A book too good not to share!

Yesterday, we went to the library for a cute trick or treat and parade event. During our walk through the library, I was picking up books that looked interesting. (I ended up with quite the armload!) I immediately grabbed this one because if the adorable and spazzy cover.

Super Happy Magic Forest by Matt Long, looked like a silly "look and find" sort of book, kinda like a Where's Waldo, but I was delighted to discover a real story, which was crazy cute! It is a story, which tells of 5 adorable adventurers as they try to save their home. It sounds kinda scary, right? But Matty Long manages to make it a fun and friendly adventure. He also throws in a few Lord of the Ring references for Moms and Dads to giggle over. It's a mix between a story book and a comic book in format.

My children are right now pretending to be part of the story and role-playing their own adventure. (Can their Mama hope to one day play role-playing games with her children? maybe?) So, yeah! This book has been immediately added to our Amazon wish list to add to our library.

While searching for the book online, I see Matty Long has created a second book! Super Slug of Doom: A Super Happy Magic Forest Story! Consider this one added to the wish list too!

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Troll and the Oliver and Troll Cupcakes!

Last week, while browsing the stacks at our local library, I picked up this cute book by Adam Stower, Troll and the Oliver. It is a darling little story about a troll who is trying to catch (and eat!) the Oliver. I personally love how the author refers to Oliver as the Oliver, as though Troll thinks that's what he is rather than the little boy's name. Finally Oliver does end up getting a taste of Oliver, but to his disappointment, Olivers taste disgusting. Luckily, the two discover Trolls do like cake.

This book was an absolute delight and my children had me read it several times each day while it was in our possession.

As a bonus, this book includes a cupcake recipe to make your own troll cupcakes! Which, I can tell you my children were all about.

So we gathered up our materials and even found some cute cake decorating eyes. (Like these, Wilton Candy Eyeballs,0.88 Ounce,Count of 50) and got to work.

Now sadly, and I hope they fixed this in future printings, the cake recipe is incomplete. It is missing baking powder (or any rising agent) which would be needed to make a proper cake. But with a bit of google-foo, I found a small batch cupcake recipe online and things were back on track.

Here is my sample cupcake for the children. I made a simple buttercream recipe (from the storybook) and roughed it up with a fork to make fur. We used a candy corn assortment, Candy eyeballs, mini marshmallows, and these Twizzlers Twist Pullnpeel Fruit Punch Candy, 12 Oz Bag, (Pack of 2), Grape, Cherry, Orange Flavors, since I couldn't find regular red licorice strings.

The children were thrilled! They each got to decorate four cupcakes and even their papa got to join in with two of his. (I'd add a photo of their faces, but well, um. Ok my desk is behind them and it has lately become the family's dumping place since I've been busy with my store.)

Here is a shot of all their hard work! Hooray! Troll cupcakes for everyone and much tastier than nasty Olivers.


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Book Review: Dinosaur Empire! by Abby Howard

I'm a nut for dinosaurs. When I was young, I wanted more than anything to be a paleontologist. Except I didn't know the difference between a paleontologist and an archeologist., so when I told my older sister I wanted to be an archeologist, she told me I'd have to touch human skulls. Five year old me didn't want to do that, so I gave up on that dream and dinosaurs.

Fast forward 30 years and I have a child of my own and he loves dinosaurs. So of course I start looking into dinosaurs and y'all! the things they have discovered about dinosaurs and well... to sum up (too late) I LOVE DINOSAURS!

Anyway, a friend posted about this graphic novel, Dinosaur Empire! (Earth Before Us 1): Journey through the Mesozoic Era, coming out and I immediately preordered it. I had never heard of Abby Howard, but a feathered dinosaur graphic novel. Oh yeah, count me in!

This graphic novel is now available and while it's marketed to ages 8 and up, I've been reading it through with Bear and he's understanding all of it. Now don't get me wrong, this book is information dense. Many pages are covered with several animals and so much information. But if you've got a lover of Dinosaurs, this is a book you want on your shelf. I love how Abby Howard pressed the idea that you have to be willing to let old ideas go to accept the new science, because gosh! the world of paleontology is constantly discovering and rediscovering these amazing animals.

Well that's my two bits on this particular book and now that Abby Howard is on my radar, I'm gong to be hoping we get a sequel. I'd love to see a comic book about prehistoric animals of the Cenozoic Area. They don't get enough love and there are some amazing creatures.


