Redeemed Reader Starred Reviews

With the onset of COVID-19 in early 2020, we, like many others, closed up the shop to customers and went to an online-selling-only format for a few weeks. That period coincided with the closure of libraries, schools, and many other activities families participated in, so demand for reading books became intense! We had never seen fiction fly off our shelves like that before! And customers weren't bringing us used books to keep those shelves full, so we quickly had large gaps in our inventory. 

We had a decision to make. We could simply start ordering more at a time of the books we normally carried; or, we could start using all of our free time (ha!) to expand our selection. If you know us at Exodus at all, you know which path we took.

Now, we like to read, but we pull ideas for titles from all over. Along with suggestions from friends, book lists and curriculum catalogs have been our main go-to for years. But they tend to focus on the tried and true, and while wonderful, they can get a little stale. 

Enter Redeemed Reader. This blog, written and administrated by four remarkable ladies—Janie Cheaney, Betsy Farquhar, Megan Saben, and Hayley Schoeppler—is an excellent answer to the problem. Primarily focusing on new books, they rate and review books from a Protestant Christian perspective, and they do it extremely well. Active for 9+ years, they have several hundred reviews on the site, and include picture books, easy readers, books for middle grades, teens, and adults. Their rating system is designed to show how well a book reflects Truth & Story. Since it's possible for a book to be excellently told artistically, yet be antagonistic to Biblical faith; or the converse: a story may be Biblically sound, yet poorly written—so their ratings (scales of 1-5) show both, and then are averaged. If that average rating is 4.5 or higher, they might give the book a "starred review," meaning the book is among the best of the best. It's a book worth owning or giving as a gift, and will probably bear potentially frequent rereading. 

Although they've reviewed many other books we carry as well, we've decided to intentionally carry as many of the starred reviews as we can, and those are collected here. We'll continue to add more as they do! 

