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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011) in Movies
Aug 7, 2019
Alvin and the Chipmunks are back in an all new adventure along with Dave and the Chipettes. Directed by Mike Mitchell, this is the third installment in the new Chipmunk franchise. The voices of the Chipmunks and Chipettes include none other than Justin Long (Alvin), Matthew Gray Gubler (Simon), Jesse McCartney (Theodore), Amy Poehler (Eleanor), Anna Faris (Jeanette), Christina Applegate (Brittany), Alan Tudyk (Simone), David Cross (Ian ) and of course we can’t forget Jason Lee (Dave) . This installment, like the other two, are jam-packed with great actors and comedians who together have made an entertaining film not only for children but for adults as well.
The Chipmunks and the Chipettes are on their way to performing at the International Music Awards and are taking a small vacation before their big show to relax. At least that is what the plan was, until good ol’ Alvin, who always has to be the risk taker, changes the plans. Because of his crazy antics he ends up causing himself, his brothers, the Chipettes, Dave and the ships pelican mascot to go over board and get subsequently marooned on a deserted island. Dave and the pelican mascot end up on a different part of the island than the Chipmunks and Chipettes and both groups think they are doomed and will never be found. As luck would have it, they meet Zoe (Jenne Slate). Zoe has been on the island for quite a few years after being marooned herself and has made it her home. When the island is in trouble when a sleeping volcano begins to wake up; it is up to everybody to get over their inhibitions and help each other get to safety. Along the way everybody learns some life lessons but will Dave ever get to see the Chipmunks again and make it to the music awards?
The plot of this film is very simple and a bit short, but you have to remember that it is geared mainly to children. I still enjoy the Chipmunks and it is such a treat after having grown up watching the cartoons and seeing what modern filmmaking offers a new generation of kids. Most adults may not like the new songs and may find it annoying. I on the other hand love it, with some of the songs being performed better by chipmunks than the actual artists. This movie is recommended for families and the young at heart for a great afternoon movie. Although the first two movies in the franchise are my favorite, this installment is entertaining and will for sure put a smile on your face.
The Chipmunks and the Chipettes are on their way to performing at the International Music Awards and are taking a small vacation before their big show to relax. At least that is what the plan was, until good ol’ Alvin, who always has to be the risk taker, changes the plans. Because of his crazy antics he ends up causing himself, his brothers, the Chipettes, Dave and the ships pelican mascot to go over board and get subsequently marooned on a deserted island. Dave and the pelican mascot end up on a different part of the island than the Chipmunks and Chipettes and both groups think they are doomed and will never be found. As luck would have it, they meet Zoe (Jenne Slate). Zoe has been on the island for quite a few years after being marooned herself and has made it her home. When the island is in trouble when a sleeping volcano begins to wake up; it is up to everybody to get over their inhibitions and help each other get to safety. Along the way everybody learns some life lessons but will Dave ever get to see the Chipmunks again and make it to the music awards?
The plot of this film is very simple and a bit short, but you have to remember that it is geared mainly to children. I still enjoy the Chipmunks and it is such a treat after having grown up watching the cartoons and seeing what modern filmmaking offers a new generation of kids. Most adults may not like the new songs and may find it annoying. I on the other hand love it, with some of the songs being performed better by chipmunks than the actual artists. This movie is recommended for families and the young at heart for a great afternoon movie. Although the first two movies in the franchise are my favorite, this installment is entertaining and will for sure put a smile on your face.
DOT Mobilbilletter
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With the DOT Mobilbilletter app, you can easily buy mobile tickets for short journeys (up to 8...
Mending the Rift Box Set
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King's Conquest The only way for Prince Rin to save his kingdom is to marry a king and bear a...
