Welcome to the Staying Warm or Keeping Cold Giveaway event! This hop is about choosing a book you’d want to read sitting by the fire on a cold winters day, or sitting in an air conditioned room, depending on where you live (and if you’re having hot flashes!) This event is hosted by Reading In Twilight and I Am A Reader. Our sponsor for this giveaway is Litfuse Group, who is providing one lucky reader with a copy of The Journey of Josephine Cain. When I reviewed this book, I couldn’t stop reading it. Josephine Cain both irritated me and won my empathy all at once. As she travels from her cold Eastern shore home to the miserable heat of the midwest, Josephine also finds a new version of herself. It’s a great story that I’m sure you’ll enjoy! [Read more…]
Archives for November 2013
Staying Warm Giveaway Hop featuring The Journey Of Josephine Cain
Gratitude Giveaway Hop featuring Snow On The Tulips by Liz Tolsma
Welcome to the Gratitude Giveaway Hop hosted by I Am A Reader. The bloggers on the linky below joined together to say THANK YOU to all of our beloved readers. Without you, we couldn’t share our thoughts online. Well, we could, but it wouldn’t be half as much fun! At this time of Thanksgiving, we want you to know that we’re thankful for you. Every single hop is EASY to enter. Just head down to my rafflecopter form, enter the giveaway, then cruise right on through the rest of the giveaways. I hope you win lots of great prizes!
For our giveaway, we’re sharing a wonderful book with you. I had the chance to review Snow on the Tulips and loved this story. [Read more…]
On My eBookshelf: Cinderella Goes To The Potty by Justin Blaney
Disclosure: I received this book to review. My opinions are highlighted in blue; the opinions in that section are 100% mine.
The books that my 4th grade daughter has recently been taken with are usually full of catchy graphics on the page. From Diary of a Wimpy Kid to the Geronimo Stilton series, the books have fun fonts and kid-friendly artwork. I had the chance to review Cinderella Goes To The Potty, which is a new series by Justin Blaney. It was on my iPad so it was a different experience reading it on a device rather than holding the book in my hands. With this book, I do see the benefit of having it in print. The cool thing about it is the highly illustrated pages. The words actually become part of the illustrations. Tha
t might be a bit difficult to read for a younger child, but it’s right up my daughter’s alley. As for the story, I found it to be a bit discomforting to read. For some reason I thought it would be about potty-training. Yes, that’s about the extent of my creativity. Cinderella actually finds a toilet in a strange place. The plot is a bit macabre, which is another reason it’s more suitable for a tween audience. You’ll just have to read the book to see what I mean! [Read more…]
On My Bookshelf: Snow on the Tulips by Liz Tolsma
Disclosure: I received this book to review. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.
Would you be able to risk your life for a stranger’s? That’s what Corrie chooses to do in Snow on the Tulips by Liz Tolsma. The story still has me a little shaken. My husband is a WWII buff and likes to watch the documentaries on TV. I’ve read a few books on the subject; the story Sarah’s Key haunts me to this day. Even though I’ve seen movies and pictures of the Nazi occupation, reading this story made everything seem so real to me. I’m ashamed to say that I had never considered the loss of the people in the Netherlands before reading this book. In its pages I could feel the fear in the residents of the town as they grow distrustful of their neighbors. Even brothers and sisters guarded their secrets from their own family. Knowing that this event took place less than a century ago makes it seem even more frightening to me. While we might consider this to be the Information Age, it’s terrifying to know that one group of people can hold such sway against another.
The best gifts under the tree —- which ones are your favorites?
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.
Another year and another Christmas doesn’t excuse me from one of my favorite chores of the year. I absolutely LOVE finding the best gifts under the tree. Throughout the year, I try to make notes for each person on my list. When my mom mentions that she’d like to try some new product she sees on tv, I write it down. She’ll never purchase something for herself but it’s my joy to do it for her. Finding gifts that my kids will love is sometimes a bit more challenging. Their tastes change so quickly. TMNT are the current favorite, but will that last until December? My kids also go through a growth spurt around Christmas, often needing new shoes or clothes. I try to take advantage of the Christmas sales to purchase those items. [Read more…]
On My Bookshelf: Burning Sky by Lori Benton
Disclosure: I received this book to review. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.
