Review: If I were me and Lived in...

Title: If you were me and I Lived in... Series
Author: Carole P. Roman
Grade: A++

Review
Carole Roman has written a series for children entitled If you were me and I Lived in... In each book she focuses on a different country, which so far have been Mexico, South Korea, and France. In each book she shows the location of the country on a globe and the outline of the country. Throughout the rest of the book Roman talks about familiar things to children in that country;  things like what you would eat, where you might like to visit, where you would go to school, what you would call your mom and dad, and even what your name might be. At the back of the book there is a pronunciation guide for the different words used during the course of the book.

During my last two years as a teacher I had a very diverse class. Almost half of my students had a primary language other than English. At the end of the school year I planned a unit studying the different cultures of the students in my class. I tried to look for books that were basic enough for preschoolers to understand, but provided facts that pertained to them. I truly wished I would have found Roman's books when I was planning my lessons. They are PERFECT for young children. They talk about things that are familiar to them and are not to long or have to many words. These books give the right amount of information and have beautiful illustrations to go with them. The children on the front cover of the book even change based on the country the book is talking about. The information and illustrations provide great conversation starters and encourage questions from children.

One of my students was from South Korea and I really wished I would have had this book last spring. I looked for a book like this to read to my students and I could not find one.  This would have been one I could have refereed back to during the course of the unit and my students would have enjoyed looking at it time and again. I think that this series is much needed in the world of children's book and is a must have for teachers everywhere!

Happy Reading!

Bookaholic

Review: 10,000 Babies

Title: 10,000 Babies: My Life in the Delivery Room
Author:  Dr. Silvio Aladjem
Grade: A+

Review
Dr. Aladjem is a very accomplished obstetrician. He has delivered thousands of babies, many of them high-risk deliveries. This book is a collection of some of the most heart-rendering, to the most unique deliveries over the course of his career. He tells the tales in short stories that are divided into sections. Some of the stories will cause you to laugh,  some may cause you to cry. He also included how the delivery process came to be and how the birth of a child is different, depending on where you live.

I absolutely loved this book. It was a very quick and fascinating read, and I finished it in 2 days. Some of the stories are unbelievable. There are stories where a woman believes she is pregnant, but is really not, a woman delivers twins weeks apart, and a woman who asks if she could throw up her baby. It is crazy how many different people Dr. Aladjem meets through out the many years of his practice. There is not one story in the 237 of the book that is the same. I think it is a book that everyone, especially mothers would enjoy. The facts that Dr. Aladjem includes are also very interesting. One of the facts is that some countries believe that women should eat the placenta because it provides important nutrients. Some cultures believe that thy types of food you crave, can show which gender the baby will be. Never having a baby myself, I would not know.

I think that everyone would enjoy this book. The stories are interesting and just long enough that they keep the reader's attention throughout each short story. It is also possible to skip around in the book and not get lost in the plot. Emotions will also change based on which story you read.

Happy Reading!

Bookaholic

Review: With Unwashed Hands

Title: With Unwashed Hands
Author: Joanie Bolton
Grade: A-

Review
Joanie and Darrell Bolton are missionaries, who have traveled to Eden (because of security reasons, they can not name the country they are ministering to). Before they even get the chance to spread the Word of God, Darrell is struck with immense stomach pains, which land him in the hospital in an unfamiliar country. The hospital in Eden is not nearly as high-tech, or sanitary as the ones he is used to in the United States. When Darrell's doctor finds out that he and his wife are missionaries from the Untied States, Darrell ends up being in the fight for his life.

I can imagine how difficult it would be to go to a land that is very non-accepting of Christians and where you know almost no one. To add on to the fact that someone gets severely ill, blows my mind. I have been on a few mission trips with my church, but they have always been to places where I can freely share the Gospel without fearing for my life. Joanie and Darrell did not have this "luxury" in Eden. This book is written from Joanie's perspective and it is written so well that it is very easy to imagine that you are Joanie as you read. The details she includes of the different procedures, and the doctors help to visualize the scene of the hospital. This book truly makes you grateful for the amazing healthcare and the freedoms that we have as Americans. The Bolton's include pictures at the end of the book, which adds a special touch.

