Stanley and Katrina's Blog, page 28

Blog Tour & Giveaway ($50 Amazon Gift Card)! Return to Cardamom Book Review: 5 Stars to Caramel and Her Friends

  About Return to Cardamom Title: Return to Cardamom (Caramel Cardamom Trilogy, Book #2) 
Author: Julie Anne Grasso 
Publisher: Independent 
Publication Date: July 17, 2013 
Pages: 136 (Paperback) 
Recommended Age: 9+ 
Summary: Life is sweet for Caramel and things are finally getting back to normal. Well, as normal as it can be for a telepathic elf who can train trees and control computers, but she soon finds life on Cardamom is not all cupcakes and apple cider. A saboteur is hiding in the rainforest canopy, and the elves’ precious cardamom export has been wiped out. Caramel is certain it’s another trick of Alexander222 and her Aunt Isabel, but no one will believe her, and the clock is ticking. She must expose the saboteur in time to save the crop or the Elves of Cardamom will lose their livelihood. Caramel won’t rest until her theory is proven. While she is on the hunt, she makes a shocking discovery, one that will change everything.  

Amazon(US) * Amazon(UK) * Amazon(Canada)Cool Mom's Review of Return to CardamomThis was exciting for me to review, as I had never before had the opportunity to read an Advanced Reader's Copy of a book. The summary above is perfect for the story and Caramel is one awesome elfin-girl. 

I read Escape from the Forbidden Planet, the first book in the Caramel Cardamom trilogy, and I enjoyed this one, Return to Cardamom, even more than the first book. It is exciting to visit again with characters that I have now become familiar with from book one ~ like saying, "Hi," to old friends. 

The beginning of the story hooked me right away, just like the first one. Julie Anne Grasso has a wonderful way to describe her characters, their thoughts, actions and their surroundings.  For example: 

"Caramel lumbered to the bathroom to splash some water on her face as the last mists of her dream faded." 

Near the end of the book, Caramel mentally battles a worm code hidden in technology. As Caramel travels through the wires in an effort to save everyone, the descriptions of virtual ham pieces flying toward her made my inner computer geek chuckle. 

Caramel is a fantastic female protagonist who is easy to route for throughout the entire book. There is an innocent romance budding  between Caramel and her friend, Jorde, that is purely sweet. I adore how much Caramel is able to accomplish despite her physical disability; and how she is able to use the gifts that she has been given. Trust me, this girl has been given more than her fair share of gifts: talking to trees, healer extraordinaire and oh, yeah, she can control technology. 

Two of my favorite lines from the book: 

"News travels faster than a brain synapse around here."  "Blazing elf cheeks." 
In late chapters of the book, Caramel's intuition is finally trusted by her elders. I actually said out loud, "Finally! It is about time." 

I happily give Return to Cardamom, a wonderfully clean read, five stars out of five and recommend it to ages 9 and up. Those who love science fiction and are looking for a female protagonist will be very happy with this book. 

Disclosure: I received an ARC copy of Return to Cardamom. I received no monetary or in-kind compensation for my honest review.

Don't forget to scroll down to enter the giveaway!

Who is Cool Mom? Check our About Us Page.



Amazon(US) * Amazon(UK) * Amazon(Canada)Extra Special Resources: Student Pages!There is an additional resource available for our teacher, homeschooling and overall awesome parental friends - student work pages! I encourage you to visit Carolyn Wilhelms's The Wise Owl Factory blog tour post for links to her free student work page supplements for BOTH books. They are fantastic. 

And a Recipe, Too? Yes, a recipe. I look forward to FINALLY making the Sticky Date recipe, once we are settled in our new home. This recipe was shared on Mother Daughter Book Reviews back in March: Get the recipe for Sticky Date and Chocolate Cake with Caramel Cardamom Sauce now. (Special thanks to Julie and Renee for the recipe link)Amazon(US) * Amazon(UK) * Amazon(Canada)The Buzz About Book 1: Escape From the Forbidden Planet
Interested in what I had to say about the first book in the series? 

