Summer Fun!

This summer we have been having tons of fun. No long vacations, just day trips and local events. This past week involved lots of water. First, we rented our local pool for the evening and hosted a pool party for several of our friends. It was a great success with snacks like watermelon, strawberries, grapes, chips, cheese, and so forth. The kids had fun diving, swimming, and sliding, and the adults got to chat and catch up on everyone's goings on.

The very next day was my husband's company picnic which was held at Zoombezi Bay water park at the Columbus Zoo. We floated in the lazy river, hopped waves in the wave pool, rode the water rides, and of course I took pictures.

When it came time for my book review, I grabbed a book from my library stack and smiled. One of the books I grabbed just happened to fit right in with all the water fun we had been having. It was called Who's A Clever Girl by Rose Impey. It's a tale of a clever girl who tricks some pirates into making her the captain of their ship. She's an adventuresome girl and leads them on some merry chases after other pirates. She soon grows tired of the escapades and tells them they are going back to raid and loot her school. The pirates are none to happy about that, but she's the boss so they go along. What happens when they enter the school isn't quite what you might suspect, but is mighty interesting. To find out more, grab your own copy and start reading with your own little scallywags!

The next book I read didn't include water, but it did bring back great summer memories for me. It was called Take Me Out to The Ballgame. The book not only tells the story of two girls whose grandma takes them out of school for a special day at the ball park, but it also shares the famous tune of that same name. I remember singing that song as a youngster. I remember attending Cleveland Indian games. And now, my daughter sings that song as well. There is just something about baseball that implies summer fun.

Well, that about wraps it up for this week. Join me next week for another exciting episode, same crazy time, same crazy channel. And feel free to drop by my personal website, Fun With Aileen, any day of the week for even more on reading, writing, my very own early grade chapter book, Fern Valley, and my soon to be released sequel, Return To Fern Valley, coming September second! I'm also on twitter @AileenWStewart if you want an extremely brief glimpse into my days.

Let's Mix It Up A Little!

Hey everyone. I trust you are having a fabulous summer so far. Our family has been having a terrific time eating ice-cream, attending bluegrass gospel concerts, bowling, participating in our local farmer's market, and so much more. But rest assured, I always leave a  little time to read and review some children's literature.

If you have followed me for a while, you have probably figured out that my first love is children's fiction, but I do indeed read non fiction as well. So this week, I thought I would mix it up a little and share some of that non fiction with you.

The first book I read was Parrots Over Puerto Rico. This book is a bit unusual as the cover has no title just a beautiful picture of parrots. And that is not the end of the surprises which you will discover when you open the book and realize that the pages are printed sideways. But once you turn the book sideways and begin to read, you will find the extraordinary story of the parrots of Puerto Rico and how they were almost driven to extinction. Along the way, you will also read about the history of Puerto Rico, it's people, and how it came to acquire its name. This book is definitely a good read and would make a perfect addition to a science report, project, or possibly a home school science curriculum.

The second book I read was also about wildlife and was titled What's The Difference Between A Turtle and A Tortoise? This book was simple to read but not at all boring. Not only did it explain the differences between the two, but it also shared the similarities and unusual facts. This book would also  make a lovely addition to any science themed project or curriculum.

Well, that about wraps it up for this week. Join me next week for another exciting episode, same crazy time, same crazy channel. And feel free to drop by my personal website, Fun With Aileen, any day of the week for even more on reading, writing, my very own early grade chapter book, Fern Valley, and my soon to be released sequel, Return To Fern Valley, coming September second! I'm also on twitter @AileenWStewart if you want an extremely brief glimpse into my days.

Always Time For Books

It was another busy week. Now that I think about it, busy weeks have seemed to be the norm lately. This is possibly because my husband and I have vowed to do more fun things with our daughter, Emily, this summer like riding bikes and bowling. Or it could be because I have entered the Farm Market season and have baking to do. It could be because we had a flea infestation and I spent hours and hours washing bedding after I bug bombed. It could be the Celbridot I created for my friend Terry Shay's website (a site you should totally check out after you are done reading my post). But most likely, it's just what happens to a person when they are passionate about everything!

But despite the multitude of mini quick bread loaves and tiny tarts lining my kitchen counter, the long bike rides to pick wild black raspberries, watching the fireworks during our town's Bicycle Days, the laundry, and the matting of photos I intend to enter in our county fair, I still managed to read two really great books last week.

The first book I read, Apples to Oregon, was so totally delightful, I couldn't decide just what I enjoyed most. The cover was intriguing and the illustrations divine. When I opened the cover of the book I was greeted with a beautiful  map of the west coast. The subtitle claimed to be a slightly true narrative of how apples, peaches, pears, plums, grapes, and cherries (And Children) got to Oregon which was just so silly it made me laugh. And the story was expertly and hilariously written.

The second book, Winston & George, was also a great read with a cleverly disguised message about playing pranks on your friends. The brightly colored illustrations add to the fun tale and will keep children six to eight fascinated. An added bonus, at the end of the story there is a page about real life crocodiles and crocodile birds.

Well, that about wraps it up for this week. Join me next week for another exciting episode, same crazy time, same crazy channel. And feel free to drop by my personal website, Fun With Aileen, any day of the week for even more on reading, writing, my very own early grade chapter book, Fern Valley, and my soon to be released sequel, Return To Fern Valley, coming September second! I'm also on twitter @AileenWStewart if you want an extremely brief glimpse into my days.
                             

Vacation and a Book!

This past weekend was our family's annual vacation. Every year over the week of the fourth my  mom, sister, brother, sister-in-law, nephews, niece, hubby, Emily and I all pack up to spend three nights and four days at the local KOA campground. The weekend was chock full of bouncing, wet hayrides, bubbles, and wildlife, but I still managed to get some reading in.

 

 

About a month ago, I won a middle grade novel which I just hadn't had the time to read until now. But once I started, I could hardly put it down. What was I reading? Henry & The Incredibly Incorrigible, inconveniently Intelligent Smart Human by Lynn Messina. The story takes us to a world where robots are the predominate life force and humans are created to do the menial tasks robots do not want to perform. Robots have to be careful though, because sometimes the drooling zombie like humans go beserko. This is Henry's greatest fear until he gets to know his human and finds, much to his surprise, that he is quite intelligent.

 

The adventure that they embark on when they run away together is fraught full of  the kind of danger that keeps you on the edge of your seat while reading, and the secrets they discover will amaze even the most skeptical of readers. Miss Messina has created a wonderful piece of fiction that is sure to keep both boys and girls between the ages of nine and thirteen intrigued from beginning to end.

Well, that about wraps it up for this week. Join me next week for another exciting episode, same crazy time, same crazy channel. And feel free to drop by my personal website, Fun With Aileen, any day of the week for even more on reading, writing, my very own early grade chapter book, Fern Valley, and my soon to be released sequel, Return To Fern Valley, coming summer of 2014! I'm also on twitter @AileenWStewart if you want an extremely brief glimpse into my days.