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How It All Blew Up
How It All Blew Up
Arvin Ahmadi | 2020 | Young Adult (YA)
6
5.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Thank you to Netgalley and Hot Key books for the opportunity to read and review this book ahead of its release!

This book was a delight and so compulsively readable! It was so fun to escape to Rome with Amir but also to delve into some deeper topics as well. One of my friends lives in Italy and this is just exactly how I picture her life. Amir was such a fun narrator and even though he was a bit of an asshole sometimes you really were rooting for him! We can so often romanticise situations, people and places and this story showed that even the things that we romanticise and deem perfect are messy when we look a little closer.
  
Seduction and Snacks (Chocolate Lovers, #1)
Seduction and Snacks (Chocolate Lovers, #1)
Tara Sivec | 2012 | Romance
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
3.33 stars. 4 for the first two thirds, 2.5 for the last third.

I thought that this book was pretty funny in places, some of the situations, some of the phrases, some of the characters were just pretty crazy and that made me laugh. Gavin was cute. I can't quite picture a four year old like him with his dirty mouth and angelic face.

I have to admit though that I lost interest a little after the 2/3 point. They were happy, they were a family...why did it have to continue for all that extra length of time?

Nevertheless, Gavin and the crazy humour kept me entertained. I just need to decide if I want to read the next book in the series or not.
  
(This review can be found on my blog <a href="http://themisadventuresofatwentysomething.blogspot.com/">The (Mis)Adventures of a Twenty-Year Old Girl</a>).


I remember reading the child friendly version of this book to my son last year. However, I wasn't made aware of the adult version of this book until the film came out and when my cousin told me I should read the book because it was really good. I really wanted to see the movie, so I thought I'd read the book first. All I can say about this book is WOW! It was very touching and such a great read!

I like the title. It has such a child like innocence about it which is fitting since it's about a little boy visiting Heaven.

I love the cover with the photo of little Colton. He was such an adorable little boy! I would've liked to see a drawing of Heaven or something behind him, but the cover, on its own, does work quite well.

I thought the way that Todd Burpo (Colton's father) sets up the scenes was done quite well. It was easy to picture everything happening in my mind. I could even picture Heaven in my mind with Colton's descriptions although I know Heaven will be much better then what I can actually imagine.

The pacing throughout this book is fantastic. In fact, I would've read the book in one setting, but I had a husband and a 10 year old to look after, so I had to stop. However, the next day, when everyone was at school and work, I finished it then. I couldn't wait to see what little Colton had to say next about Heaven. It was just astounding!

This book just blew my mind. It was so amazing to be getting a glimpse into Heaven thanks to Colton. The things he described whilst in Heaven were just breath taking. I believe that Colton did see what he described. Saying that, there were times I was thinking that maybe Colton could've been exaggerating especially when he would say things two years later. Perhaps he was telling the whole truth though. We'll never know until we reach Heaven. But I do believe that most of what Colton saw whilst in Heaven was and is true.

There's no violence in this book, no sex and no swearing especially as this is a Christian non-fiction book. There is a near death experience though.

I'd recommend this book to everyone, young and old. You will be amazed with what Colton has seen and heard. I know I was.
  
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Nicole Hadley (380 KP) rated City Fun in Books

Jun 16, 2018  
City Fun
City Fun
Margaret Hillert | 2016 | Children
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
City Fun by Margaret Hillert is a book with bright illustrations that are colorful, and show diversity. In this book, two friends have a day in the city. Some of the activities are they go to the park, the library, ride a bus, and watch some construction. The illustrations are bright and colorful. The story has limited words, the illustrations in itself tell a story. I believe that children will enjoy pointing to objects in the picture, and talking about the story beyond the word as they learn to read. These books would be a great addition to a home and class library for young children who are learning to read.

The Learning to Read series is easy to read. The series uses site vocabulary that is printed in the back of the book. The book captures the imaginations of beginning readers and help them on their way to independent reading. The books can be read aloud to young children or the children can read the books themselves.
  
Who is The Mystery Reader?
Who is The Mystery Reader?
Mo Willems | 2019 | Children
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Reading is a Superpower!
This book is broken up into many parts. The main story involves Zoom Squirrel who gets some help in reading for The Mystery Reader, a costumed superhero. But who is the masked man, er squirrel? And can Zoom enter the world of masked superheroes? After the main story, we get a couple of terrible (and by that, I mean delightful) puns and jokes related to reading. There’s also a section where we see the work that goes into creating a book.

As an adult, I don’t find these picture books as delightful as some of Mo’s other works. They are missing the humor and charm. However, I can see the appeal to young readers, and if the addition of superheroes to reading encourages kids to read, I’m all in favor of it. The multiple sections can make the book disjointed, especially if you are reading the book to a group of kids, but it would be great for kids ready to expand their reading beyond the traditional easy readers.
  
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Nick Beaty (70 KP) rated Green Book (2018) in Movies

Jan 10, 2020 (Updated Jan 10, 2020)  
Green Book (2018)
Green Book (2018)
2018 | Drama
Worthy best picture winner...
Green Book is the incredible true story of an Italian American bouncer Tony 'Lip', who is paid to drive and protect an African American pianist Dr. Donald Shirley, through the American deep south in 1962 when racial tension was very high.

Let's start off by saying this was definitely a worthy best picture winner at the 2019 Oscars ceremony. You can follow that up with an excellent Oscar nominated performance from Viggo Mortensen and an absolutely superb Oscar winning turn from the brilliant Mahershala Ali.

The beautiful thing about this movie is the chemistry between the two lead actors. Mortensen and Ali bounce off each other for the whole two hours, they will make you laugh, cry and generally their performances just make you feel good inside.

To wrap things up, superb acting, a beautiful story and very good directing from Peter Farrelly who is better known for his controversial comedies, really make this a must see movie for any true film fan.