Book review: The New Read-aloud Handbook

The New Read-aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease is comprised of two parts. The first is information and research about why reading-aloud to children should be done. The second part is an extensive list of books to choose.

I understand the need and reasons to read-aloud to children. We do some reading to our son, and after reading this, we will expand to include it more on a regular basis. Books are always big in our house, and our son loves them.

I had intended to skim through the first portion, but found myself continually pulled in and reading large chunks. There are plenty of ancedotes to go along with the research, and it was quite entertaining.

The best part of the book is definitely the lists of books to choose. They are broken down by book type - picture book, short novel, novel. Each main entry states the ages it would be most appropriate for, a synapsis of the book, and other titles that are similar. The ages run from Pre-toddler (1-2 years) up to grade 8 and beyond.

I made a list of books to check out for our son's current age. I can definitely see myself checking this book out to get more ideas as he ages and is ready for longer, more involved books.

Rating: 5/5
Source: Local library

Book review: Desserts 4 Today

Desserts 4 Today by Abigail Johnson Dodge is a dessert cookbook filled with recipes that use only four ingredients.

I can describe this book in one word: YUM. Reading through it, I found myself planning a quick run to the store to get the ingredients I need to try a few recipes. The recipes seem very simple to follow, and the desserts sound delicious.

My only complaint is that there aren't pictures for every dessert. I am very visual when it comes to food, and I tend to pick recipes based on the photos. The photos that were there look amazing. I would be more inclined to try more recipes, if I could see what the end result would be.

This is definitely a must-read for anyone who loves desserts. And I bet quite a few recipes would be easy and fun to make with kids.

Rating: 4/5
Source: Review copy from Net Galley

Book review: 1001 Facts

1001 Facts That Will Scare the S#*t Out of You by Cary McNeal. With the subtitle, The Ultimate Bathroom Reader.

As the title suggests, this is a collection of facts. They cover all topics, from food and drink, to the human body, to the weather and insects. Each fact has at least one source given, so you know the author isn't making them up.

But the unique thing about this book is that each fact is followed by a humourous comment from the author. The comment is often sarcastic, or reads like it should be delivered in a serious, dry tone.

Example from the front cover: Of the people who use personal ads for dating, thirty-five percent are married. Hey, we all forget things sometimes.

Being surrounded by people with this type of humour, I found the comments quite amusing. It was like my brother was sitting with me, adding his own bit to each fact. They definitely made the book more than just a dry read.

Rating: 4/5
Source: Local library

Book review: Future Files

Future Files: A Brief History of the Next 50 Years by Richard Watson. As the title would indicate, this is a book about predictions for the next 50 years.

Normally I love to read prediction books. I am always intrigued about what people think will happen. But this book couldn't hold my attention. There was just too much crammed in the book.

The book starts with a description of the 5 most important trends. I think that if the book had taken those 5 and simply expanded on them, it would have been easier to read, and more interesting. Instead, the book goes into 11 different areas with 5 top trends each, and many more details.

The book ends with a list of 5 things that wouldn't change over the next 50 years. This list was also interesting, however very little time was spent on it.

Overall, I found the book had too great a range. There was just too much information to able to absorb much of anything.

Rating: 2/5
Source: Review copy from Net Galley

Book review: Fail Harder

Fail Harder is an upcoming book from the people who bring you failblog.org. So what qualifies as a FAIL? How about a nursery outfitted with a gun rack hanging over the baby's crib? Perhaps the equation, "E=MC3" written on a classroom's write/erase board. What about a trifecta of beauty parlor, chain saw repair, and nightclub housed inside an all-in-one-stop shop?

I have followed the Fail blog for a while as my source of easy, and quick laughs. The book is a collection of photographs that would definitely appear in their feed. The pictures are amusing, and make you wonder whuck?

There were a few pictures that I didn't find amusing, but since humor is very subjective, I know many people would love them.

Rating: 4/5
Source: Review copy from Net Galley

Book review: thxthxthx

thxthxthx by Leah Dieterich is a delightful book that is a collection of photographs of thank you cards the author has wrote. They are short (often only a sentence or two), and quite often humourous. They are addressed to the small and big objects in life, like Sneezes, her Partner's Understanding, and everything in between.

