book review

February 8, 2018

Book Review: Twenty-One Steps of Courage by Sarah Bates

Twenty-One Steps of Courage by Sarah Bates

Review:

If you love adventures and patriotic stories, this book will be a great read. I particularly liked the way the author stressed on family values and sacrifices family make for one another. This book is very well researched as you will come across a lot of acronyms related to military and that convinces me that I’m indeed getting the right facts on how a military life would be.

Publisher: Booklocker.com, Inc.  (Mar 31, 2012)Category: Literary Fiction, Military Fiction, Adventure, Realistic FictionTour dates: Feb/Mar, 2018ISBN: 978-1-61434-957-0Available in Print, ebook, & Audiobook 280 pagesFrom award-winning author. In 2006, with wars in Iraq and Afghanistan raging, Rod Strong enlists in the Army to achieve the goal his father sought before he tragically died in the Gulf War. His objective: The Old Guard regiment, the elite Soldiers who stand as Sentinels at the Tomb of the Unknown in Arlington National Cemetery. Rod overcomes the obstacles that litter his path until an unexpected firefight in Afghanistan changes his life forever.

Praise Twenty-One Steps of Courage by Sarah Bates

“Sarah Bates professes not to know much about the military yet she tells an inspiring story that captures the true essence of what the military is all about — love of country — unit esprit de corps — family values — personal courage. Every high school student, every parent and all of the politicians in this country should read this book.”- Lloyd N. Cosby, retired Tomb Guard (Alexandria, VA, US)“I…read the book and I cried A LOT–it was very heartwarming and extremely interesting. When you described the part about him fighting and saving his brother–I felt I was there–a sure movie deal I hope.”- Detra Hoffman (Los Angeles, CA)“The book covers a lot: what to expect in boot camp and after, the amount of control that the military has over your life once you join, and the responsiblities and hardships that your decision to join places on your loved ones. It also explores camaraderie between soldiers, the pride that attends possessing a strong sense of duty and of self, and the rewards of follow-through. Twenty-One Steps of Courage is a well balanced story about military life. Not too left or right, it’s a good read, one that I would recommend to anyone.”- Caradae Linore (San Diego, CA)“The author did a wonderful job portraying the feelings of an 18-year-old man. Although I’ve seen the soldiers marching at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, I was unfamiliar with the training and precision involved. I didn’t understand a lot of the military acronyms but that didn’t stop me from enjoying this story.”-Midnight Reader, Amazon Review

About Sarah BatesTwenty-One Steps of Courage by Sarah Bates

Award winning author, Sarah Bates’ fiction has appeared in the Greenwich Village Literary Review, the San Diego North County Times (now the Union-Tribune) and the literary magazine Bravura.She is the author of ‘The Lost Diaries of Elizabeth Cady Stanton’, published in 2016, and co-author of the 2005 short story collection, ‘Out of Our Minds, Wild Stories’ by Wild Women. Bates was an English Department writing tutor at Palomar College in California for ten years. She privately tutors academic and creative writing students and is writing a new novel.She is a Military Category Finalist for ‘Twenty-One Steps of Courage’, Next Generation Indie Book Awards, (2013) and 2nd Place Finalist, for ‘The Lost Diaries of Elizabeth Cady Stanton’, Unpublished Novel-Category, San Diego Book Awards (2015). It has since been published.Sarah Bates lives in Fallbrook, California.Website: http://www.sarahbatesauthor.comTwitter: https://twitter.com/bateswriter Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sarahbatesauthor/

