C. Blankenstein

Love this!

Revisado: 06-25-24

A wonderful continuation of Dracula. It seems to stick with the actual theme of an evil vampire abs not done romanticized version of vampires.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Delightful Surprise

Revisado: 06-18-19

This is a book review on the audiobook. I was gifted a copy of this audiobook for an honest review.

After answering the call to pick an Ancient Faith audiobook to review, I was drawn to the title of this book. I am a mother. Therefore, I probably need to read this book. But, I did not read the entire title. The Ascetic Lives of Mothers: A Prayerbook for Orthodox Moms. Imagine my surprise as I began listening to this book. It is another hectic afternoon. I have finished working for the day (part time Orthodox school principal). I am at home, earbuds in, ready to dive into an audiobook when I realize- this is about prayer. And that this book is actually a prayerbook. And, this is exactly what I needed to hear on this challenging day. When I realized what this book really was about- I paused and made the decision to spend time really listening to the prayers, quotations from our Church Fathers, direction, and advice. Normally, I will listen to an audiobook for a few hours at a time (those precious hours when the boys' are at school, my husband is in his home office working, and I am doing the mom thing). This prayerbook needed more time to digest. I listened in short bursts of time over a few weeks. I found that by listening to this book while working around the house helped to keep me focused on praying while working. The book is divided into chapters with a special focus on a specific topic, prayers for different occasions, and daily prayers. The author's voice is soothing to listen to which is especially important in audiobooks.

And, listening to the audiobook now has me wanting to purchase a copy to keep in my prayer corner as the audiobook (at least on my kindle) does not have chapter names listed.

This book was a delight and a surprise! I look forward to re-listening to it in the future.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Proverbs 31...

Revisado: 02-09-19

As I listened to this audiobook, my mind kept returning to one thought... Princess Ileana, during the time of the war, exemplified the Proverbs 31 woman:
13 She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands.14 She is like the merchants' ships; she bringeth her food from afar.15 She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth meat to her household, and a portion to her maidens.16 She considereth a field, and buyeth it: with the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard.17 She girdeth her loins with strength, and strengtheneth her arms.18 She perceiveth that her merchandise is good: her candle goeth not out by night.19 She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff.20 She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy.
This book is not about her monastic life or the establishment of the monastery. This book is a journal of the events of Princess Ileana's life during a very specific time period- her life during WWII and after- leading up to her family leaving Romania. How she "lives again" as she transitions from being a princess of Romania to the Archduchess of Austria to the time of WWII, and, finally, to when she is forced with her family to leave her country.
Princess Ileana was not idle- her ability to learn nursing, build hospitals, give to the poor, and convince communist officials to support her endeavors were inspiring.
As I finished this audiobook, I was inspired by her untiring example of giving to others and helping her fellow man. And, her adventures, which she writes about very matter of fact (almost as if she believes that anyone else would have done the same thing which shows her true humility). I am eager to learn more about how Princess Ileana became Mother Alexandra of blessed memory, how she "lives again" in monasticism.
Technically, this audiobook is very well done. The quality of the recording is amazing. The narrator, Kristina Wenger, does an excellent job- I almost believed it was the voice of Princess Ileana herself!
The one downside to the audiobook is that the published book does contain illustrations and photos of Princess Ileana and her family. But, that is the downside to audiobooks, especially autobiographical books, is that there is not a way to convey the photos or artwork. We happen to own a copy of the book and I was able to look through the photos/illustrations (but I waited until after I finished listening to the book in order to write a review of the audiobook).
I was gifted a copy of this audiobook for an honest review. Purchase your own copy of the audiobook through Audible.com.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 1 persona