RI Author Feature: Bedtime Story: Rhody RAM's Rhode Island Adventure by Kerri E. Lanzieri

 

Synopsis: "Rhody the Ram is determined to show his friends from mascot school that Rhode Island is the best destination. He takes them on a journey across the state showing them what makes his beloved home so special. Will Rhody convince his mascot friends that sometimes the
smallest things can be the very best?"

My Review: Of course I had to pick this book up since it is a local book! The illustrations are very cute and I love the fact that it featured URI's mascot. I thought it would be more focused on the school and it did at the beginning but then it ventured out into more statewide attractions. While it is great that is shows different things around the state, I have seen that before and I would have liked it more focused on the school and different adventures there. I think this would be cute to send home to a younger sibling if you were going to school at URI.

 

My Rating: While I would have liked to have had more on URI itself in this book, it was still a fun book about the school and the state around it.  I give this one a rating of Three Paws and a Stump Wag.

 

 

You can find out more about Kerri and her work on her Website. She does have another book coming out soon for the Rhode Island College Friars too.

 

You can also purchase your own copy of this book in print format from Amazon, Mascot Books or Barnes & Noble.

 

RI Author Feature: After Dark Review of Irish Rising by Marie Rose Dufour

 

Synopsis: "Famous romance writer, Kim Green went to Ireland with her two cousins to research the setting of her new book and have some quality girl bonding fun. She’s in the business of writing about love. She didn’t expect it find her on the street in a sleep Irish town with a sexy, “I want to drown in your chocolate eyes” pub owner.

Duncan Murphy never believed in the old family legend. The idea a trapped mermaid granted his family the ability to recognize their one true love was absurd to him until he spots a sexy American across the street from his pub. Something deep within him recognized her as his other half

They’re drawn together in an explosive first encounter. Life is blissful until a misunderstanding threatens to tear them apart. Is their fragile newfound romance something legends are made of or the misguided belief in an ancient fantasy?"

My Review: I picked this book up after enjoying another one of Marie's books. This is a very quick read, it can easily be read in a single sitting. As is the case with short books like this you don't get much time to get to know the characters (or for them to get to know one another) and the romance moves along very quickly. With that in mind I did really enjoy this one, I am not always a fan of these super fast short little romances but I enjoyed the characters and the way the tension builds. I think my favorite part (and this may be a little spoiler but we all know they have to fight and get back together as per romance rules) was the fact that there was no grand gesture involved to resolve the conflict or family/friend meddling, no Kim just realized how stupid the disagreement was and fixed things herself. All in all a fun little romance to keep you company some night.

 

My Rating: This was a fun read that reminds me how easy romances are to read and enjoy.  Of course an Irish hunk and some steamy scenes don't hurt either.  I give this one a rating of Three Paws and a Stump Wag.

 

 

I had the opportunity to meet and chat with Marie a little bit at the Fall In Love With New England weekend getaway last year, but you can find out more about her and her works on her Goodreads Page or Facebook Page.

 

You can also obtain your own copy of Irish Rising in digital format from Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

 

RI Author Feature: Dragonfly Magic by JM Sheridan

 

Synopsis: "Bound and determined, Brianna and her favorite stuffed animal, a black-and-white cow named Mrs. Moomoo, set off on a search for magic. Follow along with them on their fun and exciting journey. The childhood friends search for magic in all kinds of things, from toys and dolls to blocks and crayons, they keep their spirits high and never give up hope. Does magic exist in the very shoes she wears? Or perhaps within those mouth-watering pancakes she loves to eat so much. Join Brianna and Mrs. Moomoo as they venture outside and are surrounded by the beauty of nature and all the magic it brings to our world. As Brianna and Mrs. Moomoo play in their sandbox, something unexpected happens, and they discover magic in one of Mother Nature's oldest creatures - right in their very own backyard. Magic can come in many forms. Believing in magic opens our hearts to hope and our minds to imagination and wonder. A portion of the net proceeds from this book will go to a national children's charity that works to bring a sparkle of magic into the lives of children who need it most."


