Book Review - Miss Hildreth Wore Brown: Anecdotes of a Southern Belle by Olivia deBelle Byrd

Sunday, December 5, 2010

Product Description

While Olivia deBelle Byrd was repeating one of her many Southern stories for the umpteenth time, her long-suffering husband looked at her with glazed over eyes and said,“Why don’t you write this stuff down?” Thus was born Miss Hildreth Wore Brown—Anecdotes of a Southern Belle. If the genesis for a book is to shut your wife up, I guess that’s as good as any. On top of that, Olivia’s mother had burdened her with one of those Southern middle names kids love to make fun. To see “deBelle” printed on the front of a book seemed vindication for all the childhood teasing. With storytelling written in the finest Southern tradition from the soap operas of Chandler Street in the quaint town of Gainesville, Georgia, to a country store on the Alabama state line, Oliviade Belle Byrd delves with wit and amusement into the world of the Deep South with all its unique idiosyncrasies and colloquialisms. The characters who dance across the pages range from Great-Aunt LottieMae, who is as “old-fashioned and opinionated as the day is long,” to Mrs. Brewton, who calls everyone “dahling” whether they are darling or not, to Isabella with her penchant for mint juleps and drama. Humorous anecdotes from a Christmas coffee, where one can converse with a lady who has Christmas trees with blinking lights dangling from her ears, to Sunday church,where a mink coat is mistaken for possum, will delight Southerners and baffle many a non-Southerner. There is the proverbial Southern beauty pageant, where even a six-month-old can win a tiara, to a funeral faux pas of the iron clad Southern rule—one never wears white after Labor Day and, dear gussy, most certainly not to a funeral. Miss Hildreth Wore Brown—Anecdotes of a Southern Belle is guaranteed to provide an afternoon of laugh-out-loud reading and hilarious enjoyment.

My Take:
Just do it! go find this book and read it. If you are from the South you will love this book, it is spot on. You will be laughing out loud as you shake your head knowing how true each anecdote really is.

Book Review - The Adventures of the Thundering Whales by Stephen Vadakin

Saturday, December 4, 2010

Product Description

The Weaved Catcher is the first book in Stephen Vadakin's series "The Adventures of the Thundering Whales." The books follow the exciting adventures of the three young dolphin friends Thunder, Flukie and Sapphire. In The Weaved Catcher, Thunder becomes caught in a fishing net and falls far, far down into the ocean depths. How can he ever escape? What happens when his friends rush to rescue him? When you read the answers to these questions in the book, you will meet some massive and amazing sea creatures. Blue whales, humpback whales, a giant squid and the Swordfish Police Patrol are all part of the fun and adventures!

My Take:
I almost want to apologize of this review because I have found many glowing reviews on the internet so I feel maybe it's just me, maybe I am missing something. The idea of the story is great the fun ocean characters are a good learning tool but this story has no spark. It doesn't have anything special that makes me want to read it again. I love to read obviously but for a large picture book this book is wordy to the point of boring. My son and I read chapter books at night so he can handle some serious story but this book could not keep his interest. I had hoped for more but it simply did not deliver.

Book Review - Reunion of the Untouchables by Kurt Frenier

Friday, December 3, 2010

Product Description

About five hundred years ago, Master Magician Mikhail Pilkington III created a magical flying train, the StudyTrain. His vision: to take average teenagers onboard, show them the world, and turn them into leaders. Ethan is invited on to this train, escaping his miserable life in Switzerland. He soon discovers that the train is all but ordinary. It is filled with magic, secrets, people with interesting histories, and much more. Ethan's intrigue and hunger for knowledge and power catches the attention of a hidden, ancient alliance called the Untouchables. Soon, Ethan learns all their mysteries, powers and sorcery. He stands out from the rest of the students and is recognized as the long-awaited leader for the Untouchables. But his dark side - The Dark Fire Inside - grows and becomes much stronger than anyone thought it would. Ethan gets sucked into a web of conflicts and feuds while battling his own inner feelings. Will he go for power, or turn toward good? Kurt Frenier, 41, born in Belgium, author of children's and young adult books, is a senior director at Pepsi Cola. He lives in Dubai with his wife Sanne and two daughters, Julia and Emilie. Kurt has been writing since he was 16 and has published before in The Netherlands. The StudyTrain is his first English-language young adult book. Publisher's Website: http://www.strategicpublishinggroup.com/title/TheStudyTrain.html


My Take:
I really like the fantastical twist of Reunion of the Untouchables and I hope it spawns many more volumes in the Study Train Series. There is just enough action to keep the plot moving along while still making it believable (for a fantasy novel) while at the same time not getting bogged down with too much crazy fantasy. It remains rooted in reality and gives the young adult plenty to keep them interested by peppering in characters from the real world such as Thomas Edison and Elvis Presley. All and all a good book and a series with a bright future.

Book Review - Savior of the Rain Forest by Bruno Gonzales

Thursday, December 2, 2010


Product Description

Savior of the Rain Forest is the story of Zalvator, a black panther who leads a group of animals on a mission to prevent their land from being destroyed. One day, as Zalvator is surveying for danger from atop the great pyramid, a red parrot named Roko flies in with a mysterious injury, too weak to talk. Soon other birds and wild creatures of the rain forest begin arriving and are confused at the sight of the injured parrot. Finally, Roko regains some strength, and he begins to tell the animals surrounding him of the terrible tragedy that had taken place the night before.

The red parrot tells the gathering animals that they may be in danger and that the same group that destroyed Roko's home is on their way. It all began when Roko and his friends noticed large machines flying in the air that they had never seen before. Soon they found themselves running for their lives as the rain forest they called home was being taken away from them.


My Take:

The publisher recommends this book for 9 to 12 year olds but my son who will be 4 this month liked the story very much. I honestly wasn't a huge fan of the illustrations but the bright colors and likable characters again very much appealed to my son. The story of a panther saving his little piece of the jungle by rescuing the son of the lead explorer is a touching piece that I only wish were so simple in real life.

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Creative Commons License
This work by Rayna Nielsen is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.