Reviews

Something Rotten

July 7, 2018 By Annette1 Leave a Comment

Imagine, you are driving down the road, and like any other day you see a piece of roadkill lying there. But today is different than any other day, today you think.. oh.. I wonder, I wonder why that animal died, I wonder just how a snakes fangs work, so you pull off the road, pick up that dead snake and take it home with you. And thus a love of roadkill and all it can teach you is born. Learn of this fascination in Something Rotten, my latest review from Raincoast books.

Heather Montgomery walks us through the intriguing world that is roadkill, taking us through learning about parasites released Burmese pythons are giving to the native snake population (not a good thing), we learned about how red wolves might not actually be wolves but be a combination of coyote and wolf genetics, and how the Tasmanian devil is helping people.

Roadkill has never entered my radar of being a fascinating study until I read this book and then it was a like a whole new world opened up for me. The things to learn, the use that scientists can put them, and how they benefit the living, not only of their own species but in the lives of other living beings as well. It is simply amazing.

When you add up the amount of animals killed on the road it’s a staggering amount, then think of all the people involved in those kills and how some of them will be injured or lose their lives. Roadkill becomes a serious matter. It’s no small wonder that more and more animals bridges and underpasses are being built.

So what do you get?

Eleven chapters, 176 pages, text written with the middle schooler in mind, black and white images, and a fascinating look into the world of dead animals and scientists from around the world. She includes a section on steps people can take to save lives as well, which includes projects that people of all ages can take part in.

What did I think?

When I got the book I thought I would be bored out of my mind. 🙂 Like seriously ROAD KILL????? What in the world could be remotely interesting about roadkill? Then something good happened, I got hooked. Somewhere between learning how snakes fangs fold and coyotes I got hooked. I wanted to know what new and amazing thing she would discover next. Every time she turned a new corner I wanted to know more.

I was occasionally surprised like learning that throwing food out the window is a REALLY bad idea. It teaches animals to come to the road for food and while there, what do you think happens? Death to the animal and potential injury to other people. Do you want to be responsible for that? I don’t. I’ll save that apple core to toss at home eh? Won’t you? Another surprise was learning about a contagious cancer! Who would have thought!?!?!?! Totally surprised me.

Now this book is not for the faint of heart. If you are easily grossed out or can’t handle anatomical descriptions, it’s not the book for you. But if you have an inquiring mind and are fascinated by all things animal and don’t mind a bit of messiness (which by the by isn’t over the top but it is factual) this is an extremely interesting book. I’ll be adding it to the pile of books my lad will be reading, and guessing it won’t take him long to go through.

Something Rotten: A Fresh Look at Roadkill
Heather L. Montgomery
Kevin O’Malley (illustrator)
Bloomsbury Kids
176 pages, 10-14 years old, softcover, non-fiction
Roadkill, science, scientists, research, biology
Reviewed for Raincoast books.
Where to find Amazon

If Polar Bears Disappeared

July 5, 2018 By Annette1 Leave a Comment

If Polar Bears Disappeared is a full coloured, picture book that is guaranteed to delight your children as they learn about the world’s biggest bear and what might happen if they disappeared. Join me as I review this great publication from Roaring Brook Press.

Geared for children 4-8 years old, this book will be a great introduction to the topics of global warming, endangered animals, life in the north and the food chain. Lily Williams asks this important question: What would happen if polar bears disappeared? Have you ever thought through what might the end result be of such a horrible loss?

Imagine the beauty and power gone from the earth!

The beautifully illustrated pictures bring to life the wonders of the Artic, a place where polar bears, seals, caribou, lichen, and more live. We are drawn through a world where if too much ice melts in the Artic, even life in the desert will be affected.

So if we learn how to save the polar bears… perhaps we can learn how to save the whole earth?

My thoughts:

Even though I am not an advocate for global warming or old-earth teaching, there is much in If Polar Bears Disappeared that I simple adore. I love how author Lily Williams pulls in all the different aspects of life on earth that could be affected if Polar Bears Disappeared.

I urge you to get this book if you are learning about endangered animals, the food cycle or just trying to teach your students the importance of all the varied life on earth.

