Customer Comments

Wow. Simply wow. I LOVED this book. I couldn't put it down once I started and I am so excited that the publishing date is finally here because now I can shout from the rooftops about how amazing this book is and people can buy it starting tomorrow! It's been several years since I've read the first book, Princess Academy. I didn't think I would be able to remember everything when starting this book, but Hale does an exceptional job of catching her readers up and connecting the two books together seamlessly. I don't like it when authors over do it on the reminding readers of what happened in the previous book. I hate it when a TV show takes a commercial break and when you get back to the show, the actors just say the same exact lines over again. Hale does it naturally and effortlessly. I didn't feel like I was forgetting anything even though it's been such a long time. Miri is such a wonderful character for young girls and boys. She is intelligent, brave and isn't afraid to stand up for what she believes in, but she's also vulnerable and is conflicted by the decision to continue her education at the cost of being away from her family. In Palace of Stone, we find Miri leaving her home at Mount Eskel to go to school at the Queen's Castle, but when she arrives there she discovers there is unrest in the kingdom. Hale is such a masterful storyteller in the way she explores the complex issues of poverty, revolution, loyalty, friendship and love. She exposes the conflict that Miri feels regarding all these issues in such a honest, real way that I think will resonate with MG/YA readers and even adult ones. I enjoyed the journey with Miri as she tries to figure out what is the right thing to do. I honestly had no idea how the story was going to end, but I was pleasantly surprised with all the action! And the love triangle too! I can't wait to put this book in the hands of my students this year because I know it will bring up such rich discussions and push them to really think about hard issues that don't often show up in the books that they read. It's also in the September Scholastic Book Order and you know I'm going to push it when I do my "spotlight on recommendations" when the orders go home. :) Even though I was surprised that Palace of Stone was written as a sequel, because Princess Academy ended and wrapped up so nicely, it is the book that I didn't know I needed or wanted. I am so glad that Hale decided to finally write this because it is an amazing piece of literature. I will preface my next statement by saying that I am no expert in Newbery winners (because I've only read a dozen or so), but I think Palace of Stone should definitely be a contender for the Newbery this year (and not just an honor)! It is THAT good. Go get it, you won't regret it.

I simply adore Raina Telgemeier's work. It's one-of-a-kind and just draws you in even before the first page, the cover is gorgeous! I was first introduced to Telgemeier's work with the graphic novels she did for The Babysitters Club. I LOVED them. (Read my review: here) I didn't think anyone could do BSC justice as a graphic novel without making the characters too modern-looking (aka "hoochified" like how many of my other childhood characters have suffered from in their remakes - ex: Strawberry Shortcake). However, Telgemeier stayed true to the essence of each character and I just devoured all four books, as if I were 10 years old again. Therefore, I was SUPER excited to read Drama! The artwork is beautiful and I was found myself savoring each page in order to absorb all the little details in each of the boxes. I even loved the colors! The characters are fun and loveable. I enjoyed that the main character, Callie, is not necessarily the lead of the play (like Rachel on GLEE), but a part of the stage crew. She's a creative young lady who uses her set designing talents to help out behind the scenes. It definitely fits a middle grade/young-adult reader with all the DRAMA that goes on throughout the plot, including a love triangle (kind of a square, actually) and boy-girl relationships/friendships. I was surprised to see such a prominent theme of exploring sexuality. I tend to run on the conservative side and wasn't expecting that in a book for middle-graders, so in that sense it's a little more YA than MG. For the younger MG readers, I think I'd recommend parents to read it first before putting in the hands of 3rd or 4th graders in order to be prepared for possible discussions or questions about sexual orientation. This book is perfect for the fans of GLEE since it both centers around performing arts. Overall, I think it's a great piece of work from Telgemeier and will be a great graphic novel addition to a library!

