Review = The Body Boundaries Parenting Guide: Eight Essential Body Safety Conversations to Have with Your Kids by Julie Bemerer PsyD

 #partner @penguinrandomhouse Thanks for the free book  

Parenting has challenges and often especially first time parents struggle with certain topics. As a parent, you want to educate your kids on certain topics and not leave it up to the kindergarten teacher or the daycare mom. Teaching your kids of about boundaries is one such topic. Not just as it relates to body boundaries, but in general. Each chapter deals with a specific topic, such as saying No or identifying people you can trust and seek help from. Saying No may seem like a general option, but may not always work. What options are available then is one such important lesson this book helps parents explain to their kids. I found the chapters and the language used to be easy to follow. The author uses a number of tools, drawings, sample conversations and a general approach to use. I found this book to also comprehensively cover the topic of body boundaries and to realistically reflect how kids may approach the topic and what thought process they may have.  

 

his book is a guide for parents to teach kids, especially ages 3 to 6 about body boundaries. Touching on difficult topics, the book does a phenomenal job of helping parents cover these topics with young kids. Many chapters also have hints on what to do to expand the topic as the child gets older or asks more questions. 

 

A really good, easy to follow book for parents to help with covering this sensitive topic. I like that the author uses tools such as drawings in addition to explanations to help kids understand and parents to huide in these topics. 

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Review = A Walk Down Memory Lane: Short Stories for Seniors to Spark Joy and Stay Sharp by Sarah Bracey White

#partner @penguinrandomhouse Thanks for the free book  

This is an interesting book. I contains short stories that can read in a few minutes. But the more important part is two-fold. There are guiding questions that both make the reader focus on the essentials of the story, maybe go back and focus while reading. As well as at least one question that is aimed at jogging the memory of the reader to events from their past life. 

 One story deals with a kid getting a pet and overcoming their fear of dogs. Another story deals with the first job, such as a paper route and asks what the reader's first job was. And then a story deals with pen pals, going back to a time when actual letters were still exchanged and the anticipation when a letter finally arrived.  

To me the book covers a nice variety of topics and experiences of people that are now either retired or approach retirement age. I think every reader will find some stories that resonate with them and remember some events of their youth. I also enjoyed the questions that related to events in the youth of the reader. While citing specific milestones, they were still generic enough that almost everyone can relate to the experiences such as a first pet or a the first job.

This is a really nice book by the author and I find it useful to pick topics to talk about with aging relatives who should read, but do not have the energy for a whole book. I should also mention that the book is in large print and so very easy to read by older readers.  

 

 

available on amazon.com

This book was provided free of charge to me in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed in this post are my own and have not influenced by any third party. 

 

 

Would You Rather? Junior: That's So Gross! Edition: Funny, Smelly, Slimy, Disgusting, Yucky Questions that Make You Say Eww!

#partner @penguinrandomhouse Thanks for the free book  

 

This is a fun book. My nieces are now past the gross equals fun and interesting phase, but I remember that stage of development well and this book would have been so helpful back then. from wondering whether clogged toilets or throwing up on a bike is more fun or a better experience to such ideas as swallowing worms, this book will keep your kids entertained wondering what some of the experiences in the book are like. Some definitely gross, some also maybe painful and many are interesting to think about and figure out what it would be like. 

Just make sure your little readers do not get ideas that these ideas have to be tried out.  Because some of these ideas are not just gross, but definitely not worth trying out. That should be also some guidance on when to have kids engage in this book. Do not give young kids ideas. This book is therefore perfect on a trip when kids are bored and need to be entertained without screen time. And this book is perfect for that. 

 

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This book was provided free of charge to me in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed in this post are my own and have not influenced by any third party. 

 

 

Review Journal Like a Stoic: A 90-Day Stoicism Program to Live with Greater Acceptance, Less Judgment, and Deeper Intentionality by Brittany Polat

  #partner @penguinrandomhouse Thanks for the free book  

This is a workbook, but it can be customized to some degree by the reader. The author uses prompts to make the reader rethink their life and choices while facilitating the move towards a Stoic lifestyle. Each prompt gives a reader a choice between two options and no matter which prompt you choose, the new day will have another choice that guides you on your way to follow in the footsteps of Seneca. Of course, Stoicism has other great thinkers in his history, but as a student of Latin, I am quite familiar with the writings of Seneca and his philosophy. 

The book is broken up into sections, starting with an introduction to the Stoic philosophy and then the actual workbook that contains 90 workbook entries to guide the reader. The section on The Stoic way of life is further broken down into three section enttitled:

• Examining the inner critic
• The road to acceptance
• Living with virtue

 

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I should also mention that the author Brittany Polat has a doctorate in applied linguistics and is the founder of the nonprofit organization called "Stoicare" which promotes Stoic principles for wisdom, well being and community.I am happy to see Stoicism being still considered a worthwhile philosophy in the modern age. I do believe that Stoicism provides value in this day and age, especially as people struggle with their lives and often lack social contacts. Stoicism can provide an approach to deal with problems alone and find positives in their lives. 

I can recommend this book for people that have experienced Stoicism before or are totally new to it.  The workbook can act as a guide to find a good life, no matter what the current circumstances may be. 

The opinions expressed are my own and only reflect my personal impression of a product or book.  No financial compensation was received, but I was provided with a free copy of the book for review purposes. 

