A Net in Time

Curriculum and book reviews, faith, homeschooling and more!

Review

Review: The Round the World Quiz Book

By 8 Comments

 Do you like quizzes?   I DO.
When my lad was little I’d read various fact and quizzler books to him, just to see if I could stump him.  It was remarkable how often I could not stump.  Mind, it’s a bit easier now to stump him…I just have to ask harder questions!  (but then he can ask me harder questions too and well.. that just well… let’s not go there shall we?

Today I have help!   The Round the World Quiz book is just the ticket for me and for you!

 Why for you?


Well, you need something to amuse yourself and your family when you are travelling around summer don’t you?

And….you’ll hold the power as you’ll be holding the book right?  🙂  

Seriously though, it’s a rather neat book with questions divided into three different sections.   Newbie (easiest) Rookie and Genius (hardest).   The questions are clearly labeled.

I find that newbies often get puzzles, mazes, searches, match up etc to do.

Rookies and Geniuses tend to get questions that vary in difficulty.

It’s a rather neat book, asking questions from all around the globe, divided into 8 sections.

  • amazing locations
  • Epic earth
  • Animal magic
  • into the deep
  • when disaster strikes
  • extreme places
  • strange but true
  • rapid-fire questions

 I like the sheer variety of questions from the straight true/false questions, to match ups, or multiple choice questions. You’ll learn so much and be amazed too!   It’s a great world we live in. 

Do you know which country has the longest coastline?
Or What is Experanto?
what about which ones of these jobs was never a real job: whipping boy, tea caddy, nightsoil man, or Knocknobbler. 
Are avalanches powerful enough to destroy a whole village?

No answer?   That’s okay, all the answers are in the back of the book!

My Thoughts:
This is a neat book to have kicking around, seriously, I love trivia books, they are so much fun.  All these little tidbits of information…. just waiting to be discovered.  It’s a great thing to have tidbits floating around. They lead to further discoveries.. and THAT is great thing to do, especially with an inquisitive lad running around the house.   Just think what having lots of trivia floating around your house could do for the learning going on eh?  🙂


Round the world quiz book: The best travel trivia on the planet
Publisher: Lonely Planet Kids
Pages: 160
Ages: 8-12

Reviewed for: Raincoast Books

Where to find it?
Amazon.ca: Lonely Planet The Round the World Quiz Book 1st Ed.

Amazon.com: The Round the World Quiz Book (Lonely Planet Kids)

This post may contain affiliate links – using affiliate links from A Net in Time helps fuel this blog and our homeschool – thank you!

©2006-2017 A Net In Time. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. A Net In Time . We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites

Review: Way of the Warrior Kid

By 2 Comments

Written in the style of Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Way of the Warrior Kid was an interesting read.  It was also thought provoking and I am going to have my 12 year old read it as well.  In fact, if I can wrap my brain around it, I’m going to see if I can turn it into a book study, with relevant scripture and such like to go along.

Watching a child go through a mental change in his outlook, training hard with his uncle and becoming the person he discovered that he truly was.  Way of the Warrior Kid: From Wimpy to Warrior the Navy Seal Way, speaks to how using the Navy Seal mind set works well for helping youth make incredible differences in their lives.

It’s making choices and sticking with them…even when it’s hard.

This book, oh.. it made me laugh.   The kid in the book, he’s a delight, his honesty, his wanting to do what’s right even though it goes against what he thinks, his fear, his desire to be like his uncle.  It’s all there, right in front of us.   Able to watch him think, learn and develop more into the person he’ll be as an adult. 

The images in the book brought Marc to life.

 You could just see his delight, his fear, his concerns,and his joy within them.
It was so good to see the metamorphosis…not only externally, but also internally. 

My Thoughts:
For parents who want to fight the laziness and apathy so prevalent in the younger generation, this book will be yet another tool in the arsenal of lighting a fire under our youth.  To get them up and active and realizing their part (taking ownership) in the battle to be better than what they currently are.  It was great to see the mentorship from Uncle Jake  with Marc.  Inspiring, challenging, encouraging, teaching…being right there pushing and helping a boy to make the right decisions.  Good stuff.

