What We See in the Stars -- Blogging for Books Review

Happy Thursday! Today I am so excited to share my review of What We See in the Stars by Kelsey Oseid.

I absolutely loved this book. I have always been fascinated with astronomy and mythology. This book is amazing and the illustrations are gorgeous. I love how the book is organized. The book is broken up into seven sections: The Constellations, The Milky Way, The Moon, The Sun, The Planets, Asteroids, & Meteors, and Deep Space. The book includes some definitions and explanations that is easy to understand. I learned so much from this book and even did some more research on a few things. I really loved reading the stories about Ptolemy and the constellations.

This book is perfect for all ages and I would recommend this book to anyone who loves astronomy, mythology, and science.

Have you read What We See in the Stars? What are your thoughts?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Start Where You Are: Week-At-A-Glance Diary--Blogging for Books Review

Most of you may know that I am a big fan of planners and I'm so excited to share a review of this cute planner by an amazing artist. I am a fan of Meera Lee Patel's art and was so excited when I found out that she made a diary. Although it's called a diary, I think it's more of a planner. This is a undated weekly planner so you can start your planner on any month. The planner is small enough to fit in a bag or purse. The pages are a bit thin so you may notice some bleeding through the pages if you use a pen or marker.

I love that there are monthly pages at the beginning of each month where you can list your monthly goals, notes for the month, and important dates. The monthly pages also has some of Meera's art and quotes from famous people. At the end of the planner, there is a section for contacts and birthdays. There's also a section for world time zones and international calling codes, conversion factors, phonetic alphabet, and roman numerals.

Overall, I really love this planner and can't wait to use it. Although I already have a planner, I do think I have an idea for how I'm going to use this planner. If you use multiple planners, please let me know. I would love to get some more ideas.

Do you use a planner? Are you a fan of Meera Lee Patel?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Women in Sports -- Blogging for Books Review

Happy Wednesday! Today I'm so excited to share my review of Women in Sports by Rachel Ignotofsky. I first heard of Ignotofsky when her book, Women in Science, was released.

I am not really into sports, but I have always been interested to hear about the achievements and stories of women in sports. Unfortunately, it seems that a lot of people focus on men and sports so I think it's important to note that there are women who helped contribute to sports. 

This book is absolutely amazing! The book features 50 women in different sports. Some of the sports mentioned are soccer, basketball, baseball, figure skating, skydiving, softball, track and field, tennis, ice hockey, and more. There are a lot of doodles and the art is really cute. Each page features information on the athlete in the form of a mini essay. I also love that there are little facts and quotes that the athletes were quoted as saying on each page. The book also has a timeline, a section on muscle anatomy, information on pay and media statistics, and features influential sports teams as well as a section about more women in sports.

I loved learning about Madge Syers. She was a figure skater who began the trend of skating in calf-length skirts so that the judges could see her footwork. She was also the first woman to win two medals in figure skating at the same Olympic Games. I also loved learning about Tiny Broadwick, a skydiver. She was called "The First Lady of Parachuting" and was the first woman to parachute into a body of water. The U.S. military asked her to advise the aeronautics corps on parachute use during World War I.

I really enjoyed reading this book and highly recommend this book. I think it's perfect for people who love sports as well as people like me who are not really big sports fans.

Have you read Women in Sports? If so, what are your thoughts?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

10 Things I Can See From Here--Blogging For Books Review

Happy Monday! I just finished reading 10 Things I Can See From Here by Carrie Mac yesterday and am so excited to share my review.

10 Things I Can See From Here is about a girl named Maeve who suffers from anxiety and panic attacks. When Maeve's mother leaves for six months to go to Haiti with her boyfriend, Maeve is sent to live with her father, stepmother, and her twin stepbrothers. While she is there, she meets a girl named Salix who doesn't really worry about anything and is kind of carefree.

I love that this book covered several topics like anxiety, alcoholism, drug addiction, sexual assault, and same sex relationships. It can be hard for some people to talk about these topics and I think that Carrie Mac did a fantastic job on researching these topics and addressing these topics in the story. There were two things that did bother me about the story. I thought it was odd that Maeve basically forgives her former best friend for assaulting her and that her stepmother (and the rest of the family) were able to forgive Maeve's father so easily for all of the things that he had done. Maeve's father has issues with drinking, drugs, and basically is not a very good father or husband so it's hard to see (or rather read) how easily his family can forgive him. In my opinion, it didn't seem realistic how easily they were able to forgive him and it also seemed unrealistic how easy it was for Maeve to forgive her former best friend. Maeve definitely had a lot to deal with and had to overcome a lot challenges, but learns a lot along the way.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this book and I would definitely recommend that you read this book.