Buy Twenty-One Steps of Courage by Sarah Bates

AmazonBarnes&NobleBook DepositoryIndieBound

Follow Twenty-One Steps of Courage by Sarah Bates Tour

Teddy Rose Book Reviews Plus Feb 2 Review & GiveawayChris Amazon Review Feb 5 ReviewBeverly’s Book Blog Feb 6 Review, Interview, & GiveawayBeppe La libreria di Beppe Feb 8 Guest Review by Betty & ExcerptJas International Book Reviews Feb 9 ReviewKaty Amazon Review Feb 15 ReviewKathleen Jersey Girl Book Reviews Feb 16 Review & ExcerptIndie Authors Behind the Scenes WebTV Feb 20 1 pm est Video InterviewDawn Bound 4 Escape Feb 20 Guest Review by KateDawn Bound 2 Escape   Feb 20 ExcerptDonna M My Life. One Story at a Time Feb 21 Review, Excerpt,  & GiveawayDonna H. Girl Who Reads Feb 22 Guest Review by Sal &  Guest PostRaymond Amazon Review Feb 23 ReviewElisha Rainy Day Reviews Feb 28 Review, Interview, & GiveawayDarlene Amazon Review Mar 7 ReviewLeslie StoreyBook Reviews Mar 21 Guest Review by Laura & ExCharles Ray’s Ramblings Mar 30 Review 

November 22, 2017

Book Review: Making Peace with Suicide by Adele Ryan McDowell, PhD

Making Peace with Suicide by Adele Ryan McDowell, Ph.D.

Making Peace with Suicide

Blurb:

Insightful, provocative, and compassionate, Making Peace with Suicide: A Book of Hope, Understanding, and Comfort takes a good hard look at the world-wide phenomena of suicide. This book is designed for anyone who has lost a loved one to suicide and felt that sucker punch of grief; for anyone who is in pain, walking unsteadily, and considering suicide as an option; and for anyone who works with, guides, or counsels those feeling suicidal and/or suffering the profound grief from a suicidal loss. Making Peace with Suicide includes stories of courage, vulnerability, and steadfastness from both the survivors of suicidal loss as well as the unique perspective of the formerly suicidal. It offers shared wisdom and coping strategies from those who have walked before you. It explores the factors leading to suicide and the reasons why some do and some don’t leave suicide notes. Making Peace with Suicide sheds light on the phenomena of suicide vis-à-vis our teens, the military, new mothers, as an end-of-life choice, and asks if addiction is a form of slow suicide. It provides a seven-step healing process and opens the door to consider suicide and the soul, the heart lesson of suicide, and the energies of suicide. If suicidality has impacted your life, Making Peace with Suicide is a must-read. You will be guided through the unknown territory, given insights to allow understanding, stories to help you heal, and ways to make peace with a heart wide-open. Making Peace with Suicide is good medicine for the body, mind, and soul.

Review:

Lots of research involved in this book and you can tell this from the way they book was written. It is a bit like a work of academic and it helps you to actually understand coping mechanisms and how to embrace the fact that someone who had been a great part of your life had taken away his or her life. I’ve personally lost a friend who took her own life and I can relate to this book. The first part of the book was solid. However, as the approaches the mid section, some of the parts sound more like the author’s opinion. Therefore, I think this book is a mixture of both academic and non-fiction work.

I will give this book a 4-star !

Get it on Amazon now!

November 16, 2017

Book Review: Santa’s Little Helper by Ronald Destra

Santa's Little Helper by [Destra, Ronald]

Santa’s Little Helper

Blurb:

In the quiet town, snowflakes lightly fall. Though the road to town is not well-travelled, a special visitor is to appear.

It is Daniel’s first Christmas and he eagerly awaits him. Who is Santa Claus? Daniel wants to find out and see for himself!

When his parents are fast asleep, the sound of a Christmas carol makes him stir. His eyes slowly open, and the rumbling singing halts not. He must be here!

Running to the living room, his joyful gaze of anticipation meets that of the one and only Santa Claus, and does he have a job for Daniel!

This year, a Christmas wish is made come true! Being Santa’s little helper, Daniel finds out this is the season of love, joy, and giving!

Review:

I think this book makes a good Christmas gift for kids. A simple yet entertaining story. Great illustrations. The story could have been made more interesting as I thought it sounds like a normal Santa’s story.

