Book Review: RAINBOW PANDA by Lisa Muchnik

TITLE OF YOUR BOOK: RAINBOW PANDA 

AUTHOR OF BOOK's NAME: Lisa Muchnik 

AUTHOR'S EMAIL ADDRESS: lisag79@aol.com

AUTHOR'S FAVORITE LINKS:

www.lisamuchnik.com

Amazon link: Rainbow Panda https://a.co/d/91nHw4W

ADD THIS ASSURANCE TO SATISFY COPYRIGHT LAW: 

 __x Yes, I have received permission from the reviewer to reprint their review in its entirety. - as per previous email, we discussed that it was ok to share 

REVIEWER’S BYLINE: Booklist, the official book review magazine of the American Library Association 

THE REVIEW:

Little Panda loves doing yoga. Each day he takes class with the other jungle animals, stretching, posing, and balancing his body. But one day, Little Panda leaves class uncharacteristically sad. He realized that he didn’t have bright feathers like Peacock, yellow and brown patches like Giraffe, or colorful exteriors like Iguana and Flamingo. He is only black and white! Wise Mama Panda knows just what to say, reassuring him that he is colorful on the inside. She begins to tell him about his chakras, walking him (and readers) through the colors and meanings of an individual’s seven energy wheels. As each energy is introduced, the illustrations emphasize its representative hue, connecting Little Panda to his inner self as well as the world around him. By the end of this more spiritual exercise, Little Panda looks in the mirror and sees his colorful chakras shining bright inside of him. This positive story about self-acceptance will also work well for lessons on mindfulness.

— Rosie Camargo

MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER:\

www.booklistonline.com

@booklist_ala on Instagram 

@ALA_Booklist on twitter 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR WHOSE BOOK IS BEING REVIEWED:

Lisa Muchnik is a children’s book author, nurse anesthetist, mother of two, and certified yoga instructor, with a specialty in aerial yoga. Having a lifelong desire to write books for kids and a love for yoga and the chakras, it was only natural she would bring these aspects together in her debut children’s book Rainbow Panda. She is a believer in the power of passion and dreams. She loves caring for and connecting with people in all aspects of her life - her children, her patients, her yoga students, and now her readers! Check out her website www.lisamuchnik.com, and follow her on Instagram @lisamuchnik 

Book Review:: DESPERATELY SEEKING PERSEPHONE by Janet Rudolph

TITLE OF YOUR BOOK:

BOOK TITLE: DESPERATELY SEEKING PERSEPHONE: The true story of my Shamanic Journey through the Underworld.

AUTHOR OF BOOK: Janet Rudolph

AUTHOR'S EMAIL ADDRESS: Jandelion@aol.com 

AUTHOR'S FAVORITE LINKS: /mysticpagan.com/ /feminismandreligion.com/

 

 Yes, I have received permission from the reviewer to

reprint their review in its entirety. 

REVIEWER’S BYLINE: Elizabeth Cunningham is the author of numerous books

including My Life as a Prayer: A Multifaith Memoir and The Maeve Chronicles

5.0 out of 5 stars 

Reviewed in the United States on July 21, 2023 on Amazon

REVIEW:

DESPERATELY SEEKING, JOYFULLY BEING FOUND

Rudolph takes us with her on a journey that is at once deeply personal to her and

as well as mythic. In her story, interwoven with Persephone’s and Inanna’s, we may

recognize elements of our own, find inspiration and companionship for our own quest

and questions. Janet also reminds us that life is full of mysteries, time spirals

backward and forward; we not only seek but we are also found by human angels who

come into our lives when we most need them, and who are, in some way, always with

us. This beautiful, thoughtful, funny, poetic memoir gives the reader comfort and

inspires awe.

MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER:  Elizabeth Cunningham has written numerous

other novels including The Return of the Goddess and The Wild Mother. She lives in

the valley of the Mahicantuck (the river that flows both ways) on unceded land that

was home to the Esopus Tribe of the Lenape. She is at work on a fairytale novel. For

more visit her website: https://elizabethcunninghamwrites.com/

ABOUT THE AUTHOR WHOSE BOOK IS BEING REVIEWED:  Janet

Rudolph is a wife, lover, mother, grandmother, seeker, finder, earth-breather, water-

swimmer, there is no end to her descriptions. She has traveled to many sacred places

in the world to soak up knowledge and experience culture. Along the way she earned

two shamanic initiations and written a few books including When Moses Was a

Shaman, and When Eve Was a Goddess.. She writes wherever and whenever she can

to express, heal, inform, challenge, startle and to expand love. She is a contributor and

co-weaver at /feminismandreligion.com/ You can visit her website for more

information at https://themysticpagan.com/

Book Review: The Famous Phoebe of Long Isand

TITLE OF YOUR BOOK: 

THE FAMOUS PHOEBE OF LONG ISLAND: Phoebe's Adventures at Sailors Haven

 

AUTHOR OF BOOK's NAME: Jean Derespina

 

AUTHOR'S EMAIL ADDRESS jeand.tmg@gmail.com

 

AUTHOR'S FAVORITE LINKS: www.FamousPhoebeofLI.com

 

ADD THIS ASSURANCE TO SATISFY COPYRIGHT LAW: 

 __Yes, I have received permission from the reviewer to reprint their review in its entirety. 

 

REVIEWER’S BYLINE: Rita Plush, Fire Island News Book Review Columnist

 

INCLUDE THE REVIEW ITSELF

Long Islander Jean Derespina, a writer of marketing materials, has brought her affection for Fire Island and its seashore to the pages of a children’s book. 

This is a story about Phoebe, a puppy who is adopted from a shelter and has adventures on Sailors Haven with her new parents, Jeana and Frank. It is a warm and engaging story that will resonate with anyone who has a dog or is thinking of adopting one. But the book is more than that. It’s about feeling loved and protected, and though the tale is told from a puppy’s point of view, it could very well be a child who is telling the story. 

Phoebe is “the luckiest puppy in the world because out of all the puppies in the shelter, I got picked by the nicest family. They love me very much.” And off they motor in their boat into the Great South Bay, Phoebe “more than a little scared at first,” but Jeana held her close while Frank drove. 

Phoebe has many experiences at Sailors Haven. She makes friends as children do, and her excitement is palpable when she learns she can swim. In the forest she comes upon animals she has never seen before. “A long, skinny animal that didn’t have legs or paws wiggled right by us!” 

On the walk back to the beach, Phoebe notices three deer grazing and makes the connection that her parents are going to have their dinner too, linking humans to the animal world. 

Venturing out on her own, Phoebe dashes down the beach after a bird in flight. After the bird is out of sight she worries. “Where was everyone? Where was I? I was alone, and I was really scared,” her doggie brain thinks, but her fears could just as well be the fears of a child. 

I can see a parent reading this story and saying to their little one. “You must never run away or go where we can’t find you,” the child nodding solemnly. 

The soft watercolor drawings by Amelina Jones play on the easy narrative. Jones uses blues, blue/greens for water, and browns for the puppy and vegetation in many of the illustrations, but she is not confined to a limited palette. Variations of yellow and yellow/greens come up in a spread where the family is walking through Sunken Forest, the prose set on the page as if illuminated by the sun. On the other end of the spectrum is black, used lavishly in a dramatic nighttime scene. The pages come to life with little pinpoints of white like “millions of stars lighting up the sky.” The boat’s “gentle rocking kept [Phoebe] asleep all night,” as the family headed back to shore. 

And that’s what this book is: a gentle story about family, with little Phoebe its centerpiece.

Link to the review: https://www.fireislandnews.com/arts-culture/book-reviews/the-famous-phoebe-of-long-island-phoebes-adventures-at-sailors-haven/

 

 

MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER: Rita Plush has been the book reviewer for The Fire Island News since 2015. Learn more at her website https://ritaplush.com/about, or at https://www.fireislandnews.com/.

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR WHOSE BOOK IS BEING REVIEWED:  

Jean is a member of the SCBWI and is on the Board of Directors of the Long Island Author Group. 