Read my (Cool Mom's) review of Escape from the Forbidden Planet: A Fun Science Fiction Book for Tweens.

*** Today is the last day to get your FREE COPY of Escape From the Forbidden Planet by Julie Anne Grasso July 17 to 21, 2013. Available for 99 cents after July 21, 2013. ***


Amazon(US) * Amazon(UK) * Amazon(Canada)About the Author
Julie Anne Grasso is an Australian author with a background in paediatric nursing. She spent many years literally wrapping children in cotton wool. Every day she witnessed great courage and resilience from the tiny people she cared for, which inspired her to write stories about a little girl elf just like them. Add in some very funky technology, her love of science fiction and desire to impart great values through her little girl elf named Caramel and there you have it, the Adventures of Caramel Cardamom Trilogy was the result. Julie lives in Melbourne with her husband Danny and their little elf Giselle. Most days she can be found sipping chai lattes, chasing a toddler, and dreaming up wonderful worlds that often involve consumption of cupcakes.   
Book Website: http://www.julieannegrassobooks.com/Author Blog: WhenIgrowupIwannawriteakidsbook Facebook page: Julie Anne Grasso Books Twitter: @Jujuberry37 Goodreads Author: Julie Anne Grasso  
Return to Cardamom Blog Tour Schedule (2013) July 17Mother Daughter Book Reviews (Launch & Review)The Wise Owl Factory Book a Day (Review)Jemima Pett (Review)July 18
Amanda's Books and More (Review)Tales of a Bookworm (Review)InkSpired: A Blog (Review)July 19
Sher-A-Hart (Review)This Kid Reviews Books (Review)July 20
Fiona Ingram (Review)swlothian | author (Review)A Library Mama (Review)July 21
Imagineer - ing (Book Spotlight)Stanley and Katrina (Review)July 22
Published Bestsellers (Author Interview)The Jenny Evolution (Review)July 23
Word Spelunking (Guest Post)Stitch Says (Author Interview)July 24
Nik's Picks Book Reviews (Review)R.K. Grow- reading.writing.blogging. (Author Interview)Diane Estrella @That's What I'm Here For... (Review)July 25
Guiltless Reading (Review)July 26
Kid Lit Reviews (Review)BeachBoundBooks (Review)July 27
Mel's Shelves (Review)Learning and Growing the Piwi Way (Review)July 28
My Devotional Thoughts (Author Interview)Daisha Korth Books (Review)July 29
Fiona Ingram (Author Interview)Published Bestsellers (Review)Bookworm for Kids (Review)July 30
Nayu's Reading Corner (Guest Post)Stitch Says (Review)July 31
Cheryl Carpinello's Writing Pages (Guest Post)Nayu's Reading Corner (Review)Barbara Ann Mojica's Blog (Review) 
*** Return to Cardamom Blog Tour Giveaway ***                
Prize: One winner will receive a copy (print in U.S./Canada & e-copy interntionally) + a $50 Amazon gift card or PayPal cash 
Contest runs: July 17th to August 7th, 11:59 pm, 2013 
Open: WW 
How to enter: Enter using the Rafflecopter widget below. 
Terms and Conditions: A winner will be randomly drawn through the Rafflecopter widget and will be contacted by email within 48 hours after the giveaway ends. The winner will then have 72 hours to respond. If the winner does not respond within 72 hours, a new draw will take place for a new winner. If you have any additional questions - feel free to send us an email!
a Rafflecopter giveaway




**********************************Follow Stanley and Katrina on Twitter  * Join Stanley and Katrina on Facebook 
Buy The Perpetual Papers of the Pack of Pets Now on Amazon
Listen to our Podcasts on iTunes

Wordless Wednesday? Our Home Becomes the Land of Boxes.

