May 9, 2014

Book Review: The Greatest Star on Earth

Katie May 9, 2014 0Comment

The Greatest Star on Earth is actually the 2nd book in a series.  I have not read the first and didn’t feel like I was missing out on anything because of it.  The book is about Sir Sidney’s Circus – which is the best in the world!  The Circus Times writer knows this – but as decided that she wants to try and figure out who is the greatest star in the show?  Sir Sidney finds out about this and that there is only one trophy and ends up giving himself a worry wart.  His doctor sends him off to rest and the performers start over thinking about what they want to do to win the trophy.

One by one under the instruction of the new ringmaster Barnabas, the stars start getting injured because they are trying to impress the writer in order to win the trophy.  Meanwhile, Barnabas isn’t that great at managing the crew so 2 of the mice start telling him what to do by writing him a book and making up rules for him to follow so they won’t be fed goop!

Who ends up the star of the circus? Does Sir Sidney’s worry wart go away? Find out all this – and more! In The Greatest Star On Earth.

This was a super cute kids book, with a great moral to the story.  I had been putting off reading it for quite some time because it was over 100 pages – but it actually went super quick as the book is part text, part comic with illustrations and thought bubbles and a few of the letters and book chapters and newspaper clippings are included as well.  I think I ended up reading it in under an hour – so this would be a great weekend read for your young reader!

I received a free e-copy of this book in order to write this review. I was not otherwise compensated.

About the Book

The rascals from the world’s friendliest family circus are back in the second installment of this “smafunderful”* fully illustrated series.

Everyone knows Sir Sidney’s Circus is the best in the world. But who’s the star of the show? The Circus Times is having a contest to find out. Just thinking about it gives Sir Sidney a worrywart, and it’s quickly clear why. Soon after he goes off to rest, the performers start thinking too much about winning the trophy and not enough about putting on a good show.

Meanwhile, it looks as if ringmaster-in-training Barnabas Brambles might need some help managing the crew, so Bert and Gert, the sly brother-and-sister mice who travel with the show, set out to write a book to teach him how it’s done.

Does Bert and Gert’s plan work? And who is the star of the circus? All will be revealed in The Greatest Star on Earth.

Book Review: iRules

Katie May 9, 2014 0Comment

iRules: What every tech-healthy family needs to know about selfies, sexting, gaming and growing up.  I don’t have any kids but I am always curious about these books and how they are warning kids about technology.  And to be honest, a lot of these rules should be given to some over-sharing adults as well.  Part1 of the book focuses on RESPECT.  Awareness and Action as well as The Golden Rule are the chapters.  Part 2 is about RESPONSIBILITY Manners Matter, Work!, Sex and Technology are what it focuses on and Part 3 is all about LIVE FULLY – Be Present, Technology is Fun and Eyes Up and Heart Open. There is also a workbook, glossary, popular social netweoking sites and popular abbreviations for online communication.

The book starts with a contract given to the authors oldest son, Gregory, when he got his first iPhone.  While I love this idea – it makes me crazy that 13 year old kids have smartphones! I got my first cell phone when I graduated high school and smart phones didn’t exist.  Maybe I’m just jealous and old fashioned but I don’t see why kids need fancy phones like that when they are so young.  A simple one should due. (Although I do know that these are becoming harder and harder to find.)

Otherwise – if I get over this issue that I have, I think that the book makes some great points about using respect and being responsible.  This should go for everything – not just technology usage.  If you have young kids who are starting to or already have been using technology, this book will probably have some techniques for you to think about when allowing your children to use these devices.  I like the authors use of contracts with the children and she seems to have an open relationship with her kids and tries to talk to them about things and being respectful and getting them to think about technology from all aspects – how it will affect them, their friends, their family and their friends families, etc.

I received a free e-copy of this book in order to write this review. I was not otherwise compensated.

