![Book Review: Unfair]()
by JP Esq | Mar 15, 2017 | Uncategorized
Unfair by Adam Benforado is an approachable journey into the complex world of law and criminal justice. As a recovering attorney, I appreciate perspectives and voices that attempt to expand our understanding of how the flaws of our justice system impact some of our population’s most vulnerable. I suggest reading this book in chunks – though it reads fluidly, it really is a robust introduction to research that is best approached little by little. Benforado really takes the four points of the criminal justice process (investigation, adjudication, punishment, and reform) and adds illustrative color through stories and evidence that draw the reader in. This book also includes a rather extensive bibliography with additional notes available on the author’s website. If you are interested in any way in criminal justice and justice reform, this is a good book to keep on your shelf.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to post a positive review
by JP Esq | Jun 6, 2016 | Uncategorized
“This book is about food in America, but it isn’t really about food, and it doesn’t start in America.”
I love food. I love looking at food. I love eating food. And yet, I realize that as much of the world has the opportunity to experience the luxury and the art of food, there are still many to whom it is simply nourishment to which they have little access.
Even still, somethingtofoodabout is a journey into the “performance art” of creating a symphony for the senses using a medium safe for human consumption. The book starts with a Foreword by Anthony Bourdain and “First Course” by Questlove which seems to provide a thoughtful glimpse into his creative genius.
The interviews with the ten chefs in this book are poignant and fascinating. And the book’s photography is simply stunning. This is the perfect coffee table book and will certainly make for great dinner party conversation. The interviews are best devoured in small bites over time, each time revealing a bit more inspiration, art, and curiosity.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to post a positive review.
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by JP Esq | May 27, 2016 | Uncategorized
James Van Patten‘s new release is the perfect companion for the acrylic painter, experienced and unexperienced. This is an excellent book to add to your library if you’re interested in learning more about painting with acrylics, but also if you need a refresher after working with the medium for a while.
Discussing everything from tools to techniques, Van Patten makes painting with acrylics accessible and approachable. The book gives healthy attention to the very basics like choosing paints and different types of brushes, to more advanced considerations like stretching your own canvas using unprimed canvas and stretcher bars. I particularly appreciated the treatment of color in this book and found it quite helpful for understanding how the effective use of color is the basis of any great painting. The Acrylic Painter is a book that I will rely on for years to come and it has certainly helped me in my own journey with acrylics (which happen to be my preferred painting medium).
I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for a review. I was not required to post a positive review. This post contains affiliate links.
by JP Esq | May 12, 2016 | Uncategorized
We’ve worked our way through Good Food Day for a while. It’s a visually stunning book, but sometimes the recipes were a bit overwhelming. Lots of ingredients and preparation time – which can be a bit of a lifestyle adjustment. I have several food allergies so there were many recipes that incorporated ingredients that I simply couldn’t use. That wasn’t anything new, however. My favorite recipe was the Roasted Fennel & Grapefruit salad. Reading the ingredients I was extremely skeptical, but the author makes good food approachable. The mix of roasted fennel, olives, spinach, and grapefruit was a colorful and exciting surprise. This book is on our shelf and in regular rotation.
This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to post a positive review.
by JP Esq | Jun 3, 2015 | Uncategorized
It’s still ticking in my Countdown app. 16 DAYS 5 HOURS 5 MINUTES and 33 SECONDS as of this minute. It was my freedom date. A date I dreamed about for years. A date I longed for to the point of exhaustion. And the entire time I felt God leading me in that direction. I avoided it because it made absolutely no sense anyway.
Leave my job and do what exactly? Ok, God . . . I will get right on that. These bills, though.
At some point, however, fighting the unknown became more exhausting and unsettling than surrendering into the wilderness into which I felt God beckoning me. And so I did. I quit my job with no plans other than to tend these seeds I planted, stretch out my arms into the world of self-employment, to travel and Just BE.
And then, God does something unexpected. He sent me directly back into the thing I was certain He bowed His head to my leaving. Don’t worry, I already repented of the look I flashed toward Heaven. Does not compute.
But, “His grace is an ocean and we’re all sinking.” And I am currently drowning in the absolutely crazy way He is showing His abundant grace in my life and this weird season that I’d prayed about for YEARS.
So I’m taking a summer off to be wild and free and then coming back to the place I loved to hate for a limited time only to help usher this place into a new way of working. Someone saw beyond my job description into the way I’m wired and the way I can be of service here and basically created new work for me to do.
This doesn’t change my plans with Handsome Lucy and I pray that God continues to breathe out ideas for me to plant. I am exceedingly grateful for the gift of respite and the opportunity to reset. I’ll come back in the fall and lay some new groundwork for this place, and then come January I will once again turn to the Father and say, “What Next, God…only can it be on a beach this time, please?”
What’s your story? How has God interrupted your life plans in a crazy way?
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