When God Made You by Matthew Paul Turner & illustrated by David Catrow

My thoughts: Beautiful! A visually engrossing read about how God knows all about you and that He made you. He made you for a purpose and gifted you with each of your personal attributes.

The illustrations leap with joy from the page as the characters are colorfully splayed across the pages finding how God has a purpose and plan for them and uniquelly fitted them for that plan.

Awash in soft pastels from every color of the rainbow the pages are beautifully illustrated with charming, exuberant, happy critters and characters.

After being told in rhyme that God made you uniquely, the reader further reads that he is to....

Discover. Explore! Have faith but love more.
And learn and relearn all that God made you for.
Use your talents and passions, those gifts that God fashioned
Think up ideas and then put them to action.

The story also brings in the "Love one another" theme and touches on the color in all races and kind.

I see this as a beautifully colorful book that envelopes the child with the wonderful fact that God made him or her. God has a wonderful plan for the child and that no matter your race or talent, your shape or your form, God's purpose is there for you and He wants you to live it and fulfill it.

About the book: YOU, you… God thinks about you.

God was thinking of you long before your debut. From early on, children are looking to discover their place in the world and longing to understand how their personalities, traits, and talents fit in. Knowing that they are deeply loved and a unique creation in our big universe is certain to help them spread their wings and fly.

Written in playful, charming rhyme and brought to life with vivid, fantastical illustrations, young readers will be encouraged and excited to learn about their own special gifts  and how they fit into God’s divine plan as they grow, explore, and begin create for themselves.

‘Cause when God made YOU, somehow God knew

That the world needed someone exactly like you!

Where can you purchase it? Most any book store online or brick 'n morter. Check these....

BarnesandNoble.com: http://bit.ly/WGMYBarnesChristianBook.com: http://bit.ly/WGMYCBDWalmart.com: http://bit.ly/WGMYWalmartAmazon is currently out of stock, but should have more soon.

DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy from the publisher, Waterbrook, to facilitate this review. Opinions are solely my own and I was not compensated.

Junie B. Jones First Ever MUSICAL Edition!: Junie B., First Grader (at last!) Audiobook plus 15 Songs from Junie B. Jones The Musical

About the audiobook & music CD: Being in first grade means having to get used to a whole new classroom. And a whole new teacher. And a whole new bunch of strange children. But here's the worst thing of all: When Junie B. tries to read words on the chalkboard…she can’t! Is it possible that Junie B. needs glasses?

This special audiobook edition of Junie B. Jones, First Grader (at last!) contains all the songs from Junie B. Jones The Musical. The musical is adapted from the books Junie B. Jones, First Grader (at Last!); Junie B. Jones, Boss of Lunch; Junie B. Jones, One-Man Band; and Top Secret Personal Beeswax, A Journal by Junie B. (and Me), by Barbara Park. © 2001, 2001, 2002, 2002, 2003 by Barbara Park.

My thoughts: When I saw this product I was immediately captivated by this cute little girl peeking from behind her composition book (actually, it's her First Grade Journal). I could hardly wait to see just what capers Junie B. Jones would manage to navigate in first grade.

The books have been around for awhile and there is a whole series of which parents, kids, and educators speak very highly. It seems that the adventures of this rather quirky girl seems to garner the interest of reluctant readers.

I found the audio book to be extremely fast paced and thought it would be hard for anyone to follow and enjoy. Not that it needs or should be a slow, sleepy, lulling read. Oh no! Junie B. Jones exudes getting into mischief and growing pains so a bit of a romp in the reading is expected.

The songs are fast paced and similar in style that is often relegated to adult musicals. I found the lyrics a bit hard to understand but realize that the intended audience is young and would most likely not have any problems understanding or enjoying.

Junie B. Jones is a perky, sassy little girl that tends to have a real attitude.

Do I recommend this product? No, it just isn't a style I can recommend but I do love the cuteness of Junie B. Jones.

DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary CD product from the Blogging For Books review program on behalf of Penguin Random House Listening Library. I was not compensated for this review.

The Snow Queen: A Tale in Seven Stories by Hans Christian Andersen, Illustrated by Sanna Annukka

ISBN:9780399578502
Hardcover $16.00 

My thoughts:  I was excited at the prospect of this new edition of Hans Christian Andersen's story, The Snow Queen. It has been years since I've read fairy tales and I had not ever read The Snow Queen. The  unusual illustrations lend a modern look to the old story. And the cloth bound, hard cover book is reminiscent of books from the past.