I thought that Joanie picked the perfect title for this book. It sheds light in two ways on the story that is portrayed. It is unwashed hands that is one of the reasons Darrell gets so sick. It is also with "unwashed  hands" that we come before God each day. The Bolton's were in Eden to talk to the people there about their "unwashed hands".

The one thing I would have liked was to find out if Darrell had any lasting health issues after he came back. I felt like I didn't get much of a closer at the end of the book. I suggest this book for everyone to read. I think that this will show you how fortunate we are to live in The United States.

Happy Reading!

Bookaholic

Review: A Nantucket Experience

Title: A Nantucket Experience: A Year in the Life of a Wash Ashore
Author: Shellie Dunlap
Grade: B -

Review
Living on a island is the sun would be a dream for many people. Shellie Dunlap is one of the few people who can call Nantucket Island her home. Dunlap recently moved onto Nantucket and became a year round resident. This book chronicles one year on this gorgeous island, using monthly highlights and photographs. The cover alone will grasp anyone looking for a summer get-away.

I was actually very torn when I finished this book. When I read the synopsis, I was very excited. My family vacations every summer on an island very similar to Nantucket, so I was looking forward to reading about the similarities on life on the island. I did enjoy reading about the unique parts of Nantucket, such as the comedy festival, the Thanksgiving plunge, scallopin', and the beautiful homes. I have to say though that this book did not impress me as much as I would have liked it to. I felt that the book was mainly directed to people that have had the pleasure of visiting Nantucket, not the "outsiders". When Dunlap brought up the different areas of the island, I had no idea where she was talking about. A map at the front of the book would have been very helpful. For someone who had never been to Nantucket, basic facts about the island would have been helpful.

I did think that the title was a little bit of false advertising. When I saw that the book was about Dunlap's first year as a year-round resident, I was expecting it to be more a novel. Instead of talking about her day-to-day life on the island, Dunlap pretty much talked about generic things that happen each year or in years past. There was not a whole lot of Dunlap's personal interactions during that year. I was hoping to get the inside scoop on what truly happens during a blustery winter day on Nantucket Island.

All in all, I think this book is a hit-or-miss. I think that visitors of Nantucket would really enjoy this book because it would help them feel connected to their favorite spot all year round. For those that have never been there, it might not keep your interest.

Happy Reading!

Bookaholic  

Review: Ravenous

Title: Ravenous
Author: Heidi Loney
Grade: A+

Synopsis from the Back of the Book
Overpopulation throttles the world’s food supply. In 2050, the government of the Americas introduces the Food Crisis Act—new measures that create a system for growing and rationing food. Calla Ryan is pretty much your average teen, except for enduring hunger every day of her life. One morning, new sensors at her high school determine that she exceeds the weight limit of the State, and they send her north to a “fat camp” or re-education centre. Calla begins to realize the centre holds many secrets. Her counsellor dies mysteriously, and new shipments of recruits are the picture of health. Finally, Calla becomes a guinea pig for a dangerous lab experiment. On the outside, a virus that began overseas has now made its way to the Americas with deadly consequences. Calla must run from her captors, escaping to the far north with help from the facility’s chef and fellow inmates Billy and Madge. And to complicate things, the infected are very hungry

Review
If you have read some of my past reviews, you know that I am a big fan of dystopian books. When I read the synopsis of this book, I instantly knew I was going to enjoy it, but boy was I wrong... I LOVED it! This book had everything  you could ever want in  198 pages; romance, drama, blood and gore, family relationships, mystery, science fiction, crazy government, etc... Loney has created a future where the food people consume daily is tracked by the government. If they exceed the limit many times, they are sent to a futuristic "fat camp". When Calla arrives there, she realizes that this camp is not exactly what she is expecting. She then realizes that every thing she has known about her life is not what it seems. 

I love reading dystopian books and imagining that the world that authors have created can come true. I think that the world Loney has created could really come true.  With the way we treat our natural rescources I could definitely see food, particularly, grown food, become scarce. The only sad part is that the squeal will not be released until 2014. I am dying to know what happens to Calla, Billy, and their future. You can bet I will be buying the book as soon as it comes out! I recommend Ravenous to all dystopian fans and those looking for the total package book!

Happy Reading!

