Lydia Howe's Blog, page 21

February 2016 in Review

What I Focused on in January: 
1. My non-writing job (we had a big event going on in Florida and that took up the first half of the month)2. Working through and reconfiguring When Life Hands You Lymes3. Being at my adopted parent's cabin and helping with the dinosaur

Birthday Challenge and Dream List Update 
Birthday Challenge:
2. Pray the "prayer of Jebez" every day for three months {Completed in December. +2}
3. Read the whole Bible {Ezekiel}
6. Read 12 non-fiction "spiritual" books {3 of the non-fiction books I read this month fit}
7. Read the Proverb of the day every day for six months {5 months}
12. Go to bed at 10:30 or before 24 nights (not in a row) {3 nights which equals 25!!!}13. Write a monthly review on my blog within 5 days of the end of the month whenever internet is available {5 months}
15. Write 24 book reviews {4}
18. Go, see, visit, experience or explore something I've never done before 24 times and write it down
20. Track all the money I spend for 24 days {Completed in January, but also did in February}
23. Read 24 non-fiction books {4}
24. Read out loud for 24 hours {1 hour}
Dream List:  None 

Reading Update
Fiction: 1Non-Fiction: 4Reviews: 5 

Traveling
Nights Gone: 22New Countries or States: None 

February Goals 
(Which I sadly never posted on Noveltea)
1. Do 80 hours of my non-writing job - YES, plus more!2. Do 80 hours on my writing job - YES!
3. Read and review 4 non-fiction books - YES!


What I've Been Learning
Of course I learned a lot about the countries in our Around the World in 52 Weeks series: Tibet, the Netherlands, England, and the Falkland Islands. I had fun diving into the history and cool facts about those countries, as well as trying to figure out the best places to visit. 
There was also a learning curve I rode with my non-writing job. It was stressful at times, yet very rewarding and I enjoyed it a lot. 
Music. Specifically the piano and violin. I haven't been learning to play the instruments, mind you, but more like what it feels like to play them. I've spent what felt like endless hours researching, reading books, emailing/messaging people, and soaking it all in. My brain has a much better grasp on the subject now and I've been very happy that I chose writing, not music, for my life. 
I've also been learning to let my mind change and to be willing to listen to what other people have to say in regards to my writing...Specifically When Life Hands You Lymes. It can be hard when I really don't want to change. It's good for me though. 
The books I read were insightful, even when I didn't especially enjoy reading some of the chapters. I also read a fair amount of book reviews and the first several pages of a bunch of books online. I find this very helpful in figuring out what makes a good book and what readers are looking for. 

Other
One day when I came in from taking a walk one of my good friends was standing there and asked if I wanted to train to run a half marathon with him. Of course I was all in, and so the training began. That was 15 days ago and since then I've walked or hiked 35 miles, including one 7 mile day. I'm excited about this new challenge. 
I only had one week home in February, but it was a good week. I was reminded of how very, very much I love our church. I listened to several of the sermons online that I missed by being gone, but it wasn't the same. I'm so very extremely thankful for our church and church family. 
As you probably know, my latest book that was published a year ago came out in Spanish! I'm still a bit amazed by that. I'm really excited to see where it goes and I pray that it can be used to help lots of people learn about God's amazing creation. 
February was an amazing month and I'm so excited to see what March has in store for all of us. The next 31 days are stretching ahead of us, ready to be filled and redeemed and explored. Yay!
* * *What are some things you learned or experienced in February? 

The Draw of a New Story

Yesterday was stunning, a palette painted with brilliant blue skies, packed brown paths, and winter shadows, all soaked in the warmth of bright sunlight. My adopted parents and I hiked back in the woods to an old coal miners cabin. 
It's doing things like this that sets my mind whirling and I can almost taste a new story as it forms through everything around me. It reminds me of osmosis. At first it's a distant thought, then a character is born, then a bit of dialogue drops down. All at once, there it is, the story floating around, begging to be written down. 

