#TheSecretHalloweenCostume #NetGalley Pub Date 21 Sep 2021
Charlotte is a young witch. As Halloween approaches, she does not want to follow her family tradition of dressing as a scary witch. Can she do something different? What costumes will she reject? What plan will she carry out? What is the message of this holiday story for young children?
Add this to your list if you are looking for stories about independent girls this October.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.
When I read this couple’s first book, O Come Ye Back to Ireland, I fell in love. With the couple, with their story and the way in which their story was told. I went on to read the other memoirs about their life in Ireland. These included The Pipes Are Calling and Summer’s in the Meadow. Every one of these was beautifully written and I felt that I knew Christine and Niall.
I was beyond excited to see that this couple had written another book together. (They have each written other titles separately.) It felt like I was being given a wonderful opportunity to connect with old friends after many years.
I adored this book. Its structure allows each author to have a voice. The hardest thing was to realize that, just like all of us, Niall, Christine and their children have gotten older with the passing years. They are no longer the young Irish-American and Irish duo who decided to leave the bustle of the city for their family’s homeland. I was eager to learn how the years have passed for both them, those around them, their farm, their garden and their world.
I highly recommend this title. For the full joyful experience, consider going back to the beginning with them.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.
Caution! This book will make you hungry. There are 75 cookie recipes and I want to try all of them. Included are recipes for everything from Chocolate Chip to Oatmeal Raisin to Peanut Butter to Chocolate Macadamia Nut, Snickerdoodles, Shortbread, Chocolate Chunk, Thumbprints and Small Batch Cookies…and that is just the recipes listed in the first column of the table of contents.
Before bakers get to the recipes, there are several helpful sections at the beginning of the book. These cover such topics as Tools and Equipment, Troubleshooting and more.
I was not familiar with the author before looking at this title, She is a blogger and expert baker from what I can see.
This looks like just the book for a baker you know, even yourself!
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title. All opinions are my own.
Learn to draw 60 ordinary items in ten easy steps!
by Justine Lecouffe
#TenStepDrawingEverydayThings #NetGalley Pub Date 07 Sep 2021
A new school semester has started. I am one of those people who is always doodling in the margins of my notebooks. So, this book was created for those, who like me, enjoy drawing and need a bit of guidance.
This book offers a useful tutorial. It is divided into sections with topics based on locations including my bag, my room, my kitchen, my bathroom and more. There is then an additional section entitled Out and About. Within each of these sections are many things to draw. For each, the item to be drawn is created with ten steps.
For example, in my kitchen offers teapots and cups, while on m desk includes scissors and art supplies. Search for favorites or just dip into this title and start wherever you land.
So, get out your pencils and have some fun!
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.
Halloween will be here before we know it. For a very young ghoul or goblin, this book makes a nice introduction to the holiday. This book is charmingly illustrated with pages on everything from Picking Pumpkins to Scary Treats. Each vivid two page spread offers new words to learn. In addition to naming objects, there are also a feeling word and a verb identified, for example, Scooping and Excited on the Carving Pumpkins page.
This title makes a nice addition to the word books that are created for young children.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.
by Edited by Fred R. Shapiro; Foreword by Louis Menand
#TheNewYaleBookofQuotations #NetGalley
Often when a person has something to say, they want their words to be backed up. Other times, someone wants to randomly explore what others have said to see if the words resonates in some way. Sometimes a person needs to give a speech and wants their words to have a bit more weight. For these and many other reasons, people look to quotes. So, what could be more welcome than a book that is packed full of quotes? And even better, a book with the imprimatur of Yale University.
As noted above, this book is jammed with quotes. It is easy to just wander through taking time to think about what has been said on a subject. No matter who or what a reader is looking for, they will find inspiration here.
The book is organized by author. Each entry includes an identifying characteristic for the author and their dates of birth (and death, if needed). Happily there is also an index of keywords. In addition, there are a number of special sections; for example, there are ones on slogans and proverbs. Therefore, when words are needed they can be found.
The New Yale Book of Quotations is a title that should be available for school and home libraries. It is not inexpensive but the collected wisdom makes it worth the price.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title. All opinions are my own.
Those who have read the earlier entries will be eager to get their hands on this title which is number five in the series. The books are best read in order but, if a reader is willing to accept spoilers from the earlier novels, they can read in any order.
First, the cover. I love the period feel to each of the covers in the Verity Kent series. They beautifully evoke the time period and character of what is inside the book.
Readers know (or find out) that Verity has had several earlier adventures which evolved from her work during WWI. Because of the Official Secrets Act, Verity’s family has no idea of all that she has experienced. Her mother, especially, judges her daughter. Readers may be surprised (as her mother would be if she knew) to learn that so much has happened to this young woman who is in only her early twenties.
In this novel, readers become better acquainted with Verity’s family. Her great aunt Ilse, who is German, arrives on Verity’s doorstep unannounced. What has brought her to England? How will she manage being in England where she is often viewed as an enemy despite her advanced age? Who has she seen? What does it mean? How do events in the present relate to Verity’s connection with her aunt when the war was on-going? Are the repercussions from that time about to cause trouble?
Verity decides to leave London early for the Christmas holidays, feeling that this will be better for her aunt. This allows readers to spend time with Verity’s parents and siblings in Yorkshire. Some of these relationships are less than ideal. Readers will also get to know some in her community including old friends, and new vicars and their wives.
When a murder occurs Verity and her dashing husband, Sidney, are on the scene and ready to solve the crime. Readers will try to figure things out right along side them.
I very much enjoy this series and highly recommend this latest entry. Alas, now it will be at least a year before I can catch up with Verity and Sidney again.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title. All opinions are my own.
Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too! 