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Redeemed Reader Starred Reviews
101 Items found Print
Active Filters: Trade Paperback, In-Stock Books & Materials
12 Ways Your Phone Is Changing You
by Tony Reinke
from Crossway Books
for 11th-Adult
in Culture & Discernment (Location: XCU-DIS)
$13.59
Abigail Adams
by Natalie S. Bober
from Simon Pulse
Biography for 4th-7th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$13.95
Airborn
Airborn Trilogy #1
by Kenneth Oppel
from HarperCollins
for 5th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$11.99
Almost Paradise
by Corabel Shofner
from Square Fish Publishing
for 6th-12th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$19.99
Anna Hibiscus
by Atinuke
Reprint from Candlewick Press
for 1st-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Astrid the Unstoppable
by Maria Parr, translated from the Norwegian by Guy Puzey
from Candlewick Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Bamboo People
by Mitali Perkins
from Charlesbridge
for 6th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99
Betty Before X
by Ilyasah Shabazz with Renee Watson
from Square Fish Publishing
for 8th-12th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Blue Birds
by Caroline Starr Rose
Dgs from Puffin Books
Narrative Poetry / Novel-In-Verse for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$10.99
Book of Boy
by Catherine Gilbert Murdock, illustrated by Ian Schoenherr
Frist Paperback from Greenwillow Books
for 3rd-7th grade
2019 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.99
Book of the Ancient World
by Dorothy Mills
2nd edition from Memoria Press
for 5th-8th grade
in Memoria Press Classical Studies (Location: HISCUR-MP)
$19.50 $12.00 (2 in stock)
Bootlace Magician
by Cassie Beasley
from Puffin Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
Brixton Brothers Mystery series - Boxed Set
by Mac Barnett, Illustrated by Adam Rex and Matt Myers
from Simon and Schuster
for 3rd-6th grade
in Boxed Sets & Literature Packages (Location: FIC-BOX)
$33.99
Calvin
by Martine Leavitt
from Square Fish Publishing
for 8th-12th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99
Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies
by Marilyn Chandler McEntyre
2nd edition from William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company
for 10th-Adult
in Communication & Conflict Resolution (Location: XCL-COM)
$19.99
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
by Jean Lee Latham
from Houghton Mifflin
Biography for 5th-9th grade
1956 Newbery Medal winner
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99
Carved in Ebony
by Jasmine L. Holmes
from Bethany House
for 10th-Adult
in Biography Anthologies (Location: BIO-ANTH)
$17.99
Carver and the Queen
by Emma C. Fox
from Owl's Nest Publishers
for 7th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$12.99
Circus Mirandus
by Cassie Beasley
from Puffin Books
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.99
Cody and the Fountain of Happiness
Cody series #1
by Tricia Springstubb, Illustrated by Eliza Wheeler
from Candlewick Press
for 1st-4th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Comforting Hearts, Teaching Minds
by Starr Meade
from P&R Publishing
for Adult
in Family Worship (Location: BIB-FAWO)
$15.99
Cytonic
Skyward #3
by Brandon Sanderson
from Ember
for 7th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$12.99
Disappeared
by Francisco X. Stork
from Arthur A. Levine Books
for 7th-12th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$10.99
Each Peach Pear Plum
by Allan & Janet Ahlberg
from Puffin Books
Rhyming Story for Preschool-Kindergarten
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.99
Echoes of Eden
by Jerram Barrs
from Crossway Books
for 10th-Adult
in Creating Culture (Location: XCU-CRE)
$15.19
Entwined
by Heather Dixon
from Greenwillow Books
for 7th-12th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$10.99
Eugenia Lincoln and the Unexpected Package
Tales from Deckawoo Drive Book 4
by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Chris Van Dusen
from Candlewick Press
for 1st-4th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$6.99
Faerie Gold
Classics for Young Readers
by Kathryn Lindskoog & Ranelda Mack Hunsicker
from P&R Publishing
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Folklore for 4th-8th grade
in Morality Tales (Location: FIC-WH05)
$17.99
Faithful Spy
by John Hendrix
from Harry N. Abrams, Inc.
for 8th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$18.99
For Christ's Crown
by Richard Hannula
1st edition from Canon Press
for 5th-Adult
in Church History for Kids (Location: XCH-KID)
$16.00
Gardener
by Sarah Stewart & David Small
from Sunburst Book
Realistic fiction for Kindergarten-4th grade
1998 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Ghost
Track book #1
by Jason Reynolds
from Atheneum
for 4th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
God's Design
Making Him Known Series - Book 8
by Gary Steward, Sally Michael
from P&R Publishing
in Devotions for Kids (Location: BIB-DEV)
$23.99
God's Word
Making Him Known Series - Book 6
by Sally Michael
from P&R Publishing
for 2nd-6th grade
in Devotions for Kids (Location: BIB-DEV)
$23.99
Gone Fishing
by Tamara Wissinger, Illustrated by Matthew Cordell
from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
for 2nd-6th grade
in Poetry (Location: POET-GEN)
$6.99
Green Ember
by S. D. Smith
from Story Warren Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$14.95
Hattie Big Sky
by Kirby Larson
from Yearling
for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Honey For a Child's Heart
by Gladys Hunt
5th edition from Zondervan
for All ages
in Recommended Book Lists (Location: LIR-REC)
$19.79
Honey For a Child's Heart (old)
by Gladys Hunt
4th edition from Zondervan
for All ages
in Clearance: Home School Resources (Location: ZCLE-HSR)
$12.00 $7.00 (1 in stock)
Honey for a Teen's Heart
by Gladys Hunt & Barbara Hampton
from Zondervan
for 7th-Adult
in Recommended Book Lists (Location: LIR-REC)
$11.69
Hope in the Holler
by Lisa Lewis Tyre
from Puffin Books
for 5th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
How Do We Know That Christianity is Really True?
Biq Questions Series
by Chris Morphew, Illustrated by Emma Randall
from Good Book Company
for 3rd-8th grade
in Worldview & Apologetics for Kids (Location: BIBWV-APK)
$12.99
Hunt for Fang
Tree Street Kids #2
by Amanda Cleary Eastep
from Moody Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
I Am David
by Anne Holm
from Harcourt
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.99
In the Land of the Blue Burqas
by Kate McCord
from Moody Press
for 11th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$15.99
Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus
by Dusti Bowling
from Sterling Publishing Co.
for 5th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Jack Zulu and the Waylander's Key
by S. D. Smith & J. C. Smith
from Story Warren Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$15.99
Land of Hope
by Wilfred M. McClay
from Encounter Books
for 10th-Adult
in American History Reference (Location: HISA-REF)
$49.99
Legends of Zita the Space Girl
Zita the Spacegirl #2
by Ben Hatke
from First Second
for 1st-6th grade
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$14.99
