Book Review: "What are Mondays good for anyway" by Nicole Frankel

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Paperback:

⭐⭐ out of 5

If you've read any of my other recent book reviews you'll know that I start them all off the same way, by saying that every book starts off with the full 5 stars and I'm always hopeful that they will all still be solidly stuck in place by the time I close the back cover.  You'll also know that I'm not shy about removing stars but that i always give my reasons within the review.  I've also  replaced a star thanks to the author of that book putting a magic sentence at the back of the book and I'm totally willing to do that again if necessary.

Let's get on with the review.

I'm already confused about the age range for this book as 3 year olds can't read and 8 year olds are rapidly gaining confidence in their reading independently ability, so I'll hopefully be able to see who this book as I read it.  Based on there only being 35 pages, I'm thinking it's a picture book so I can't see a 6-8 year old wanting to read it.

The main character is at school and having a spelling test, so that's kinda 7-8 year olds and a 3 year old would be doing disgusting things with their fingers by now, so it seems like the author really doesn't know much about their audience, so the first star is coming off.

Brand names are being used, potentially without permission, so we're down to 3 stars.

Now the author is using words that are unsuitable for the UK market ("trash can") and even the most bookwormish of bookworms would have given up by now, so the third star comes off and we're down to 2 stars.

I hate to say it, but I'm sooo glad this book was only 35 pages long 'cos the author just made so many mistakes throughout it.

Book Review: "Little Camel's Extraordinary Journey" by Vicky Feng

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Paperback:

⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5

If you've read any of my other recent book reviews, you'll already know I start 'em all off in the same way, right?  With a couple of sentences just explaining that all the books I read and review start off with the full shebang of stars and that I'm always hopeful that they will all still be firmly in place by the time I close the back cover.  A recent addition to this first paragraph is that I am more than happy to replace a star that I've taken off if the book has a magic sentence that means that the author has taken the effort not to break the law.

Now that that's been said, let's get going with the reading and reviewing!

I'm loving the illustrations!  They are obviously computer generated, but they are sooo cute and adorable!

Oh boy.  It was good until the religious bit.  The first star is really wobbly at 70% - any more religion and off it comes.

At 90% the star plops off... young children don't need to be preached to in a story and they may not be being brought up Christian, so we're now down to 4 stars.

Just finished reading and it relied heavily on the illustrations throughout which is disappointing.

Book Review: "The Christmas Santa Lost His Magic!" Chad Currin

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Paperback:
⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5

If you've read any of my other recent book reviews, you'll already know this first paragraph off by heart, right?  If this is the first review you've read of mine, I start them all off in the same way and that is by saying that every book starts off with the full shebang of stars and that I'm always hopefully that I don't have to take any off during my review.  You'll also know that if I *do* take any off, I always explain why within the review.

Let's get going with the review:

The first few pages have been good... the tension is building with the naughty elf!

Oooh!  Disaster strikes!  Will Santa be able to complete his mission in time?

This book was either written for the place mentioned in the last couple of pages, or it's been used without permission, so it's only fair that I take a star off, just like I've done with other books for the same reason.

Book Review: Just Shake It Off!" by Anh Sphabmixay

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Paperback:

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5

If you've read any of my other recent book reviews, you'll already know that I start each of 'em by saying that the book starts off with the full boatload of stars and that I'm always hopeful that none of the stars have gone overboard by the time I close the back cover.  You'll also know that I'm not shy about removing stars and that I'm always hopeful that the stars will all be stuck firmly in place by the time I close the back cover.  I've also replaced a star once and only once so far when the author said that they had used the brand names fictitiously and with permission.

Let's get going wih the review.

This is a great book that explains emotions in an easily accessible way... WTG and thank you to the author!

What a great, positive, worthy book and deserves every one of those 5 stars!

Book Review: "One in a trillion stars" by Anh Sphabmixay

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Paperback:

⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5

If you've read any of my other recent book reviews, you'll already know that I start 'em all off in the same way as this one - by saying that each book starts with the full whackamundy of stars and that I'm not shy about removing stars if necessary but that I always give my reason for doing so within the review.  I've also gladly replaced a star when the author said that trademarks had been used fictitiously and with permission - it's only happened once so far, but I'm more than happy to do it again if necessary.

Let's get on with the review shall we?

It's a good little picture book, but it's waaaay too heavily reliant on the pictures because there are only 11 sentences in total in the entire book and there are frequently at least 2 pages of just images, no text so the first and only star comes off for that reason and some of the vocabulary is too advanced for such a young audience to.

A good book, that's worth getting, but I reckon it would be better with more words and more appropriate language for the child listener.

