★ My days have been numbered in dogs, Jennifer Finney Boylan, a New York Times opinion columnist, often wrote about her dog, Indigo, in her column. But if you ask me, the magic of dogs is not that their love for us is unconditional. What's unconditional is the love that we have for them. In… Continue reading Good Boy: My Life in Seven Dogs – Jennifer Finney Boylan
Category: Blog
The Woman in the Window – A.J. Finn
★★ ½ My head was once a filing cabinet. Now it’s a flurry of papers, floating on a draft. Agoraphobic Anna Fox resides in New York City. She's found ways around anything and everything that she needs - whether it be grocery delivery, hiring a handyman or cases of her favorite wine every few months. She will… Continue reading The Woman in the Window – A.J. Finn
Big Thinkers and Big Ideas – Sharon Kaye
Philosophy is both fun and good for your brain. By thinking about deep questions, anyone, including you, can be a philosopher. Philosophy often gets a bad rap among kids as something that's long, boring and useless. But it's not. True, discussion takes longer than just memorizing whatever your teacher says, but the time is well spent. This… Continue reading Big Thinkers and Big Ideas – Sharon Kaye
The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy – Jeanne Birdsall
★★★★ ½ People sometimes make unexpected choices when they're lonely. The Penderwick sisters are summering with their father on a "cottage" (aka part of the Arundel estate). There's Rosalind (12), Skye (11), Jane (10) and Batty (4), and (of course) their dad and their dog (Hound Penderwick). They girls soon discover that this summer will be one that they… Continue reading The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy – Jeanne Birdsall
If You Were Me and Lived on…Mars – Carole P. Roman, Mateya Arkova (Illustrations)
★★★★ Ancient Greece, Ancient China...and Mars? Such a deviation from the usual theme - and yet it was ah-mazing! Have you ever looked into the sky and wondered...what would it be like to live up there? Carole does too - and she wrote a little book for you! If you were me and lived on… Continue reading If You Were Me and Lived on…Mars – Carole P. Roman, Mateya Arkova (Illustrations)
The Beginner’s Guide to Runes – Josh Simonds
★★★ ½ By studying the lore and mythology of the ancient Norse people, we not only learn of the origin of the runes, but we also discover the gods and creatures that brought them to us... Ancient runes have been a popular source of divination and connection to Norse mythology for movies and books. This little guide… Continue reading The Beginner’s Guide to Runes – Josh Simonds
Girl, Serpent, Thorn -Melissa Bashardoust
★★★ ½ Stories always begin the same way. There was and there was not. There is a possibility in those words, the chance for hope or despair. Soraya is a princess but she has spent her life in fairytales and hidden away because of her deepest, darkest secret. ...the div cursed her firstborn daughter, making her poisonous, so… Continue reading Girl, Serpent, Thorn -Melissa Bashardoust
Thunderhead – Neal Shusterman
★★★★★ Death must exist for life to have meaning. The Scythedom is still reeling. In a stunning change of events, both Citra (now scythe Anastasia) and Rowan survived the trial by death...but unfortunately, it was not a cause of celebration. In response, Rowan has taken up the mantle of Scythe Lucifer - and he has gone completely… Continue reading Thunderhead – Neal Shusterman
The Sigil: A Novel – Shakeil Kanish & Larissa Mandeville
★★★★★ I must have missed something. Something important. Lake Smithson had a charmed life. The keyword being "had". Everything changed with a robber killed his brother, plunging him into an increasingly uncertain world. Magic. He said magic. Holy crap. I'm Harry Potter. Lake finds himself involved with Breywood Academy - a secret school where people who can manipulate… Continue reading The Sigil: A Novel – Shakeil Kanish & Larissa Mandeville
The Just Bento Cookbook: Everyday Lunches to Go – Makiko Itoh, Makiko Doi (photographer)
★★★ ½ Bento-boxes are all the rage - they have this pleasing aesthetic - with the bright colors, lovely little partitions, the adorable shapes and variety. Makiko Itoh has a wonderful little bento blog - where she showcases her adorable creations. This recipe has 25 bento menus with 150+ recipes. So, on the one hand, I quite like the… Continue reading The Just Bento Cookbook: Everyday Lunches to Go – Makiko Itoh, Makiko Doi (photographer)
Miranda Reads 