November 21, 2014

Book Review: Mom Made Us Write This In The Summer

Katie November 21, 2014 0Comment

Mom Made Us Write This Is The Summer is the journal of Maggie and Max, twins who are ending 4th grade and gearing up for 5th grade.  Their Mom wants them to learn to communicate with each other better so she decides that they will keep a journal throughout the summer – in ONE journal that they have to share.  The rules are that they have to write 12 entries throughout the course of the summer.  They alternate who starts which entry – and they get to pick the topic (unless Mom tells them what to write.) So there are entries about ice cream, baseball, doctors visits, the zoo, etc.  The book is done in Max and Maggie’s handwriting so it is just like you are reading their journal.  They also read each others entries and leave notes and drawings / doodles on each other’s entries which was a cute addition.  Mom picked the last topic where they needed to go over what they learned.

This is a super cute book for kids and would be perfect to have kids read as a summer reading book (and maybe even then have them start a journal of their own afterwards!)

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

About the Book

Mom Made Us Write This In The Summer is a children’s book by Ali Maier, written for ages 8 – 12.

A sister and brother, forced to write in the summer, and share ONE journal? Ugh.

This is exactly what happens to 10-year-old twins Maggie and Max Pruitt. When Mom comes up with a plan for them to keep a summer journal, Maggie and Max can’t believe it. Worse yet, they have to share!

Through their writing, Maggie and Max find out they have very different (and hilarious) views about growing up, family and life – a conclusion they only discovered because, as Max and Maggie say, “Mom Made Us Write This.”

Mom Made Us Write This In The Summer is a journal-style book for children that captures the essence of sibling relationships. Anyone with a brother or sister will identify with the fun and struggles that Max and Maggie experience this summer! From a trip to the zoo to the annual check-up at the docs – read all about the life adventures of Maggie & Max.

The series also includes ‘Mom Made Us Write This: Write Your Own Shared Journal’ and ‘Mom Made Us Write This Family Quiz Book’.

Book Review: Breaking All Her Rules

Katie November 21, 2014 0Comment

Breaking All Her Rules is about a financial adviser named Grace who meets an artistic cowboy when they are sharing a cab in New York City.  They accidentally swapped cell phones, so of course that meant that they had to meet up again after their first chance encounter.  Grace has a lot of rules that she has made for herself which she lives by – which basically means she is not spontaneous, she doesn’t do anything that might be outside the box and is trying to make her family proud of her.  All that goes out the window when she meets up with Zack and he is in a towel.  She decides that she can throw her rules away for one day – but then it becomes a one night stand time two… three… can you even call it a one night stand anymore? (Nah.)  Zack has his own baggage as well – his daughter died and he ended up divorced and doesn’t want to ever love again.  Will the two go against everything they think is right for themselves to be together?

This was another one of Cosmo’s Red Hot Reads – this is one of the better ones that I have read.  It was nice to see Grace sort of come undone and let loose a little bit throughout the book.  It was also nice to see how Grace made Zach let his guard down a bit and try to let her into his heart – even though he was trying so hard for that to not happen. A cute and quick read.

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

About the Book

Buttoned-up financial consultant Grace Song lives life by her own strict rules. Spontaneity leads to chaos. Always play it safe. So when she shares a Manhattan cab with a handsome stranger and they accidentally swap cell phones, her first instinct is to track him down and put things right. Stay on track. Stick with the plan.

But when beyond-gorgeous Zack Camden answers the door draped only in a towel, Grace is suddenly inspired to ditch her rules for a day…and a night. Indulging in one delicious encounter with a perfect stranger is just the break she needs. But one turns into two, then three mind-blowing nights—and soon Grace is in danger of breaking the biggest rule of them all—never fall in love….

Book Review: Hard Drive

Katie November 21, 2014 0Comment

Hard Drive is written by the cousin and mother of Shane Todd, an American Engineer who took a job in Singapore.  He was supposed to be leaving his job and coming back home to the US – but he is found hanged in his apartment and several suicide notes were written for his family and friends on his computer and it is figured it is just a suicide.  By Shane’s family knows better.  Earlier he had mentioned that he thought his life was being threatened to his family. The suicide notes don’t add up.  They are not written by Shane. If he didn’t write them – he didn’t commit suicide.

