125 Pet Rescues: From Pound to Palace: H... This book review appeared first on Own Your Geek.

I'm a sap. That's all there is to it. A big, mushy sap. At least that's what my daughter thought after watching me try to read 125 Pet Rescues with her. This big, brave fearsome momma who 'reads lots of scary books' sniffled, snuffled, and choked up repeatedly. The adorable pictures combined with simple, yet heart-warming stories had her exclaiming "Aww!" while I reached for a piece of tissue grumbling about my allergies.

From unheard-of to utterly familiar, 125 Pet Rescues: From Pound to Palace walks readers through story after story that illustrates what rescuing an animal can do for their life and yours. From Lil Bub to Peaches the Pit and Lil Squeak the Pig to Bob Barker, the pages are filled with an overwhelming message of loves, snuggles, and heart. In some cases, the rescued animal turned around to do the rescuing of a family themselves. All of the animals on these pages were given up on at some point. If someone hadn't stepped in, willing to see the beauty where others different, who knows where they would have ended up? Can you imagine not ever seeing the cuteness of Lil Bub?

Sadly, it's no surprise that Pit Bulls feature strongly in 125 Pet Rescues: From Pound to Palace. Pit Bulls are often looked over, if not looked down on. Even if some people are willing to see past the stigma Pits have garnered, many places simply won't allow them because they're too blind to see the beauty and gentleness inherent in these gorgeous block-heads. Whether it is idiot landlords or heartless insurance companies, Pits have challenges to overcome on several levels.

125 Pet Rescues: From Pound to Palace is a tear-jerker, but one with a definite message. The foreword and closing statements make it clear that the aim of this book is to spread a message to young readers. To be kind and considerate and to pay attention to the world around us. To open their homes and hearts whenever possible to shelter-bound and abandoned pets and give them a home they can be happy in. And to talk - to spread the word - to make people see why they should rescue, foster, as well as spay and neuter so that we have fewer animals suffering in overcrowded, underfunded shelters around the world.

We're strong believers in this message already in our household. Every single one of our pets came from various levels of rescue needs. One came directly from the home of a lady who just had too many cats and needed to find them new homes. One had been abandoned, adopted, and then returned to the shelter again because she was 'too much work'. Another had been abandoned as a barely weaned kitten with serious respiratory issues. And our dog (who lets all the cats boss her around) came from a shoddy situation too. Even though there's a fair bit of grumpy mumbling caused by cats participating in various stages of jerkface, we wouldn't give any of them up. They've got homes with us forever.

125 Pet Rescues: From Pound to Palace is worth picking up. Just make sure you have tissues on hand for when those pesky allergies start acting up.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book free from the publisher for review consideration.

Read: April 14th, 2017

Famous Fails! - Crispin Boyer,National G... Famous Fails has admirable intentions, a lot of information on interesting failures, and many lessons for both kids and adults. The fails range from definitely famous to "never heard of it." My favorite section was Chapter Two, which dealt with famous fails in history. I had never heard of the unlocked gate of Constantinople. (Or I did and just wasn't paying attention in history class.) That was absolutely fascinating to read about. My least favorite was the chapter on fashion. Famous Fails stretched a little too far when they ventured into the fashion arena. Carpenter pants and barefoot sneakers can't really be called Famous Fails when that's purely dependent on personal opinion. (For the record, I think they're both fails.)

I like the idea behind Famous Fails probably more than I like the book itself, to be honest. Children need to know that it's okay to mess up. That failure is an option. And they also need to learn how to take steps to avoid failures that don't need to be failures, too. Through their tips and tricks sections such as "Lessons Learned", "It Could Be Worse" and "Triumphant Takeaway", it does a pretty good job at reinforcing all those things. The way the book is put together means it's easy to read, and as usual they did a great job with the typography and general design. It's obvious they know what works when it comes to keeping children's attention on a book.

Fun Fact: This book was printed just a little bit too early. The Sports Section (chapter 5) starts off talking about how the Chicago Cubs were still struggling to win another world series after winning it twice in a row in the early 1900s. Well, as we all know, this year the Chicago Cubs broke that losing streak.

Unfortunately, the overall impression I got from Famous Fails was not one of success. This book just felt like it tried too hard, and even my easy-to-please mini-reviewer was less than enchanted by the read. National Geographic Kids has produced some amazing kids books in the past, but this one just fell a bit flat for my tastes.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher for review consideration.

