Confessions of a Book Habitué

I Judge You When You Use Poor Grammar by Sharon Eliza Nichols

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

A Collection of Egregious Errors, Disconcerting Bloopers, and Other Linguistic Slip-ups

4 stars

Oh my.

As if we needed more proof that grammar is dying a slow and miserable death.

:)

This is an entertaining little collection of pictures of unfortunate signs, shirts, and more.

My only real complaint: some of the pictures are quite small and it was a pain to read the sign (or whatever) in the picture.

When I'm Not Reading...

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

If my posts seem a little scattered this month, here are a few possible reasons...

SeaWorld:

My brother-in-law's wedding:

And technically, I guess the title of this post is a bit inaccurate... of the 6 books I took on our trip, I read four. :)

What fun things are YOU up to this summer?

The Matchbox Diary by Paul Fleischman

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

5 stars

This is an awesome little picture book.

There's no context and it leaves you wishing for more, but in a lot of ways that's part of its charm.

An interesting look at the immigrant experience and how we record our personal histories, and those of our families.

All wrapped into a cute book for kids.

Highly recommended.

Mama Miti [and] The Crossing by Donna Jo Napoli

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

So I'm on a Donna Jo Napoli kick.

It was a conscious decision... I've read a couple of her books and liked them and just thought, hey, let's check GoodReads to see what else she's written and just start putting them on hold at the library.

I totally didn't realize she had written picture books.

The Crossing
5 stars

This is a cool little book with poetic text and awesome pictures. It tells a [very] simplified version of the Lewis and Clark expedition... from the viewpoint of Sacagawea's son who was strapped to her back for the trip.

I've had a bit of an obsession with the Lewis and Clark expedition in general, and especially Sacagawea, since I was a kid, so this was a really fun find for me.

Mama Miti
5 stars
(Illustrations by Kadir Nelson)

I had never heard of Wangari Maathai before picking this picture book up, but apparently she was the recipient for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004.

This book tells of her wise advice to plant trees, helping her native Kenya fight deforestation, but also helping each person she told to plant a tree with a specific problem.

Cool book, awesome paintings by Kadir Nelson.

The Legend Thief by E J Patten

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

5 stars
sequel to Return to Exile
local author- Yea!

A cool continuation of Sky's story... and nothing (not to mention no one) is quite what it (or he/she) seems.

And holy freaking cliffhanger ending, Batman. Good grief.

Really enjoyed this, but man it's intense. Of course, the first one was too.

I was worried I wouldn't remember enough about the first one, but it all came back pretty quickly.

Recommended for sure, but read the first one first.

This series is a GREAT pick for reluctant boy readers in elementary school.

William Shakespeare's Star Wars by Ian Doescher

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Tue, 11 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

5 stars
copy received for review

Oh my gosh.

YOU MUST READ THIS.

Nevermind that it doesn't come out until July. Mark you calendar. Put it in your phone. Whatever.

Just don't miss it.

This hilarious little volume combines Star Wars with Shakespeare brilliantly and you have to wonder why no one has done this before. (Or maybe they have, but certainly not this well.)

This book only covers A New Hope, and the last lines leave me hoping (pun absolutely intended there) for a sequel. Hoping, pleading, begging... yeah, I want a sequel.

Overall- fabulous. Huge kudos to Ian Doescher and everybody at Quirk for putting out such a brilliant little book. :)

The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

3 stars
Poirot, book 1

So, I wanted to love this.

And there is undeniably a charm to any Agatha Christie.

But... sigh. This one didn't do it for me so much. It was fine, but Hastings got annoying and the whole plot just felt a little too convoluted.

I'm told they get better, and a lot of the issues did seem like first novel issues, so I'm sure they do. Certainly I've loved her Tommy and Tuppence books and the stand-alones I've read.

If nothing else, though, it's a good read to see how it all got started. :)

Exclamation Mark by Amy Krouse Rosenthal

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Sat, 08 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

5 stars

This book is hilarious... and it's about punctuation.

In my little Nerd-dom, that is a win-win. ;)

Cute story about an exclamation mark who just always stands out, no matter what he tries. Until he realizes that that's kind of the point.

