My May Book Reviews

Well, well, well. What a terrible blogger I am. I started my monthly reads post last June and since then I have only done 3! Yes just 3. It’s been a year and I should have 12 of these posts up, but no, this one is only my third. Seriously, though, I don’t know where the time has gone. It just feels like a year as flown by. And its made me see that I really need to read more. I don’t read as much as I used to do and it makes me really sad saying this.

So here are my May book reviews or should I say November-May books.

May Book Reviews

 

 

Think and Make Like an Artist

This book is aimed a children aged 8 years plus. It explores how artist think, research and experiment before making an art project. From painting to illustration, from costume design to sculpting, the book covers lot’s of different areas. Try your hand at making a monster from foil or make a football team out of stones. This book is great for crafty kids and it has easy step by step instructions to follow. This is priced at £12.99 and available to buy from Thames & Hudson and also from Amazon

 

 

World of Animals Magazine

I actually won this magazine on World of Animals twitter page. This was a really great magazine and I will be buying now and again. Full of really fun and amazing facts and the photo are just stunning!! This one had an article with 50 shark facts, which my youngest Aaron absolutely loved as he was learning about sharks at school so he used this article to help him with some homework he had. Buy a subscription and get 20% off.

 

 

Hyde and Squeak

Hyde and Squeak by Fiona Ross is a great book that the kids really enjoyed reading. It’s about a little mouse that just can’t resist eating some horrible looking jelly. But when Squeak does eat it, he turns into Hyde – a very hungry monster mouse! Both Caitlin and Aaron thought this was really hilarious and I thought the illustrations where really great. 5/5 stars. This book is published by Little Tiger Press and is available to buy on Amazon and Waterstones.

 

 

Happiness Diary

The Happiness Diary by Narissa Phipps is a daily journal that is supposed to be filled in every day. There are 180 pages altogether and by the end of it you are supposed to get into the habit of  having a happy life. Each day you have to write things down that you are thankful for, what you are proud of yourself for etc. And each day there is an inspirational quote and a challenge to do for the day after. I really like the dairy, I like to fill it in just before I go to bed.

I don’t really like filling in the first part, which is ‘Before the day comes to an end I wish to have achieved..’ as I like to write in my book last thing at night, so that means I have to fill it in for the day after. So I would rather it be on the same page but say ‘Before tomorrow comes to an end I wish to have achieved..’ I love reading the daily quotes. After every 30 days is a reflection page to write down anything what you have achieved and what you want to reflect on. I really love my Happiness Journal, it really does make me feel happier and more proud of myself. This is priced at £11.99 and available from The Book Guild and Amazon.

 

 

Mindfulness for Parents

I am really starting to get into mindfulness as it really helps me slow down and just be in the moment. This Mindfulness for Parents book by Amber Hatch helps you to keep calm, and patient and helps you to feel more connected to your children. The book covers subjects like, dealing with the early weeks, responding to a babies cries, prevent mealtimes and bedtime stresses, managing difficult behaviour and more.

The book over all is really good and full of loads of advise and tips but I did feel that this book is aimed at parents with children between the ages of 0-5 years. My youngest two are 6 and 7, so really the only parts that I could take on where the behaviour, as my kids are past the other stages. But I would recommend this to parents with younger children. Mindfulness for Parents is priced at £9.99 and available to buy from Watkins Publishing and Amazon.

 

 

My Little Pony – Pinkie Pie’s Perfect Party

I am not sure where I got this book from now, but my daughter has two other My Little Pony books and really enjoys reading them. She really loved this one as Pinkie Pie is her favourite. This is an easy to read book with large letters and some really pretty pictures to look at. If you have a child that has just started reading chapter books, this is a good one to start them off with, especially if they are a My Little Pony fan. Available to buy from Amazon or Ebay

 

 

If Ever I Fall By S.D. Robertson

*I got this ebook on Net Galley in return for my review

I was really drawn to the cover and title of this book and the blurb sounded really interesting.
The book is told by 3 people. Dan’s story goes back and forth in time, Maria’s story is told through letters she writes to her daughter Sam. And Jack is suffering from amnesia and not sure if he trusts the guy he is currently living with.

I liked reading Jacks chapters the most as it was a mystery what was going on. He didn’t know who he was or remember anything from his past. Mike, the guy he was staying with seemed a really shifty character and acting like there was a secret he was keeping from Jack.

I least liked reading Maria’s chapters as I just didn’t like the letter format they was in. We soon find out that Maria and Dan are married and have a 7-year-old daughter together. They also have a 14-year-old daughter, Sam, who died. I loved reading how both Maria and Dan coped with Sam’s death and how they both tried to come to terms with it.

I really enjoyed reading this book and couldn’t wait to get to the end to find out how Jack was tied into Maria and Dan’s life and also what happened to Sam. But I felt the ending all came out at once and I had already guessed about Jack but was disappointed that it never touched further about the reasons behind Sam’s death. I kept looking for an extra chapter. But saying this, I would love to read more books by this author. I give this book 3.5 stars out of 5. Available to buy from Amazon.

 

 

Missing, Presumed by Susie Steiner

When Edith Hind goes missing leaving her front door wide open and with broken wine glasses in the kitchen, it’s DC Manon Bradshaw’s job to find out where Edith is.

Each chapter of the book is told through the eyes of different characters, from Manon, Davy (her partner), Helena (Edith’s best friend) Miriam and (Edith’s mum). The main suspect in the case seems to be Edith’s boyfriend, but we don’t get to see the story told by him.

The book isn’t filled with twists and turns but I was still captured by it. I really like the main character, Manon, as the book went on, I liked her even more. The story seemed to focus more on Manon and her life than the actual crime. Towards the end I could guess what was going to happen, but still a pretty good read. I can’t wait to read more book, with DC Manon Bradshaw in. 4/5 stars.

Available to buy on Amazon and Ebay

 

 

 

I have read a few more books, but I will included them in next month’s reads.

You can see my previous Book reviews here

Have you read any of these books? Or will you be adding any to your To Read list?

 

 

I received some of these books free of charge in return for my review of them. all opinions are mine

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