Wordless Wednesday? Our owners thought it would be fun to move. I prefer empty boxes to these filled ones. Stanley seems happy either way even when his dog house is treated like this. 
Comments. On another note, our intenseblogger comments did not work on our last post and just when we were really getting to like them. If they don't work on this post, I guess Popcorn may need to find another solution for us. Let's see what happens for this post. 
New Cover. We are still on track to have our new cover and illustrations released by the end of this month and it is crazy exciting for us. The artist posted one of our illustrations on her blog, check it out here. Make her day and leave a comment when you stop by. Feedback on our special sneak peek of book 2, that will be included with this new cover, has been fantastic. Thank you to our wonderful editor friends!
Fun Writing. Neighbor Girl thought it would be fun, yesterday, to participate in Susanna Hill's Short and Sweet Assignment. View her entry and all of the creative writing samples here. Susanna explains the incorrect year in the image below as well.  Well, this post isn't exactly wordless, but then, I have trouble with that as it is. 

Thank you for reading and sharing,


Katrina von Cat the Master of Wisdom and Knowledge


This post is part of the blog hop: 


**********************************Follow Stanley and Katrina on Twitter  * Join Stanley and Katrina on Facebook 
Buy The Perpetual Papers of the Pack of Pets Now on Amazon
Listen to our Podcasts on iTunes

Talented Kids Doing Good: Prader-Willi Syndrome Association

Hi!

I know, I know, we said we were taking the summer off, but Stanley and I also said we would post if we have news. With more news to share, my paws tap away at the keyboard.

As pets, we honestly do not know very many humans. However, I do think we are lucky to know the few special humans that are part of our life.

Neighbor Girl is our closest human friend. Stanley and I want to share the awesome project that she has been working on with you, today.

Neighbor Girl loves to write and has a special fondness for writing scripts. With this in mind, she came up with the idea to write a play for herself and her two closest (and talented) friends. Not stopping there, she imagined that instead of selling tickets, the kids would ask for donations for a charity.

They like to be known by their initials, so in this picture, we have from left to right F, S & C.

In their first meeting these three amazing kids developed their name: D.I.R.T. (Donating Interesting Ridiculous Theater). They also each arrived that day with a charity in mind that they wanted the group to support. Discussions ranged from supporting all of the charities to just one with their final decision resting on raising funds for the Prader-Willi Syndrome Association(USA).

Their first performance will be in the spring/summer of 2014. Visit their blog to follow the D.I.R.T. Kids; learn about Prader-Willi Syndrome or donate to their fundraising for PWS page early.


So, what do you think? Aren't they awesome?


Thank you for reading and sharing,


Katrina von Cat the Master of Wisdom and Knowledge

**********************************Follow Stanley and Katrina on Twitter  * Join Stanley and Katrina on Facebook 
Buy The Perpetual Papers of the Pack of Pets Now on Amazon
Listen to our Podcasts on iTunes

We have illustrations for our first book! Thank you Miro, for saying, "Yes!"

This is a sneak peek of one of the awesome illustrations that will be in our first book very soon! The artist and overall amazing human, Miro Chun, made our year when she said, "Yes." to illustrating our books. We have all of our interior illustrations in-paw and hope to have the updates and our brand new book cover finished and available by the end of the month. We are too excited to keep them all to ourselves, which is why we are sneaking one in this post. The above picture is of Stanley and me on the examination table at the veterinarian.

What do you think? Isn't Miro amazing? She is an architect, a gardener, a ceramic artist, a pet-chicken keeper and, oh yeah, runs her own handmade greeting card company, Fold. She designs and fabricates every card with bits of wire, snips of thread and colorful scraps of paper. Just try to visit her blog and only look at one post or picture. We certainly can't do it. Her wire animal cards are the best. Please visit her blog, purchase a card (or earrings) and be sure to tell her that we sent you!

We cannot wait to share her creations with you in our book.

