Here are 100 books that Nicole fans have personally recommended if you like
Nicole.
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My research for Dial P for Perfectcame from deep within. I've always considered myself on the heavier side of the scale. Being measured for a costume for Brigadoonas a High School Junior was traumatic. The moms that volunteered that day may not have said the words, but I heard them in my mind. I felt "less than," or bigger than, as the case may be. Identifying with Ginger in Dial P for Perfectwas easy for me, and I felt her pains and triumphs, her fears, and her confusion.
Marbeth removes the “food-obsessed, short-of-breath, perpetually sweaty, and utterly unattractive to anyone not willing to see beyond her flawed curvy-girl stereotype” from her stories. Her plus-sized characters are not on the road to recovery, under a doctor’s care, and losing weight by the end of the book. Marbeth’s characters are real; by the end of the story, you find a piece of yourself changed because of her well-written words and exceptionally crafted heroines.
As a reader, I want to connect with a book’s characters. I may empathize with one and wish I were another, but when I find a book where I feel I AM the character, it’s a keeper. Marbeth doesn’t shy away from complex topics yet does an excellent job of moving the reader through the process of change – in their heart.
As an author, I work to align myself with like-minded authors who can reach deep…
Caroline Taft did her best to live a life of service and sacrifice, “above reproach,” but when her teaching career at Benchmark Baptist Christian School is cut short, she discovers that she hasn’t lived much of a life at all. Despite going on visitation every Saturday, teaching Sunday school, singing in the choir, directing children’s music, leading Wednesday’s Bible club, and, of course, teaching fourth grade (her actual job), it isn’t enough to keep her on. She wonders if it isn’t what she has or hasn’t done or if it’s her weight. Caroline is one of the few plus-sized women…
The Victorian mansion, Evenmere, is the mechanism that runs the universe.
The lamps must be lit, or the stars die. The clocks must be wound, or Time ceases. The Balance between Order and Chaos must be preserved, or Existence crumbles.
Appointed the Steward of Evenmere, Carter Anderson must learn the…
My research for Dial P for Perfectcame from deep within. I've always considered myself on the heavier side of the scale. Being measured for a costume for Brigadoonas a High School Junior was traumatic. The moms that volunteered that day may not have said the words, but I heard them in my mind. I felt "less than," or bigger than, as the case may be. Identifying with Ginger in Dial P for Perfectwas easy for me, and I felt her pains and triumphs, her fears, and her confusion.
Autumn Macarthur had me at Scotland. I love an opposites attract/deception romance, and the storyline on this one has a fun and unique twist. A low rumble of tension without overplayed drama carries the story to a well-crafted ending. The author knows how to keep sparks flying while keeping the heat level sweet, which is appropriate to the spiritual theme of the book. An engaging story with characters that feel like friends.
He's an embittered cynic. She's a perpetually cheerful Pollyanna. They both need to learn what trusting God really means.
Disabled since birth, bullied as a child, Edinburgh author Brodie Maclean has no faith in God, or in human nature. He learned young that his best weapons are his sharp tongue and his biting honesty, and he doesn’t hesitate to use them. When he’s forced to employ Flynn Ferguson as his housekeeper, it’s instant dislike. She’s too cheerful, she’s too loud, she’s too everything. Including distracting. How is he supposed to write with her around?
Even always-look-on-the-bright-side Flynn finds it hard…
My research for Dial P for Perfectcame from deep within. I've always considered myself on the heavier side of the scale. Being measured for a costume for Brigadoonas a High School Junior was traumatic. The moms that volunteered that day may not have said the words, but I heard them in my mind. I felt "less than," or bigger than, as the case may be. Identifying with Ginger in Dial P for Perfectwas easy for me, and I felt her pains and triumphs, her fears, and her confusion.
Mikal Dawn knows how to write a romantic comedy with equal parts rom and com. Mikal blends these genres into an unforgettable story that will keep you on the tips of your tingling toes. Her characters are authentic and believable. Mikal’s ability to seamlessly weave in a spiritual theme throughout the story leaves your heart full of the knowledge that God loves each of us. Prepare to laugh, fan your face, and wipe your tears all in the span of a single page. This debut novel will not disappoint.
*This is a romantic comedy with a Christian worldview.Allegra Spencer has been living a careful life. Her safe job as an accountant is bookended by going to church and the gym. Okay, sometimes the gym. Fine. She goes to church. And the coffee shop. She avoids risk at all cost, preferring to stay safe in her cozy condo. Until her accounting firm goes belly up and she's out of a job. Tyler Hawk had a glorious career as a star NFL tight end. He retired on a high note and now lives a second dream of owning his own business…
The Guardian of the Palace is the first novel in a modern fantasy series set in a New York City where magic is real—but hidden, suppressed, and dangerous when exposed.