Bedtime for Mommy by Amy Krouse Rosenthal

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Fri, 07 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

5 stars
picture book

SO cute!!

As the little girl goes through everything it takes to put Mommy to bed, parents can't help but laugh.

I'm not sure if my kids find this as funny as I did, or maybe it's just a different kind of funny to an adult, but either way we all really enjoyed this one.

Definitely recommended!

Meet LuLu

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Yes, I know, it's been hard to miss LuLu.

But how can you resist this face?

Well, okay, maybe you can resist that face. How about this one?

My little almost-6-months-old monkey.

Who's trying to crawl. Heaven help us.

She loves books too, though.

She has a fabric version of Goodnight Moon that she likes to eat. ;)

But she also likes it when Mister reads it to her.

So that's all of the "little habitues" so to speak. Book-loving little monkeys. I guess we're doing something right.

Meet MeiMei

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

MeiMei started out on this blog as Baby J.

(So cute with Daddy)

But really I like MeiMei better for her. Because she's not a baby anymore... and while "Holy Terror" would be fitting most days, it doesn't sound as nice.

(See that cute face? Survival strategy, I tell you.)

MeiMei is three. That sums it up. ;)

This child LOVES books.

Books like:

The Little House

Sleep, Black Bear, Sleep

It's Me!

anything by Sandra Boynton

anything by Mo Willems

anything about dinosaurs

or trucks

We're still working on the whole alphabet thing... which I feel kind of bad about, but she'll figure it out.

Meet Mister

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

So this is Mister:

(and Boo, really)

Well, okay, that's a while ago now...

(Man they grow up fast)

Mister is headed for kindergarten at the end of the summer.

Watching him learn to read has been interesting, because he's so different from Boo. And while he's got his daddy's head for numbers, he's also picked up reading like it's no problem at all.

Mister loves:

the Elephant and Piggie books

books about Pokemon

Who's on First?

And lots and lots of other books.

His first foray into chapter books was the Epic junior novel that we received for review. Not bad for a pre-k kid. :)

What are your BEST titles for a kindergarten-headed boy? We'll need lots of ideas to make his ambitious reading goal.

Meet Boo

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

So, I decided that since I've been hit or miss on blogging in general lately... and haven't really talked as much about the kids in a while... I should just take a few days at the beginning of the summer reading stuff and introduce everyone. :)

So Boo. This is Boo:

(Aw, look how young we were.)

Okay, obviously that's an old picture. Here's a more recent one:

Boo is going to be in third grade, but she reads on a 6th (maybe 7th?) grade level. She LOVES to read.

I suddenly understand why my reading frustrated my parents... and I'm being paid back in spades. Darn that karma.

Some of Boo's favorite books include:
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon
the Dr. Doolittle books
The Sisters Club
any and all things Boxcar Children
Fantastic Mr. Fox
the Oz books... yes, all of them

That's a severely abbreviated list, you understand. Just off the top of my head.

Hopefully, Boo will be doing some of the reviewing this summer...

BUT since she doesn't like to read things that I suggest... and she tends to get stuck in ruts rereading the same books over and over and over and over...
What do YOU think Boo should read this summer? I'm looking for ideas... and if I can honestly say someone else suggested it, all the better. :)

It's That Time Again!!

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Sat, 01 Jun 2013 13:00:00 +0000

It's back-- Summer Reading Saturdays!!

Today marks the kick-off of our library's summer reading program and we are super excited!!

We've got big goals this month--

Boo's goal: 150 hours. That's 50 hours per month. I think she'll pass that actually, but we'll see.

Mister: 60 hours. That's 20 per month and that's pretty ambitious, but he's starting to read more and more on his own so I think he can do it.

MeiMei: 10 hours. I know, it's a huge drop from the others, but since she's not reading on her own at all (okay, we'll probably count listening to books on tape, but still) I think we're going to try to be reasonable.