When I think about a dream vacation, I imagine being on a beach and being able to read to my heart's content. (I'm not much of a water person, but I like looking at it!) However, I am terrified to think about being out in the sun in a bikini or swimsuit, especially with my post-baby, a little more squishy, and a lot more wobbly body. That's why reading My Big Bottom Blessing was such a blessing to me this summer because God thinks I'm beautiful just the way I am! I NEEDED this book this summer. Summertime means the temperature goes up and the clothes get smaller, which means that I need to show more skin if I want to stay cool and not be a sweaty mess all the time. I think one of the biggest things I wasn't expecting after having a baby was how much pregnancy, breastfeeding and being a new mom would change my body. I guess I was just hoping that it would go back to normal after some time, but I'm realizing that there will always be a soft pooch to my tummy because no matter how many crunches I do, it just ain't getting any tighter. Alongside all these changes has been the Enemy feeding me with endless, constant lies and frankly, I've been believing them. What I loved about Cannon's book is that she told her story with truth and raw honesty. There was a section in the beginning about how she even dreaded going to family gatherings because she was the "fat cousin." This is one insecurity I have myself and it was so refreshing to see that I wasn't the only one who dreaded being the definitely-not-thin one at a big family reunion. Cannon spoke from the heart and poured our her soul onto these pages and I appreciate that because it made me realize that I am not alone. I am not the only one being pounded on daily by the lies of the Enemy and my own insecurities. I enjoyed reading about all the different voices in her head because they sound a lot like the ones I have my own head. I devoured this book in a day and couldn't put it down once I got started. I think the only thing that was lacking was more practical steps towards believing that I am God's beautiful creation. I'm a girl that likes specific how-to's or things to do. I am proud to say that after reading this book that I am more apt to combat the negative voices in my head and fight back with the truth- I AM BEAUTIFUL JUST THE WAY I AM. :) If you have similar insecurities like me and want some relief from the daily battles with the Enemy about your body, you should definitely check out My Big Bottom Blessing.

I finally got my hands on this book after years of being curious about it this past fall because the movie was coming out and I fell head over heels in love with it. I inhaled it over the course of a night and just poured over ever single page because the illustrations are just so intricately and beautifully drawn! There are so many gorgeous little details and you can't help but just run your hands over the pages because everything looks so real! It is absolutely stunning. The Invention of Hugo Cabret is a story told in mostly pictures with a few short paragraphs here and there. There are lots of inferring going on while reading this story and it was such a different, but incredibly enjoyable reading experience. The story itself is heartwarming and full of adventure. My favorite illustrations were of the bookstore (of course). For those of you who don't know me very well, I am a tad bit obsessed with beautiful bookshelves. (Check out my "Bookshelf Monday" feature here and my beautiful bookshelves board on Pinterest.) I can't imagine how much time Selznick took to illustrate all the pages of this book because every page is chock-filled with details, right down to each spine of the books. I wanted to LIVE in this book. In my opinion, being able to accurately draw the human body (especially the face) is one of the hardest things to do, but Selznick does it so effortlessly and it's a true ode to his talent as an artist. Even the details in the eyes are so expressive that you feel like you are looking into the character's soul. Selznick is an amazing artist and writer. The Invention of Hugo Cabret is so deserving of the Caldecott Award. If you haven't had a chance to read this book, go get it NOW because you are seriously missing out!

Everything on a Waffle is one of my favorite middle grade reads. I didn't expect to fall in love with the way I did when I first read it several years ago. It is definitely a great read for both young kids and adults as well. Polly Horvath has a way of making what could have been a really sad story into a very light, touching story about a girl who never gives up hope that her parents (who are lost at sea) are still alive. Primrose has to live with her Uncle, a reluctant caretaker and an awful one at that. A series of accidents happen to her that seem ridiculous at times considering what she has already gone through, but you root for her. Despite all odds, you hold onto the hope in Primrose's heart along with her and find yourself believing in what she believes in - that her parents are still alive. Horvath holds you all the way to the very end before giving any answers. I loved Miss Bowzer's character and wish I could eat at her restaurant, "The Girl on the Red Swing." I do enjoy waffles and might be even brave enough to try something other than butter and maple syrup on then especially if they're made by Miss Bowzer! Food + books = wonderful recipe for an enjoyable read! I love that each chapter ends with a recipe that connects to something that happened in that chapter. This is definitely one of my favorite books to share each year with my reading groups. The chapters are easy to read and I think this would make a wonderful read-aloud with lots of opportunities for rich discussions.

I didn't expect to fall in love with So B. It, but I did from my very first reading with my students back in 2006. Heidi's has a very atypical childhood because she takes care of her mother with a mental disability instead of being taken care of. Her mother only uses a very limited vocabulary of 23 words. All the words make sense except for one, "soof" and it is this very word that sends Heidi on a journey across the country in search for answers about who her mother is and ultimately, who she is. One of my favorite characters is Heidi's reclusive neighbor, Bernadette, who has her own issues. She ends up being a kind of surrogate mother to Heidi and I appreciate her eagerness to help raise Heidi. It's hard to think about a kid who's in such difficult circumstances being all alone without any support. I loved that the chapters were each titled with one of the words that Heidi's mother knows, of course ending with "soof." You can't help but admire Heidi's tenacity and courage to find out the truth about her family and therefore herself. She ends up finding out much more than what she expected, but I think that happens very frequently when one decides to go soul-searching. I have a few other books by Sarah Weeks that I've been waiting to read, especially Pie. I've had such rich discussions in lit. circles with my students over the years with this book and it pushes them to think deeper and ask some hard questions about life. I highly recommend it!