A break in the case comes when Shane’s parents find a hard drive with the backup of a lot of Shane’s files on it.  The police seem to think that there is nothing important on it and claim that they checked it out and gave it to his parents.  His parents story suggests otherwise. His parents use it to try and prove that Shane’s death was NOT a suicide.

This book would have been great if it was fiction – but the fact that it is non fiction just kind of blew my mind.  Shane seemed like he was very bright and had a great future ahead of him.

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

About the Book

For the First Time in Print!
THE CAPTIVATING, TRUE STORY OF THE MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF YOUNG AMERICAN ENGINEER, DR. SHANE TODD
–Shane’s family’s grueling battle against powerful forces that have sought to conceal, destroy, or discredit evidence surrounding his murder

On June 24, 2012, Dr. Shane Truman Todd, a young American engineer, was found hanging in his Singapore apartment, just a week before his scheduled return to the United States. Although Shane had repeatedly expressed apprehension about his work with a Chinese company and fear his life was being threatened, authorities immediately ruled his death a suicide. His family initially didn’t know what to believe. However, upon arriving in Singapore, they realized the evidence suggested not suicide, but murder.

Shane’s family later discovered that what they thought was a computer speaker was actually an external hard drive with thousands of files from Shane’s computer. The information in those files transformed this story from a tragic suicide to an international saga of mystery, deceit, and cover-up, involving three countries. “Hard Drive: A Families Fight against Three Countries” is the captivating story of Shane’s mysterious death and his family’s grueling battle to reveal the truth against powerful forces that have sought to conceal, destroy, or discredit evidence indicating homicide. This story, which is told from the unique perspective of Shane’s mother, Mary, recounts the family’s painful, arduous, and unwavering endeavor to reveal the truth about what happened to Shane Todd in Singapore

Book Review: High Notes

Katie November 21, 2014 0Comment

High Notes is a book by Richard Loren that documents working with various rock legends over the years. It all started with Liberace and he was working as a music agent.  There are mentions of a local venue – Toad’s Place in New Haven,CT. (Not that I’m sure I’ll ever step foot in there again, unless it’s a Hanson show, of course) and of course the infamous Doors concert that was held there.  Part 1 of the book focuses on when Richard was based in New York.  Part 2 is much shorter and focuses on Richard’s time in Los Angeles.  Part 3 & 4 focus on the grateful dead.  And of course, based on the title, there’s lots of mentions of drugs!

Found it funny, or maybe ironic? that he mentioned that he had an “old hippie brain” and that therefore may have left some out in his book. That’s code for I messed up my brain with drugs and now can’t remember stuff, right? 😉

It was nice to read, once again, a bit of an insiders experience on the music industry from back before everything was so fabricated like it is now!

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

About the Book

Richard Loren recalls his journey through the turbulent eras of rock‘s ascendancy in his new book, High Notes: A Rock Memoir, Working with Rock Legends Jefferson Airplane Through The Doors to the Grateful Dead. With never-before-told stories, Loren offers a humorous and heartfelt account that illuminates music history and provides telling insights into some of the most notable entertainment personalities of the late twentieth century. Eminently readable and authentic, readers will find Loren’s inside look fascinating and satisfying. 

“High Notes is part history, part travelogue, part cultural coming-of-age tale,” explains Loren. “The rock ‘n’ roll icons that inspired and shaped a generation were my personal mentors, business partners, and friends. Through my experiences, music and pop-culture lovers gain a reflective insider’s perspective on these amazing artists in one of the most compelling periods of American history.”

High Notes is broken up into four colorful, story-filled sections:

· Part One: New York City – My life with Jefferson Airplane, The Doors and the Chambers Brothers
· Part Two: Stinson Beach, California – David Grisman, the Rowan Brothers, Garcia-Saunders, Old and in the Way
· Part Three: The Grateful Dead – Politics, Grateful Dead Movie, Garcia Bands, Egypt, Saturday Night Live, Alaska, Radio City Music Hall
· Part Four: The Grateful Dead Merry-Go-Round – Germany, Mississippi River Boat, Watch the River Flow, Sirens of Titan, Garcia-Grisman 

Uniquely personal, Loren provides insight and revelation with his singular take on the rich, famous and powerful people he encountered during his days as an agent, manager and promoter. High Notes is must read for those who lived through the times and for those who want to share a personal perspective on one of rock’s most formative and fascinating eras.