Book Review: Hope in the Dark by Craig Groeschel

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BOOK review
Started on: 18 October 2018
Finished on: 26 October 2018

Hope in the Dark by Craig Groeschel

Title: Hope in the Dark

Author: Craig Groeschel
Publisher: Zondervan

Pages: 176 pages / 176 pages (e-book)
Year of Publication: 2018
Price: Rp 296,289 (https://www.bookdepository.com)

Rating: 5/5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Just to be clear: this book is not for everyone. If you're living the dream and you're on a spiritual high, stop and praise God for his goodness. I celebrate with you. But, honestly, this book probably isn't for you, at least not in this season of your life. This book is for those who are hurting. For those with doubts. For those afraid that their faith may be failing. For those whose world has grown dark."

Craig Groeschel is the founder and senior pastor of Life.Church and has written a lot of books in the past. This time, he specifically wrote this book for people who are struggling to believe that God is good. He wrote this book for those who are in the midst of great suffering and pain. Throughout this book, Craig Groeschel also shares his own challenges and acknowledges the questions we might ask in our deepest pain: "Where was God when I was being abused?" "Why was my child born with a disability?" "Why did the cancer come back?" "Why are all my friends married and I’m alone?". This book invites us to wrestle with such questions as we ask God to honor our faith and heal our unbelief.

Book Review: The Next Person You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom

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BOOK review
Started on: 15 October 2018
Finished on: 17 October 2018

The Next Person You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom

Title: The Next Person You Meet in Heaven

Author: Mitch Albom
Publisher: Harper

Pages: 224 pages / 224 pages (e-book)
Year of Publication: 2018
Price: Rp 310,000 (http://periplus.com/)

Rating: 5/5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"...when you first get to heaven, you meet five people from your time on earth. They were all in your life for a reason... They teach you something you didn't realize while you were alive. It helps you understand the things you went through."

In the previous book, The Five People You Meet in Heaven, Eddie died saving a little girl's life called Annie. Many years later, Annie has grown into a beautiful woman and the story begins with her wedding day; where she's going to be married to her childhood love, Paulo. Annie's wedding night ends with a tragic accident, and that's when she find herself on her own heavenly journey—where she's going to meet five people who will show her how her life mattered in ways she could not have fathomed: including Eddie. Annie always resents her past, blames her mother, and she feels like she always make mistakes. Through this journey, Annie will discover the truth behind her life that she never knew before.

Book Review: Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

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BOOK review
Started on: 4 October 2018
Finished on: 14 October 2018

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

Title: Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine

Author: Gail Honeyman
Publisher: Viking

Pages: 327 pages / 336 pages (e-book)
Year of Publication: 2017
Price: Rp 198,000 (http://periplus.com/)

Rating: 4/5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"If someone asks you how you are, you are meant to say FINE. You are not meant to say that you cried yourself to sleep last night because you hadn't spoken to another person for two consecutive days. FINE is what you say."

Eleanor Oliphant is a woman who struggles with appropriate social skills and tend to spend her time alone. She follows a highly scheduled routine of avoiding social interactions, in which she spend her weekends eating pizza and drinking vodka. Eleanor has lived alone for a long time and she preferred it that way—since other people seems to find her weird. But everything changes when she gets to know a fellow co-worker, Raymond—the IT guy from her office. After unintentionally spending time together with Raymond several times, Eleanor started enjoying his company and finally realized how she has been craving for human interaction. Raymond slowly unraveled Eleanor's dark past that has damaged her and helped her find a way to recovery.

Movie Adaptation Review: Crazy Rich Asians

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I know it's quite late to be posting this, but I'm going to write it nevertheless 😂. I actually watched Crazy Rich Asians twice; the first time with my boyfriend and the second time with my parents. To be honest, I originally planned on reading the book first before going to watch the movie. But since the book is quite lengthy, I decided to just directly watch the movie 😂. I'd have to say, the movie is very pleasant and easy to watch—because you don't have to think too much about it. For the most part, the story line is pretty cliché and predictable; but it's still enjoyable for me personally. In this review I'm going to review some of my favorite parts from the movie. Hopefully I won't spoil too much for those who haven't seen it yet 😉.

Book Review: Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds

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BOOK review
Started on: 7 September 2018
Finished on: 10 September 2018

Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds

Title: Long Way Down

Author: Jason Reynolds
Publisher: Atheneum

Pages: 306 pages / 321 pages (e-book)
Year of Publication: 2017
Price: Rp 228,000 (http://periplus.com/)

Rating: 4/5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"but if blood inside you is on the inside of someone else,
you never want to see it on the outside of them."

Fifteen-year old Will just lost his brother, Shawn, who was shot and murdered. But despite his grief, Will reminded himself of the rules. No crying; no snitching; and revenge. And that is exactly what he's going to do as he took a gun from Shawn's drawer and shove it in the back waistband of his jeans. As he entered the elevator on the seventh floor to go to the lobby, Will experienced something strange. In the span of one minute, the elevator stopped at each floor and someone comes in to join him. However, all of these people that Will encountered, are supposed to be dead.

Top Ten Tuesday: Authors I’d Love to Meet

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Here we are again with another Top Ten Tuesday post after several months! I don't think I've ever done this topic on my blog ever before, so I thought this will be a good opportunity to share some of the Authors I'd Love to Meet. Of course I would love to meet all of my favorite authors, but on this list I picked my favorite authors who have impacted my life—one way or another. I'd really love to meet them and express my feelings and gratitude towards their works. So here they are, listed in no particular order.