A 3 star for this book

November 16, 2017

Book Review: ON THE OPEN ROAD: Three Lives. Five Cities. One Startup. by Stuti Changle

ON THE OPEN ROAD: Three Lives. Five Cities. One Startup. by [Changle, Stuti]

On the Open Road

Blurb:

Myra wishes to break free of her cubicle.
Kabir wonders what life would be to build on his own.
Sandy drops out of college to work on the next big startup idea.
Ramy inspires millions of his generation on his travel blog – on the open road.

On the Open Road revolves around the lives of these restless and dreamy 20-somethings as they battle their inner demons and the societal taboos to live life on their terms. It is an emotional journey of following one’s heart. The tale speaks of friendship, love and loss, happiness and depression, fear and conquest, dreaming and achieving.

Will they be able to embark on the journey to embrace their true selves? Or succumb to the hardships on their road to freedom?

Review:

This book is definitely worth reading as we all could relate to the characters very much. If you are in your twenties or if you struggling to find the purpose in life and facing challenges from the society you live in, this book will assure you that you are not alone.

I can personally relate to this book as I was dabbling into entrepreneurship at a very young age and this story relates to me very much. I like how the author has crafted a story that portrays the way the new generation looks at life.

A 4 star for this book!

November 16, 2017

Book Review: The Birthday Party by Ronald Destra

The Birthday Party by [Destra, Ronald, Destra, Juanita]

The Birthday Party

Blurb:

This is a great story for young readers, a delightfully fanciful picture book that appeals to kids and adults alike.

The Birthday Party is a book about a young Hebrew boy who turns twelve, but he believes everyone has forgotten his birthday including his parents and friends. He is disheartened by his friends and family not caring about his birthday, having to go through a hectic day while his friends are avoiding him in school not knowing they are planning to throw him the best surprise party ever!

Can his parents, Johnny and other friends pull off the best birthday party ever! Or will their surprise party turn to disaster?

Find out in this stunning story with an unforgettable reading experience that readers will want to pass on to others.

Pick up your copy today!

Review:

I thought that this book beautifully explained some of the things a child may go through as they grow up to become teenagers and how their emotions change along the way when their family or friends treat them differently. This book is about a boy who is turning twelve and his expectations for a birthday party. Although this book has colourful illustrations and may seem like a good read for children, adults like us too can relate to the story.

A 4.5 star for this short book

November 15, 2017

Book Review:Who Are We: Seeing Ourselves through the Eyes of One Another by Dr. Hussam Atef Elkhatib

Who Are We: Seeing Ourselves through the Eyes of One Another by [Elkhatib, Dr. Hussam Atef]

Who Are We: Seeing Ourselves through the Eyes of One Another

Blurb:

Understanding who we are is a concern that entails seeing ourselves through the eyes one another. It is a philosophy that involves thoughtfulness of the full picture, an empathetic vision that incorporates the nature of our awareness. That perception leads to how we react and interact with our surroundings. There, we’d utilize not only our rationale but also how we reason a variety of basics. Those fundamentals are foundations that incorporate our backgrounds, beliefs, affiliations, the level of our knowledge, and whom we believe we are, to name a few. We could accomplish an appropriate vision via a correct observation that considers all the elements. It is a foresight that requires a thorough analysis, and that’s what this book is all about.

Review:

This book walks us through the process of understanding how perspectives vary with our upbringings and the many factors that contribute to influence our perspectives. Reading this book will help you look beyond your very own upbringing to look at the world from a different lense. Some of the topics written in this book may be something we all are familiar with. However, the author had written them from a fresh point of view, which makes the whole thing interesting.

November 15, 2017

Book Review: Tom Durwood’s Historical Adventures

7C_cover_AA

King James’ Seventh Company by Tom Durwood

Blurb:

“Too many!” cried Tarran, as she let blast the flintlock —

Yes, the obstacles are many, and time is short for the six young members of King James’ Seventh Company. To save Six Companies of scholars, this fellowship of teenagers must cross a most dangerous landscape.