It’s a wonderful thing when someone discovers their absolute, true talent. Author Lori Benton has certainly found hers. Her book Burning Sky captured my attention from the very first page. Only when I happened to look at the back cover did I realize, with a double take, that it was her first novel. Benton’s writing style is beautiful and descriptive. I could easily imagine the American frontier through her words. My ignorance about American history surfaced as I learned that some Native American tribes took captives when they lost their own people to disease or war. Somehow I had never realized that those captives had a face, a name, a family. Burning Sky, also known as Willa, was one of those captives. She was torn from one world then torn from another, lost in limbo as she struggled to regain a sense of herself. Along the way she encountered a doctor-turned-botonist Neil MacGregor. He reminded me a bit of Jamie from Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series, what with his accent and all. Then there was the drama between Willa and her former betrothed, Richard Waring. All of this is blanketed in Willa’s journey through the home she once knew. [Read more…]
On My Bookshelf: The Glory Of Heaven by Betty Malz
Disclosure: I received this book to review. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.
With Christmas coming, it seems appropriate that for many of us our eyes are fixed upon Heaven. Whether we’re wondering about what the afterlife holds, missing a loved one who has passed on, or dreaming of the day when Jesus returns, heaven has been a topic of conversation for centuries. For me, the true glory of heaven is a mystery with certainty. This book by Betty Malz is a short and easy read that shares the author’s views of heaven. She experienced a terrible illness and died, returning minutes later with great recall of a glorious place that she visited during the moments of true panic for the doctors. [Read more…]
Unique Christmas Card options — early Black Friday sale
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Pear Tree Greetings. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.
How many Christmas cards do you typically send each year? We have about 40 on our list and I love seeing the adorable cards come in the mail. I hang up the cards on our kitchen wall or set them up on our mantle, remarking about how much my friends’ children have grown. There are so many fun cards that highlight a family trip or themed photos that my creative buddies always come up with. One year some friends of ours made a National Lampoons card that just can’t be topped. I’m not as creative as all that so I just settle for a beautifully made card. I’ve ordered from Pear Tree Greetings for years, always finding myself impressed with the new color combinations or paper options they offer. I’ve ordered Christmas cards and Easter cards from them several times. I have such a hard time choosing just one option!
Get free and discounted ebooks every day — you don’t even have to search for them!
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.
I go through at least three or four books per week most months. Keeping myself in high quality books could get expensive! If you enjoy reading books on an ereader, here are some sites that make it easy to find free and discounted ebooks every day. Last year I shared a link to PaperBackSwap, a book swapping site that makes it easy to trade your paperbacks, hardbacks, and even audio books. Shipping the books costs around $3 per book and that can add up after a while. Although I don’t prefer ebooks, they are often less expensive so I’ve been reading more on my Kindle app. Here are two FREE newsletters that alert you to free and deeply discounted ebooks. Try them out and see what you think!
Yesterday I learned about Discount Books Daily. It gives free daily alerts about discounted ebooks; you can easily select your preferences on their site. I’ve subscribed to it and am eager to see what kind of offerings they send. On the site, I wasn’t able to search for free books, which would have been nice. Many people don’t mind buying their books so this would still be a money saver for them! I’ve been subscribed to something similar for a while now. [Read more…]
On My Bookshelf: Sinner’s Creed by Scott Stapp
Disclosure: I received a copy of the book and CD to review. The opinions shared here are 100% mine.
The days of following the lives and stories of the stars are long past for me. I enjoy Creed’s music but honestly never knew anything about the band, not even the names of the members. When I had the opportunity to review Sinner’s Creed by Scott Stapp, the memoir of Creed’s former lead singer, I had no idea about his background. Since reading the book, I’ve done a bit of research and found that there were some highly publicized events in the history of the band’s breakup and the aftermath that ensued. We rarely have a moment to watch the news and certainly never get to enjoy the guilty pleasure of celebrity gossip. Therefore I really read this book with an unbiased opinion of the author.
