Fallout by C. L. Talmadge is the second in the mystic (I think that's the correct word) series Green Stone of Healing. I reviewed the first book, called The Vision, here. I loved them both! I lost sleep; I had quit taking books to bed because I was so tired that I was falling asleep before I'd even read a page. Well, C. L. Talmadge has changed this for me. Or at least these books kept my attention well enough that my tired eyes were able to stay open to read "just one more page". One night, my hubby got called out and was gone all night (he's a fire fighter); I read and read and read thinking he would be home "any minute" so I might as well stay up until he got home. Well, I ended up having to go to sleep because he didn't come home for 19 hours! I couldn't read that long, even if I wanted to!

Fallout is the continuing story of Helen Andros and her developing relationship with her new found father. Their relationship is tumultuous at best. It was near disastrous for more than just the two of them! The community and government system in this work of fiction is intricate and fascinating. I won't give you too many details; you'll have to read the book. However, be sure to read The Vision first and explore the website, Green Stone of Healing. On the website you will find more details about the characters, their connections to each other and about the little mysteries that might not quite make sense when reading the books.

You can purchase The Green Stone of Healing books from here and from Amazon.

A copy of this work was given to me in return for my honest opinion.

Great Games: 175 Games and Activities for Families, Groups and Children by Matthew Toone

This book was a walk down memory lane for me. As I flipped through the pages of games I recognized many games my father taught my brothers and I to play. These games are ones that he and his siblings would play when they were young.

I love that these games require few materials; these are games that you can just grab a pen and paper or some dice or a few coins or a deck of cards. These are games that you can play any where, almost any time. The games have simple rules, straight forward instructions and require common household items. I am amazed at the diversity I saw - games for 2 or 3 people, large numbers, word games, acting games, indoor, outdoor, all seasons, sitting, running. I saw games for everyone. I can see so many uses for this book in our life!

Although we are not a "games family" we are trying to institute a family games night each week. We are slowly adding board and card games to our arsenal; This book is a great addition to our household.

Another idea I have in mind for this book is to take it for use when we volunteer at the seniors' home. The games are simple enough that my children could play (and teach) them to the grandmas and grandpas.

The book can be purchased from Amazon.com.

Thanks to the author, Matthew Toone, for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for my honest opinions.

Before kids, my husband and I were regular game players. We often centered get togethers with other couples around playing games. Three kids later, we don't drag games out near as often as we like, but we are working on it. The Great Games Book has given us a new option in our game arsenal.

One of the main reasons I liked this book was because of the variety. There are a ton of games in this book. There are books fit almost any group size and age level. My husband found games in this book that he plans on using in his work meetings, there are games that we have been able to play with my 3 kids (ages 1-6), and there are games that my husband and I could play alone. I don't know of any games of game books that can fit such a wide range of groups.

The book itself has a great layout. The table of contents breaks the book down in to a vareity of catagories. This makes it very easy to find games that fit your group size or game goals. The games themselves have clear and easy directions. Each game starts out by telling you how many players are needed and what objects are needed.

My family has defintely enjoyed reviewing this book. Our only complaint is figuring out which game to play! This book was provided for review

The Daughter-in-Law Rules

by Sally Shields

Right from the very start of my marriage, my mother-in-law and I seemed to get along really well.  We never met until over a year and one child into the marriage, because my husband's parents were unable to attend the wedding.  My relationship with my own mother became severely damaged during that first year of marriage and so it was during that time that my relationship with my mother-in-law flourished.  However, there came a time when those relationships were changed - about five years ago now.  My relationship and friendship with my own mother is stronger now than it has ever been and my relationship with my mother-in-law is strained, or at best merely civil.