And as a personal note, I've been up late this whole week working on finishing dolls early so I can prepare for the in-laws. My cat, Amelia, is beside herself. She likes me to be in bed promptly so she can nurse on my nightshirts. Weirdo. Anyway, here's a picture of her trying to be cute and tempt me to go to bed.

Book Review: "_____ to the Rescue!" by John Himmelman

(The links in this post are affiliate links. If you purchase an item, I may get a paid a small amount. I am not being paid for a favorable review, I really do like reading picture books and sharing gems with you.)

When Bear was just beginning to go to our Library's story time, we were introduced to a wonderful series. We recently revisited it along with the last two in the series we had never read before and oh my gosh! These books are too fun!

The first in the series is Chickens to the Rescue (Barnyard Rescue). In this delightfully illustrated book, the Greenstalk family and barnyard animals are all having problems. They are saved by a flock of very helpful chickens. Each page has lots of little tidbits inside, so reading again and again is encouraged.

The second book in the series is Pigs to the Rescue: A Picture Book. This one is my personal favorite. While the chickens were so helpful, the pigs are a bit ... over helpful. They always try to help, but they do a little too much each time. My children loved finding "baby pig" as they named the piglet. (You can see baby pig on the cover hanging off the ladder.)

After a bit of a disastrous rescue, it's now the cows' turn in Cows to the Rescue (Barnyard Rescue). In this book, the cows help everyone at the county fair. This one is also very cute, but it just wasn't my favorite.  Maybe I'm not a big cow fan, though my son declares this is his absolute favorite.

Lastly, it's Duck to the Rescue (Barnyard Rescue). Poor Ernie the Duck wants to be helpful too, but nothing goes right for him, until a helpful little sheep steps in to make Ernie the hero he longs to be.

I LOVE this series. Like really and truly love it. The story is absolutely silly and the illustrations are so fun to look at. I swear, every time I reread a book, I discover some new aspect of a page. So, 2 thumbs up from me, especially for Pigs to the Rescue. This is a winner of a series.

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As I'm sure you've noticed, I had to phone it in with the photographs and link to Amazon today. Sorry about that, but it kinda works, because I wasn't sure if you have heard about Amazon's Prime Day on July 11th. I usually miss out on these kinda sales, so I wanted to be sure you guys knew about it ahead of time. It's a 30 hour period of big sales and some are going on now. I've picked up a few things for my business already. If you'd like, I can try to highlight some of the deals I see.

Don't have prime? You can Try Amazon Prime 30-Day Free Trial! Just in time for Prime Day! Amazon is already offering a variety of cool giveaways. Sadly, I haven't been very lucky, but maybe you will be!

Feature: June Gilbank, aka Planet June

(Links in this post are affiliate link, which means I may make a tiny amount of money if you make a purchase by clicking through. I am not being compensated for a favorable review, I just really like talking about books.) 

If you've ever wanted to learn how to crochet, but weren't lucky enough to have a family member teach you, then let me introduce you to June Gilbank. She is an amazingly talented artist and one of the greatest teachers currently online.

She runs a fantastic site, Planet June, where people can learn crochet basics with clear illustrations and videos as well as find some adorable patterns.

Reaching over to my pattern shelf, I have two books by June. The first is Crochet (Idiot's Guides).

I crochet mostly on what I half-remember from what my mother taught me when I was a child, so adding this reference to my book shelf has been invaluable. It gives all the basics, clearly explained and illustrated in full-color photographs. There are also some lovely patterns included to test your new found skills. 

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Amigurumi (Complete Idiot's Guides (Lifestyle Paperback)) is awesome for anyone who is looking to crochet their own amigurumi designs. The book explains how to transform a vision into crocheted doll. Some of this information you can find on the Planet June website, but I like to have a hard copy on hand while I'm working. There are also some cute patterns!

Now you have the biggest leg up to becoming an amigurumi superstar! Go forth and make your tiny crocheted army!

Book Review: Leave Me Alone!

(Links in this post are affiliate link, which means I may make a tiny amount of money if you make a purchase by clicking through. I am not being compensated for a favorable review, I just really like talking about books.) 
   

Today's book review is on Vera Brosgol's  Leave Me Alone! This is a visual delight. Her illustrations of children remind me of the children of Gyo Fujikawa's A to Z Picture Book and her other books. The illustrations of this book are a true treat.

This is the story of a loving grandmother with a job to do, knit sweaters for her grandchildren, except as you can see from the picture below, she's not getting the time to get her job done.

