Book Review: Little Star

I was recently presented with the opportunity to review Anthony DeStefano's Little Star.  Little Star is a Christmas story for young children.  It is beautifully illustrated by Mark Elliot.  The illustrations remind me a bit of The Polar Express.  I found myself gazing at many of the illustrations for several minutes.  My five year old spent a good twenty minutes flipping though the book to just look at the pictures after I had read the book to her.  She was equally captivated by the illustrations.

I was impressed by the sweet story of Little Star.  The focus of Little Star's is the birth of Jesus.  Without giving away the story, Little Star gives his best to recognize the birth of the little king who was born in the most humble circumstances.  Children learn about the real Christmas story as Little Star experienced it.

I like this story because it's not one of those Christmas stories that's focused on the secular aspects of the holiday, instead, the story's focus is precisely where it belongs, on Christ.  The story's meaning is very easily conveyed to young children.  I'm sure this book will be well received by children between the ages of three to eight.

I was provided with a review copy of this book, by the author in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review: Ask A Franciscan

Ask a Franciscan: Answers to Catholic Questions is a compilation of questions that readers of St. Anthony Messenger magazine have asked in the "Ask a Franciscan" column written by Pat McCloskey, O.F.M. The book, which is 113 pages, covers a broad range of topics.  Some of the questions are the kind that I've come to expect in question and answer books of this nature, but there were more than a handful of questions that I had not expected to see.

The book is comprised of eight chapters and contains nearly one hundred questions and answers.  Many of the answers refer the reader to further reading at designated sites online.  The topics covered in the chapters are: How We Understand God, How We Relate to Mary and the Other Saints, How We Read Scripture, How We Celebrate the Sacraments, How We Pray, How We Grow Morally, How We Grow in Faith and Practice It, and How We Experience Forgiveness and Redemption.  At the end of the book is a list of additional resources that interested readers may want to explore.

With the broad range of issues addressed in this book, I think this book can easily appeal to young and old and everyone in between.  Perhaps a question here or there may not apply to you or your unique situation, but there's something in this book for everyone.

I was provided with a complimentary review copy of this book by the publisher, St. Anthony Messenger Press, in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review: Set Free To Love

When I read the description of Marcel LeJeune's Set Free To Love: Lives Changed by the Theology of the Body I wasn't convinced it was a book I wanted to read.  The description that I had read online and the back cover of the book didn't convince me that it would even remotely capture my attention, but after paging through it and picking a few pages to read I realized that my initial impressions were all wrong.

This book contrary to my first thoughts was a captivating and inspiring read.  It was yet another book that I had the hardest time putting down once I had started it.  The book is comprised of an introduction that explains what John Paul II's Theology of the Body (TOB) is and eleven stories of people from many different walks of life and how they were transformed by it's powerful teachings.

I like how this book doesn't require you to have any previous knowledge of TOB.  You can read this if you're totally new to TOB and gain some perspective on it's teachings.  If you're more familiar with TOB, you can still read this book and be inspired by the way it has changed the lives of others from a variety of backgrounds.

I really enjoyed reading this book and was left wanting to read more when I came to the final page.  Because it's a relatively short book, you could read it in as little as a day, or you could take it one inspiring story at a time and read it over a short span of time.

I was provided with a complimentary review copy of this book by the publisher, Servant Books, in exchange for my honest review.

I don't want it....unless you do.

I have no idea what it is, but Ellie likes to drive me insane.  For some reason she would rather see things go in the trash than see her sister enjoy it.

Today while rummaging through the Halloween candy, she came across the vampire teeth she got in a goodie bag from a class mate.  After determining who the vampire teeth belonged to, she decided that she didn't want them and began to complain about them.  I responded with my normal then throw it away and stop whining about it mom response.  Seconds before disposal I told her to stop and asked Madeline if she'd like the vampire teeth.  She said she would and I told Ellie to give them to Madeline.  A few minutes later the tears flowed.  They were her vampire teeth and she wanted them back.  Fine.  Ask Madeline if she will give them back to you.  Madeline, begrudgingly gave them back and told Ellie it wasn't nice that she changed her mind.  A minute later, Ellie was crying.  She didn't want the teeth and wanted to throw them in the trash.  Arrgh!  Then I demanded that she give me the teeth.