I'm a sucker for books about sisterhood. Maybe it's because I have a younger sister of my own and I personally understand how unique our relationship can be. Even though I enjoyed reading A Gift for My Sister, it left me with a sad, sinking feeling that I couldn't seem to shake away all day after I finished the book. I really enjoyed Pearlman's writing. She has an exceptional way of adding depth to her characters through flashbacks that are seamlessly embedded within the story in a way that builds upon a character without taking away from keeping track of the present. Tara and Sky are deeply flawed and so blinded to truth and reality because their perceptions of each other are muddled by past hurts, loss, rejection and self-preservation at the cost of never truly accepting the other for who they are. This story took me way too far down with all the tragedies and didn't pick me back up in time. It really pushed the limit of how much sadness I could take in one book, for ONE character. Maybe because Tara has a 2-year old and so do I, I felt too much for her character and the loss in her life. I kept waiting for the story to turn, but I guess since the story takes place over such a short period of time, it might not be very realistic for the sisters to change so quickly. The turn came too late for me and didn't quite uplift me the way I was hoping it would. However, Pearlman's writing was very engaging, so I am looking forward to reading some of her other books.

I have been waiting for this book for what seems like a long time. I love me some chick-lit every now and then, but I just haven't been able to root for the characters in the chick-lit I've read lately. They just seem so much like caricatured versions of whatever stereotype they are supposed to represent - the lonely housewife, the unfulfilled career woman, the lost and drifting girl in her early twenties. It's been hard to find characters that you could root for, but this was NOT the case with There Goes the Bride... AT ALL. What I loved the most about this book was that it drew me in with realistic, believable characters. The story is told from the perspectives of Polly's older sister, Bella and her best friend, Grace. It seems like I've been enjoying multiple perspectives a lot lately in my reading, but the best part about it is that it added so much to the story being able to be in the head of two very different women. McQueen adeptly introduces various characters in a way that makes it easy to follow. (I don't like it when an author throws a bunch of characters at you all at once and you spend the rest of the book trying to remember who so-and-so is and how they're related to the main character.) It picked me up from the first page and never lost it's momentum. I love when a book does that! Bella, Grace and Polly are flawed and just oozing with insecurities, but the way McQueen writes, she nails down all of raw and REAL insecurities of most women. The way women look at each other and automatically assume that the other is thinking the worst about you. It's a daily battle for me. Bella and Grace battle with all of the insecurities that women struggle with everyday - How do we measure up? Are we pretty enough? Am I skinny enough? Will he love me forever? Am I a good mother? What do people really think of me? McQueen writes about women so well and about how cruel we can really be to other women with all the passive-aggressive, emotional one-upping over each other. I can't wait to read more of her books. It's been a long time since I've finished a book within a night. I thoroughly enjoyed There Goes the Bride and highly recommend it to anyone looking for an well-written story that will draw you in from the first page and be almost impossible to put down once you get started. You won't be disappointed!

I think all of us at some point or another imagine what it would be like to be famous. We picture the fancy clothes, shiny cars and big houses. What we often forget is the price celebrities pay to be famous - family, friends, love and happiness. The sad thing (and I am guilty of this too) is that we feed right into this system by watching the tabloid news and buying the tabloid magazines. Between You and Me puts us right behind-the-scenes of the high life and is a great reminder of how we should be careful of what we wish for. What I enjoyed about this book was that it really does a great job of describing the behind-the-scenes life of celebrities. You really got a raw inside look inside and it was full of lots of juicy little details. It definitely fulfilled my voyeuristic desires for a peek inside the life of a person in the limelight. At the same time, the story reminded me of the rise and fall of Britney Spears, especially since Kelsey first worked for Kids Incorporated and Britney first started out in The Mickey Mouse Club. No wonder she, Kelsey and others are so susceptible to self-destruction! Overall I enjoyed the book, but I wanted more depth to the characters. At first, I had a hard time keeping up with all the characters because of the names. I couldn't figure out who Kelsey's parents were for almost a whole chapter. I expected Kelsey to be shallow, but was pleasantly surprised by how I ended up feeling sympathetic towards her. The hardest part was that I couldn't get behind Logan. It seems like she just dropped everything to be there for her cousin. She seemed like a strong, independent woman at the beginning of the story and I had a hard time believing that she would just drop everything for a cousin she hasn't talked to in over a decade. If you are looking for a light summer chick-lit read, I think you'll be entertained by Between You and Me. It's a nice reminder of how hard it can be to be a child star enveloped by the glitz and glam of Hollywood and how easy it can be to self-destruct from the pressure of it all. I am happy to say that I'm content with just being a normal girl who's not famous, doesn't have the biggest home or the nicest clothes, but has the love of a adoring husband, sweet little daughter and lots of happiness in between.

