Our Frail Disordered Lives

Title: Our Frail Disordered Lives

Author: Mary M. Schmidt

Publisher: self published, 2018

Genre: humor, horror

Pages: 195

Obtained: from the author in exchange for an honest review






Synopsis: What happens when a disgruntled demon wants to show his boss (the devil) what he's made of?

Thoughts: First of all, I thought this was going to be a horror book, but I would classify it as humor.  There were demons and an exorcism, but the story was presented in a comical way.  The story was told from the point of view of the demon that needed to be exorcised, which, to me, is really what made this story unique.  The writing was good, the story original and fresh, and the characters interesting.  I was entertained, especially at the beginning, and I am not a big fan of the humor genre. 

The only thing that bothered me was that there was just something about the book that was lacking.  It is hard to pinpoint,  but I believe it was the cohesion.  The story flowed, made sense, and wasn't confusing, but the way all the characters came together didn't work 100%.  It wasn't believable because it was just too easy- not complicated enough.

If you are looking for something entertaining, quick, and different to read, this is one to try.  If you are looking for a creepy horror story, look someplace else.


                                                                       

Company: Davids Tea

Tea: Organic Cinnamon Rooibos Chai

Obtained: purchased

Organic Cinnamon Rooibos Chai is a caffeine free chai.  The ingredients are rooibos, apple, cinnamon, and cinnamon flavouring.  This tea is made up of tiny orange and brown leaves with a few brown chunks of, I am assuming, dried apple.  The scent of the leaves is cinnamon.  I put one heaping teaspoon of leaves in my tea ball and poured 12 ounces of water over it.  I let this steep for 4 minutes.  The liquid was an orange brown with a cinnamon scent.  The taste was mostly of cinnamon, but the apple and rooibos gave the tea a slight sweetness.  If I wanted a cup of chai, I wouldn't pick this, but if I were looking for some cinnamon tea, I'd want this one.  This tea did not have the spiciness I look for in chai, but it is a delicious cinnamon tea- loved it!

Massachusetts Children's Book Award Program

My eleven year old son, Logan, is participating in the Massachusetts Children's Book Award Program.  The goal of this program, founded in 1975, and sponsored by Salem State University, is to encourage children to read.  The students were given a list of 25 books.  If they read at least five of the books on the list, they can vote for their favorite one in March.  They can read the book themselves, have someone read it to them, or listen to the audio book.  They do not have to do anything else, but are encouraged to share book reviews with one another.

My son's school kicked off this project with a "Book Tasting".  They purchased several new copies of each title on the list and laid them out on the cafeteria tables, which were covered with red and white checkered tablecloths- just like a picnic.  The students were supposed to read the book description on the back cover and look at the front cover, and then decide if it was something they might like to read.  What a great activity, right?  Not to my son who HATES anything to do with reading.  It was the most miserable day ever for him!

I looked at his list and my fifth grader had one book, just one, marked that he might like to read.  He LOVES to run, and the book, Ghost by Jason Reynolds,  had a picture of a boy running on the front cover.  The description on the back starts out with one word- Running.  I could see why this appealed to him.  He probably didn't read any further.  Logan struggles with reading and has just reached a fifth grade reading level (an R in Fountas and Pinnell).  Ghost is a Level Z.  I got the audio book at the library to try.  I was told by Logan's teachers that his comprehension level is way above his reading level and he likes being read to, just not reading books himself.

We decided we would start to listen to it in the car, and if he didn't like it, we'd try a different one.  Well, he loved it!  So did I!  AND my husband and 16 year old son listened to some of it and they were laughing and enjoying it too.  I have to say it is one of the BEST books I've ever read.  And the narrator- maybe THE best I've ever heard.  It is a great story with wonderful characters.  It has meaningful underlying themes with life lessons that are pertinent to older kids.  It is about serious stuff, but it's told in a light, humorous way.  Logan did not like the ending, and I can't say why because it would spoil the whole book for those who have not read it, but I thought it was perfect.  Logan understood the story, but not all the underlying themes, and I know that's why he didn't like the ending.  We talked about them, but he still wanted more information at the end.  Since Logan's reading level is not exactly where it is supposed to be, I think most fifth grade students and up would grasp more.  I didn't tell Logan yet, but Ghost is the first book in a "Track" series.  There are three more books, each about a different character from Ghost.  I want him to finish his five from the list before we go astray, but I am hoping he'll find out what he wanted to know from reading the other books in the series.

                                                               

The next book on the list that Logan picked to read was The Bad Guys by Aaron Blabey.  He read this one on his own.  It had lots of pictures and not a lot of writing.  It was a Level P, so below his reading level.  He read it in two sittings, which is amazing for Logan!  He said it was 
"okay".  After seeing him read it so quickly, I, of course, had to read it too.  I could see it being entertaining and funny to 4th graders and up (especially boys), and great for kids like Logan who get overwhelmed by a page full of words.  This is also a series.



                                                              

We are now listening to All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook by Leslie Connor, another advanced book, which we are both really enjoying.  I'll do a review on this when we've finished it.  If you have a child in grades 4 to 6, I would definitely check out this reading list, no matter where you live.  These are some really good books and I believe this program is accomplishing its mission.