It begins as the simplest of stories: a young book-keeper (Matthias Sykes) is loaned out to one of his firm’s clients. It seems there is some confusion in the client’s ledgers.

Matthias soon finds that the client is the King of England, and there is far more amiss in his kingdom than the ledgers. Dark and deadly forces swirl within Westminster Abbey, where eminent scholars are assembled to produce the world’s greatest book: The King James Bible.

Within these pages, readers will find revenge and heartbreak, anguish and love, secret identities, brave deeds in the face of overwhelming odds — and a new perspective on one of history’s great tales.

Review:

If you love books that have elements of historical fiction cutting across religion and Christianity, this book is for you! This book brings you to the point of time where the world awaits the release of a New Bible. The story revolves around Matthias who goes to work at one of his company’s client’s place. He then finds out truth about who the client really is. The plot thickens as he finds out further about the connection between the New Bible and the client. 

This story is just not a work of fiction. Beneath the story, lies the story of Apostle Paul and the actual mission of his travel across different places around the world. 

I wouldn’t want to further give away the essential aspects of this book as anyone interested in this genre should definitely grab a copy to enjoy the story on their own. A 5-star review. 

 

cover_USG_AA

Ulysses S. Grant in China and other stories by Tom Durwood

Blurb:

Ulysses S. Grant in China and Other Stories “Gong Ji, Mister President!” cried Holcombe — Ulysses S. Grant’s little-heralded trip around the world is the setting for the title story in Tom Durwood’s collection of old-fashioned adventure fiction. Young protagonists take on all manner of obstacles in a wide range of historical eras. In these pages, you will take part in a violent battle over succession in the Benin kingdoms, meet a young clerk who gets pulled into a murderous plot in 17th century Amsterdam, witness revenge in a cowboy saloon, and much more. Readers of Johnny Tremain and Octavian Nothing will find themselves in familiar territory.

rough_Chinese_girl

Review:

This book revolves around a a girl and her group of friends who battle against some of the issues surrounding the completion of Suez Canal, which offers a new perspective to the old history we are all familiar with. The drama is mainly on betrayal, friendship and struggles the characters face to rise against all odds in their endevour. I personally feel that this book would be a good fit for younger teenage readers who find books like the Famous Five interesting as the story gives a similar feel to one of those. 

The plot is somewhat interesting with fewer suspense elements when compared to the author’s King James’ Seventh Company book.

A 3.5 star for this book.

cover_tc_AA

The Colonials by Tom Durwood

Blurb:

“War is not what you think it is,” warned the rifleman …

Especially the war of the American Revolution. Six rich kids, students at an unusual boarding school in the year 1775, admire the American Colonials from afar. They read all the Bostonians’ pamphlets, follow their battles, and collect souvenirs of the American rebellion.

One by one, each of the students is pulled into the global war for equality and liberty — with unexpected results. Each find that the struggle for human dignity is not quite what they had imagined.

The Colonials is an old-fashioned adventure story complete with swashbuckling fights, treachery, hidden identities and assassins.

horses_down_hill_7C

Review:

I love the author’s idea of bringing students into the war of American Revolution. These rich kids were somehow forced by their circumstances to go into the war for human rights and that is when they actually come to understand that the struggle is not something that they had thought about before. I like how the author worked meticulously on the struggles the kids face in the story and this pulls readers directly into the story. The kids journeyed together as they find their own paths. Along the process, they provide a new perspective to history of American Revolution. 

A 4-star for this book. 

