Hello, hello, m'darlin's! Welcome to the first day of Five Fall Favorites (yes, I'm spelling it American style, because I was told I could). The theme this year is "Blessings of Life", and we're beginning with Community.

Honestly, community is something I'm not great at - not in person, at least. I used to be an extrovert, but in recent years I've become much more of a Hobbit hermit, happy to hide in the hole I call home. But somehow I acquire online friends quite easily without trying, and I've accumulated a large collection of older adults (including lots of older wargamers) as friends as well.

(Ahem. If you saw this post earlier with only one book listed, I apologize. I didn't realize we were sharing FIVE books every day . . . pardon me whilst I run and collect four more. 😅)

1. Redwall by Brian Jacques

When I hear "community", the first book I think of is the Redwall series by Brian Jacques. The whole series is built around and named after Redwall Abbey, which is a delightful, cozy place filled with mice, squirrels, otters, hedgehogs, and other woodland critters. It was a staple of my teenage years, and I love my mismatched collection of the volumes. 🥰

Most all of the books could embody community, really, but for the sake of this post we'll go with the first one, Redwall.

The first book in the series, it was the first one I read (as one should). Well, actually, I listened to the audiobook, and it sucked me in from the beginning. I LOVED the immersive world Brian Jacques had created, and the rest was history.

The spoiler-free storyline, for those who haven't read it, is as follows: an evil rat warlord is determined to conquer Redwall Abbey and its peaceful inhabitants, and the young mouse Matthias is just as determined to resist them and the find the lost sword of Martin the Warrior, legendary fighter and founder of Redwall.

2. The Tale of Ginger and Pickles by Beatrix Potter

So, I love Beatrix Potter . . . and this story is just as charming as her other ones. Ginger and Pickles (a dog and cat, respectively) run a little shop in a charming English country town. But they're always giving their customers things on credit, and inevitably those customers never pay. It's such a cute, funny story!

3. Patriot at the River by Jayna Baas

So obviously this book is the second in the For Liberty and Conscience series, but I read it first because I won it in a giveaway. 😆 Community definitely plays a very large role in here - I love the little town of Sunrising, how all the folks know each other, even if there are one or two unsavory characters. 😳 Aunt Kate, the innkeeper, is awesome and feisty, and the whole town is sort of like family to Benjamin and his sister.

4. The World According to Humphrey by Betty G. Birney

I still love cute MG books, so there. The World According to Humphrey follows a classroom hamster in a middle school. He loves all the students and takes his job as classroom pet very seriously, learning to write in his little notebook that he hides behind the mirror in his cage, and trying to help his humans with all their life problems. This is just the first book in a long series and they're all adorable!

5. The Swamp Robber by Paul Hutchens

Y'all, I can't tell you how much I love the Sugar Creek Gang. They've been one of my favorite series ever since I was about 10 or so. I love the small-town Americana feel, the adventures (including a fistfight every now and then, lol) and the solid Christian messages. The Swamp Robber got me hooked right from the start! The gang is so much fun, and the little community of Sugar Creek, Indiana, feels like someplace I'd like to live (at least for a little while).

Because there are so many FFF participants, we've all been divided up into teams. I'm part of Team Hedgehog - yay!

Check out my fellow Hedgehogs' book recommendations!

• Abigail @Read Review Rejoice
• Madisyn @Madi's Musings
• Ryana Lynn @Life of Heritage Corner
• Savannah @Blue Flower Story Company

Also, and here's where it gets exciting, we have daily freebies and a giveaway! Our hosts, Katja and Kate, will be sharing about the free books in their posts, and here is the link to the giveaway!

Also, Kate and Katja have the lists of the other teams and their members, so you'll want to check them out too!