When an ancient magic begins to leak into the world, a small group of unlikely allies is forced to act…
My research for Dial P for Perfectcame from deep within. I've always considered myself on the heavier side of the scale. Being measured for a costume for Brigadoonas a High School Junior was traumatic. The moms that volunteered that day may not have said the words, but I heard them in my mind. I felt "less than," or bigger than, as the case may be. Identifying with Ginger in Dial P for Perfectwas easy for me, and I felt her pains and triumphs, her fears, and her confusion.
USA Today bestselling author Valerie Comer’s plus-sized character, Sadie Guthrie, has much to learn, even though she is a gifted lawyer. She may be a confident, independent woman, but her emotional struggles and decisions are not easy. Choices about love, life, and even food options weigh on her. She’ll need to be as honest with herself as she expects others to be with her. The gardener might get under her skin like the dirt under his nails, yet may be just what she needs to learn to love herself and see herself for who she truly is – a beautiful child of God.
She pictures a relaxing oasis. He sees food for the less fortunate. They both claim the same backyard. Family lawyer Sadie Guthrie snaps up a heritage house with a backyard perfect for relaxing with her caramel espresso and cinnamon rolls. Now some guy is digging in her garden and thinks he has a claim to it. For vegetables! Too bad he doesn’t realize he’s taken on a veggie-hating attorney in her den.
Urban farmer Peter Santoro had a deal with his elderly neighbor to cultivate her yard for his business, but when she dies and the property is sold, the…
Growing up in a post-industrial city that bore the scars of urban renewal, I developed an early fascination with historic preservation. I began my studies as an architecture major; by my second year, I switched to American history because my passion lay in studying and understanding existing buildings and landscapes. Preserved is the product of inspiration that hit me when I spotted a beautifully preserved funeral home. Most of the neighborhood’s nineteenth-century refined residential fabric had been erased, but the grand Italianate mansion served as a reminder of what the area was like at the start of the twentieth century. At that moment, I realized that this was a story worth telling.
This was a bittersweet read for me. I grew up in Lynn, Massachusetts, a post-industrial city that was a shadow of the bustling place it was when my parents were growing up there in the 1940s and 50s. Young’s recounting of his return to the city of his childhood, Flint, Michigan, speaks to all of us who long not just for the places that we think we know but for those places that had already ceased to exist before we were born.
At the same time, Young’s poetic exploration of place, tinged with nostalgia, teaches us that even the cities and towns hardest hit by the unforgiving forces of globalization and corporate capitalism and haunted by ghosts of past prosperity can be fertile with new possibilities and new stories.
After living in San Francisco for fifteen years, journalist Gordon Young found himself yearning for his Rust Belt hometown: Flint, Michigan, the birthplace of General Motors and the "star" of the Michael Moore documentary Roger & Me. Hoping to rediscover and help a place that had once boasted one of the world's highest per capita income levels but had become one of the country's most impoverished and dangerous cities, he returned to Flint with the intention of buying a house. What he found was a place of stark contrasts and dramatic stories, where an exotic dancer could afford a lavish…
If you spend as long looking at medieval churches as I do, you also end up collecting a lot of books on the subject. Any church archaeologist cannot help also becoming something of a librarian. A passion for churches - and books. There are hundreds of church guidebooks out there, all of which have their own merits, but these are a small selection of books that look at different aspects of church history. They look at these amazing buildings through a different lens. These aren't a definitive guide - just books that I find myself returning to time and time again - for both information and pleasure.
Stephen Hart spent a lifetime travelling around English churches and was one of the most knowledgeable - and good-natured - individuals I ever had the pleasure to work with. One of his passions was for flushwork - the decorative flint work seen on many English churches, most especially in East Anglia. This book was published towards the end of his career and brings together many of his thoughts and ideas - as well as a fantastic selection of images.
Flint Flushwork is a wholly external decorative medium, where the skills of medieval craftsman blended with the iconography of the medieval church to create a unique new art form. It is an artistic achievement that is built into the very fabric of many hundreds of medieval churches. As such, many examples of Flushwork survive where more impermanent artworks have succumbed to the ravages of reformation and over-zealous restoration. Despite this, however, ithas not attracted the same depth of research and analysis as other aspects of church architecture.
