Fablehaven

Fablehaven

Brandon Mull

4 Stars

This series follows Kendra and Seth to their grandfather's estate where they find a magical world full of all sorts of mystical creatures, good and bad.

I've been meaning to get to this series for a while and finally got around to reading it. I think it was a fun series, perfect for younger readers. One of my 10 year old nephews is reading the series right now and he loves it - something I would totally expect after finishing this first book.

While the last 50 pages of the book were really interesting and hard to put down, there were parts of the middle that were a little slow for me and I skimmed a lot more than I usually do.

I have to admit that when I finished the book and read the preview for the second book I couldn't wait to get my copy and start reading. I'm hoping the second book will not let me down.

I don't rank this book above Harry Potter, A Great and Terrible Beauty, or even Twilight, but I do think is was a fun magical book and I look forward to reading the rest of the series.

Each Little Bird That Sings

Each Little Bird That Sings
Deborah Wiles
5 Stars

A dear friend sent me this book when I had my baby a few months ago. She said that she loved this book - along with all other books by Deborah Wiles, and that when I got time she knew I would enjoy it too. I finally got to it and she was so right, I loved it!

Comfort Snowberger is ten years old and her family owns the town funeral home, she attends each and every funeral, so she thinks she knows everything there is to know about death. The story is a pre-teen book (9-12 year olds) and full of ten year old wit and wisdom. I loved it and laughed out loud at parts!

The plot of the story revolves around the funeral of Comforts Great-great-aunt Florentine. Comfort is asked to help with her younger and very annoying cousin Peach all while she is having trouble with her best friend Declaration.

The book takes a turn at the very end and Comfort learns a lesson on what is really important to her, who she is and her family. I believe one of my favorite parts of the entire book is the passage below. In a world like we live in now - this turned into a great message for pre-teens, or any age, to read.

"You did the right thing even when, somewhere deep inside you, you didn't want to. Because you knew, somewhere even deeper, that it was the right thing to do."

That's Faith

That's Faith
Timothy Carver
5 Stars

The book, That's Faith was developed from a question asked by a youth about how one could measure faith. Brother Carver, a seminary teacher, developed a 10 part lesson for his class, which he then shared with many other classes, at firesides, and now a book.

The ten topics discussed in the book include: honesty, prayer, scripture study, media, music, family, friends, dating, modesty, chastity, sabbath, tithing, priesthood, missions, service and the word of wisdom. Each chapter is only a few short pages long, they all begin with a quote, or scripture, some sort of analogy discussing the topic and then the author shares a personal story about each topic. The final page in each chapter consists of a short "worksheet" where a few questions are asked and readers can rate their faith with a score of 0-10 (10 being highest). There is also a goal listed at the end of each section that readers can think about and work on.

I really enjoyed the analogies at the beginning of the chapters and a few of the short stories. My favorite was about a lesson on modesty that one of the author's friends shared with the young women in her ward. She had brought fresh doughnuts on fast Sunday, all the girls could see and smell but not taste, because of their fasting. The object lesson showed the young women how dressing immodesty can tempt young men.

I thought this book was really though provoking and really appropriate for it's teen-age audience. It was the right length, and touched on very important doctrine without going over the heads of teenagers or losing their attention. I have both a niece and nephew graduating from high school this year and think this would be a great gift to give to them. I found many aspects of my life where I can work on improving my faith. Because of the length I can read this book in just one afternoon, so I look forward to reading and rereading this book again in the future.

The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games

Suzanne Collins

5 Stars

I finished this book late last night and all I have to say is I can't wait until September for the second book! How sad! I loved it and want to read more.

Set in the ruins of what used to be our present day North America is the country of Panem, which is made up of the capital (who controls the country) and 12 districts. Each year the capital builds an arena and hosts what are called The Hunger Games, a reality tv type show that is to the death. Katniss, the main character of the story volunteers when her younger sister is selected to be part of the games.

Survival kicks in and Katniss has to face a lot of different challenges, including love. I really enjoyed the book and could have finished it in one day if I would have had the time. I also think it might make an interesting kind of movie.

This is a young adult book, my sister recommended it to me and she had her 10 year old boy read it, who also enjoyed it. If you are looking for a lot of blood and guts, surprisingly by the description, this isn't the book for you. But trust me, it's a good and interesting read. I also think if you liked Twilight, or the Uglies you would like this book. Check it out.

Winds of Hope

Winds of Hope
Anita Stansfield
4 Stars

The Winds of Hope is the third chapter of the Jayson Wolfe story - and I believe the final book. I was eager to see what happened after the second book, so I read this book fairly fast and loved it.

I loved certain parts of this book, the way that Jayson was introduced to the gospel and the building of his testimony. I loved little Trevin when he told his mom that he needed a copy of the Book of Mormon to give to a friend, it was too cute not to love!

I'm glad that Jayson and Elizabeth were finally able to make it work out and get together - of course I knew that they would eventually get together, it's an Anita Stansfield and they have to get together for it to be a good book by her! I'm also glad that we got to have everything out in the air between the two of them, it felt like such a relief.