Thanks to the author, Sally Shields, I was able to review The Daughter-in-Law Rules: 101 Surefire Ways to Manage (and Make Friends with) Your Mother-in-Law!  I was excited to know that "this book helps raise money for The National Breast Cancer Foundation whose mission is to save lives by increasing awareness of breast cancer through education and by providing mammograms for those in need."  (quote from correspondence with the author)

So having a rocky relationship with my mother-in-law I was eager to read this book and get the hings and tips this rule book would hopefully provide.  Nine or so pages in I said to my hubby, "I love this book."  Then the further I got in the more I was told to lie to my mother-in-law.  I was shocked and disgusted; I have a huge issue with lying.  I quit reading for a time but did eventually come back to the book and finished reading the rules.  As it turns out, the recommendations to lie were fairly well balanced with recommendations of truth and kindness.

I do not agree with lying - including half truths; I am more of a - if you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all - type of person.  I will tend to let things slide off my back and deal with the issue on my end.  I guess I'm not big on confrontation.  If my mother-in-law and I have a disagreement, I choose not to call until I'm okay.  If we disagree on something, we just avoid the topic.  I don't tell her what she wants to hear.  I tell her my decision on an issue and leave it alone.

So what did I decide about those rules that suggested lying?  I came up with my own rules, as the author suggests.  (She even includes a worksheet for making your own rules.)  I decided to set boundaries instead of appeasing.

Overall, I found that the rules not only apply to my relationship with my mother-in-law but also with my interactions with people everywhere - my husband, my own mother, my friends and acquaintances, my children.  I understand that our relationships with our mothers-in-law are special relationships and do require some extra attention and effort, so this book is a good, fun way to work on that friendship; just modify each rule to suite your unique situation and moral standard.

You can purchase this book at Amazon.

A copy of this book was given to me for my opinions.

The Baby Bible Board Books by Crest Publications is a great way to introduce a baby or young toddler to Bible stories.  Perfect for little hands, each sturdy page has bright, bold colors with one or two lines of simple text on each two-page spread. 

 

 

Other titles available in Collection #1: Stories of Jesus are Jesus Feeds The People, Jesus Heals A Little Girl, and Jesus Stops A Storm.

Thank you to Crest Publications for sending along this Bible Board Book for my little guy.

 

RE-POST REVIEW:

Do you know who I'm talking about?

Amelia Bedelia: the one who puts sponges in sponge cake and calendar dates in date cake.

I've read a few of the "old" stories (written by Peggy Parish) to my kids and the older girls (ages 6 and 7) just loved them. So when we were offered a copy of Amelia Bedelia's First Day of School to review I jumped at the chance.

I loved this story; my kids loved the pictures and the literal "translations". The colors are bright and attractive. Now that my older two are starting to read more everyday, I was encouraged to see them reading some of the words along with me.

The author, Herman Parish, is the original author's nephew! I love that about these books. Too often when there are "add on" books to old favorites there isn't the continuity that one might love; I believe this continuity has been kept.

The Wacky World of Amelia Bedelia is a great place at the HaperCollins website to play games and learn more about the main character and other fun stuff. My kids will be checking it out this week, I think. One of the fun things I did was send an Amelia Bedelia ecard to my kids Grandma.

The book was provided to me by the publisher for my review. The opinions here are all mine (and my kids).

RE-POSTED REVIEW:

We've never read John Grogan's other books nor have we seen the movie sparked by the book called: Marley: A Dog Like No Other. We just don't seem to keep up with such things but I hear it's really really good. If this book is any example of the work that John Grogan can do, than I bet the movie really is really good.

I have five little children and to keep them all interested in a book with lots of words, even if it has lots of pictures, can be a challenge. The pictures are great! My girls were looking to see if there is a mouse on every page. I don't think there was, but they saw quite a few throughout the book. The detail by illustrator Richard Cowdrey is very well done. The pictures really come alive with color and form. The favorite picture is the one inside the very front cover. The kids loved the chewed up pen, and other things.

The story is simple and sweet. The poor little dog just wants to be with his best little friend and can't understand why she has to go off to school without him. He goes too. And, of course, gets into so much trouble. You'll love reading about his trip to the school! And so will your children.