Way of the Warrior Kid
Jocko Willink
illustrator: Jon Bozak
Feiwel and Friends
192 pages
8-12 years.

Type: trade paperback

Reviewed for: Raincoast Books

Where can you find it?
Amazon.ca: Way of the Warrior Kid: From Wimpy to Warrior the Navy SEAL way: A Novel

Amazon.com:  Way of the Warrior Kid: From Wimpy to Warrior the Navy SEAL Way: A Novel

—-

This post may contain affiliate links – using affiliate links from A Net in Time helps fuel this blog and our homeschool – thank you!

©2006-2017 A Net In Time. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. A Net In Time . We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites

Review: The Benevolent Bee

By 2 Comments

You know what?  I happen to like bees.  I admittedly wasn’t fond of them as a child when one stun me on the eye (landed on my face so I grabbed at it)  BIG mistake.  So it took me a while to get back that, but once I realized how neat they were, I developed a fondness for them.  Stephanie Bruneau brings us the Benevolent Bee, a  book crafted to show us the bee and how she works, AND how we can benefit from all she provides.   

I have to admit, this is a rather neat book.  It talks briefly about the lifecycle and work of the honeybee, but devotes itself to the benefits of honeybees.

Ms Bruneau first teaches the science behind each of the benefits of the honeybee.  She works her way through propolis, pollen, honey, royal jelly, venom and beeswax.   Did you know that in it’s final state honey can last forever without spoiling? 

She follows this up with recipes, crafts or projects one can do.  You can learn to make elderberry syrup, honey fire tonic, royal jelly fudge, stinging nettle tea with honey, turn honeycomb into beeswax or make a floating acorn cap candle.  So many different recipes and ideas to explore.

She even included stories of people using bee venom.  I’d heard about using bee venom before but never really looked into it. It’s been used in China for more than 2000 years. You can also use bee venom to reduce allergic reactions! 

All in all it’s a very helpful book.   For the budding apiarist this book would be helpful in explaining the benefits of bee keeping.  For the person just wanting to know more about the benefits of bees, this book provides it all!  It’s a wonderfully helpful book indeed.  🙂
About the Author:  Stephanie Bruneau is a beekeeper, herbalist, and artist. She runs
The Benevolent Bee, a small business selling honey, beeswax candles,
herbal body care products, and other handcrafted and hive-derived items.
At the Benevolent Bee “Teaching Apiary” Stephanie observes, learns, and
teaches about bees and bee behavior to students of all ages.

The Benevolent Bee: Capture the bounty of the Hive through Science, History, Home Remedies and Craft.
Stephanie Bruneau
Quarry Books
160 books
Oversized trade paperback

Reviewed for: Quarto Group

Where can you find The Benevolent Bee?

Amazon.ca: The Benevolent Bee: Capture the Bounty of the Hive through Science, History, Home Remedies and Craft – Includes recipes and techniques for honey, beeswax, propolis, royal jelly, pollen, and bee venom

Amazon.com: The Benevolent Bee: Capture the bounty of the hive through science, history, home remedies and craft. 

—-

This post may contain affiliate links – using affiliate links from A Net in Time helps fuel this blog and our homeschool – thank you!

©2006-2017 A Net In Time. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. A Net In Time . We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites

Review: Time Stoppers

By 2 Comments

 I LOVED this book.

Admittedly…when it started I was wondering what in the world Raincoast had sent me, children being hurt, feeling lost and alone, adults letting them down, but it didn’t take too long before I was totally hooked.

Time Stoppers by Carrie Jones is a winner. 

Half way through chapter two I was hooked.  Monsters?  In a sleepy little town?   Okay.. so what was the deal with the girl Annie in the first chapter?  Was she connected? How was she connected?  What’s with the dog thing?  My curiousity aroused, I kept reading…and reading..and reading.  My sweetheart told me to get my nose out of the book and talk to him.. I distinctly remember mumbling at him… 🙂

Finding myself impressed with the character development. Watching Annie and Jamie develop into characters with gumption.  Laughing at Eva and her uniqueness and being delighted with Bloom with his determination.   Just great characters that I would like to continue to see in action.

