Miss Emily author by Burleigh Muten, illustrated by Matt Phelan (A story of Miss Emily Dickinson) [Review & Giveaway] USA/CANADA

ISBN: 9780763657345
Hardcover $15.99
Ages 7-10, Grades 3-5
Candlewick Press 

My thoughts: This delightful story presents a fictionalized Miss Emily Dickinson and her young neighbors in fun adventures in her garden and about in the evening. The story is written in free verse with short lines gracing the pages rather than structured format of rhyming poems or paragraph prose. This is a nice introduction (albeit fictionalized) to Miss Emily Dickinson, favorite poet of America. It is also a good introduction to reading free verse with a storyline similar to what it would be were it written in regular paragraph form.

A whimsical Miss Emily is portrayed in this story as the instigator and conspirator of adventures. The bibliography at the end is an asset as is the section of historical notes including the identity of the people actually in the story: "Mac" is MacGregor (Mac) Jenkins who lived across the street from the Dickinson mansion during his childhood. He became an author and wrote Emily Dickinson, Friend and Neighbor in 1930. And "Ned" is Edward (Ned) Dickinson who was Miss Emily's nephew living next door to his aunt.

The story..... It is an invitation to adventure issued by Miss Emily to the four children to meet her at night to go see the traveling circus and all it's glory. While out and about, one of the children is hurt. But all does not end there. They adventure continues.

Soft black and white sketches bring life to the story and each illustration has the identifying line of text beneath it. The book is abundantly illustrated but not a true "picture book." Matt Phelan's illustrations have a charm that speaks well to the story and to the time frame in which the story happened.

An engaging read, while it might involve some struggle for some readers to grasp the style. It is still a great introduction to fictionalizing a real person (and people), an opportunity to read a "story" in a different style, and to have a fun time whilst doing it all.

Read a sample chapter

About the book: Discover the mischievous and affectionate side of a revered poet in this adventure about Emily Dickinson, four young friends, and a traveling circus. 

When an invitation to join Miss Emily in the garden appears, Mattie, Ned, Sally, and Mac know they’re in for some fun because Miss Emily — Emily Dickinson to the rest of us — always has a surprise in store for her young friends. And today’s may be the biggest adventure yet. In Burleigh Mutén’s suspenseful story, beautifully illustrated by celebrated artist Matt Phelan, Mac, the youngest member of the group, tells what happens when a reclusive poet and her band of pretend Gypsies wait for the midnight circus train to arrive.

Recap: Over the past few days, I have been reviewing three very well done children's books that feature the classical literary world. With these reviews is a giveaway of one of the books as a courtesy of Candlewick Press. So we've have a engaging look at Charles Dickens, an anthology of Classic Poetry, and a delightful rendering of a fictional tale about Emily Dickerson. The books are......

• Classic Poetry An Illustrated Collection by author/anthology editor: Michael Rosen & illustrated by Paul Howard
• Miss Emily author by Burleigh Muten 
• Charles Dickens England's Most Captivating Storyteller by author: Catherine Wells-Cole

GIVEAWAY

Begins August 30

ENDS September 20 @ 12:01 a.m. ET

Open to USA & CANADA addresses only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

DISCLOSURE: I was provided a complimentary copy by Candlewick Press to facilitate this review. Opinions are solely my own. I was not compensated for this review.

Pure Glow Brightening Moisturizer - A real treat for your skin - Valentia Natural Skin Care

This line of cosmetics is named after the Roman Goddess of healing, Valentia, who relied on nature’s gifts to heal the citizens of Umbria. Whether matriarchs seeking to maintain their youthful look or farmers seeking help for sun damaged skin, Valentia used berries, herbs, barks and other natural ingredients. Now Valentia Skin Care products have been formulated with natural and organic cosmetic ingredients that are chosen to repair and protect the skin.

Previously, I reviewed several Valentia products and found them to be very nice and I really enjoy using them. Now their new product, Pure Glow Brightening Moisturizer is proving that it, too is top notch.

