Recent Reads

36. The Cloud Spinner
Last week while my nephews were over for a sleepover we read several books. This one was the bed-time selection. They already knew the story, but I had not read it before. I love exposing kids to the idea of taking what you need and not one bit more. That there are consequences to being greedy.

37. Z is for Moose
The boys and I laughed out loud as we read about the antics of Moose.

38. The Lorax
We had a read-aloud of this much loved story. The kids have seen the movie and really liked it. I'll wait for the DVD. Love the environmental message in the story.

39. The Flight of Gemma Hardy
I recently had a reading day. One of those days that I laze about with a good read. I was delighted to have this one waiting on my nightstand. It has rave reviews. It started out great, but I ended up not liking it as much I thought I would. The bare bones are all there - an orphan, treated badly (ala Cinderella). Sent to an orphanage, where the maltreatment continues. Thankfully, she grows up, finds love, runs away from it, only to circle back to where she started. I read that this book was an homage to Jane Eyre - a book I have yet to read - but after a strong start, it simply ran out of gas.

40. The Pulse of Mixed Media
"If you gave 100 artists the same set of art supplies and asked them to create, you would end up with 100 unique works of art." This is how the book starts - sounds compelling right? Sadly, it is not. While the art and layout of the book is a delight, the actual text is simply boring. I do read Seth's blog, and while this format works for a blog, I expected more from the book.