LuLu: um... yeah. She's less than a year old. I don't think we're going to set a goal beyond actually reading to her. lol

As for me... I don't know what my goal is. I'm trying to read something I own at least every 4th book... and I need to catch up on my goal for the year, so I guess that's my goal. Catch up on the 20-some-odd books I'm behind.

What are YOUR summer reading goals?

Who's On First by Bud Abbott, Lou Costello and John Martz

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Fri, 31 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

5 stars

This book is AWESOME.

Love it.

Loved hearing Mister read it aloud in his little "I'm learning to read" 5-year-old voice.

Too cute. I should have video-taped it. I really should have.

The illustrations are fabulous.

Totally recommended. :)

Little Miss Primers (and others) by Jennifer Adams

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Thu, 30 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Have you seen these?!?!

Jennifer Adams' books on GoodReads

Jane Eyre, Pride and Prejudice, Alice in Wonderland, Dracula.... the list goes on.

I NEED THESE.

We've read the Jane Eyre and P&P ones... both numbers primers. They crack me up.

And there are three coming out this year... and they all look AWESOME.

I'm telling you, these are a NEED.

My kids don't find them that interesting. I don't care. They amuse me, and that's all that matters.

And LuLu is too little to protest anyway. ;)

I am such a nerd.

Llama Llama Board Books! by Anna Dewdney

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Wed, 29 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Okay, I don't know if you've seen these, but they're awesome.

With simple sing-song text and cute Llama Llama pictures, these are a big hit at my house-- especially with MeiMei.

And they're just adorable.

Llama Llama Wakey-Wake
Llama Llama Nighty-Night
Llama Llama Hoppity-Hop
Llama Llama Zippity-Zoom

All four are lots of fun, but Zippity-Zoom might be my favorite.

(Side-note: "llama" is a really annoying word to type over and over again.)

Definitely recommended-- especially for toddlers.

Dog Number 1, Dog Number 10 [and] I Dream of an Elephant by Ami Rubinger

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Tue, 28 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Dogs:
4 stars
picture book

This is a great book for a story time. Or for any child who loves a rhyme. So, anyone I guess. ;)

The ending of each little couplet is left off, so that the child can supply the appropriate rhyming word.

This one is all about numbers, as each dog tells something about themselves and what number they are.

Elephant:
5 stars
picture book

Like Dog Number 1, Dog Number 10, I Dream of an Elephant leaves the ending rhyme off of each couplet for the kids to fill in, but I liked this one even better.

Each elephant is a different color.

But what rhymes with orange?!

Hilarious.

The end is also quite cute, wondering what the elephants dream about.

Bottom line- both highly recommended, especially for the early preschool crowd or storytimes.

Matilda by Roald Dahl

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Mon, 27 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

5 stars
JF
Bookclub read

This is one of Boo's FAVORITE books. She's read it so many times I've lost count. (Though probably not quite as many times as Fantastic Mr. Fox.)

I had read it before, but not for a LONG time, so I was excited to read it again for my book club.

And I still loved it. I just think it's a fun tale.

Boo says it's "realistic fiction". I tried to point out that it's not by asking her if people really develop super powers like that.

Her response: "But Jesus gave her a miracle to help her teacher."

I had no reply for that one.

Anyway, good book. :)

Behold the Bold Umbrellaphant [and] Scranimals by Jack Prelutsky

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Sat, 25 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

5 stars (each)

Like Stardines, these books of poetry combine animals and objects and hilarity ensues.

All of my kids have really enjoyed both of these titles.

Scranimals is a touch long for the younger crowd and overall they are both better for preschool/elementary kids rather than toddlers.

Really really entertaining, though.

I would say these are a good recommendation for a reluctant reader. :)

Random Musings and Lots of Links

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Fri, 24 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

First off, have you read this piece by Alice Walker's daughter??
How my mother's fanatical views tore us apart- Rebecca Walker

If you haven't, I highly recommend it. I found it very interesting, especially seeing it so soon after finishing Family Secrets, which talks a lot about movements like the more extreme feminism and the idea that the nuclear family had become obsolete.
What a strong women to be able to overcome that kind of an upbringing and learn the value of motherhood!