The Valentia products are packed in lovely, enticing packaging that shows they value their product.

Pure Glow Brightening Moisturizer is in a pump bottle and a couple depressions emits an amount just about right for the face. If you chose to cover the neck and chest area, a bit more will be needed. It goes on smooth and absorbs readily. It leaves the skin feeling very good. The softening and moisturizing effect is lasting throughout the day.

I applied it twice daily for a week and have enjoyed using it. I anticipate that it will aid in lightening the darker spots that have appeared on the side of my face. Nevertheless, the moisturizing qualities are very good.

There is virtually no scent which is good for those who can't tolerate fragrances. It is absolutely non-irritating to the skin (at least to me) and doesn't sting at all as some lotions and moisturizers tend to do.

I can highly recommend this product.

Product information from Valentia:  Pure Glow Brightening Moisturizer - A lightweight fast absorbing cream that illuminates skin while providing all-day hydration. It will.... Lighten dark spots

• Lighten dark spots
• Restore skin radiance
• Even skin tone
• Diminish fine lines
• Provide all-day hydration

KEY INGREDIENTS:

•  Botanical Hyaluronic Acid: Floods skin with moisture, supports skin elasticity, and plumps skin from within.
• Kojic Acid: Controls melanin production and prevents dark spots.
• Ginseng: Boosts skin firming collagen, fights wrinkles, and gives the skin a brighter and more energized look.
• Safflower Oil: Repairs skin's natural moisture barrier and provide superior skin protection.
• Shea Butter: Infuses skin with a myriad of vitamins and nutrients for superior skin hydration and nourishment.

Find the product: Amazon Valentia Facebook   Instagram

Disclosure: I received a complimentary product from Valentia to facilitate this review. Opinions are my own. I was not required to post a positive review. I was not compensated. Powered by BrandBacker.

Itsy Bitsy Christmas You're Never Too Little for His Love By: Max Lucado THOMAS NELSON

ISBN: 9780718088873

About the book: "The King has come! Even for a little one like me!"

Do you ever feel like you are too small or too ordinary? This is just how Itsy and Bitsy feel. When these two charming little mice hear that a King is coming to Bethlehem, they set off with great enthusiasm to find Him. Along the way, they are met with discouraging words telling them they are too little and unimportant for any king. Just when Itsy and Bitsy begin to believe they really aren't big enough for the new King, they learn that Christ the King has indeed come for everyone.


Crafted by bestselling author and master storyteller Max Lucado, Itsy Bitsy Christmas helps children understand God's great love and know that He sent His Son for all of us--little or big, young or old.

My thoughts: I was really looking forward to this Max Lucado book for children about Christmas. Mr. Lucado's books are always beautifully done, artistically, and the message is always wonderfully presented by the author.

In Itsy Bitsy Christmas we have two little mice scurrying about Bethlehem because they heard a king was soon to come to Bethlehem and they wanted to see the king. They spoke to a variety of animals and all said no king would come to little tiny Bethlehem. And then they go back to the manger where the animals are and they see a tiny babe and know this is the king they had looked for.

The symbolism is that no matter how little or insignificant you are, the king comes for you. And though this is subtly presented (even says "for me" with an animal speaking), it is there. Jesus is king of all and he is savior of all and he comes for the smallest and most insignificant. This is a truth. It is not a truth that He, the Savior, has come to redeem or be king of the animals. He came to redeem mankind.

I loved the illustrations and they are great for a children's book and the expressions, activities, colors are spot on for the story being told.

What I didn't care for....... this doesn't seem to come up to previous publications by Mr. Lucado and his strong Christian teaching. The story is a bit absurd in places (mice peering inside a donkey's nose?). The story is a bit weak even for the young children for whom it is written. More of Christ's incarnation would have been appropriate and the Biblical importance of Christ's incarnation deserves better than little mice frolicking around Bethlehem.