Before I have fully comprehend what's going on, I find myself walking with a different gait. I curiously touch moss-covered rocks, looking for signs. I couch behind trees and peer out the other side, sneaking up on something...or someone. I rustle through the leaves, searching for clues. I plop down on a fallen log, exhausted from days of traveling in the forest. 
Names float through my mind as I try and come find one that fits the character perfectly. Settings, countries, times, and governments are flipped through in my brain much like flashcards as I try and figure out the perfect everything. 

Then reality sets in. I force myself to focus for a minute. I'm knee-deep in re-writes for one book. I have the second book in a trilogy a third of the way written. I have the Around the World in Fifty-Two Weeks series to keep up with on my blog. I sigh as more projects I should be doing flood into my mind.

With a grin, I shrug at myself. So,  maybe now isn't the time to tackle a new project. There's far too much on my plate anyway and it won't be helpful to anyone if I try to juggle more food... Especially if you imagine a bowl of soup flying through the air, the liquid making a beautiful arch before it splats all over everything. That doesn't mean I can't enjoy a bit of futile brainstorming on a beautiful day in the woods, so that's exactly what I do.

* * *
It's that time again where we get to choose where Annie goes for this week in our Friday Series, Around the World in Fifty-Two Weeks. And the destination is: Italy! 

The Counselor By A.W. Tozer: Book Review

The Counselor By A.W. Tozer 
Find it on:  Amazon Goodreads 
First-Person Narration Non-Fiction181 Pages

Why I Choose this Book: These last few months I've been interested in finding out more about the Holy Spirit. Until recently I hadn't thought much about Him, and so it's almost like a whole new dimension was added to my world when I became consciously aware of Him in my life and in the world around me.

What I Thought About this Book:I enjoyed reading this book, more so the second half than the first. It's always enlightening to read books by great Christian authors and I'm so thankful I can learn from them instead of having to learn everything in life by trial and error.
The book was, as you can see from the title, about the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is such an important part of being a Christian, but far too often we don't even recognize the fact that He is one of the Trinity. He is alive and active, not an it or a thing. This book helped me to have a clearer understanding of who the Holy Spirit is and what He does in the world.

Sadly though, all in all this book wasn't really my favorite. Somehow the author's style bugged me a bit. He was emphatic about things that I wasn't comfortable with him being emphatic about, and one of my quirks is being really bothered by that type of thing. I'm pretty sure this is just a "me" thing though, and that other people will enjoy it and glean a lot of good information while reading it.

Conclusion: There were some things I didn't agree with, but overall it was good. I found myself challenged to live a holy and acceptable life before God. I especially liked chapter seven where he talks about different great men and woman of the faith. I want to look up some of the people he mentioned and read books about them. (I was familiar with most of the people, although it's been a while since I've read anything by or about any of them.)

Rating: I am very picky with the number of stars I give books, hence the three stars. This book had several four-star chapters in it, so over all I'd give the book 3 & 1/2 stars.

*I received this book for free from Moody Publishers in exchange for an honest review*

Around the World in Fifty-Two Weeks, Week Eight: Falkland Island

Hey folks! Happy Friday. Here we are with the eighth week of our fictional story, Around the World  in Fifty-Two Weeks . "Visiting" the Falkland Islands was fun and eye-opening for me (and Annie) and I hope you enjoy it as well. Looking forward to see where we go next! 
Around the World in Fifty-Two Weeks Week Eight: Falkland Island 