 

For years, Jean held positions as a corporate content developer. During her marketing career, she always made timeto indulge in her passion for writing children's stories. In 2014, Jean left the corporate world to start my own company, The Marketing Gig, LLC. After an encouraging start, she was seriously injured in an accident that required over a year’s recovery. Writing played an instrumental role in her healing process.

 

Post rehabilitation, Jean released two self-published two picture books, which have sold over 1,500 copies. They are in circulation at approximately six libraries and on the shelves at Barnes & Noble. Learn more about Jean and The Famous Phoebe of Long Island at https://www.famousphoebeofli.com/. 

Twitter @JeandAuthor

Laura Sturza Recommends The Frugal Editor to Her Students

Title: The Frugal Editor
Subtitle: Do-It-Yourself Editing Secrets
Edition: Third Edition
Publisher: Modern History Press
ISBN: 9761615996001
Available on Amazon Hardcover, Paperback, E-book
Awards: 
       USA Book News, Reader Views Literary Award, 
       Next Generation Marketing Awardm Next Generation Indie Book Award, 
       Dan Poynter's Global E-Book Award

Reviewed by Laura Sturza originally for Amazon 

I am a writer and a writing teacher and I highly recommend this book to my students. It is particularly helpful for those writing a book as it includes detailed information about presenting the best version of one's manuscript when submitting it to agents and publishers. There is also lots of information to help those submitting work to magazines and newspapers so that editors don't reject an excellent story because it includes editing errors. While I have been steeped in the writing business for decades, this book taught me so much and helped me refine other essentials, such as decisions about a book's layout. Years ago, I met the author when she ran a writing group. By using personal stories and humor, Howard-Johnson brings that same, warm, conversational style to relaying information that I have found challenging to absorb from other sources. There were grammar corrections she covered that I have struggled with for years, and which she simplified. The book is also full of resources to further explore the topics covered. My copy is full of sticky notes to help me as I continue to edit my first book. When it is published, I have the author to thank for helping me create the strongest possible version of it so that readers can enjoy the story without the distraction of editing flubs.

Disclaimer: I received a book from the publisher of this book so I could write a fair and honest review.

 

MORE ABOUT THE REVIEWER

 Laura Sturza is a writer/teacher living in Rockville, Maryland after 20 years in L.A., which remains her other home. Her work is published in The Washington Post, Shondaland, The Boston Globe Magazine, AARP's The Girlfriend, The LA Times, Lunch Ticket, and Hippocampus, among others. Laura is completing the memoir, Better Late: My Midlife First-Time Marriage. She was a nonfiction editor on the forthcoming book, Transformation: A Women Who Submit Anthology. She wrote, produced, and starred in the one-woman show, Finding the Perfect Place to Live in 111 Gyrations  laurasturza.com

MORE ABOUT #THENEWBOOKREVIEW BLOG

 

Authors, readers, publishers, and reviewers may republish their favorite reviews of books they want to share with others. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read and love. Please see submission guidelines in a tab at the top of this blog's home page or go directly to the submission guidelines at http://bit.ly/ThePlacetoRecycleBookReviews. Authors and publishers who do not yet have reviews or want more may use Lois W. Stern's #AuthorsHelpingAuthors service for requesting reviews. Find her guidelines in the right column of this blog home page (a silver and gold badge and threee silver-gray circles beneath it. Carolyn Wilhelm is our IT expert, an award-winning author and veteran educator, she also contributes reviews and posts on other topics related to books. Reviews, interviews, and articles on this blog are indexed by genre, reviewers' names, and review sites so #TheNewBookReview may be used as a resource for most anyone in the publishing industry. As an example, writers will find this blog's search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. 