This book was graciously provided to me by the publisher, but the opinions are all mine or that of my kids.

In some email correspondence with Lenore Skenazy about her book Free Range Kids (that I reviewed here) she asked if I would also review Who's the Blonde that Married What's-His-Name? that she co-authored with Carol Boswell. I honestly didn't know what to expect, even after visiting the website. I expected a non-fiction type, give me information type book. What I got was TOTALLY different and in a good way! This book is so cool!

It's a game book, kinda like Mad-Libs but not at all. lol. Mad-Libs are those stories and paragraphs where you fill in a noun or a pronoun, adjective etc without knowing what the story is about and then you read it aloud and it's so silly that you are laughing hysterically and can't read the rest of the story. Well, this is kinda like that in that the blanks aren't parts of speech but rather phrases that come off the top of your head. You fill in the blanks using the other "clues" given under other blanks in the question. Trying to describe it is a little confusing even to me, but take my description and head on over to the book's website and it should all make sense.

The authors move on from that and include other types of "tip of your tongue" questions. "Take 10" is a list of ten clues that all have to do with the same topic. For instance, one "Take 10" is titled Flaming Redheads. So using the clues given, you come up with ten redheads. It's a lot of fun. And the topics cover everything from celebrities to spots stars, history to nature, kids stuff to food. The answers are in the back if you get stuck too.

This book is going in my bus for road trips and long waits while on the road. My dh and I read about 20 pages one evening; we were surprised at how well we answered the questions being that I'm not really a celerity buff and that's the section we chose. By the time we stopped our brains hurt. I don't mean that in a terrible way either. It's a good thing to work the brain muscle from time to time and this book does the trick in a fun and non-confrontational way.

About the authors, in true "tip of the tongue" style:

Carol Boswell and syndicated columnist Lenore Skenazy have collaborated on two previous books and have had more tip-of-the-tongue experiences than they care to mention. They live with their families in that big city with the statues of the lady and the building with the gorilla. Visit their website at www.whostheblondebook.com.

I received this book for review from the author.

You can buy this book at Barnes and Noble and Amazon and other book stores.

Tribute Books approached us to review some of their titles (you can see them here); I chose Jim Rising's But Then Again I Could Be Wrong: The Book of Rants.

From the back:

Jim Rising is the Program Director of 102.3 The Mountain WDMT and hosts a weekday show called Rising at Ten. He plays what he wants and rants a bit. Jim lives with his "long suffering wife" Nancy in Dallas, Pennsylvania along with this lawn tractor and annoying neighbor.

This book is a collection of his rants and thoughts that he has shared on his radio program. I think I'd really enjoy his radio program; I might have to see if I can listen online. I have laughed and cried; he's caused me to think and consider life with a little bit different perspective. Do I always agree with him? Certainly not. He writes about life in his world including such topics as cell phones, 9/11, fast food servers, air travel and Christmas.

Jim Rising has decided to donate all proceeds of the sales of this book to the Hoyt Library in Kingston. This library lost its roof in 2007 and with the roof went much of its collection. With the purchase But Then Again I Could Be Wrong, you will be helping this library regain some of those losses.

Jim Rising is not the only Tribute author who donates to charity. At the bottom of Tribute's homepage you can see others who have raised support for such groups as Lackawanna Historical Society, and Humane Society of Lackawanna County.

Other Tribute authors are listed on the website and books in the shop can be purchased as ebooks or paperback (but not all books offer both options). They offer a variety of payment methods and free shipping. Read about the start up of Tribute Books here.

I received, to review, the first three books of the Green Stone Healing series from the author, C L Talmadge. I have admitted to her and to others that I do not generally read fantasy or sci-fi. I am a non-fiction, self-help, Christian romance type reader. So one might ask why I decided to even accept the books to review. Well, I honestly must say that I wondered too when I first started! I struggled through the first few chapters. I put the book down over and over again. I would say to my husband, "I don't know why I said I would read these." But I was committed to giving the books an honest review.