My husband and I are new parents of a 10-month old who STILL does not sleep through the night. (We're working on it.) Out of everything, I think the single most-mystifying thing about having your own baby is sleep. Everyone warns you about it when you become a parent, but you are never really fully prepared for the first couple of months of parenthood when your world is so much fuller because of the new baby in your life, but also so insanely overwhelming because you are so sleep-deprived. I chose to request and review this book because I thought it'd give me a good laugh about those crazy nights we've had where our baby girl would NOT sleep and I wholehearted started believing that she (and I) would never go back to sleep EVER AGAIN. The story reads a lot like a bedtime story because of the illustrations and poetic verses, but please do not confuse it with an actual bedtime story that you can read with your little ones. However, it would make a great gift to share with parents - especially new ones. I think the writing could have been a little sharper. Maybe because I've read so many Dr. Seuss books lately, but I was expecting a little more of a rhythmic bounce to the story a la Seuss-ical fashion. I personally don't use curse words in my life and don't really care to hear it used when I'm around, so I didn't care much for the profanity in the book. It was funny the first couple times around. After the first few pages, it got a little old for me. And it made me a little uncomfortable that this parent was so free with them around his kid or when thinking about his kid. You might think that makes me a prude and old-fashioned and I know the author was using it more for emphasis than any other thing, but in my opinion, I think the book would have been just as enjoyable and have the same effect without all of the curse words on every single page. Overall: That being said, I did really enjoy the book. I thought it greatly captured the frustration and every day (and night!) reality that parents face when it comes to the issue of sleep (or lack thereof) with babies and young ones. It was real, raw and honest and as a new parent, wishing of the day when my daughter will sleep through the night every night, it was very entertaining to read.

I am a little bit ashamed to admit that I am completely inept when it comes to cooking. I grew up in a home where my dad and grandfather did almost all of the cooking. I spent my time after-school as a young child in the Chinese restaurant that they owned and operated. I ate very well growing up and even now as an adult, I still crave home-cooked meals by Dad or Grandpa. Luckily for me, I married a man who also loves to cook, which alleviates me of the need to learn how to feed my family on a daily basis. I wish I COULD cook though. I am very much a recipe person when it comes to cooking and I have often been frustrated when trying to learn how to cook from my dad because, like most good chefs, he is such a good improviser in the kitchen. I, on the other hand, need more exact instructions if I expect to prepare a decent tasting meal that people will actually want to eat. This is actually why I own a whole shelf full of cookbooks in attempt to become a better chef and maybe not despise cooking so much, but in all honesty, I don't use most of them. I find the instructions for a beginner chef like myself very confusing, especially when there are no photos to look at! Ever since I became a mother, I feel a lot more pressure to build on my cooking skills because I need to feed my baby girl something other than Costco chicken or Ramen noodles everyday. As any new mother can easily attest to, it is hard to find the time to do this though. This is why I really enjoyed reading Real Mom Kitchen by Laura Powell. I loved that the recipes were so simple and almost all of them had less than 10 steps total. The recipes were very simple to follow and the cookbook itself is full of beautiful photos and graphics. I don't understand cookbooks with very minimal photos because how am I supposed to figure out if it looks right, if I have nothing to compare it to? Real Mom Kitchen is full of mouth-watering images and even though they're not on every single page, it's definitely enough to get you hungry! Plus, the ingredients that Laura uses in her recipes are items that you can easily find in your fridge, pantry and/or local grocery store. The recipes are REAL dishes that moms (and dads) could make on any normal given day or even for special occasions or gatherings. Nothing too fancy, but still simple to prepare and yummy to eat. I especially appreciate that they don't take a ton of time or expertise to prepare or make. Some of the recipes that I bookmarked to try out this next month are: Appetizer: Black bean and corn salsa Bread: 45 minute cinnamon rolls Salad: Chili cheese Fritos salad (I mean, who doesn't love Fritos?!) Main dish: Mom's meatballs and rice Dessert: Pumpkin bars I picked one from each of the sections of the cookbook. Hopefully I can find some time to photograph the process and share it with you on the blog. Overall, I really enjoyed Real Mom Kitchen. You can tell from the start that it is written by a REAL mom who understands how hard it can be to get a meal on the table everyday, but also how to make it a simple, enjoyable process as well.

