Cathode (Cathy for short) is about to become a big sister when her parents order a new baby robot. The baby arrives in the mail, but requires some assembly. Mother tries to put the baby together, and Father tries to read the instructions, but they can't get the gears to attach to the clockwork innards of the child. They call for help! What can Cathy do to help save the baby?

The cuteness level in this book is through the roof! The story is so clever and original, and I adore all the funny characters. There's Uncle Manny who tries to help assemble the baby. The neighbor brings her little twins to meet the baby. And of course, Sprocket the dog will help big sister Cathy to save the day!

The world-building is brilliant and fun! It's interesting to see what sort of food a robot would bring to welcome a new baby (sludge cake and rust soup with toasted zinc). The robots call for tech support during a crisis, or call a robot doctor with a toolbox and screwdriver. It's so imaginative!

I love Cathy's character, and how she cuts through the chaos of the adults, and trusts herself and her own abilities and know-how. She goes on a mission to save that baby, and with her trusty dog Sprocket at her side, they defy the adults and Cathy becomes the hero of the hour.

I find it very interesting how the emotions of the robots are expressed in the illustrations. The emotion is in the expressions on their metal faces and the way they hold their robot arms and how they stand with sassy robot posture. You can feel the action and energy on each page!

I just adore the colorful artwork and the way the book is organized in panels that lead the reader through the story. There are so many cool details in the background of each scene that really bring the story to life.

I am completely enchanted with everything in this sweet picture book! What a treasure!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

Alexandra decides to try a 30 Dates in 30 Days challenge, and she swipes right for some dates that turn out to be decidedly awful, awkward, and no fun. These truly bad dates are immature, selfish, and downright gross. They leave her with the check, mansplain and lecture her, stay on their phones the whole time, or just don't show up at all. At the end of her 30 dates, Alexandra decides to invest in herself and live her best life alone... with a few good friends.

I loved this funny picture book for adults! The writing is hilarious with clever hashtags scattered throughout. For anyone who has horror stories of terrible dates, this book will ring true and help you to laugh off those bad times with the same carefree and courageous attitude Alexandra shows.

I loved the beautiful illustrations in this book! It's so colorful and whimsical. The cartoony art style doesn't feel juvenile at all. The expressions on the characters' faces really show the emotional baggage that is being dragged around, and Alexandra's disgust and exasperation with her awful dates. And yet, it feels fun and silly and sarcastic. The art perfectly mirrors the mood of the writing in a really special way!

I liked that Alexandra is safe and careful. She meets her dates in public places, and sometimes brings a friend along. It shows that Alexandra is smart and savvy in many ways. And the story is not just about the dates; Alexandra has interests and hobbies and friends that give her personality depth.

I love everything about this book!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

This activity book has 10 beautiful designs, and hundreds of stickers in little mosaic shapes! There are pictures of so many cool and famous musicians from all styles of music, country, rock, and blues.

It's so easy to put the stickers into place, and the finished product looks wonderful. It's very relaxing and helped me to get creative. You really feel a sense of accomplishment when you finish!

The stickers are sturdy and easy to remove from the sticker sheet. The colors are vibrant and it's simple to follow the instructions to find the right placement for each sticker. I really loved that the pages are perforated, so that you can tear out the sticker sheet or the design or both. That way you don't have to keep flipping back and forth in the book.

I love the clever designs and beautiful colors! This is perfect for anytime you have some anxiety and need a calm activity.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

A fox parent sings a song to their little fox cub all about their cute nose. Apparently this nose is the best nose to ever exist! It must be extraordinary and lovable with a magic all its own, because it makes the fox parent so happy to see that little fox cub nose.

I loved this cute book! The illustrations are adorable, and each animal character boops their noses together in the sweetest way. The colors are bright, and I love the cartoony style of the artwork.

The best thing about this book is the rhythm of the text, which is like song lyrics that will have you clapping your hands along with imaginary music.

I love everything about this sweet little board book!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

A passel of pigs sing a song about how amazing pigs are, because of their delightful ears, curly tails, their snouts, and their general pink plumpness. Other animals may be smarter or more stylish, but these pigs are fabulous and chubby and they have mega-watt smiles.

Those pigs are just so cute and cuddly! The illustrations are very sweet and silly, and I love the simple cartoon art style. Every page is so bright and colorful that it is sure to attract the attention of young readers.

The best thing about this book is the rhythm of the text, which are song lyrics that will have you clapping your hands along with the music. You can visit the publishers website to listen to a recording of the music, or make up your own tune to sing as you read.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

If you examine Christ's life, his personality, his teaching, his leadership style, one thing becomes abundantly clear, Jesus is too good to be false. There has never been a human being who lived the way He did, and it would be impossible to make up a story of a man like Him. There's no way that Jesus could be anyone other than who He claimed to be: God Incarnate.

I love the way this book follows logical steps of reasoning and evidence from the Bible and from history to build an irrefutable argument for the reality of Jesus. The writing is forceful and vivid, but it leads the reader gently down a path of truth to the convincing conclusion that Jesus is the only perfect human to have ever lived and died and risen again. Each step of the way is coherent and meaningful.

I was personally inspired and invigorated by the power of the writing in this book! I love that there is Scripture and quotes from famous Christian theologians peppered throughout the pages. The author builds on old discussions and debates from previous centuries, and shows how their theology and reasoning is still true today. He also shows how old false ideas about Jesus are being dressed up for the modern era, and causing even Christians to falter in their belief. He spends several chapters addressing the arguments of skeptics and atheists, proving just how flimsy their reasoning is.