About the Book

As Janell Burley Hofmann, mother of five, wrapped her 13-year-old’s iPhone on Christmas Eve, she was overwhelmed by questions: “Will my children learn to sit and wonder without Googling? Should I know their passwords for online accounts? Will they experience the value of personal connection without technology?”

To address her concerns, she outlined boundaries and expectations in a contract for her son to sign upon receiving his first cell phone. When Hofmann’s editor at The Huffington Postposted the contract, now known as iRules, it resonated on a massive scale and went viral, resulting in a tsunami of media coverage and requests. It quickly became apparent that people across the country were hungry for more.
In iRules, Hofmann provides families with the tools they need to find a balance between technology and human interaction through a philosophy she calls Slow Tech Parenting. In the book, she educates parents about the online culture tweens and teens enter the minute they go online, exploring issues like cyberbullying, friend fail, and sexting, as well as helping parents create their own iRules contracts to fit their families’ needs. As funny and readable as it is prescriptive, iRules will help parents figure out when to unplug and how to stay in sync with the changing world of technology, while teaching their children self-respect, integrity, and responsibility.

Book Review: Skinny Bitch Gets Hitched

Katie May 9, 2014 0Comment

Skinny Bitch Gets Hitched is another book in the Skinny Bitch series. (I had previously reviewed Skinny Bitch In Love.) The book starts with Clementine Cooper running her own restaurant and making a cake for the wedding of a relative of her boyfriend’s. While she is at his place working on the cake, she finds an engagement ring and thinks that Zach is going to propose to her.  When she sees a different proposal at the wedding, with the ring she thought was hers, she gets upset and goes to her kitchen to bake.  However, as the title suggests, Zach does later propose to Clem.  The rest of the book is following her meeting Zach’s family and planning the wedding.

On top of the wedding planning, she is also waiting for a New York Times reporter to come to the restaurant and check out her food and hopefully get a mention in the Sunday Travel section.  Her future mother-in-law is all about planning the wedding but seems to be coming up with all sorts of ideas that Clem wants nothing to do with.  It seems that she barely has time to breathe and then she decides that she is going to open up another restaurant as well.  Meanwhile, Zach’s Aunt sends her a marriage bucket list and she and her roomie Sara (also newly engaged) decide to try and complete them all!  Whew. Just trying to remember all that tired me out  – and I’m sure there’s some I’m missing!

I really enjoyed this book and the author’s writing style.  It was a quick and easy read and an enjoyable story, despite all the  stress our main character is under! There are a lot of different characters in this book – some new and some old and I found that the author did a great job telling us about each of them so that we feel like we know them and their relationships with the other characters.  Put aside half a day and you’ll have no problem reading this chick-lit book in one sitting!

I received a free e-copy of this book in order to write this review. I was not otherwise compensated.

About the Book

SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW, SOMETHING VEGAN, SOMETHING BLUE . . .

For the second time in just a few short months, Clementine Cooper’s professional reputation hinges on one restaurant review. Clementine’s No Crap Café is poised to score the Holy Grail of publicity—a mention in the New York Times Sunday travel section—if Clem’s veggietastic lasagna can bowl over the food critic.

Clem has no time for distractions. Or surprises. But when her meat-eating millionaire boyfriend Zach Jeffries shocks her with a sweet and romantic marriage proposal, of course she says yes! Now she has to plan the most important menu of her life while fending off her domineering future mother-in-law’s extravagant plans for the wedding.

As if there wasn’t enough on her plate, Clem decides to open a second restaurant on her parents’ farm—Clem’s No Crap Outpost— against Zach’s advice. Just when she needs his support the most, Zach grows distant. The only person who really seems to understand is Clem’s friend and biggest competition, the cute vegan chef Alexander Orr. Putting out fires in the kitchen is easy—but in her relationship? Suddenly, her time with Alexander feels . . . hotter . . . than usual, and Clem starts to wonder if the charming carnivore she’s engaged to is really the man she should spend her life with.