silly title for a sweet book
932252
At first I thought this would be a cliched love at first sight book. It was,  but it was also a love story that became more believable as I read. Melodramatic, but still worth the read.
4218601
The Cat Star Series is a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine because its silly and over the top. This one is silly and over the top as well. It sweet in places, hot in others, and eye rolling in other places.

The main love story is a bit of a ping pong of feelings for both of them which makes sense because they were both stunted emotionially ut doesn't make for the best read.
The cast of secondaries is a fun mix. I do long for a spin off romance with the Avian Clones. Yes, I do.

I wish these were so pricey and were still shareable so I wouldn't have any guilty over my enjoyment of these but if you are looking for a fun read these are good even though this one handles some dark subject matter without a lot of skill which lessened my enjoyment.
2935665
The Silent Boy, by Lois Lowry is a sweet tale.  I haven't quite figured out what Lowry's themes are about, but according to her website, they are about human connections. I'm not sure I agree.  But anyway, this is a delightful book. Not in a silly kind of way, like some of her others, but because the main character, Katy, has no prejudice and has an open, curious spirit.  While the title would lead you to believe that the story is a bout the boy, it isn't really.  The Silent Boy, Jacob, seems to me to only be a peripheral character. The child does not speak, and because of that is called many awful names that Katy seeks to understand.

I chose this book because I though it would address children with disabilities.  Jacob is eventually sent to an asylum where they care for mentally ill and possibly disabled people.  I was hoping for more insight into Jacob's disability but I guess that would have been too difficult a topic for a children's book.  Each chapter contains a vintage photo which helps the reader visualize the characters.  It is an interesting feature.
The Silent Boy is a fine book and an enjoyable read. I give it 3 paws!
981130
This is a very sweet little book and I love the illustrations and the simple Thanksgiving story. The lift-the-flap pictures are very small, though, and my 15-month old granddaughter was a bit too young to really appreciate this book. She much preferred "Five Silly Turkeys" by Salina Yoon. I think "The First Thanksgiving" would probably be better for a slightly older child.
3861754
Thank-you to Goodreads and Bloomsbury Publishing for a free copy of this book. This is a fun and bit silly read and I think any child in its targeted age group (Age 8-12; Grades 3-6) would enjoy it. The plot has a quick pace and its filled with quirky characters. I wish there was a bit more magic and maybe more detail, at times it feels like it jumps from scene to scene and gives details in the wrong places. I would give a big shout out to the illustrator Laura Ellen Anderson as I think the pictures in the book really help the book and create a mood for the story. The illustrations also tie in nicely with the fashion theme and I think grade school girls would really love that. All-in-all I would recommend this book, mostly to Grades 3-6 girls as I know my son in Grade 4 would likely not be interested in the story.
737583
I love the little illustrations and silly topics to write about. It was fun filling it out together and finding out that we have the same opinions on some pretty arbitrary stuff, haha. Really sweet book. I look forward to filling it out over the years.
2584401
This book starts with a ridiculous premise and I was aggravated for the first fifty pages. But.... the characters grew on me and there is a certain sweetness overall that is appealing. The love scenes are nicely done without being over done or excessive to the point of becoming porn-like. I also liked the secondary love story between Baxter and Addy - that felt more real in some ways than the primary story of Vance and Layla. Bungalow Nights is a decent filler book or palate cleanser between thrillers and science fiction. It definitely falls into that summer, light mindless fluffy beach read category.
1663951
That title is a little incongruous for the very Victorian feel of the story. It conjures up crazy sexual behavior, especially with the prickwillowand yet, this book is not that at all. It is a charming, quirky story of girls in a boarding school in the Victorian era, who decide to run the school themselves when their mean headmistress and her unpleasant brother are suddenly poisoned by persons unknown. Each of the girls has her own special personality, and they come together as an unlikely band of heroes to try to determine the murderer, and avoid being sent home.  They find in each other the sisters they wish they had.  Sort of a Miss Marple tone  likeable, pleasant and not demanding.
4897027
Sweet with some moral impact to think about.
742860
This book is so sweet.  I bought it for my husband for Father's Day and my daughter gets such a kick out of it when he reads it to her. However, the board book does not come with a CD which was very disappointing to me.  I will just have to buy the hardcover as well I guess.

PS
I can't believe the people who are reading into the words of this book with sick minds.  Obviously those people do not have kids because if they did they would know how you make up songs for just about everything you do with them.  These are nothing but sweet stories of changing a diaper and little fat baby legs, not perversion.  Get a life.
945528
This was a sweet chick lit book unlike anything else I've read. And I liked it a lot, but I didn't love it. Becky, the main character, is believable, though not relatable (for me, anyway). Felix, the actor in question, is a bit more plot point than character, but given that Becky's eyes are how we see the world, that seems appropriate.

