Category: books

April 15, 2025

My Mom Book Review

The perfect gift for Moms, My Mom celebrates the unique bond between mother and child, no matter how this relationship starts.

About My Mom

My Mom is a stereotype-busting celebration of all the everyday things that one child’s mom does to make her so awesome!

My Mom says that when I arrived
I was like a star
drifting
down
from the sky
and into her life.

The story follows mother and child from before the child is born, celebrating the bond between mother and child even when the child is just a dream. With an inclusive feel, all mother and child relationships are celebrated in this story – whether biological or adoptive.

A joyous spirit of adventure is present throughout the story, following mother and child as they take on life’s big and small adventures together. From sailing a ship around the garden and exploring forests, streams and meadows to telling stories in a cozy den and cuddling before bedtime, a child reveals all the simple yet special things she loves to do with her adventurous mom.

Our Thoughts

The journey to parenthood is different and non-linear. This book captures it perfectly in the opening sentence, “My Mom says that when I arrived I was like a star, drifting down from the sky and into her life”. We become mothers in very different ways and stages in our lives. For some of us, this journey may appear easier and for others we may have a longer journey that goes down a variety of different paths. We all have the same fears that becoming parents may never happen, no matter how hard our heart yearns for it. But when this day comes, and that child enters your life, it is like life starts again and your heart is full of love and hope.

This beautiful book brought tears to my eyes as you hear the child share how much they love their Mom and everything that she does with her. She shares how her Mom can fix anything and how her Mom’s strength and bravery in turns gives her strength to face her fears. As parents, we sometimes can try so hard to give our children the perfect moments (sparing no cost!) when all they really want and need is the simple moments – walking in the park, making crafts, playing together, snuggling on the couch. Seeing these little adventures through the eyes of a child, brings a different perspective into being a mom.

My favourite line of this book, “Mom tells me how she loved me when I was just a dream. And when I see my mom so happy – I’m really, really glad she dreamed of me.” My heart just melted reading this line, we love our children so deeply regardless of how they come into our lives. Children need this love and flourish when they feel safe and loved.

The illustrations in this book go along well with the story line – they are soft, whimsical and fun. They highlight the magic of childhood and the love between Mother and child. You can hear the giggles, feel the wind blowing and the touch of a small hand in your own.

This is a wonderful book for new parents, it makes not only a wonderful book to read with your child but to cherish for years to come.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon. Learn more about this book and others on Quarto.

About the Author

Susan Quinn was born in Manchester but has traveled the world: by way of South Africa and Sydney. She became a children’s librarian at 23 and then moved back to England. Her first book, Little Bear and the Butterflies, was published by QED in 2014.

About the Illustrator

Sarah Mathew is a freelance illustrator who lives in Cambridge with her husband and three boys. Sarah is naturally curious and loves collecting little seeds of inspiration. Sarah takes a playful and experimental approach to her work, testing out new ways of working and seeing where the happy accidents or beginnings of ideas go. Sarah has many treasured memories of being snuggled up with her children reading a big pile of picture books.

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

April 9, 2025

Sing With Your Baby Every Day: 30 Songs and Nursery Rhymes to Sing Along To

The sound a parents’ voices helps babies feel safe and feel comfortable with their surroundings, Sing With Your Baby Every Day is a gorgeous book that puts some of the best loved nursery rhymes and songs in one gorgeous keepsake.

About Sing With Your Baby Every Day

Sing With Your Baby Every Day is keepsake volume of thirty nursery rhymes and songs to share with your baby, and illustrated with hand-embroidered artwork.

Science tells us that babies develop when they are spoken to, sung to, and read to. Even when they’re tiny, their parents’ voices helps babies make sense of the world and feel comfortable with new people and places and beautiful book brings you best-loved nursery rhymes and songs in one volume, including:

Five Little Ducks
Round and Round the Garden
Teddy Bears Picnic
I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly
A Sailor Went to Sea
Grand Old Duke of York
Kookaburra

Bond with your little one and watch them grow as your recite and sing these classics.

This book is also part of the Stitched Storytime series: Read to Your Baby Every Day, Read to Your Toddler Every Day, Read to Your Baby Every Night, and Pray with Your Baby Every Day.