I was officially homesick. Except for Guatemala (which hardly even counts because it’s in Central America) I hadn’t even been on my home continent for seven weeks. And, despite the many emails and Skype calls, I was feeling very distanced from my family.  The moment I landed on the Falkland Islands and saw the delightfully picturesque landscape I would be thriving in for the next six days I burst into tears. That turned out to be extremely ill-timed because there was a newspaper reporter waiting to get my first reaction (apparently my year of adventure was beginning to pick up speed in the media arena), and I’m pretty sure tears weren’t what he was expecting.  After my tears turned to mortified laughter, I agreed to answer some questions for an interview after settling into the seaside cottage Sophie had set up for me to stay in. Apparently the reporter already knew about my accommodations and offered to take me there along with Kara, an Exploration Airport personal who had been assigned the role of my tour guide for the week. That was my first indication that this country was a pretty small piece of real-estate. (Actually, I had learned as much while studying in the airplane, but it hadn’t really hit me until I arrived.) 
“Why did you burst into tears?” Jimmy, the reporter, asked after I had changed into fresh clothes and the three of us were sitting around the sitting room drinking tea. He had explained on the drive over that it was actually his day off, but he had wanted to cover my story so had decided to work anyway, although it wasn’t official. The weekly newspaper he worked for was called "The Penguin News” and was the only newspaper on the island.  I smiled, relieved to have a diplomatic and very honest answer, “I miss my family a lot and when I saw how gorgeous this island is I wished they could be here with me.” I pulled out my notebook and pen. “Would you be alright with this being a joint interview? You can ask me about my adventures and I can ask you about your island?”  “That sounds dandy.” Jimmy gave a nod.  I pulled my phone out and clicked on the voice recorder and set it down on the end table.  “Let’s play a game.” Kara stood in front of us. “I’ll ask a question and the first person to answer it gets a point. Jimmy’s answer needs to be true to the Falkland Islands, and Annie can answer from any country she’s visited this year.”  Jimmy and I looked at each other.  “Why not?” Jimmy shrugged. “This could be fun.”  I laughed, amazed at the easy going and fun attitude. “Okay. Let me set my camera up real quickly. We can use some of the footage on my blog.”  As soon as I was set up, Kara began asking her questions. “Question number one, What’s the population?”  “Less than 3,000.” Jimmy and I answered the question in unison.  “Hey, what country are you answering for?” Jimmy asked.  “These islands.” I sat up a bit straighter in my chair. “Kara said I could answer for any country I’ve been to this year.”  Jimmy sat up straighter, too. “We’re ready for the next question, Kara.”  Seeing Jimmy’s determined pose I suddenly wished I had spent the whole flight over studying instead of breaking it up with a long nap. “How many sheep are there?”  That took a moment. “Fourteen million.” “Five hundred thousand.”  “What country has fourteen million sheep?” Kara pointed her pencil at me then hovered it above the score sheet she had started.  “Mongolia.”  “Well, you get the point.” Kara looked impressed.  Jimmy scowled.  “How many digits long are the telephone numbers?” “Five.” Jimmy answered the question before I even had time to begin counting my cell number.  I ducked my head slightly, conceding.  “How many different types of penguins breed on the island?”  “None!” I was so into it I shouted the answer instead of saying it.  “Five.” Jimmy looked over at me victoriously.  “Wait a second.” I held up my finger. “Kara said I could answer from any of the countries I’d been to this year. I’m answering for Guatemala, so, therefore, I think I get the point.” “What about zoos?” Jimmy narrowed his eyes at me.  I laughed. Jimmy reminded me so much of my younger brother that I couldn’t help but feel like an older and somewhat annoying sister while hanging out with him. “That wasn’t the context of the question and you know it.”  “Annie wins the point.” Kara sided with me. “Alright, next question, what is one unique feature about the island?”
“There are no chain stores here.” Jimmy’s answer was so prompt there was no doubt that he won.  “The Falkland Islands are still littered with mines from the last war 1982.” Even though I couldn’t win the point I could still show that I knew something about the islands. Besides, it was an interesting piece of information.  We continued playing the game for about ten more minutes and by the time we were done we were all laughing and I even had tears in my eyes, good tears this time. Jimmy won, but I had learned an impressive amount of facts, so that was pretty cool. That night I re-watched the video footage and scribbled down some of the facts: *The islands are about 4,700 square miles big. *90% of the island claims British birth or descent. *There are no ATMs on the island, and just one bank. *There are few trees on the island, and the only trees that do exist have been imported. *English is the official language, though there is a small number of Spanish speakers. Many people on the island learn Spanish as their second language.
The Falkland Islands are claimed by both Argentina (which they are only 250 miles away from), and the British. Almost 99% of the population consider themselves to be British though, and that fact was pretty evident as I explored the island. The islanders laughed when I asked them about being British and told me if I stopped and thought about it they were more British-y than the British people who lived in England. As strange as that sounded, it made sense.  Each day we had what they called “smoko” which is a midmorning tea or coffee break, and the the diet reminded me so much of England I could hardly believe we were so far away from Europe and so close to South Amercia. Mutton was part of the staple diet (unsurprising, seeing how many sheep the island hosts) and eggplant, tomatoes, lettuce and other salad greens are popular too. At the snack bars in Stanley I chowed down on fish and chips, mutton burger, sausage rods, pizza and pastries. Plus tea, lots of tea. So very British in every way.