A cute book, but not a favorite of Chat With Vera.

DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy from the BookLook Blogger Review program to facilitate a review. Opinions are my own. I was not compensated.

No Way Up (The Cimarron Legacy Book One) by Mary Connealy [Review & Giveaway]

My thoughts: I always look forward to reading one of Mary Connealy's books. She brings a relaxing, pleasurable read to the table filled with signature Connealy humor, comedy, and sassiness.

Wrapped in a family saga situated in the New Mexico area when it was newly settled and sprinkled with a sweet blossoming romance between ranch owner's daughter and cowpoke the story entertains and keeps the reader engaged. Embellished with some history of the area following the Spanish American war, the story gave insight into the emotional and political as well as familial history of the area.

I thoroughly enjoyed the ramped up verbal clashes between the two brothers as well as between them and their cowhand, Heath. Obviously Heath is a man of honor and savvy regarding ranching and hard work. He is also a life saver for the family on several occasions.

The side story of the orphanage in town and the new worker for it, Angie, is nice and promises more to come (in my hopeful opinion) in follow up stories by Connealy in this Cimarron Legacy series. I look forward to seeing what becomes of highly educated and intelligent Cole and rough and ready ranch owner Justin.

About the book: When Cimarron ranch patriarch Chance Boden is caught in an avalanche, the quick actions of hired hand Heath Kincaid save him. Badly injured, Chance demands that his will be read and its conditions be enforced immediately.

Without anyone else to serve as a witness, Heath is pressed into reading the will. If Justin, Sadie, and Cole Boden don't live and work at home for the entire year, the ranch will go to their low-down cousin Mike.

Then Heath discovers the avalanche was a murder attempt, and more danger might follow. Deeply involved with the family, Heath's desire to protect Sadie goes far beyond friendship. The danger keeps them close together, and their feelings grow until being apart is the last thing on their minds.

GIVEAWAY

Begins September 2

ENDS September 23 @ 12:01 a.m. EDT

Open to USA addresses only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy from Bethany House Publishing to facilitate this review. Opinions are my own and I was not compensated.

Classic Poetry: Candlewick Illustrated Classic, Michael Rosen (Editor), Paul Howard (Illustrator) [Giveaway "Miss Emily" USA/CANADA]

Over the next few days, I shall be reviewing three very well done children's books that feature the classical literary world. With these reviews will come a giveaway of one of the books as a courtesy of Candlewick Press. So we'll have a look at Charles Dickens, an anthology of Classic Poetry, and a delightful rendering of a fictional tale about Emily Dickerson. The books are......

• Classic Poetry An Illustrated Collection by author/anthology editor: Michael Rosen & illustrated by Paul Howard
• Miss Emily author by Burleigh Muten [This will be the giveaway prize book.]
• Charles Dickens England's Most Captivating Storyteller by author: Catherine Wells-Cole

Classic Poetry An Illustrated Collection by author/anthology editor: Michael Rosen, Paul Howard, illustrator

ISBN13: 9780763642105
Softcover $12.99

This is a beautiful collection of poetry specific to English language poets. They are from countries across the World. The book is strikingly illustrated with a rich array of paintings and drawings that the artist developed after studying the poetry, traveling to some of the countries, and trying to put to paints what the authors put in words. A daunting task.

This books is not a young child's book, as the content is more suited for age 10 and up. So while this is published by a primarily children's press (Candlewick Press), it is suitable for children and adults. This will make grand addition to the home library for those who wish to read or study poetry and for those who wish to introduce their children to the words of great poets. A truly nice collection.

The poets in this anthology encompass a timeline from 1564 AD (William Shakespeare's birth) to 2000 AD (Judith Wright's death). There are brief biographies of the poets and paintings of them as well. This provides easy access for children (students) to become acquainted with the poets, aid their research into English literature and the authors of that genre. Provided also is a grand little index in the back of the book. And then there are the delightful lines of poetry themselves.....

