults

Links to buy this book:

Amazon: Paperback | Kindle | Audible Audiobook (unabridged)
AbeBooks: View Choices on AbeBooks.com

The Story of the Trapp Family Singers

April 6, 2026 by Esther Filbrun · Leave a Comment

6 Apr

The Story of the Trapp Family Singers cover

Title: The Story of the Trapp Family Singers
Author: Maria Augusta Trapp
Major Themes: Large Families, Family Life, World War II, Singing
Synopsis: The real story of the Trapp Family Singers, as told from the beautiful (and frequently humorous) memories of Maria von Trapp.

As far back as I can remember, Mom has read aloud to our family. We’ve read thousands of books together over the years, but one I remember from way back was The Story of the Trapp Family Singers. I loved it as a youngster—long before I ever watched The Sound of Music, even!—and recently, after watching the movie together as a family, I decided it was high time for my younger siblings to hear the story, too. I started reading it and realized all over again what a gem of a book this is. Even when we were having a picnic lunch down by the river one day, my brothers begged me to read it aloud to them—and I was grateful to find an ebook to borrow, because we didn’t have the paperback with us! We all enjoyed this book to its fullest.

Publisher’s description:

With nearly 1,500 Broadway performances, six Tony Awards, more than three million albums sold, and five Academy Awards, The Sound of Music, based on the lives of Maria, the baron, and their singing children, is as familiar to most of us as our own family history. But much about the real-life woman and her family was left untold.

Here, Baroness Maria Augusta Trapp tells in her own beautiful, simple words the extraordinary story of her romance with the baron, their escape from Nazi-occupied Austria, and their life in America.

My thoughts:

Maria has the most beautiful sense of humor—that was something that struck me as soon as we started the book, and it continued through until the end. Not only does she have a great perspective on others, but she’s also willing to laugh at herself, which ends up being both refreshing and encouraging.

Where the movie ties the Trapp’s story up in a pretty bow, this book tells what really happened—and, fortunately for the family, it wasn’t quite as dramatic as the movie portrays it. The heartache was all too real, though, and I appreciated getting this family’s perspective on the war. I also really enjoyed getting to see a bit more of what the family got to do together before the war came—several scenes on a particularly memorable family holiday on an island were especially striking for me! I also enjoyed watching as the family moved out of their comfort zone and were able to bless others with their music. It wasn’t an easy process, but they were able to do it together—and that made the difference!

I also greatly appreciated the faith element in the story. Although I’m not Catholic, and can’t agree with some aspects of Catholicism, I did thoroughly appreciate Maria’s heart for the Lord—that was evident many times, in many different ways. I loved reading about how the family worshiped and prayed together, and the ways they made sure to keep their faith as the center of their lives. There were also some beautiful examples of ways the Lord helped them as a direct result of their turning to him—I loved that!

The Story of the Trapp Family Singers ended up being one of my top favorite nonfiction reads this year. It’s heartfelt, engaging, relatable, and thoroughly enjoyable. Our whole family enjoyed it; it was an easy one to find time for even on busy evenings, and has proved once again to be a beloved book on our shelves. If you enjoy stories of large families along the lines of Cheaper by the Dozen or Ten P’s in a Pod, you’re sure to like this book, as well.

WARNING: The family was Catholic, so their faith came through many times in the story. Part 1—Chapter 1: My goodness, for heaven’s sake. Chapter 5: For heaven’s sake, my goodness. Chapter 7: For heaven’s sake, brief paragraph about a woman in labor. Chapter 8: Heavens, for heaven’s sake. Chapter 13: Doctor recommends abortion. Part 2—Chapter 6: Goodness. Chapter 8: “ ‘Sex appeal.’ ” I memorized the words. For heaven’s sake, I mustn’t forget the precious phrase before I found out what it was.” Chapter 9: Gee whiz, golly Moses, jeepers creepers, gosh (phrases taught Maria when learning English, which she had to unlearn). Chapter 11: For heaven’s sake. Chapter 13: Darn. Chapter 14: Thank goodness. Chapter 16: Goodness, for heaven’s sake. Chapter 18: Description of the states refugees arrived in. Chapter 19: Thank heaven, thank goodness, for heaven’s sake, my God, man dies. Chapter 21: Story of men who were shot for humming a folksong.