Light Princess
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Maurice Sendak
from Sunburst Book
Fantasy for 2nd-5th grade
$9.99
Little House
by Virginia Lee Burton
from Sandpiper Books
Personification Stories for Preschool-3rd grade
1943 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy
by Gary D. Schmidt
from Clarion Books
for 7th-9th grade
2005 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.99
Long Walk to Water
by Linda Sue Park
from Sandpiper Books
for 5th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99 $5.00 (3 in stock)
Lovely War
by Julie Berry
from Penguin Books
for 10th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$12.99
Marcelo in the Real World
by Francisco X. Stork
from Scholastic Press
for 9th-Adult
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel
by Virginia Burton
from Houghton Mifflin
Personification Stories for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.99
New Kid
by Jerry Craft
from HarperCollins
for 4th-8th grade
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$12.99
Night Diary
by Veera Hiranandani
Reprint from Puffin Books
for 3rd-7th grade
2019 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Night Divided
by Jennifer A. Nielsen
from Scholastic Press
Historical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99
Noah's Ark
by Peter Spier
from Dell Publishing
Bible Stories for Preschool-2nd grade
1978 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Nuts to You
by Lynn Rae Perkins
from Greenwillow Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$7.99
On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness
Wingfeather Saga Book 1
by Andrew Peterson, illustrated by Joe Sutphin
from WaterBrook Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.99
Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy
by Karen Foxlee
from Yearling
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
Pay Attention, Carter Jones
by Gary D. Schmidt
from Clarion Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Penderwicks in Spring
by Jeanne Birdsall
from Yearling
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Return of Zita the Space Girl
Zita the Spacegirl #3
by Ben Hatke
Fir from First Second
for 1st-6th grade
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$14.99
Rise
by Trip Lee, foreword by John Piper
from Thomas Nelson Publishers
for 7th-12th grade
in Growing Up Christian (Location: XCL-GROW)
$19.99
Sam the Man and the Chicken Plan
by Frances O'Roark Dowell, Illustrated by Amy June Bates
from Atheneum
for 2nd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Same Kind of Different as Me
by Ron Hall & Denver Moore with Lynn Vincent
from Thomas Nelson Publishers
for 10th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$18.99
Secret Keepers
by Trenton Lee Stewart
from Little, Brown & Company
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$9.99
Secrets at Sea
by Richard Peck
from Puffin Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
Seeds of America - Boxed Set
by Laurie Halse Anderson
from Atheneum
for 4th-8th grade
in Boxed Sets & Literature Packages (Location: FIC-BOX)
$26.99 $17.00 (1 in stock)
Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus
by Nabeel Qureshi
3rd edition from Zondervan
for Adult
in Islam & Sharia Law (Location: XAP-ISL)
$24.99
Sherwood Ring
by Elizabeth Marie Pope
from Sandpiper Books
for 10th-12th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Sled Dog School
by Terry Lynn Johnson
from Houghton Mifflin
for 3rd-6th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$9.99
Some Writer!
by Melissa Sweet
from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$18.99 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Stella Endicott and the Anything-is-Possible Poem
Tales from Deckawoo Drive Book 5
by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Chris Van Dusen
from Candlewick Press
for 1st-4th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$6.99
Sunny
Track book #3
by Jason Reynolds
from Atheneum
for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Sweep
by Jonathan Auxier
from Harry N. Abrams, Inc.
for 5th-9th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.99
Tangerine
by Edward Bloor
from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
for 4th-7th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99
Tending the Heart of Virtue
by Vigen Guroian
unknown from Oxford University
in Literary Analysis & Reference (Location: LIR-LAR)
$36.95
Thief
by Megan Whalen Turner
Reissue from Greenwillow Books
for 9th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$12.99
Through Gates of Splendor
by Elisabeth Elliot
from Tyndale House
Biography for 8th-Adult
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$16.99
Tiger Boy
by Mitali Perkins
from Charlesbridge
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Training Hearts, Teaching Minds
by Starr Meade
from P&R Publishing
in Family Worship (Location: BIB-FAWO)
$16.99 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Transformed by Truth
by Katherine Forster
from Crossway Books
for 7th-12th grade
in Bible Study & Reference for Kids (Location: BIB-STU)
$11.99
Trial and Triumph
by Richard Hannula
from Canon Press
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in Church History for Kids (Location: XCH-KID)
$21.00
Tuck Everlasting
by Natalie Babbitt
from Square Fish Publishing
Fantasy for 5th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99 $5.00 (2 in stock)
Twelve Kinds of Ice
by Ellen Bryan Obed
from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
for 4th-7th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$6.99
Under Our Skin
by Benjamin Watson & Ken Peterson
from Tyndale House
for Adult
in Practical Christian Living (Location: XCL-PRAC)
$15.99
Vanderbeekers and the Hidden Garden
Vanderbeekers #2
by Karina Yan Glaser
from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
for 3rd-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99
Vanderbeekers to the Rescue
Vanderbeekers #3
by Karina Yan Glaser
from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
We’re Not from Here
by Geoff Rodkey
from Yearling
for 3rd-6th grade
in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI)
$8.99
Wednesday Wars
by Gary D. Schmidt
from Sandpiper Books
for 4th-6th grade
2008 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99
When Stars Are Scattered
by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed
from Dial Books for Young Readers
for 3rd-6th grade
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$12.99
Why Does God Let Bad Things Happen?
Big Questions Series
by Chris Morphew, Illustrated by Emma Randall
from Good Book Company
for 3rd-8th grade
in Worldview & Apologetics for Kids (Location: BIBWV-APK)
$12.99
Wingfeather Tales
by Andrew Peterson, et al.
from Rabbit Room Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
You Bring the Distant Near
by Mitali Perkins
from Square Fish Publishing
for 6th-12th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$11.99
You Who?
by Rachel Jankovic
from Canon Press
for 11th-Adult
in Practical Christian Living (Location: XCL-PRAC)
$14.95
Zita the Space Girl - Boxed Set
by Ben Hatke
from First Second
for 1st-6th grade
in Boxed Sets & Literature Packages (Location: FIC-BOX)
$44.97
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