If Polar Bears Disappeared
Lily Williams
Roaring Brook Press
40 pages, 4-8 years, softcover, picture book
biology, global warming, life cycle, science
Reviewed for Raincoast Books

Hawk Rising

June 30, 2018 By Annette1 Leave a Comment

Maria Gianferrari has given us a book teaching us about hawks called Hawk Rising. In this picture book, Brian Floca, brings to life the story of Father Hawk and the young lady watching him.
The images in this book, I liked them. Really. Brian Floca did an excellent job bringing the text to life. He showed us the world from two vantage points, one of the hawk, the other of a young girl watching him. Crashing through tree tops, or watching a hawk sitting up high searching.
Maria Gianferrari writes out a story bringing to life one day in a life of a Father Hawk going about his business of providing for his family. Running into troubles along the way, but sticking with his objective throughout the day, feeding and caring for his family.

As he does this, he’s observed by a young gal and her mom. The back and forth between the two works.

Aesthetically the print is easy to read, a large nice font that if you wanted to read it to a group of children you could do so easily. It would be a good book to start off a study on hawks, or the food chain, or on how we can observe closely the world around us to learn much.

My thoughts:

I have to admit, I’m not sure what to think about this book. On the surface it seems okay, but by the time I was done reading my thought was “I would not want to read this to a young child”. It was a rather odd feeling so I asked a homeschool mom to read it as well and her reaction was “it’s a bit of a strange book, I wouldn’t want to read to a young child”.

There is much in this book that I do like.. the persistence in father hawk in caring for his young, the persistence of the young gal watching him. The care and determination displayed. So that lingering thing… I don’t really understand it. Ergo it’s a bit of a tough call. There’s nothing that says DON’T read this book. Nothing that hollers at me as being wrong or of false beliefs or anything, just this lingering lack of ease about it. I don’t know.

Hawk Rising
Maria Gianerrari
Brian Floca
Roaring Brook Press
40 pages, 4-8 years, softcover
Hawks, Science, picture book, Biology
Reviewed for Raincoast Books.
Where to Find Amazon.

Wild Orca

June 28, 2018 By Annette1 Leave a Comment

Do you love Orca’s? Have you ever heard of an orca called Granny? Granny was known world wide by the lovers of Orcas, particularly those who would go watch the whales out in British Columbia.

It is my delight to introduce you Wild Orca, a lovely picture book I reviewed on J-pod the Orca pod from British Columbia. This book focuses on Granny, the oldest Orca that was known to people. Brenda Peterson does a great job of bringing her and her family to life. This book was provided by Raincoast Books (a great company to work for).

Granny was the matriarch of three pods being studied, pods J, K, and L. They all contained members of her extended family, and every year a little girl called Mia would watch for her to return. Mia’s dad was part of the whale research team, so Mia had learned to watch for the whales to return.

Wendell Minor contributed excellent paintings to the text of this lovely, meaty picture book. It’s a great book filled with a lot of information about whales and about the times that Granny would have lived through.

Did you know that Orcas out in British Columbia predominately eat salmon and that they are endangered? Too many of them are being lost. Orcas should live to be about 80 years old and too many of them are not making it that long. Too many of the babies aren’t making it past their first year. Pollution, sonar tests, over fishing and dams causing problems for the salmon being the main culprits.

My Thoughts:

Oh this book, filled me with such knowledge, but the end of it I was smiling for the joy that is an Orca. 🙂 It’s a lovely book, It would be either a great introduction to the study of Wild Orcas, point to a tourism industry in British Columbia, or be a fine part of an endangered animal study. OR you could pick it up just to read about a great animal from Canada.

Wild Orca: The oldest, wisest whale in the world
Brenda Peterson
Wendell Minor (illustrator)
Christy Ottaviano Books (Henry Holt & Co)
40 pages, 4-8 years, softcover
Orca, Sea Animals, Sea Mammal, tourism, endangered animals, research
Reviewed for: Raincoast Books
Find it on Amazon.

Review: The Master and His Apprentices

June 27, 2018 By Annette1 Leave a Comment

When my son was young we would read through encyclopedias of history…you know those huge books you can buy that make excellent coffee table books, or that are just fun to flip through to gain a brief vision of history? Reading a variety of these books gave us an excellent overview of historical record. The Master and His Apprentices produced a book called The Master and His Apprentices: Art History from a Christian Perspective is a book JUST LIKE THAT. Historical overviews are wonderful.