Though the story is short and should have been a quick read, I found I simply could not get that interested in it. It begins with a sinister mirror that is like a devil. It shatters and the slivers fall to the Earth impaling people with the evil of the mirror causing them to be like it.

This should not have surprised me because fairy tales of long ago have usually had a grimness to them and a bountiful amount of evil. Usually, evil is overcome by the good others do. So one probably should expect a dark side to exist in fairy tales.

The illustrations are Scandinavian and modern with a weirdness that is indicative of the story itself - as well it should be. Would the story be better illustrated with more realistic "people" roaming the cold countryside? That would be interesting to see but Sanna Annukka chose this style and it does suit. The cover is beautiful in the deep aqua-blue with silver accents.


About the book: Gorgeously packaged with intricate illustrations from Finnish illustrator, Sanna Annukka, this new edition of Hans Christian Andersen's well-loved fairy tale, The Snow Queen, is the perfect holiday gift for adults and children alike.

Hans Christian Andersen's magical tale of friendship and adventure is retold through the beautiful and intricate illustrations of Finnish illustrator Sanna Annukka. Cloth-bound in deep blue, with silver foil embellishments, The Snow Queen is elevated from a children's book to a unique work of art. It is an ideal gift for people of all ages.

DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy from the Blogging for Books reviewer's program to facilitate a review of my honest opinions which are freely given.

Avenue of Spies by Alex Kershaw (WWII Non-Fiction Biography & Memoir)

ISBN13: 9780804140058
History - Europe - Western
$16 paperback

About the book: A True Story of Terror, Espionage, and One American Family's Heroic Resistance in Nazi-Occupied Paris

The best-selling author of The Liberator brings to life the incredible true story of an American doctor in Paris, and his heroic espionage efforts during World War II

The leafy Avenue Foch, one of the most exclusive residential streets in Nazi-occupied France, was Paris's hotbed of daring spies, murderous secret police, amoral informers, and Vichy collaborators. So when American physician Sumner Jackson, who lived with his wife and young son Phillip at Number 11, found himself drawn into the Liberation network of the French resistance, he knew the stakes were impossibly high. Just down the road at Number 31 was the "mad sadist" Theodor Dannecker, an Eichmann protégé charged with deporting French Jews to concentration camps. And Number 84 housed the Parisian headquarters of the Gestapo, run by the most effective spy hunter in Nazi Germany.

From his office at the American Hospital, itself an epicenter of Allied and Axis intrigue, Jackson smuggled fallen Allied fighter pilots safely out of France, a job complicated by the hospital director's close ties to collaborationist Vichy. After witnessing the brutal round-up of his Jewish friends, Jackson invited Liberation to officially operate out of his home at Number 11--but the noose soon began to tighten. When his secret life was discovered by his Nazi neighbors, he and his family were forced to undertake  a journey into the dark heart of the war-torn continent from which there was little chance of return.

Drawing upon a wealth of primary source material and extensive interviews with Phillip Jackson, Alex Kershaw recreates the City of Light during its darkest days. The untold story of the Jackson family anchors the suspenseful narrative, and Kershaw dazzles readers with the vivid immediacy of the best spy thrillers. Awash with the tense atmosphere of World War II's Europe, Avenue of Spies introduces us to the brave doctor who risked everything to defy Hitler.

My thoughts: We all need to read books like this about the people, places, events, and horrors that were the meat and potatoes of World War II. - even if biographical reads are not our "thing" nor historical non-fiction what we long to delve into. And even if the book is written in such a manner that it primarily bores us stiff. We need to read the stories. We need to acquaint ourselves with what happened to millions of people. We need to know the depth to which humanity can plunge and the height to which the human spirit can soar.

Avenue of Spies sounded intriguing to me. I am a bit of a history buff so reading about the events of World War II wasn't much of a stretch for me to reach for the book and get started. But the story, while a relatively thin book, was a slow read. A tedious read. And frankly quite hard to grasp at the start. But about midway through, my interest began to latch hold and the story of Dr. Jackson and his wife and son captured my attention and left my heart weeping.

Dr. Jackson was an American practicing medicine in Paris. His European wife was happiest on her own turf, so he happily resettled. Having been a doctor on the front lines of World War I, he easily transitioned from private practise to war injuries when the war came to Paris. Living and having his medical headquarters on the fashionable Avenue Foch with the most feared of German soldiers encamped as his neighbors did not deter him from pursing clandestine activities.

The cost to him and his family was dear as this memoir brings out. Horrific circumstances and heroic personalities. We don't want to repeat World War II, so read and learn from history.

I received a complimentary copy from Blogging For Books reviewers program. Opinions are solely my own.