Thank you for reading and sharing,


Katrina von Cat the Master of Wisdom and Knowledge

**********************************Follow Stanley and Katrina on Twitter  * Join Stanley and Katrina on Facebook 
Buy The Perpetual Papers of the Pack of Pets Now on Amazon
Listen to our Podcasts on iTunes

Kid Lit Blog Hop: Picture Book Review, I Love to Cuddle

Book Title: I Love to CuddleAuthor: Carl NoracIllustrator: Claude K. DuboisPublisher: ScholasticFirst Scholastic Printing: January 2002Fiction, Picture BookIntended Audience Age: Ages 2-6
Synopsis(from Scholastic): Little Lola gets bored and lonely when the babysitter is busy-she needs to cuddle! Lola gathers everything soft and builds her own cuddle island. Once her parents are home, she must clean up her mess, but she finds the best place for cuddling is between two loving parents!
My thoughts:  Both Neighbor Girl and I enjoy this book. Lola, the hamster, is unbelievably adorable. When all alone, she makes a decision to search for "soft things" and creates her own cuddle island. This is her creative solution on how to combat the loneliness she feels while her parents are out. She creates an absolute mess in the house.

I'll be honest, as a parent, the thing I don't like in this book is that Lola looks entirely too young to be alone in the house by herself for such a long time (apparently her babysitter is outside in the garden but we never see her). That being said, we have read this book since my daughter was very young and the illustrations are so darn cute, I look past the annoyance now and she is a hamster so suspending reality is fine. 
Having a hamster in our home, we appreciate the amazing job that Claude K. Dubois did with her drawings. The illustration of Lola's parents coming home to find Lola in her cuddle island is absolutely perfect - she isn't easily found in the pile of "softness." 
Upon their arrival, Lola's parents, proceed to make her clean up the mess she created but after some time join in to help. 
The book is cute, cute, cute. Which is why we love it so much. We continue to keep it in our bedtime book rotation. 
5 out of 5 stars for I Love to Cuddle.
Disclosure: I own a copy of I Love to Cuddle. I received no monetary or in-kind compensation for my honest review.
The Reviewer: Hi! I am a homeschooling mother to one precocious tween daughter. Sometimes I am lucky enough to fit in a book to read just for fun and will review these "fun" books for my dear friends, Stanley and Katrina von Cat the Master of Wisdom and Knowledge. Oh, yes, I'm also their tech support and social media manager. You may call me Neighbor Girl's Mom or Cool Mom. 
This post is part of the


**********************************Follow Stanley and Katrina on Twitter  * Join Stanley and Katrina on Facebook 
Buy The Perpetual Papers of the Pack of Pets Now on Amazon
Listen to our Podcasts on iTunes

Honk Jr. Performances this Weekend in Honeybrook, PA

Hi!
We are so proud of Neighbor Girl! She is a duckling in Vagabond Acting Troupe's run of Honk Jr., this weekend. Not only that, a couple of her talented friends are also in the show with her. You may recognize one from the book reading Neighbor Girl did a couple of months ago. 
If you happen to be in the area and around this weekend, Neighbor Girl would like us to invite you to join the fun. Stanley and I snuck into a rehearsal one evening. While I was not a fan of the cat character (I think she is giving us feline's a bad name), I must say, these kids are talented and are a ton of fun to watch.  Below are the details. Have a wonderful weekend. 
Friday, June 21, 2013 at 7PM
Saturday, June 22, 2013 at 12PM 10:30AM brunch with select cast members prior to the 12PM show.
Sunday, June 23, 2013 at 2PM
Details may be found at:vagabondhonkjr.bpt.me

The talented cast of Honk, Jr.
Neighbor Girl with her Honk, Jr. friends.
Thank you for reading and sharing,


Katrina von Cat the Master of Wisdom and Knowledge
**********************************
Follow Stanley and Katrina on Twitter  * Join Stanley and Katrina on Facebook 
Buy The Perpetual Papers of the Pack of Pets Now on Amazon
Listen to our Podcasts on iTunes

Wordless Wednesday: Hug a Hamster

Neighbor Girl read the story, I Love to Cuddle, to her hamster, Snuffles, today. 
We will post more about this book in our Kid Lit Blog Hop Post.

This book is included in our Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop - open for the entire month of June!
Please add a link to a post that shows us what you are reading this summer. Other posts are acceptable but must be G-rated. Thanks. 
Leave a comment below and be sure to follow us, however you prefer. Thanks for stopping by. 