I was excited. Kara and I were going to go see penguins! It took us about two hours Thursday morning to travel to the part of the island where we would get the best experience with them. Then we took four-wheelers over some rough terrain that jolted me enough to make me feel as if I were back in Mongolia or Guatemala. The weather was slightly gray and quite windy, but I enjoyed it an immense amount, snuggled down in the warm clothing I had brought along.  The strong wind brought the salty smell of the ocean rushing toward me, and I breathed in deeply, each inhale stinging slightly and making me feel quite like an island dweller.  The islands have a climate and landscape similar to that of the Scottish Shetland Islands with a subArctic climate that hovers around 51 Fahrenheit in the winter months.The islands have a high humidity rate, and suffer from permanent high winds, keeping the islands relatively frost free and with little or no snow and making me happy for how non-windy it is in the parts of the USA where I grew up.  The islands coastline is jagged and rocky made up of hundreds of small fjords. I could hardly wait to get to see the fjords. For years I’d wanted to see them because the word sounded so cool, but in reality I wasn’t even sure what they were. I knew they were some kind of natural waterway, but after Kara explained them to me I liked them even better.  “A fjord is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs that are created by glacial erosion.” Imagine that. The fjords were beautiful indeed, and I enjoyed standing there, gazing at them, the wind whipping around me, making me feel quite at home and like I could fly away on the wings of my imagination.  Then I saw the penguins. There were hundreds of them. Cute, waddling, darling little creatures who exhibited a complete lack of fear for Kara and I. I’m nearly sure we could have gone up to them and actually petted them, but we observed the requested distance and gazed at their adorable features from off to the side.  All in all it was a wonderful week and by the time I left I still missed my family, but between Jimmy and Kara and a host of other thoughtful islanders I felt as if I was leaving some new family behind. 

Building a Dinosaur

This morning I'm at my adopted parent's* cabin and I hear breakfast being cooked in the kitchen, the banjo being played in the back room, and I'm watching snow drift down outside. Cricket, Bo, Liberty, and Zoey, the four dogs, are curled up around me sleeping; it's an altogether peaceful feeling.  
I'm here this week to help work on a couple of dinosaurs that they're making for the Ark Encounter. A few years back I helped build a dinosaur for the Creation Museum (and ruined a couple of outfits in the process), and I'm looking forward to digging into this kind of adventure again.  

Dad is an extremely talented artist. It's clear that God has blessed him with a lot of artistic ability and then he's spent years working on his craft and perfecting his skill. Watching how hard he works to make each one of his projects just right is fascinating.

Dad made most of the dinosaurs that are at the Creation Museum and he's self-taught. When he began making dinosaur sculptures there weren't other people in that type of business and so he had to figure out everything by trial and error. I feel honored to be able to learn by watching him.


I'm not very good at detailed work, nor would I consider myself a paleoartist by any stretch of the imagination, but I can help with little things such as mixing up the epoxy and getting different tools.

It's so cool being able to try (or watch) new things, because I then have a bigger file tucked away in my brain of skills I can use in my writing. Hopefully I'll someday write a second Creation Quest book that features building a dinosaur.


