Meet the Shaneyfelts

Books

My Favorite Children’s Books (So Far!)

I posted on IG stories this weekend about sorting through all of the children’s books I’ve either bought or received as gifts just trying to get things organized.  And while I was trying to organize those books, I started flipping through some of them and instantly started crying as I was reading them!  I don’t know how I’ll ever make it through reading these books at bedtime 😂

**One that I didn’t take a picture of because it’s actually in our bedroom is The Jesus Storybook Bible.  This is a MUST and I cannot wait to read this every single night!  And I highly recommend this for any age….whether you are 6 months or 60 years old!

**When we first began discussing adoption, I was very contentious about buying books that featured characters of all races.  I’ve noticed lots of children’s books have all white characters, and regardless of the race of the child we adopt, I wanted to make sure that our children’s books feature a wide variety of races being represented.  Even if you have biological children, I challenge you to look at the characters in your children’s books and see which races are dominant.


I ordered this book from Amazon and when it came in one day, I read it out loud to Dustin while he was fixing himself food in the kitchen.  I had to stop midway to hold back tears.  This book is so beautifully written (if you’ve never listened to Shai Linne’s music, you need to!!) and encourages the celebration of diversity because God made us that way!  You shouldn’t say you are “colorblind” because you aren’t and that discounts the fact that God made us different colors–and we should see that a celebration of who God is!



I bought this book when I realized that getting pregnant was going to be much harder than I expected it would be.  As I flipped through this book while organizing, I came across the page that talked about the first time holding your baby and that’s when I lost it.



My mom bought this book for me in 2007 and wrote me a really sweet note on the title page.  This book is similar to I’ll Love You Forever so a really sweet book!



This book is another one with the message of celebrating the different colors God made us. But this one also talks about how God loves color because of all the different colors in nature–it’s a great book, too!!



When we announced our adoption, we did so with a newborn gown with a lamb on it.  So lambs became a semi-theme of the nursery.  My mom bought me this book one day after we got matched with our baby, and it goes along with the Jellycat lambs we have!



My mom got Dustin a bunch of children’s books for his last birthday with the theme of being a daddy and this was one of them.  I love this one because it’s about the love a daddy has for his children and how he protects them.



My bff Janie surprised me with this book (the author of this is the same author of The Jesus Storybook Bible)!  This one made me cry because it’s all about how your family is your family and your house is your home–something that’s I’ve really thought a lot about with adoption since I will not physically birth our child.  And this book really reiterates that message without really doing so–if that makes sense haha!



Another Sally Lloyd-Jones books (can you tell I love her), this one is about the celebration of the gifts that God has given us and how He has given us all different gifts.  So what one person has isn’t the same as yours–beautiful illustrations, too!



This is a board book that focuses on counting to 10 all while thanking God for making every part of you!  This book really helps point out that God is your creator and you were made wonderfully!


These aren’t all of the books I have, nor will these be the last books I own!  If you have a favorite, please leave me a comment so I can add it to my list on Amazon!

Favorite Reads of All Time!

Today’s prompt with Shay is PERFECT for me because I absolutely LOVE reading!  I had a really hard time narrowing down my list of “favorite” reads, so this isn’t a complete list.  Just because I’m an English major doesn’t mean I only enjoy reading the classics.  While I do enjoy reading those, I also enjoy reading books that don’t make me think at all and are purely predictable (like Mary Kay Andrews).

Ever since I can remember, I have always loved reading.  And I’m a fast reader, so I can knock a book out in no time and then move on to the next one.  I can’t wait to see what everyone else lists, so maybe I can add some books to my list!

**You’ll notice I have lots of southern authors on this list, and it’s not that I think southern authors are the best…..but they are ha!  There’s just something about a southern author and how they embody the beliefs and hospitality of the South.  Yes, I know that the South has some bad history–but we also have a lot of good people here who would give you the shirt off their back if you need it without even knowing who you are.

**I also have a few books that are also found on the National Banned Books list.  I think it’s important to read “controversial” content.  I have controversial in quotes because some of it isn’t controversial at all 😜

TKM is my FAVORITE BOOK OF ALL TIME!  It’s required reading for my school system (and many in AL) for high school freshman, but I actually read this on my own in the 8th grade.  I fell in love with Atticus, Scout, and Boo Radley!  I love that it was written and is set in my home state, and the theme of empathy is one that will forever stand out to me.  If you haven’t read this book, you must.  But don’t read Go Set a Watchman (her prequel).  I did not enjoy it at all, but that’s s story for another day 🙂



Okay, I know I have raved and raved about this book lately, and it really is going to be one of my favorite reads of all time.  The author did a wonderful job of describing the setting and making the marshland and swamp such beautiful areas.  And she did an excellent job making Kya such a lovable character–one that I connected emotionally with immediately.  I actually clutched my chest at one point while I was reading because my heart hurt so much for Kya.  This is a book I will be reading again soon!

