Thursday, February 20, 2014

Interview with Catherine McDonald for The Divorce Ranch





 


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Come and join me as I talk with author Catherine McDonald about her book The Divorce Ranch on Stories From Unknown Authors 
http://blogtalkradio.com/storiesfromunknownauthors at 1 pm EST today.




  • Paperback: 282 pages
  • Publisher: JADA Press (June 12, 2013)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0984836578
  • ISBN-13: 978-0984836574

  • Summary:

    It's June of 1936. The Biggest Little City in the World finds itself in the middle of the divorce craze. While the country struggles with the Depression, wealthy people head to Reno for the cure. War is coming and the world is changing. Women are discovering their voices as they fling their wedding rings from the bridge into the Truckee River. Join Maggie, Dorothy and Claire as they arrive on the Washoe Ranch to rid themselves of their stale marriages, only to learn that they had created lives for themselves that they never dreamed possible.

    http://www.amazon.com/Divorce-Ranch-Cathie-MacDonald/dp/0984836578/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1392902267&sr=1-1&keywords=divorce+ranch

    Review:

    The Divorce Ranch is a wonderful journey of some women from all walks of life who all have similar yet also different situations that bring them to the Divorce Ranch. But one thing is for sure, through their adventures and own self discoveries these women find out that their dependencies of their husbands have gone away and in its place they find their true selves. Somewhere along their way each lost that. Through the support of their new friends, each woman at the ranch has a chance to start a  new life. Where will it take them?

     
     
     
     











    The Review For The Secret of the Sea Creature-You Choose Stories Scooby-Doo













  • Age Range: 7 - 12 years
  • Grade Level: 2 - 3
  • Lexile Measure: 570L
  • Series: You Choose Stories: Scooby Doo
  • Paperback: 112 pages
  • ISBN-10: 1434279251
  • ISBN-13: 978-1434279255

  • http://www.amazon.com/The-Secret-Creature-Choose-Stories/dp/1434279251/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1392901187&sr=8-7&keywords=laurie+sutton


    For Scooby-Doo lovers everywhere!

    Review:

    In this choose your own adventure Scooby-Doo book the gang runs into a mysterious sea creature that is terrorizing people on the beach. Once the team arrives at the beach they each go in their own directions meeting up later. However, each member runs into the sea creature in some way and the result is an intriguing mystery children between the ages of 7-12 are going to enjoy.

    Children get the opportunity to follow one path with a character and see where it takes them. It might lead to a dead end or one ending of the story. The great thing is that children will be following along directions and trying to figure out what is going on along with the character. Because there are different endings the reader can choose another character to follow and see what trouble they get into eventually consuming the entire book.

    Choosing your own ending books are becoming popular because the reader decides the story. Certain paths may be the right choice, or not, but either way the reader is getting a good story that reveals more and more information about the plot.

    This new series engages children into the story. Though the authors in this series differ, the writing style of the characters and the mystery solving stays in tact, though every author has their own voice.
    For Scooby-Doo lovers everywhere its nice to have more chapter books to satisfy the needs of older children. Granted, there are not as many colorful illustrations that children look forward to, but that is expected in a chapter book. Many of the Scooby-Doo chapter books are not printed any more so finding one for older children is a struggle. This new series is fun and interactive in a way that will capture children's attention and will delight readers for years to come.  

    Tuesday, February 18, 2014

    Guest Post by Sigrid Fry-Revere for the book The Kidney Sellers


    This is a guest post by  Sigrid Fry-Revere, J.D., Ph.D. President of the Center for Ethical Solutions and Author of The Kidney Sellers (Carolina Academic Press, 2014).


    Creative non-fiction books that aren’t biographies or memoirs are rare for a reason. They are rare because mere factual stories may lack the narrative excitement found in novels. But sometimes there are stories where the novelty of the truth itself is what makes the book exciting. Consider books like Rebecca Skloot’s The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, where, as in my book, the author uses her own journey of discovery as a theme that ties disparate stories together.

    The Kidney Sellers is my story of going to Iran to try to find answers to solving the U.S. organ shortage. When I returned from Iran, I realized my adventure had so much more to offer than what might go into an academic monograph. The story itself ranged from my son having kidney cancer at age 10 months, to my friends who were dying on dialysis, to the wonderfully sad and moving stories I heard from kidney sellers in Iran. The truth of what happened is plenty exciting in and of itself — the cultural insights and ethical and moral questions raised by what I saw are significant.

     Here is what one of my readers said about the book: “Sigrid Fry-Revere has given us an amazing, courageous, provocative, even dangerous look at the complex and generally successful system of selling/donation that has solved the kidney supply problem in Iran.  Eloquently, humorously written, it is one of my best reads in years–fascinating to anyone who loves a good travel adventure story, but essential for anyone interested in overcoming the organ transplant problem that costs thousands of lives each year.”