My Review: Another book I picked up at a local RI Author Event. This book drew me in with the cute illustrations, and it also came with a plush Mrs. Moomoo. Munchkin loves cows so I thought we would enjoy it. It has a very cute message about finding magic in the ordinary things around us. I did find that this book is clearly geared towards girls and even Munchkin commented that it was a girl book and didn't really want to read it again. It also had a lot of text on the pages that made it difficult for him to sit through reading. It is a cute book and I think it will really appeal to young little girls the most.  

 

My Rating: This is a very cute book that would be perfect for little girls (especially if you gift it along with a little plush cow).  I think maybe my nieces would have enjoyed this more than Munchkin, but it does have a great message behind it.  I give it a rating of Three Paws.

 

 

You can learn more about JM Sheridan and her work on her Website.

 

I picked up my copy of Dragonfly Magic with Mrs. Moomoo at the RI Author Expo, but you can obtain your own copy in print or digital format from Amazon, Barnes & Noble or directly from the Publisher.

 

RI Author Feature: Poems from the Mind of a Madman by Don J. Metivier

 

Synopsis: "Within this book are simple and deeply reflective messages. Every poem carries meaning for the reader to enjoy and philosophize with. Whether you are looking for poetry that delivers simple reading enjoyment or poetry that takes the reader to deeper levels of understanding. This book is for you. From life's little curiosities to major ongoing world conditions, this book will provide the reader with an opportunity to scavenge through brilliantly thought out messages. The Poems from the Mind of a Madman deliver what the reader wants. Prepare yourself for a journey into a world of well-crafted poetry."

My Review: Based on the cover and title of this book I was expecting some very dark poetry and wasn't sure how I would enjoy it. I am glad I gave it a shot anyway because it was much more than what I expected. The selection of the poems ranged from the depressing and dark to the beauty of the seasons and some patriotic poems as well. It was quite a range of not only subject matter but also style of poetry. A unique and varied collection of poems.

 

My Rating: I was pleasantly surprised that this collection wasn't as dark as I expected and while I didn't find every poem agreeable to my reading preferences, there were a lot that were great.  I give this book a rating of Three Paws and a Stump Wag.

 

 

I was able to meet Don at the RI Author Expo, and he doesn't seem to have a website but I did find his Twitter Page and an interesting Youtube video to get to know him and his work a little better.

 

You can purchase your own copy of this poetry collection in digital or print format from Amazon or Barnes & Noble or even direct from the Publisher

Spring 2017 Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon - Sign Up

Spring is in the air so it is once again time for Dewey's 4 Hour Readathon!

 I have joined this readathon in some way twice a year for several years now.  As I said earlier today Munchkin's Opening Day for Tball got pushed back to this coming Saturday (the same day as the readathon). We will be at the ball field for 3 hours at least and then the family will be coming back to the house for a BBQ after.  So I will be unofficially signing up.  Instead of participating for 24 hours straight, I will be breaking it up over 3 days. I plan to read for 8 hours a day on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

 

 

 

Some Goals:

Read for a total of 24 hours over 3 days

Read 15 books total

Read at least 2 Requested Review books

Read at least 1 Graphic Novel

Read 1,200  Pages

 

 

 

TBR Pile

The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary (186)

Runaway Ralph by Beverly Cleary (175)

Ralph S. Mouse by Beverly Cleary (176)

Journey to the Lights by Suzanne Francis (224)

Soldier Sister, Fly Home by Nancy Bo Flood (176)

R2 D2 to the Rescue by Ace Landers (64)

Samurai Rising by Pamela S. Turner (236)

Huck: Book 1 - All American by Mark Millar (152) GN

Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard Vol. 2 by David Petersen (144) GN

Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin & James Dean (40)

Giggle Giggle Quack by Doreen Cronin (32)

Outside My Window by Melissa Lagonegro (32)

Planet Earth by Leonie Pratt (32)

Otis' Busy Day by Loren Long (32)

Meet Chase the Police-Bot by Lisa Shae (32)

Meet Heatwave the Fire-Bot by Lisa Shae (32)

Team of Heroes by Jennifer Fox (32)

Fyre by Katherine Bogle (122) RR

Book of Bera by Suzie Wilde (320) RR

Jesper Jinx and the Mouse Mayhem by Marko Kitti (152) RR

 

 

 

So there is my crazy TBR list, it looks a lot more intense than it is, most of the books are short children's books in preparation for Children's Book Week coming up in May. Are you participating? What are you reading?