Aurora is where Annie and Jamie end up, with a choice.. stay and protect or return to their home (albeit in a better situation than before).  They make their choice and now we have to see if Aurora will be safe. 

The nasty guy is well.. NASTY!  Seriously.   I’d like to stomp on him. But the youth are determined… will they see through.. well.. you gotta read the book as I’m not into spoilers.  🙂

My Thoughts:
I cannot say that the first chapter of this book is an easy read.  It isn’t.  Things happen that should not happen to anyone.  Seriously.  BUT that ‘not goodness’ sets the stage for the choices made later on.  Sensitive-minded children would need to be encouraged to push through and see what happens later with those choices.   (or just wait until they are older to read the book).  Beyond that.. LOVED THIS BOOK.  I found it a great read and the parts I read to my lad have him interested in reading it too… So we may end up with a Carrie Jones fan on our hands eh?   Which isn’t a bad thing as … there’s a second book! 

Time Stoppers
Carrie Jones
Bloomsbury Children’s Books
372 pages
Fantasy, softcover
approximately 8 x 5 inches
Age: 8-12 years.

Reviewed for Raincoast Books.

Where can you find this treasure?
Amazon.ca: Time Stoppers

Amazon.com: Time Stoppers

This post may contain affiliate links – using affiliate links from A Net in Time helps fuel this blog and our homeschool – thank you!

©2006-2017 A Net In Time. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. A Net In Time . We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites

Review: My Jesus Bible

By 2 Comments

Want a board book bible for your littlest ones?   One that is easy to hold on to, that tells the story of Jesus, and will take some abuse?

Have I got the bible story book for you!   Called My Jesus Bible. 16 stories, 40 pages.   It follows the story from Mary hearing the news to Jesus’s death and resurrection.    

This is a delightful little book, a solid, brightly coloured book.   The colours are so vibrant and the text gives enough detail to give the basics, which leaves you ample room to supplement with additional details if desired.

Each story covers two pages.   Are the colours lovely?  And the text, a bit smaller than what I would have thought, covers more information than is normally found in a board book. 

Check out the text eh?

 

My Thoughts:
This is a bright, colourful book, with sturdy board book pages.  The handle is nice size for little hands that can take some throwing around (not that you’d want your littles doing that but you know… sometimes things happen).  It makes it so easy for them to bring along with them to church or grammas or the park.  The stories are short with just enough detail that you can easily embellish, or let stand on it’s own.   I appreciated how in the story of Peter and Jesus on the raging see how it mentioned how Peter took his eyes off Jesus and that’s when he started to sink. 

My Jesus Bible
Text: Michael Berghof
Illustrator: Gill Guile
Tommy Nelson
Type: Board Book
Children’s story bible
40 pages
Age: Preschool
Reviewed for BookLookBloggers

Where can you get one?
Amazon.ca:  My Jesus Bible: With Handle

Amazon.com: My Jesus Bible: With Handle

—–
This post may contain affiliate links – using affiliate links from A Net in Time helps fuel this blog and our homeschool – thank you!

©2006-2017 A Net In Time. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. A Net In Time . We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites

Art Book: The Girl Who Drew Butterflies

By 6 Comments

When I first got The Girl who Drew Butterflies I thought cool.. an art book!  I’ll get to see lots of pictures of butterflies and be totally amazed.   Little did I know the wonder and joy I would experience when I realized that it was not only an art book but it was also a science book.  A way to combine two loves!  It’s GREAT!!!!

Imagine you live in a time when people aren’t sure where bugs come from, and no one can really answer the questions of a curious girl child.  Maria, who helped her step-father, Jacob Marrel, with his artistry. He liked to draw still life pictures and Maria would often bring in flowers for him to draw, and found the insects that crawled on them fascinating. 