I am so impressed with the calm logic and piercing truth in this book. Somehow the author manages to write passionately, and yet with such a composed rationale that inspires trust in every word. It makes me say, "Hey yeah! That's true! I can see the evidence the author has laid out for me and know it is true." The author goes straight to the heart of the matter, and lays bare the real issue in all its aspects, then challenges the reader to decide for themselves what is true.

At a couple of places I was almost in tears, reflecting on the marvelous love of Christ. What a wonderful book for Christian believers to read to strengthen their faith, or for anyone to read if they are just curious about who Jesus really was!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

This book guides the reader through the decluttering journey with chapters for each room. The writing style is excellent with practical advice on how to make decisions for keeping or tossing your possessions. One of the things I really enjoyed about this book was the way it encourages the reader to examine their emotions about their home and possessions. The book provides affirmations and inspirational advice to fuel your motivation and create a new way of living.

It was odd to me that Bathrooms were lumped together with the Entryways in the same chapter. What do Bathrooms have in common with an Entryway? It made no sense to have those two areas together and made for a very confusing chapter. And the Laundry Room is included in the chapter with the Master Bedroom. The information is poorly organized.

There are also long lists of needed decluttering materials like storage tubs and trash bags. And it just repeats the same list for the next room and the next room. I'm not sure why it was necessary to repeat the list several times in every chapter.

I did NOT like the advice to move clutter to other rooms while you are decluttering one room. Sounds like a great way to shuffle things around and never get anything done. The book also advises that you should store items away and see whether or not you need them later. That's another terrible way to keep boxes of unused items sitting around that you will never end up actually getting rid of. This is not very good minimalist philosophy.

The author even encourages the reader to keep clothing that doesn't FIT them! Why would you keep clothing that is too small or too large for you? The author says to keep it in storage until you need it again. Unless we're talking about maternity clothes that you might need in the future, that is just unhealthy.

This book's system of decluttering gives the reader too many ways of keeping things. It would be much better to get rid of things at once, instead of dithering around and not making the decision to keep or toss or donate. Make the decision. Get the stuff out of the house immediately. Get it done. This system leaves too many loopholes.

I also did not like the way that the author included a few paragraphs about finding your vision for your space at the END of each chapter. You should think of your vision for the space, what you want to feel in that space, and what function the space should have BEFORE you begin decluttering or else you will lose focus as you move things around. Why would you put together a vision board for the room AFTER you've already finished decluttering the room? It's completely backwards!

While decluttering, you should be able to ask yourself, “Does this item fit my vision?” If yes, then you keep the item. If no, then you trash the item. It is so much simpler if you already have a vision for that space. It helps with the decision making process.

The book is mostly geared toward families with children, and as a single person, I didn’t find much in there that applies to me. I wish the writing included more scenarios and examples for people in a variety of home/family situations. There is a chapter at the end that addresses minimalism in studio apartments and small spaces, but I didn't get much from it.

Some of the advice in this book is just strange, such as a tip to hang T-shirts on the same hanger to save space. First of all, who hangs up their T-shirts? And secondly, wouldn't it be difficult to squeeze multiple shirts onto the same hanger and equally difficult to see and remove the chosen shirt? There are no other guidelines or explanation given for this strange tip.

The author also has a chart where the reader can tick off a box for every item they get rid of, and then give themselves a reward when they have reached their goal. But the goal and the focus should not be on decluttering a certain amount of items. The focus should be on what you keep to enhance your life and bring you joy in your home, NOT on the trash you threw out. Why would I want to reward myself for trash? I want to track and reward myself for the good things I love to keep.

This book is okay. 2 stars means "okay" but not great. There are some good ideas, but I've read better. There is good advice, but the information is badly organized.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

Charlotte Bronte was truly an extraordinary individual. This biography written by her friend Elizabeth Gaskell is a powerful history of the tragic life the Bronte sisters led. Their strong personalities and steady faith drew them closer together, and provided the genius for their incredible writing.

I loved reading about the eccentric Bronte family, and the close relationships between the siblings. Their isolated home among the moors of Yorkshire inspired similar vigorous settings for many of their books. It was interesting to see how their personal experiences led to fictional creations like the terrible Lowood School in 'Jane Eyre' or the awful governess situation in 'Agnes Grey'. There are many parallels from their real lives to their writing.

The writing is really gripping and easy to read, and I loved that so much of the text is excerpts from Charlotte's own letters. I especially like this edition with the extensive notes and appendices that elaborate on more of the history, and also explain Mrs. Gaskell's decisions to leave out certain aspects of the Bronte's lives to protect other people's privacy.

I cried several times while reading this book, especially at the tragic death scenes. It really is emotional to read about such a close and fierce love between the Bronte sisters, and then when Emily and Anne die within a few months of each other, and Charlotte is left all alone... it's depressing to read about. That's just how powerful the writing is, and how compelling these characters from history were.

I loved all the little details about their everyday lives, their servants, their home, their father's religious work in the parish, and their habit of walking on the moors. They had such mighty brains and energetic thoughts, but were trapped in weak bodies that were often ill. Their personalities in public were shy and retiring, and yet their inner lives were so colorful and dynamic.

This book has helped me to dive a little deeper into the people behind the books, and I will never read their writing quite the same way again now that I know the authors a little better.

I adore this sweet story! Although it is short, I quickly become attached to the characters. Each little Ruggles is unique and their delight at Christmas is infectious. Carol is a darling, and the whole Bird family is exceptionally interesting. Love it!

Update in 2020: Rereading this for the umpteenth time, I was just giggling and laughing at all the Christmas fun!