Crafty activities

over 50 fun and easy things to make

by Judy Balchin

This book has dozens of projects to make, all arranged under the categories of printing, creative lettering, mosaics, papier mache, origami and handmade cards. The instructions are clear and there are many step-by-step photos.

Since I am homeschooling my children this year, I borrowed this book from the library for art class, and we did a couple of the activities. We had fun and they turned out well. I would recommend this book.

Predator

By Terri Blackstock
Ella Carmichael has been killed by someone who found her through her social networking site and her sister Krista is determined to find the killer. In her quest to bring changes to the networking site, Krista becomes friends with the CEO of the company. Her attempt to lure the online predator into a trap seems to have no results, but in reality had led her into danger.

This book was hard to put down; the story was captivating and realistic. Predator will certainly help people realize the danger of posting personal information on social networking sites. It also reminds us that while God allows evil, He is still a God of love.

White Roses

by Shannon Taylor Vannatter
Pastor Grayson Sterling is a widower who loved his wife dearly and is having difficulty moving on with life after her death in a car accident. Adrea Welch is a florist with a standing order for white roses for Grasyon's wife's grave every Valentine's Day—which would have been Adrea's wedding day if she hadn't been jilted two years earlier, coincidentally on the day of Sara Sterling's death. They meet and are immediately attracted to each other. But will they be able to get over the difficulties of their pasts to begin something new together?

This story included romance and a bit of mystery, which I found made it more exciting. The book was very interesting and it was nice to see how the details fit together in the end to answer the unsolved questions. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Christian romance.

Thanks to the author for sending me a copy to review. Visit her website at http://www.shannonvannatter.com.

Julie and Julia

365 days, 524 recipes, 1 tiny apartment kitchen: how one girl risked her marriage, her job, and her sanity to master the art of living by Julie Powell

This is the true story of Julie Powell's project of cooking all 500-something recipes in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking in one year. She started a blog and chronicled her journey, gaining many blog followers over the weeks.

While I found the story itself interesting, I cannot recommend this book because of the profanity in it. Julie herself even writes in the book of blog comments objecting to it.

Miserly Moms

by Jonni McCoy

This book has tons of tips and instructions for living frugally. There are ways to reduce expenses in almost every area of your life without being cheap or stingy. Jonni suggests ways to cut back on the price of groceries, travel, furniture and many more things. Each chapter covers a broad topic and there are a number of recipes at the end of the book.

I loved this book! The money-saving ideas were great and I really liked some of the recipes. Find out more at the author's website.

Eragon

by Christopher Paolini
is a fantasy story about a 15-year-old boy named Eragon who finds a dragon egg. It hatches one day and over several months Eragon learns how to use his new powers as a dragon rider while he travels around his country trying to protect the innocent from the evil government. The book ends after a huge battle.

I found Eragon very interesting. I read it wondering if it might be appropriate for my 12-year-old son, but I don't think he's ready for it since there is quite a bit of violence. As an interesting note, the author wrote the first draft at age 15 and Eragon is the first book in a trilogy.

200 fast & easy artisan breads

no knead, one bowl by Judith M. Fertig

This cookbook is arranged in sections with a basic dough recipe and then several modification recipes, some only in the shape, following the dough recipe. The basic method is to mix the ingredients together, let the dough rise for 2 hours, and then use it and/or refrigerate up to 9 days. They take just a few minutes of hands-on time and there is no kneading involved. There were many recipes for every kind of bread from baguettes and pizza to brioche, bagels and sweetbreads.

I tried two (different) batches and they were easy and delicious. I would have tried more, but the book was due at the library. I highly recommend this book and will certainly be getting it again!