Book Review - Dragonwitch

Dragonwitch by Anne Elizabeth Stengl

(fantasy genre)

Dragonwitch begins with the story of Alistair Calix-son (heir to his uncle the Earl Ferox of Castle Gaheris) and his betrothed Lady Leta, daughter of Earl Aiven.  It's your typical arranged marriage scenario - neither one cares too much about the other but they aren't given a choice in the whole situation.  There is something else going on, though - something darker.  Why is Alistair's mother fighting so hard to assure her son's place as her brother's successor?  And who exactly is the mysterious Chronicler, the dwarf who spends his life working in the Earl's library?

This is the third book I have read in this series.  I still haven't found any of them to equal or surpass Heartless, though.  It remains my favourite so far.  Like Starflower, I enjoyed Dragonwitch moderately.  Once again, all the stories running simultaneously (at least two or three at a time) makes the reading a bit confusing.  I actually read the book twice before beginning this review to make sure I had a good grasp on the story.

As with Starflower, there is quite a lot of implied violence but nothing graphic.  At times it is hard to discern whether a character is good or bad, but in the end, good triumphs over evil.  Having some of the same characters from Starflower return in another story gave this book an interesting and unexpected turn of events.

I would give this book 3 1/2 out of 5 stars.  It is a clean, moralistic fantasy and an enjoyable read.  The negative things about the story are the confusing multiple story-lines and the assumption on the part of the author that the reader has read the previous books.


Please note : I received a free copy of this book from Bethany House (a division of Baker Publishing Group) in exchange for my honest review.

Blackboardesque Card

I love blackboards and they seem to be all the rage right now (not that I really follow the trends!), so I decided to try my hand at a blackboard card.  I used white pigment ink on black cardstock for the blackboard part.  The stamps are from Stampin' Up.  The dotted paper is patterned cardstock from the Recollections line (Michaels).  The card is an ivory card base that I stamped with kind of a zigzaggy background stamp (also from Michaels, one of those $1.50 ones).

It didn't come out as well as I thought it would, but it was fun to try.  Thanks for visiting today!

Hello!

I haven't abandoned my blog completely.  Life has just been really busy.  However, I have a number of posts in the works, including one on the challenges of clutter and some book reviews.

My blog has a new follower.  Welcome, Danielle!  Thanks to all for continuing to follow my blog even when I'm not very consistent.

Homemade Lesson Planner

I hope this isn't so simplistic a post.  There seems to be so much information, reviews, etc about homeschool plannners.  I don't want to add to the confusion but I would like to share my planning/record keeping system.  If you already have a wonderful, organised system that is working fine for you, please feel free to disregard this post.  You have my permission ;)  If you are feeling overwhelmed or simply don't know where to start, read on!

I have tried all sorts of things - free planner printable forms, free samples of  homeschool planners, and "real" teacher planners.  The problem was I was always modifying all these in some way and it was frustrating.  I was also surprised that some planners have rules - never write in pencil, use this planner exactly as it's laid out, etc.  I was ready to admit I was a complete planning failure.  Then I got a bright idea.  Instead of wasting printer ink printing out pages I wasn't satisfied with, I decided to design my own low-tech version.  By looking at other planners I got an idea of what I wanted my planner to look like.

These were my final guidelines:
-one week's lesson plans per page
-lots of space to write
-a place to put extra notes for the week
-separate sections for each child and myself
-lines for writing on

I decided what I needed was a large divided notebook with 3 sections.  Last July, I found Mead Five Star notebooks at a dollar store in Charlottetown for $3.  They had enough pages to lesson plan for both children for the year plus an extra section for me to use for other purposes.  The notebook was divided into 3 sections with pocketed dividers made of heavy cardstock, perfect for storing loose papers.

Once I got the notebook home and decided on how things would be laid out, I simply got out a ruler and pen and divided the pages (front side only) into 5 sections horizontally leaving a section at the bottom for other notes.  I labelled these 5 sections Monday to Friday down the margin.  I wrote the child's name and the week at the top of each page.  Then I simply write in pencil the subjects/activities/assignments on the lines.  I've developed a system for what order I write everything down in for a uniform look and to make it easier to find things.

I didn't sit down and draw up a full year's worth of pages at a time.  Whenever I have a few minutes, I can fill out a few pages so I generally have them ready to go when I want to write down my lesson plans.

I hope this hasn't been too basic or boring for anybody but this is just another way I have found to stretch my homeschool budget.  It may be labour intensive to some, but as I enjoy the planning process of our homeschool journey, making my own planner is a fun thing to do.

I have to say, I love the idea of some of those beautiful planners out there.  I also love having exactly what I need.  It's a pretty low-tech solution (notebook, pen, ruler) but it works for me!

Thanks for visiting today!

It's March...

...and so I guess it's time for my first post of the year :)

In my defense, we are spending the winter travelling so I don't have ready access to the Internet.  Quite frankly, my mind has been going in so many different directions the last number of months that I haven't been able to think of anything to write about that anyone would care to read.  However, I have come up with a few posts that may be of interest or use to someone out there.  So, thank you, dear readers for bearing with me!

Book Review - Starflower

Starflower by Anne Elisabeth Stengl

(fantasy genre)

Three very different characters' stories intertwine in this fantasy novel.  Hri Sora the dragon woman seeks revenge on the one who had enslaved her.  Starflower/Imraldera, a mortal girl, flees from her terrible and turbulent past.  Eanrin (who regularly shape-shifts into an orange cat), chief poet to King Iubdan and Queen Bebo of Rudiobus,  hopes to rescue the Lady Gleamdren who has been kidnapped.  All these characters are  searching for something - will they be successful in their pursuit?

I found Part One of this book to be very confusing with the different stories all going on at the same time.  There was very little explanation given for why things were happening, but perhaps I would have understood better if I had read all the previous books in the series (this is #4 in the Tales of Goldstone Wood series).  Part Two did clear up the confusion of the first part.  Everything fell in place and made sense to me, eventually.

I enjoyed the story moderately.  The confusion of all the different stories running at the same time diminished my enjoyment of the book considerably.  There is quite a bit of violence (not graphic for the most part but certainly implied) that readers should be aware of before beginning this book.  Also, the contrast between good and evil wasn't as strong as it could have been, but it is a fantasy story with moral principles.

Having previously read Heartless (by the same author), which I enjoyed immensely, I had high expectations for this book.  Unfortunately, it fell short of my anticipations.

My Rating : 3 1/2 out of 5 stars

Please note : I received a free copy of this book from Bethany House (a division of Baker Publishing Group) in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review - A Home in Drayton Valley

A Home in Drayton Valley by Kim Vogel Sawyer

(historical Christian fiction)

Tarsie Raines and her friends Joss and Mary Brubacher need to escape the terrible conditions of living in the tenements of New York City circa 1880. Tarsie dreams of heading west by wagon train and convinces her friends to join her in search of a better life in Kansas.  Tragedy strikes along the way and difficult decisions have to be made.  Hard lessons are learned about life, family, and faith.

I liked this book and appreciated the way the author dealt with the issue of racism.  I found the plot a little thin at times and slightly unbelievable, but overall the story was good.  It was a clean and enjoyable read.

My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Please note: I received a free copy of this book from Bethany House (a division of Baker Publishing Group) in exchange for my honest review.