Monthly Archives: August 2017

August 31, 2017 · 1:58 pm

Doom of the Three Stones by Josh Kilen

Doom of the Three Stones is weird. I’m talking Yo Gabba Gabba level weird. My 11-year-old thought maybe the author wrote the beginning while drunk and then decided to roll with it. My husband thought perhaps substances of the more illegal variety were involved. Regardless, while it is weird, it is also really good. It’s well-written with a decent plot and has excellent grammar and an incredibly sophistocated vocabulary for a book aimed at kids. I recommend reading this book as a family read aloud.

5 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 118
Pages Read in 2017: 32,240
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: Bedtime Story for the Boys

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August 28, 2017 · 11:55 am

Chinese Fairy Tales by Frederick H. Martens

Chinese Fairy Tales is a collection of several short fairy tales from China. They are fun to read. Some have notes to clarify things that a western audience might not totally understand. I highly recommend it for children studying China!

5 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 117 (this book is not counted toward annual total)
Pages Read in 2017: 32,126
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: Pre-reading for Fritz for Next School Year

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August 27, 2017 · 11:51 am

Kula Keiki Ali’i by Rosemary I. Patterson

Part historical fiction, part science fiction, Kula Keiki Ali’i tells the story of the Hawaiian children sent to be taught and “civilized” by Calvinist missionaries. In between historical scenes, a story in the present plays out. The story is good, but it is in bad need of an editor. The speech patterns of the children sound like today, not over 100 years ago. For the historical content, I highly recommend this book. For the writing, it’s just not very good.

3 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 117
Pages Read in 2017: 32,044
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: Pre-reading for Cameron for Next School Year

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August 27, 2017 · 11:42 am

Zoe and Zak and the Yogi’s Curse by Lars Guignard

Zoe and Zak are special. Zak has magical objects and Zoe has yogi powers. Talusar is gaining strength, Mr. Muk is missing, and it’s up to Zoe and Zak to break the yogi’s curse and put everything back the way it should be.

Zoe & Zak and the Yogi’s Curse is the second Zoe and Zak book. We didn’t read the first one so some things that were referred to, including how Zoe originally got her powers, we had no idea was the author was talking about, but that did not prevent us from enjoying the book. It’s a cute story with lots of action and quite a bit of humor, too. I highly recommend it to kids and adults. It makes a great family read-aloud! Clearly, you don’t have to read the first book first, but I would recommend you do to prevent confusion.

5 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 116
Pages Read in 2017: 31,895
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: Bedtime Story for the Boys

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August 27, 2017 · 11:23 am

Wulf the Saxon by GA Henty

I never realized the story of the Norman Conquest including descriptions of battles could be made incredibly dull and boring, but GA Henty did his best and definitely succeeded with Wulf the Saxon. I actually found myself making excuses not to read the book, and had I not been pre-reading it for my son for school, I am pretty sure I would’ve stopped reading it completely… something I’ve only done with exactly one book ever. I will say, though, that my house was incredibly clean by the time I finished reading it so I guess it was good for something.

1 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 115
Pages Read in 2017: 31,553
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: Pre-reading for Cameron for Next School Year

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August 23, 2017 · 8:33 pm

Reel to Real: The Video Store Murders by Joyce Nance

In March 1996, Shane Harrison and Esther Beckley set out to rob a Hollywood Video store in Albuquerque New Mexico. It went terribly wrong and resulted in the deaths of five innocent people. Reel to Real: The Video Store Murders is the story of how it happened and the aftermath. As with many true crime books, the timeline can occasionally be difficult to follow and the number of characters hard to keep straight. It is well-written, however, and attempts to make the timeline as easy to follow as possible. I recommend this book to true crime fans.

4 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 114
Pages Read in 2017: 31,242
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: Birthstone Bookology (R in PERIDOT)

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August 18, 2017 · 9:47 pm

The Only Witness by Pamela Beason

When baby Ivy Rose Morgan is kidnapped in broad daylight, there is only one witness: Neema, a gorilla with the IQ of a five-year-old human. The detective on the case immediately assumes the teenage mother did something to the baby, but little by little he unravels the case with the help of Neema to find what really happened.

The Only Witness sucked me right in. The characters – human and gorilla – are written in a way that made me really care about what happened to them. Each chapter is another day after Ivy disappears so that even though it is a pretty fast read, you really get a sense of the agonizingly long process of the investigation. I highly recommend this book to fans of crime fiction.

5 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 113
Pages Read in 2017: 30,951
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: Birthstone Bookology (O in PERIDOT)

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August 15, 2017 · 7:45 pm

Island of Fog by Keith Robinson

Eight kids growing up on an isolated island always covered in fog suddenly discover there is something very special about them when they begin to change into magical creatures. When they are told that once they change they will be moved to a place with sunshine and blue skies, they aren’t sure who to trust with their secrets.

Island of Fog is the first book in a series. It took me a bit to really get into the story, but once I did I didn’t want to stop reading because I wanted to know what creatures each kid would become and to find out the truth about why they were on the island. The book has a satisfactory ending but still left me wanting to know what happens next. I recommend it to kids around 12 or so and up.

4 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 112
Pages Read in 2017: 30,637
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: Birthstone Bookology (I in PERIDOT)

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August 14, 2017 · 8:20 pm

Along Came Galileo by Jeanne Bendick

Along Came Galileo is a biography aimed at upper elementary age kids. It’s easy to read and while short, it covers all the main points of Galileo’s life. It includes quotes from Galileo at the end of each chapter and an index at the end. I recommend this book for kids studying Galileo or famous scientists.

5 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 111 (this book is not counted toward annual total)
Pages Read in 2017: 30,413
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: Pre-reading for Adrian for Next School Year

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August 8, 2017 · 6:31 pm

Politically Correct Holiday Stories by James Finn Garner

Politically Correct Holiday Stories is a collection of several well known Christmas stories changed to be politically correct. There are a few short ones (like Frosty and Rudolph) and then a long one (A Christmas Carol). They are all written in a sarcastic, over the top PC, way. There are two non-politically correct Christmas stories at the end, one about Santa’s childhood and one that was a surprisingly sweet story about a cabbie and possibly talking animals. It’s a fun, quick read. I recommend reading it!

5 (out of 5) Stars

Books Read in 2017: 111
Pages Read in 2017: 30,318
Read 52 Books in 52 Weeks (more book reviews!)
Reason I Chose It: Birthstone Bookology (P in PERIDOT)

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