This book has hundreds of stickers, and glossy endpapers that can be used as a background for the stickers to be placed and reused in a scene. The stickers are sturdy and don't lose their stickiness over time. I even tried placing a sticker on a plain piece of paper, and it stuck just fine and then came right off without leaving any sticky residue.

The designs for each sticker are colorful and fun! You could use them on the background scene provided with the book, or use them in notebooks, cards, journals, or on any hard surface. There are so many stickers to choose from! Some of them are duplicates, but most are individual designs. I love the vibrant colors!

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.

Broken into sections for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math, this book gives challenges, questions, factoids, word problems, puzzles, word search activities, mazes, crossword puzzles, secret codes to crack, and dozens of other activities! I especially liked the games about music and note values, since I am a musician.

Each game is worth a certain amount of points, and you can tally up your score for each section. In case you get stuck, the answers for each game are in the back of the book, along with a glossary for some of the larger words.

This book is perfect for kids who are creative, or kids who are bored and want some interesting activities to keep those brains busy. I would also recommend it to adults who want to keep their minds sharp.

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.

With sections for Sequencing, Comparisons, Abstract Thinking, Patterns, Analogies, Deduction, and Critical Thinking, this book has simple puzzles and activities to help a young child learn to put things in order, analyze information, and choose the next step.

Each page has a simple activity for a child to do, like coloring in the pattern, circling all the shapes, or choosing which pictures match each other. The designs are colorful and bright, drawing attention to the fun exercise.
At the bottom of each page there is a prompt for the parent to use, asking the child a question or giving them instructions to complete the task.

This book is wonderful for parents and little kids to have fun together learning and enjoying the puzzles!

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 boxed set of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz book and puzzle makes a beautiful gift set! The paperback book has a beautiful cover just as shown on the front of the box, however there are no illustrations inside the book which was a little disappointing. I was hoping for more gorgeous artwork like the cover!

The puzzle is a 500 piece puzzle included inside its own separate box inside the gift set. The puzzle picture is the same as the cover. I just love that artwork and the bright colors and all the details in the background, which makes it perfect for a puzzle!

The box itself is a delight, with a magnetic clasp and lovely endpapers. You could use it like a treasure box if you didn't want to keep the puzzle inside it.

Of course, the actual story of Oz itself is wonderfully whimsical and imaginative! The characters are all so vivid and unique, and the plot is one surprise after another. It's different than the movies in many aspects, so well worth the read even if you think you already know Dorothy's story.

The whole set is really special, and would make a lovely gift!

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 includes sudoku puzzles, nonograms, calcudoku, and masyu games. There are cryptic puzzles that solve similar to sudoku, but result in decrypting a word or phrase. Masyu is a puzzle where you draw lines that connect in a path through black or white circles with strict rules of movement and direction.

Each puzzle comes with clear instructions to get you started, and a hint in case you get stuck. The answers to each puzzle are at the back of the book, so that you can check your work.

I was surprised at how easy it was to learn the rules of each type of puzzle, but that doesn't mean the puzzles themselves are easy! Some of them are quite difficult, while others are a little easier to crack. Some of the logic puzzles where you have to eliminate the various options to find the answer are really interesting.

This book definitely got my brain working and thinking creatively to solve the puzzles! I just love code breaking games and puzzles like this!

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 begins with general advice about self-care, and the role that aromatherapy can play in your mental, physical, and emotional well-being. There is a chapter about the types of essential oils and carrier oils, as well as lists of recommended materials and tools. I especially appreciated the section on how and where on the body to apply oils using acupressure points.

There is a list of Top Ten Essential Oils and their uses, substitutes, and how best to blend them with other oils. There is also a lengthy chart with many other essential oils and their healing properties.

The following chapters have recipes for essential oil blends to be inhaled or applied topically to the body. These are divided into groups by topic. There is a section about emotional well-being for relieving anxiety or anger, bringing joy or courage, releasing irritability or panic. The next section addresses mental well-being with recipes for getting a creative boost, concentrating and focusing, keeping your thoughts clear, boosting memory, and for quieting your mind. The section on physical well-being has recipes for acne, bad breath, congestion, headache, indigestion, menstrual cramps, nausea, toothache, and many more.