The setup is charming, and my biggest happy point about this novel is that it seriously address the age-old question: "can a man and a woman REALLY just be friends?". It does this respectfully, realistically, and just for fun, also pits an opposites attract type situation. The drama centers around this question, though there's plenty of standard Shannon Hale-esque quips and dialogue funnies.

I felt that the religious aspect was a bit heavy-handed, and made Becky rather naive as an adult woman, though I understand the need to represent a faith of some sort for her to rely on at key moments in the book. I also recognize that, as someone who isn't Christian (let alone Mormon!), I can be super sensitive about a faith system being brought up repeatedly in a book. Regardless, there were about 5 pages at the end that I skimmed over because I couldn't take any more "aha! God's plan is all so clear to me now!" talk (epiphany, good....epiphany that takes 3 pages to squee out makes your character look like an idiot who never questioned anything in her life).

Overall, it was a well-balance piece of chick lit, with plenty of heart. I recommend this book for fans of that sort of novel, and anyone who has ever wondered "What if George Clooney and I met and hit it off platonically?"
577634
I loved the book and giggled through it. Cute drawings and clever little comics with some poignant themes. I admit my strongest reaction was to the cover. Which is fuzzy. It's fuzzy. Touch it!
2976033
A sweet book.  Someone else said, clean. I agree.
4624504
Sweet little book, not comprehensive or deep. A nice read.
2059129
Feeling down? A little blue? Do you like silly animal pictures>

This compilation of goofy black and white photos won't be the deepest book you'll read this month, but it may be the cheeriest.

There are sluggish lions, nervous gerbils, concerned kitties, ecstatic anteaters, a bald monkey, a bear whose tongue must be two feet long, a funky seal, and a pig and a sheep amorously involved.

Throughout, author Brad Greive quips toward the positive. If the news of the day is getting you long in the face, then I fully recommend "Blue Day Book."

Anthony Trendl
editor, HungarianBookstore.com
792784
(**This book was sent to me for an honest review.**)

This cute, sweet, short little novel was not exactly what I was expecting when I picked it up and started reading. Truthfully, I chose to start it because I had a horrible day and I was feeling extremely down and I wanted something quick and light to cheer me up. Well, 145 pages later...

So, the premise of this book is simple: Ella lives together with her stepmother and her two stepsisters who came into her and her father's life a few years after her mother's death. Ella's father is a huge film producer so, naturally, he is away quite a lot which leaves her alone with the other three. In usual Cinderella-style, her stepmother is resentful towards Ella and gives her ridiculous amounts of errands to keep her life too preoccupied for a 16-year-old in order to enjoy her young life. However, Ella doesn't complain. She doesn't talk to her father about it, not wanting to ruin the very short few days they spend together, and she takes all horrid treatment and just goes on with her life. Along the way, she meets Julian, a much-needed friend. However, instead of falling for her as you may normally assume, she instead falls for her stepsister's boyfriend. "And blah, blah, blah".

Truth be told, I did not go into this book expecting to be blown away by the writing, the concept, the characters, etc which, if I did, I think I would have been disappointed. I can name a fair few issues that I found with these things (the writing, the concept, the characters, etc), though I feel that doing so is completely unnecessary. I loved this book for the real fact that it immediately shooed away the dark clouds over my head and took me back to the days where, after having a bad day at school, I would come home and watch Disney Channel Original Movies until I felt better.

Generally....
The writing: Easy, thoughtful.
The concept: Simple, cute.
The characters: Relatable, real.

I am honestly sad that it ended as quickly as it did and I still find myself curious about the continued life of these characters. I'm keeping my eye on you, Cassandra Sage Briskman.

Rating: 3.5 stars (4 stars on Amazon because "3 stars" suggests it was "okay" and I liked it more than that would suggest.)
569833
The adorably whimsical illustrations of "A Bit of a Do" are utterly charming.  The expressions on the faces of the kitchen's characters are very funny!  Check out the cover for an example.

Some of the language from the rhyme, however, left me scratching my head just a bit.  Cans are referred to as tins, potato chips as crisps, and the phrase "quieten things down" is included.  It seems the author is British.  Not that there's anything wrong with that, it just struck me as remarkable that we can speak the same language and have such different ways of communicating the basic ideas covered by this very short poem.  (The Tesco brand is English, and that line of the poem won't make any sense if you don't know that.) If you're American, and you're planning to read this book to your child, be prepared to explain the meanings. It will be good practice for them when they get to school.