Our Thoughts

Little ones love singing and hearing their parents and siblings voice. You can see the changes in their face and eyes, the way they just light up when they hear these special people in their life. Singing and reading are so important in their development and I think we do this naturally as we try to soothe our newborns with songs and movement. It is one of the most natural actions we take as care providers and parents – we sing to soothe and to show joy.

Sometimes where we struggle is having enough songs to sing! I am guilty of this and then I start to try to remember every Girl Guide and hymn I have ever heard (while only remembering likely one verse!). I love the variety of songs in this book, re-learning the proper words to each song and also being able to share some of my own memories of each song with older siblings (it even brought up conversations of whether they remember us singing these songs together when they were little). Each day we sang different songs, went back to favourites that made our little one smile, and even added in our own actions and dances to each song.

The book itself is stunning with the illustrations, we found ourselves running our hands over each page. The design is so thoughtful and intentional with big impact. This really helped to engage our little one and family in reading and singing time.

This is a wonderful book that would make a great addition to baby shower and newborn gifts. Parents will enjoy each moment spent singing to their little one with the aid of this gorgeous book!

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon. You can learn more about the series on Quarto.

About the Author

Irish-born Claire Grace studied English and Philosophy before becoming a Senior Commissioning Editor of children’s books. She is the author of many books for children and has worked on a collection of award-winning titles. She now lives in Scotland with her husband and son and works as a full time author and freelance editor.

About the Illustrator

Chloe Giordano began to sew in the last year of her illustration degree at the University of the West of England. Since graduating, she has continued to experiment with freehand embroidery, using sewing thread and hand-dyed fabrics to make her work – and the books in her bestselling Stitched Storytime series are illustrated with her hand-embroidered artwork. Her clients include Penguin, Vintage Books, Bloomsbury, Liberty.

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

February 17, 2025

Book Tour: MIT OUT SOUND

In MIT OUT SOUND, amidst Apache holy grounds and the magic of day-for-night shooting, the lines between past and present blur and the flawed characters’ backstories intertwine into a tumultuous finale that exposes their hidden animosities, demons, and loves.

About MIT OUT SOUND

“It’s time to make a mess,” said Emily.

Would-be movie producer Emily Bennett didn’t believe the legend of a lost movie, starring James Dean and John Wayne. But when she meets two uncannily talented celebrity impersonators-Jimmy Riley and Tom “Duke” Manfredo, and stumbles upon the elusive film editor who stole the master negative of Showdown, it dispels her doubts, fills her with a courage she didn’t know she had, and she sets out to complete the movie.

But as Emily and her stars prepare for day one of shooting, they find themselves entangled in a complex love triangle with Oedipal undertones, mirroring their own past lives and off-screen dynamics. As doubts about their ruthless director, Solange Borugian, surface, Jimmy’s and Duke’s friendship is turned upside down, while Emily and her brother Ben, struggle with their own unresolved issues and are forced to confront their dying father.

On location in Arizona, amidst Apache holy grounds and the magic of day-for-night shooting, the lines between past and present blur and the flawed characters’ backstories intertwine into a tumultuous finale that exposes their hidden animosities, demons, and loves.

You can purchase a copy of the book on Amazon, B&N, BAM, Bookshop, and Bookbub.

About the Author

When Rick Lenz retired as a stage and film actor (playing opposite Ingrid Bergman, John
Wayne, Lauren Bacall, Walter Matthau, Peter Sellers, etc.), his passion for drama refused to retire with him. Although he was an actor most of his life, he is also a seasoned writer.

His plays have been produced Off-Broadway, on PBS television, and in regional theatres across the country. Rick’s memoir North of Hollywood was called “masterful” by Writer’s
Digest. His first novel, The Alexandrite was named “one of the best books of the year” by Kirkus Reviews. Bret Easton Ellis called it “almost impossible to put down.” Booklife calls A Town Called Why, “An absorbing tale of mystery and revenge… nuanced … powerful.” Rick’s books have won several awards, including, Readers Views (first place), the Chanticleer Somerset Grand Prize for Literary, Contemporary and Mainstream Fiction, an IPPY Award, and a Foreword Book of the Year. Most recently, his time-travel love story Hello, Rest of My Life was a 2022 Silver Nautilus Book Award winner (fiction), and Eric Hoffer Award finalist (fiction).