    --Robert Veatch, Ph.D., Professor of Medical Ethics at the Kennedy Institute of Ethics 

    All author royalties for the book go to support the Solving the Organ Shortage (SOS) project at the Center for Ethical Solutions.  The book is not just important, it is also fun and inspiring.  Enjoy reading it yourself. Share it with a daughter or other young woman you want to inspire to work for what she believes in.  You can see a photo gallery and read more of my thoughts at www.thekidneysellers.com.

    Keep reading, Sigrid

    Friday, February 7, 2014

    New Storytelling Card Game and Picture Book Deal

    Currently on Educents I have my new Storytelling Card Game and Picture Book on sale. 
    This is a great time to pick up your copies now. I will also add in a bonus coloring book 
    for anyone who e-mails me at thecryptocapersseries@gmail.com and mentioning in the 
    subject code word: Zookeeper 

    In the e-mail make sure you mention your address and the quantity of what you ordered. 
    I have already received dozens of orders and quantities are running low. Get your copies 
    today. Thank you so much for your support for my fun card game. I have heard great
     responses. Teachers and parents have been loving the book and the game.
     An instructional video is also on the site. Thanks so much. 
    All orders will be sent out by the beginning of March.
    Renee


    http://www.educents.com/featured-deals/storytelling-card-game-educational-zoo-picture-book.html

    Monday, February 3, 2014

    Review for The ABC's Of Childrens Yoga


    • Hardcover: 32 pages
    • Publisher: Stafford House; 1st edition edition (September 16, 2009)
    • Language: English
    • ISBN-10: 0982258704
    • ISBN-13: 978-0982258705
    Summary:
    The ABCs of Yoga for Kids uses the alphabet, rhyming vignettes, and colorful illustrations to introduce children to yoga in a kid-friendly way. Each of the fifty-six different poses featured in the book delightfully promote flexibility, strength, and coordination while encouraging children to incorporate healthy activity into their daily lives. Yoga is a noncompetitive form of exercise, suitable for children (and adults) of all ages and athletic abilities. Any activity for young children is important because the nation, including our youth, is under siege by obesity, stress, and diseases like diabetes, which stem from poor diet and lack of exercise. Yoga for young kids will create good habits and a foundation for well-being. Children have a lot of fun learning new positions, new letters, and new ideas. This book will delight and bring joy to the early yoga practitioner.
    About the author:
    Teresa Anne Power has practiced yoga for the past twenty-five years, and for the past seven she has taught yoga to young children, both in school and at local organizations, helping more than eight hundred kids develop a healthy attitude toward their body. She currently teaches yoga to preschoolers and kindergarteners, and teaches parent-child yoga classes and workshops at a center for children with special needs. She has published articles on yoga in Yogi TimesViolet magazine, and the Palisadian-Post, and has spoken at numerous libraries, schools, bookstores, and yoga studios. In 2002 she completed a yoga training program with Indigo Yoga.
    Review:
    The ABC's of Yoga For Kids is a 32 page picture book with wonderful illustrations that teaches children how to do simple yoga poses. This book also incorporates the alphabet which can also be used as a teaching tool. The reader finds two to three or more yoga poses per letter. Then reads a simple description of the pose as the illustration demonstrates it. Parents and teachers who are not experienced in yoga will have no problem teaching and demonstrating the poses. The author and illustrator did an amazing job collaborating on this book. It can engage even the children who do not like yoga because the author includes animals and nature into the titles. She makes it fun and teaches kids how to relax and to find peace in their everyday chaos.
    The only quibble that parents will run into is the amount of time children should be doing each pose. Some descriptions included how long they should hold the pose but their should be some consistency throughout. 7-8 secs is not enough time to hold the pose especially when it can take a few seconds just to get into the pose. Maybe 10 to 15 secs for each one or longer. There wasn't an intro in the beginning of the book or anything that would help guide the readers. They just have to figure it out. Another one would be to know how many poses a child should do in one session. A child shouldn't have to do every pose in the book every time. There should be a guide for that as well. Also included should be information on how yoga can positively benefit children in their everyday lives. It will help the parents as they reinforce the concept.
    The illustrator and author also collaborated on creating Yoga cards. These are going to be helpful to many people, then the child can just pull out so many cards, lay them out and do them. It would have been nice if they were incorporated with the book to save on the extra cost of buying them. Readers might just skip the book all together and go for the cards. They are about the same. It would have made a good addition and a great selling point to the book. Adults would appreciate the cost savings.
    
    
    Overall, children and adults will enjoy this fun introduction to yoga which can be used for all age groups and ability levels. The illustrations are adorable and fun to look at. They are easy to follow and are colorful. They enhance the text beautifully.