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The Berenstain Bears and the Christmas Angel
The Berenstain Bears and the Christmas Angel
Mike Berenstain | 2016 | Children
8
7.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Are you looking for another good faith-based book for your child or children around Christmas? Well, The Berenstain Bears and the Christmas Angel will not disappoint. It is sweet as the cubs wait for snow and then get it. They head outside and play in it. They start to wonder what kind of snowman to create.

Children will enjoy this and want to reread it as they continue to be well. This one is a bit different from your typical building of a snowman. Mama and Papa help teach the cubs about their chosen snowman once they have built it.

Children will learn about the Christmas angel named Gabriel. I love how the cubs help each other and bounce off ideas. Their littlest one helps by just being herself. She gives them the idea when she does this.

This book is another classic book for any favorite fans of the Berenstain Bears. These books stand more based on faith and teaching of the Bible so children can learn it. I love these books the best. The author does a beautiful job with this book.
  
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Zuky the BookBum (15 KP) rated Tampa in Books

Mar 15, 2018  
Tampa
Tampa
Alissa Nutting | 2013 | Fiction & Poetry
8
6.0 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
This book is meant to shock! Based on the case of Florida teacher Debra Lafave, this book explores a taboo subject with a twist. Not as often do you hear of a female teacher having an affair with a student, so it's a great book that flips this subject on its head to reveal a shocking double standard that's sadly present in our society.

I was so interested in where this story was going and how it was going to end that I hardly put it down! Definitely a NSFW book with some rather graphic scenes. Don't expect this book to be anything like Lolita in the sense that Nabokov writes in a such a way that you catch yourself slipping and feeling sorry for Humbert on occasion, Nutting makes no efforts to make us feel sorry for Celeste, she's presented as a lust driven woman who will stop at nothing to fufill her desires.

By liking this book I am not condoning the actions written within, I simply found this a fascinating read. Very different to anything I've read before.
  
Brain on Fire (2016)
Brain on Fire (2016)
2016 | Drama
Based on a true story
Based on the life and book by the same name by Susannah Cahalan, this movie follows the events of a 21 year old girl who suddenly begins experiencing strange flu-like symptoms. She goes to a doctor who tells her that all of her tests came back clear and there's nothing wrong with her. As she continues to work through the strange symptoms, they become increasingly severe. She begins to have seizures, psychotic episodes of paranoia, and is diagnosed with one mental illness after another. None of which explain why Susannah was previously a perfectly healthy 21 year old girl or what brought on the strange symptoms. Her family pushes to find answers where the team of doctors believe she belongs in a psychiatric facility. The movie is a little slow paced but I believe it was necessary to really encompass the severity and impact of the situation that Susannah and her family experienced. Definitely worth a watch.
  
LF
Look for Ladybug in Plant City
8
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Look for Ladybug in Plant City by Katherina Manolessou is a beautiful book. The colors are vibrant and there’s so much to look at. My students enjoyed this book and wanted more of it.  A lot of time could be spend going through a book like this since the detail details will most likely inspire children to ask questions about the content on the pages. Additionally, the little text segments on each page encourage to look for certain things, for example a picture of a pineapple or a taxi full of owls.

Daisy and Ladybug are really close, but Ladybug goes missing and this book is a story of finding Ladybug. Every two pages is a new part of the city, and in every part you have to find the Ladybug. However this can be challenging, as there are tons of things that looks similar to him or that are colored the same way.  

The pages are delight to look at, you can see all sorts of things, and I just adore that the creatures are all colored in an abundance of colours. From pink to green, anything is possible in this story. The illustrator definitely did a wonderful job on the illustrations.

I received an ARC from Quarto Publishing Group and Frances Lincoln Childrens via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. 

I give this book 3.5/5 stars based on the fact the book has an abrupt ending.
  
Rise of the Hearts
Rise of the Hearts
Antoine Bonner | 2018 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
2
2.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I am having a difficult time writing a review for Rise of the Hearts by Antoine Bonner. The premise of this book is not new but the summary was worded well enough that I was looking forward to reading it. The cover caught my eye and made me want to read it even more.

Unfortunately, it was a challenge to finish it.

I did not relate to or care about any of the characters. The story did not flow well. I had trouble following the story and was confused about what was going on. I reread sections to see if I could figure out the story. I was never able to follow the plot.

This is NOT a young adult (YA) book. Based on the description, I had mistakenly thought it was appropriate for younger readers. It is not and it is marketed as an adult book. There are several passages that are not appropriate for young adults.

The book was only 198 pages. I was not very far in when I was considering stopping. I continued and struggled through the entire book. On the last few pages I allowed myself to just skim it because I was so lost.
  
The Tattooist of Auschwitz
The Tattooist of Auschwitz
Heather Morris | 2018 | Biography, History & Politics, Religion
8
8.7 (74 Ratings)
Book Rating
Well written (3 more)
Likeable characters
Good story line
I like the fact that its a true story
Not sure how accurate some parts are (1 more)
At some points it seems to downplay the severity of the camp and the treatment of the prisoners
A Novel based on a true story
This book has received a massive hype about being amazing. So much so that I went over my usual budget on the purchase of a book to get a new hardback copy.
Although I read this book in a day, and did enjoy it, I hoped for a better insight into the life at the camp, and often found myself questioning whether certain things claimed in the book were true.
This was a good book, and I understand that some adaptations were made when converting it into a novel, but I think this has either been slightly overdone to play up the romance in the novel, or the lead character genuinely had a huge advantage over the other prisoners due to his role?
All in all, I am giving this a 7 because it was good, but doesn't quite reach the huge hype that it seems to have been given.
  