Have you read 10 Things I Can See From Here? If so, what are your thoughts on the book?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Things We Lost In The Fire--Blogging for Books Review

Hello! Today I am so excited to share my review of Things We Lost In The Fire by Mariana Enriquez.  When I heard about this book, I knew I just had to read it. I am a big fan of short stories especially horror stories. The twelve stories in this collection are not like classic horror stories which I loved.

This collection of Argentinian horror stories were amazing! Some of the stories were a bit creepy while a few were a bit strange. Just a quick heads up...there were even some that were dark and gory. I loved that Mariana Enriquez added some supernatural horror in some of the stories while a couple of the other stories seemed to be more psychological horror. I really enjoyed every single story. A few of my favorite stories are "The Dirty Kid", "Adela's House",  "No Flesh over Our Bones", and "Under the Black Water".

In The Dirty Kid, a woman lives in her family's old home in a dangerous neighborhood. The woman ends up believing that a child that she knows has been murdered. There are some supernatural elements and violence in this story.

Adela's House is about a brother and sister who become friends with a girl named Adela. One day they decide to go explore an abandoned house.

No Flesh Over Our Bones is about a woman who becomes obsessed with a skull.

Under the Black Water is about a District Attorney who is investigating two police officers who allegedly murdered two teenage boys. 

I highly recommend this book to everyone. If you love short stories, horror stories, etc. then I think you will enjoy this book.

Have you read Things We Lost In the Fire? If so, what are your thoughts?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

A Boy Called Christmas--Blogging for Books Review

Hello! I just recently read (or rather heard) A Boy Called Christmas by Matt Haig. This is my first audio book that I have read and it was great. There are four CDs and it's 4 and a half hours long. It may be just a few days before Valentine's Day, but this book is perfect to read any time of the year. 

Eleven-year-old Nikolas—nicknamed “Christmas”—has received only one toy in his life: a doll carved out of a turnip. But he’s happy with his turnip doll, because it came from his parents, who love him. Then one day his father goes missing, and Nikolas must travel to the North Pole to save him. 

Along the way, Nikolas befriends a surly reindeer, bests a troublesome troll, and discovers a hidden world of enchantment in the frozen village of Elfhelm. But the elves of Elfhelm have troubles of their own: Christmas spirit and goodwill are at an all-time low, and Nikolas may be the only person who can fix things—if only he can reach his father before it’s too late. . . . 

My Review: 

The characters were interesting and the story really got my attention. I loved that there were some twists to the story and it was not your typical Christmas story. I think this book is great for older kids (8 years old and up) and perfect for middle school aged children, but it is great for adults as well. I definitely recommend this book. As I said before, this is the first audio book that I have listened to and the voice sounded great. I definitely plan to listen to some more audio books.

Have you read A Boy Called Christmas? Do you listen to audio books?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Think Happy--Blogging for Books Review

Hello! I just finished reading Think Happy by Karen Salmansohn and am so excited to share my review. 

Think Happy is such a positive book filled with fifty inspirational sayings, pep talks and amazing illustrations. There are ten different sections with five sayings in each section. Some of the sayings are related to trying something new, failures, and when you are feeling grumpy. My favorite sections in the book are "5 things to say when dealing with major challenges" and "5 things to say when you feel stressed out". This was such a quick read, but it is amazing. A lot of the sayings in the book was just what I needed to read at the moment.

I definitely recommend this book for anyone who needs to be motivated, is stressed out or just wants to read a book filled with positive sayings. I plan to read this book whenever I need a boost of positivity or need to be inspired.

Have you read Think Happy by Karen Salmansohn? If so, what are your thoughts?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler--Blogging for Books Review

Hello! I just finished reading (or rather almost finished reading) Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler. When I chose this book, I honestly was not sure what to expect, but I was excited to read it. So you might be wondering why I didn't finish reading it, but we'll get to that later.