About The Vision, a bits and pieces summary from the author's press package:

Lt. Helen Andros is an illegitimate, presumed orphaned physician with a gift for healing. She always wears about her neck a green gemstone from her mother with hidden potentials that Helen does not yet know about, although she frequently touches the stone for reassurance and comfort. Helen is also a despised half-breed: unusually tall, black-haired like the dominant Toltecs, the race of her unknown father, pale-skinned and blue-eyed like the conquered and oppressed Turanians, her mother’s people.

.......

While Helen manages to save Prince Harnak’s life, the Lord Protector, angered by her insolence, reviews her service record. At first he is appalled to find out how many times Lieutenant Andros has been put on report and is determined to discipline her for unsatisfactory performance as an officer. When he sees an image of Helen wearing the green stone, Lord James is shocked, and immediately suspects that she is his daughter. He gave that very same stone and necklace more than thirty years ago to his secret love: a Turanian woman named Miriam Andros.

.......

Lord James’ tough decision to acknowledge a daughter he never knew he had touches off a political firestorm between warring factions striving for power and dominance during the mental incapacity of the Exalted Lord, Kefren Poseidon. It also leaves Lord James extremely vulnerable to his political enemies, who include the heir to the Kingship, Prince Seti Poseidon, and the prince’s primary supporter, Ezekiel Malachi, Supreme Lord of the Temple of Kronos.

.......

Nor is Helen happy. She and her father both have been profoundly wounded by her mother’s secretive behavior. Not even wise counsel from Judith Altair, best friend of Helen’s mother and a much sought-after advisor to the powerful, can keep the two from clashing out of pain and fear instead of coming together in love and friendship.

And that's not even the half of it; there are so many neat and intricate details to sort through and that intrigue the reader.  I am really enjoying the process and seeing the pieces fall into place while others lay the groundwork for the next "puzzle".  I could say it this way - the foreshadowing is very very well done!

What were my issues with the book and series?  Well, the genre was a huge hurtle but there were other things.  A new language was thrown in from time to time.  The characters were numerous and have titles I'm not used to reading or talking about.  Our apparent differences in religion and beliefs (reincarnation vs. Christianity) caused me some concern as well.  Lastly, each character could be referred to by any number of names - their job title, their given names, or other titles of royalty and such.  I just can't keep them all straight even at the end of the first book, I don't know who belongs to which title or titles.

What do I love about the book and series?  I love that the new language that I had trouble figuring out at first is easy once you get into the mind-set.  For example, the characters have a drink called caf.  Well, that's coffee.  They have this thing called a link; to me that's a form of the internet or a network of computers.  There are other words that aren't as easy to follow, but I think I'm getting there. I love the parallels I see between my world and the world of Helen Andros.

I love the detailed descriptions of both the people and the landscapes.  I don't know about you but the idea of royalty - princes and princesses, lords and ladies, and their servants - has always intrigued me!  The author tells of and explains rituals in such a way that I can see each step and bend and nod and bow.  I wanted to be a princess when I grew up; I wanted to do and see those rituals when I grew up.

I went exploring the Green Stone of Healing website and found a wealth of information that will help with reading the other two books.  I found family trees including titles and who belongs to what and whom!  I love the family trees.  Here's a link to the Andros Family Tree.  There is also some pre-information given about some of the characters; I found that here and here.

I don't know what it was or when even (sometime after chapter seven of The Vision which is the first book) that got me hooked but now I have trouble putting it down.  The other titles in the series so far are: Fallout, The Scorpions Strike, and Outcast (due out October 1, 2009).  Look for reviews of Fallout and The Scorpions Strike here on Simply Sensational Divas Review in the future.

An excellent work of fiction!  I think I may have found a new genre to add to my joy of reading.  Thank you, C. L. Talmadge for the opportunity to review this wonderful book!