Book Review: "Mysteries of Cove: Fires of Invention"

Dear friends,

The following review was written by my 13 year old daughter, who LOVED the book! She is an aspiring writer, herself, and I think she does a great job with her review.

Several of my other children also read this book and really enjoyed it, as well. I can't recommend this kind of family-friendly, fun, and exciting reading enough to other families. Happy reading!!! 

{Disclaimer: We received an Advance Reader Copy of this book free in exchange for an honest review. All opinions presented in this post are our family's own. ~Mama Rachel}

Book Review on 

Mysteries of Cove: Fires of Invention

By Dierdre K--

The book "Mysteries of Cove: Fires of Invention" by J. Scott Savage to me is an amazing piece of work. It has adventure, discovery, teamwork, humor, family, creativity, and invention.

This book is about a thirteen year old boy named Trenton Coleman who enjoys machinery. But in Cove, (a steam-powered city inside a mountain) they consider anything new, or improved a crime and therefore “invention” is a curse word.

Trenton meets a girl named Kallista Babbage, the daughter of Leo Babbage who perished in an explosion.

They soon work together and learn that Kallista’s father was working on a secret project before he died. They follow what clues he left behind, and begin to piece together a strange machine that is unlike anything they’ve known. Discovering that what they built may be a threat to what all of Cove is founded on--and maybe even their very lives.

As part of my review, I would say this book is very well written, and very engaging. I could hardly put the book down as I read. I kept telling myself, just one more chapter.

A quote in this that stuck out to me was, “All this time, I’ve been thinking that I needed things--objects--to remember him by. Now that they’re gone, I realize I don’t need his books or tools. I have my memories of him. And he gave me the gift of flight and knowledge. No one take those things from me. Thank you for helping me realize that.”

One thing in this is I love how Trenton’s relationship with his mother grows stronger, and she comes understand his love for mechanics. Family is most important and this book shows it.

Love, Mama Rachel

Christmas Reviews

"Christmas From Heaven": 
The True Story of the Berlin Candy Bomber

OUR NEW FAVORITE

Are you ever overwhelmed with joyful emotion every time you read or hear a certain story, no matter how many times you read or hear it?

That's exactly how I feel about the true story of Lieutenant Gale Halvorsen and the work he did as the "Berlin Candy Bomber" in Germany during the aftermath of the Second World War.

In our family, we have a special Christmas tradition of reading stories. We have some favorites that we gather together to read again and again every Christmas season:  from Dickens' classic "A Christmas Carol," to the fun story of "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever."

At the beginning of the holiday season, we start looking for a new story to share with our children at this special time of year, and this year, "Christmas from Heaven" is our new favorite!

This book is a wonderful addition to our collection! The paintings inside are beautiful, but the publishers have also included photographs of the actual events, the planes flown, the children who received the gift of candy, and even images of letters that German children sent to Lt. Halverson and his fellow pilots in the program! My children and I were delighted with the images on each page.

One wonderful bonus to the book is the addition of a DVD with the story being told by famous broadcaster, Tom Brokaw, at the Christmas concert of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. The special effects are inspiring, and it's lovely to see the book dramatized on-stage. My children loved the video, as well!

We all expressed wonder and delight at experiencing such an inspiring, TRUE story of what one man in the world can do to bring back joy, trust, hope, and goodness to a world devastated by war. And yes, I cry everytime I think about it!

LOVELY ORNAMENTS

Names of Christ: Biblical Heirloom Ornaments

I am also excited to have the opportunity to review a beautiful new addition to our Christmas ornament collection! 

These stars each have a different name that the Savior was known by etched on both sides. They have a metal loop on the top of each that can be threaded with anything from colorful ribbon, to rustic string, or even metal hooks for hanging on a Christmas tree or in other places where you decorate. With one dozen stars included in the package, there are plenty to cover a tree.

These metal stars are very high in quality, and I am happy to have something new that will be able endure all the "love" my kids are sure to give them over the years! 