Book Review: "Silence is Goldfish" by Annabel Pitcher

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Hardcover:
Paperback:

⭐ out of 5

If you've read any of my other recent book reviews, you'll already know that I start 'em all off by saying that each book starts off with the full truck-load of stars and that I'm always hopeful that they will all still be stuck firmly in place by the time I close the back cover.  You'll also know that I always give my reasons for knocking off any stars and that the usual reason for taking a star off a truly fantastic book is because of the use of trademarks or copyrights or whatever.  I've also replaced a star once so far because the author had taken the time and trouble to get permission to use the brand name and that one little sentence at the very end of the book was all it took for me to replace the well-deserved star and made the 4 star book back to the full 5 stars.  It's only happened once so far, but I'm more than willing to do it again each time it happens in future. 

Let's get on with the review, shall we? 

Oh deary me.  I'm only on the second page of the Kindle book and the first star is coming off for the use of a well-known film series... I seriously hope that's the only star lost and that it's replaced if there's that magical sentence right at the end, but for now, we're already down to 4 stars. 

Page 3 has brought another brand name but I've already knocked off a star for potential trademark infringement, so we're still at 4 stars.  It's a good book so far, written in the first person, but how the author managed to sneak two trademarks, in the first few pages of the book, through the production team before publication is beyond me! 

It's a good job that this is a teen book because of all the swearing so early on... not sure I'd want a 12 year old to read it though, so the second star is wobbly, but holding on by the skin of its teeth right now. 

More swearing in the second chapter but a good read despite that.  The second star is still very wobbly, but clinging on for dear life. 

Chapter 3 was good, but more un-necessary swearing that could have had the same effect without swearing, so we're down to 3 stars after 3 chapters, but I won't be taking off any more for trademark infringement or completely unnecessary swearing now, which is a relief. 

Chapter 4 was good... is this the start of the silence bit? 

It's very nearly lunchtime, so I'm gonna leave it there until I've finished eating then I'll crack on with it this afternoon. 

Back now, so lets carry on with the reading... I won't do chapter by chapter comments any more 'cos this review is already too long lol 

Oh dear, now there is talk about male bodies below the waistline... that's too much for 12 year olds so another star is, unfortunately, coming off.  If it was handled more sensitively then it would've been fine, but the more I read the less I think this author knows about her target audience unfortunately.  We're already down to 2 stars at only 10% of the way through, so it's not looking good that I'll even get to 25% and still be reading and reviewing, let alone finishing the book! 

And the final star comes off because of the way a character's name is written and pronounced several times that really isn't appropriate for the age group this book is aimed at, so at 17% I'm officially stopping reading 'cos I can't take any more stars off it now if I needed to.  I had high expectations for this book after all the positive reviews, but it's a huge disappointment to me unfortunately and I don't know how it was ever published.

Book Review: "Just Another Little Lie" by Eve Ainsworth

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Paperback:
⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5

If you've read any of my other recent book reviews, you'll already know how I start 'em all off, right?  This book isn't any different:  Every book I read starts off with the full 5 stars and I'm always hopeful that they will all still be firmly in place by the time I close the back cover.  I'm not shy about removing a star if I feel it necessary, but I always give my reasons for removing each star within the review.

The first couple of chapters have been great and I'm already feeling sorry for poor Vee.  She's gotta be the adult instead of her mum, poor girl!

Poor Vee and Freddie... what an awful life for them to both live!  I hope that Mum gets help and that it's a happy ever after book!

Oh dear... the same thing has happened with this book as has happened to most books I read - the author has used a brand name potentially without permission, so the first star is coming off at 53%.

Oooh!  That's worrying!  I hope Mum'll be OK!

So far so good with the new mum, but is it too little, too late?

Oh no!  It *was* too late and now Vee and Freddie are in the poo!

What a heart-wrenchingly beautiful ending. A definite must-read.

Book Review: "In Defense of Animalhood" by Riya Aarini

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Hardcover:
Paperback:
⭐ out of 5

If you've already read any of my other recent book reviews, you'll already know that I start 'em all off by saying that each book starts off with the full 5 stars and that I'm always hopeful that they will all still be firmly in place by the time I finish reading.  You'll also know that I'm not shy about knocking off a star if I feel it's necessary, particular for copyright or trademark infringement but that I always give a reason for knocking each star off.

Let's get going:

Ooh! I love the zebra image on the first page!  It makes a refreshing change not to be met with a page full of text, so top marks so far!

There's the first star gone after the use of a brand name... I hope that I can replace it if there's that magic sentence at the end of the book saying that it's been used with permission, but of all the books I've read, that's only happened once, so I'm not holding my breath unfortunately.

Two totally unnecessary swears takes the book down to 3 stars.

