Book Review: The Magic Warble by Victoria Simcox

The Magic Warble by Victoria Simcox is quite the fun and exciting adventure and one I enjoyed. This book is rated for ages 9-12 but we all know I am way past that and I found it a great tale even for an adult to escape into. It takes you on a journey to another world filled with gnomes, fairies, dwarfs, an evil queen and even animals that can talk.

The story is about Kristina, who when we first meet her, we find that she is a lonely twelve-year old girl who is an outcast at school. The kids tease her and she just can't seem to fit in no matter how hard she tries. At Christmas time her teacher gives her an old dusty hatbox and tells her that it's time for it to be passed on. She awakens one night to a strange noise that just won't go away and she discovers it's coming from the hatbox. Kristina finally gets into the box and finds a ball inside that when dropped in her hand, turns hot. Next thing she knows, she wakes up in the land of Bernovem and her adventure begins.

The thing is in Bernovem, Kristina is important. It turns out she is 'the chosen one'. The one who can save Bernovem from the evil Queen Sentiz. All she has to do is get the Magic Warble to it's final resting place. Thankfully to help her along she has Prince Werrien, a young and handsome boy who is the rightful Prince of Bernovem. His mother has been imprisoned on Treachery Island since Queen Sentiz came to rule over Bernovem.

So begins the journey that Kristina and Werrien embark on. There is also the small matter of three kids from Kristina's school that have happened to land in Bernovem as well. Even though though these kids have been cruel to Kristina, she just can't leave them behind to the wiles of Queen Sentiz. Together Kristina and Werrien, with the help of a whole host of other characters, battle zelbocks (the Queen's army), the weather, and even people they thought they could trust.

The Magic Warble is much more than just your average adventure story. We see Kristina grow stronger in her confidence as the story goes on and we see just how loyal the bonds of friendship can be. There is no offensive language or scenes in the book and would be perfectly readable for the 9-12 age group and maybe younger depending on a child's reading skill. In the world of exciting adventures and unique characters, The Magic Warble is the perfect reading choice. Spending this magical time in Bernovem was just what I needed right now - a little escape to a magical other world.

I read The Magic Warble for Victoria Simcox's Blog Tour with Pump Up Your Book. You can visit the website of Victoria Simcox and you can buy The Magic Warble here in the US and here in Canada.



My Thanks...to Dorothy with Pump Up Your Book for my review copy of The Magic Warble by Victoria Simcox.

Sunday Post on a Monday with Pictures of Buddy

Hi folks, yesterday was kind of an off day for me so I never did get my Sunday post done. Instead I have it here for you today - well a short version anyhow (ok, maybe not so short).

Nothing much going on here. We finally had some snow and it's cooling off more now although this week is supposed to be nice still. Buddy of course was thrilled with the snow and let me take some pictures of him with great coaxing I might add. Here's the Budster enjoying the snow...


Let's see what's up for this week. I'll have a review of The Magic Warble by Victoria Simcox on Wednesday and my review of The House of Reckoning by John Saul on Thursday. I didn't do too much reading this weekend but I am finishing up Raising Rain by Debbie Fuller Thomas and will say again how much I'm enjoying it. Same goes for The Girl on Legare Street by Karen White - both of these books will be finished up this week.

I'm also reading Moby Dick for Moby Dick Mondays and I should really do a separate post for it today but to be honest I don't have the energy so I'm including it in here. Because I didn't get a whole lot of reading done the last few days I'm behind in it. I've only gotten past the first chapter so if you'd like to see some much better thoughts on the book so far than mine head over to check out Ti's post at Book Chatter. I promise to have a much better post next week but I will say that I actually didn't mind the first chapter. I'm reading it on my eReader though so I have no idea how to keep track of reading the 4 pages per day.

Anyhow everyone, that's it for today. I'm off to finish up lunch and take it easy for today. How about you - what's everyone up today? I guess a lot of you would be preparing for Thanksgiving. Ours was in October so we're thinking ahead to Christmas already.

Have a good day everyone!

Friday Finds (Nov 20)

Friday Finds hosted by Should Be Reading asks us to share what great books we heard about or discovered in the past week.

My pick this week is a book I found while browsing through Fantastic Fiction called Alcestis by Katharine Beutner. It's to be released by Soho Press on February 1, 2010. Here's a bit about it from Fantastic Fiction...



In Greek mythology, Alcestis is known as the good wife; she loved her husband so much that she died to save his life and was sent to the underworld in his place. In this poetic and vividly imagined debut, Katharine Beutner gives voice to the woman behind the ideal, bringing to life the world of Mycenaean Greece, a world peopled by capricious gods, where royal women are confined to the palace grounds and passed as possessions from father to husband.

Alcestis tells of a childhood spent with her sisters in the bedchamber where her mother died giving birth to her and of her marriage at the age of fifteen to Admetus, the young king of Pherae, a man she barely knows, who is kind but whose heart belongs to a god. She also tells the part of the story that's never been told: What happened to Alcestis in the three days she spent in the underworld before being rescued by Heracles? In the realm of the dead, Alcestis falls in love with the goddess Persephone and discovers the true horror and beauty of death.

This really sounds like a book for me! How about you - did you find anything good on your book travels this week?