This is also a great time for me to be here so I can ask a lot of questions regarding music and performing and practicing to use in the music scenes for When Life Hands You Lymes. There's nothing like being surrounded by instruments when writing about music.

* * * Have you ever been to the Creation Museum? It's one of my favorite places in the world to go and I often spend several weeks there each year. 
*I'm leaving out the "adopted" for the rest of the post.

Becoming a Musician (but not really)

Podcasts. YouTube. Websites. Books. Friends. Pinterest. Strangers. Emails. Facebook Messages. Phone calls. 
I'm working on the music plot for When Life Hands You Lymes and until I got into it I didn't realize how very much I had to learn. I'm not musical. I took piano lessons for a while during my early teen years, and while I enjoyed them a moderate amount, I wasn't a star performer by anyones standards. 
I really enjoy listening to music. 
Crazy thing though: Enjoying music and learning all the "behind the scenes" to music are two different things. It's been good for me though, because it's pushing me outside of my comfort zone and helping me to learn an amazing multitude of things that I probably would have never learned without this shove. 

It's also quite overwhelming. It's like learning a whole new language. Or seeing the world through different eyes. I've discovered that everything is effected when you're a dedicated musician. Just like I see everything differently because I'm a writer. And when I say "see" I also mean taste and touch and smell and think. Take for instance the one podcast I was listening to: The hostess was talking about how her newborn baby "cooed" in the key of D. I never even realized babies had different keys do "coo" in. 
Right now I'm immersing myself in music from every angle and hoping that it does the trick of helping me think and feel and reason like a musician. I'm also trying to do it on fast speed so I don't have to study for fifteen years to become at least proficient enough to write about it from a realistic angle. 

It reminds me somewhat of what I would imagine life as an actress. I have to put myself into a whole new skin and study the surroundings from that angle. I'm even imagining what kinds of t-shirts and hoodies Maddie would wear while practicing. How she would put her hair. What her dreams look like. It's rather in depth, all these different situations to become a part of. 
I've known musicians (quite dedicated ones) all my life, and yet knowing them and "becoming" one of them are two totally different things. And yes, I do have an even greater appreciation for those who make music...
* * * If you're a musician, particularly if you play the piano or violin, but any kind of instrument, really, then I would be delighted to hear about it! And, if you're okay with me asking you some questions you could email me at: aidylewoh@gmail.com Thanks! 

Cool Critters of the Ice Age in Spanish

Happy, happy, happy Tuesday, people! Anybody want to celebrate? I do cause I have some exciting news. My latest co-authored book, Cool Critters of the Ice Age, which was released not quite a year ago, just came out in Spanish. Yay! 

It feels strange and yet so very rewarding to have written a book and not even be able to read it. (Yikes!) I've only held the prototype of the Spanish edition and that was a couple months back so to be able to look it up on Amazon and smile at it today was pretty cool. 
We (my adopted parents and I) wrote the book two years ago during a very cold January. It was the perfect weather for writing a book about ice and snow. I'm currently looking out the window at muddy hay fields and soggy roads and I'm glad we didn't write the book in the 37 degree weather that we're having right now. 

I learned so much while we were writing this book. My adopted parents did the research and then we worked together at putting it into a readable and interesting format. This is my only nonfiction book, but it made me want to write more like it. 
In the book we explore really amazing animals such as Baluchitherium (now one of my favorite words to say) who was the largest land mammal in the world and was huge. And Andrewsarchus which is pretty crazy because they've only ever found one of his skulls.  (I tried calling my little brother "Andrewsarchus" but he didn't like it for some reason. I'll probably use the name for one of my characters someday.) There's also Glyptodon who was an armadillo like critter the size of a small car. I think I would have enjoyed riding on one of those... 

Harry the Cave Bear was originally only in the book a couple of times, but after a lot of fun brainstorming we decided he would be a great sidekick to my adopted dad and so we included him several more times. That was one of the most fun parts of the writing process. 

You can find the Spanish Edition of the book here and the English Edition here. I hope y'all have a great day and I'm glad I could share my exciting news with y'all.

