What I Read In 2012--Part 3

Here are the remaining titles and my rating system one more time:
* Ehh. Didn't like it at all.
** Just okay.
*** Good. Borrow it from the library.
**** Really good. Well-written.
***** Excellent. One for your personal library.

1.  FREEDOM'S STAND by Jeanette Windle  **
I picked up this sequel to VEILED FREEDOM, just to see where the author took the story.  It was a revealing glimpse into the persecution Christians face in countries where their faith is not tolerated, as well as the prison system.  Once again the book follows the same 3 main characters with one semi-new addition, and it was generally entertaining.  The author left obvious room for a third book, but I'm not sure I'll pick it up.

2.  CATCHING FIRE by Suzanne Collins  **
In my opinion, this is the better of the two books that conclude the Hunger Games trilogy, though by my two star rating you can see how much I enjoyed it.  As rebellion against the capitol has begun, Katniss and Peeta join Haymitch and the winners from the past 24 years in a special edition of the Hunger Games.  This book didn't introduce any new themes or develop those of the first book very much.  It pretty much followed the characters and the action.  Unless you absolutely loved the first book, you can skip the rest of the series in my opinion.

3.  MOCKINGJAY by Suzanne Collins  *
The last book of the trilogy followed Katniss, Peeta and Gale along with survivors of the rebellion living underground in District 13.  A team goes to the Capitol to dethrone President Snow, and the love triangle between Katniss, Peeta and Gale is resolved in the end.  Lots of action, but again little of what fascinated me in the first book.

4.  THE BEST OF ME by Nicholas Sparks  *
It was a fluffy one I read in the middle of a row of very serious and heavy books.  Skip it.

5.  HOTEL ON THE CORNER OF BITTER AND SWEET by Jamie Ford ****
A tender story of how a Chinese teen living in San Francisco navigates life and his first love during the Japanese Internment following WWII.  Though-provoking and sweet, I really liked this one.

6.  PEARL IN THE SAND by Tessa Afshar  ***
An interesting look at the life of Rahab, and her life during the seige of Jericho and the years that follow.  Obviously there isn't a lot of information in scripture about her, but what there is, the author explores and puts in narrative form.  An enjoyable read.  If not for reading and thoroughly loving Lynn Austen's CHRONICLES OF THE KINGS series which was so rich with historical information and scriptural references, I probably would have enjoyed this one more and maybe rated it higher. 

7.  FULL DISCLOSURE by Dee Henderson  **
If you've read the O'Malley series, you know Henderson is capable of the perfect blend of suspense, mystery, and faith.  This book, while able to stand alone, has a tie-in to the O'Malley series, but 1/3 of the way in I could see how it was going to end...and that just isn't what I expect from this author at all!  Such a let-down.

8.  THE VIOLETS OF MARCH by Sarah Jio  ***
So many characters I had to take notes, this story alternated between past and present, with an obvious tie between the two--the mystery of who was who a complete surprise in the end.  I thought I had it figured out just before the final chapter.  But I was wrong.  I'd classify this one as a romantic mystery because the mystery got top billing.  Again, a book that I picked up because I needed a break from the heavy topics.

9.  TWILIGHT by Kristen Heitzmann  ***
A piece of Christian fiction, this was pretty predictable, but still enjoyable.  Contained enough suspense to keep me reading along at a good clip.  I haven't read all of her books, but prefer INDIVISIBLE the most.

10. and 11.  THE HOPE OF REFUGE and THE BRIDGE OF PEACE by Cindy Woodsmall  **
Amish fiction is definately not a genre I give much attention, but I had really enjoyed her SISTERS OF THE QUILT trilogy a few years ago, so I thought I'd try these.  So many books in this genre are fluffy and predictable, only skimming the surface.  The first and second books in the ADA'S HOUSE series, I'm not going to continue with the third.  The first one was the better of the two in my opinion.

*And just recently I finished reading the entire LITTLE HOUSE series to Natalia.  It took us alittle over a year to get through the 9 books.  She loved them!!  We are currently reading HELEN KELLER and it is so sweet to see Natalia imagining and pretending to be in Helen's shoes just like I remember doing many moons ago.

*I just pulled ANNE OF GREEN GABLES and ANNE OF AVONLEA out of my boxes in the basement. 
Any titles you'd recommend as read alouds for 7-9 year old girls?