Product Review & Giveaway; Reading Comfort Goodies

Well it's no secret that I really love the products at Reading Comfort. I had the opportunity to review The Book Buddy a while back and you can see that review here (Also, check out the promotional video for the Book Buddy). I just love it and use it all the time in bed especially but even on the couch-really anywhere. It really does make reading a lot easier and for me with my sore hands, it's a lifesaver at times. Anyhow, Amanda asked if I'd like to review any other products and I jumped at the chance of course. I was lucky enough to review quite a few of their terrific products including bookmarks and book covers.


Elastic Four-Ribbon Bookmark (the Burgundy colored one) - Well I just love this bookmark and it's so beautiful. It's got pretty ribbons and a lovely button towards the top. I found a different way of using it than it's supposed to be but the elastic itself is quite snug (it will probably loosen over time) but for now I put the ribbons in the book and bring the elastic around the entire book with the button sitting at the top and it's working just great! That way the pages of my book aren't getting smushed in any way. This bookmark is really great for hardback books or the bigger paperback ones. The four ribbons can also be used as markers for pages you wish to go back to for quotes, etc. This bookmark is really made for hardcovers and you put the elastic around the front cover itself and use the ribbons as bookmarks but with my way I can use it on any book it'll fit and it doesn't damage pages or the cover.




Glitter Mark (the black one with the x button) - again this bookmark is beautiful as well. It's a smaller one so it fits really well on those smaller paperback books or even the medium size ones. Again, I'm using it the same way as the other one. I put the lovely ribbon in my book and bring the elastic around the whole book with the glittery X on the front. It looks really pretty and it's working just great! Again, this one should be used like the 4 Elastic one but my way is working just fine for me.





Now we move on to the book covers which I love! I have always liked book covers especially when I go out somewhere because I don't always want people gawking at me trying to see what I'm reading. lol. I got a set of three - one for a small paperback, one that fits the medium size paperbacks, and the last one for the bigger hardbacks or even a bigger paperback of which I've had quite a few. I've tried all three sizes and I really like them. They fit the books well and have a nice long ribbon to mark your page. As well, they have a pretty button on the top too which just makes them look even more attractive.


The inside pattern of the ones I got is just so pretty. I'm kind of girly when it comes to this kind of stuff so I really liked this pattern. As well look how nice it is when you have your book in it with the ribbon.
















I've found all the products I've gotten at Reading Comfort very well made. My Book Buddy gets lots of use and is still in the same condition as when I got it. The book covers are made of very nice material and I imagine they will last quite a long time as well. The bookmarks are made of good quality elastic and seem very durable. Make sure to check out the Reading Comfort website for all that they offer. There are so many products that would make fantastic Christmas presents for the book lover in your life.

GIVEAWAY: And some really good news--I've got a bit of a giveaway for you. I've been given the opportunity to have one of my readers win their choice of either a book cover or a bookmark.

Check out the book covers, glitter marks and the elastic four-ribbon bookmarks and come back and tell me exactly which one you'd like to enter to win. You can only pick one!

This giveaway is open to US & Canadian residents only (your win will be shipped directly from Reading Comfort) and I will be drawing for the winner on Saturday, December 12, 2009. Good luck to you all!



My Thanks...
To Amanda with Reading Comfort for the products sent to me for review.

Waiting on Wednesday (Nov 18)

Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week my pic is Roses by Leila Meacham to be released by Grand Central Publishing (Hachette Book Group) on January 6, 2010. Here's a bit about the book from Hachette...



Spanning the 20th century, the story of Roses takes place in a small East Texas town against the backdrop of the powerful timber and cotton industries, industries controlled by the scions of the town's founding families. Cotton tycoon Mary Toliver and timber magnate Percy Warwick should have married but unwisely did not, and now must deal with the deceit, secrets, and tragedies of their choice and the loss of what might have been--not just for themselves but for their children, and children's children. With expert, unabashed, big-canvas storytelling, Roses covers a hundred years, three generations of Texans and the explosive combination of passion for work and longing for love.

Sounds good, doesn't it? Great thing is I will be reading it come end of December, beginning of January so I'll have a review sometime then. In the meantime I'm really looking forward to it and isn't that just one of the prettiest covers you've seen!

So, how about you - what is it that you're waiting for?

Teaser Tuesdays (Nov 17)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read.
• Open to a random page.
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page.
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!).
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teasers today come from The Girl on Legare Street by Karen White...

• 'Despite what others might believe, I was afraid of the supernatural. I wasn't afraid of all spirits, of course, but certainly those that made threatening phone calls and physically attacked me. Just because I could see them or communicate with them did not make them my friends, which is why I needed to believe that my mother and I could make it go away and that there wasn't anything else to worry about.' (pg 58)

I haven't gotten to this section quite yet but almost. Already this book is just as good as The House on Tradd Street. I'm really looking forward to visiting with all these folks who became so familiar to me in the first book.

So what about you? Do you have any teasers to share today?

Winners of The Lovely Bones Audio Books

And last but certainly not least is the winners of the audio books for The Lovely Bones...

REBECCA N
DAWN M
STACIE

Congrats to you all! Your audio books will be coming to you directly from the publisher Hachette Book Group. Enjoy!