This book is a retelling of Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew. The story is about a young woman named Kate who basically runs the house for her father and younger sister. Kate's father, Dr. Battista,  is a scientist who is close to achieving a breakthrough that could help millions of people. Dr. Battista has a lab assistant named Pyotr who is about to be deported. If he is deported then all of their work could get lost. So Dr. Battista makes up a plan to try and get Pyotr to stay in the country. Of course, he asks Kate for help.

My Review: Sadly, I was unable to finish the book. The first few chapters were ok, but the book just didn't catch my attention at all. Also as I read the book, everything just seemed so predictable. For instance, when I read the blurb, I immediately knew what the plan was going to be. Also the characters just weren't great in my opinion. Kate is supposed to be very intelligent, but a lot of the choices that she made just didn't seem smart at all. She also seemed a bit immature and clingy. Pyotr was super rude. Kate's sister, Bunny, is pretty, but snobby. Dr. Battista literally did not seem to care at all about anything except his research and his plan was just incredibly horrible. If you haven't figured out what the plan is then check out the book and let me know what you think.

Overall, I will give the book a two star rating because the first few chapters were ok.

Have you read Vinegar Girl? If so, what are your thoughts on the book?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks--Blogging for Books Review

Happy Monday! I recently finished reading The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. When I first received this book, I was not sure what to expect because I knew it would go into science and medicine. Normally I don't read books that are about medicine and science, but I really wanted to read this book so I could learn more about Henrietta and her family.

The book is about Henrietta Lacks' life and her family as well as the study on the HeLa cells. The book mentions doctors who studied the cells and it also goes into ethics. The story was great and left me thinking about medicine and ethics. It also left me feeling various emotions throughout the book. There were a couple of the chapters in the book that actually made me a bit upset. The way Henrietta's family were treated made me feel so bad for them and I felt so incredibly bad for how her children were treated as they grew up. This book made me realize that we really have come a long way from how people were treated back then compared to now. So many policies and consent forms have been created due to Henrietta's case as well as other similar ones. I don't want to give too much information on this book because I don't want to spoil it, but this book was incredibly interesting to read and I highly recommend it.

Have you read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks? What are your thoughts on the book?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Mother, Can You Not?--Blogging for Books Review

Hey! So lately I have really been into reading (and adding to my TBR list) nonfiction and humor books. I have never heard of Katie Siegel or her Instagram page which you can check out here. However, the book caught my eye so I decided to check it out.

Mother, Can You Not? is a book of essays about Kate and her mother's relationship. Most people do not have the kind of relationship that Kate and her mother have and it was interesting to read about it. I thought the book was funny, and there were plenty of decent stories in the book. I love that the book included emails and text messages that they sent to each other. Two of my favorite stories from the book are Green Eggs and Sperm as well as I Am Woman. These two stories were funny, but was about an important topic that all parents eventually have to have with their kids and in this case especially girls. The only thing that kind of annoyed me was that word "vagina" popped up like a million times within the first few pages. Don't get me wrong, some of the jokes were funny, but it gets annoying when it's mentioned a lot and makes it seem like that is the the only thing she knew how to and can joke about is that.

Would I actually purchase this book? Honestly, I am not too sure. I would definitely borrow it from the library. Overall, I would give this a 3/5 stars.

Have you read Mother, Can You Not? If so, what are your thoughts?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Super Foods Every Day--Blogging for Books Review

Hello! Hello! I am so excited to share my book review! I got Super Foods Every Day by Sue Quinn from Blogging For Books.

I was drawn to this book for a couple of reasons. The first reason are the colors...the cover is so bright and immediately caught my attention. The second reason is that it is basically a cookbook that focuses on super foods. I'm not into dieting, but I have been wanting to make some healthier food choices and was on the hunt for a decent cookbook.

This book includes information on what super foods are, a super foods glossary, and information on vitamins. There are lots of recipes for breakfasts, salads, soups, side dishes, baked goods, and sweets. I love that this recipe included smoothies and treats. Seriously it included cakes, cupcakes, and brownies. Each recipe includes detailed information on how to cook the recipes as well as detailed information on the ingredients that are needed. My favorite recipes are the Choco Smoothie and Berry Blast Smoothie. I can't wait to try the sticky energy bars.