* * *
Have you ever imagined what it would be like to have a book you wrote but not be able to read it? 

My Brain & Around the World Destination

Focusing. Fitting things in. Following a schedule. 
I want to live in the moment, to fully engage with what is going on around me, to listen intently, and enjoy the journey. Do you know what I've discovered though? My brain is almost constantly in the background scurrying around like a one-armed switchboard operator. I notice it most often on Sundays when I'm sitting in church and I'm conscious about paying attention and not letting my mind wander. 
Another time it's very obvious is when I'm trying to go to sleep. Each night I make a list of five things I need to do the next day because studies have shown that helps your subconscious mind prepare while you're asleep and you'll wake up ready to go. Sometimes on Sunday night though, my brain wants to get to work right away and won't shut off. (This probably has something to do with me not doing Internet or writing work on Sundays, and therefore having a long list each Monday.)

Last night went something like this: 
(Me): I'm going to go to sleep now. (My brain): But what about all you have to do tomorrow morning, don't you want to start on your list tonight? No, I can't start on it tonight, it's late... I'm going to sleep. That's what you think. Do you realize your list is waayyy too long though? Think through it! There's no way you're going to get everything done before your meeting at work if you don't get up earlier. You have to be at work by 8:00.That's right and it's late; I'm already missing out on sleep. I wanted to be in bed by 10:30.Ah yes, but think of everything you need to do before that. Devotions. Getting ready for the day. Breakfast? (Can't forget about that.) Blogging. Laundry. Work emails. And you are going to take a walk, right? You can take a power nap later in the day if you need it. Get up earlier. Okay, okay! *pulls out phone and sets alarm for 45 minutes earlier*Good move. But hey, before you go to sleep let's figure out how we're going to fit everything in. No thank you.First off you have to get seven hours of writing work in and also four hours of your non-writing job. Oh, and make banana bread. And take a walk (did we already mention that walk? Make sure you don't forget it now, you know it makes you feel better). You're probably supposed to make lunch and possibly supper. And you need to read for an hour. This is overwhelming. Maybe I should just start on my list tonight... Good news! Some of that work can actually be doubled up. See, some of that "writing work" is actually audio you can listen to. Yay. Okay, I can listen to the audio while I'm taking a walk. No, no, no. You listen to the audio when you're making the banana bread and cooking. You read while you're walking. It's a lot harder to read while cooking than walking.Good point. Now I'm going to sleep. But wait! It's almost midnight. As soon as it's midnight you can check your emails and you'll be that far ahead. Good night. And did I mention that..?Good night. 
As annoying as it can be when I need to focus in church or fall asleep quickly, I am actually very thankful for my brain and the way it works. Each task I have to do is like an odd-shaped piece that I'm trying to fit just perfectly into my life. Being able to think and reason through all of it and come up with the most efficient ways to work is a gift I'm thankful for.

What about you? Does your brain work like that, too?

* * *
It's that time again where we get to choose where Annie goes for this week in our Friday Series, Around the World in Fifty-Two Weeks. And the destination is... Falkland Islands! (Yeah, I'd never heard of them, either. :)

Created for More by Jonathan Malm: Book Review

Created for Moreby Jonathan Malm
Find it on: Amazon   Goodreads
First PersonNon-Fiction 118 Pages


About the BookBack cover blurb
Are you compartmentalizing God?If you ever feel like your times spent praying or trying to read the Bible are disconnected from the rest of your day, you need this book. Devotions aren’t supposed to be isolated from your life; the God who created you also calls you to create—whether that is a business, a family, a book, a photograph, a website, a sermon, or a meal.Created for More ties together our drive to create and our desire for God. Spend 30 days learning to be more than you thought you could be. Be humble. Be intentional. Be limited. Be parallel. Be invested. Be brave.Be a creator as you draw near to the God who created you.
Why I Choose this Book  
I'm a writer. This is a book about being a creative Christian and so of course I wanted to read it. 

