Category: book review

Family is the most important thing in the world and nothing can come close to those important bonds you create with your children in the first few months of life. It is amazing with all the research that even today, there is still not a universal PAID maternity and paternity leave. Read more about this paternity leave pioneer who changed history in the US.

About The Fun Book of Fatherhood: A Paternity Leave Dad – Tale of a Pioneer

In 1973, Jerry Cammarata made history by becoming the first father in the United States to fight for and win paternity leave from the New York City Board of Education. As a result of the national attention he received, Dr. Cammarata was appointed to the White House Conference on Families by President Carter and later served as Commissioner of the Department of Youth and Community Development under New York City Mayors Rudy Giuliani and Michael Bloomberg.

The newly revised edition sets forth to enlighten  new generation of parents and grandparents. A resource and teaching tool for parents, the central theme is that humans should emulate their counterparts in the animal kingdom. By looking at how the animal kingdom raises their young, readers can learn how to be accepting of each other, their diversity and individuality of parenting. It also addresses the current state of affairs on parenting globally and ways to reach out to legislators on the issues of parenting and paid family leave.

My Thoughts

Before I dive to deep into my review, I want to say that I am a strong believer of paid parental leave – whether it be for the Mother or Father (or ultimately both). The bond between a child and their Father is extremely important and I feel that too often it is ignored. Dad can and do a great job at parenting at every day and they should be a valued and respected for their role in the home. I wish as a society we can remove that image from our head of the typical Father figure that goes to work, comes home is the authoritative figure but that is pretty much it. Children thrive when they have a Dad that plays with them, cuddles them, takes them out, helps them with homework and the list goes on and on. My husband is one of these Dads and while he never received paternity leave with our first child, he worked shifts and because I went back to school part-time he spent a of one on one time with our son and it made a huge difference.

Now before I get to off topic about something I am passionate about, this book does touch on the importance of paternity leave and the role of the Father but it is so much more than just this. I loved that Jerry was open with how others responded to him when he said he was going to take paternity leave. I would like to think things are different now but I can sadly here some of those same comments coming out of individuals mouths when a Dad wants to spend time with his child on paternity leave. The book also covers parenthood in general because whether you are Mom or Dad or both, parenting is hard!

Jerry covers parenthood from a whole new angle – from the view of the animal kingdom. We actually do have a lot in common with our furry animal kingdom both small and large (mostly – wouldn’t want parents eating their young!). There are a lot of lessons we can and should learn – like letting our child take their time to develop (they will get there), how to potty train and how to focus on the relationship first. I love that he gets his children involved and not only is this great for their building their relationship but education wise it is fantastic.

This was a well written book about Fatherhood and parenthood and the struggles we all face – whether it be parenting in general or society’s perception of how we should parent. It empowers parents to think outside of the box and to appreciate, respect and understand the many different ways we can parent and there is no real right or wrong (unless it is neglect). It was witty and fun with an edge of seriousness making it a great read for new parents and seasoned parents alike.

You can find more on his website and purchase a copy of this book on Amazon.

Rating: 4.5/5

About the Author

DR. JERRY CAMMARATA wrote the original The Fun Book of Fatherhood in the early 70s and went on to becoming a weekly columnist on parenting in New York. In 1979, he was appointed to the White House Conference on Families by President Carter, where he worked with Coretta Scott King, among others, on reshaping parenting issues in the U.S.

As a result of his activism in family issues throughout the 70s and 80s, as well as his commitment to public education, Dr. Cammarata was appointed by New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani to be the Commissioner of the Department of Youth and Community Development, while also maintaining his position as a Member of the Central Board of Education of NYC (the same BOE which gave him his historic Paternity Leave). In this unique capacity, Dr. Cammarata was involved in the education of over 1 million public school students, as well as after school programs in community centers, schools and parks throughout the five boroughs of NYC.

Dr. Cammarata’s life has been filled with family and opportunity. Educated in both parochial and public schools. he received his college education at Hofstra University and did post-graduate work at NYU, CUNY and CCU. In addition to his doctorate from CCU, he holds honorary doctorates from Mercy College and Dowling College, and has enjoyed teaching privileges at CUNY, Wagner College, and St. Joseph‘s College. He is a licensed Speech-Language Pathologist as well as a licensed and board-Certified Audiologist.

Over the last 45+ years, Dr. Cammarata has continued to write on children and parenting issues, while enjoying his grandchildren. He now enjoys his clinical and academic roots as the Chief Operating Officer, Dean of Student Affairs, and Associate Professor at Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine in Middletown, NY.

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

In The Truth About Us, the present is built on the past. But what if your past is a lie?

About The Truth About Us

The present is built on the past. But what if your past is a lie?

When 18 yr old Abigail Bridges’ grandmother dies, she leaves behind a mysterious letter asking her to unravel a hidden family secret.

There is only one rule: tell no one.

But meeting strangers in the dark and receiving old journals dating back to the Holocaust isn’t what she bargained for. Neither is a chance encounter with the enigmatic, brown-eyed Kade Oliver, who makes her want to discard her usually reserved nature.

After a key clue goes missing, Abigail ignores her grandmother’s rule and tells Kade everything. Together, they begin to unravel a terrifying truth. The truth may set others free, but for Abigail, it will tear her family apart.

Now, she must decide between continuing to uncover her families’ lies or burying the past once and for all.