To escape her interruptions, she proceeds to go farther and farther away, being troubled by bears, mountain goats, and moon aliens, until finally she is completely and utterly alone. She finishes her work, but she realizes she is alone. This realization is told through illustrations, which an older child will easily grasp, but mine need it spelled out to them. 

As I've said, this story was a little above my children's heads (4 and 2 years old), but the story is one which will make the older and adult reader smile. As a knitter, I've had moments where I've hollered, "Leave me alone!" more than once and it always seems to be when I'm working hard to make a gift for my child. Ahh! Irony!

I'd recommend this for an older child, adult knitter or picture book collector, but I'm not sure I'd recommend this title for the younger audience. Personally, I love this book, I just don't think it's my children's favorite.

Book Review: Alphonse, That is Not Ok to Do!

(Links in this post are affiliate link, which means I may make a tiny amount of money if you make a purchase by clicking through. I am not being compensated for a favorable review, I just really like talking about books.) 

Ah, sorry for the lapse in posts, My allergies are going crazy since the rain stopped. When I suffer from allergies, my body goes straight to tired. I think it's my body trying to protect itself. haha!

Me: I can't breathe! 

Body: Shh, just sleep.

Anyway, yay! a new book to review! Alphonse, That Is Not OK to Do! is by Daisy Hirst and it is adorable. I am so in love with this book, it's definitely on my wishlist.

This charmingly illustrated story is about a little girl monster named Natalie and her younger brother, Alphonse. Natalie mostly doesn't mind Alphonse, except when he ruins her things.Yet even then, she deals with things well, until she has a bad day and Alphonse chews on her favorite book. (By the way, her favorite book is Bread and Jam for Frances (I Can Read Level 2)!) She gets angry and draws a not so nice photo of Alphonse. During her bath she thinks all the terrible things she drew are coming true!

Luckily, Alphonse is not hurt, only trying to fix her book and he found Natalie's not so nice picture and "fixed" it too. He charmingly drew Natalie saving him and playing with him, which Natalie declares is "absolutely fantastic! So they'd better make a lot more." It ends with the two siblings happily drawing together. Aww!

This book is sweetness on an adult level (Oh! I feel for poor Natalie's mother when she accidentally mistakes a horse drawing for a dog.), but also relate-able for children. Bonus, if you can make good vacuum cleaner, cat yowling, and marbles falling sounds, your child will be delighted. The simplistic illustrations are perfect for this story. I highly recommend adding this (and Bread and Jam for Frances (I Can Read Level 2)) to your book shelf!

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Book Review: Secret Pizza Party

(Links in this post are affiliate links and I will be making a tiny amount of money if you make a purchase by clicking through. I am not being compensated for a favorable review, I just really like talking about books.)

 

Due to a twitter conversation, I've decided I must share my love of the book Secret Pizza Party by the incredible duo Adam Rubin and Daniel Salmieri, the talented two-some behind Dragons Love Tacos.

This book is hands down brilliant! Dare I say better than Dragons Love Tacos?!

I know, I know, you may be thinking Dragons Love Tacos is the bees' knees and I'm a sour-puss mom who's lost her way, but hear me out. I'm still a big fan of Dragons Love Tacos. (Have you heard they are publishing a Dragons Love Tacos 2: The Sequel!!) But Secret Pizza Party is just plain fun to read!

It tells the story of a raccoon who wants pizza, but people keep bonking him with brooms. With the help of the narrator, he devises a plan to throw a secret pizza party. The racoon never says a word, but the narrator is amazing and anytime a children's storybook includes the phrase "sweet sassy molassy" you know I'm all over that crazy train. It's hard not to read this story with enthusiasm as the raccoon plots his way to pizza.

At this point, it would be customary in my reviews o share a few photos, but it is a secret and if you read the book, you'll quickly learn, regular storybook? ok. Secret Storybook? Hoo-ha! Let's read!

Ah! Who am I kidding, this is one of my favorite pages.  Sorry for the glare on the page, but look at the brilliant illustration. That stick! Oh man! That tiny feature kills me. This book is a fantastic collaboration between both author and illustrator. I highly recommend it! Heck I'm going to read it again to my kiddos today.

Ok, as a side note because I noticed as I was writing this review, Secret Pizza Party is currently on sale at Amazon for $7.99 right now! Run Reader! Run like the wind and buy a copy!