Huber Hill is a teenager who is not exactly what you would call one of the "cool" kids in school. In fact, he is bullied and picked on by his nemesis, Scott McCormick, who gave Huber the nickname, "Puber" during a 5th grade maturation assembly. Life is pretty miserable for Huber at school and at home where his parents can't seem to stop fighting everyday. The only good thing in Huber's life is spending time with his ailing Grandpa Nick. When Grandpa Nick dies, Huber and his twin sister, Hannah are completely devastated.However, amongst the things that Grandpa Nick leaves them is treasure map left behind by the Spanish conquistadors, now called the Tesoro de los Muertos of Dead Man's Treasure. According to legend, it is cursed and no one has found the treasure and/or live to share about it. That's when the adventure really begins. Huber embarks on a journey to find the treasure and prove that the tales his grandpa has shared with him are really true. Once the action starts, it is a very past-paced adventure that will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end. Without giving away too much, this book has all the ingredients you are looking for in an action/adventure book - a vicious villain, a journey to find lost treasure, old myths and legends, wild animals and unexpected twists and turns to keep you guessing what will happen next. Overall: I really enjoyed this book. It took a little bit to get going, but once it did, I couldn't put it down. It is going to be a great addition to my classroom library and my 5th graders (especially the boys) are going to love it.

I absolutely loved this book. It was on my to-read list for the longest time and once the school year ended in June, I finally had the time and energy to read teaching-related books. I initially borrowed this book for our local library, but immediately purchased it after I finished it (in one evening) so I that I could have my own copy to write in and plaster with post-its. This book was everything I was hoping for and more. This is the book I wish I was around when I first started teaching. It is no secret that I love reading and have loved reading for as far back as I can remember. One of the reasons I became a teacher was because I wanted to share my love reading with kids and instill that same love of reading within them. Even though I think I've done a decent job of sharing that with my students over the years with various things that I've implemented in my classroom, I loved that this book gave me practical ideas that would be easy to introduce in my classroom right away. The hardest thing about being a teacher nowadays is the pressure to perform on tests. It's all about the test scores and subsequently, what we know to be "good teaching" goes by the wayside because there really isn't any time to do it. About a year ago, I was almost at the end of the year and realized that I just did not like teaching reading anymore. I dreaded that part of the day because it was so dull to me. It was all about reading passages and answering test questions. No wonder they were bored, I WAS BORED! My grade-level and I had a deep discussion about it and we decided we need to do read-alouds again, not because we wanted to teach some standard or whatever, but just to enjoy the act of reading and sharing a story together. Go figure. I devoured this book in one evening and then promptly raved all about it on my facebook to share with my fellow colleagues and teacher friends. I feel like it started a little "Book Whisperer" revolution amongst my closest teacher friends and several of them bought, read and also implemented ideas from the book as well. My grade-level team also read the book and we started off this school year with a mutual enthusiasm to create lifelong readers in our students. My students plowed through the book tubs full of books from my classroom library on the first day of school. We all read together and it started my year on the right foot with reading at the core of my mornings. They are currently deeply into their 40 book challenge this year (and beating my measly 8 books) and on fire with the number of books they are reading. We have book commercials on Fridays and I love seeing how many of them are reading books that their peers have recommended. Even though sometimes I curse myself for doing them because they take up a lot of time each evening, my students and I converse once a week with letters that we write back and forth to each other in their reader's notebooks. I really know my students as readers. They come to me asking for recommendations and it delights my heart when they dig through my classroom library each day looking for their next favorite book. Thank you, Donalyn Miller, for helping me to create the classroom of readers that I always dreamed of. Overall: It was an fantastic read and I highly recommend it to teachers who love reading and want to create a classroom of lifelong readers. While it shared some theory and education philosophies, it definitely provided a lot of practical tips and ideas that were easy to implement into my classroom. The way Miller writes makes you feel like you're having coffee with an old friend. Her love of reading pours out of this book and it is so contagious, you can help but catch it and want to pass it on. Get this book now, you won't be disappointed!