Her interest was fostered as her step-dad was also interested in the insects as he thought they made his pictures come to life, so she was sent out to gather more for him. 

Maria was so curious about where all these insects came from but no one really knew where they came from.   Perhaps from mud or old clothes?    Marel taught Maria the tools of the trade, teaching her everything he knew. But Maria’s mind was captured by the insects around her and she burned to discover the answers to her questions.

She started with silkworms. Watching everything, drawing it too.

Jotting down everything she could. Asking questions, seeking out the answers to her beloved insects.  Learning how to do this AND fulfill the role destined for her by society.

This is a fascinating book.

I learned so much about what was going in the day.  Witch hunts…seeking after women who varied from what society expected of them.  Women had to be so careful in what they did.  Not receiving recognition for the work they did, yet contributing mightily to society around them.

Gradually society shifted opinions, and just as gradually Maria became known as the caterpillar lady.

She learned, and documented how all moths and butterflies went through the same transformation.

Ah… I want to tell you all that I learned but that would spoil the book for you it would!  It’s just a neat book, really.  I so enjoyed it.   Seeing her determination to stick to her love of insects, her patience .. biding her time, watching, observing, starting over, and her stepping out with what she knew.  

She led a fascinating life and ended up drawing/painting so many pictures with plants and their insects.   Showing the world their beauty as she could best show it.

She was simply a fascinating lady, well focused on her life’s passion, and so determined to see it through.

To see all the she saw and be able to document everything… so fantastic!

Read the book, be inspired.  See art teach science something new.

The Girl Who Drew Butterflies: How Maria Marian’s Art Changed Science.
Joyce Sidman
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
160 pages.
Age: 10-12 

Reviewed for: Raincoast Books
 

Where can you get it?

Amazon.ca: The Girl Who Drew Butterflies: How Maria Merian’s Art Changed Science

Amazon.com: The Girl Who Drew Butterflies: How Maria Merian’s Art Changed Science

 —-

This post may contain affiliate links – using affiliate links from A Net in Time helps fuel this blog and our homeschool – thank you!

©2006-2017 A Net In Time. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. A Net In Time . We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites

Creative Friday: Junk Drawer Engineering

By 4 Comments

Do you like doing STEM Challenges with your students or children?   Aren’t they fun to do?   Do you sometimes get concerned that it will cost you an arm and a leg to do STEM activities?    Bobby Mercer comes to your rescue in this great book I’m reviewing today called Junk Drawer Engineering.

Three Chapters entitled Energy, Structures, Waves.  Each chapter has several projects listed such as windmill challenge, egg catch or mirror, mirror on the wall.

Each project lists what you need and then walks you step by step what you need to do to complete the project along with pictures. 

The pictures are all in black and white, but they are clear enough to show the builders what they need to do.  How to bend the paperclip, or how to attach the elastic and so forth.   Little things that might not be as easy to explain in words are readily apparent in a picture. 

I found that for many of the projects he provided images for how you might engineer the project a bit differently.   For instance using the bottom of a can or a ninja star or a plastic cup to make the windmill.   Bobby Mercer also explains the science behind the projects and gives age appropriate ways to guide the student engineer.  

These different STEM projects are a boon to the learning of any middle school and up student.  Upper elementary students could complete many of the projects as well.

Junk Drawer Engineering: 25 Construction Challenges that don’t cost a thing
Bobby Mercer
Chicago Review Press
Ages 9 and up

208 pages
Type: STEM Challenges, 
Trade Paperback
Series: Junk Drawer Science

Reviewed for: Chicago Review Press

Where can you find this helpful book?
Amazon.ca: Junk Drawer Engineering: 25 Construction Challenges That Don’t Cost a Thing (Junk Drawer Science)

Amazon.com:  Junk Drawer Engineering: 25 Construction Challenges That Don’t Cost a Thing (Junk Drawer Science)

—

This post may contain affiliate links – using affiliate links from A Net in Time helps fuel this blog and our homeschool – thank you!

©2006-2017 A Net In Time. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author. A Net In Time . We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites