Angel Blessings Written and Illustrated by Marilyn Lachambre Published by YNWP Review by Shelley A. Leedahl $19.95 ISBN 9-781988-783093 Quite coincidentally, I read the illustrated children’s book, Angel Blessings, the first title by Kamsack, SK writer and illustrator Marilyn Lachambre, on the one-year anniversary of my younger brother’s passing; at the end of this review, you’ll read why this is significant. In this attractive hardcover released by Regina’s Your Nickel’s Worth Publishing, Lachambre rhymes her way through All Things Angel: who and what they are, and the many ways they bring us comfort, protection, and inspiration. The rhyming text will be appealing to young ears, as will the soothing sentiments, ie: “Angels are with you day and night …. keeping you in their loving sight,” and “They’re always with you, through joy and sorrow—protecting and guiding, today and tomorrow”. I could see this uplifting book being used as a nighttime prayer for young children. Its Christian emphasis and calming words would be a wonderful way for children to fall asleep, ie: “Even at bedtime when it’s time to sleep, they will stay with you while you slumber deep. As you lie quietly in bed tonight, know that Angel wings are…
Opening Up: How To Develop Your Intuition And Work With Your Angels by Lisa Driver Published by DriverWorks Ink Review by Shelley A. Leedahl $19.95 ISBN 978-1-927570-13-5 Are you as happy as you’d like to be? I’m guessing that most would answer “no” to this glaring question, whether our challenges concern illness, loneliness, grief, financial woes, strained relationships, confidence issues, employment worries, addictions, or something altogether different. Of course many books promise happier, healthier living, but Lisa Driver’s Opening Up: How To Develop Your Intuition And Work With Your Angels takes a unique approach: it combines elements of Christianity (the author was raised in a Christian home and uses “God” to describe the “loving energy” we all share) and what some term “new age” beliefs, ie: developing intuition through meditation; using crystals; participating in Angel Tarot card readings, energy work, and Reiki; and recognizing when our angels are communicating with us. Regina-born Driver was in transition in her own personal life – she’d had “about seven jobs in as many years” – when she attended a “Natural Health and Healing Expo” in her adopted city, Medicine Hat. There the “’regular’ Saskatchewan prairie girl” was introduced to an “angelic medium from…
The Angelic Occurrence by Henry Ripplinger, Published by Pio-Seelos Publishing Review by Gail Jansen-Kesslar $21.95 ISBN 9 780991 710225 Experiencing an “angelic occurrence” may mean different things to different people, but to those fans following Henry Ripplinger’s Angelic Letter series who are eagerly awaiting the release of Book 4 in the six-part series, the angelic occurrence in this case could be the release of the book itself. Released nearly a year after Book 3, Angel of Thanksgiving, The Angelic Occurrence continues to follow the relationship between Henry and Jenny whose paths have taken opposite turns. While books 1 through 3 of the series focused on the relationships that developed first between them as teenagers, and then between them and the other supporting characters, Book 4 looks to highlight a different sort of relationship :the relationship between what actions we take in our lives and the trickle down effect those actions have on not only our lives, but on the lives around us — the relationship between coincidence and serendipity. How influenced are we by the actions of people we may never have met before? How connected are we with one another? And how do our own actions affect those around…
Pewter Angels by Henry Ripplinger Published by Pio-Seelos Books Review by Gail Jansen $21.95 CDN 9 780986 542411 The first in Ripllinger’s five-part Angelic Letters Series, Pewter Angels sets the stage for the tragic but uplifting love story of Henry and Jenny, two young lovers who in an almost modern day Romeo and Juliet are separated by those who think they know best. This novel is set in a simpler time and place: it was a time before cell phones, email or Facebook, when our reliance on simpler methods of communication was both a blessing and a curse. When someone on the other side of the world can be both seen and heard in an instant, it’s hard for us to fathom a world without communication. However, when circumstances dictate that Henry and Jenny be separated, with many unanswered letters between them, they’re forced to rely only on their faith, both in God and in one another, to see them through. As Ripplinger’s first novel, Pewter Angels has an unhurried pacing not typical of inexperienced writers. This pacing helps slow the reader down and give them a lesson in patience, just as Henry’s own mentor, Mr. Engelmann, repeatedly tries to…