Why is it that she would rather toss something she doesn't want in the trash instead of letting her sister have it?  It's crazy.

Book Review: The American Patriot's Almanac

I'm one of those people who has an unquenchable thirst for history.  I'm not sure what it is about it that attracts me, but I just know that I'm like a sponge wanting to soak up every ounce of historical knowledge that I can get my hands on.  When I was presented with the opportunity to review The American Patriot's Almanac I was more than happy to take a peek inside the covers of the book to see if it was any good.  I was delighted with what I found in this book.

There was plenty in this book that I expected to see.  When you're well versed in American history, sometimes there are key facts that you fully expect to see in any volume that broadly covers our nation's history.  In addition to the usual suspects, there are plenty of other articles of American history that are lesser known in this lovely book.

One of the things that particularly struck me about this book was it's size. The book is 7.5X9.5 inches and nearly 2 inches thick.  This book is the patriotic equivalent of a daily devotional book.  For every day of the year (with the exception of February 29th) there is a patriotic article and a little section called "American History Parade" which lists events that happened on that day in history.  There are larger articles at the beginning and end of the book as well as in between each month.

I think this book is very well done and would be a great gift idea for the American history buff in your life.  This book would also make a great resource for a homeschooling family.  With it's daily reading format, one could easily incorporate  a this day in history type of element into their history curriculum.

This review was written as part of the BookSneeze program from Thomas Nelson.  I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

My Feet Hurt

Today is day two of our DC trip (Is three days long enough to call a getaway a vacation?).  Day one got off to a rocky start.  When we arrived in DC it was cold and rainy.  I don't like being cold and I really don't like being cold and wet.  Some miscommunication issues between me and Bryan led to us not being the happiest campers for the first couple hours of our time in DC.  In short, my comfortable shoes were left behind in the van which was carted away by the valet and I wound up incredibly uncomfortable.  I wound up developing blisters on the back of both heels and I took it out on him.  In hindsight, I should have put the comfortable shoes on when we left the house.  That would have saved us all a lot of aggravation.

Once I got past the shoe issue we started to have a good time.  We visited the National Museum of Natural History and the West Building (Art Museum).  We saw a lot of great exhibits and did a ton of walking.  Later in the evening we drove over by the White House and walked to the North Lawn  area of the White House.  After that, we drove over to the Washington Monument and the WWII memorial and the Reflecting Pool.  We were beat after day one.

Today we started off our day going to Arlington Cemetery.  We visited the gravesite of JFK and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.  None of us had ever been there before.  Afterwards, we visited the National Archives and took a peek at the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.  From there, we ventured to the American History Museum where the spent the remainder of the afternoon.

Now we are back at the hotel resting our tired dogs and trying to decide where we should head for dinner.  We're undecided as to whether or not we will try to venture over to the Lincoln Memorial later tonight.  Madeline is very interested in going there.

Outside a visit to the Basilica I'm not sure what we'll be doing tomorrow.  Bryan would like to visit the Air and Space museum, so we may visit that and then head over to the Basilica.

I can't wait to go home tomorrow night and relax.  The sidewalks in DC are very hard on your feet.  They remind me of the walkways at Universal Studios in Orlando.  I prefer a nice smooth surface for walking.  Pebbled sidewalks are brutal when you're doing a lot of walking.

Small Successes-November 4th

Celebrating the little things in life that add up.

1. The girls and I survived Bryan's recent business trip.  And, he made it safely home tonight so I count that as a huge success.  I worry a lot for his safety whenever he has to go on a plane.

2. The house is pretty much in order.  The kitchen is nice and clean, all of the laundry has been tackled and I even dusted the family room.

3. We're all packed and ready to leave for Washington DC in the morning.  I can't wait to go there.  Bryan and I haven't been there since we were in 8th grade and went with our class on a field trip.  I guess that means it's been 18 1/2 years since we've been there.  We're going to visit the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, too.  I'm really excited about going there.