Alexis Lampley's Blog, page 18

Stanley Cat on the Mat

Written by: Whiona Moverley
Illustrated by: Don Hatcher

Stanley Cat is a snappish cat - and when he's like that... he's out on the mat! He's a contrary, defiant, sneaky, troublesome, calamitous, scratchy cat! BUT... he is also angelic {prrrrrr}. Sound like a cat you know? Stanley Cat is a cat who gets into trouble for doing "cat things". He glares at the finches, catnaps on a jet-black coat, lets a mouse into the house, coughs up a sticky fur ball, wrecks Mum's knitting and sharpens his claws on our antique drawers! BUT... he is also ticklish and kittenish. He purrs when you tickle his tummy and ultimately, like all cats, inspires unconditional love {prrrrrr}. {cover copy}

Tear & Fold Resistance: 6/10
Font Readability: 10/10
Baby Engagement: 9/10
Mommy Engagement: 8/10


I was sent these books in exchange for an honest review.


These books about Stanley cat are really cute. We also got Stanley Cat's Secret Dream, which Madeline actually seems to favor. {It's about all the different jobs Stanley Cat dreams of doing, incorporating colors into each as well, which is quite clever, I think}. The stories are cute, and the rhymes definitely stick in your head, which I think is good when kids are starting to learn to read {though we aren't there quite yet}.


The one thing that tripped me up was that occasionally the words that should have rhymed didn't, or the pattern of the rhyme changed. But a couple of these might be a difference in how we speak the words, as these are books published in Australia and I am decidedly not Australian.    

This doesn't seem to bother Madeline, of course. She constantly hands me these books so I can read them to her, and really enjoys pointing to the cat on every page! Overall, I am pleased with these books, and enjoy reading them to her.

The Stacks: August 2016

I'm starting to wonder if I'll ever get to read again without it being a struggle to find more than a paragraph's worth of reading at a time. Maybe I should stop taking on so many other projects. But I can't help it. I'm too creative for my own good. Ah, well. Sleep is for losers. Reading is more important. Here's the measly three books I finished in August. 

This Savage Song   Victoria Schwab See review

The Dream Thieves   Maggie StiefvaterI can see now why everyone seems to love this one from the series best. It was SO good! But I'm dying to know what happens next.
The Dreamer   E.J. Mellow
See review

The Dreamer

by: E.J. Mellow

Molly hasn't slept well since the night of her twenty-fourth birthday. Being struck by lightning might have something to do with it, but then again, her chicken did look a little undercooked at dinner. Whatever the culprit, her life quickly catapults from the mundane to insane as, night after night, Molly is transported through her once dreamless sleep to a mysterious land illuminated by shooting stars.
There she meets the captivating but frustrating Dev, and together they discover Molly possesses a power coveted by his people--the ability to conjure almost anything she desires into existence. Seduced by the possibilities of this gift, Molly shifts her attention from waking life toward the man, the magic, and the world found in her dreams.
But Molly must ask herself--does something truly exist if you only see it when you close your eyes?
Faced with the threat of losing everything--her job, best friend, boyfriend, and most importantly, that little thing called her sanity--Molly will learn just how far she'll go to uncover what is real and what is merely a figment of her imagination.  {cover copy}
Let's just start by taking a moment to stare at this beautiful cover, which E.J. Mellow designed herself. {insert heart eyes here} I barely even read the cover copy before I was sold, because the covers {and if I'm honest, the professional jealousy I have for her beautiful Instagram account, too} pretty much already had me sold. 

This might be the only New Adult book I've ever read. At least that I can remember. I really liked it. My hesitation with this genre, I think, is that I feel like you run the risk of sex scenes that are usually cut out of young adult books, and I'm a weirdly asexual reader who feels those scenes just get in the way of the story. {Maybe I just don't feel like getting randomly hot and bothered while sitting in my car or taking the kid for a walk?} But I had no trouble with this book. In fact, E.J. Mellow handled all that romance very well, and I actually enjoyed it. I also generally kind of hate love triangles. But again, this one was so intriguing that it didn't bother me in the slightest. I actually found myself focused most on poor Molly's mental health, and how glad I am that when I sleep, I sleep. If I fell into a recurring dream with any indication of magical/otherworldly powers, I'd never want to wake up! So I guess what I'm saying is that Molly really felt believable as a character, and the story as a whole felt very much like a slice out of her life. A messed up, possibly a little bit magical slice. But all the same. And I'm dying to know what happens next! 

I need to go order the next book so I can read it before the final book comes out in October!

I might be losing my eyesight. {first line}
"A lot of things happen in life that shouldn't."

"Bad decisions can be surprisingly heavy."

"If every woman had this gift, I don't think there would be a man left alive."