I am so glad that I chose this book and I highly recommend this book.

Have you read Super Foods Every Day? If so, what are your thoughts on the book?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Rare Bird: A Memoir of Loss and Love--Blogging for Books Review

Hello! Hello! A while back, I received my fifth book from Blogging for Books. I chose to read and review Rare Bird by Anna Whiston-Donaldson after I had found her blog. While reading her blog, I found out that she and her family had suffered a terrible tragedy and that was the death of her son. When I found out that she had written a book, I put it on my to read list. A few weeks later, I saw that the book was on Blogging for Books and immediately requested a review copy. This book took me longer to read, but this due to me wanting to read this book slowly and just trying to go over family member's personality and how they dealt with grief.

This book is about Anna Whitston-Donaldson's family and how they are coping with Jack's death. In 2011, there was a lot of flooding in Washington, D.C. While Jack was out playing, he fell into a creek. I am not even sure if I can come up with the words to express how I felt after reading this book. This book had me in tears. I was in tears because a little boy died, in tears because of a family's pain, in tears as I was reading how this mother was coping with grief...I was just in tears. This book was heart wrenching, but this book gives you hope and faith. Anna's faith just blew me away and is something to admire. Again, I honestly don't think that I can adequately describe this book because it's such a heavy topic, but I highly recommend this book to anyone.

Have you read Rare Bird? What are you thoughts?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

The Martian-Blogging for Books Review

Hello! Hello! I received my fourth book from Blogging for Books a couple of weeks ago and just finished it. I chose to review The Martian by Andy Weir. I was super excited to receive this book because I wanted to read it before watching the movie. I read this book really fast...it was that good!

The book is about a man named Mark Watney who is one of the first people to walk on Mars. He was left behind by his team who thought that he was dead. They were wrong and Watney ended up being stranded on Mars. There were just so many things that could go wrong and it appears that Watney will die on Mars. Fortunately for Mark Watney, he is incredibly intelligent and has a lot of skills that allows him to survive. Eventually NASA finds out that Watney is alive and they try to come up with a way to rescue him.

I don't want to give too much away, but I highly recommend this book. It was well written and had me on the edge on my seat. If you like Sci-Fi books, NASA, etc. then I definitely think you will enjoy this book.

Have you read The Martian? If so, what are your thoughts on the book?

Thanks for visiting!

Until next time...

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

The Time Garden--Blogging for Books Review

A few weeks ago, I received my third book from Blogging for Books. I chose to review The Time Garden by Daria Song.

The Time Garden is a coloring book. It does have a short story included throughout the pages as well.  The story is about a little girl who is curious about an antique clock that her father brought home. During the night, she decides to take a closer look at the clock and winds up going on an adventure.

The book has a jacket (cover) that can be taken off and colored as well. The pages are very detailed and are perfect for everyone especially adults. I think this book would suit adults better because there are a lot of small details in the drawings. The pages are not too thin, but they are not very thick either. I recommend using colored pencils instead of markers.

Do you have a copy of The Time Garden? What are your thoughts on the book?

Until next time...

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

A Fifty-Year Silence--Blogging for Books Review

A few weeks ago (possibly a month ago), I signed up for Blogging for Books. You can find more information on blogging for books here. I received my first book a few weeks ago and have finally finished it. The book I chose to review is A Fifty-Year Silence by Miranda Richmond Mouillot.

The World War II era has always fascinated me which is why I chose to read A Fifty-Year Silence. This book is about the narrator trying to find out why her grandparents were estranged and never spoke or saw each other again. I completely understood why the author wanted to find out what happened with her grandparents because honestly who wouldn't want to know. The book did read somewhat like a diary and it was clear that the author did the best she could to piece the story together despite her grandparents not giving her much information. The book would jump back and forth from the past and present because the author was trying to get as much information as possible regarding her grandparents. I would have preferred that Mouillot had written the book after getting all of the information (or as much as possible) rather than having the book jump back and forth. I also would have preferred that the story would have been more about her grandparent's lives rather than her own although I think the book may have been written the way it was due to the information that the author received. I don't want to give much of the story away, but I was disappointed and sad with the ending. I would recommend that people read this book because it was interesting. 

Have you read A Fifty-Year Silence? What are your thoughts on the book?

I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for this review. All opinions expressed here are my own.