I have recently found two more books that will appeal to women in these final days of summer. Whether you plan on spending a few relaxing days at the beach or just an afternoon in the backyard, these slender volumes should provide just the amount of uplift you need.

Tug of War: Choosing between Zion and Babylon, by popular Time Out for Women speaker and writer Mary Ellen Edmunds, demonstrates how the “obvious” choice between happiness, light, and peace on the one hand and worldliness, darkness, and misery on the other is not quite so clear-cut as it appears.

Edmunds contrasts the seemingly relentless pursuit of “more” with gratitude for and increased awareness of blessings, and questions what kinds of messages our values are teaching our children. Personal examples and scriptural insights, along with questions to ponder, make this Time Out Classic a worthwhile and doable read. (Deseret Book 2013, 64 pages in hardcover, $10.99.)

Another Time Out speaker, Laurel Christensen, contributes The Faith Experiment to the cause of LDS women living more sanely. “What stands in the way of your being the person you want to be?” she asks. It’s a question she has asked herself. The book relates her solution to putting limits on ourselves:

Although her experience with losing weight and finishing a half-marathon may not be Everywoman’s metaphor, her delightful telling of that journey, plus the invitation to pray, think, and live with faith will resonate with many. (Deseret Book 2013, 55 pages in hardcover, $10.99.)