He lives in Los Angeles with his wife Linda and an ever-shifting array of animals.

You can connect with the author on their website, X, Facebook, and Goodreads.

The Giveaway!

Enter to win a signed copy of MIT OUT SOUND (US only) here.

Disclosure: All opinions expressed are my own, I did not receive compensation for this post.

February 1, 2024

Book Tour: Hope Series

A Gateway to Hope: Hope Series, Book One

Twenty-one-year-old Neka is a bit of an introvert, she also happens to be stunningly beautiful.

When she discovers her friend James is about to be dumped, she sees the perfect opportunity to escape from her quiet life. Can she summon the courage to leave it all behind?

James Copley comes from a ruthless family. It’s rubbed off.

Years ago, he disengaged from his brother’s smear campaign, but now his father has offered him an ultimatum, “Get married or lose your seat at the table.”

Plotting to stamp his design on the family business, he proposes to a woman, even though he doesn’t love her.

But his carefully laid plans start to unravel when she leaves him on the day she’s due to meet his family.

Could years of planning his comeback vanish with her departure?

A possible solution comes in an unexpected form: Neka. She’s not only a friend, but the daughter of his benefactor. And she’s right there, offering to support him.

But will her support stretch to marriage?

He attempts to win her over to his plan but collides with her powerful father who wants to leverage the situation for his own gain.

In their fight for survival and love, they are forced to face some uncomfortable truths.

Can they overcome thwarted dreams and missed chances to find true love, or does forcing destiny’s hand only lead to misery?

You can purchase this book A mazon, B&N, Bookbub.

A Living Hope: Hope Series, Book Two

It was a match made in heaven. Or so everyone thought. Sadie Mae Cummings is all set to marry her childhood sweetheart, Kyle, when she is assigned to tutor Lincoln, the new college football running back. This sophomore phenomenon has all the girls on campus knocking on his door. But Sadie isn’t interested in his advances.

Lincoln’s overblown ego doesn’t take well to being shunned, and he resolves to make Sadie his own. He pursues her relentlessly, until finally Kyle finds himself shut out of Sadie’s life, with their shared future crumbling around him.

After two years, Sadie’s relationship with Lincoln ends, and she is left having to put the pieces of her life back together. She desires nothing more than to recapture her relationship with Kyle. He has stayed true to the dreams they had planned together, living the vision even without Sadie by his side.

When she moves back to her hometown, she labors to rekindle their love. But things have changed, and Kyle has moved on. Sadie quickly discovers how hard it is to rebuild burned bridges.

Follow Sadie’s story as she fights for a chance to restore broken dreams. Will love endure?

This inspirational romance by E. C. Jackson is book two of the Hope series and is a standalone book.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon and Bookbub.

The Certain Hope: Hope Series, Book Three

Love at first sight. It’s every girl’s dream. But Tara Simpkins is finding out it’s not as easy as it seems. Is this truly the man God sent to be her husband, or is she just desperate to escape her loneliness? The recent loss of both parents has left her reeling, and close friends don’t think she’s in any position to make major life decisions. She and her new-found love are convinced they can live happily ever after in the home of their dreams. His family thinks he’s moving way too fast and might disappoint the kind-hearted woman he’s fallen head over heels for. And then there’s Leah. Leah is supposed to be part of his past, but what if she decides she’s his future? Tara’s match made in Heaven may be over before it truly begins.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon and B&N.

The Confident Hope: Hope Series, Book Four

Is there hope for this love between friends?

Pamela Hayes is a smart, successful business owner with a supportive family and a thriving bakery. She should be the happiest girl in the world. But she can’t shake the melancholy that accompanies every conversation she has with her best friend, Mark. Pamela doesn’t know how much longer she can hide her true feelings.

Why can’t Mark see how perfect they would be together? She would make a much better girlfriend than the one he currently has. Pamela prays he’ll come to his senses soon and realize he’s with the wrong girl. But when her dream comes true, it isn’t the fantasy she had envisioned.

There is trouble in paradise from the start, and all the red flags she’s been ignoring are starting to threaten her confidence…and her relationship with Mark. She’ll have to rely on family and her faith in God to help her secure the hope she so desperately needs.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon and B&N.

Overflow With Hope: Hope Series, Book Five

Two men. One wrong choice.

Tempia Wade’s life had jumped the rails.