Age levels:

Listening Level—Family Friendly
Reading Independently—Ages 10 – 12, 12 – 15, 15 and Above, Adults

Links to buy this book:

Amazon: Paperback | Kindle | Hardcover
AbeBooks: View Choices on AbeBooks.com

Before and After

April 3, 2026 by Esther Filbrun · Leave a Comment

3 Apr

Title: Before and After
Author: Judy Christie and Lisa Wingate
Major Themes: Adoption, Georgia Tann, Abuse
Synopsis: After the story of Georgia Tann’s corrupt child-selling business was uncovered in the well-known novel Before We Were Yours, adoptees discovered their own connections with the story and many were reunited with their birth families.

Two or three years ago, I came across the audiobook of Before We Were Yours. The story captured my imagination, and by the time I finished it, it had taken its place as one of my top ten books that year. It was an excellent story, and even now, it ranks as one of the most touching novels I’ve ever read. When I saw Before and After, I was intrigued—how often do you get to read a book about how a novel changed people’s lives? This turned out to be an interesting true-life follow-up to the story, one I recently enjoyed listening to.

Publisher’s description:

The compelling, poignant true stories of victims of a notorious adoption scandal—some of whom learned the truth from Lisa Wingate’s bestselling novel Before We Were Yours and were reunited with birth family members as a result of its wide reach.

From the 1920s to 1950, Georgia Tann ran a black-market baby business at the Tennessee Children’s Home Society in Memphis. She offered up more than 5,000 orphans tailored to the wish lists of eager parents—hiding the fact that many weren’t orphans at all, but stolen sons and daughters of poor families, desperate single mothers, and women told in maternity wards that their babies had died.

The publication of Lisa Wingate’s novel Before We Were Yours brought new awareness of Tann’s lucrative career in child trafficking. Adoptees who knew little about their pasts gained insight into the startling facts behind their family histories. Encouraged by their contact with Wingate and award-winning journalist Judy Christie, who documented the stories of fifteen adoptees in this book, many determined Tann survivors set out to trace their roots and find their birth families.

Before and After includes moving and sometimes shocking accounts of the ways in which adoptees were separated from their first families. Often raised as only children, many have joyfully reunited with siblings in the final decades of their lives. Christie and Wingate tell of first meetings that are all the sweeter and more intense for time missed and of families from very different social backgrounds reaching out to embrace better-late-than-never brothers, sisters, and cousins. In a poignant culmination of art meeting life, many of the long-silent victims of the tragically corrupt system return to Memphis with the authors to reclaim their stories at a Tennessee Children’s Home Society reunion…with extraordinary results.

My thoughts:

I’ve always had a heart for people who grew up as fostered or adopted children. Their lives can be so difficult—frequently, there are far too many unanswered questions or deep hurts. Compound that with the likes of Georgia Tann’s child-selling business and falsified adoption records, and you have a recipe for a lot more hurt. This story doesn’t focus on that aspect so much, though, as on the hope and healing Lisa Wingate’s story brought people. For the first time, adoptees were able to start piecing together what happened in their histories, and the results were often beautiful.

I enjoyed getting the dual perspectives of Judy Christie and Lisa Wingate in Before and After. Hearing how they worked together to try to help people was inspiring, and I loved the way they were able to give a voice to many who were previously voiceless through these pages. The stories of the adoptees were often heartbreaking, but also frequently hopeful—it was touching to be able to hear their perspectives on how they were treated as children.

If you enjoy books about adopted children, or have read Before We Were Yours (which I’d highly encourage you to read, if you haven’t!), I’d recommend you check out this book. Some aspects are difficult to hear, but it’s also a special testament to the resiliency of our human nature and the hope that, ultimately, things will work out for the best. A worthwhile read!