This was my first Nora Roberts book. Honestly, I decided to read it because I loved the covers. It really touches the part of me as woman that loves weddings and everything about them. Plus, my friend highly recommended it to me so I had to add it to my to-read list. Unfortunately, I think it was a little bit of a letdown. I really wanted to like this book. I really, really wanted to fall in love with this story especially since I'm a wedding photographer myself and the idea of four best friends running a wedding company together is such an interesting hook! Plus, my husband and I are both teachers. Mac's love interest is a high school English teacher. All the stars were aligned for me to fall in love with this book, but alas it just was not meant to be. I have to say that from a wedding photographer standpoint, Roberts did a great job of the behind-the-scenes perspective of a wedding photographer at a wedding and the post-production process. I was pleasantly surprised that she was very knowledgeable about wedding photographers and the work they do. The four women are friends that have known each other most of their lives. I would have loved to have them spend more time together for us to get more glimpses into their friendships. You only get a superficial perspective of the other women. I know there are other books in The Bride Quartet series, one book devoted to each character, but I would have liked to have seen more of their time together as friends to help me to understand how deep their friendship really is. Roberts is a masterful storyteller in how she develops her characters. I can see why she has written so many books. She does a great job of building the back story behind the characters. However, what made this story hard for me was that I didn't really like the main character, Mackensie Elliot (aka "Mac") very much. I couldn't get behind her to root for her and the issues that she was facing with her family and her relationships. There were many points of the book that I just wanted to say to Mac, "Get over it!" Overall: Don't get me wrong, it was an enjoyable chick-lit book. I think my expectations were really high going into it because Roberts has written so many other romance novels and thus must be an expert at it. It just didn't do it for me.

I flat-out LOVED this book. It has been a long time since I've finished a book in one day (having a baby will do that to your reading life), but I could not put it down once I started it. It grabbed me from the first page and it was a great story from beginning to end. The stars were very much aligned for me to like this book because: I love Boston and it is the one city on the East Coast that I would consider living in. Park does a great job of making the city come alive to you in this story by describing all the little nooks and crannies - and even the people. I am always tethered to social media, much to the dislike of my hubby. In college, it was posting AIM away messages and now I'm on facebook/twitter at least once or twice a day. I loved the little facebook updates and emails throughout the story. It made it a very modern story and I really enjoyed that part of the story. It really added another element to the book in a good way. It's got a little love-triangle in it and who doesn't like that? The main character, Julie, is starting college and ends up moving into her mom's old college roommate's home because her housing situation doesn't pan out. She becomes a part of the family and with it comes challenges, but also love and support. Even though the idea of the youngest daughter in the family, Celeste, carrying around a cardboard cut-out of her older brother seems very odd and peculiar initially, Park writes the story in a way that you become accepting of it very quickly and the mystery behind the cut-out is what drives the rest of the story. You, just like Julie, want to know what's the deal behind the cardboard cut-out. The story is very well-written and Park does a superb job of moving the story along. You don't ever feel like she lingers too long in one moment and it moves in a pace that keeps you turning the page to find out what happens next. The dialogue is extremely witty and the banter between Julie and Matt, Finn and Celeste are so clever and intelligent. I especially loved reading the emails and chat messages. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll want to shout from the rooftops about how great this book is once you're done. Once I finished, I wanted to re-read it again. Not many books can do that. Overall: Park is a masterful storyteller and develops her characters in ways that you can't help but be invested in them, flaws and all. They feel very real to you and I felt like I was right there in the mix of the it all. (I love when books do that!) You root for Julie to figure out the mystery. You fall in love when she falls in love and feels her pain as she digs deeper into the family secrets. All the twists are turns were completely unexpected for me. I did not expect the ending at all! I highly recommend this book to young women like myself. I think women who are into social media will especially find this book enjoyable to read. This was definitely one of my favorite books of 2011.

