--- title: "An Open Book: February 2025" description: "Carolyn Astfalk hosts the Open Book linkup: Share what you're reading and get recommendations from other readers." image: https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/An%20Open%20Book%202023%20CM%20Blog.png --- [![catholic-mom-logo-v2](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/images/catholic-mom-logo-v2.svg "catholic-mom-logo-v2")](https://www.catholicmom.com/) [![facebook](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-facebook.svg)](http://www.facebook.com/CatholicMomCommunity) [![twitter](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-twitter.svg)](http://twitter.com/CatholicMomCom) [![instagram](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-instagram.svg)](http://instagram.com/catholicmomcommunity) [![youtube](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-youtube.svg)](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAuUqHCVPDzyMgSMaMZxxug?view_as=subscriber) [![search-icon](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/search-icon.svg)](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/an-open-book-february-2025#) [BOOKS](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/tag/books) # An Open Book: February 2025 Feb 5, 2025 7:00:00 AM  |  by [Carolyn Astfalk](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/author/carolyn-astfalk) ![featured image](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/An%20Open%20Book%202023%20CM%20Blog.png) *Carolyn Astfalk hosts the Open Book linkup: Share what you're reading and get recommendations from other readers.* --- Welcome to the February 2025 edition of An Open Book, hosted both at My Scribbler's Heart AND Catholicmom.com. An Open Book is all about what my family is reading this month, from the adults down to the little kids. ## Share what you're reading by linking up your blog post below. Simply write about what you're reading. You can make it personal or, as I do, extend it to the whole family. Your post can be as simple as a few lines about the book or as in-depth as a 700-word review. That's entirely up to you. You can even forego writing all together and record a video or simply post cover photos. No blog? No problem. Please share what you're reading in the comments. ## Here are the books my family and I have read this month:   ![Dylan Goes Electric](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Dylan%20Goes%20Electric.jpg?width=250&height=377&name=Dylan%20Goes%20Electric.jpg)After seeing the most recent Bob Dylan biopic, *A Complete Unknown*, my husband’s interest in the folk singer/songwriter was renewed. He’s been listening to [Dylan Goes Electric!: Newport, Seeger, Dylan, and the Night that Split the Sixties](https://amzn.to/42DwlDI) by Elijah Wald. It covers not only Dylan’s artistic evolution from folk to rock and his relationship with other folk musicians but the political and cultural milieu.    ![One Hour for My Priest](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/One%20Hour%20for%20My%20Priest.jpg?width=250&height=368&name=One%20Hour%20for%20My%20Priest.jpg)I grabbed Tina Jost’s [*One Hour for My Priest: A Prayer Companion*](https://amzn.to/40HNNED) on my way out the door to Adoration on New Year’s Eve. Our family was pressed for time, so we weren’t there for quite an hour, yet I was able to complete one of the prescribed prayer options. This simple book makes prayer for our priests personal and concrete by creating structure and purpose.    ![Cooking Up Christmas](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Cooking%20Up%20Christmas.jpg?width=250&height=386&name=Cooking%20Up%20Christmas.jpg)I read [*Cooking Up Christmas*](https://amzn.to/3WI6qa6) by Jaycee Weaver as the first novella in a Christmas collection, [*An Evergreen Christmas*](https://amzn.to/3Q1RfFb). Ramsey is a chef; Bristol is hired to help with the business side of the restaurant. Work policy makes this a forbidden romance. The story is fun and entertaining, and the Christian treatment of forgiveness is well done. I’ll read more from this author.    ![The Stolen Princess](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/The%20Stolen%20Princess.jpg?width=250&height=375&name=The%20Stolen%20Princess.jpg)What impressed me most about Sandralena Hanley’s [*The Stolen Princess*](https://amzn.to/3EiKzA1) is its moral depth. There’s an uncommon examination of guilt that results in not just forgiveness but penance, something both appropriate to the historical setting but also often overlooked. That’s not say the novel is heavy or maudlin. Its characters are likable, its pacing fresh, and this romance is sweet and endearing.    ![Declare](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Declare.jpg?width=250&height=381&name=Declare.jpg)My oldest son had been looking for Tim Powers books at various secondhand book shops and finally came across the one he’d most wanted: [*Declare*](https://amzn.to/4gn3ZAQ). This novel, set during the Cold War, is a World Fantasy Award winner. Double agent Andrew Hale traverses the Arabian desert, Berlin, and Moscow, culminating in a confrontation on Mt. Ararat. My son is about halfway through; I’m awaiting his verdict as I’ve long had Tim Powers books on my to-read list, and this was the one most-often recommended to me.    [![Gray Fox](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Gray%20Fox.jpg?width=250&height=379&name=Gray%20Fox.jpg)Gray Fox: Robert E. Lee and the Civil War](https://amzn.to/3X6ZJyT) by Burke Davis chronicles the history of the Confederate general. According to the description, it “humanizes this gentleman-soldier of tradition and makes him all the more awe-inspiring.” The Goodreads reviews are mixed, and I’m learning as I look at the books my son’s been reading that people have very strong views on biographies of historical figures — or maybe it’s on the figures themselves.    ![Bourbon Desserts](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Bourbon%20Desserts.jpg?width=250&height=275&name=Bourbon%20Desserts.jpg)My oldest daughter tried a recipe from [*Bourbon Desserts*](https://amzn.to/3WKPRKN) by Lynn Marie Hulsman, a Christmas gift I snuck out of Kentucky this summer, right under her nose. I’ve read the introduction and perused some of the recipes, and I can’t wait to taste more from this book! My daughter baked the Light Chocolate Layer Cake with Bourbon and Cream Cheese Icing, and it was delicious!    ![A Students Guide to Natural Science](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/A%20Students%20Guide%20to%20Natural%20Science.jpg?width=250&height=391&name=A%20Students%20Guide%20to%20Natural%20Science.jpg)For her Physics class, my high-school daughter also read [*A Student’s Guide to Natural Science*](https://amzn.to/4hIjynX) by Stephen M. Barr. It was a quick read that is (from her review) “a thorough explanation of the origins and history of science and mathematics, particularly relating to physics.” It explains the relationship between science and the Church. In sum, she says, “I think I understand the purpose and beauty of science and its basic tenets better.”    ![The Crucible](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/The%20Crucible.jpg?width=250&height=383&name=The%20Crucible.jpg)With her Literature class, she read [*The Crucible*](https://amzn.to/4jJ8BnJ) by Arthur Miller, the familiar play about the 17th-century Salem witch trials (but also McCarthyism), which many of us read in high school. We also watched [the 1996 movie adaption](https://amzn.to/4hACk0i) starring Winona Ryder, and I was reminded of how much I disliked Abigail Williams.    ![Silent Spring](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Silent%20Spring.jpg?width=250&height=375&name=Silent%20Spring.jpg)For the same class, she’s been independently reading Rachel Carson’s [*Silent Spring*](https://amzn.to/3WD0Ndd), the environmental classic written in 1962, that I’ve considered reading more for the author’s connection to Pittsburgh than anything else. My daughter has found it very dry, repetitive, and somewhat doomsday-ish, for lack of a better word. I think I’ll pass on it.    ![I Must Betray You](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/I%20Must%20Betray%20You.jpg?width=250&height=375&name=I%20Must%20Betray%20You.jpg)My middle-school daughter picked up several books from the school bookfair during Catholic Schools Week, including [*I Must Betray You*](https://amzn.to/4hfScWg) by Ruta Supetys. It is set in 1989 Romania, during the fall of Communism and Nicolae Ceausescu. The protagonist is a seventeen-year-old blackmailed into becoming an informer. My daughter said the ending was hopeful, if not happy, but the climax was violent, as one might expect.    ![Brave Water](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Brave%20Water.jpg?width=250&height=400&name=Brave%20Water.jpg)She also enjoyed Sarah Robsdottir’s [*Brave Water*](https://amzn.to/4gmRJQX), which I read a couple of years ago. Set during a single day in modern-day Africa, the novel follows Talitha and her family, the only Catholics in their village. The daily task of procuring clean water for the village is the backdrop for the day’s events, which include an abduction. Deals with issues such as drug use and sexual trafficking as well as themes of forgiveness and redemption.    ![Sammy Keyes and the Curse of Moustache Mary](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Sammy%20Keyes%20and%20the%20Curse%20of%20Moustache%20Mary.jpg?width=250&height=369&name=Sammy%20Keyes%20and%20the%20Curse%20of%20Moustache%20Mary.jpg)My middle-school son read [*Sammy Keyes and the Curse of Moustache Mary*](https://amzn.to/4jHOKpe) by Wendelin Van Draanen. I hadn’t heard of this junior detective mystery series, still stuck in the age of the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew as I am. Sammy and her meet Lucinda as she’s walking her pig. Yes, pig. Lucinda then shares the tale of her great-grandmother, Moustache Mary, leading Sammy to investigate the cause of Mary’s cabin fire.    ## Join the linkup to share what you're reading — or leave a comment below.   [![Read more reviews and join the linkup](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/275132/05731c5a-ffeb-4a6d-9231-44f85470d984.