November 15, 2017

Book Review: Walking the Labyrinth of My Heart by Dianna Vagianos Armentrout

Breaking the lonely, silent suffering of bereaved mothers facing infant and pregnancy loss

Blurb:

Walking the Labyrinth of My Heart: A Journey of Pregnancy, Grief and Infant Death breaks the lonely, silent suffering of bereaved mothers facing infant and pregnancy loss. Dianna Vagianos Armentrout details her pregnancy journey with her daughter, Mary Rose, who died an hour after birth of trisomy 18, a random genetic illness described as “incompatible with life.” For five long months of pregnancy, she knew that her baby would not live and thrive, planning a funeral and seeking hospice for her unborn daughter. The heaviness of this grief, which most women bear alone, is shared here and will comfort mothers who have experienced miscarriage, stillbirth and infant death. Through journal entries, essays and poetry, Dianna invites the reader to process grief and honor the life of the child, no matter how brief. In addition, readers will learn how to support the bereaved by remembering the baby and pregnancy. With eloquent language, fierce honesty and a record of the rawness of grief, readers in the midst of their own suffering will recognize the path that bereaved parents walk. Dianna’s experiences with infertility, motherhood, infant loss and miscarriage infuse her writing with compassion for all women. Finally there is a book to honor the pregnancy, baby and loss, loving the children past their death, loving the wombs that nurtured them and accepting the sacred path of mothering children whose bodies are broken, but whose souls are intact and perfectly whole. This book shines with love and the knowledge that even the briefest life is holy. Read it. Share it. Spread the word. We no longer have to grieve our infants and pregnancies alone.

Review:

This is a very emotionally intense story to read. If you have gone through the pain of losing a child, this book will comfort you as you will join Dianna while she recalls her painful journey of miscarriages and infant loss. I have personally seen friends losing their children as soon as they were born and some also suffered multiple miscarriages. This book would teach them all how to honour their kids even after their death and how to gracefully overcome the loss while still remembering them for the rest of your lives. I must say the author is indeed a very strong woman and this book deserves a 5-star for sharing her story with the rest of the world.

Get it on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Walking-Labyrinth-My-Heart-Pregnancy/dp/0982117647/ref

November 15, 2017

Book Review: The Mentorian by Huni Hunfjord

Image may contain: 2 people, text

Blurb:

Join the prince and princess as they put aside their differences to save the last mentorian egg. If they work together, they can protect the egg from the carpet demons, the gulp-royals, the night terrors, the two-headed bald cerberus and all the others that want to steal this priceless egg. Discover how they overcome obstacles to protect their precious egg and find out if they will be able to protect the egg long enough, so that the mentorian can hatch?

Review:

Firstly, I love how the author stumbled upon the idea of writing this amazing book when he wanted to teach his own children who wouldn’t get along well. I think the author is creative in telling stories to children in a creative and persuasive way that would engage children with the story. This story is about how we as a community should work together in achieving a common goal. If you are a parent looking to teach your kids valuable lessons through stories, I recommend you to get this book to learn some tips on how to fascinate kids with the stories you tell.

A 5-star for this short but entertaining book!!

Get it on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/Mentorian-Egg-Necktor-Source-Connection-ebook/dp/B06Y6C3ZP4 

November 9, 2017

Book Review: Time Without by Veronica R. Tabares

Time Without by [Tabares, Veronica R.]

Time Without

Blurb:

Vanessa is a strong, independent woman. Or she was, until she awoke in a world strangely changed. And when her husband and father of her children is in trouble, Vanessa realizes it is up to her to figure out what went so wrong in the world.

Vanessa’s journey takes her to the Department of Temporal Adjustment, the department tasked with handling all time travel, where she and her spunky kids go on a hilarious adventure through time—all while traveling incognito.

Review:

The characters in this book, a strong and independent mother and her kids, are extremely well-thought-out and the character development should be applauded as readers can engage with each and every one of them as the story evolves.

However, the best part of this book isn’t the characters. To me, I think the story that depicts how one woman takes everything that under her charge to help her troubled family is what I enjoyed most.

I love how the author creatively came up with the idea of time travel, making this science fiction book a whole new story that brings sheer pleasure to readers.

A 5 star review for this book.