What I Thought about this Book 
I liked it a lot. It's supposed to be read over a thirty day period and each "chapter" is about three pages long with a lot of white space. There's a title, then a quote, then a passage from the Bible (sometimes just a verse), then prayer starter, then there's a "Change the Way You Think" section, and it ends with a challenge. The layout is pretty cool and I'm not sure what it is, but it doesn't feel overwhelming in the least bit. Instead if feels... Comfortable. Don't ask me why, but it kinda reminds me of sitting in a comfy living room with my feet tucked up under me and a great creative discussion going on. 
Created for More was a very easy read. I breezed right through it. (Yes, I know it's supposed to be read over 30 days, but because of a deadline with this review and being out of the state I didn't have 30 days to spend on it. I do plan on re-reading it sometime soon and doing it right the next time.) There was so much about thinking out side of the norm and coming up with new ideas. (Total win, there!)
My favorite part was the challenge at the end of each day. I love thinking in creative ways, and each challenge was about stretching ourselves and thinking in new ways. The "prayer starter" isn't something I generally enjoy in books, (it was just ideas about how to pray that went along with the subject of each chapter), so I skim-read most of them. 
Conclusion I want to look up more books by Jonathan Malm. He seems like a pretty interesting author. I enjoyed his perspective and creativity and agreed with almost everything he said. Another win was the cover and the format inside the book being so pretty and peaceful. It's just all-around nice. 
Rating 
I'm giving Created for More four stars and I recommend it to anyone 12 and up who want to become more creative (especially people who consider themselves to be artists of some nature). 

*I received this book from Moody Publishers in exchange for an honest review.

After Acts by Bryan Liftin: Book Review

After Actsby Bryan Liftin
Find it on: Amazon   Goodreads
NarrativeNon-Fiction 184 Pages

About the BookBack cover blurb
If you’ve ever wondered what happened to the biblical characters after Acts—from the well-known Matthew to the lesser-known Bartholomew—then this book is for you. Join Dr. Bryan Litfin as he guides you through Scripture and other ancient literature to sift fact from fiction, real-life from legend. Skillfully researched and clearly written, After Acts is as accurate as it is engaging. Gain a window into the religious milieu of the ancient and medieval church. Unearth artifacts and burial sites. Learn what really happened to your favorite characters and what you should truly remember them for. • Did Paul ever make it to Spain? Was he beheaded in Rome? • Is it true that Peter was crucified upside down? • Was the Virgin Mary really bodily assumed into heaven?The book of Acts ends at chapter 28. But its characters lived on. 
Why I Choose this Book  
It looked interesting. I've been wanting to read more books that help give me a deeper understanding of the Bible and this looked like a good one. 

What I Thought about this Book 
Well... It wasn't exactly my style. I'm not sure why that is, either. The only reason I can come with is because there aren't a ton of good solid facts that the book arrived at. I totally get that though and it makes a lot of sense; I just didn't enjoy it all that much. (You can't arrive at solid facts when there aren't solid historically correct documents to pull from.) 
After Acts goes through a handful of the most prominent Christians in the New Testament and the myths and legends that surround their lives after their disappearance from the Bible. The author points out the likelihood or doubtfulness of the myths and legends actually being true, citing ancient historians to see where they did and did not agree with each other on the subject. He also points out where ideas differ with the scriptures and why some people chose to go that route, anyway. The author himself stands strong on the scriptures being the inspired word of God, which was good.
After Acts felt thoroughly researched and was fairly easy to read and comprehend. I could tell a lot of work had been put into it and I'm guessing a lot of people would enjoy it. 
Conclusion 
I didn't grow up hearing a ton of myths about Biblical people, and therefore I didn't have a lot of lightbulb moments. I'm pretty sure that if you did grow up hearing about myths and legends regarding Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Paul, etc... Then you would enjoy this book. 
Rating 
I'm giving After Acts three stars simply because it wasn't my style, but I did learn some from it. 

*I received this book from Moody Publishers in exchange for an honest review.