My Impression and Realization

I have to admit, when I first started reading through this tome I wasn’t wildly impressed as it wasn’t what we had expected. I THOUGHT I was going to get a book about the history of art. So I imagined seeing images of art from throughout history, divided into time zones. That’s not what this resource is, this book is a history book! I know, I’m strange, takes me a bit to clue in sometimes, but once I figured out that The Master and His Apprentices was not a book about the history of art, it’s a history book with a focus on art. It’s a history book that uses art as a focus, but in essence, it’s a history book and just like any other history book it has it’s own focus (seeing God in action throughout history) and it’s own way of dividing up historical periods. We LOVE history books… especially history encyclopedias. Seeing history from a different vantage point is awesome. I now can say I LIKE THIS BOOK! It’s history with a solid dash of art (no nudity for those concerned). You will discover well-researched chapters that will describe various aspects of culture such as architecture, sculptures, mosaics, paintings, frescos, and other such art forms for each era discussed.

Art History Book

The first two chapters are devoted to understanding that all of creation starts from a biblical perspective. God’s creativity is what inspires the creativity of people. Therefore author Gina Ferguson walks us through the days of creation and all that we have to be thankful for. The rest of the chapters are devoted to different time periods. Gina has taught bible, art and history throughout her life.

Chapter 3: Ancient Near East
Chapter 4: Egyptian
Chapter 5: Aegean
Chapter 6: Early Greek
Chapter 7: Etruscan
Chapter 8: Roman
Chapter 9: Early Christian and Byzantine
Chapter 10: Medieval and Islamic
Chapter 11: Romanesque
Chapter 12: Gothic
Chapter 13: Proto-Renaissance
Chapter 14: Early Italian Renaissance
Chapter 15: High Italian Renaissance
Chapter 16: Northern Renaissance
Chapter 17: Baroque
Chapter 18: Rococo to Today
Chapter 19: Global Highlights

Like all histories, authors choose what they will focus on, and author Gina Ferguson is no different. Up until the Baroque period the history is explained well, after that the history is lighter. It makes sense right? If you were to include all of history thoroughly this 380 page book would be very large indeed. Ergo one focuses where one chooses and leave the rest for another book. 🙂

One of the things that is great about history books is the ability to pick a time period that are you interested in. You can read it start to finish or do what we did. We each had different interests and ended up discussing them together.

Now this history book is like any other… it gives you a good grounding in it’s perspective. Art started with the creation of the World, and God directs art in all it’s form throughout history. With that perspective comes marvellous full colour images that show the breadth of God’s creative touch.

As you delve more into how civilization developed you actually start to see some of the artistic forms that developed, like this, a melding of worldview into artistic expression.

I liked that we had the ability to pick and choose what we wanted to learn about. Now if we were using this as a full curriculum (and gain a full credit for history) I’d be minded to work through it from start to finish, but that’s not my focus right now with my lad. It’s called dive in, see what interests you and learn something new. It’s good to keep learning eh?

Each chapter provides an overview of the culture and period, followed by a discussion of the artwork and architecture developed during that time period. As the history is discussed, the religious beliefs and cultural background are brought up, showing that religion and culture define one’s worldview and that is reflected in the art that is produced. A timeline is included so you can see how it all fits together. One of the things I loved was the focusing on specific artists. It was great to be able to focus in on one person

Our attention was focusing using the worksheets that helped us think through ideas. We didn’t actually print them off, we did what we always do, we talked and splattered our thoughts about with each other.

Just what do you get?

I received digital downloads of the textbook at 380 pages and the teacher’s guide at 116 pages. You could choose to print off the pages (which I was tempted to do so but somehow just haven’t done that). The PDF’s are sent print ready making it easy to print off if desired. This is a highschool level course that could be used for a full credit or as supplementary material for other studies. I also received a PDF called “Print and Use” outlining how to print off the textbook and workbook in the most user friendly fashion.

End result:

I like a good history book. Reading history from different perspectives deepens our understanding of it. This book portrays a good amount of art in it (no nudes or other objectionable art) and gives a good look at various artists. Faith plays a big role in this book, understanding worldview and how religion plays into how we perceive the world and therefore make depictions of it. If faith is something you care to avoid, this would not be the book for you. If understanding how worldview and faith affects how you view the world, then this history will broaden your understanding.

The Master and His Apprentices
The Master and His Apprentices: Art History from a Christian Perspective
For pricing information go here. Available as physical or digital copies.
Art, History, digital, High-school, Christian art, biblical art history

The teachers guide: contains instructions for using this curriculum in classroom or homeschool settings, an attendance chart and grade sheet, a course outline, glossary of art term, expectations of student in regards to exams and papers, questions and answers for worksheets and the exams, along with helpful tips and reminders.

The textbook can be used over and over but the teacher’s guide with the worksheets is considered a consumable product, to use with additional students extra copies are merely $2 each.