WARNING: Chapter 1: Oh my gosh. Chapter 3: My gracious. Chapter 5: Oh my gosh (twice). Chapter 6: Oh my God, story of a married man coming in at night and climbing into bed with a girl’s mother, my God. Chapter 7: Damn, Lordy lordy. Chapter 15: Darn, damn, mention of astrology. Chapter 18: Oh my gosh.

Age levels:

Reading Independently—Ages 15 and Above, Adults

Links to buy this book:

Amazon: Paperback | Kindle | Hardcover | Audible Audiobook (unabridged)
AbeBooks: View Choices on AbeBooks.com

Defeating Dark Angels

April 1, 2026 by Esther Filbrun · Leave a Comment

1 Apr

Title: Defeating Dark Angels
Author: Charles H. Kraft
Major Themes: Healing, Christian Living, Prayer
Synopsis: A biblically-based approach to helping people get free from demonic oppression.

I’m known as someone who reads a lot of books, but I recently realized that I don’t always take people’s book recommendations to heart—case in point: Defeating Dark Angels. My brother listened to it a while ago, asked me to read it so he could have someone to discuss it with, and I wasn’t in the mood to read it at the time, so by the time I actually got around to reading it, he’d more or less forgotten the finer points of the book that he wanted to discuss. Oh, well. I still appreciated it, and we still got a bit of a discussion about the book—this was an interesting one, for sure!

Publisher’s description:

Demonic oppression is a very real spiritual phenomenon, yet it remains a terrifying and misunderstood subject for many Christians. What does the Bible say? Can demons exert power over Christians? Can a Christian be possessed? How do you know if a problem is psychological or spiritual?

In this revised edition of Defeating Dark Angels, Dr. Charles H. Kraft, a retired evangelical seminary professor and experienced deliverance minister, reveals everything you need to know. With clarity and biblical insight, he explains

why and how dark forces come against God’s people
our authority as Christians over demons
how to resist the influence of demons
how to break their hold on the lives of others
the need for continued healing and care after deliverance through counseling

Weaving practical application with firsthand accounts of demonic activity in the lives of real people, this is your complete guide to defeating dark angels and ministering God’s freedom to others.

My thoughts:

Having grown up in a fairly traditional Christian culture, I was never that comfortable with people who claimed to be able to perform healings or other things along that line. As a child, I was taught—sometimes directly, sometimes just through inference—that most Christian healers are out to make a big name for themselves, and anyway, healing is mostly a thing of the past. What that teaching didn’t jibe with, however, were the numerous missionary stories I heard that spoke of the Lord’s healing power in many different circumstances—to me, it sounded recent, possible, and immediately available if we ask for it. Still, I was cautious when I came to this book. I knew I likely wouldn’t agree with everything in it, and I didn’t want to read something that focused more on a man’s achievements and prowess at dealing with demonic activity rather than on Jesus’ power to heal.

To say the least, I was definitely on the more skeptical end of the scale when I picked up this book.

What surprised me, as soon as I got into the first few pages, was how Jesus-focused and fact-based Defeating Dark Angels is. I’ve heard (and participated in) discussions about demons and demonic activity at times, and this book both reaffirmed those discussions and made many of the Biblical accounts make a lot more sense to me.

Was I still hesitant about the whole “running a healing ministry” thing? Yes! But did it match my preconceived notions about what a “healing ministry” looks like? Not at all. This book advocates for a heavily prayer-based combination of counseling and directly dealing with demons, and I found Kraft’s approach both refreshing and surprisingly inspiring. This isn’t some woo-woo say-the-right-words-and-you’re-healed sort of thing. Over and over, Kraft encourages turning to the Lord, relying on His strength, and using the insights He gives you (as well as the tools He supplies in directly confronting demons) to bring help and healing to hurting people.

There are some sections of the book that I found challenging. I’m not from a Charismatic background, so I think that plays heavily into it. And yes, I don’t agree 100% with all Kraft says. But what most surprised and encouraged me—and what has stuck with me for several months now after finishing the book—was Kraft’s emphasis on the power of Christ in a believer’s life. It’s one of those concepts I’ve heard before, but this book brought it into focus a lot more for me. I’m not planning on starting a deliverance ministry, but I know my prayers—and boldness in prayer—have changed dramatically since reading this book.