My Thoughts

This is a beautiful, heart warming and heart wrenching story of discovery, family, truth, lies and betrayal.

When the Grandmother whom Abigail has always had a close relationship with passes away, she is left heartbroken. She is the one who makes Abigail laugh, holds her close and in true GG style, leaves her a series of letter that sets her off on a quest to discover an important secret. The only stipulation – she only receives information as GG seems fit in a very specific order.

At first, Abigail doesn’t know what to believe – she is left with a letter and a journal, does she read it and accept her whole world will change? Or does she go on pretending life has never changed? Quite a tough task for someone so young! With the help of a friend whom she “accidentally” meets (you will have to read the book to get this pun!), she sets out on a risky mission to discover the truth which has ties to a WWII Nazi camp. Her mission is not for the faint of heart as she quickly discovers, as someone is trying to hide the truth and someone may have or most definitely has killed over the truth.

This is an amazing story from start to finish. You connect with Abby and feel for her with all of your heart. You can’t even begin to imagine yourself in her shoes and what you would do! Does she reveal the truth and destroy a few people but give peace and closure to a huge group of others? So difficult! This was a well written novel that I just could not put down, I loved every moment and had to finish it once I started it.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Tia Souders is the author of young adult novels MORE THAN A NUMBER and BETTER THAN THIS, as well as the women’s fiction novel WAITING ON HOPE. When she isn’t writing, she’s likely working with her hubby renovating their century home. She’s a wine-loving, coffeeholic with a sweet tooth and resides on a farm in rural Ohio with her husband and children.

She loves chatting about books and has always wanted to join a book club but her introverted self won’t let her. She loves connecting with readers, so reach out!

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

“… Let them have everything – health, food, a place to live, entertainment. They are and remain unhappy and low-spirited for the demon waits and waits…” – Friedrich Nietzsche

About Aaru: Halls of Hel

Rose is a Veda. In Elysian Industries’ virtual paradise of Aaru, that means she’s practically a goddess. She is immortal. She is powerful. A limitless paradise is hers and her friends’ to command. They are free from sickness and pain, old age and death. She should be ecstatic over her prestige and privilege, but the gilded utopia has lost its luster. In a reality where anything can be hers with a thought, and Rose can master any skill instantly with nothing but her imagination, to what can she still aspire? She has all of eternity to fill, but what will her purpose be? Rose adores her sweet, Latin boyfriend, Franco. She loves wiling away endless immaculate days with her friends, but shouldn’t there be more to life than mere play?

Rose is dogged by deep concern for her little sister, Koren, the Elysian Industries spokes-model and reality star back in the “Before” world. Though Koren is wealthy, famous, and idolized by millions of adoring fans, her life is spinning out of control. Her parents’ marriage is on the rocks, and the boyfriend of her dreams, Jonas Perry, seems suddenly indifferent. Koren finds her celebrity increasingly isolating, her grueling work schedule exhausting, and the constant scrutiny of her personal life unwelcomed and intrusive. To top it all off, she has regular nightmares about the death of her friend, Kiku, and the still-at-large Magic Man who nearly stole away her everything.

Koren and Rose have more to fear from this quarter than they know. Magic Man’s obsession with the teenage idol has not lessened, and he is far from defeated. With vital aid from an unexpected source, his nefarious schemes to make Koren his own and to hack the Aaru mainframe are on track and moving forward. Unless the sisters can thwart his sinister designs, everyone and everything the girls hold dear could be destroyed.

My Thoughts

This second installment of the Aaru Cycle (find my other review here) is intense and full of suspense – you can not stop turning the pages as you have to know what is happening next.

Rose is now immortal and living in the world of Aaru (while not necessary, you should really read book one first to learn more about the history of the world and how it came to be), she is free of the disease that plagued her in life and free of pain, worry and fear. She can create things into existent with her mind and she has finally found true love in Franco. The only drawback? She is struggling to learn to live with a purpose. Why is she there? What does she give back to society? How will she continue to learn and grow? She is given the blessing of Arch Veda for protecting the world from the horrors of Magic Man but even then is this enough to satisfy her needs and wants?

Her sister, Koren, is plagued by nightmares of the ordeal she endured at the hands of Magic Man not to mention the fame and family fights that seem to follow her. She misses her sister and struggles in a world while watching her sister live in presumed happiness. We begin to see not only her but others question why would they continue on in a world of pain when a world of happiness is so close by?

Tied into this is a strange new character throughout the novel who seems to contain parts of both Rose, Koren and her creator. In the beginning, I was not quite sure who she was and how she tied into the story but as the plot evolved you became well aware of who she was and how she was tied into Rose, Koren and Magic Man.

This was an exciting, well written novel. You are given just enough at each stage of the book to keep the plot moving but not enough to spoil the story. Your heart goes out to Rose and Koren but oddly enough also to our new character, Hel, who isn’t quite as evil as you are led to expect. She is a product of her creator but has elements of warmth and love, just not quite sure how to show it. We are left with a hanger that makes you excited for the next book in this series. A definite must read!

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

David Meredith is a writer and educator originally from Knoxville, Tennessee. He received both a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts from East Tennessee State University, in Johnson City, Tennessee. He received his Doctorate in Educational Leadership (Ed.D.) from Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville, Tennessee. On and off, he spent nearly a decade, from 1999-2010 teaching English in Northern Japan, but currently lives with his wife and three children in the Nashville Area where he continues to write and teach English.

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.