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/275132/05731c5a-ffeb-4a6d-9231-44f85470d984)   ## Want [more details](http://carolynastfalk.com/2016/02/22/reading-link-up/) on An Open Book? You can also [sign up for An Open Book reminder email](http://carolynastfalk.us9.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=c315a0999a1db9b7fb756ad89&id=eb3e9373c4), which goes out one week before the link-up. ![null](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/An%20Open%20Book%202023%20square.png?width=1080&height=1080&name=An%20Open%20Book%202023%20square.png) --- Copyright 2025 Carolyn Astfalk Images: Canva This article contains Amazon affiliate links, which provide a small compensation to the author of this piece when purchases are made through the links, at no cost to you. Thank you for supporting our Catholic Mom writers in this way. ### Share this article [![Share on Facebook](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/facebook-24x24.png)](http://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fan-open-book-february-2025%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dfacebook) [![Share on Twitter](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/twitter-24x24.png)](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fan-open-book-february-2025%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fan-open-book-february-2025%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Dtwitter&source=tweetbutton&text=An%20Open%20Book%3A%20February%202025) [![Share on Email](https://static.hubspot.com/final/img/common/icons/social/email-24x24.png)](mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fan-open-book-february-2025%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail%20&body=Check%20out%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.catholicmom.com%2Farticles%2Fan-open-book-february-2025%3Futm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_source%3Demail) ** #### About the Author ![Carolyn Astfalk](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/Contriubutors/CAROLYN%20ASTFALK.jpeg) ### [Carolyn Astfalk](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/author/carolyn-astfalk) Carolyn Astfalk is a wife, mother of four young children, and a writer. Her contemporary Catholic romances are available at Amazon.com. She is a member of the Catholic Writers Guild, a Catholic Teen Books author, and blogs at My Scribbler’s Heart. Visit [CarolynAstfalk.com](http://www.carolynastfalk.com). ## Related Blog Articles [ An Open Book: January 2026 Read ](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/an-open-book-january-2026) [ An Open Book: May 2024 Read ](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/an-open-book-may-2024) [ An Open Book: December 2025 Read ](https://www.catholicmom.com/articles/an-open-book-december-2025) ## Comments ## Donate now [![Support Catholic Mom](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/275132/10016573-1c5c-4aa5-baba-c2ac91fe7545.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/275132/10016573-1c5c-4aa5-baba-c2ac91fe7545) [![CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c (002)](https://www.catholicmom.com/hs-fs/hubfs/CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c%20(002).png?width=1806&height=731&name=CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c%20(002).png "CatholicMom_hcfm_logo1_pos_871c_2728c (002)")](https://www.catholicmom.com/) ##### Subscribe to Catholic Momcast on iTunes or Spotify [![itunes-logo-black](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/logos/itunes-logo-black.svg)](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/catholic-momcast/id1362352357)[![spotify-logo-black](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/logos/spotify-logo-black.svg)](https://open.spotify.com/show/15CoipHL7z61IDcYErV0b8?si=hqaQJSxDQgq7S1hxCwsoxQ) ##### CatholicMom on Social Networks [![facebook](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-facebook.svg)](http://www.facebook.com/CatholicMomCommunity) [![twitter](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-twitter.svg)](http://twitter.com/CatholicMomCom) [![instagram](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-instagram.svg)](http://instagram.com/catholicmomcommunity) [![youtube](https://www.catholicmom.com/hubfs/_catholicmom/icons/social-icon-youtube.svg)](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAuUqHCVPDzyMgSMaMZxxug?view_as=subscriber) ##### About Catholic Mom [Who We Are](https://www.catholicmom.com/about-us) [Contact Us](https://www.catholicmom.com/contact) [Support CatholicMom.com](https://www.catholicmom.com/support-us)   ##### Associated Links [Holy Cross Family Ministries](https://www.hcfm.org/) [Family Rosary](https://www.familyrosary.org/) [Family Theater Productions](https://www.familytheater.org/) [Congregation of the Holy Cross](https://www.holycrossusa.org/) [Father Patrick Peyton, C.S.C.](https://www.fatherpeyton.org/) [The Peyton Institute for Domestic Church Life](https://www.peytonfamilyinstitute.org/) ### **Stay connected!** Don’t miss a thing! 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