But more importantly, the words on each star help me pause and consider the many roles the Lord fulfilled in His life on earth, and that He is still fulfilling every day.

I am looking forward to hanging these lovely new ornaments on my tree this year, as a reminder of what Christmas is really about.

Love, Mama Rachel

{Disclaimer: I received an Advanced Copy of these products for free, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions presented in this post are my very own. ~Mama Rachel}

Book Review: Blackmoore

{Disclaimer: I received an Advance Reader Copy of this book free in exchange for an honest review. All opinions presented in this post are my very own. ~Mama Rachel}

I was excited to have the opportunity to review this book! There are so few books written by modern authors that I enjoy, and so I was looking forward to finding something new to read that is also clean and uplifting.

I wish I could honestly say that my high expectations were met, but unfortunately, being a frequent reader of classic literature has probably spoiled me.

One of my pet peeves of modern, historical fiction is that most, if not all, of these stories are inundated with modern sensibilities that simply did not exist in the past. Of course, I know the reason that the writers of today make this choice, (I believe it's an attempt to help modern readers "relate" better to the characters and their world) but I have not been able to find a way to keep it from ruining the reading experience for me, personally. I subscribe to the school of thought that says that in order for modern readers to understand the past, they need to be immersed in it, rather than expecting the past to change to meet their understanding.

Examples of how the book's modern lens distracted and disappointed me:

• The heroine ogling her romantic interest's body. More than once.
• How difficult it was to relate to, understand, or even LIKE the heroine.
• The outlandish actions of the heroine's mother, knowing that she never would have been tolerated in society at that day and age.

The author is a fine writer, but the story was also fairly disjointed, and it did not hold my interest. I had to FORCE myself to return to the book several times.

Unfortunately, after reading this modern take on a historical romance, I feel the need to read an Austen novel, or something by the Bronte sisters. I honestly cannot recommend that my readers waste their time reading Blackmoore-- immerse yourself in a wonderful classic, instead!

Love, Mama Rachel

Homeschool: Sharing "What's Mine"

Mom, sharing what she loves!

First, and foremost, our homeschool does not look like public school.

Surprise!

Why not?

Because we live there, we pray there, we play there, we LOVE there. Our focus is on the "Home" part of the word, not the "School" part.

Our home is a Home of Learning.

The picture above is a photo one of my kids took during our school time. I was busy sharing "what's mine."

What's "what's mine?"

"What's mine" is a term my friend and author (who happens to also be a homeschooling mom), Rachel DeMille, uses to explain what she teaches to her children. Basically, "what's mine" includes the things I, as their mother, want them to know and understand.

Every few months, I sit down and I plan what I want to present to my children. I use a four year rotation as a personal preference, just because I know that if I don't plan, I forget what I want to share. It's just how my brain works, so I've learned to accept and embrace who I am and how I function.

(I also adore making spreadsheets. It's a disease, really, but thankfully it's been a useful one...)

Every day, my kids clean, cook, study the Gospel, do math exercises and read. Those are the basics around here. Then during our "school time," I share the other things I want them to learn.

• Mondays we clean the house and I have Mentor Meetings with our scholar kids (12 and older). 
• Tuesdays we go to our Commonweralth School classes (see more about that here: tjla.net)
• Wednesdays we study history together.
• Thursdays we learn about music. (Composers and music theory lessons)
• Friday is our science day.

Four Year Plan

Because there are so many things to learn under each general subject, I put them on a four year rotation to be more organized. Here's what that looks like:

Year One

• Gospel: Old Testament & Pearl of Great Price; 
• History: Ancient
• Science: Chemistry

Year Two

• Gospel: New Testament
• History: Modern World
• Science: Biology

Year Three

• Gospel: Book of Mormon
• History: Geography
• Science: Physics

Year Four

• Gospel: Doctrine & Covenants/Church History
• History: United States
• Science: Astronomy & Earth Science

We are currently on Year Four.

