Travelling Seeds

Bielawski, R. (2014). Travelling Seeds: Book 3 Mummy Nature. Self published.

Children's / Picture Book / Informational / Nature

I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars

 

In Travelling** Seeds, the third book in the Mummy Nature Series, readers will follow the precious and precocious narrator as she observes and explains the path of a pear seed, starting with the pear hanging on a tree. Readers may be surprised by what happens to the pear seed, and its likely there will be a few giggles and wrinkled noses at the mention and illustrations of poop in the process. 

The rhyming format mostly works well, though sometimes it flows better than others. The vocabulary is simple, but there is some random punctuation (likely to keep the rhyme flow) and some random capitalization. There is more white space on pages than in the prior book, Bees Like Flowers, but the bright, beautiful illustrations will keep readers engaged and smiling.  

As with the prior books in the series, author Rebecca Bielawksi includes a supplemental section at the end and in this book, it tells of a few other ways that seeds travel. The book will work with very young children as a read-aloud or read along, but the book may be a little text heavy in the second half for newly independent readers to read alone.

Thank you to author for providing me an eBook copy in exchange for my honest review -- the only kind I give.

**UK spelling

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Once upon a time in England there was a Kiwi girl. She was unsatisfied with her job peeling onions at a factory in Norfolk and yearned for a better life were she could harness her untapped artistic potential and unleash all her pent up rhymes. One day when she realized she had no tears left to cry for the onions she packed up and moved to Spain, fell in love with a handsome Systems Administrator, had two kids, became a children's author and lived happily ever after.  

Learn more about the author and her books: 

GOODREADS  WEBSITE  TWITTER  FACEBOOK

Related:

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Fuzzy Buzzy's Treasure

Baker, M. (2015). Fuzzy Buzzy's Treasure. Self-published.

Children's Picture Book / Informational / Lesson

I gave this book 4 of 5 stars

When Fuzzy Buzzy discovers a field of flowers, she decides to keep the location a secret from her sister bumblebees -- after all, finders keepers! Soon Fuzzy Buzzy realizes that she can't possibly pollinate all the flowers and that there's more nectar than she can ever drink, but it's not until she sees that the flowers are suffering that she realizes the right thing to do. 

Children will absolutely love this beautifully illustrated story!  Fuzzy Buzzy's Treasure not only informs readers about bumblebees and the pollination process, but it also manages to gently teach a lesson about the consequences of greed and the benefits of sharing.  The illustrations by K.A. King are precious and make viewing every page a pleasure. (I just want to hug those little baby bumblebees!)  Additionally, as a supplement at the end of the story, author Misty Baker has included some fast facts about bumblebees as well as links to websites to learn more about bumblebees and ways to help them. 

Given the target audience for the book, I did feel like some pages were text heavy, and there were some lengthy sentences that younger readers might struggle to read. As such, it may best be used as a read-along, which is ideal anyhow so that adults can discuss Fuzzy Buzzy's actions and also what is real and what is fantasy in the bumblebee world.  I would have liked to see a few more pages added and a little more editing so that the overall presentation was more balanced and simpler to read.

Fuzzy Buzzy's Treasure can be enjoyed by kids of all ages since the bees are presented in a non-threatening, friendly way.  Thank you to the author for providing me a print copy in exchange for my honest review -- the only kind I give!

 

LEARN MORE ABOUT AUTHOR MISTY BAKER and her books on her WEBSITE, on TWITTER, or on FACEBOOK.

RELATED: 

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Click for Hall Ways Review!

Click for Hall Ways Review!

 

Instant Memory: How to Improve Memory Instantly! (The INSTANT-Series)

(2014). Instant Memory: How to Improve Memory Instantly! (The INSTANT-Series). NY: Instant-Series Publication.

Adult / YA / Self-help / Informational

I gave this book 3 of 5 stars

CURRENTLY $0.99 ON AMAZON!