Science Encyclopedia: Atom Smashing, Foo... The Science Encyclopedia: Atom Smashing, Food Chemistry, Animals, Space, and More! is not a book a child will get through in a day. Or even in a week. At 304 pages, it’s a fair monster of a book. It’s a good thing, though, considering all the information stuffed in it. I loved that right away they made science accessible to kids. They made it clear that science has touched almost every part of their lives in some way. From the computer they play on to the food they eat. I also appreciated that they clarified scientific theory immediately. Given that most adults don’t seem to know the difference between a theory in casual conversation and the scientific theory, it was needed! The Physical Sciences and Life Sciences are briefly, but thoroughly explained before book dives into anything in-depth.

The editors have done their best to make sure the format is one that keeps the reader’s attention. The various sections are well-defined, the font varied as necessary. Colors and pictures play a huge role in the information. The Science Encyclopedia is for 8-12 year olds. To be honest, I think it might be a little much for the younger end of that age range. It gets in-depth enough that younger children might get easily lost. It really depends on the child though. They did do a great job of giving enough information to make the reader feel like they ‘got it’ on a basic level, but not into the minutiae.

All the “Try This!” experiments contained within the Science Encyclopedia seems very appropriate for the intended age range. I loved the “Geek Streak” tidbits. They were extremely well named as a number of them made me perk up when I read them! The “LOL!” sections were awesomely groan worthy. Having been told I have the sense of humor of a 10-year-old boy, I feel my words carry some weight on this. The “Personality Plus” sections attempt to put names and faces to scientific discoveries. I didn’t particular care for them, but appreciated their inclusion nonetheless. The Word Check sessions were good vocabulary builders.

I can’t say that Science Encyclopedia: Atom Smashing, Food Chemistry, Animals, Space, and More is my favorite book from National Geographic, but it is a wonderful one. It does what it sets out to do. Whether you get it for your mini-geek at home, or are a teacher purchasing it for your classroom, you’ll get your money’s worth.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

How Things Work - T.J. Resler,National G... T.J. Resler & National Geographic Kids did a fantastic job with How Things Work. It hit all the right notes to keep kids (and adults!) interested. The book opens by talking about hoverboards and hoverbikes. That’s enough to catch almost anyone’s attention. Especially those who have seen Back to the Future or Star Wars! Who hasn’t dreamed of zipping smoothly along? From there, it touches on everything from the mundane to the super-cool. And it even manages to show you exactly how neat even the normal stuff – like your refrigerator – actually is.

Writing books for kids that keep them interested enough to keep reading is challenging. Especially when you’re throwing information that can be hard to grasp at them. It requires a deft touch, some silly language, and the occasional cute picture doesn’t hurt. How Things Work has all three. Awesome fact snippets and horrible puns, to pictures that make even the most Grumpy Gus go “Aww!” .

Just the Facts. Fun facts. Myth vs. Fact. Different sections within each topic are clearly defined. Bright colors, various font sizes, and great illustrations keep attention on the page. The illustrations do a fantastic job of clarifying concepts – for kids and adults. They definitely chose well when picking out exactly what to show. How Things Work does pack a lot of information onto each page, so it’s not a book you devour in one sitting. However, it would be a great tool for getting kids excited about learning at home or in the classroom.

Most entries also have a Try This! with them. They are simple projects that children can do that illustrate some concept relating to the object being talked about. As a rule of thumb, the experiments should have parental guidance, but none of them are even close to dangerous. The experiments range from extremely simple to a bit more complex. The simple things are ones like stretching a slinky out and observing the waves when you shake it. The more complex involves stuff like using a couple of square mirrors and two stuffed toys to make a cloaking device.

There are also profiles on people who have made a difference using science in some way. My favorite was probably that of Nicolas “Cola” Gomez and Favio Chavez. They have worked together to make musical instruments for disadvantaged kids out of garbage. However, other people profiled include: David Moinina Sengeh, Helen Greiner, Edwin Link, and Elon Musk. Some of the names you might recognize, and some you probably don’t. Due to their various contributions, though, all definitely belong in this book. But if you want to find out why, you’ll need to look for yourselves!

Overall, another great book put out by National Geographic Kids! T.J. Resler succeeds on all points with How Things Work. Expect to see this on my list of “Best Kids Books” at the end of the year.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher for review consideration.