• blue • {last word}
{view on Goodreads} 

This Savage Song

by: Victoria Schwab

Kate Harker wants to be as ruthless as her father. After five years and six boarding schools, she's finally going home to prove that she can be.
August Flynn wants to be human. But he isn't. He's a monster, one that can steal souls with a song. He's one of the three most powerful monsters in a city overrun with them. His own father's secret weapon.
Their city is divided. Their city is crumbling. Kate and August are the only two who see both sides, the only two who could do something. But how do you decide to be a hero or a villain when it's hard to tell which is which? {cover copy}
I really enjoyed this book. I really enjoyed the pace of this. I love the peeling back of layers as you learn more and more about the world. You are dropped into it and get to learn in a way that feels natural rather than getting a big info dump, which I love. And I also love not knowing where a story is really going to go. I think the best plots are invisible, and I felt like this one was. It's about character growth as much as anything in this story, and that was really well handled. I really enjoyed this and can't wait for the next one. I'm so intrigued about where it will go from here.  And I really love the writing in this. It's the kind of writing that makes me itch to write as well. 

The night Kate Harker decided to burn down the school chapel, she wasn't angry or drunk. {first line}
"...a still body was a busy mind..."

"I live in a world where shadows have teeth."

"People were made of pieces..."

"Nobody gets to stay the same..."

"The kind of happy that smoothed time into still frames."

"So many tiny fires in the sky and so much dark between them."

"It doesn't matter if you're a monster or a human. Living hurts."

• song • {last word}
{view on Goodreads} 

The Stacks: July 2016

So my plan to read a ton of books and finish them this month went a little awry. But I managed three! Maybe the five books I'm currently reading will all be finished by the end of August. If I don't start reading a couple more. I'm not sure what's going on with me lately but I just want to keep starting new books. It's a terrible habit. I must stop it. 

The Rose Society   Marie LuI really enjoyed this one. These books are so dark, but so good! Can't wait to see if she can come back from the darkness in book three or if she's gone to the dark side for good.

Voyager   Diana GabaldonVery entertaining! I'm thoroughly enveloped in this world and loving it. Already downloaded the next books to listen to while I work.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child   Rowling, Tiffany, & Thorne See review

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

by: J.K. Rowling, John Tiffany, & Jack Thorne

The eighth story. Nineteen years later. {cover copy}
I will be honest and tell you that I didn't pre-order this because I was hesitant about it. I didn't read any supposed spoilers or anything, though a few of my friends did and got super upset about them. I figured I'd wait and see on all that. I just... was hesitant. I think because I didn't know what to expect. But then the day came and one of my friends {who loves HP as much as me} who went to the midnight release in Ireland messaged me before the midnight release had even happened here and said she read it already and it was awesome. And then whatever reservations I had melted away and I had the book in my hands the next day! {I couldn't go to the midnight release because I was home alone with a sick kid}. Then I finally had it and, as much as I was upset that life kept interrupting me reading the whole thing in one sitting, I'm happy that it was stretched out to two days of reading, because I absolutely loved being back in this world again. 

I will say, the one thing that actually took me out of the action sometimes was that I would read these magical moments with duels and quick shifts in time and I would have to stop and just be sortof amazed and confused about how they could make that stuff happen on a stage. And it made me want to book a flight to London and go see this play in person. Because it would be absolutely magical! Maybe they could take a video of it for us poor Americans? Thanks.

Mini Spoiler Paragraph: 
Scorpius is my new favorite character. I love him. And I loved he and Albus together. And I loved this adventure. And I want more! I want to see more adventures from these two boys. Please oh please oh please!! And I loved Harry as a grown up dealing with raising his kids. It felt so true. 

SPOILER WARNING {some of the quotes below might be a smidge spoilery. Read at your own risk}

ALBUS: Dad. He keeps saying it. {first line}
"The rumor is that he's Voldemort's son, Albus. ... It's probably rubbish. I mean... look, you've got a nose."

"Only just begun and it's almost half killed us. Good. This is going to be good."

"DUMBLEDORE: ...We cannot protect the young from harm. Pain must and will come. || HARRY: So, I'm supposed to stand and watch? || DUMBLEDORE: No. You're supposed to teach him how to meet life."

"That's the thing, isn't it? About friendships. You don't know what he needs. You only know he needs it."

"...bravery doesn't forgive stupidity."

"...there is never a perfect answer in this messy, emotional world. Perfection is beyond the reach of humankind., beyond the reach of magic. In every shining moment of happiness is that drop of poison: the knowledge that pain will come again. Be honest to those you love, show your pain. To suffer is as human as to breathe."

"SCORPIUS: There's nothing. Still, if I had to choose a companion to be at the return of sternal darkness with, I'd choose you. || ALBUS: No offense, but I'd choose someone massive and really good at magic."