Both my husband and I finished this book in 24 hours. It was everything I hoped it would be and more. As a Christian, I have to admit that I wonder a lot about Heaven and what it'll be like. The Bible doesn't give us too much information about Heaven and I'm curious about a lot of things. It may sound selfish, but my hope is that I'll be able to reconnect with loved ones in Heaven - especially my husband. I wonder what it would be like to be in the presence of Jesus. I have so many questions I want to ask Him! This book gave me a lot of peace about Heaven and my Christian faith. I thoroughly enjoyed it because it is so obvious that what happened to the little boy, Colton, was a God thing and in so other ways, could not have been made up. There is no way that he would have known that his parents were in separate rooms when he was in his surgery. How would he know about his great grandfather that he's never known and wasn't even living in his lifetime? Without giving too much away, the evidence in the story is hard to refute. I loved that Burpo included words from Colton because it gave a realness to the story and really helped the reader to see it from a child's perspective. The Bible says in Matthew 18: 2-6: He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. 3 And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. Amen to that. I wish I had a pure, childlike reverence for God. This book stretched my faith in ways I was not expecting and I hope that anyone who is curious about Heaven, Christian or not, will read this because it will shake your notions of what's real and what's not.

If it were up to me, I would celebrate Christmas all year long. In a way I do because there is no discrimination in our home of when we play Christmas music and when we don't (never). Now that Halloween has passed and we find ourselves in November, not only am I ready for the holiday songs, movies, decorating and gift planning, I am definitely in the mood for feel-good Christmas stories. This was my first Donna VanLiere book. I have been curious about her books for years and constantly find myself picking them up during the holidays at Costco whenever they pop back up on the shelves again. I wanted to read The Christmas Shoes (her first book) before finishing this one, but I didn't have enough time. I loved the relationship between Gretchen and Melissa in the story. It felt very real to me, especially since I err on the side of being socially awkward sometimes and could sympathize with Melissa's difficulty with befriending her neighbor, Gretchen. The twists and turns were unexpected for me and I enjoyed how everything was intertwined and woven together to make up a wonderful holiday story. I thought it was a very well-written book with all the elements that you long for in a Christmas story - love, lost, forgiveness, redemption, family and friendship. I normally don't like stories that are not very long because I discriminate against them for not having enough details simply because of their length, but this was not the case with The Christmas Note. I think VanLiere has a gift for telling a story and giving you just enough details to engross you into the narrative, yet without dragging it along. It was short, sweet and definitely warmed my heart. The Christmas Note very much put me in the Christmas spirit this season and I have already ordered three more of her books to read. I know I won't be disappointed!

I am not a history buff by any means at all. However, I can happily attribute my introduction to historical fiction to Philippa Gregory and her books (in particular, The Other Boleyn Girl). I was never particularly interested in history growing up and I found the textbooks too boring and difficult to understand. I loved reading, but that was because I loved the stories. Gregory's books does a great job of tying the two together in an interesting way. I always had an interest in medieval times - which little girl doesn't want to know more about kings, queens, princes and princesses? However, Gregory's books were the first ones to get me hooked into historical fiction as a genre, with a special liking towards all things medieval. I wasn't sure what to expect going into this book and honestly, I was a little apprehensive once the book arrived and it was pretty thick! It reminded me of the history textbook days and I was a little anxious that I wouldn't enjoy it, but I was very wrong! There are moments when the sentences run a little long and there are so many facts thrown at you at one time that it can get confusing for a reader like myself, who is not used to reading non-fiction historical books. However, it was a very enjoyable read about three women who are not written about very much, if at all, in history, but had such an huge impact on the more well-known time of the Tudors. The book itself reads like a novel and that made it easy for me to read, coming from a historical fiction side rather than the history side. Gregory starts off the book with an introduction about history, historical fiction and women in history. I found it very interesting and reaffirmed what I already knew about Gregory - that she is an incredibly intelligent woman herself very well-versed in all things related to medieval times. I also enjoyed learning more about her process in writing historical fiction. I have read most of the Gregory's books in the Tudors period and often times found myself stopping to go to Wikipedia to read up more on the historical figures before proceeding through the rest of the book. I think this book would be a great book to have alongside while reading her series on The Cousins' War. The book is written in three sections. Gregory writes the first section about Jacquetta, the Duchess of Bedford. Baldwin writes about Elizabeth Woodville, Queen of England. Lastly, Jones writes about Margaret Beaufort, who ultimately ends up being the grandmother of Henry VIII. Each author does a great job of piecing together historical documents to put together a biographical account of their lives. It did not read like a history book at all and at times I had to remind myself that I was reading a non-fiction book, not a fictional story. Overall, I think Gregory, Baldwin and Jones do a great job of giving these women a place in history. I think all fans of Gregory's books, especially the The Cousins' War series, will find this companion book a very enjoyable and interesting read.