The collection is very sweet, and left me feeling happy and wanting to be more grateful for the everyday things we take for granted.

The pictures are clear and simple. Each is a snapshot of a cream thank-you card, sometimes with a partial envelop in the background, often with just a plain coloured backdrop. It helps the message of each thank-you card to stand out.

The book is scheduled for release in Jun 2011. It would definitely be a great edition to any coffee-table.

Rating: 5/5
Source: Review copy from Net galley

Book review: Dining with the Dollar Diva

Dining with the Dollar Diva by Elizabeth Fisher is a book filled with recipes that can be made with items purchased for a dollar or less.

The book is very personal, not just a cut and dry recipe book. There are stories with almost every recipe. It makes for interesting reading to go with your cooking.

I am not sure how she is able to find all the items she uses for $1 though. Maybe the dollar stores around me just aren't as stocked, I know mine don't have freezer sections. I'm sure the recipes would still be just as delicious if I spent more than $1 though.

This is definitely a neat cookbook, and really emphasizes the fact that good cooking does not require a lot of money.

Rating: 4/5
Source: Review copy from Net Galley

Book review: Earth

Earth (the book): A Visitor's Guide to the Human Race by Jon Stewart.

If you are familiar with Jon Stewart's tv show, this book is exactly what you'd expect from him. If you haven't seen his show, the book is humorous, with a lot of sarcasm and  satirical fun-poking.

The format is a mock textbook filled with pictures with witty captions. It is easy to pick up and read for a few minutes whenever you have time. It is a light-hearted overview of life on Earth, as written for aliens who arrive after all human life has vanished.

This is an enjoyable read, if you have that type of humor.


Rating: 4/5
Source: Library

Book review: Baby love

In my never-ending quest for assistance in getting my son to eat, I checked out Baby love: healthy, easy, delicious meals for your baby and toddler by Norah O'Donnell and Geoff Tracy. This book seems more geared to babies just beginning to eat.

It is a compilation of very easy to make baby food. Most of the recipes have only one or two ingredients. Basically, you cook and pureed each type of fruit or vegetable, then freeze into individual portions using an ice cube tray. Very simple, even for very busy parents.

This would be a good book to use as an introduction to making your own baby food.

Book review: Sh*t My Dad Says

I am not one for profanity, but Sh*t My Dad Says by Justin Halpern was hilarious. I got this book based on the fact it was on the high hold list at my library. It took a while to get to me, but I'm glad I got it.

I read it super fast (like in 2 days). It is a quick read. The way it is written, you can easily put it down and pick it up later. The book is laid out with a few short stories about the author's life, with hilarious quotes separating them.

When I burst out laughing from one quote, my husband had me read it to him. I tried 3 or 4 times before giving up and handing the book to him. I was laughing so hard I was crying, and I couldn't get it out.

Only reality could be this funny. Definitely worth a look, but be warned that there is a lot of profanity.

Book Review: Stuff: Compulsive Hoarding and the Meaning of Things

Well I only just talked about it on Wednesday, but I finished it already. I debated leaving my review for a while since I'm not sure I have a lot more to say, but I figured I would post it anyway.

Stuff: Compulsive Hoarding and the Meaning of Things by Randy Frost and Gail Steketee is all about hoarding, people who hoard, and the psychology behind it. The book is very interesting. It is filled with stories about specific hoarders the authors have met. It not only describes their hoarding, but also the type of hoarder they are, and some of the psychology and reasons behind the hoarding.

Each chapter is about a specific type of hoarding, and I didn't realize that there were so many different types. The most tragic chapter is about children hoarders. It is very sad.

Overall, the book is easy to read. It is very conversational, yet still describe the psychology aspect very well. It really highlights the lack of research into hoarding. Even though it has been around for a VERY long time, there really isn't much known about the causes for it.

I would definitely recommend the book to anyone who knows a hoarder, is a hoarder, or just likes watching the hoarding shows on tv.