There were some parts I didn't expect, the entire ending part with Jayson's family I didn't see coming, but I felt glad that it was part of the book. Macy came back too! I was almost certain that this would happen, but I am so glad it did. I knew that Macy would most likely join the church as well, but I didn't expect it to happen at the same time. I also didn't see her and Aaron together forever, but then again, this made it a happy ending all the way around. I enjoyed the part about when Aaron found out who Jayson was - including the part about believing in forever.

I thought the whole series was fun to read. It had predictable moments, but also moments I didn't see coming. I'm glad it brought up some real issues, teen pregnancy, abuse, adoption, runaways, depression, drug dependency, divorce, and much more - and that we see through this book that the Atonement takes care of all our pain and suffering, no matter the kind.

I recommend this series to anyone who loves Anita Stansfield or needs a clean romance series to read.

A Distant Thunder

A Distant Thunder
Anita Stansfield
4 Stars


Part two of a four part series, I enjoyed A Distant Thunder much more than the first part of the series. Not that the first book was bad, but much more predicable, and I'm glad that this book had some twists that I didn't see coming (there were some predicable parts, just not as many).

If I had to pick one thing that bothered me about this book it would be the best friend relationship that Elizabeth and Jayson continue to have even though they are married to separate people. Neither of their spouses ever became jealous or even skeptical of their relationship and there were points when they called each other several times a week. I think that even the most secure relationships would be strained if that were really the case.

The church is introduced in this book - as Elizabeth, and her Dad, become members after moving to Utah (one of those really predicable parts, she moves to Pleasant Grove, Utah - of course she is going to become a member of the church). Evan though I saw it coming I loved it.

I finished this book in one day. I really enjoyed it and can't read to read the next two.

I'm back!

Introducing my little distractions. I love to read. I love getting lost in a good book. I've loved reading and being able to share that love on my blog. However, I'm first and foremost a wife and mother. I typically keep my family on my family blog, but here they are! On February 12, my little Avery Ann joined our family. It's been so much fun having a girl to dress up. Newborns take a lot of time and energy, and 3 busy kids 5 and under take a lot more work. We've also been on the move with medical rotations, and in less than 5 weeks my husband will have reached his goal and graduate from medical school! YAY!

My reading has fallen behind, but I'm getting more sleep lately and started reading again. I hope to update this blog more. I have a lot of exciting books stacked up ready to read.

Let's get started!

The Sound of Rain

The Sound of Rain
Anita Stansfield
4 Stars



The Sound of Rain is Anita Stansfield's newest series. I'm a bit of a sucker for a good Anita Stansfield book, they are easy quick books, but just a bit predictable.



The story follows Jayson Wolfe, a talented musician. Of course, there is a girl, Elizabeth, and then there is conflict - they fall in love, then more conflict, sadness and then Stansfield wraps it up and we are left waiting for the next book.



I do like that I can read these romance books without having to worry about what is going to happen on the next page. When Jayson and Elizabeth took their kissing a little far and let their minds wonder, they quickly went home and talked to both their parents. I think a lot more of this should go on in the world today. Jayson is old fashion, and I loved his high-water table emotions. Also, Stansfield is an LDS author. Sometimes her books include a lot of LDS lingo, this series reads much more like any typical Christian romance book. (In fact, I keep waiting for LDS missionaries to knock on one of the character's doors and introduce them to the church!)



I've already bought the next two books in this four part series. I started the second one and can't wait to finish it. The second book has been less predicable than the first, which is nice.

I am a Mother

I Am a Mother

Jane Clayson Johnson

5 stars

Last year for Mother's Day one of my sister's and I went in together and sent my mom this book. It had received good reviews, but I had not read it. I finally got my hands on my mom's copy and took a few days to read it. I LOVED it and can't wait to get my own copy.

Jane Clayson Johnson, a former co-host of the Early Show on CBS addresses the question - how do we stop saying we are just a mother? The book really opened my eyes, I became a mom a little over 5 years ago, and have always been blessed to stay at home with my now 3 little ones. I know this is a blessing, but sometimes I wonder if anyone knows or cares that I once worked a great marketing job, that I did graduate with a Bachelor's degree, that I could still do any number of things and work full time, but I choose to stay at home. This book was exactly the boost that I needed. I am a Mother, I should be proud and I should never be ashamed of my decision to stay at home and be with my children.

I recommend this book to anyone, stay at home moms, working moms, sisters, daughters, even husbands and sons should read this book. It has an inspirational message that is good for all.

Promises to Keep: Diane's Story

Promises to Keep: Diane's Story

Dean Hughes

4 Stars

I was so excited when shopping in a local church book store when I found that this book had just come out! I loved Dean Hughes other series, Children of Promise and Hearts of the Children. I quickly bought this book and took it home and started reading it and couldn't put it down.

This novel is short, and follows the story of Diane after she had left her abusive husband in the Hearts of the Children series. We get to also see what happens to some of her other cousins in the story as well. I only wish that this story were a little longer. I get so swept up in series that I never want them to end. If you have read and enjoyed Dean Hughes other books, I recommend this book - it's easy, quick and a nice follow up.