Learning Resources

Obviously, we have a variety of ages and levels in our family. But we use materials that all can understand, and that are more hands-on and fun. Then the older kids can go in more depth on their own-- which they do.   A great resource for more in-depth, advanced learning that we frequently use is Khan Academy. (Our scholars do more advanced math there, as well.)

We also have a MULTITUDE of books the kids can read, too-- especially for history, which I think is one of the most important subjects anyone can know! 

Here's one of the great resources we are using for our U.S. History studies this year:

Found at Deseret Book

For Science, we are using this awesome book:

Found at Latter-Day Family Resources

For our music study, we read about a composer, listen to his music, and then we learn a little about music theory. My favorite composer book is this one:

Also from LDFR

We also read aloud as a family-- one of the most important things we do for our learning AND our family culture. Right now, we are reading this:

From Deseret Book

(And it's AWESOME!!!)

How much time?

Our "school time" is not very long-- about an hour, sometimes an hour and a half. Then the big kids go off and study on their own, and the little ones play. The middle ones are always working on some project or another. Those projects are usually hands-on, and often messy, but they have a lot of fun learning!

A lot of time is also spent cleaning, organizing, cooking, and fixing things. I believe that ALL of life is learning, and the practical life skills we all need are a major focus of "what's mine." 

HOME-school

I hope this little glimpse into our homeschool day might help others see that homeschool does not need to look like public school. I always try to remember that we are running a HOME, first and foremost. The rest happens organically.

I am so grateful for the freedom to teach my children the things that Heavenly Father wants me to teach them! I could not do any of it without Divine Inspiration. So, in reality, when I'm teaching "what's mine," I'm also teaching "what's His."

Love, Mama Rachel

Book Review: "The Inventor's Secret"

I was so grateful to get a chance to pre-read this great book-- the first in a series of family-friendly adventures. It came out on March 5th, and I'm so excited to share my review with all my readers!

The story is about twins Abby and Derick, grandchildren of famous inventor, who are entering an exclusive, new school called "Cragbridge Hall." The innovative lessons at the school immerse the students in learning in amazing ways! While Derick is confident and ready for any challenge, Abby deals with feeling inadequate and unworthy to attend the exciting, advanced school named after her grandfather.

As the students settle in to their new surroundings, tragedy strikes and the twins have to face their dangerous, new challenges with courage-- something that seems easy for Derick, but daunting for Abby. The twins need help, but don't know who to trust. Who will help them face this dangerous struggle?

I really love that the book is written for a younger audience! The danger the characters found themselves in was real, but not too graphic or frightening for children. Even though things were toned down for the younger readers, it was still exciting and engaging enough for adults and teens. This is a BIG plus for me, as we like to read books like this out loud as a family, and I really appreciate not needing to "edit" out the really scary stuff while I read!

The author is great at engaging EVERYONE in my family-- and we have listeners from adult down to toddlers. His use of humorous dialogue kept us laughing out loud, and the fascinating inventions used in the school were easy to picture and marvel at. Now we all want to learn history in 3-D!

I also really enjoyed and appreciated the author's use of great people and events thoughout history. There were several historical personalities and events we were completely unaware of-- and this book made us all curious to find out more about them! (This homeschooling mom LOVES books that do that!) We found ourselves almost as immersed in history as the students of Cragbridge Hall. It was awesome!

My favorite part of the book is how we were able to relate to the character of Abby. She embodies human feelings of inadequacy so well! And yet, she finds that her love for others gives her the strength to do extraordinary things. This was a great lesson for myself, personally, and for my children, as well.

We love this book at our house! It is a great adventure story that kept us all engaged and excited to read. It also teaches some great lessons and made us thirst for more knowledge about great people and places. This mama gives it five stars and two big "thumbs up." I know my readers will love it as much as my family did. We look forward to the next book in the series!

{Disclaimer: I received an Advance Reader Copy of this book free in exchange for an honest review.  All opinions presented in this post are my very own. :-) }

Love, Mama Rachel