Category: book review

October 23, 2014

Bad Grrlz’ Guide to Reality by Pat Murphy #review

Two novels collide in Bad Grrlz’ Guide to Reality to bring you Wild Angel and Adventures in Time and Space with Max Merriwell. Both novels tie into each other but are both very unique in their own way.

About Bad Grrlz’ Guide to Reality

One novel is set in the hills of the Old West and the other sails across the Bermuda Triangle.

In Wild Angel, Sarah sits by the river with her mother while her father pans for gold. The calm of the California hills is broken suddenly by a rifle shot – the start of an ambush that leaves Sarah’s parents murdered and scalped forcing the three year old to flee into the woods.Sarah is left hungry, cold and lost when she is rescued by a she-wolf named Wauna. Wauna feeds and cares for Sarah as if she were one of her own pups. As Sarah grows up among the wolves, she will tame the wilderness and her adventures that are chronicled by a writer named Max Merriwell – will make her a legend.

Unlike the hero of Wild Angel, the women of Adventures in Time and Space with Max Merriwell do not expect danger when they set off on their journey. But when Pat and Susan’s cruise ship sails into the Bermuda Triangle, reality begins to twist. As supernatural creatures menace the ship,these two would be vacationers will have no choice but to hang on for the ride.

My Thoughts

I fell in love with the story of Sarah in Wild Angel. Here was a young girl left abandoned (by circumstances out of her control and not by choice) who in order to survive lives with a pack of wolves. She becomes so much like her wolf family – learning to communicate in the same way they do, hunt like a wolf hunts and treat others in the pack like a wolf would. The story brings to mind the nature vs nurture debate. Sarah left all alone in the world adopts the traits of the wolves in order to survive but she doesn’t just survive she thrives. No matter how hard she tries she will always feel at home and a closer connection to her wolf family instead of her human family. I could not put down Wild Angel – Sarah’s story was incredible, you just have to know what happens to her.

The second story, Adventures in Time and Space with Max Merriwell was very different to novels that I am used to. The novel incorporates parts of the previous story (Wild Angel) and the authors various names. At times, I found myself having to re-read certain parts to ensure I properly understood what the author was trying to portray. Pat Murphy did a really great job intertwining the stories while still making this novel interesting and unique in its own way.

Want to find out more info on the Bad Grrlz’ Guide to Reality – check the novel out on Goodreads or Amazon.

Rating: 4.5/5

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

October 14, 2014

The Hardest Peace #review & #giveaway

An incredible life changing story of one woman’s journey through cancer and how it has changed her as a woman, a wife, a mother and as a daughter of God.

About The Hardest Peace

The Hardest Peace is the story of Kara Tippetts, a young mother battling cancer who invites readers to embrace grace in every season of life.

Kara Tippetts knows the mundane but rich days of mothering four kids, the joy of watching her children grow and the devastating reality of stage four cancer.

In her book, she invites readers to see the grace of the everyday in all seasons of life and to live well even when the living is hard. As the thousands of readers of her blog know, Tippetts explores the hardest questions of life with rare beauty and honesty. Most of all, she draws them back to the God who is present, in the ordinary and the suffering, and shapes every life into the best story of all.

My Thoughts

It is hard to know where to start with my own feelings and thoughts. Firstly, I feel blessed to have had Kara share her journey and story with us. Her faith is so strong and humbles me. While I cried at parts of her story I feel like she did not share her story for us to feel sad but instead to see all the good in her story. She wants us to see that sometimes the bad things in our lives can also help us recognize and appreciate all the beauty that is in our world. It helped me to step back and appreciate the life God has given me and that no matter how I am feeling that day that this is the path I am meant to be walking along and that I can conquer each day.

The Hardest Peace has changed the way I parent as well as the way I perceive situations with my children. I can’t imagine how it must feel to be in her shoes looking at your children every day but it also makes you appreciate each cuddle, each achievement and each I love you that much more. When I am feeling frustrated I now take a deep breath and say to myself remember grace – sometimes I may have to repeat it more than once but it helps remind me that these moments (even the screaming ones) are precious and a gift to be held dear.

Rating: 5/5 ++

About Kara Tippetts

Kara Tippetts and her husband, Jason, have four children. They lead a church in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Cancer is only a part of Kara’s story. Her real fight is to truly live while facing a crushing reality. You can find her on her website, Facebook and Twitter.

Giveaway Time!

One of my lucky Canadian readers will have their own chance to win a copy of Kara’s inspirational book! Enter via the Rafflecopter form below and good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review as well as a copy for the giveaway. All opinions expressed are my own.

October 4, 2014

Rhythmical Rhymes of Biblical Times by Kelly Pulley #review

About Rhythmical Rhymes of Biblical Times

This treasury of Bible stories has been designed for children aged 4-8. The book features favourite and loved Bible stories using rhymes and beautiful, bright illustrations.