I haven't got a clue what age this author is writing for... it's written as too immature for adults but the swearing and words are too advanced for children!  Each of the animals have the same voice and personality too... this really hasn't been thought out well at all, so I'm knocking off another star at 46%.  I'm mightily relieved that it's only 76 pages long but I'm wondering if the final star will stay in place for the last 54%?

Oh boy, now it's glorifying making elephants drunk so the final star is coming off and I'm officially giving up.  This book had so much potential but the author just didn't think it through enough.
 

Book Review: "Because of You" by Eve Ainsworth

Kindle:
Paperback:
⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5

If you've read any of my other recent book reviews, you'll already know that they all start off with me saying that the book starts off with the full 5 stars and that I'm always hopeful that they will all still be firmly in place when I close the back cover.  You will also know that I give my reasons for knocking off each star and that I don't just knock stars off without reason.  Most 5 star books become 4 star books because of use of trademarked brand names or copyrighted material which is a real sore point for me so the star comes off for that reason.  I've rapidly returned the star for one book at the end of last year when the author (or was it the publisher/agent?) put in a single sentence on the last page saying that they had used the brand name fictitiously and with permission... it's only happened once, but that single sentence was all that was necessary for me to return the book to the full whack of stars.

Let's get on with the reading and reviewing shall we?

Ooh!  Tension in the first chapter!  This has the potential, if it carries on like this, to be a really good, 5 star, book!

I'm up to chapter 5 now and this book has had me hooked from the first page.  There has been an internet brand name used once so the first star is wobbly, but hanging in there right now.  This is definitely an easy must-read so far!

Oh dear, a swear word has just escaped the editing process so the first star is rapidly coming off so what should be a 5 star book is now, unfortunately, 4 stars.

This is still a good book, but the author seems to have lost her intensity now... the first few chapters were great but after a while they have become much less intense and interesting... not quite boring, but nowhere near as interesting either.

I've felt like Poppy many times in my life, but fortunately there weren't any mobile phones with the ability to video my utter humiliation back then.

Yup, chapter 10 was me throughout childhood, but it looks like maybe things are gonna turn a corner now... I hope!

Wow.  I've just finished reading and I'm fighting back prickly tears.  What an unexpectedly perfect ending.

Book Review: "The Disconnect" by Keren David

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Paperback:
⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5

If you've read any of my other recent books, you'll already know that all the books I read and review start off with the full five stars and that I'm always hopeful that they will all be stuck firmly in place by the time I close the back cover.  You'll also know that I always give reasons for knocking off any stars instead of just saying "This isn't a good book.  1 star".  This is my first review of 2023 and reading has always been my escape and coping method so I'm gonna be doing a lot of reading and reviewing for very personal reasons to help me to cope with some devasting news I was given 4 days before Christmas Day 2022 so I'm starting off with a 4.5 star book that seems to have been popular with previous readers... will it be my first 5 star book of 2023?  I seriously hope so!

Let's get started shall we?

It's only 89 pages long, so it's a rapid read... will it be long enough to escape into the fictional world created by the author?

Has the author used a well-known clothing brand without permission?  I seriously hope not, but the first star is already wobbly after only a single page unfortunately.

Another two brand names on the first page of the second chapter so the first star is coming off unfortunately.  I've reinstated a star in the past when the author has said at the back of the book that the brand name was used with permission so I'm really hoping I'll be able to do that with this book too, but we shall have to wait and see I guess.

The first two chapters have been really good.  I like how it's written in first instead of third person as a change from the norm... it'll be interesting to see if the main character can complete the challenge and win!

The main character's memory is almost as bad as mine lol

I've read 3 chapters and I'm enjoying it so far... if it hadn't been for those brand names, this would still have definitely been a five star book so far.

I'm up to chapter 7 now and I'm well into this book... other than the use of big brand names (which I've already knocked a star off for, so I'm letting their use slide now) it's exactly the sort of book I've needed and I'll miss the main character at the end of the book.

Another two chapters read and still nothing to complain about lol  I'm just under half way through and I'm seriously enjoying it!

Right at the end of chapter 11 is a will-they-or-won't-they bit... no spoilers of course, but it'll be interesting to see how the author handles it!

What a great end to a fantastic book... there's nothing about having permission to use all those brand names so it's staying at a thoroughly well-deserved 4 stars.

Happy New Year!

Just a quick blog post to wish you all a happy New Year and to say that I'm not gonna take part in JanNo this year 'cos I had a significant loss just before Christmas so I'm right in the middle of helping to sort out a funeral and this persons belongings.  Things will hopefully be back on track for NaNo, but I need to help sort out things so there is no way I'd even be able to write 10k this month, let alone 50k.

I'm gonna spend the month finishing off my WIP so I will be writing, just not taking part in the challenge is all.

I hope that you all enjoy your writing this year and that you achieve everything you want and need.