About

Welcome!

My name is Amanda and I’m so pleased you’ve come to visit my cozy corner of the web. Christian Shelf-Esteem exists to connect believers with books that entertain, encourage, and edify. Thank you for being here, for reading and commenting on my reviews, and connecting on social media.

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About Me

A Hoosier by birth, I left home at the tender age of 17 to serve my country and see the world. After 4 years on active duty at the majestic Air Force Academy, wanderlust drove me to Alaska where I joined the Alaska Air National Guard and became a full-time student at UAA. Alaska is also where I met and married my husband Jay (Leap Year Day 2004). After 3 assignments and 8 deployments, Jay accepted a full-time (non-deployable) position with the Arkansas Air National Guard. For the past 5½ years, we’ve lived on a 10-acre hobby farm with our two children (ages 10 and 13) and a hodgepodge of critters. I currently work from home as an author’s assistant while overseeing our son’s rookie year of homeschool.

Statement of Faith

I believe salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, according to Scripture alone, to the glory of God alone. I affirm the Doctrines of Grace, the Westminster Standards, the Apostles’ Creed, and the Nicene Creed.

*My theology has shifted significantly since Christian Shelf-Esteem launched in 2014. Instead of deleting older reviews, I’ve opted to leave them as a testimony of God’s transformative work in my life. Beginning this year, I plan to make every effort to be a more discerning reader.

We need to be alert and equipped, because Christian bookstores don’t have genre labels like “fluff” and “I may look like I have my life together more than you, but I’m about to wreck your theology.”  —Aimee Byrd, No Little Women

Guest Author & Request for Review Form

Favorite Authors

Non-Fiction:

RC Sproul, John Calvin, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, Michael Horton, J.I. Packer, Donald S. Whitney, Jen Wilkin, and Rebecca VanDoodewaard.

Fiction:

Biblical Fiction – Tessa Afshar, Lynn Austin, and Mesu Andrews
Historical Fiction – Lori Benton, Jocelyn Green, Nancy Kimball, Tamera Alexander, Lisa Wingate +++
Mystery & Suspense – Dani Pettrey, Lisa Harris, Ronie Kendig, Jaime Jo Wright, and Kristy Cambron
Contemporary – Amy Sorrells, Kara Isaac, Katherine Reay, and Hillary Manton Lodge
Young Adult – Mary Weber, Lindsay A. Franklin (this list will grow as I read more from this genre)

Podcasts I Recommend

Theology Gals

5 Minutes in Church History

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