This memoir is about a woman's journey through adopting a daughter from Guatemala and the changes in her life along the way. Grant already had three biological children of her own, but answers God's calling and adopts fourth child - a little girl. This book is written for parents of all kinds, but couples that are thinking about or have been through adoption will find Grant's personal story inspirational, but also very real. Grant shares herself very openly throughout the book and does not hold back on sharing her insecurities, doubts and battles with her own perceptions (as well as society's) of parenting. Grant does a great job of keeping God at the center of her story and sharing her real struggle to do God's Will. I enjoyed hearing her "voice" pour out of the pages. It felt very much like I was having a conversation with a close girlfriend. I appreciate that she does not hold back on the challenges of the adoption process. Also, I appreciated that Grant shared her heart for children living in poverty around the world. She provides resources for those interested in adoption, but also for those wanting to support organizations that work to positively impact the lives of children around the world. The only thing I didn't like about the book was that I felt like she jumped around a little bit and at times it was hard to figure out if she was flashing back or not. Overall: It was a great read for a new mother like myself even though God has not put on my heart to adopt. I definitely recommend it to parents of all kinds.

I was so excited when the first of The Baby-Sitters Club Graphix book was released. Being a Baby-Sitters devotee, I was so excited that the series that got me hooked into reading series of books when I was 9 years old would get a new breath of life. I was excited that it could possibly become a series that a whole new generation of kids could fall in love with. Raina Telgemeier's work is ah-mazing. You need to check out her portfolio here. I think she did a superb job of updating the characters to give it more of a modern flair without compromising the essence of each character's personality. I think she really captured each character nicely. The only character that looked a little different in the book than in my head was Claudia. In this story, the girls of the Baby-Sitters Club are at war with each other and Mary Anne is in the middle trying play peacemaker between all the girls. I had a hard time remembering the original book, but it seemed like the girls spent whole book fighting with each other and the preteen hormones were getting a little old towards the end. I especially liked how Raina introduced Dawn and the back story of the high school relationship between Mary Anne's father and Dawn's mother. Overall: It was an excellent graphic novel. I think a lot of young girls could definitely get into the Baby-Sitters Club series through this book and that makes it worth reading and sharing!

The Morning Meeting book reads well and it provides a lot of research to back up the effectiveness of Morning Meetings (MM). The book includes many examples of how to implement MM in classes of all different grades, including middle school in the 2nd edition. The extensive appendix provides sample greetings and a list of group activities. There are other books of greetings and messages that I'm curious about, but I'm going to start with just this book to see if it's enough or if I should supplement. My only complaint about this book is that I tend to want more practicality than theory when I read teacher books. I was on board with MM in theory from the get go, I wanted more real life examples of what it looked like in a real classroom. It did provide many examples, but I think the book weighed a little too heavy on the theory side and repeated the some things over and over again that could have been said once. Overall: It was an easy read and looks like it'll be a great resource I'll be pulling from throughout the school year. The book is organized intuitively and I highly recommend it to all of my fellow teachers.

This is a story that follows a week in the life of Phillip Isaac Penn, otherwise known as "Pip." Each chapter is one day of his life. He is a very misunderstood boy and seems to always be in the wrong place at the wrong time. He is accused of all kids of mayhem, but he always seems to have good intentions. The character Pip reminds me a lot of Luke Dunphy on the TV Show, Modern Family. He seems a little ADHD and everyone around him has a difficult time understanding why he does the things he does even though it makes complete sense to him. I kept picture Luke in my head while I was reading this book. As a teacher, I had a really difficult time reading about how badly his teacher treated him EVERY DAY. Everything was his fault even before he was given a chance to explain, even after he was proven innocent just the day before. As a teacher, I understand how hard it can be to deal with challenging students, but I'd like to think that I'd give all my students a fair chance to explain before blaming them for something. I kept wanting Pip to defend himself in the story. To explain himself and his actions, but it seemed like he wasn't given enough chances to do so. I didn't really care much for the pictures because they looked a lot like sketches and didn't quite match up to the nice cover, but I did like the discussion questions at the end, which would be good to use as a parent reading this book with their child over the summer break. Even though, it really bothered me how Pip was picked on by everyone around him, I did enjoy how he reflected upon each day and how he planned on making the next day better. I kept wanting him to find redemption at the end, but the author did a good job of showing that it really is hard to be a kid. Overall: I think kids would enjoy this story of the adventures of a very much misunderstood boy. I can especially see young boys (ages 6-10) enjoying it.