Book Review = Cali's Fun Bilingual Tales: 5-Minute Stories in Spanish and English by Jorja Colley & Vicky Lommatzsch

 #partner @penguinrandomhouse Thanks for the free book  

As someone who speaks a tiny bit of Spanish, but wants to improve conversational Spanish without sitting through boring classes, this is a nice book. And I enjoy reading it with little kids because the stories are really just 5 minutes and have side by side English and Spanish. The sentence structure is easy and specific words that may be more difficult are listed at the beginning. This book is geared towards little kids who either may be bilingual or whose parents try to rear them speaking both English and Spanish.

But as an adult, I found this book also good to learn basic Spanish in a fun way and refresh and also improve my Spanish skills that ae a little bit rusty.  

The stories cover topics such as a day at school, including, vacation time and recipes from Grandma. The scenarios are picked for every day and are very relatable.  This makes the book perfect to read as a family or for the learner to read and learn on their own. 

available on amazon.com

 

Not to forget, the illustrations are fun too and again very relatable. Supporting the topic in a way that makes grasping the content easy. These 15 stories are fun and can be reread, perfect for bedtime or whenever you have keep a kid entertained for a little bit. 
 

The opinions expressed are my own and only reflect my personal impression of a product or book.  No financial compensation was received, but I was provided with a free copy of the book for review purposes. 

 

 

Book Review = My Retirement, My Way: A Workbook for the Newly Retired .. by Veronica McCain

#partner @penguinrandomhouse Thanks for the free book  

 This is a workbook, so instead of just presenting her experience or suggestions in a book form to absorb while reading the various chapters. this author makes the reader work through a number of exercises to determine what works for them, what their goals are and what are the plans for retirement. To me, this approach helps me absorb the lessons learned in the book much better than if just read through a book. 

The book is well structured with various chapters starting off with

• Retirement starts here and now
• create meaning and find your passion
• set goals 

You can alresdy see a natural progression in the headings and each part has again multiple chapters, such as Retirement starts here and now is split up into

• Where are you now?
• Who are you?
• What is success? 
• The Nitty Gritty
• Your Vision of Retirement 

I like how the author has structured the book and I recommend that the reader complete each worksheet in the series before moving on. Even if you like me may feel that you are clear about plans or what your personality is like for retirement, please do not skip any of the exercises. They may reval things about you and your plans that may surprise you. All exercises can easily be completed in a few minutes, but just like retirement that is no rush and you should take your time to think and work through each exercise. Be very intentional and of course be very honest.

As someone that bought their house with an eye towards retirement for my parents and then bought a condo with an eye towards my retirement, I appreciate how many facets the author covers. From thinking ahead to how suitable the house is or difficult modifications are and then covering whether your locatron or even your city is right, the author really brings to the attention of the reader all the aspects of retirement that need to be considered. Again, while some exercises can be completed quickly, it is important to not rush through them and carefully and truthfully answer all questions and really think about your responses. 

available on amazon.com

I recommend this book to anyone interested in planning for retirement and wanting to take a rational approach to the retirement planning. If you are still years removed, I suggest working through the book now and again as you get closer to retirement because circumstances change. I know that the author addresses the newly retired, but I find the exercises helpful in the planning stages too. Especially when it comes to topics like is my house suitable for retirement or whether a second career makes sense and how to approach it. For example, I have taken on a part-time job that I intend to continue with in retirement. I may still be a few years away, but why not start on that second career and you have a smoother transition into retirement. 

The opinions expressed are my own and only reflect my personal impression of a product or book.  No financial compensation was received, but I was provided with a free copy of the book for review purposes.

 

 

The Gift of Anxiety: Harnessing the EASE Method to Turn Stuck Anxiety into Your Greatest Ally by Diante Fuchs

This author takes an interesting, but I think necessary approach on how to view anxiety. Anxiety is not just bad and negative and worrisome but can also have positive impact. Anxiety is part of our body's response to certain stresses, and such will always be around, and we have to learn to not fight it, but embrace it and live with it. And this is what this book is attempting to help the reader with. 

available on amazon.com

 

 

 

We have come a long way in terms of body positivity and accepting that bodies in all shapes are beautiful. Simply dieting works for some to lose weight, but not for all. The same is true with the mental aspects of our bodies like anxiety. The author explains that anxiety can be experienced in different way and one focus for her is stuck anxiety. The type of anxiety that is often debilitating and leaves a person unable to cope and literally freeze with inactivity. Some people experience this type of anxiety, and it is a lifetime of suffering the impact. Others have learned to cope and by nature can cope with these phobias and even find them it is invigorating, driven by overcoming a challenge and thriving in that experience. Others have never experienced stuck anxiety. The point the author makes, people are different and rather than suffer, she is now presenting strategies to overcome anxiety and not see it as an enemy, but a potential driving force for better life, action and self. 

 

To deal with anxiety, the author has developed the EASE method to help the reader to work with anxiety rather than just against it and blindly trying to overcome it.  The author is a clinical psychologist that has used this method to help people deal with anxiety in a successful way that enabled the patients to learn how to deal with anxiety rather than see it as a debilitating state. The latter part of the book guides the reader through the EASE method in clear steps and very calmly works with the reader to accept that anxiety will never disappear but can be worked with. This enables the reader to see anxiety as part of life, but without its former negative impact on life. Instead, anxiety can be part of a healthy and successful life that the reader will enjoy. 

I found this book to be very uplifting. Anxiety is something most, if not all, people suffer from, but learning to deal with it in a positive way is key. It will not go away and merely accepting it is not enough. Instead of just learning to cope, use the anxiety as an empowering aspect of life and embrace it in a positive way. 

 

The opinions expressed are my own and only reflect my personal impression of a product or book.  No financial compensation was received, but I was provided with a free copy of the book for review purposes.