• I • {last word}
{view on Goodreads} 

Hector and Hummingbird: A Maddie Moo Baby Book Review

Written and Illustrated by: Nicholas John Frith

"Hey, Hector? Shall I tell you a story? I love telling stories! This story's all about me! And a bit about you too. But mainly about me. Shall I tell you how it goes? Hector?! Hec-torrr!"
Will Hector ever find a bit of peace and quiet? {cover copy}

Tear & Fold Resistance: 7/10
Font Readability: 10/10
Baby Engagement: 9/10
Mommy Engagement: 10/10


The color combinations in this book are so pretty I almost forget to read the story.


But what a cute story it is! I think this one really hits home for me because I grew up with a friend who was about as hyper as Hummingbird, and I felt similar to how Hector does when she wasn't around, even though she always had so much more energy than me and I like my peace and quiet. 



This story is still a bit "big" for Madeline. She tends to want to turn the pages too fast when we read books, or gets distracted and picks out a new book halfway through what we are reading. But I was pleasantly surprised to find that Hummingbird's lines, when read a little louder and much faster than Hectors, stopped her mind from wandering and brought her attention straight back to the book, which is great.  
Overall, this is a great read that I have no doubt will increase appearances in our reading rotation as she grows. Also, I had to add a couple more photos than usual because she was too cute and I couldn't pick. Enjoy!

Ribbit: A Maddie Moo Baby book Review

Written by: Rodrigo Folgueira
Illustrated by: Poly Bernatene

What is a little pig doing in a pond full of frogs? {cover copy}
Slobber Durability: 10/10
Tear & Resistance: 10/10
Font Readability: 10/10
Baby Engagement: 10/10


This is one of the prettiest books Madeline owns.

I picked it up at the store because it absolutely popped off the shelf. The color combination is fantastic. And it has definitely had an impact on Maddie as well. She goes for it so often, I now know this one by heart, and just recite it when she decides I'm flipping the pages too slowly and takes over herself.

My husband says this one is weird, but I say he doesn't know what he's talking about, because it's super cute, and very fun to read, and it does what it's supposed to do: engage Madeline. She loves pointing at the pig. And I love looking at the pages. Seriously, the artwork is so pretty, and I find myself trying to figure out how it was drawn/painted.  

Aside from all that, the story itself is a good one. It's about friendship and acceptance and learning to see things differently. I have read it so many times, but I haven't grown tired of it. And neither has Madeline! {We read it three times during the photoshoot}.

The Stack: June 2016

I didn't even post a recap for May. I read a couple books, but I only remembered to post about them with a week left in June. So that didn't happen. You weren't missing out on much, though. But I did better this past month, despite how insanely busy I am these days, and I'm only a week late in posting it! Haha Anyway... expect another good month for July, too. I'm reading like five books at once. I generally finish them all about the same time. So that's fun!


Dragonfly in Amber   Diana GabaldonI spent this entire books wondering WHAT THE HECK HAPPENED, CLAIRE?! It was great. I'm already halfway through the next one.
Tandem   Anna Jarzab See review
Every Heart A Doorway   Seanan McGuire See review
Wink Poppy Midnight  April Genevieve Tucholke See review

Wink Poppy Midnight

by: April Genevieve Tucholke


Every story needs a hero. Every story needs a villain. Every story needs a secret. Wink. Poppy. Midnight. Two girls. One boy. One summer. One bad thing. What really happened? Someone knows. Someone is lying. {cover copy}
Yet another delightfully strange book! I had no idea where this one was going, but I didn't even care. The characters were so interesting. I really enjoy watching characters unfurl and develop over the course of a book, and this definitely delivered that. The mystery of it was quite a nice pull throughout as well. One thing that made me laugh is that the mean girl of the story has a group of "followers" {I definitely wouldn't call them friends} that are known as The Yellows... which is what I call two of my birds. So I giggled every time I read that title. Anyway, the book was really good and the cover is beautiful!

The first time I slept with Poppy, I cried. {first line}
"Her eyes were big and green and... innocent. No one's eyes looked like that anymore. No one my age, at least. Our eyes grew up and stopped believing in magic and started caring about sex. But Feral's... they still had a faraway, puzzled, lost-in-an-enchanted-forest gleam to them."

"She wasn't trying to figure out if I was sexy, or cool, or funny, or popular. She just stood in front of me and let me keep on being whoever I really was."

"I want to like people, I do, actually, but they're all just so dumb."

"...the best Heroes had a little bit of evil in them, to make the good shine all the more for being next to it."

"All good Heroes are scared, if they know the evil they face."

"...the most honorable thing you can do in life is forgive."


• after • {last word}
{view on Goodreads}