Saturday, January 14, 2017

Wonderful Books for the Imagination


Can you See the Magic by Chris Stead  Artwork by Els Dirickx
Genre:  Children's Picture Book
Source:  I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.


In my opinion, children's books should not just tell a great story, but they should spark the imagination. This is by far my favorite children's book of the new year. I have shared it with several teachers and students at school. It was great fun watching them look around the room and see the owl in the wood grain on my door or the dragon that is on theirs. This book  is great for ALL ages.  I teach middle school and my students loved it. Chris Stead has taken the artwork created by Els Dirickx, and created a story where you must use your imagination to see the magic around you. In this story two young children convince their father to walk around the farm with them to see the magic. The father, like most adults tells them there is no such thing as magic. The children assure him there is. They look at rusty old cars, and burnt pieces of wood.  This has reignited my already big imagination. I have always seen the magic in things. I used to drive my mother crazy with statements like, “Look at the face in the tile mom, it’s an old man with a droopy hat.” Our imagination served us well when we were growing up on our farm. We spent hours looking at the clouds and other items for the magic in them. I am already a fan of Chris Stead’s books. He worked his own magic when he paired up with this artist who creates something she calls Arikai Reverse art. The word Arikai is made from the names of two of her grandchildren Ari and Kai.

To find out more about Chris' books go to: http://oldmatemedia.com/

To find out more about Els Dirickx's artwork go to: http://www.arikaireverseart.com.au/








Morty's Travels by Anderson Atlas
Genre: Children, Science Fiction, Adventure
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

This is a strange and fun adventure story. Morty likes to play pranks on his dad. One morning he goes outside to find a slug to put in his dad's shoe. Instead, he finds a strange flower. The pollen from it causes him to sneeze and he is transported to another planet. He meets some friendly adventures and even finds a pet. This would make a great bed-time story. The pictures are wonderful.
Find out more about Anderson's work at: http://andersonatlas.com/

Tuesday, January 10, 2017

My Sister’s Mother: A Memoir of War, Exile, and Stalin’s Siberia by Donna Solecka Urbikas



Genre: Adult, Memoir
Source: I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.


After reading this book I was able to see that this type of thing is still going on today. Donna’s mother and sister lived in Poland during World War II.  They were plucked out of Poland and sent to a hard labor camp in Siberia. They grew very close as they fought to survive day by day. The experienced starvation, sickness and hard labor.  Years later after they had made it to the United States we learn that they have a relationship that Donna doesn’t have with either of them. The reason is that their time in Siberia created a bond that children to come later could never form with either of them. Their lives and the lives of those to come later were colored by those very experiences.  Now when I see the news and read about the refugees who were forced to flee their land I understand that those experiences will color their life. Those are memories that they will always have and will always influence future decisions as well as future children. I don’t think I ever considered how events like this would affect children not yet born.  It was eye opening to say the least. This is a very good book, yet at times tough to read. It made me realize how good so many of us have it with the freedoms we take for granted and the relationships we build with our families. I whole-heartedly recommend this book.

Sunday, January 8, 2017

A Second Reading Challenge - Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge

I have chosen a second reading challenge to participate in this year.  I had planned on doing this unofficially last year. I didn’t read one single book on my list. The reason is simple, if not an official challenge then it gets pushed to the back. I need that accountability.   So to help me with my backlog of books, especially those I agreed to review and found myself behind. I am officially joining this challenge.  You can find all of the rules for this simple challenge at the blog Escape With Dollycas. Just click on the blog title and you will be taken to her page for this challenge. The great thing about this challenge is that you don’t have to read the books in order. Most of the books on this list are books I’ve had for a while that I was supposed to read and review for the author. I can read them in the order I need to. As I read them I will link the books on this list to my review. You will be able to find them on my reading challenge page.


Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge

B -  Book of Nonsense by David Michael Slater
C - Coming Apart by Diane E. Robertson
D - D.E.M. Quid Pro Quo by Lee Ness
E - Egmont Key A History –by Donald & Carol Thompson
F - Fear Not  by  Sue Baker
G – The Guttersnipes by Scott Eric Barrett
H - Hearts of Fire by Gracie Burnham
I - I Never Knew Him by Marie Waltersbill
J - Jex Malone by C.L. Graber
K - Killers by David Dawson
L - Liberty by  Darcy Pattison
M - Meritorium by Joel Ohman
N - Ninelands by K.E. Boyer
O - OK is Great by David Tiefenthaler
P - Picaroons and Pembertons by J.A. Knighted
Q – Qumran by Jerry Amernic
R - Rocky’s Road by Rocky Kuznik
S – The Secret Key of Mim by Nan McAdam
T - Theo and a Horse Named Rocket by W.H. Raymond
U - Up From the Sea by Leeza Lowitz
V – The Viking’s Apprentice by Kevin McLeod
W - Wand-Paper Scissors: The Amazing Adventures of Harry Moon by Mark Andrew Poe
X -  Xavier: St. Griswold College for Abandoned Boys by E.M. Cooper
Y -  Yellow Star by Jennifer Roy
Z – ZZZZ by Catriona Crehan