Book Review: Post Secret

This is actually a review of 4 books at the same time. I read the Post Secret blog every Monday since it is updated every Sunday. I think it's a really neat idea, and the artwork and secrets are incredible. Everything from the mundate to the unbelievable.

There are several Post Secret books out, and I recently read 4 of the 5. The ones I read were PostSecret: Confessions on Life, Death, and God, My Secret: A PostSecret Book, The Secret Lives of Men and Women: A PostSecret Book and A Lifetime of Secrets: A PostSecret Book. I read them straight through. Couldn't put them down.

They amaze me, entertain me, and make me very thankful for my life, all at the same time. Definitely worth checking out.

Book review: Debt-free Forever

I have one word to describe Debt-free forever : take control of your money and your life by Gail Vaz-Oxlade: amazing! Gail is a Canadian financial guru. I wrote about her previously when I said that we were going to try her budget jars idea.

This book is really meant to be a step-by-step workbook about how to get your financials in order. If you have ever seen her show, this is what the couples go through, and includes the steps you don't see in the show.

I have read through it once, and my husband and I are going to sit down this weekend and work our way through it. I am excited about it, especially since I have previewed what the steps are. They aren't easy! But will definitely be worth doing.

I would highly recommend the book to everyone! I'm sure anyone could benefit from it, whether you have a mountain of debt or not. Definitely a top pick! And if you have to be frugal and borrow it from the library, it's worth the wait. I was hold number 74, and had to wait almost 2 months, but I'm glad I finally got my hands on it.

Book review: The Art of Barter

I decided to check out The Art of Barter: How to Trade for Almost Anything by Karen Hoffman and Shera Dalin after seeing it on the new book list at the library. Took a while until my turn came up, but it was worth the read.

Barter and trade isn't as prevalent as it used to be, and I personally have never really thought about it. Cash is king, right? It is easy to forget that cash (or debit or credit) isn't the only payment option.

This book is chock full of ideas and resources. There are a full 5 pages at the end that list various websites you can visit. While a lot of them are US based, there are still quite a few international ones as well.

Bartering is really about being open to ideas, and learning to communicate those ideas to others. Creativity is the key, along with good listening skills. I definitely learned a lot reading the book, and will try to put it to use and barter for something. What? I haven't decided yet.

Book review: Find Your Inner Ugly Betty

Find Your Inner Ugly Betty by Tanner Stranksy has the subtitle 25 Career Lessons for Young Professionals Inspired by TV Shows. This is definitely the truth. He pulls mainly from Ugly Betty, The Office, Friends, Grey's Anatomy and How I Met Your Mother. All mostly current shows that are aimed at the 20-30 year old crowd.

Even if you don't watch those shows (the only one I've seen is Friends), the book is still easy to follow as the situations he uses are readily understandable. This is a funny, smart, current book that is filled with useful information. Most of it is common sense for anyone who has been in a professional-type job for a few years, but reminders are always helpful. The book reads like a friend is talking to you, and makes for a very quick read.

The information is broken into 5 parts, 25 chapters. The breaks are logical, and easy to follow. The chapters not only address each issue in a conversational manner, they each end in an "on the job" scenario, a real life story, and a to-do list of things to take away.

Overall, I was impressed. This is a very easy to read book that is chock full of useful information. It uses current pop culture references, and is obviously written for the same age group as the author.

Book review: Negotiating Your Salary: How to Make $1000 a Minute

My latest read in preparation of my upcoming annual performance review was Negotiating Your Salary: How to Make $1000 a Minute by Jack Chapman. It was a very easy read at only 170 pages. While it focus mostly on negotiating for a beginning salary, there was a whole chapter about raises. And it was fairly easy to see how to apply the rest of book to a raise situation.

The raise chapter discussed how to keep a "job journal" to track your accomplishments. That is the first step, which you can start at any time, and easily maintain.

The second step is all about making your boss aware of your accomplishments, and getting them to acknowledge them. I never really thought about it, but the book points out "...bosses who allow efficient workers the freedom to do a good job are less likely to be aware of workers' accomplishments. Such bosses are so trusting of your work that they naturally pay attention to their problems instead of your performance."

