Curious Critters Review

Are you looking for a new book about animals to help with homeschooling?  Or just looking for a book with stunning pictures of animals?  If so you should check out Curious Critters by David FitzSimmons.

First let me tell you a little about David FitzSimmons…

He is a free-lance photographer and writer as well as a university professor. David photographs and writes for various magazines, including Outdoor Photographer, Popular Photography, and Shutterbug, newspapers, and online publications. His 100+ calendar credits include numerous titles by BrownTrout and Barnes & Noble. Dave currently is at work on a handful of books. His most recent books include Animals of Ohio’s Ponds and Vernal Pools (Kent State University Press) and Curious Critters (Wild Iris, October 2011).

One of five Sigma Pro photographers in North America, David presents seminars and workshops to a wide variety of audiences, from public school groups and college classes to nature centers and civic organizations. His works have been exhibited at the Roger Tory Peterson Institute, the National Center for Nature Photography, and the Telluride Photo Festival, among other venues.

David, a former high school English teacher, has been teaching for 20 years. He is a professor at Ashland University, Ashland, Ohio. He holds a Ph.D. in English from Ohio State University, with a specialty in narrative theory—investigating the components of storytelling—something that influences his photography and writing.

Dave was inspired to photograph and write about nature by his parents, Mick and Judy FitzSimmons, active environmentalists and life-long teachers, and he is assisted in his natural history endeavors by his wife, Olivia, a naturalist, and his two daughters, Sarah and Phoebe.

To see more of Dave’s work and to know more about seminars and photo workshops, visit www.fitzsimmonsphotography.com.

Curious Critters came out in November of 2011.  This hardcover book is recommended for ages 4 to 8 but I believe it can be for any age.  My 1 and 2 year old love looking at the pictures of animals.  My 2 year old likes to name the animals on each page.  My 5 and 8 year old of course love to learn about the animals.

Being any age you will enjoy the stunning photos of the animals.  I love how you can see every detail in each animal.  You can also imagine yourself reaching out and touching the animals and feeling the texture of their bodies.  At the same time I kind of get the creepy crawly feeling looking at some of the bugs.

So if you are looking for a book to add to your collection then this is one I recommend.  Curious Critters can be purchased for $19.95 here.  The book will also be signed and you can request it have a personalized dedication in it when you send an email when it is purchased.

You can also sample pages from the book here.

* Note this is my honest opinion of this book.  I did not get paid for my review but I did receive a complimentary copy for review purposes.

The Lima Bear Stories: The Cave Monster

Are you looking for a new series of books for your children?  If so you should check out the Lima Bears.  Lima Bears is a series of books written by Tom Weck and Peter Weck.  They are a father and son team and the stories are based on stories the father used to tell his son.

I had the chance to review the book The Cave Monster.  I love spending time reading stories to my children and I enjoyed reading The Cave Monster with them.  I also love that at the end of the book there are ways to review the book and ask your children questions about what happened in the story.  I am a homeschooling mom so this is a great book to use for homeschooling.

So what is The Cave Monster about?  The Cave Monster is about a bear named Lima Bear who has to rescue his cousin L. Joe Bean from the Cave Monster.  Lima Bear gathers some of his friends together to help him save his cousin.  Even though all of them are afraid to face the cave monster they know that they must face their fear and save their friend L. Joe Bean.  This is a great story about friends who work together to overcome their individual fears and become brave together as a group.

At the end of reading the story I asked my kids a couple of the questions that are listed at the end of the book.

I asked them what their favorite part of the story was.  My 8 year old daughter said she liked the whole story.  My 5 year old son being all boy said he liked when the cave monster was shot in the toe.

Then I asked them what useful thing they would bring my 8 year old daughter said a sharp knife and my 5 year son said a flash light so he could see in the dark cave.

You can see just from those few questions how you can work in homeschooling.  You have to make them think about what they read and what they would do the same or differently.

So if you are looking for a fun and adventurous book to read with your children then you should check out Lima Bears The Cave Monster.  The book can be found on Amazon here for $11.96.

*Note this is my honest opinion of the book reviewed above.  I also was not paid for this review.

Chicken Soup for the Soul: Inspiration for the Young at Heart Review

Chicken Soup for the Soul introduces a book filled with stories of love, inspiration, humor, and more for the mature generation out there, called “Inspiration for the Young at Heart”.  This book is all about enjoying your senior years and features such story topics as new adventures, taking college classes, finding love, how to handle a retired husband, and so much more!

* This book is available for purchase on Amazon.com right now for $10.91

I had the great opportunity to review this book myself and I have truly enjoyed reading these stories!  I think this is a perfect book for parents, grandparents, and anyone that loves to read.  I am now going to pass this book onto my mother in law who is in her late 60′s.  Not only does she love to read, she loves inspiring and heartwarming stories like the ones featured in this book.  If you’re looking for a perfect gift for an older loved one, you can’t miss with this book!

I have been a fan of Chicken Soup for the Soul books since they first started out.  I even have my daughter enjoying their Chicken Soup for the Soul “Preteens” book.  There is a book in this series for anyone out there.  I applaude Chicken Soup for the Soul for creating “Inspiration for the Young at Heart”.  This book really helps you see that getting older doesn’t mean the fun stops!

Connect With Chicken Soup for the Soul:

* Website

* Facebook

* Twitter

Disclosure: I received a sample from the above named company in exchange for a review.  All opinions expressed in this review are 100% mine and are not a result of any outside influence.

I See Me! Personalized Children’s Books

Something I love to do during the holidays is read my children Christmas books,  but I have never had an opportunity to read them a personalized Christmas book until now!  So let me introduce you to one of the best sites on the Internet to purchase personalized books for just about any occasion for children – www.iseeme.com .  Besides personalized books they also offer a wonderful selection of other great personalized items including bandannas,  puzzles,  and more!  www.iseeme.com was  kind enough to provide me with a personalized My Very Merry Christmas Board Book to review with my son.

To begin I was asked to provide a little bit of information about my son so they could personalize it with his personal information.  I was asked his name,  gender,  and date of birth.  Additionally,  I was asked to select a dedication from a drop down list of provided dedications,  the sender,  and the year the book was given.  I had it personalized for my three year old son,  as the book is perfect for ages 0- 6 years old.

Before I knew it the packaged arrive and inside was one of the cutest little books I have ever laid my eyes on!  The book cover features a festive Christmas Tree and read “Zane’s Very Merry Christmas”. The book told a cute Christmas story which included lots of adorable forest animals.  My favorite page by far was the last page because it animals circling the Christmas Tree with my sons name spelled out on the ornaments.  Throughout the book the fuzzy forest friends deliver a note to Santa about your child.  As I read the book to my son he got so excited each time he heard his name and really seemed to enjoy it!

The personalized hard back book is very durable and so far is not at all torn or ripped,  which is somewhat of a miracle in this household!   I believe it would make a great Christmas gift or Stocking Stuffer for any child.

This amazing Story Book is written by award-winning author Jennifer Dewing and illustrated by Mati Rose McDonough.

Buy It:  You can purchase this twenty page personalized hard back book for only $24.95 on www.iseeme.com.  If you purchase

Learn More:  To learn more about I See Me!  Visit their website,  connect with them on Facebook,  or follow them on Twitter.

 This post was written for I See Me who provided the complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review.

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