Review Book Arrival: Mom Needs Chocolate by Debora M. Coty

Mom Needs Chocolate by Debora M. Coty

I received this from Rebeca Seitz at Glass Road Publications as part of the First Wild Card Tours tour for this book.

Publisher: Regal
Publish Date: April 1, 2009

What's a rundown, run-ragged mom to do? Her spirit yearns to soar, but her feet---and faith---are stuck in the diaper-by-diaper mud of everyday responsibilities. How can she de-muck when she's chronically exhausted and relentlessly robbed of abundant life by the joy-sucking dully-funks? This offbeat glimpse of reality with a tangy twist pitched in to help busy mothers get in touch with rejuvenating joy and empowering faith! In mom-to-mom, smile-eliciting style, humorist Debora Coty doesn't lolly gag around the hot topics such as enduring marriage, embarrassing children, defeating depression and grossfully (er, gracefully) aging. Unique insights and outrageous coping tips are shared alongside sisterly hugs and warm encouragement. Mom Needs Chocolate is a veritable grocery list of mud-between-your-toes issues, tackled with witty frankness and wild abandon. Young-at-heart mothers of all ages will enjoy hilarious and heartwarming stories that apply Scripture to real life and remind them how to hear God's still, small voice about blathering kids, howling pets and snarling traffic!

Book Arrival: Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler

Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler

I received this through Paperbackswap.com

Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Publish Date: June 1, 2009
Reading Level: Young Adult

While on vacation in California, sixteen-year-old best girlfriends Anna and Frankie conspire to find a boy for Anna's first summer romance, but Anna harbors a painful secret that threatens their lighthearted plan and their friendship.

Beautifully written and emotionally honest, this is a debut novel that explores what it truly means to love someone and what it means to grieve, and ultimately, how to make the most of every single moment this world has to offer.

Review: A to Z Mysteries - The Deadly Dungeon, The Empty Envelope, The Falcon's Feathers, The Goose's Gold by Ron Roy

Review: A to Z Mysteries - The Deadly Dungeon, The Empty Envelope, The Falcon's Feathers, The Goose's Gold by Ron Roy (on audio)

rating: 4.0/5.0

This was my first exposure to The A to Z Mystery series which is a set of children's chapter books focusing on friends Dink, Josh and Ruth Rose who always end up trying to solve some sort of mystery. My oldest son (8) has read some of these before and was thrilled to see this set at the library when we went a few weeks ago. I thought it would be great for us to share the time spent in the car listening to books and then I didn't have to worry so much about him listening to the books I typically listen to. I was right - this is wonderful. The books are fun and we both work to figure out who did it in each one. We'll pause and talk about it and then finish up the book. The reader is wonderful, the stories easy to follow and suspenseful for a 3rd grader without being frightening.

I can't recommend these enough for those of you with children with budding interests in mysteries - it's fun time for you to share with them whether you are reading them or listening to them on tape.

After the first one was finished my DS was asking if the library had more of these. Sadly they only have I-J on audiobook, but they have the rest of the series in books. So I have the audiobooks, and we'll finish up reading because I want to know more about the adventures of Dink, Josh and Ruth Rose.

Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Random House for Young Readers
Pages: 96 per book