                                                               

Death and Taxes

Title: Death and Taxes (first book in a series)

Author: Mark Zaslove

Publisher: Aperient Press, 2018

Pages: 219

Genre: mystery / crime, humor

Obtained: from author's publicity manager in exchange for an honest review






Synopsis: When Mark Douglas' friend and supervisor, Lila, is brutally murdered, he is determined to find out why and catch the bad guys.

Thoughts: This book begins with an action packed, humorous raid to collect back taxes, and quickly introduces the good guys.  The main character, Mark, was a Marine and is now an IRS agent.  There are some quirky, colorful characters in this book.  In a way, in the beginning, this book reminded me of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, but with a male protagonist.  The story line itself was simple and easy to follow. The focus of the writer seemed to be the humor, but even more so than in Evanvich's writing.

I have never liked comedy shows and there are many comedy movies that I just can't get into.  I find about the first five minutes funny, and then, I just lose interest with line after line of jokes that are supposed to make me laugh.  They're just not funny to me after those first few.  The same happens when I read comical books.  I enjoy a book more when there is a really good story and all throughout the book, every once in awhile, there is something funny unexpectedly thrown in.  When there is just line after line of humor, I lose interest.  Unfortunately that is what happened with this book and it was hard for me to get through.  Now I know MANY people just love this type of humor, and you'll probably love this book, especaiily if you like unconventional characters.  So, if you're looking for a good old fashioned mystery or crime novel, this is not what you are looking for, but, if you are looking for a comical book that doesn't let up on the funny lines, this is for you.  This book is definitely for adults.


                                                                    

Company: Davids Tea

Tea: Toasted Walnut

Obtained: free sample with order


Today I tried Toasted Walnut tea from Davids Tea, which is a green tea that has a low caffeine content.  The ingredients were sencha green tea, nut brittle (sugar, hazelnut), pineapple (pineapple, sugar), coconut (coconut, coconut fat, sugar), walnuts, almonds, and natural and artficial flavouring.  Some of the leaves were long and thin, while others were small, short pieces.  There was quite a large piece of walnut in my sample, along with chunks that looked like dried, sugar coated pineapple.  The scent of the leaves was of toasted coconut, sweet nuts, and a hint of fruit.  I put my sample packet in my tea steeper and poured 16 ounces of water that had been boiled over the leaves.  I let this sit for 3 minutes.  The liquid was a cloudy yellow with a scent of toasted coconut and nuts.  The taste was a nice combination of coconut, nuts, and fruit and had a slight sweetness to it.  This was a warming tea that gave me a cozy feeling.  This would be a great tea for a relaxing, snowy day.  I think it would go great with any book. 

Memory Man

Title: Memory Man

Author: David Baldacci

Narrator: Ron McLarity with Orlash Cassidy

Publisher: Hachette Audio, 2015

Format: 11 compact discs, 13.5 hours

Genre: mystery, crime fiction

Obtained: borrowed from friend




Synopsis: Amos Decker, a police detective, arrives home to find his family brutally murdered.  Over a year later a man turns himself in to the police, confessing that he was the one who murdered Decker's family. Decker feels the need to meet this man and ends up getting himself involved in helping the police with another high profile investigation.  Can Decker use his gifts to solve both of these crimes?

Thoughts: I listened to this book while doing mundane chores and driving.  It kept me entertained and I enjoyed it.  The story itself was not believable, and there was too much repetition at times, but it did hold my interest.  There was a lot going on throughout the book which is a big plus to me.  The author also gave details throughout the book which helped me to picture the story in my mind, along with the characters.

Although the main character was not exciting or charismatic, I liked that he was different- overweight, homeless, and couldn't forget anything due to a brain injury that occurred playing football.  To be honest, it was hard to connect to him at first, but by the end I sort of liked him.  The narrator did help to bring him to life.  The other characters were interesting and I was pleased that the author gave the reader some of their stories, but I wanted to know more.  This is the first in a series though, so maybe the author will share more about these characters in future books.  I have actually started the second book, which I am, so far, enjoying even more than the first one.

I would definitely recommend this book to mystery / crime fiction lovers looking for a new series.  I do have to say that some of the crimes are quite gruesome, so if this really bothers you, skip this one.


                                                                    

Company: Davids Tea

Tea: Organic Super Ginger

Obtained: purchased


Today I tried a caffeine free rooibos tisane- Organic Super Ginger from Davida Tea.  The ingredients were ginger, green rooibos, black pepper, white pepper, pink peppercorn, and natural flavouring.  The small, brown, thin leaves were combined with chunks of ginger and pink peppercorns.  The scent of the dry tea was of ginger.  I poured about a cup of water that had been boiled over approximately a teaspoon of tea and let this steep for five minutes.  The liquid was yellowish brown and had a ginger scent to it.  The taste was of ginger and spice, which balanced each other out resulting in a delicious tea.  I could not taste the rooibos at all.  This tea left a soothing tingly feeling in my throat and cleared my sinuses.  This is a warming , comforting tea, that would definitely be good when fighting off a cold or the flu.