Once your work is acknowledged, then you discuss a possible raise, using the techniques discribed in the rest of the book.

Overall, I was impressed with this book. It had lots of useful information for both new jobs, and raise situations. I am working on creating my job journal to help with performance review. Hopefully all my research into salary negotiations will pay off in the end.

Book Review: Banker to the Poor

As mentioned in my previous post about giving to charity, I was reading Banker to the Poor: Micro-lending and the battle against world poverty by Muhammad Yunus. It is the biography of the creation of the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh.

I didn't realize it was a biography when I picked it up; I apparently never looked at the spine where my local library had placed a biography sticker. I don't usually read biographies, but I found this book very interesting. I was particularly intrigued by the first half of the book, the very beginning of the creation of the Grameen Bank.

The later half of the book was harder to follow as related, child and parent companies were founded and explained. I skipped a few overly detailed paragraphs as I wasn't that interested, and they just confused me.

But the stories of the borrowers really intrigued me. I think I'll find and read Give Us Credit by Alex Counts, which is about the founding of the Grameen Bank, and is filled with stories of the borrowers. I was amazed at the resiliency and resourcefulness of the women who became borrowers. They have so many ideas of how to improve their lives, and their families' lives, and it usually only requires a bit of upfront capital. Their lives are transformed by being able to access credit without needing collateral, and the amounts are paltry by Western standards. The original loans given out totalled $27, and that was spread over 42 people! That's less than $1 a person! What could you do with a $1?

The book really made me think about poverty, which is not something I usually think about. I think I'll take the lesson and reduce my complaining about not having any extra money. At least I have a roof over my head, food in my belly, and the security of a full-time job that is unlikely to disappear tomorrow. And I will try to remember my gratititude for these things and donate money to causes like this occasionally.

Book Review: Get Paid What You're Worth

In preparation for my upcoming annual performance review, I've been trying to find books on how to complete my self evaluation, and how to negotiate a raise. Surprisingly, it has not been easy to find books about these topics.
I just finished Get Paid What You're Worth by Robin L. Pinkley and Gregory B. Northcraft. Unfortunately, I found it not very hopeful. It is more about negotiating your salary and benefits when you are first hired. It barely mentions raises or re-negotiations.

There were some good points, such as "anchoring" your requests with facts, and learning to see negotations as a team effort, not as one person pitted against another. There was a lot of emphasis placed on research: research about the employer and what their "usual" offers include, what current employees get, what similar positions in other companies get, what your skills are worth in the market, etc. Lots of research that would not be easy to do, particular in the modern culture of keeping salary and compensation information private.

Overall, the book was an easy read, with the important information stated clearly and concisely. Each chapter had a point-form summary at the end, to help wrap it up. I did find it got very reptitive though. It was a short, 180 page book, but if even half the repetition was removed, it could probably be half that length.

I was not overly impressed, mainly because it didn't really focus on the topic I wanted to read about, and expected to read about. After all, people usually deal with many more salary reviews than they do with initial job offers.

Book Review: Child Sense

In my everlasting goal of finding ways to be a better parent, I stumbled on Child Sense by Priscilla Dunstan. This book is all about determining which sense is dominant in your child, and using this knowledge to better interact, and make your life easier. It is geared towards young children under age 5.

I found it very interesting, and very informative. The lists provided to help determine which sense your child is were detailed enough that it made my choice easy. I very easily figured out that my little monster is a tactile child. This means he experiences the world physically.

There was a whole chapter devoted to each sense type (tactile, auditory, visual, taste/smell), and gave some good advise about how to approach both everyday events (like eating, sleeping and dressing) and extraordinary events like moving, having another child, starting school and dealing with death. The book divided each type down further into age ranges (birth-1 year, 1-3 years, 3-5 years), which me see not only where my son was, where he is now, and what I can expect in the near future.

I'd definitely recommend this book to other parents. Any insights that make your life as a parent easier, and your child's life smoother, are well worth hearing about.