"The good news is that the quality of our memory is not set in stone the moment we are born." -- Instant Memory: How to Improve Memory Instantly

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

          I just finished reading Instant Memory and liked the content and the practical information provided. The quick read -- it's just 40 pages or so and has lots of white space -- reminds readers that the brain is a muscle and must be exercised to keep it at its healthiest. As promised, the book provides memory tricks and methods that have been around as long as the hills and are effective. I immediately tried the Mind Palace Method and the Chunking Method (to memorize a list and an account number, respectively) and found that these methods really worked! A third method, the Peg Method and its various iterations, wasn't as effective for me and felt more like it was just an extra level of memorization, so I lost interest in that one; however, it may work for others. The book also offers reminders of basic memory boosters that readers often forget about in their harried lives: paying full attention, avoiding multitasking, engage all of your senses, and visualizing, to name a few.  

          Unfortunately, the book is full of writing errors, which is problematic for me. There are punctuation errors and agreement errors, which many can overlook, but there are also some sentences that don't make sense at all, and other phrasings (like in many sub-headings) that are awkwardly written and/or have random, distracting question marks at the end. It is not that the book is written too informally -- I'd be okay with that -- it's that the book is not well written; hence the 3 stars.  A thorough, professional editing would go a long ways in taking this book to the next level and raising the quality and clarity.   

          There are bunches of books in the Instant Series, with topics ranging from speed reading to meditation. Click here to check out their website.  

          Thank you to the publisher, who provided me a free eBook copy in exchange for my honest review --- the only kind I give.  

You can also follow Instant Series on Facebook, Twitter, or Google+

Bielawski, R. (2014). Bees Like Flowers. Self published.

Children's / Picture Book / Informational

I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars!

Children will read along and learn as our happy young narrator shows readers, in a very simple and non-threatening way, that bees are worthy of a closer look. Author Rebecca Bielawski uses rhyme along with beautiful illustrations to explain the process of pollination and where bees live, and she throws in a few gentle words of caution about stings. In a supplemental section at the end, insects are defined and flowers shown in the story are identified, and there’s even an invitation to the readers to go back and find the flowers in the illustrations. Whether used as a read-aloud or for new readers to tackle alone, Bees Like Flowers is a fun and appealing teaching tool about the life of bees.

The rhyming is very well done and kudos to Bielawski for using easy simple phrases and easy to read print.  There is a repeated use of “cos,” which could create some confusion since the target audience is children learning to read and it’s not a word.  It sounds good when read aloud – though “‘cause” would have worked just as well -- but its use may need to be explained. The illustrations are what really put it over the top. This book is so cute that readers will want to hug it. For starters, the sweet-faced little girl narrating the story is precious and obviously precocious, and she’s not afraid to climb a tree or get her hands dirty as she tromps about nature.  And NATURE! Nature is drawn so vividly and beautifully – the bees have soft, gentle expressions and are definitely represented as friends, not foes. While some of the flowers do have faces, others are drawn very realistically where children would be able to identify them in their own yards and gardens.  Though the location isn’t ever told, readers will want to immerse themselves in the lovely setting of Bees Like Flowers, and this book will be read again and again.

Bees Like Flowers is book two in a series called Mummy Nature.

This book was reviewed for Readers' Favorite, who provided me a free eBook in exchange for my honest review -- the only kind I give.

Choke

Lopez, D. (2012) Choke. NY: Scholastic.
YA Fiction / Realistic Fiction

QuickNEasey, 230 pages, ages 10-14

I gave this 3 out of 45 stars in Goodreads.

Important topic and message, especially since it hadn't occurred to me that people -- kids -- would play a game of choking each other until they pass out. Sometimes my blinders get the best of me and don't permit me to think such things happen in the real world. 

In any case, the story was good, but it really was written a bit too simply for the main character to be an eighth grader.  It is written for ages 8-12, so I guess it was spot-on for the writing level. . . and I suppose that readers in that range will think it's cool to have the main character be an eighth grader. There needs to be another version, bumped by a couple of years, so that teenagers are the audience.

The message is strong and clear about trusting your instincts, being yourself, honoring yourself and your friendships.  I liked, too, that consequences of bad decisions were shown and not sugar-coated.  Any girl struggling with wanting to belong to the popular crowd or just wanting to belong somewhere would benefit from reading this story.

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

Chua, A. (2011). Battle Hymn of the 
      Tiger Mother. NY: Penguin.
Adult / Adult for YA Biography - Memoir

I'm including this book on my blog because I actually think teenagers who read this will like it - in a horrifying way. If nothing else, it will probably make most quite appreciative for the parenting styles they enjoy in their own homes!  There are plenty of "oh-no-she-didn't" moments that are funny and scary at the same time.

If you read this book as a memoir, which I believe it was intended to be, and not as a parenting guide, it's a great book.  Chua is brutally honest about her behavior and doesn't make excuses.  She is, after all, a Chinese Mother and aspires to be nothing else (aside from a successful career woman herself).  It introduces an interesting premise that any child can achieve greatness when they are forced to do so.  

What would be really interesting is to hear from the daughters, maybe ten years down the line.  Do they love their mother? Do they yearn to be something other than what she created?  Do they have emotional problems?  And how in the world did they feel when their last minute handmade birthday cards to their mother were REJECTED? (How I wish I'd have tried that trick a time or two!)

It's a very quick read and the writing flows well, and you definitely go through all kinds of feelings for everyone in the family -- including the dog that can't perform to the Chinese Mother's expectations!

If you'd like to look at pictures of the family and/or read a bit about The Tiger Mother and her family, go to her website at http://amychua.com/ .

Skinny

Cooner, D. (COMING OCTOBER 2012). Skinny. NY:Scholastic.

YA-Lit / Realistic Fiction 
Thank you TLA Conference and Scholastic for this free, uncorrected proof copy!

QuickNEasy, 272 pages, ages 13+

I gave this 3 out of 5 stars on Goodreads.

I really wish I had written about this right after I finished reading it because I know I had so much to say about this book.

First, my impression five weeks, several books, and six hours of grad school later, is that this was a GOOD book.  It was poignant, painful, infuriating, funny. . .  I wanted to shake Ever by the shoulders and tell her to wake-up and see who she really is in the mirror instead of judging herself by her outward appearance.  Ever is her own worst enemy, and even as she battles her weight, it's the weight of her own beliefs and assumptions that truly weigh her down and repel the people who want to love her.

I am not so naive or so old that I don't know or remember what it was like in high school; I understand how cruel people can be to the less than perfect, regardless of how smart or talented or funny they are. Cooner did an outstanding job of describing this scene, though if anything, it wasn't as bad as the reality would be.  Cooner also did an outstanding job of keeping the reader on an emotional see-saw.  Ever would triumph, Ever would fail. Ever would succeed, Ever would undermine her own success.

Though I have never been obese, like most females will over the course of their life, I have struggled with my weight, and I have felt the comfort (and hidden it from everyone else) of a bag of M&Ms.  There was so much in this story to which any female could relate.

OF NOTE: I did not picture Ever looking anything like the girl on this cover. bleh.
 

Heaven Is For Real

Burpo, T. (2010). Heaven Is For Real: A Little Boy's Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, Inc.

Fiction? Non-Fiction? Memoir

I typically don't read these kind of books -- first accounts of paranormal experiences or encounters with God, Jesus, or angels.  Of course, this isn't actually a first account since the alleged experiences in Heaven were by a child too young to compile them into a book.  But therein lies the draw -- we are operating on faith and want to believe, while at the same time we want some proof!

There are plenty of reasons one could read the book and not be convinced that the boy spent time in Heaven: primarily, his father is an evangelical preacher, and it can be assumed that his message was preached at home as well as on the pulpit.  Children are sponges and it doesn't seem unlikely or outlandish that a four-year-old would be able to repeat what he'd heard at home or in Sunday school teachings.  The father asserts that the depictions  his young son gave were too specific and things to which the child wouldn't have possibly been exposed. Maybe.

At the same time, there were plenty of reasons to believe this child had spent time with Jesus and in Heaven, based on what the father says he said.  For example, [the father says] that the boy said he met his sister in Heaven.  The boy's mother said he told him he didn't have a sister, but the boy said his sister told him she'd died before she was born.   The mother had indeed miscarried a child but said they had never shared that information with the little boy. Compelling, but again, the reader must take it on faith that the boy never overheard or picked-up on it before. 

There was one event that did make me consider the possibility was real that the child had been with Jesus in his near-death experience.  I won't elaborate, but it has to do with the one painting (of hundreds he'd seen) which he claims looks just like Jesus.

The book was quick and easy to read, and it definitely is something to ponder. It doesn't really matter if we believe this child spent time in Heaven; he and his family certainly do and that's what's important.  If that helps them or others grow in their faith, then I'm all for it.