"Last Dog On The Hill" by Steve Duno

At Where Is My Mind I found this "Review In Five" meme that fits Gerard's short reviews perfectly. You just say five things about a book like this:

 1.  It is the true story about Steve Duno befriending a dog.

2.  The dog's name is Lou.

3.  Steve and Lou have a great bond of friendship.

4.  Steve trained Lou well and Lou taught Steve a few things too.

5.  Last Dog On The Hill by Steve Duno is a good read if you like stories about dogs and the human-animal bond.

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

Tuesday Teasers From "The Insane Train" and "The Way Back To Mayberry"

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should  Be Reading. Anyone can play along, so I thought  I  would play for fun! Just do the following:          

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on  that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away!   You don’t  want  to  ruin the  book for others!)
• Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can  add the book to their TBR  Lists  if they  like your teaser. 

Gerard's:

"Now," he said, tugging at his nose, which had now disappeared altogether, "about this proposition. You're telling me you want to hire on as security to help transport mental patients from California to Oklahoma?"

from p. 74 of The Insane Train by Sheldon Russell (The review will be posted Saturday (1/8/11) for this one)


Karen's:

Because of his appearance and social status, Rafe never had a chance with the mayor and Mrs. Jeffries. Look at what they missed--a warm, funny, and talented individual. It makes you wonder about the relationships we may miss because we are too quick to judge people on external appearances.

From p. 33 of The Way Back To Mayberry: Lessons From A Simpler Time by Joey Fann

"I'm Outnumbered! One Mom’s Lessons in the Lively Art of Raising Boys by Laura Lee Groves

I’m Out numbered!:  One Mom’s Lessons in the Lively Art of Raising Boys by Laura Lee Groves is a good little handbook for moms (and dads) of boys.  I got this because I teach 5^th grade boys in Sunday School and thought it may be helpful.  She kept the chapters short because she knows moms are very busy so it is a quick read.  She addresses many issues including expectations, laying a foundation for reading, sibling rivalry, teaching respect, organizing, media, teaching responsibility, and communication.  Also included is a special chapter for dads, for single moms, and one from the boys themselves!  Laura Groves also includes an extensive list of recommended books that deal with related topics that she wrote about in this book. 

I think this book would be helpful to any parent of boys especially.  It is sprinkled with some humor and scripture which makes it a very enjoyable and interesting read.  I liked it and am not even a parent but this book makes parenting sound like lots of fun!  As I was reading, I kept thinking of different mothers I know who may benefit from reading this.  Some general advice from I’m outnumbered! is to let boys be creative, don’t let them hurt each other, don’t play favorites, give them all a chance to be leaders and promote teamwork, treat them as individuals, love them no matter what they do or don’t do, teach them manners by challenging them to be honorable like knights. 

I’m Outnumbered! would make a great gift for parents of boys.   I highly recommend this book and can’t say enough good about it.  Thanks to The 160 Acre Woods:  A Mom's Manual For Boys for posting about it.  If this book appeals to you, please check out these great blog posts that give advice on raising boys by Italian Mama Gone Crazy:  What Would Mama Do? (Part Uno) and What Would Mama Do? (Part Due for mothers of little boys).  Many of the things Laura Groves wrote about in this book reminded me of the advice I read in these blog posts. 

Check out my teaser.

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

"A Closer Look At The Evidence" by Richard & Tina Kleiss

(I did a video review of this because it was such a rare thing for Spunky Doodle to let me pet her for so long sitting next to me in the chair. You really have to look close to see her tucked sweetly under my left arm.)

 A Closer Look at the Evidence is a collection of facts that support the truth and accuracy of the the Bible from different branches of science.  "The primary purpose of this book is to help people understand what makes Christianity so trustworthy."  This book is formatted as a devotional with one page for each day covering one shred of evidence in support of a creator and the accuracy and authority of the Bible.  It has a verse and references the source of the information shared for that day.  There is an Index by topic and subject in the back for easy reference.

Subjects include: Anatomy, Anthropology, Archaeology, Astronomy, Biblical Accuracy, Biblical Uniqueness, Biology, Botany, Changed Nature, Chemistry, Common Sense, Comparing Religions, Creation Foundation, Earth's Ecology, Fossil Record, Genetics, Geology, Great Scientists, History, Language, Mathematics, Microbiology, Physics, Prophecy, Psychology, and Worldwide Flood.

I recommend this to anyone who is interested in science, evolution, or curious about God, creation or the Bible.
(Karen's review)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

Book Tag: 5 Questions

(den) Made by Karen's Dad

I thought this was a pretty interesting meme that I saw by BeautyBooksEtc on YouTube so both Gerard and I decided to do it.  If you are reading this and like it, then consider yourself tagged.

What is your all-time favorite book ever?



Made by Karen's dad



Karen: Other than the Bible which I believe is God’s Word and has had the hugest impact on my life, I think I’d have to go with Beautiful Child by Torey Hayden. I love stories about teaching and this one has the dynamic of tension between two different teacher’s as well as a touching story about a special needs class with a physically abused girl (the beautiful child) who broke my heart. I gleaned several teaching tips from this and laughed out loud at certain parts but cried at the end. This was a WOW book for me—an emotional page-turner with teaching strategies!

Gerard: This is really hard but I'd say it's Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult. I thought it was fantastic because it had everything I look for in a book: twists and turns, believable characters, hard to put down, interesting subject and a great ending! In my opinion, this is her best book!

What is your least favorite book:

(basement) Made by Karen's Dad

Karen: I’m not sure if this means my least favorite being the least of the books I like the most which would take too long to figure out or a book I absolutely hated which is what I will answer. Not counting ones I didn’t finish, I’d have to say it’s a tie between Much Ado About Jessie Kaplan by Paula Cohen about an old lady believing she was Shakespeare’s mistress and At Home In Mitford by Jan Karon about the daily business of a priest in a small town. It just dragged along but I finished it because my sister-in-law recommended it.

Gerard: My worst was The Tower, the Zoo And The Tortoise because I just never could get into it even though I wanted to like it because of all the hpye it got. I did not "get" it at all.