Monday Reading List

Its Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Shelia at Book Journey. Share what books you have finished in the last week, are currently reading and what might be coming up next!

Reviews Posted Last Week:

Links will take you to my review

Hidden Presences by Jenna O'del
Motocross Summer by Thom Ring
More Than Peaches by Christine Depetrillo
Why Not Call it Cow Juice by Steven Krasner (Bedtime Story)
The Longest Game by Steven Krasner
 

 Books Finished Last Week:

Reviews will be posted at a later date

The Book Thief
A Court of Mist and Fury
Keeper
The Sculptor
A Little Book About Safety
Ten Rules of Being a Super Hero
Super Truck
Love and Muddy Puddles
Meet Boulder the Construction-Bot

 

Currently Reading:
 

 Books to be Read Soon:

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince


 

Pages Read/ Time Listened
100:26 Hours Listened (8:41 listened this week)
19,703 Pages Read (2,043 this week)

Books Added to Shelves This Month
Beauty and the Beast by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by JK Rowling
Samurai Rising by Pamela Turner
The Mating by BJ Cunningham & Misty Clark
Hold Your Breath by Katie Ruggle
Fan the Flames by Katie Ruggle
Keeper by Ellen Jensen Abbott
Love and Muddy Puddles by Cecily Paterson
Dawn Study by Maria V. Snyder
Irish Rising by Marie Rose Dufour
The Sculptor by Scott McCloud
Huck: Book 1- All American by Mark Millar
The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher
Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

Books Read From My Shelves
The Book Thief
A Court of Mist and Fury



Interesting Tidbits on the Web:


 



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Boy what a week, it was a busy reading week last week trying to push and get my Tome Topple Readathon finished (and finish a could of books before they were due back to the library).  Munchkin's first Tball game ended up getting cancelled due to weather on Saturday, but honestly it was a little nice to finally have some time as a family with no other people or distractions.  It also gave us some time to finish the garage clean up and me to get the house cleaned up.  Once we got the garage done, Sunday weather was nice enough to work on outside chores, we got our front yard and all of the neighbor's yard raked. We still have to plant the gardens and clean up the backyard next weekend.

Speaking of next weekend, Saturday is Dewey's 24 hour readathon! I was planning on participating but since Munchkin's opening day and first game got moved to this coming Saturday it will be a little difficult.  So I will kind of unofficially participate, instead of shooting for 24 hours straight through I am going to stretch my readathon and shoot for 8 hours a day Friday, Saturday and Sunday. I will have a post up later today with my plans and TBR. 


How was your weekend? Did you get outside this weekend? Did you read any great books?  This is my last week of the RI Author Month (sorry for not having more fun interviews and giveaways, I really dropped the ball on that, but have had some really interesting books).

Tome Topple Readathon Wrap Up

I have been participating in the Tome Topple Readathon that was hosted as a Goodreads Group.  It was a 2 week challenge from the 7th of April to the 20th of April, and your goal was to read books over 500 pages. You can see my original sign up post HERE.
 

 So I had a pretty ambitious TBR pile for the challenge

So here are the books I actually read and finished:
A Court of Mist and Fury - 626 pages
The Sculptor - 496 pages
The Book Thief - 552 pages


and while I am pretty proud of what I did read, I didn't quite get as much read as I had hoped.  There are a few reasons for that, I didn't get started on the readathon until about 5 days in because I had several books to finish first.  Next I really struggled with getting into The Book Thief at the beginning and I finally had to put it down and pick up a different choice instead (thankfully that decision really helped).  I definitely wouldn't hesitate to try this readathon again, though next time I would like to actually read with someone or at least interact with other readathoners.


Did you participate? What book did you read? How was your reading experience?