The Restaurant at the End of the Universe
The Restaurant at the End of the Universe
Douglas Adams | 2016 | Fiction & Poetry
10
9.0 (5 Ratings)
Book Rating
Like the first book, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe is based on the radio series Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. But where the first book was more-or-less the plot of the first four episodes, for the second book Adams included many of the best bits of the second series too, changing the story around to keep some semblance of plot (beyond Arthur's search for a decent cup of tea).

A perfect example of his ability to 'write backwards' the contents of 8 half hour radio scripts are condensed into one book, then expanded again with further footnotes and wry observations of the human condition. There is so much to like, so much to enjoy. The visit to the Hitchhiker head office, the Total Perspective Vortex, lemon soaked paper napkins, the Restaurant itself. And of course the classic and downbeat ending.

As a pair of books this and The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy will keep you smiling for days, first as you read them and then as you remember all the little quotes, footnotes and bizarre extracts from The Book.

Nobody has ever come close to replicating Adams. This book shows why.
  
Fifty Shades Freed (2018)
Fifty Shades Freed (2018)
2018 | Drama
Love the characters chemistry and was a bit more sexier lol (0 more)
Needed a Darker Christian Gray Ian would of been a better choice in my opinion as he can go dark looking incredibly sexy (0 more)
Not Like The Book But Not Bad
Contains spoilers, click to show
First off I loved the actress and actor playing the roles both are incredibly and sexy to boot the sex scenes were better in my opinion the story line was a bit more on track with the book but so much was cut out I would love to see the movie made as in the book but take it a bit darker and more erotic only thing I had issue with was christian in the book based to the movie was a way darker person but it's a good movie I'd suggest it to all your friends it's a good date night movie to get you in the mood ?
  
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Kristin (2 KP) rated Amazon Kindle in Apps

Mar 4, 2019  
Amazon Kindle
Amazon Kindle
Book
9
9.1 (292 Ratings)
App Rating
Ability to bookmark your page (4 more)
Customizable viewing
Book suggestions based on what's in your library
Easily navigate through your library by scrolling through titles, or search for what you're looking for.
Mobility of such a vast library
Awesome App For All of Your Digital Book Needs
Full disclosure: I LOVE BOOKS! Not the digital kind, but tangible books that I can hold in my hand. I cherish that "old book" smell as much as I do turning back the cover on a hardcover for the first time; with the knowledge that another's fingers have yet to turn its pages and become immersed in the story as I'm about to. I will always adore books.

Having said that? I can still fully appreciate the Kindle app for the convenience of reading on the go. Books are, of course, totally portable as well; However, let's say you're on vacation, or at the beach or park, and want to enjoy a book, or pick up where you left off with one that's at home for that matter. With the convenience of the kindle app you can open the app on your phone/tablet/laptop and download the book, or start a new one.

Suitcases have limited capacity, but the vastness of the internet allows you to access nearly any title with just a few clicks/taps. The customization options in Kindle make it even easier to read while on the go because you can adjust brightness, page color (black, white, sepia), text size, font, margins, etc. You don't have to worry about remembering your page number or having a bookmark handy either because the app allows you to bookmark your page. You can read any book anywhere- a novel, research for that history paper you've been procrastinating on, or the steamy new romance you've been waiting on - without having to worry about carrying them around. I don't know about you guys, but sometimes while on a lunch break I wished that I had brought a book with me (particularly if service is slow at a restaurant) so I'd open the Kindle app and find a book to read. My last positive point here is actually both good and bad... You don't have to worry about book lights or keeping the lamp on and annoying your partner if you're reading a book on your phone/tablet, but the flip side to that is there's less strain on your eyes when reading a hard copy book rather than digital.

There are only two downsides to the app and they're more due to my personal preference rather than anything with the app itself... with the prevalence of digital and audio books I've watched many beloved bookstores begin disappearing, or they have downsized to focus on selling digital. The second issue is that unlike with a physical book in hand you can't really tune everything else out (incoming calls and notifications) and lose yourself in whatever you're reading.
  
Home (Songbird, #4)
Home (Songbird, #4)
Melissa Pearl | 2015 | Contemporary, Romance
8
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Rachel has everything that she could ask for but she doesn't realise it as she's too busy chasing a dream based on her mother's last words. We travel with her to the City of Angels where she finds out that there is a dark side that she never even anticipated.

I really enjoyed this book and the two main characters, but I did have to remind myself that Rachel was making decisions based on an 18-year-old's perspective. She was very young and very naive and part of me actually wanted her to stay that way but another part of me was wanting to shake some sense into her.

I loved the appearances of Jody, Leo and Angel. It was a perfect cameo for them and I really hope to see more of all of them.

This story is well-written and with a fast-flowing plot. Another excellent book in the Songbird series. Definitely recommended.

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and my comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Aug 4, 2015