M_M Fantasy Romance
Hazel (1853 KP) rated Aliens on Holiday in Books
Dec 14, 2018
<i>This eBook was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
Aliens On Holiday</i> is Gillian Bradshaw’s second novel for children involving extraterrestrial beings. Following on from the first book <i>Alien in the Garden</i>, Alex Marsh is reunited with his celestial friend, Shakespeare. It has been two years since fourteen-year-old Alex found himself involved with aliens, yet he is still glad to see Shakespeare and is determined to help him out with whatever his purpose on planet Earth is. However, this could put both Alex and his family in grave danger.
With the ruse of going on a family holiday to the south of France, Shakespeare tags along with the Marshes in the disguise of Alex’s cousin, whilst he takes part in an undercover operation for the police of the United Worlds. Despite trying not to get Alex too involved with his mission, Alex still ends up in a precarious situation involving both notorious drug dealers as well as treacherous aliens.
<i>Aliens on Holiday </i>is both funny and exciting, as the characters have to deal with communication difficulties whilst trying to save the world. Bradshaw has been very imaginative when creating her aliens and has thought up concepts that are unique and interesting to the child-like minds of the readers.
Although written for younger people, readers need to be mature enough to understand about drugs and drug culture. Despite being written for entertainment purposes, <i>Aliens on Holiday </i>does contain some very serious issues.
To get the most out of this book it would help to have read <i>Alien in the Garden </i>(I had not) as it would create a clearer understanding of Alex and Shakespeare’s relationship. Having said that, Aliens on Holiday contains enough information to comprehend and appreciate the storyline.
Overall, <i>Aliens on Holiday </i>is the perfect work of fiction for the child or young teenager interested in action, science and aliens.
Aliens On Holiday</i> is Gillian Bradshaw’s second novel for children involving extraterrestrial beings. Following on from the first book <i>Alien in the Garden</i>, Alex Marsh is reunited with his celestial friend, Shakespeare. It has been two years since fourteen-year-old Alex found himself involved with aliens, yet he is still glad to see Shakespeare and is determined to help him out with whatever his purpose on planet Earth is. However, this could put both Alex and his family in grave danger.
With the ruse of going on a family holiday to the south of France, Shakespeare tags along with the Marshes in the disguise of Alex’s cousin, whilst he takes part in an undercover operation for the police of the United Worlds. Despite trying not to get Alex too involved with his mission, Alex still ends up in a precarious situation involving both notorious drug dealers as well as treacherous aliens.
<i>Aliens on Holiday </i>is both funny and exciting, as the characters have to deal with communication difficulties whilst trying to save the world. Bradshaw has been very imaginative when creating her aliens and has thought up concepts that are unique and interesting to the child-like minds of the readers.
Although written for younger people, readers need to be mature enough to understand about drugs and drug culture. Despite being written for entertainment purposes, <i>Aliens on Holiday </i>does contain some very serious issues.
To get the most out of this book it would help to have read <i>Alien in the Garden </i>(I had not) as it would create a clearer understanding of Alex and Shakespeare’s relationship. Having said that, Aliens on Holiday contains enough information to comprehend and appreciate the storyline.
Overall, <i>Aliens on Holiday </i>is the perfect work of fiction for the child or young teenager interested in action, science and aliens.
Debbiereadsbook (1569 KP) rated The Bond (The Secret Tales #1) in Books
Jun 20, 2023
absolutely LOVED the slow burn/fade to back/very little smexy times!
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
Historical romance has always been a bit hit and miss for me, I tend to get annoyed with all the rules and regs of the time, but, strangely, that's what I liked about this one!
Because Rosie (to only Rhys and NO ONE else!) kind of flaunts the rules. She pushes the boundaries and smashes down the expectations for ladies of her time.
Given her secret, and how she dealt with that in the past, it's understandable she doesn't want anyone to push her into anything, certainly not a marriage to Penworth, the odious man. Rose's male parental unit (I refuse to call him her father!) is a nasty piece of work, but he does get his comeuppence!
I loved that Rose and Rhys have history, from when they were children. I loved that we get some of that history in flashbacks. It helps you paint the picture of how Rose and Rhys came to be.