**********************************Follow Stanley and Katrina on Twitter  * Join Stanley and Katrina on Facebook 
Buy The Perpetual Papers of the Pack of Pets Now on Amazon
Listen to our Podcasts on iTunes

A Word Cloud from Chapter One of our Next Book

We took a little break from writing book two, today and had fun creating this word cloud for Chapter One. We wish you a fantastic weekend!

Thank you for reading and sharing,


Katrina von Cat the Master of Wisdom and Knowledge

**********************************Follow Stanley and Katrina on Twitter  * Join Stanley and Katrina on Facebook 
Buy The Perpetual Papers of the Pack of Pets Now on Amazon
Listen to our Podcasts on iTunes

Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop: What is your family reading?

Hi!

Popcorn put together a blog hop for us. Thanks, Popcorn.

In our blog hop, we are really interested to know what you and your kids are reading. We don't need words or book reviews, just pics: pictures of the books; pictures of your kids reading; pictures of a pile of books to be read - be creative. All we ask is that the covers be appropriated for kids and youth. Inappropriate links will be removed. 

The hop is open for the entire month of June. If it goes well, we'll do it again in July. Enjoy and don't forget to leave us a comment below. We'll be sure to visit your blog.

We look forward to learning what your family is reading. 




Thank you for reading and sharing,


Katrina von Cat the Master of Wisdom and Knowledge

**********************************Follow Stanley and Katrina on Twitter  * Join Stanley and Katrina on Facebook 
Buy The Perpetual Papers of the Pack of Pets Now on Amazon
Listen to our Podcasts on iTunes

A Home for Dixie, A Picture Book Review

Book Title: A Home for DixieAuthor: Emma JacksonIllustrator(Photographer): Bob CareyPublisher: Collins, An imprint of HarperCollins PublishersYear Published: 2008Non-FictionIntended Audience Age: Ages 4-6
Synopsis(from Amazon): This is the true story of a puppy that did not have a permanent home and a young girl named Emma who desperate wanted a puppy of her own to love. Happily for both, Emma adopts the little puppy, names her Dixie, and in each other they find the companionship they've been looking for. With bonus information on how to support your local animal shelter—and even adopt a rescued dog of your own—this uplifting story, with adorable photographs, is the perfect companion for any dog-loving family.
What I thought about the book: Both Neighbor Girl and I LOVED this book. While she is almost ten years old, she and I both are huge fans of picture books and we make a point to get a few out of the library each time we visit. The adorable photograph of the real Dixie on the cover called out to me. It was the first book we read when we got home. The photographs are full-color throughout the book and are of the real Dixie and her owner, Emma (also the author). 
In the book, we learn how desperately Emma wished for a dog when one day she received the surprise of her life: her parents answered the "Can we please get a dog?" question with a, "Yes." 
Emma learns how to give Dixie, a rescued puppy, a loving home. The final pages of the book discusses searching for a dog via a shelter or rescue group and gives the reader information about Aunt Mary's Doghouse. This nonprofit charity receives a portion of the proceeds from the sales of A Home for Dixie. 
We both (Mom & daughter) give this book 5 stars out of 5. 
Guess what? Dixie has her own website, too. Stanley and Katrina are excited about that! Click here to visit Dixie's website.

The Reviewer: Hi! I am a homeschooling mother to one precocious tween daughter. Sometimes I am lucky enough to fit in a book to read just for fun and will review these "fun" books for my dear friends, Stanley and Katrina von Cat the Master of Wisdom and Knowledge. Oh, yes, I'm also their tech support and marketing helper. You may call me Neighbor Girl's Mom or Cool Mom. 
This post is part of the



**********************************Follow Stanley and Katrina on Twitter  * Join Stanley and Katrina on Facebook 
Buy The Perpetual Papers of the Pack of Pets Now on Amazon
We are in the top 20 of best rated Kindle Animal>Pet books! Yay!
Listen to our Podcasts on iTunes