This book provides a wide perspective on the several different modes of Flushwork…
Aury and Scott travel to the Finger Lakes in New York’s wine country to get to the bottom of the mysterious happenings at the Songscape Winery. Disturbed furniture and curious noises are one thing, but when a customer winds up dead, it’s time to dig into the details and see…
Like many of my generation, my formal introduction to the zombie genre started with George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead. Stories of the zombie apocalypse, and the arterial sprays, dismemberments, and eviscerations that accompanied it, have fascinated me ever since. But, I'm also a psychology professor. Although I was initially captivated by the carnage of the undead, I quickly found that the mindsets of the survivors were equally fascinating. More than anything, I love seeing how fictional worlds represent real-world psychological concepts.
I will never survive a zombie apocalypse. I'm pretty sure my last words will be, "OMG, Zombies! I'm going to take a selfie! Arrgghh." But for those with good sense and practical intelligence, plans for defeating the undead will need to be developed and set in motion. That's where The Zombie Survival Guide comes in. Max Brooks' offering is a fascinating "how-to guide" for living in a world overrun with the living dead. This book has it all, from weapons and combat techniques to offensive and defensive strategies. The information in this book is invaluable for those prepping for the inevitable plaque of the undead.
Don't be reckless with you most precious asset - life. This book is your key to survival against the hordes of undead who may be stalking you right now without your even knowing it.
It covers everything you need to know, from how to understand zombie behaviour to survival in any territory or terrain.
The Zombie Survival Guide offers complete protection through proven tips for safeguarding yourself and your loved ones against the living dead.
It might just save your life.
'A bloody-minded, strait-laced manual for evading the grasp of the undead.' Time Out
I wholeheartedly believe that kindness is the single most powerful thing that we can teach our children. One of the best ways to instil kindness in children is by talking to them about it, and one of the most effective ways to start the conversation is through stories that highlight kindness. These stories don’t just get kids talking—they also help shape the values of the next generation.
This has been such a wonderful book to read with my kids! It was first introduced to us through my daughter's school. It’s not only a sweet story but also helps teach important lessons about kindness, community, and friendship.
It is great for prompting conversations about feelings, and the illustrations are incredibly well done, making it even more enjoyable!
Teachers do so much more than just teach academics. They build a sense of community within their classrooms, creating a home away from home where they make their students feel safe, included, and loved.
With its heartfelt message and colorfully whimsical illustrations, “Our Class is a Family” is a book that will help build and strengthen that class community. Kids learn that their classroom is a place where it’s safe to be themselves, it’s okay to make mistakes, and it’s important to be a friend to others. When hearing this story being read aloud by their teacher, students are sure…
Books have been an important part of my faith journey. I set aside time each morning to read scripture, and devotional material, to meditate and pray. As I read about the experiences of others my faith increases and I know God better. As a writer I express my own faith through words and invite others to know God better by experiencing Him with time set aside in the mornings. More Love is part of a series of small books that I have created to give readers experiences to connect with God and to know His love.
Fred Buechner writes, “Listen to your life. All moments are key moments.” These 366 short writings taken from the works and books of Frederick Buechner are rich and deep. A few moments with a daily reading can shift my perspective from an earthly one to an eternal one. I come back to his books often to absorb his wisdom and the example of his faith. One of Buechner’s great strengths is his gift of storytelling which permeates the readings giving life to the words and wisdom.
Daily meditations taken from the works of an acclaimed novelist, essayist, and preacher who has articulated what he sees with a freshness and clarity and energy that hails our stultified imaginations.
Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!
On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…
I am a licensed therapist who has been in the mental health field for over 15 years. I believe that God wants his followers to be mentally healthy! We are better witnesses to Him when we think and act in ways that reflect biblical principles. This is why I am a big fan of books that help me think and act more wisely and that also helps me follow God more deeply. Working through our mental ‘stuff’ and following God well are greatly intertwined. Whether in person or by recommending books, I love to be a part of that process with people.
This is one of my most highly recommended books for those struggling with baggage from the past, such as rejection, resentment, and perfectionism.
Wright takes readers through a process of going back to work through past baggage, forgive past hurts, and then change future responses. For Christians committed to moving (and living) beyond their past, this book can help them do just that. Wright is a leading expert in grief, loss, and trauma and has a number of other invaluable books.
Much of who we are, what we do, and how we feel is determined by our past. Whether they're relationships from our childhood or pressures from recent years, the events of the past can have a significant impact on our current behavior.
A continual bestseller now re-launched with a new look for new readers, this insightful and perceptive book shows readers how to face and move beyond the negative events and feelings of their past. Writing from a compassionate, Christian perspective, H. Norman Wright helps readers understand who they are, who is responsible for their character, and how they can…