I remember picking this book up from our local library and loving it because it made me think.  The main character is an African American girl and she begins to think that she would be considered pretty if she had blue eyes like one of the white girls at her school.  This book really made me think about society’s beauty standards and what we’re telling our little girls by the kinds of marketing they see.  If you haven’t read this, I highly recommend it.  It’s not a long book at all, but it does have some mature content.  


“My mother is a fish” is a line that has stayed with me for over ten years–that means a book is good!  This book was required reading for me in 11th grade English and I have never forgotten it.  I actually re-read it in college, too, because I loved it that much.  As Faulkner’s style is, this book is told in a stream of consciousness and you get multiple points of view as these characters are traveling to bury their mother in her hometown in Mississippi.



I could never leave off HP!  I actually would never have read HP if my 6th grade English teacher didn’t set aside a few minutes a day to read us the first novel.  This was before HP became insanely popular and no one had heard of it.  After we read that first novel, my mom got me the 2nd and 3rd books for Christmas in 7th grade because they were already published.  Then after that, I used to wait in line at Books a Million at midnight waiting on the release of each book.  The last one came out my senior year, and I remember looking around at the ages of the people waiting in line and lots of them were my age–we grew up with Harry.  I’ve actually gone back and reread these as adults, and JK Rowling is a gifted writer who has the gift of making you think without realizing you are!



I named this my favorite book of 2017 when I read it in February of that year.  I loved it that much.  I picked this book up randomly at my local library and read it within a day or two.  This book is told from different points of view of different types of characters during the time of TUR.  Most books during this time only cover points of view of slaves, but this one gives you the point of view of a slave catcher and a “conductor” on the railroad.  READ IT!!


What are some of your favorite reads of all time?

April 2017 Reads!

Hi friends!  I’m excited to share my April Reads book review with y’all today!  I read some pretty good books last month and enjoyed 3 out of the 4, so I say that’s pretty good!

 This was my first Beatriz Williams novel and I enjoyed it!  It alternates between two different narrators in two different time periods–one during prohibition and the other during the late 1990s (which I found weird…why not present day?).  Both stories center on the same apartment building in New York City.  I enjoyed both narrators equally and was even shocked at the ending of one of the narrators–it took a twist that even I didn’t see coming.  There is a small love story, as well, and those are always my favorite!  I highly recommend this book for a great summer read!



 I began reading this book at the end of March and finished in April.  Even though the title makes it seem like it’s only for those who long to be mothers, I would say this book is perfect for anyone who is in a season of suffering.  The author, Chelsea, does a wonderful job of affirming the need for grief and then pointing you to the hope Christians have in Christ.  This book would be great for anyone who is close to someone suffering from infertility or even a woman who is single but still yearns to be a mother because there is a whole chapter on how to help those around you longing for motherhood.  I can’t recommend this book enough!  I wanted to underline whole pages at times–Chelsea’s theology is very solid and the Cross is evident!



 I randomly picked this book up at the library, and it was my least favorite.  A man and a woman randomly get married in Las Vegas after a night that they don’t remember.  It turns out that the woman owns a struggling store in NYC and the guy is part of an important family in Connecticut with problems of their own.  Instead of annulling the marriage, they strike a deal to stay married for a year so they would each benefit from the marriage.  I’m sure you know what’s going to happen–it was pretty easy to pick up on–but the author took way too long to get us to the happy ending!  That was my main dislike from this book–the storyline was way too long.



This was my book club book for April and it’s one of my favorite books that I’ve read this year!  It’s historical fiction so it’s based on a true story, and the true story is really sad.  Apparently the Tennessee Children’s Home located in Memphis was caught kidnapping children, changing their names, and “selling” them to wealthy couples looking to adopt orphans.  All of this took place from 1929-1950!  I highly, highly, HIGHLY recommend this book to y’all!  It alternates between two storylines–one present day and one in the past–and both are so gut-wrenching.  


Any good books you’ve read lately?