Social Media Links:

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The Golden Vial

June 23, 2018 By Annette1 Leave a Comment

I can’t recall reading a book by Thomas Locke before, but The Golden Vial gives me a good feel for his work and causes me to want to read more. Nuts about Books sent me this book as a review.

I found the Golden Vial to be a book that drew me in. I wanted to know more about Dally and the enemy she and the land faced. BUT I found the book too fast-paced. Let me explain what I mean. The book moved at a good pace but I found that I wanted it to slow down and develop the characters a bit more and answer the questions I had.

It seemed like it was always GO GO GO GO and none of the stop, smell the roses, get healed up, take some time to see your surroundings, catch your bearings, and let’s give the reader a breather. Instead, it was “get injured, get up you are needed”. “You collapsed.. GET UP YOU ARE NEEDED”. Dally was never given the time she needed to truly heal properly and yet she was expected to do great and marvellous things. I suppose by the end of the book I was less amazed at her abilities to keep going and more annoyed with those who SHOULD HAVE taken care of her who didn’t really. Does the state of the world truly revolve around a girl that you just discovered five days before?

The annoyance I felt at them took away from my enjoyment of the book as a whole.

Was it a good story? For sure. I wanted to know what was going on.

Would I want to read a second installment? Yes, I’m curious to know more about the enemy.

Do I want more details? YES, the details on the actual people seemed light, it seemed glossed over a bit too much.

Should YOU go read it? If you like fantasy and seeing good triumph over evil because they outsmarted them.. YES. It wasn’t a “we are stronger than you scenario” but more of a “can we think smarter than you?” I have a firm appreciation for those types of books. Outsmart others and use the strengths you have.

The Golden Vial
Thomas Locke
Series: Legends of the Realm
Revell
295 pages, trade paperback
Fiction, Fantasy, Magic
Reviewed for Nuts about Books.
Find it on Amazon.

So Tall Within

June 21, 2018 By Annette1 Leave a Comment

So Tall Within: Sojourner Truth’s Long Walk Toward Freedom is a lovely, meaty picture book containing poignant statements and images to that speak to the truth of hard times and hope. I loved reading through this book and showed it to a fellow homeschool mom who asked “Can I take this home and read it?” That makes for a nice book eh? Let me then, tell you all about it.

Written by Gary D. Schmidt, So Tall Within walks us through the life of Sojourner Truth on her way to freedom and living as an adult with a mission… freedom for slaves. I loved the set up of this lovely picture book, which is geared toward children 4-8 years old. The vignettes that opened each chapter spoke truth about what slavery was and did to the people trapped within that way of living. This opening page set the tone for the rest of the book, showing the promise within the hardship. I just loved how aptly the text fit the image created by Daniel Minter.

Schmidt walks us through Sojourner’s life, starting with her life as a slave with her momma Mau-mau Bett, learning to remember who her siblings were, to her eventual slavery, through the promise of freedom and finally needing to seize it. She married whom she was told to, had children and found her way to freedom with the help of good people. Despite her inability to read, she knew the law and her rights and fought for them. And through that, she developed her mission in life. Tell her story, help bring about freedom for others. And so Sojourner Truth walked and taught, and walked some more, telling her story to any who would listen. She travelled through Michigan, Iowa, Washington D.C, and beyond. Talking and walking, it was her life’s work fighting for freedom.

Interspersed among the 48 pages of the lovely book that causes one to think, ask questions, and ponder the will of a strong woman, are lovely pictures. Oh my! They are wonderful pictures filled with tons of images to point out to a young child, or that will inspire the thinking in an older one.

Images that are full of colour and darkness and light. Images to grab the artist within you and make you ponder all the more the story of Sojourner Truth. Seeing her faith, seeing her determination, seeing her will to succeed. Sojourner fought for what is right and didn’t let time or distance stop her.

She had help along the way, and we are shown that help. We saw her loss and fear. The Slavery was a Time images pulled out truth as we entered into a new part of Sojourner’s life.

Get this book. Read it with your youngsters. Use it as a start to a study on Black History. Let your teens read it as well! It’s not just a book for littles, but for anyone wanting to know more about Sojourner Truth and the struggles that black people had coming out of slavery. It was a tough time, but determination… wow.. it wins through.

So Tall Within: Sojourner Truth’s Long Walk Toward Freedom
Gary D. Schmidt
Daniel Minter (illustator)
Roaring Brook Press
48 pages, 4-8 years, Softcover, Picture Book
Biography, History, Black history
Reviewed for Raincoast Books
Find it on Amazon.

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