I enjoyed Cameron Stracher's The Water Wars. I found the characters to be compelling. As someone who enjoys dystopian literature I thought the concept around this book to be intriguing.
The book is set in the not so distant future. The United States has been torn apart by numerous wars. These wars were focused not on oil, gold or land, but they were due to a shortage of fresh drinking water.
The primary characters are Vera, a 15-year-old girl, and her older brother, Will. Vera meets a mysterious older boy named Kai. Vera and Kai develop a friendship and then Kai disappears. Vera and Will seek to find Kai and bring him home. Along the way they encounter a number of fantastic adventures, develop close friendships and learn much about the world they live in.
Stracher did a pretty good job of developing a futuristic world that is desperately in need of water; at times I actually found myself thirsty. I would have liked to see more character development between Vera and Kai. It would have also been nice if we would have been able to get to know Kai better throughout the story.
Over all I enjoyed the book. While I might not agree with Stracher's political and environmental message it was a good read.
BIG SALE!!!How often do you hear about something that sounds too good to be true? Well, I am here to offer 10 lucky winners the opportunity of a lifetime.
New York Times bestselling co-author, novelist, and former Publisher of Avon Books and Berkley Books, Lou Aronica has created a unique and exciting offer to anyone that is going to follow his upcoming book tour with Pump Up Your Book. His extensive experience in the publishing and editing fields has given him insight into an industry that continues to grow and change daily. Once again, that insight has led him to offer a contest that is truly special in so many ways. Lou will be accepting story pitches from followers of his blog tour. These story pitches must be for short stories pertaining to the fantasy world of his novel, “Blue.” This contest will allow 10 lucky people the opportunity of a lifetime, the chance to have their story published in an upcoming companion anthology to “Blue.” Lou will hand pick the winners, edit their stories, include them in the anthology and give them a pro-rated share of the royalties. How can you pass up an opportunity like this?
Now for the details:
The pitch should include a synopsis of the proposed story and a sample of the submitting author’s fiction writing. Specify the expected length of the story.
The pitch needs to be submitted by April 16, 2011
Please email your submission to Lou at laronica@fictionstudio.com
This app is SUPERB!! The Strange and Wonderful World of Ants by Amos Latteier is a read-along geared for kids ages 7 and up. At that age, they should be able reading-level-wise to read alone but I can guarantee that younger will enjoy this app as well. Our six year old is enthralled by it! It is a very informative book on ants - we LOVED the illustrations and all of the new information we learned. Great app!!
I am so excited about this app! iLearn Solar System is an app that is sure to please your inquiring solar system minds OR your child that could care less! I think this one is great. You are led around the solar system by Zooby and Astronaut Ashley - and they teach you facts that will keep you learning for along time! I was impressed - the amount of information they cover is generous and it's not easy - my first grader will have a ways to go before this one is too easy for her! I think your older kids will REALLY appreciate this one! Fun app and challenging as well - we like that!
I have a first grader that LOVES school - I mean, REALLY LOVES school - so when I found these units, I was thrilled (and so was she!!). We are enjoying these!! I still do my regular math, reading, phonics, writing, etc. but we just add in a few books, etc. everyday to complete these units as well. So far, we've gone through two units and she is begging for more!!
I was sent an app to review a few weeks back and we are STILL enjoying it over here!! iCrayon Maker is just plain fun! You are given a swirling palette and colors to choose from - you choose your colors to add together, swirl them together on the palette, and come up with your own new colors!! You can save them to use for future fun, or you can add LOTS of white, clear your palette, and start creating a new color. You can also use your created colors to draw pictures! What a fun app - if your child (or you) enjoy crafts, drawing, coloring, etc. you will find hours of enjoyment here!!
I have to wholeheartedly agree with PBS when it says that this book is highly recommended!! Second Chance: How Adoption Saved a Boy with Autism and His Shelter Dog by Sandra Gerencher is a touching picture book that stays with you long after you are done reading! I love this great way of teaching what adoption is and also what autism may look like. I think kids and adults will resonate with this story - and hey, maybe even dogs!! If you've been touched by adoption or autism - this book will resound with you as well - you will "get it". This one WILL be on our bookshelf! If you'd like your own copy - purchase a hard copy or ebook HERE.
had it on my iPad for some time now and I have to say - it's motivating me to try my hand more in the kitchen. I broke out today and made the Surprise Cupcake recipe - absolutely amazing!! And what I loved about it the most?? I watched the video FIRST, I knew I couldn't go wrong! It was clear and easy to follow and the layout is wonderful. While I was cooking - I could easily flip from the ingredients screen to the directions screen. My girls helped me (it was in the kid-friendly section) and they loved helping - it was really right on their level.