Review: Kafira

Title: Kafira
Author: John O'Neill
Grade: A-

Synopsis from book cover
Kafira determines her life ambition will be to find a cure form the Ebola Virus. Her life becomes one of continuous frustration, as the cure eludes her. Kim il Sung, of North Korea, wants the moon to belong to North Korea and it's people. He forces a North Korean Biomedical Scientist- Min Shu- to construct a virus that is just as deadly as the Ebola virus, but can be cured. A demand is placed on the United Nations to agree to give exclusive ownership of the moon to Kim il Sung, or he will release the deadly virus. Kafira holds the key to the safety of the world. Will she be in time?

Review
When I initially read the synopsis for this book, I was very intrigued by the involvement of North Korea in this book. I have recently become very interested in the power North Korea holds over its people and the why it cuts itself off from the rest of the world. This book definitely fulfilled my expectations on that aspect. It was very interesting to read how different Kafira and Min Shu work and how different their reasoning was behind developing a cure for the Ebola Virus. My favorite parts were the jumping between the North Korean scene and the American scene. The North Korean government was very meticulous in planning their domination over the rest of the world and had everything planned to a T. It is unbelieveable how much they planned and how precise everything was. For example, all North Korean agents in the United States always carried cyanide tablets so that if they were caught, they stuck them in their mouths and basically commited suicide so that they were not questioned. Unbelievavable!

The only downside of the book was the length. At 539 pages, it was quite long. As I was initially reading I was trying to see if their was anything that the author could cut out to make it shorter, but I couldn't find anything at first. Around the last 100 pages I struggled to be as interested as I was during the first 400 pages.  The end did catch me back though, with a huge twist. Be ready to be thrown for a loop!

I would suggest this to readers who enjoy science fiction and also for those interested in modern Asian history. You won't be disappointed!

Happy Reading!

Bookaholic

Captain No Beard Series

I recently received 3 children's books, all written by Carole P. Roman, to review. As a preschool teacher, I love reading children's books and am eager to find quality ones. I am very excited to say that all three books are ones that I am super excited to add to my classroom library!  Two of the books were part of a series, so I am going to review them together. Without further ado, my reviews...

Title: Captain No Beard: An Imaginary Tale of a Pirate's Life
Grade: A

Review
Carole Roman wrote this book as the start of the Captain No Beard series. The series Alexander (Captain No Beard), his cousin Hallie, and their stuffed friends on imaginary adventures on the seven seas. Once Alexander and Hallie board Alexander's bed, they become pirates and their stuffed friends become their crew! In this particular book, they end up in the middle of a storm. This must work together to save their selves and their ship.

The first thing that caught my eye as I was reading was the use of interesting vocabulay. The book is filled with wonderful words, that may be new to children, but can be learned during the reading of the book. Roman describes the shipmates as "hearty", calls the ship a "frigate" and describes the waves as "rumbling". By reading this book, children are being exposed to rich vocabulary. She also includes pirate "lingo", that adds to the fun of the book. I also enjoyed the beautiful illustrations that are sure to catch any reader's eye.

The only thing I didn't like about this book was that some pages did not have any illustration. Instead of having a picture on one page and words on the other, there would be words on both sides. Roman actually changes that in her second book.

Title: Strangers on the High Seas: A Captain no Beard
Grade: A+

Review
This book continues the saga of Captain No Beard and his shipmates. In this book, Alexander is put in charge of his little sister Cayla and must take her on their new adventure. Cayla causes all kinds of trouble until they see a dark ship in the distance. Through their adventure they learn stranger etiquette, and that every person is valuable in his her own way.

I once again loved the use of rich vocabulary throughout the book. and the beautiful illustrations. Another thing I loved about this addition to the series was how it taught several life lessons through the story. Children learn to not talk to stranger or to approach unknown animals. Children can also relate to the relationship between Alexander and Cayla. Like most siblings, Alexander is not happy about playing with his sister and thinks she will be a bother during their adventure. By the end of the story, children will learn that everyone is important. not matter how big or small they may be. This is an important lesson that would be very beneficial to preschoolers because they are often looked down upon because they are young.


I LOVED both books and would definitively be interested to read the other books in the series. I think that kids will be drawn to both the characters and the plot. and  I also love the vocabulary introduced in both book. I recommend this to anyone working with young children!

Happy Reading!

Bookaholic