Picture Board Book Review: Rainy Day by Janet Morgan Stoeke

So it is a rainy Wednesday and it is national read a book day. So I just made myself a large mug of vanilla chai tea with extra cream and have decided to catch up on some of my picture book reading. Today's theme is RAIN! 

It is raining out and the hen Minerva Louise is stuck out in it and must find herself some shelter.

I have never read the Minerva Louise books before but, after reading this little gem I'm going to seek out more of them! This was incredibly short. Like short short. Like this is the perfect book for the wee itty bitty ones. Despite the brevity of this book I had an honest out loud laugh. Minerva Louise decides to take shelter under a lamb and it had me laughing more than any board book has before...come to think of it this might be a first. Normally, I don't care for board books. They are designed for baby's and well...they can be boring. But not this one!

I LOVED this! It has such great illustrations that I went back twice (again only a few pages long) to look at them all over again. I also loved that little spark of humor that was conveid in such few words but with a perfectly matched illustration. This is perfect for a baby and mom and dad wont mind reading this one over and over again. This has gone straight to my favorites shelf and I will be seeking out more books by this author. 

A well deserved 5 out of 5 stars!

Book Reread Review: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling

Ok so I actually finished this one over a month and half ago. But as I was forced to take another short break from blogging (more diabetes related complications) I never got to post my review. I'm not new to the Harry Potter world and have made no secret of my love of it nor that there was a time that I refused to read the books. (I'm a hufflepuffer by the way).

This is one that again I'm not going to summarize because you either have read the books or you never will. But seriously if you haven't what is wrong with you? No, really? Even I gave in and read them and I was stubborn as could be about not wanting to read them. Pick up the first book now. Go on, I'll wait...

This is probably my least favorite of all of the Harry Potter books. I've had to think long and hard on what it was that I don't like about the book. I think for me it is poor Ginny. I wont give anything spoilerish away (but seriously if you are reading this and haven't read the books...why?!?! Go read them!). I just felt so bad for her and cringe over what happens.

It is nice to get back to the castle where they area all a little bit older even if they are not always a bit wiser. Dobby is a great addition to the books. I know some people find him annoying but I always found him sweet and I love his loyalty (he is a Gryffindor for sure). We also get to learn more about Hagrid's past and why he was kicked out of Hogwarts. We are also introduced to one of my favorite characters...Arthur Weasley. His fascination with us muggles delights me as much as we delight him.

This one is 4 out of 5 stars!

Chapter Book Review: Magic Tree House- Dinosaurs Before Dark by Mary Pope Osborne

So two weeks ago I get a text message from

my son's new teacher. She let me know that my son had to read a book over the summer. As he has several learning disabilities he is in special education classes. So she wanted all her students to read a book on their level. This is hard as my son doesn't want to read "baby books" but has a rough time with chapter books. He has read a few of Dav Pilkey's books but I wanted him to branch out a bit. So I decided we should give the Magic Treehouse books a shot.

Brother and Sister, Annie and Jack, find a tree house filled with books. Jack makes a wish that has them suddenly whisked back to the time of the dinosaurs. Will they find their way home before dark?

This was a fairly easy to read book though the names of the dinosaurs did trip up my son. He had a fairly easy time keeping up with what was happening in the book and did ask some questions (like what was a magnolia). The chapters were not overly long so it made it easy to read one or two at a time without him becoming overly bored/tired. When I asked him if he liked the book he told me he wasn't sure. I think this had more to do with his problems communicating emotions than having to do with the book itself.

For me I found the book to be fun. I was too old when these books first came out but I have been aware of their popularity. My stepdaughter never read them and this was my first time reading one. I enjoyed the simplicity of it with it not being bogged down in descriptions and world building. It is good for children who are just starting to transition to chapter books. With only 10 chapters it is easy for them to manage.

I look forward to reading more books in the series and hope my son will join me in reading them. 

3 out of 5 stars.