Book Reviews

Corduroy's Day: A Counting Book [2005, Penguin Young Readers Group] by Don Freeman and illustrated by Lisa McCue is a 14 page children's board book that tells the story of a bear named Corduroy as he does many daily activities, such as:

• Getting up and out of bed (something my kids tend to find challenging in the mornings)
• Eating breakfast (my youngest loves to tell me Corduroy's favorite foods and points to the pictures)
• Beginning to play
• Feeding some ducklings (my 2-year-old loves the duck that has only its tail sticking out of the water and laughs and laughs every time she sees that page)
• Has...

Ollie [2003, Houghton Mifflin Company, ISBN: 0-618-33928-0] by Olivier Dunrea is a very small hardcover children's book with 32 pages. The book is actually about the size of my hand, but the story is cute and fun with engaging pictures. Each page contains a very short sentence with quotes on some pages.

The Story:

Gossie and Gertie are excitedly waiting for Ollie to come out and play. But he's not budging from the safety of his egg. However, Ollie finds all sorts of interesting ways to play while in the egg, such as:

• Rolling and standing on his head
• Sitting under sheep
• Other humorous activities...

Piglet and Granny [2009, Abrams Books for Young Readers, ISBN: 978-0-8109-4063-5] by Margaret Wild and illustrated by Stephen Michael King is a 32-page children's picture book about a cool Granny and a little pig who must wait for Granny's visit. While waiting, the little pig finds lots of things to do, such as:

• Balance on a wall
• Chase butterflies
• Doing somersaults
• Playing hide and seek

Will Granny ever come? What's taking her so long? The little pig finally gets a glimpse of beloved Granny, who has a twinkle in her eye and says that it took so long because she was making a surprise! Whatever...

Sylvia Jean, Drama Queen [2005, Dutton, ISBN: 0-525-46962-1] by Lisa Campbell Ernst is a 32-page children's picture book that looks at a young pig who always dresses up. Any occasion is a dress-up occasion for Sylvia Jean. Everywhere she goes, Sylvia Jean is known for her wild costumes. Anyone who meets Sylvia Jean soon discovers that she wears a different costume each day and begins to act the part that matches what she is wearing.

Then Sylvia Jean hears about a costume party that is coming up and sponsered by Ace's Costume Shop. The only problem is that Sylvia Jean has worn every costume that...

Ten in the Den [2005, Peachtree, ISBN: 1-56145-344-7] by John Butler is a 23-page children's picture book that is a fun twist to "There Were Ten in the Bed." The story begins with ten animals all nestled in their den, but mouse has then all to roll over and as they do so, the one closest to the opening of the den tumbles out.

The book incorporates lots of vocabulary, especially considering that it has only about one sentence per page. The illustrations compliment the story nicely and my kids loved to see the various animals and their expressions as they ended up in a heap outside.

Here are the...

Why Do Dogs Bark? [2001, Dial Books for Young Readers, ISBN: 0-8037-2504-3] by Joan Holub and illustrated by Anna DiVito is a 48-page children's book about dogs. It incorporates humor, kid-friendly information, and simple examples that appeal to smaller kids who are interested in learning more about dogs. The pictures are fun and full color but I think it would have been helpful to have captions listing the breed. The book also gives some help with pronunciations.

Here are some examples from the book:

• It talks about sizes from chihuahuas to mastiffs and saint bernards.
• The most common number of...

Today is Thanksgiving! [2007, Candy Cane Press, ISBN: 978-0-8249-6727-7] by P.K. Hallinam is a 28-page children's board book about Thanksgiving. This book gives a view of Thanksgiving and what family members are doing to get ready for that special celebration.

Each page has about two sentences, which can be a little bit long for a board book. I associate board books with the youngest of kids, and my 2-year-old tends to enjoy VERY short books. This one doesn't take a long time to read, but I thought it might have been better suited to paper pages rather than a board book.

My girls got a kick out...