Second, you may or may not know- I have clinical depression and anxiety. It's something that I've learned to be really open about... and yet still don't necessarily talk about.
Anyway, I came across a couple of posts recently that I think are just dead on (no suicidal puns intended there) and wanted to share them:
Adventures in Depression (Hyperbole and a half)
Depression, Part 2 (Hyperbole and a half)

Now, just in case you're concerned, this is not a cry for help. I'm actually amazing healthy right now. But I haven't always been. And I probably won't always be. And what she says is just so true... so real... so accurate.

Hmmm, so I'm realizing now that this could be kind of a depressing post... so here's a couple of links to the pinterest boards where I post funny stuff... just to lighten the mood. ;)

Makes Me Smile

Queen of My Own Little Nerd-dom

Family Secrets: Shame and Privacy in Modern Britain by Deborah Cohen

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Thu, 23 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

(Copy received for review)

5 stars
nonfiction

Oh my gosh. This may be the most fascinating and compelling work of nonfiction I have read. Possibly ever.

Combining history and psychology, this work takes us through various areas where families have felt compelled to keep secrets and why. And how it's all changed.

I almost didn't take this one when offered a review copy and I am sooooo glad I decided to read it.

I read it in just a couple of days, which is impressive since usually nonfiction is a much slower process for me than fiction.

I've read some reviews that pointed out the epilogue (about genealogy) and saying that it felt tacked on... like it didn't fit, but I disagree. I think it was the perfect continuation.

Maybe it's just because we Mormons are a little obsessed with genealogy, but I thought it felt very natural to take the book there.

Overall- read it. Period. Now.

Princess Academy [and] Palace of Stone by Shannon Hale

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Wed, 22 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

5 stars each
YF

Princess Academy:
I read this years ago and thought I'd reviewed it, but apparently I read it before starting this blog!
Anyway, I reread it to remind myself about the characters before reading the sequel.
And once again I quite liked it. It's a great story with fun characters.
It's cute.
I wish Boo would stop being a booger about things that I recommend and just read it, but whatever.
Highly recommended.

Palace of Stone:
This one I struggled with at the beginning. I wasn't feeling it. I didn't know that I wanted to deal with the political aspect.
My friend promised it got better.
And it did.
In fact, I almost think this one was a stronger novel. A stronger story.
I really enjoyed it.

Overall- BOTH are totally recommended. Read them in order though. :)

Let's Go For a Drive by Mo Willems

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Sat, 04 May 2013 13:00:00 +0000

5 stars

We all know how I feel about Mo Willems.

Okay, maybe if you're new to the blog you don't. Just a quick recap for you, then: THE MAN IS A FREAKIN' GENIUS.

There.

So, this new Elephant and Piggie book certainly does not disappoint! Oh my gosh, so funny!!

You need lots of things to go for a drive....

Like a car. LOL

But, **spoiler alert** a pig with a car? That would just be silly!

Awesome.

We need to buy this one, I think.

Notes of a Tourist on Planet Earth by JD Smith

noreply@blogger.com (Britt) — Thu, 02 May 2013 16:44:00 +0000

Copy received for review

3 stars
R-4

This one was actually hard to rate. It's a little book made up of poems, essays, stories, etc... and some totally deserve 5 stars... and others I didn't get.

And I didn't read the one on bestiality.

So yeah, definitely a lot of "adult content" though the one about visiting a dominatrix was actually a) not really dirty and b) really kind of interesting.

The section of stories people have told him in his travels felt confusing because there's no context. And they're written in the first person. So that just threw me off a bit.

My favorite page, hands down, was "Rejected Menu Item Proposals for Disney World". Hilarious.

And what were the proposals? you ask.

Crab Sebastian

Hakuna Frittata (I LOVE that one. Too funny.)

Jasmine Rice

Pocahummus (I also really love that one.)

Mickey Mousse (They should totally name a dessert Mickey Mousse!)

The other odd thing about this little volume-- I actually had to look up words. I never have to look up words.

Granted one that I looked up also had dictionary.com stumped, so I still don't quite know what that was all about.

Overall, it was a mixed bag for me.