The Mock Turtle's Song (Lewis Carroll) p.84

"Will you walk a little faster?"

said a whiting to a snail.

"There's a porpoise close behind us,

and he's treading on my tail.

See how eagerly the lobsters and

the turtles all advance!

They are waiting on the shingle--

will you come and join the dance?

Will you,  won't you, will you, won't you,

will you join the dance?...........

O Captain! My Captain! (Walt Whitman) p.76

O Captain! my Captain! our fateful trip is done,

The ship has weather'd every rack, the prize we sought is won,

The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,

While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring;

But O heart! heart! heart!

O the bleeding drops of red,

Where on the deck my Captain lies, 

Fallen cold and dead.

This eclectic anthology of poems includes serious, deep thinking thoughts as well as light hearted, jovial. However, true to poetry, there is often loneliness and heartbreak hidden in the lines of the funny or lighthearted.

About the book: Poetry provides the best introduction to the marvels of the English language. This volume, collected by award-winning author Michael Rosen, presents a glorious selection of classic poetry, chronologically arranged from the seventeenth century to modern day—poems by such celebrated poets as William Shakespeare, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Emily Dickinson, Carl Sandburg, and Langston Hughes— complete with biographical sketches of the poets, information on individual poems, and notes on poetic forms. Paul Howard's full-color illustrations illuminate some of the most brilliant poems of the English-speaking world with stunning breadth and beauty. A book to be treasured, Classic Poetry belongs on every shelf—every child should know these poems and keep this book with them as they grow.

GIVEAWAY

Begins August 30

ENDS September 20 @ 12:01 a.m. ET

Open to USA & CANADA addresses only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

DISCLOSURE: I was provided a complimentary copy by Candlewick Press to facilitate this review. Opinions are solely my own. I was not compensated for this review.

Seven and A Half Tons of Steel by Janet Nolan, illustrated by Thomas Gonzalez

"Strength forged through sacrifice.
 Never forget."

My thoughts: It has been 15 years since that infamous day in September when America was attacked by terrorists using "homegrown" or routine means - airplanes loaded with passengers - to wreak havoc on three American locations. New York was home to the World Trade Towers and airplanes were flown into the sides of these massive towers resulting in their crumbling into a mass of human death out of which immense strength grew. From this wreckage was retrieved a steel beam, and that is the beginning of the story of Seven and a Half Tons of Steel.

To say this picture book is intensely moving is simplification. The bold art vividly and movingly depicts the story of what is known in history as 9/11. Though not a full story of that day, the text conveys in terse prose the day, the dreaded event, the result, and the weeping. The art and text carry a darkness about them. The story doesn't try to convey the immense loss and sorrow or the depth of this event on the peoples, the city, and the nation because the story in this book is what happened from the rubble of this disaster and how America has used this ruination to forge strength and service and protection for America.

It is a story of how steel workers took a battered, broken beam of steel from the Towers. How they carried it from New York to Louisiana (a very long truck journey). How steel workers melted that broken, wrecked steel beam until it was amazingly fiery hot and molded it into material that was shaped to become.....

....the bow of the USS New York LPD 21!

Now that bow plows through the mighty oceans of the World carrying over 700 combat ready Marine Corps troops, their equipment, and supplies. It has a landing platform/dock. It is staffed by up to 360 U.S. Navy sailors.  It is a symbol but it is also a piece of American strength.

I was moved to learn the symbolism of the shield. Each stroke and spot on the shield takes me back in my memory to that day, that time, those terrible deaths, the loss, and the victories. The men and women who served and the battles they won in the face of huge impossibilities to defeat the hopelessness that could have easily overtaken them, the American people.

I strongly encourage every library to acquire a copy of this for young people to read, and re-read, and then read again so that they can understand "Strength forged through sacrifice. Never forget."