The stories use lighthearted moments to help teach spiritual truths. The book is perfect to read out loud allowing families to use this book to read together every night to help make memories while learning about their faith.

My Thoughts

Many of my favourite Biblical stories were included in this lovely book for children! The illustrations were wonderful and complimented each story perfectly. I loved how the stories rhymed which made reading out loud that much simpler (nothing worse then trying to read out loud and you are stumbling on the flow of words!). Teaching children about Bible stories can be hard but this book makes it easy. The stories are written in a way to relate easily with children with the language used while still teaching valuable lessons. It is an incredibly helpful tool to get the conversation going with our children about faith and the Bible while still keeping the right maturity level necessary for this age group.

You can find more reviews on the Litfuse blog tour page. If you are interested in purchasing your own copy you can do so here.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author – Kelly Pulley

Kelly Pulley works from his Tennessee home writing and illustrating children’s picture books. Some of his more recent work includes Ten Unusual Features of Lulu McDunn and The Cycling Wangdoos. He is best known for illustrating dozens of books in the Beginner’s Bible series, including The Beginner’s Bible (over 1.25 million copies sold).

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

October 2, 2014

The @IdiotsGuide to Slow Cooker Cooking #review

With fall on our doorstep (I am teary as we say goodbye to our beautiful summer months!) out comes my slow cooker and my determination to master the art of slow cooking. When I first bought my slow cooker (I had to have one because my Dad has one) it literally sat in the cupboards for a year and a half without being used and just collecting dust. Why? I had no idea what to do with it! Sounds silly right but it seemed like a lot of work when I could cook it all on the stove one time. I can now say 100% that I was wrong – it is God sent!

The Idiot’s Guide to Slow Cooker Cooking arrived on my door step last week and I was super stoked to hop right in and take advantage of all the delicious recipes. The Idiot’s Guide has been revamped and now in full colour, beautiful photography and a gorgeous cover page while still staying true to it’s roots and allowing readers to learn new things in an easy way. I love how much work went into revamping the guides – they are beautiful!

The Idiot’s Guide to Slow Cooker Cooking contains over 120 recipes ranging from breakfast, dessert, meals broken down by protein source to breads (yes breads!). Start off with the basics on a slow cooker (trust me this is a must if you are still learning how to use your machine properly!) and then dive into the amazing recipes . My favourite ones? The top one has to be a Philly cheese steak sandwich as I would never have even thought to prepare something like this in my slow cooker. I have only ever really used it for chilli’s and soup before! This is followed closely by a creamy broccoli cheese soup, sloppy joes and tri tip beef stroganoff – aren’t these names making you hungry right now?!

Each recipe comes with details on how many servings it will yield, serving size along with the length of time to cook the meal in your slow cooker. Each page also has helpful tips on making variations or how to perfect that recipe. The pictures are large and mouth watering with easy to follow instructions (a must have in a recipe book for me!). With it’s smaller size and soft cover format it is the perfect book to hide away in the kitchen and whip out when you need to make that perfect meal. A slow cooker is the perfect solution for busy families with limited time to still prepare a healthy meal at home!

Check out the Idiot’s Guide – As Easy As It Gets boutique and receive a 30% discount for a limited time!

Do you have a special go to slow cooker recipe that you love?

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

October 2, 2014

Eye Wonder Sharks from DK Canada #review

Do you have a little one in your home who loves sharks? We have two huge shark fans – so big we aren’t allowed to plan vacations during Shark Week otherwise they may miss an episode which just can not happen. I have to admit that these beautiful creatures hold a special place in my heart as well for many reasons. We love to discover new facts, learn about new sharks and their habits.

The Eye Wonder series is a precursor to the Eyewitness series and is specially designed for the 5+ crowd. The book comes in hardcover format (perfect for young kids who are not always as gentle as they could be) with large, beautiful photographs. The photographs and accompanying easy to read vocabulary made it the perfect book for us to read together as a family. We could easily open the book, pick out a photo and learn all about that shark in easy to use terms. I fell in love with the big, bold and bright photographs that truly showcase the beauty of sharks.

We were able to learn about a great variety of sharks from big to small as well as some odd looking ones we never knew about before. We looked at their teeth, eating habits, gills and so much more. I even learned some new stuff (Mom even sat down with the book after the kids went to bed so that I could read more too – love books like that!). As if Eye Wonder Sharks couldn’t get any better -at the end of the book they include eight pages of activities for your child to really dive in and enhance the complete learning experience. A win-win for us!

This book was such a hit that our eldest took the book to school and has kept it there for his friends and him to read during their breaks! That is when you know a book has done it’s job – it has engaged and sparked their curiosity to learn!

Check out the DK Canada Back to School boutique for more exciting Eye Wonder series as well as great workbooks to get your child back in the swing of things. The boutique is also offering a 30% off discount for a limited time so make sure to get in on that discount before it is gone!

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