Books From The Backlog - Brave New Girls: Tales of Girls and Gadgets

This is a fun meme for sharing your TBR pile! There used to be another meme about neglected TBR books, known as Dusty Reads. That meme died and then this one popped up. I'm delighted to participate and I'm linking up with Carole from Carole's Random Life of Books. Join the fun and share a neglected book from your shelf.

The neglected book ~

Bea Reviews Babbit & Joan, A Rabbit and A Phone by Denise Turu

Publisher: Flyaway Books
Source: the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Release Date: April 14th, 2020
Buying Links: Amazon* | Apple Books* | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Google Books | Kobo |* affiliate links; the blog receives a small commission from purchases made through these links.

Blurb from goodreads:

Sometimes friends are best off with a little time apart. That’s true for Babbit, a rabbit, and Joan, his phone. Yet Babbit has never left Joan at home before. Does he dare go out on a solo excursion? How will he know what to do? What if he gets lost?

Bea Reviews The Mystery of the Moon Tower by Francesco Sedita & Prescott Seraydarian and Illustrated by Steve Hamaken

Series: The Pathfinders Society #1
Read As A Stand Alone: Yes
Publisher: Viking
Source: the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Format Read: Print ARC
Release Date: April 21st, 2020
Buying Links: Amazon* | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Google Books | Kobo |
* affiliate links; the blog receives a small commission from purchases made through these links.

Blurb from goodreads:

Summer camp just became a whole lot more interesting when five curious kids accept a mysterious project: work together as a team to uncover a series of strange clues, reveal a secret path—and follow its twists and turns to a legendary treasure!

Join in the fun in this lively, clever debut graphic novel sure to appeal to fans of the Last Kids on Earth and Lumberjanes series.

Kyle is a new kid in town who likes to draw. Vic is a cool cheerleader who’s secretly a math whiz. Quiet Beth is a history buff, while goofball Harry likes performing magic tricks, with the help of his patient wingman, Nate. Five kids unlikely to form a team, for sure.

But then they’re thrown together at summer camp, where they watch a grainy old movie about the history of their town, Windrose, and one of its illustrious citizens of a bygone era: the intrepid explorer-inventor Henry Merriweather. He’s the one who established their camp. Merriweather’s Camp Pathfinders’ motto? Plus Ultra: more beyond!

The five kids soon find there is indeed “more beyond” in their pokey town with its weird weather and sudden geysers of smelly air. Deciphering a route of historical markers leads them to Merriweather’s old castle, which is lined with ornate, beautiful tiles in hallways that lead to secret rooms full of odd objects—and where time itself is warped!

Kyle, Vic, Beth, Harry, and Nate witness scenes from Merriweather’s past and realize his experiments and eccentricities are pointing toward a path—that could lead to the rumored lost treasure of Windrose.

This is the path our heroes are meant to follow, on a journey that will take them back and forth through time, through woods, and across waterways revealed by moonlight, right up to the looming Moon Tower itself—which holds Merriweather’s secret . . . and the treasure!

Bea Reviews To the Moon and Back for You by Emilia Bechrakis Serhant & Illustrated by E.G. Keller

Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Source: the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Release Date: March 24th, 2020
Buying Links: Amazon* | Apple Books* | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Google Books | Kobo |
* affiliate links; the blog receives a small commission from purchases made through these links.

Blurb from goodreads:

For any parent who has struggled on their journey to have a baby, Million Dollar Listing star Emilia Bechrakis Serhant's debut picture book poignantly explores her own difficulty conceiving and her life-changing experiences with IVF.

I swam through the deepest ocean.
I climbed the tallest mountain.
Finding you was a journey.
And meeting you was my greatest joy.

In this picture book, illustrated by the #1 New York Times bestselling artist of A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo, families of different shapes, colors, and sizes must cross deserts, navigate rough seasons, and climb mountains--all to find their miracle babies. Emilia's story reminds us that, despite the challenges and complications often thrown our way, hope will always prevail. To the Moon and Back for You combines a timeless feel with a timely subject, and is poised to become a modern classic for years to come.

Children's Book Week 2020

Tomorrow is the beginning of Children's Book Week, the 101st year it has been celebrated. This year there will be two weeks of  celebration, one during May and another in November.

Children's Book Week is the annual celebration of books for young people and the joy of reading. It's also the longest-running national literacy initiative in the country. Every year, events are held nationwide at schools, libraries, bookstores, homes — wherever young readers and books connect! This year, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, events and celebrations have been retooled to happen at home or online. Click here for more information and for resources for use at home. 

For my part, I'm doing reviews of books for children toddler to teens and my usual weekly memes are featuring children's books. Stop back every day to check out that day's featured book. 

Go read a book with the young one in your life! Or, you be the young one and read a children's book. They're not just for children!

Friday Memes: The Suicide House by Charlie Donlea

I'm participating in two Friday book memes, Book Beginnings On Fridays, hosted by Rose City Reader, and The Friday 56, hosted by Freda's Voice.

Every Friday, share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires. Please remember to include the title of the book and the author’s name.

For the Friday 56, grab a book, any book. Turn to Page 56, or 56% on your ereader. If you have to improvise, that's okay. Find a snippet, short and sweet. Post it, and add the url to your post at the link here.

Coming to Facebook - The Great Fantasy Debate!

I got this press release today and decided to share. Most press releases I just delete but this looks fun and interesting.

Penguin Random House has a cool new project for fantasy readers, a video series called The Great Fantasy Debate, premiering on their Facebook Page this coming Tuesday, May 5th. It features top science fiction/fantasy authors and comedians debating fantasy topics, such as: Should dragon ownership be legal? Is a degree from Hogwarts worth it?

Bea Reviews 52 Small Changes: One Year to a Happier, Healthier You by Brett Blumenthal

Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Source: Kindle Unlimited
Release Date: December 28th, 2011
Buying Links: Amazon* | Book Depository * affiliate links; the blog receives a small commission from purchases made through these links.

Blurb from goodreads:

Whether as New Year’s resolutions, birthday wishes, or daily promises, most everyone vows at some point to make a major life change. But change is easier said than done, especially when it comes to better managing our wellness amidst the chaos of everyday living. Fortunately, wellness coach and award-winning writer Brett Blumenthal has devised a way to inspire and motivate her readers to live healthier and make positive changes in their lives. Although Blumenthal’s method is not a quick fix, it is a surprisingly simple one: make one small change per week, for fifty-two weeks, and at the end of a year, you’ll be happier and healthier. After all, it is the small changes that are the most realistic, instead of trying to overhaul your lifestyle all at once. 52 Small Changes addresses all areas of wellbeing, including nutrition, exercise, stress management, mental wellness, and even the health of one’s home environment. By guiding readers through these changes at an easy, manageable pace, Blumenthal provides an engaging roadmap to lasting results and “a happier, healthier you.”