The recipes include precautions for young children or pregnant women, as well as tips for when these blend will work best. There is also a small paragraph with each recipe that gives inspirational advice for staying calm, breathing deeply, and doing meditation, acupressure, or yoga poses.

This book has beautiful photographs with vibrant colors. There are plants, teas, soaps, candles, and of course oils arranged in lovely artistic displays.

I really love how the information is organized in this book! It makes it easy to search for an essential oil blend, with clear instructions and helpful tips. Even if you know nothing about essential oils or aromatherapy, you can learn all about it with 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 book has recipes for healing foods of fruits, grains, herbs, coffee and tea, and dozens of vegetables. The sections are divided by the type of food, with information about the benefits of that food, it's healing power, and medical conditions that it will help.

The recipes are simple with easy instructions and common ingredients. There are also variations on the recipe in case you want to add or substitute something. I really like how the recipes are organized, and the design and layout is easy to navigate.

The recipes include smoothies, soups, entrees, salads with homemade dressing, fruit jam, stews and chili, veggie burgers, rice bowls, trail mix, pasta, and homemade breads. There are no recipes for meat, but these dishes can easily be combined with lean meat or as side dishes for a meat entree.

This is an excellent resource for anyone wanting to use food to treat a specific medical condition, or for anyone just wanting to boost their immune system and stay healthy!

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.

I picked up this book because the author has co-written the new Marie Kondo book, Joy at Work. I wanted to check out other books by this author before I read Marie Kondo's new book.
I was disappointed.

The writing is much too verbose, taking forever to make a clear point. Every chapter is FULL of stories; true stories, anecdotes, business stories, and examples of people who succeeded or failed. Then the author uses the example from the story to illustrate their point about being resourceful with little instead of grasping for more.
But the long story takes up a couple of pages, and the lesson is maybe a couple of paragraphs. There are few examples outside the world of business, and I was hoping for a more diverse approach to resourcefulness at home and in personal relationships.

I got bogged down in all the many stories. The writing jumps from story to story, and I just couldn't process all those different people and their businesses. I lost interest pretty quickly, and began skipping the stories and just reading the paragraphs with the lessons.

It would have been better if the writing had focused on ONE powerful story for each chapter (instead of several), and then spent more time explaining the lesson, and applying the lesson to more varied life situations. I love a good example story, but there were just too many.

The author could have used "the power of less" in including fewer stories.

Susan B. Anthony worked tirelessly to secure votes and liberty for women in the United States. This book gives an overview of her life and her work, with explanations about petitions, laws, newspaper articles, and how these things influenced Anthony's work. There is also interesting information about clothing styles, employment, habits, and how people lived in at the turn of the century.

I loved the simple writing style, easy for a beginner to understand. There are sections for an adult to read aloud, and then a smaller section with easier words and larger font for the child to read. It's a great way to teach a child new words, and get them involved in reading together!

The colorful design and old-timey photos captured my attention. There are also activities and questions that get the reader engaged and make them think carefully about the ideas in the book. I appreciated how thoughtful the questions are and how much goes into the design!


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 one is for the problem-solvers, the explorers, and those with curious minds! This book begins with an introduction to the different areas of chemistry, and the types of chemists who study biochemistry, organic chemistry, inorganic chemistry, even green chemistry which studies how to reduce waste.

The experiments are divided into chapters by Matter, Gases, Chemical Reactions, and Polymers. Although the book talks about atoms, protons, density, noble gases, air pressure, and other scientific terms, a child doesn't have to understand the complexities of the science in order to do the experiments and have fun!

The experiments use materials like plastic cups, vinegar, straws, molding clay, and balloons, and other household items. It's very accessible and easy to set up. There are also cautionary instructions that tell the child when to ask an adult for help. The projects look like so much fun!

With each experiment, there is a small text box that has the STEAM connection showing how the experiment uses math, engineering, or physics in addition to chemistry. There are also Observation questions for the child to answer, as they learn to be scientific observers and collect their data.

There are really colorful and clear photographs showing each stage of the project, and with children modeled in the photos demonstrating how to do the experiment. It really made it easy to visualize how to do each experiment!

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.