No matter what Christian tradition you come from, I’d recommend you read Defeating Dark Angels. It’s not an easy read, but I think it’s an important one. Here in the Western world, we don’t tend to think that much about the devil and demons except in a very nebulous sense, and as Kraft points out, that’s a dangerous way to live. With Jesus working through us, though, we have power over demonic forces, and as followers of Jesus, we are called to fight in the spiritual war (Eph. 6:11). This book is a tool to help us in that fight, and for that reason, I believe it should be read and shared with other believers.

WARNING: There are occasional mentions of people who were raped. A few mentions of making love/sexual intercourse, usually in relation to helping rape victims or hearing their stories.

Age levels:

Reading Independently—Adults

Links to buy this book:

Amazon: Paperback | Kindle | Audible Audiobook (unabridged) | Audio CD (unabridged)
AbeBooks: View Choices on AbeBooks.com

The Gospel Comes with a House Key

March 30, 2026 by Esther Filbrun · Leave a Comment

30 Mar

Title: The Gospel Comes with a House Key
Author: Rosaria Butterfield
Major Themes: Hospitality, Gospel, Christian Living
Synopsis: A practical guide to help you use hospitality as a tool to share the gospel.

Rosaria Butterfield is a name I’ve heard fairly frequently, but I never took the time to read one of her books until a few months ago. As someone who grew up in a family that strives to practice hospitality, I thought it might be interesting to gain a gospel-oriented perspective on the topic, so I picked up The Gospel Comes with a House Key. It ended up being a fascinating, challenging read—I came away with a lot to digest after finishing it!

Publisher’s description:

What did God use to draw a radical, committed unbeliever to himself? Did God take her to an evangelistic rally? Or, since she had her doctorate in literature, did he use something in print? No, God used an invitation to dinner in a modest home, from a humble couple who lived out the gospel daily, simply, and authentically.

With this story of her conversion as a backdrop, Rosaria Butterfield invites us into her home to show us how God can use this same “radical, ordinary hospitality” to bring the gospel to our lost friends and neighbors. Such hospitality sees our homes as not our own, but as God’s tools for the furtherance of his kingdom as we welcome those who look, think, believe, and act differently from us into our everyday, sometimes messy lives―helping them see what true Christian faith really looks like.

My thoughts:

I found this book a lot more confronting than I expected, but in a good way. Generally speaking, I love having company, but what do you do when you don’t get along well with the people you invite into your home? According to Rosaria, that’s the perfect chance to practice Christ-likeness and die to self to serve the other person. I agree…but it’s hard to actually follow up on!

I didn’t necessarily agree with everything Rosaria promotes; in my opinion, there needs to be a balance between having open-handed hospitality and protecting family time. I don’t know how this works out in her family, but because she describes always having their doors open for whoever comes, I do wonder how they manage to have time together just as a family to build each other up. As the oldest of a large family, I know how hard it can be to get everyone under the same roof for a meal, and if we aren’t intentional about spending time together, our closest relationships won’t be nearly as strong as they ought to be. In some ways, it’s easy to have an outward focus, trying to reach out to and support everyone we meet, and forget that we need quality time as a family, too.

The Gospel Comes with a House Key was strengthening and encouraging, and definitely gave me food for thought moving forward. I loved Rosaria’s simple and uncomplicated hospitality—perhaps my inherited “must-dos” from my grandmother might not really apply after all! I find that thought freeing. If you’re wanting to grow in being more hospitable, or simply enjoy reading about how other Christians live out their lives and try to fulfill the Great Commission, I’d highly recommend you check out this book.

No warnings!

Age levels:

Reading Independently—Adults

Links to buy this book:

Amazon: Kindle | Hardcover | Audible Audiobook (unabridged) | Audio CD (unabridged)
AbeBooks: View Choices on AbeBooks.com