And I absolutely LOVED the slow burn/fade to back/very little smexy times that this book has. Hardly surprising given Rose's past, but I loved that Rhys loved Rosie enough to WAIT for her, to come to him, when she wanted more from him.
Quite a lot of angst in this book, for Rose as well as Rhys. I liked that Rhys was able to articulate his feelings for Rose, since men of that time were not expected to be able to do that.
Given the bit at the end, I expect that one of Rose's sister's will be next and I look forward to reading it,
I wrote 4 stars at the top of the page, but I can't find a single thing wrong with it, so. .
5 full and shiny stars
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
Historical romance has always been a bit hit and miss for me, I tend to get annoyed with all the rules and regs of the time, but, strangely, that's what I liked about this one!
Because Rosie (to only Rhys and NO ONE else!) kind of flaunts the rules. She pushes the boundaries and smashes down the expectations for ladies of her time.
Given her secret, and how she dealt with that in the past, it's understandable she doesn't want anyone to push her into anything, certainly not a marriage to Penworth, the odious man. Rose's male parental unit (I refuse to call him her father!) is a nasty piece of work, but he does get his comeuppence!
I loved that Rose and Rhys have history, from when they were children. I loved that we get some of that history in flashbacks. It helps you paint the picture of how Rose and Rhys came to be.
And I absolutely LOVED the slow burn/fade to back/very little smexy times that this book has. Hardly surprising given Rose's past, but I loved that Rhys loved Rosie enough to WAIT for her, to come to him, when she wanted more from him.
Quite a lot of angst in this book, for Rose as well as Rhys. I liked that Rhys was able to articulate his feelings for Rose, since men of that time were not expected to be able to do that.
Given the bit at the end, I expect that one of Rose's sister's will be next and I look forward to reading it,
I wrote 4 stars at the top of the page, but I can't find a single thing wrong with it, so. .
5 full and shiny stars
*same worded review will appear elsewhere
Futaba Classroom Games for Kids
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Turn your iPad into a small Smart table with for up to four players at once. * Featured on...
Christine A. (965 KP) rated The Secret Child (DI Amy Winter #2) in Books
Apr 2, 2019
the 2nd novel in Caroline Mitchell's DI Amy Winter series
Last year I read Truth and Lies, the first novel in Caroline Mitchell's DI Amy Winter series. My eyes started to hurt so I took a break and realized I had read the first 16 chapters without stopping.
The Secret Child is the second novel in Mitchell's DI Amy Winter series. I learned my lesson from binge reading the first book and set a timer to remind myself to take a break from reading. I forced myself to take a few breaks but finished reading it in one day. It is not a very long book, 330 pags, but I just could not find a place to stop reading for the day. I just had to keep reading!
Detective Inspector Amy Winter returns with her high-priority crime unit tracking down a kidnapper. He is using the kidnappings to extract revenge on those who had used children for dangerous and illegal experimentation years ago. Also returning is Lillian Grimes, Winter's biological mother who is imprisoned for being half of a serial killer husband and wife team known as the Beasts of Brentwood.
The Secret Child is as riveting as Truth and Lies. Both are character-driven and fast-paced, suspenseful, and well written.
Review published on Philomathinphila.com, Smashbomb, Goodreads, and Amazon on or before 4/2/19. Will publish on Twitter, Facebook, and Barnes and Noble on its release date, April 18, 2019.
The Secret Child is the second novel in Mitchell's DI Amy Winter series. I learned my lesson from binge reading the first book and set a timer to remind myself to take a break from reading. I forced myself to take a few breaks but finished reading it in one day. It is not a very long book, 330 pags, but I just could not find a place to stop reading for the day. I just had to keep reading!
Detective Inspector Amy Winter returns with her high-priority crime unit tracking down a kidnapper. He is using the kidnappings to extract revenge on those who had used children for dangerous and illegal experimentation years ago. Also returning is Lillian Grimes, Winter's biological mother who is imprisoned for being half of a serial killer husband and wife team known as the Beasts of Brentwood.
