Review: If I Stay

Omg, you guys! This book, my cheeks they still be moist with the salty tears of sadness! This book is simply ah-mazing. I cannot begin to describe it. I cannot remember the last book I devoured in one day! I am kind of free writing this right now, as I have literally just put it down.

I was completely swept up in this story. My soul ached for her, her parents, and brother. The emotional aspects of this book are just well done. Not at all over the top. No angels or bright lights for Mia to walk towards..nothing. Just the question. Should she stay or should she go?

That right there made me weep like a baby. Personally I've been on the other side of that conundrum. I've watched a loved one as they lay in a hospital bed fighting for their lives. I know what THAT part is like. This book gave me a little glimpse at what it was like for the one in the bed. That is heart wrenching and ...wow.

This is one of my new favorite books.

The quote on the inside cover is quite right. It IS an achingly beautiful story. I definitely recommend it.

Children's Book Review: Adventures of Rusty & Ginger Fox

Book Description (from Amazon.com)

When two young foxes set out to explore the forest, they encounter all kinds of creatures. Some of them are friendly, while others would like nothing more than to eat the two young explorers! Rusty and Ginger may be able to outfox bears, bobcats, cougars, and wolves, but can they unlock the mysterious box that awaits them on Treasure Island? And will the little girls they meet there turn out to be friends or foes?

Join Rusty and Ginger as they travel through the woods. Author Tim Ostermeyer's beautiful wildlife photography provides a fox's-eye view of the forest. With a charming story to guide the way, and a fact page of wildlife information for every animal introduced in the book, readers can explore nature alongside Rusty and Ginger.

My Review:

This book is simply delightful! My son was so excited to see it on the table when he came home from school. He's six and just entering that awesome stage where he wants to know about everything! We both loved the beautifully done photographs and he enjoyed the story. I loved how engrossed he was when he was sitting on our couch flipping through the pages.

I saw his little imagination crank into overdrive and his brain start churning up more questions about the wilderness and the animals in the pictures. We had a very good time reading this book and I do think it would be the perfect book for any little person that is curious about animals like foxes, or just animals in general!

I have to say that I also learned a little bit from this book too. There are tons of interesting facts about the varieties of animals photographed. I have to say though that for me the best part about this book are the pictures. They are stunning and gorgeous!

**this book was provided by Phenix & Phenix for honest review.

What Are You Reading Monday?

I've had such a great weekend participating in the Thankfully Reading Weekend! I didn't get a whole lot of reading done but I did get enough to make me happy! :) I had fun with the Mini-Challenges and would definitely do this again next year!

I have found out through trial and error that if I plan a big list of books I will fail. So I will try to read ONE book this week. :)

My book selection this week will be :

I have read about this book a lot lately and it's definitely piqued my interest! It's not that long so it's not quite as intimidating as say, The Distant Hours.

I will also use this week to finish books left unfinished for one reason or another. I call it my ADD pile.

Have a great week! :)

Thankfully Reading Weekend-Wrap Up

Well, I didn't do what I had hoped. A little family drama kept my attention away from reading. I won't go into details but my sister is going through something really tough right now. I was on the phone with her most of yesterday.

I will give this read-a-thon a try again next year and hopefully I'll be more productive.

Books Completed: 0
Pages Read: 260

Thankfully Reading Weekend-Last Day + Mini Challenge

Welp, it's the last day! :( I have had fun and even though I haven't been able to read as much as I'd like I'm enjoying myself! :)

Last night I got a good chunk of Thunder and Ashes read. It's a very quick read so hopefully I can finish it and get another good chunk read out of The Distant Hours.

I have work today (woot) so I will take every spare moment and give it to reading!

So to start:

Thunder and Ashes
start on page: 105
ended-156

The Distant Hours
start on page: 361

Today’s Mini-Challenge is hosted by Jen from Devourer of Books:

So what I want to know, is what reading community are you thankful for, and why? Are you thankful for book bloggers? The book community on Twitter? Your spouse or family that lets you ramble on and on about what you’re reading and doesn’t complain (at least not too much) about the myriad of books flowing into the house?

I am incredibly thankful for the book blogging community in general! Everyone I've "met" through my blog has been super awesome and fun! I've always kind of been the "quiet girl in the corner with her books" but you guys have kinda pulled me out of that! I love it! I am eternally grateful for it too!

Thankfully Reading Weekend-Day 2

Day 2 is here! I've done all my errands and will now offically start my reading time! I do have two hours of work scheduled for today but the rest is all about da reading!

I'm still on The Distant Hours by Kate Morton. I'm kinda thinking about flip flopping to another book, but not because I don't like TDH but it's just so massive!

Starting on: TDH
pg. 351 -360 (took a break from TDH)

Started: Thunder and Ashes by Z.A Recht
Ended on pg: 105

Did a decent job. TaA is a pretty quick read. I will hope to finish at least TaA tomorrow!

Thankfully Reading Weekend-1st Mini Challenge

1st Mini-Challenge: Hosted By Jenn's Bookshelves

So, for the first Thankfully Reading Weekend, write a post about the book you are most thankful for. This could be a book released this year or twenty years ago. Your post should include why you are thankful for that book.

The book that I'm the most thankful for is Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. My mother gave me her copy and I devoured it. That one book was the start of my love affair with the written word! I could not put it down! Those girls and that family were just so riveting to my 10 year old self. I had been a reader before and loved books but THIS book made me a bookaholic. The copy that I was given has since fallen apart, but I still own a copy.