Saturday, December 26, 2015

Guest Post: Review Of ‘LIVING FULFILLED: THE INFECTIOUS JOY OF SERVING OTHERS’ By Lisa Thomas-McMillan

**** This is a guest blog post. The views in this post do not necessarily reflect those of Author Jess. ****
Over 15 million children face hunger only in the United States, think about Africa or Asia, and how many go hungry there? Eleze “Lisa” Thomas-McMillan of the Carlisa Inc. food bank in US took up just that mission- eradicating hunger from the world. In the book “Living Fulfilled: TheInfectious Joy Of Serving Others”, Thomas-McMillan educates us that we could have everlasting joy in helping the poor, needy and the hungry. The book is a biography as well as a testament to Thomas-McMillan’s philosophy and mission: if we all live for one another instead of for ourselves, no one will go hungry or have to endure the many sufferings that accompany a life of poverty.
In her memoir, Thomas-McMillan describes how her family of fourteen was squeezed into a six room wooden house in Brewton, Alabama. Her father worked three jobs and brought them up so that they  could turn out to be community helpers. She settled in Los Angeles later on, but returned home with a mission.
For spreading awareness about the plight of the hungry in the US, Thomas-McMillan walked over 1500 miles across the states of Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia and at last reaching Washington DC, spreading her wings of compassion about the poor in the States and giving away free food. Her message is simple: no one should go hungry.
Living Fulfilled is part biography and part call to action for helping the poor and the hungry. The book is littered with inspiring and afflicted accounts from the author’s own troublesome beginnings.
On her journey to Washington DC from her hometown she encountered hungry people. She fed them and talked to them, listened to their stories, encountered other challenges but at last she did reach her destination. A whole chapter is dedicated to this great ‘pilgrimage’ which evokes images of Martin Luther King who took great walks in the name of freedom.
Aside from the inspirational accounts from the life of this great philanthropist, the memoir is also a great read for any social worker who wants to do something good for his/her community or be someone who doesn’t just live for himself but for the welfare of his fellow humans, because that is where, according to Thomas-McMillan, true joy is to be sought.
The book is also a sort of volunteering manifesto, where everything from why to make donations to how to help the poor is explained. Almost everyone will find the book a great read , but not everyone will sense the great purpose of the book- the infectious joy of serving others- unless the reader finds his own strength and does something for the community, because joy can only be experienced.
Although written by a US author primarily for eradicating hunger and poverty in her local area and the States, the message is effectively universal. The spiritual awakenings are part of the reason for the author’s dedication to her mission.

The religious connotation of the book is a bit offsetting for some people, but ‘Living Fulfilled’ is Thomas-McMillan’s own memoir and no one else can have a say in that. Aside from the religious element, the book is choke-filled with motivational messages for volunteerism, philanthropy and community work all for the sake of a truly fulfilled life. 
You can find out more by visiting the Living Fulfilled website, or by viewing this video: 

Tuesday, December 15, 2015

Recommended Read - Regina Shen: Defiance by Lance Erlick

Regina Shen: Defiance (Regina Shen, #3)Regina Shen: Defiance by Lance Erlick
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This third book in the series takes Regina far from the swamps outside the wall and on a journey to the north west to find her recaptured sister. Along the way she meets many new allies, some who may potentially have other motives. And she learns new things about the Chief Inspector that makes her wonder whose side she is really on...
Defiance is a great addition to the series and is filled with lots of action and adventure, and develops the characters well. Looking forward to the 4th book!

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Friday, December 4, 2015

Recommended Read - Regina Shen: Vigilance by Lance Erlick

Regina Shen: Vigilance (Regina Shen book 2)Regina Shen: Vigilance by Lance Erlick
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This second book of the series has Regina doing the unthinkable - crossing The Wall in search of her sister! We meet some new characters in this book, and say goodbye to others. Much like the reality of University, this book dragged in parts pertaining to the university, but otherwise kept a steady pace. It still also kept me guessing who Regina could trust and who she couldn't. I didn't love it as much as the first book, but I still enjoyed it very much and am looking forward to reading the third book in the series.

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Tuesday, December 1, 2015

BOOK GIVEAWAY!!! Enter to win a copy of I Wish... and a copy of I Could by Omaha author EB Tatby!!

I'm proud to support my local authors, and really enjoyed reading EB's books so I'm excited to give one of my followers the chance to WIN the first two books of her series! :) The contest starts December 2nd and goes until December 9th, so you need to act fast. Rafflecopter will do a random draw at the end of the contest and EB will send the winner the books within a few business days.

Good luck!



a Rafflecopter giveaway