This Christmas my family blessed me with a Kindle. I love it more than I even thought I would. The size is perfect and I can carry a bookshelf full of stories with me wherever I go. To top it off, I bought a bright pink cover. Truly lovely.

So are ebooks as good as the paper variety? Well here’s the thing, it’s the story that counts, regardless of the format. I was concerned that I’d miss holding a book, and I still think for non-fiction I’ll stick with paper, but the Kindle is just the right size and it holds my place for me. Oh, and the screen is awesome. I can read in bright sunlight with no problem, not that I’ve seen much sunlight lately.

Another benefit: Amazon offers free books. I recently read a blog post bashing this practice. The blog writer was concerned about books being giving away causing the value of books to diminish. I have to disagree. My first ebook, Fireflies in December by Jennifer Erin Valent, I downloaded free. The story was so wonderful that I will not hesitate to buy anything else this author writes.  In fact I plan to buy the next two books in the series right away. The free book paid off for her as I’m sure I’m not the only reader that loved this story.

Whichever format you prefer, don’t miss this book.

From the website of Jennifer Erin Valent:

Fireflies in December

“The summer I turned thirteen, I thought I killed a man.”

So begins the story of Jessilyn Lassiter, a young girl whose world is torn apart the summer of 1932. When Jessilyn’s best friend, Gemma, loses her parents in a tragic fire, Jessilyn’s father vows to care for her as his own, despite the fact that Gemma is black and prejudice is prevalent in their southern Virginia town.

It doesn’t take long for the Lassiters to attract the attention of a local band of Ku Klux Klan members, who make increasingly violent threats on Jessilyn and her family.

As she struggles to navigate a complex world of first crushes, loyalties, and betrayals, Jessilyn ultimately discovers what it takes to be a bright light in a dark world.

Maybe it’s a sign that spring will come again to this gray and dreary Willamette Valley. I looked out my window this morning and there in the pen where we keep the ewes that seem closest to lambing was a fuzzy little head. The girls and I went down to investigate and found twin ewe lambs, one much bigger than the other, but both very healthy. They’ve already received names: Argentina is the little one and the other is Starlight.

Today I want to share another blog with you. This is written by another author, Krista Phillips, and has focused on her youngest daughter. Baby Annabelle is waiting for a heart transplant. Please take time to read about this little girl and pray for her.

Click here to go to the blog

Here’s a new problem. What do I write next? I’m not saying that I don’t have any ideas. That’s far from the issue. There are actually too many. I’m accustom to a variety of stories jumping around in my brain, but I usually know which one is next to be written. This time I’m not sure, but I think I have it narrowed down to two.

So what do you think?

The story of five mothers and how one teen pregnancy changes their lives.

or

The story of a granddaughter that discovers her grandmother was a Hollywood movie star as a reporter closes in on their home in the desert and some well-hidden family secrets.