Why Do Cats Meow? [2001, Dial Books for Young Readers, ISBN: 0-8037-2503-5] by Joan Holub and illustrated by Anna DiVito is a 48-page children's picture book about cats. The pictures are fun and engaging. I actually found this book quite informative and interesting, and my girls (ages 8, 5, 2) liked looking at and learning about cats as we read this story.

Here are just a few interesting things we learned about cats after reading this book:

• Cats are the most popular pet in the U.S.
• The biggest recorded cat weighed 47 pounds - Wow!
• It gives descriptions of cat behavior and how to know what a cat...

A Little House Christmas: Holiday Stories from the Little House Books [1968, Harper Collins, ISBN: 0-06-024269-8} by Laura Ingalls Wilder and illustrated by Garth Williams is a collection of three Christmas stories and one carol from the Little House series:

• Christmas in the Big Woods
• Christmas on the Prairie
• Christmas on Plum Creek
• Merry, Merry Christmas! (a carol)

This older book packs a delightful collection of a stories giving a glimpse into the past when children were excited to get a couple of pieces of candy and a new dress as Christmas gifts. The focus of these stories is of family and...

Glenn Beck's Common Sense:  The Case Against an Out-of-Control Government, Inspired by Thomas Paine

It seems that most people who are familiar with Glenn Beck either love him or hate him.  I fall into the former category and a little embarrassingly admit that I even have a bit of a mom crush on him.  I was first introduced to Mr. Beck when I read his book, An Inconvenient Truth, which I really enjoyed. 

I wouldn't call myself a political junkie but I have found myself pursuing a higher level of knowledge in politics in the past few years.  I was too busy daydreaming about boys to pay much...

This Stephanie Meyer collection is definitely a must read for those who enjoy this genre.  I have read all of them and was enthralled with each one.  Once I picked the books up, I had a very difficult time putting them down. 

The story line and plot were extremely well written and flowed very smoothly.  Each booked picked up where the one before it left off so you never really lost your place.

The writing is so descriptive that you actually feel like you are there and going through everything that Bella does.

These books have your emotions running wild. They have you laughing and crying at...

My favourite Dr. Seuss Book

Everyone Loves the Rhymes

Generations of children have cut their reading teeth on the simple rhymes and elaborate illustrations of Dr. Seuss's books. The endearing characters of these books live on in our memories. The rhyme schemes also live on, adapted for  every imaginable purpose, including parody, movies and even a Broadway show entitled" Seuss cal the musical," my own Seuss's immersion started with the classic The cat in the Hat who can-forget the wreckage wrought by this mischievously feline and his cohorts in crime, Thing 1 and thing 2? Later, there was The...

I bought this book back a couple of years ago, and even to this day I find reading this book to be stress relieving because of how many facts are in this book.

Did you know that Drew Barrymore has a tattoo and a flower sprig on the bottom?

Did you know that Jon Bon Jovi was a burger king worker before becoming famous?

Did you know that Tom Hanks was a Bellhop before becoming famous?

Now you know..and there are thousands (yes, literally) of facts within this book. 364 pages of trivial goodness are yours with this book. Who knows, maybe this book would be able to help you get on Jeopardy and become...

What comes in a plain white cover and keeps you wanting to read until the wee hours of the morning?  BONE TEAR does.

This story is a tale written in the Viking era about a young princess, Bridget, and her destiny.  She wants nothing more than to become a nun and spend her days in prayer.  Her father has a very different idea and arranges her marriage to Vortimer.  With the marriage comes the responsibility of land given to the newly weds by Bridget's father and the task of protecting the northern borders from a Viking invasion.

Vortimer and his men engage in a battle against the Vikings but...

It's a great book! I would defiantly recommend to a younger crowd. It keeps you guessing and wondering throughout the whole book "Who is this killer?" The book takes you on a mysterious roller coaster ride. Laurie Faria Stolar gives you a feel of each character.