The Secret Child is as riveting as Truth and Lies. Both are character-driven and fast-paced, suspenseful, and well written.
Review published on Philomathinphila.com, Smashbomb, Goodreads, and Amazon on or before 4/2/19. Will publish on Twitter, Facebook, and Barnes and Noble on its release date, April 18, 2019.
I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review. The opinions are entirely my own, and any quotes are taken from the ARC and may be different in the final published copy.
I enjoy brain teasers, mysteries, and puzzles. I enjoy the satisfaction you get when figuring something out that made you have to think. Too often, we just Google an answer and do not have to figure it out for ourselves. 60-Second Brain Teasers Pencil-Free Puzzles: Short Head-Scratchers from the Easy to Near Impossible by Nathan Haselbauer makes you think and is not a book to read in one sitting. Your brain would hurt too much if you did.
Haselbauer includes an array of puzzles that involves logic and some thought to figure out the puzzles. Some of them stumped me. None were too easy.
The puzzles varied in difficulty and process to solve them. Some are logic-based; others involve math. Either way, they are a fun way to use your brain and pass the time.
This book is reminiscent of the Dell Pencil Puzzles and Word Games I enjoyed so much while growing up. It would be perfect for a road trip or a family gathering.
Several reviewers suggested it helped their children start using their brains again to get ready for back to school.
It is part of a series of 60-Second Brain Teasers published by Fair Winds Press.
This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 9/15/20.
I enjoy brain teasers, mysteries, and puzzles. I enjoy the satisfaction you get when figuring something out that made you have to think. Too often, we just Google an answer and do not have to figure it out for ourselves. 60-Second Brain Teasers Pencil-Free Puzzles: Short Head-Scratchers from the Easy to Near Impossible by Nathan Haselbauer makes you think and is not a book to read in one sitting. Your brain would hurt too much if you did.
Haselbauer includes an array of puzzles that involves logic and some thought to figure out the puzzles. Some of them stumped me. None were too easy.
The puzzles varied in difficulty and process to solve them. Some are logic-based; others involve math. Either way, they are a fun way to use your brain and pass the time.
This book is reminiscent of the Dell Pencil Puzzles and Word Games I enjoyed so much while growing up. It would be perfect for a road trip or a family gathering.
Several reviewers suggested it helped their children start using their brains again to get ready for back to school.
It is part of a series of 60-Second Brain Teasers published by Fair Winds Press.
This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 9/15/20.
Catacomb (Asylum, #3)
8.0
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The heart-stopping third book in the New York Times bestselling Asylum series follows three teens as...
Hazel (1853 KP) rated And I Darken (The Conqueror's Saga #1) in Books
Dec 7, 2018
<i>This ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
And I Darken</i> is the first book in a brand new saga, <i>The Conquerors</i>, by bestselling author Kiersten White. Aimed at young adults, it is set at the time of the Ottoman Empire, providing a brief historical lesson as well as an entertaining story.
Inspired by Vlad the Impaler, the tale begins in Transylvania, 1453 with the birth of Lada, a daughter for the ruler of Wallachia, Vlad Dracula (no relation to the vampire). Despite the expectation that women are quiet, docile and mere possessions, Lada grows up with a vicious temper, as wild and fierce as a boar, unlike her younger brother, Radu, who is very cautious by nature. The siblings, caught up in their father’s politics, are sent away to another city. Lada however cannot be tamed, and is quick to insult or physically assault anyone who tries to put her in her place, even her new friend who so happens to be in line to become sultan of the Ottoman Empire.
As the children grow up they begin to involve themselves in the running of the empire, providing advice and companionship to the new sultan. Both Lada and Radu experience strong feelings for their friend, which they try to suppress - Radu, because it is improper (for that time period), and Lada, because she wants to be a strong, independent warrior with the same rights as all men.