One fateful night, she believed a stranger’s lie rather than the assurance of a trusted friend. For her lapse in judgment, she paid an agonizing price.

Her now-bankrupt life featured shattered dreams, ruined friendships, and the loss of a promising relationship. Now, two years later, the twenty-three-year-old prayed for a second chance with the man she had fallen for at first sight.

Would Cory Sanders finally overlook her egregious mistake in accepting a next-day date and liaison with another man? Or would she have to truly accept life without him?

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon and B&N.

About the Author

E. C. Jackson began her writing career with the full-length play “Pajama Party.” Thirty-one years later, she adapted the play into Pajama Party: The Story, a companion book to the second book in the five-book standalone Hope series.

Jackson’s favorite pastime is reading fiction. She enjoys taking the journey along with the characters in the books. That also led to her unorthodox approach to story writing. Her vision for each book she writes is to immerse readers into the storyline so they become connected with each character.

“The Write Way: A Real Slice of Life” is the slogan on her Facebook author page. She feels that if every person reading her books feels connected to the characters, her job is done.

You can connect with the Author on their website, X, Facebook and Amazon.

Disclosure: This is a spotlight tour, I did not receive compensation for this post. All opinions expressed are my own.

May 23, 2022

Alycat and the Cattywampus Wednesday

The themes of the books in the Alycat Series all reflect a reliance on friendships, imagination, and creativity towards problem solving.

About Alycat and the Cattywampus Wednesday

Alycat wakes up to seafood gumbo for breakfast, and even though her house is the first stop for the school bus, the bus is already full when she boards. Alycat’s whole day is turning topsy-turvy. What is happening? Young readers will tag along on Alycat’s adventures during her very “cattywampus” Wednesday and learn that a little help from some friends and a good attitude can make your day!

The themes of the books in the Alycat Series all reflect a reliance on friendships, imagination, and creativity towards problem solving. The character traits of Alycat and her friends inspire and encourage young readers to find their own special gifts. After enduring a cattywampus world pursuant to an unexpected pandemic, this book will resonate with readers to persevere through the wackiest and toughest of times.

My Thoughts

Cattywampus means askew or abnormal, behaving in an unsual way.

This is certainly the case for Alycat in this adorable, beautifully illustrated novel! Her typical Wednesday is completely backwards – from the moment she wakes up, to the moment she goes to sleep, nothing is usual or routine. She has dinner for breakfast, the first stop is the last stop on the bus, words are spelt backwards and the list goes on for Alycat.

While this topsy turvy type of day could have made Alycat sad and angry (it certainly made her unsure!), she has great friends and family that help her to see the positive in the day and how to roll with it. Alycat shows us that even though the world is not how we are used to and the days may seem frustrating and definitely atypical from our norm, we can use different strategies to help us deal with the uncertainty (Alycat even has a set of strategies to help young children at the end of the story!).

I love the lesson in the story for young children, it is so important especially as so many of us are still struggling with the pandemic and our constantly changing world where nothing ever seems routine or normal anymore. It is so important that children know that no matter what goes on around them, we have the power and control to how we react to our environment around us. Young children will fall in love with the illustrations and the adorable cat themed words (hiss-tory, Mrs. Purry). The illustrations are bright, bold and adorable and help to bring Alycat’s story to life.

You can purchase a copy of this book on the Alycat website, Amazon and B&N.

About the Author

Alysson Foti Bourque is the author of the award-winning Alycat series. Alysson earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and a Juris Doctor degree from the Southern University Law Center.

After practicing law for six years, she traded in writing trial briefs for writing children’s books. Alysson enjoys public speaking opportunities at schools, conferences, and festivals nationwide. She hopes to inspire people of all ages to follow their dreams and believe in themselves wholeheartedly.

AWARDS & HONORS

The Alycat Series has won several prestigious awards including:
Three Mom’s Choice Awards®
Benjamin Franklin Digital Award, Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA)
Best Book Award Finalist
NY Big Book Award
Reviewed by Midwest Book Review
Southern Festival of Books Panelist
Louisiana Book Festival Featured Author

You can connect with the author on their website, Twitter and Facebook.

The Giveaway!

Enter to win a signed copy of Alysson Foti Bourque’s Alycat and the Cattywampus Wednesday by clicking here.

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