Recommended Resources

Here’s the list so far… We will continue adding to it. 🙂 Let me know if you have any suggestions!

Bold = Very helpful.

Italics = For ages 14-16 and up (May be unsuitable or just too deep for younger ages).

Green = Available for borrowing.

Blue = Currently being borrowed.

Orange = Linked.

Click on a title to buy the book or just for more information.

Carissa’s [as of March 2013] Top Five Must Reads:

1. Abide in Christ
2. Crazy Love
3. Grace for the Good Girl
4. They Found the Secret
5. Don’t Waste Your Life

For everyone, especially young people:

• The Bible (of course!)
  
• Practicing the Presence of God
• Forgotten God
• Equipped to Love
• Hidden Art
• Do Hard things
• Start Here
• Making Brothers and Sisters Best Friends
• Will Our Generation Speak?
• Living the Cross Centered Life
• The Knowledge of the Holy
• Gold By Moonlight
• The Three Battlegrounds
• The Pursuit of Holiness
• The Pursuit of God
• Mere Christianity
• Dug Down Deep
• Passion and Purity
• Hind’s Feet on High Places
• Of Knights and Fair Maidens

Specifically for Young Ladies (10-20+)

• Before You Meet Prince Charming
• A Young Woman After God’s Own Heart
• Being a Girl Who Loves
• Beautiful Girlhood
• The Lost Art of True Beauty
• Secret Keeper
• Let Me be a Woman {Borrowed by Suki}
• For Young Women Only
• It’s (not that) Complicated
• What are you Waiting For? 
• Authentic Beauty
• And The Bride Wore White
• Emotional Purity
• Stepping Heavenward {Borrowed by Elisa 9/15/13}
• Lies Young Women Believe and the Truth that Sets Them Free
• Raising Maidens of Virtue

Good Fiction:

• The Bronze Bow  (Set in the time of Jesus–really helps in understanding the culture and attitude of the people.)
• The Princess Adelina
• Little Women
• The Chronicles of Narnia
• The Lost Clue
• The Hidden Hand
• Rosa of Linden Castle
• The Door Within Series (Fantasy, good for older girls.)
• Anne of Green Gables
• Caddie Woodlawn
• Heidi
• Little House on the Prairie Series (the books, not the movies.)
• The Lamplighter
• The House of Love

Inspiring Biographies:

Kisses from Katie (This is a modern-day missionary story. Katie is still alive, still young, and still serving over in Uganda, Africa. Her story is amazing–the sort of thing you don’t think is still happening today. But it is… God is still the same, and He still moves powerfully through those who obey His call. Her blog is here.)

God’s Smuggler  (Brother Andrew. He smuggled Bibles behind the “Iron Curtain”–had many, many amazing adventures. Things like God making guards not be able to see Bibles in plain sight, and cars that kept running even though they technically didn’t work…)

The Hiding Place (The story of Corrie and Betsy Ten Boom, during World War 2 (at least I think it was the second one…). Their family helped hide Jews, until they were caught and sent to a prison camp. They had a hard time there, but God worked very powerfully through them. He even used fleas…)

Rees Howells: Intercessor (His story is one that isn’t well known, but God used his prayers in incredible ways–for instance, they changed the course of the World Wars. He did many other things by faith as well–one time he was waiting in line with his wife to buy tickets–except he had no money for them. You’ll have to read it to find out what happened. :D)

George Muller of Bristol (He set out to prove what God could do through a man who trusted in Him–and wow, can God do a lot!! He feed and housed thousands of orphans–and never once asked for money, among many other things.)

A Chance to Die: Amy Carmichael (I haven’t read this one yet, but I’ve read other books about her and by her. Plus, Elizabeth Elliot wrote it, and I enjoy her writing, so I expect it to be good. It’s on my “to-read” shelf. Amy Carmichael was an amazing example in so many ways… she was a missionary in India for over 50 years, and saved many girls from the temples.)

Bruchko (This is one astounding story. He went into the jungles, alone, to a tribe that was known to eat people. He should have died. But he didn’t. And God did amazing things through his radical obedience. This is one of our family’s favorites, though it’s probably a little too intense for younger ones.)

They Found the Secret *{Borrowed by Ammermans 4/22/13} (Twenty mini-bios of heroes of the faith–each person’s life highlights a different spiritual theme, but each one has essentially the same “secret”. )

Rebekah’s Diary (another modern missionary story.)

Hope Rising  (Touching stories of how broken horses and broken children heal together through God’s love.)

William Wilberforce (You might have seen or heard of the movie “Amazing Grace” based on his life… he helped end slavery in England–as well as TONS of other amazing things. His is probably one of the less intense ones, as far as wars and such like, but it’s very interesting.)

God Knows My Size (This is a story of a girl named Sylvia and the amazing ways God showed her that He is real. It goes all the way up till she’s an adult, and it was over in Romania, at the time when they were very anti-God. So she and others ended up in a prison camp type thing… it’s a little intense, but good.)

Clara Barton (She was a nurse during the Civil War… she was called the “angel of the battlefield”, because she would go on the field during the fighting to help people.)

Gladys Alward (Missionary to China, very spunky lady. She stopped a prison riot, brought over 100 orphans to safety over mountains, and helped stop foot binding, among many other amazing things.)

Mary Slessor (she was a missionary to Africa… had some very interesting adventures, including poking hippos with umbrellas. :D)

Found Faithful (This one is nice because it has several different people in one book, including C.S. Lewis, Amy Carmichael, and many others. It doesn’t just talk about the person’s life, either, it uses their writings to show a particular theme or character trait.)

Alone Yet Not Alone (This one is set in America, during the times when there would be Native American raids on the colonists. It mainly follows the story of two girls as they get captured by the Native Americans and are finally reunited with their family.)

If I Perish (This is the story of Esther Ahn Kim, a Korean Christian who was bold in her faith and ended up in prison. God used her in amazing ways there, and she was released and went on to do even more for God.)

Unfading Beauty: The Story of Dolly Madison

A Light Kindled: The Story of Priscilla Mullins

Nothing Can Separate Us: The Story of Nan Harper

The Land Beyond the Setting Sun: The Story of Sacagewea

Great websites for Books:

Lamplighter Publishing

Christian Book Distributors

Amazon.com

Audio books:

Christian Audio

If you have any questions or would like more information on any of the books, comment or email and let us know! 🙂

Music Groups/artists:

{Caveat: I don’t necessarily recommend all their songs, and your taste/beliefs may differ slightly: but I have generally found these artists/groups to be Biblical and tasteful. I have included some samples–some of them are only one song, and some of them are a playlist. That should help you get an idea of their style and words.}

Laura Story

Keith and Kristin Getty

Fernado Ortega

Michael Card

Chris Tomlin

Selah

Keith Green

Casting Crowns