<i>And I Darken</i> is extremely political but not in the same vein as politics today. Back in the 1400s, constitutional disagreements lead directly to wars, usually caused by the greed of the ever-expanding empire. Whilst these events are taking place, the true story line surfaces, exploring three very strong relationships. Despite Lada’s façade she is a young woman who cares deeply but does not let her feelings get in the way of achieving greatness. Jealousies and misunderstandings challenge the bonds between friends and siblings, resulting in a cliffhanger to encourage the read to eagerly await the next installment.
Although based on true events, <i>And I Darken</i> is mostly a fantasy. Lada has the characteristics and behaviour of Vlad the Impaler, something that would not have been possible at the time for a woman, but other than references to various battles, there are no other correlations.
The relationships focused on in the narrative can be frustrating at times, and it is easy to become annoyed at the key characters’ actions. Often I felt like giving up on the book, as I was not interesting in the gruesome fighting scenes, and not particularly keen on either Lada or Radu. Although I can admire Lada for her strengths and aspirations and agree that she is right to want more in her life as a woman, I found her malicious behavior difficult to respect.
Overall, <i>And I Darken</i> is a bold attempt by Kiersten White to combine history, romance and young adult fiction, particularly as the characters who would be considered teenagers today, were deemed adults during that time period, resulting in them being much more mature than many of today’s readers. This series is suitable for male and female readers alike as it contains an equal measure of bloody action and budding romance. Sadly, despite my high hopes, this book was not for me.
And I Darken</i> is the first book in a brand new saga, <i>The Conquerors</i>, by bestselling author Kiersten White. Aimed at young adults, it is set at the time of the Ottoman Empire, providing a brief historical lesson as well as an entertaining story.
Inspired by Vlad the Impaler, the tale begins in Transylvania, 1453 with the birth of Lada, a daughter for the ruler of Wallachia, Vlad Dracula (no relation to the vampire). Despite the expectation that women are quiet, docile and mere possessions, Lada grows up with a vicious temper, as wild and fierce as a boar, unlike her younger brother, Radu, who is very cautious by nature. The siblings, caught up in their father’s politics, are sent away to another city. Lada however cannot be tamed, and is quick to insult or physically assault anyone who tries to put her in her place, even her new friend who so happens to be in line to become sultan of the Ottoman Empire.
As the children grow up they begin to involve themselves in the running of the empire, providing advice and companionship to the new sultan. Both Lada and Radu experience strong feelings for their friend, which they try to suppress - Radu, because it is improper (for that time period), and Lada, because she wants to be a strong, independent warrior with the same rights as all men.
<i>And I Darken</i> is extremely political but not in the same vein as politics today. Back in the 1400s, constitutional disagreements lead directly to wars, usually caused by the greed of the ever-expanding empire. Whilst these events are taking place, the true story line surfaces, exploring three very strong relationships. Despite Lada’s façade she is a young woman who cares deeply but does not let her feelings get in the way of achieving greatness. Jealousies and misunderstandings challenge the bonds between friends and siblings, resulting in a cliffhanger to encourage the read to eagerly await the next installment.
Although based on true events, <i>And I Darken</i> is mostly a fantasy. Lada has the characteristics and behaviour of Vlad the Impaler, something that would not have been possible at the time for a woman, but other than references to various battles, there are no other correlations.
The relationships focused on in the narrative can be frustrating at times, and it is easy to become annoyed at the key characters’ actions. Often I felt like giving up on the book, as I was not interesting in the gruesome fighting scenes, and not particularly keen on either Lada or Radu. Although I can admire Lada for her strengths and aspirations and agree that she is right to want more in her life as a woman, I found her malicious behavior difficult to respect.
Overall, <i>And I Darken</i> is a bold attempt by Kiersten White to combine history, romance and young adult fiction, particularly as the characters who would be considered teenagers today, were deemed adults during that time period, resulting in them being much more mature than many of today’s readers. This series is suitable for male and female readers alike as it contains an equal measure of bloody action and budding romance. Sadly, despite my high hopes, this book was not for me.