About the book: There is a ship, a navy ship. It is called the USS New York. It is big like other navy ships, and it sails like other navy ships, but there is something special about the USS New York. Following the events of September 11, 2001, the governor of New York gave the Navy a steel beam that was once inside one of the World Trade Towers. The beam was driven from New York to a foundry in Louisiana. Metal workers heated the beam to a high, high temperature. Chippers and grinders, painters and polishers worked on the beam for months. And then, seven and a half tons of steel, which had once been a beam in the World Trade Center, became a navy ship's bow. This powerful story reveals how something remarkable can emerge from a devastating event. 


Peachtree Publishing has a terrific Teachers' Guide for studying and learning from the story in Seven and a Half Tons of Steel. It is filled with facts, questions, and crossword puzzles. Just click here to open it so you can download it yourself. Use at home or in school or library.

Purchase the book....? Click here 

GIVEAWAY

Begins September 2

ENDS September 22 @ 12:01 a.m. ET

Open to USA addresses only

a Rafflecopter giveaway
DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy from Peachtree Publishers to facilitate this review. Opinions are my own. I was not compensated. Winner's copy will be mailed directly to the winner by the publishers. Pictures used are property of Peachtree Publishing and/or Thomas Gonzalez and Chat With Vera claim no property rights to pictures.

You need some TLC - summer wind-down and finding "Time for Mommy"

Schools across America have opened their doors for the influx of students eager to see their friends, learn new things, participate in activities, and simply enable them to grown into intelligent, strong, individuals ready to face the future. These students leave behind Moms who have seen them through swimming lessons, camp traumas, rainy day boredom, squabbles, and sheer inertness. Moms who are tired. Moms who are ready for a few moments of quiet. Moms who are need to recharge, relax, and be rejuvenated. And don't forget these are Moms who stand ready to face their kid's homework challenges and crying sessions, after school piano lessons and more swimming or ball or dance activities. Mom's who will bake dozens of cookies and guide many projects through the upcoming months.

Moms who are there for their kiddies and Moms who simply need to take time for themselves so their bucket of "Mommyism" doesn't run out. But how is it done?

First of all you, the Mom or me, the Mom or your neighbor, the Mom needs to take a few moments for themselves in quiet to simply be still.

Have an extra cup of coffee. Or perhaps have that first cup of coffee (or tea if you prefer). Sip it quietly, slowly, curled up in your favorite chair or snuggled under the bed covers. Read quietly for a few moments. Perhaps this is a good time to quietly read God's Word. This doesn't have to be an intense study time. Just a quiet time to read and recharge. 

When you have an extra 30 minutes or so, run a tub full of warm (or hot) water. Toss in a couple of handfuls of bath salts. Pick something that has a scent that makes you feel wonderful to be around - floral, spicy, minty. I've reviewed some really nice bath salts that de-stress, relax, rejuvenate and they have natural essential oils that promote well-being. Grab that new book (not a thriller - this is relax time), and slide down in those warm waters and let your skin, your muscles, and your emotions become like new.

Don't forget part of that "me-time" includes "me-pretty-time." Accomplish this however fits your personality. It doesn't have to be high glamour. It just needs to be an activity that gives you that "I feel pretty" feeling and look. Yesterday, I had a pedicure. Those warm waters swirling around my feel and the oils, scrubs, massage, clippings, scrapings were marvelous. Then I chose a beautiful apple red to give some prettiness to these tired feet of mine. Yes, "I feel pretty." If you can't go get a professional pedicure, do it yourself. It doesn't have to be perfect. It just needs to be something that makes you feel pretty, pampered.

So what have you done today or will you do tomorrow to take time for yourself? Will you take a warm bath with bubbles, oils, or salts? Will you have pretty nails to peek at you when you lift your feet onto the footstool for a few moments of reading? Will you buy a special blend of coffee or a special tea that you enjoy as your special treat to sip and enjoy?

Remember...... you are the Mommy and if mommy isn't taken care of, the rest of the family doesn't get taken care of. So grab that little bit of time - just a bit here 'n there - and see what miracles that doesn't do for you and for your family.