Another Tales2Inspire Jewel: Tales2Inspire ~ The Jade Collection (True Adventure Stories)

Author’s Name: Lois W. Stern (Creator, editor, contributor)

Author’s email: tales2Inspire2@gmail.com

Title of Book: TALES2INSPIRE ~ THE JADE COLLECTION

Subtitle: Amazing Adventures

Award winning stories of varied adventures: joyful, challenging, light hearted, risky, . . . but each ultimately emerging as a story that has enriched that author’s life in some unique way: travel adventures, from childhood memories of climbing mountains beneath waterfalls, to the journey of three adventurers traveling from their hometown in Venezuela to Detroit, Michigan, simply to meet their inspiration, Henry Ford;  challenging adventures, as the aspiring videographer stranded in Iceland, just below the mountain peaks where The Game of Thrones was filmed; to the fun filled antics of the young American hired to teach his Japanese students how to have fun.

Number of pages: 129

Age/Interest level: 10 +

Amazon page: https://www.amazon.com/Tales2Inspire-Jade-Collection-Amazing-Adventures/dp/B0CGL85TK2/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=TALES2INSPIRE&qid=1696604837&sr=8-1

Formats being offered: Paperback, Ebook, PDF

Review of The Heiress in Kent by Gregory Kopp

TITLE OF YOUR BOOK: The Heiress in Kent

AUTHOR OF BOOK's NAME: Gregory KoppAUTHOR'S EMAIL ADDRESS  greg.kopp@kopp-company.com

 

 

AUTHOR'S FAVORITE LINKS:

 

Website: https://www.kopp-company.com/publishing.html

Amazon Profile: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Gregory-Kopp/author/B01LVWZJD7

 

ADD THIS ASSURANCE TO SATISFY COPYRIGHT LAW: 

 _X_ Yes, I have received permission from the reviewer to reprint their review in its entirety. 

 

REVIEWER’S BYLINE: Doanné Deventer for Readers’ Favorite 

 

INCLUDE THE THE REVIEW ITSELF, of course! Gregory Kopp's novel The Heiress in Kent takes place in 19th-century London and New York. Sir Richard Mayne and Her Majesty the Queen ordered Scotland Yard detective Richard Cordwell to investigate urgent matters regarding the British throne's financial investments in the American railroads. During a global financial crisis, Cordwell embarks on his journey to uncover the truth and meets new and interesting people along the way. The handsome detective is entrusted with a secret mission from the queen herself that keeps him on his toes. While traveling to different towns to investigate the financial fraud that could negatively impact Britain's economy, he finds himself in challenging situations to complete this secret mission. The burning question on everyone's mind is, who exactly is The Heiress in Kent?

The Heiress in Kent, a historical mystery novel by Gregory Kopp, is a delightful and easy-to-read book. Kopp skillfully introduces several characters in the plot, including two based on his great-grandparents. He has portrayed the era and two different countries remarkably well and has also conveyed the challenging times faced by the characters to the reader in a touching manner. The financial difficulties that the characters experience are relatable to our current economic situation. Kopp has conducted extensive research on the eras and history of both Britain and America, which is evident from the detailed annexures containing references to some of the characters and other relevant information. The book is fast-paced, and not overly complicated. I thoroughly enjoyed the journey it took me on.

REVIEWED BY: Doanné Deventer for Readers’ Favorite

Review Rating: 4 Stars

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR WHOSE BOOK IS BEING REVIEWED: Gregory Kopp is an Amazon and Goodreads 5-Star Author, Graduate of Northwestern University and a Principal Consultant for Kopp Company, a privately held firm. Gregory is also a Talent Ambassador for The Walt Disney Company. The Amazon and Goodreads 5-Star acclaimed Kopp Chronicles series of novels have been nominated for Reader's Choice Awards, Goodreads Choice Awards and have received glowing reviews and been featured in “First Lines” of "BookLife Publishers Weekly" (,https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-981089-24-6)  an international news website of book publishing nd bookselling and by Readers’ Favorite respected by renowned publishers such asRandom House, Simon & Schuster and Harper Collins. They have also received numerous "Cover of the Month" & "Book of the Day" Honors.  

This Review for Tales2Inspire ~ The Diamond Collection - Series II Says It All!!

Now the recipient of a National Indie Excellence (NIEA) Finalist Award

_________________________________________________________________________

Author’s Name: Lois W. Stern (Creator, editor, contributor)

Author’s email: tales2Inspire2@gmail.com

Title of Book: TALES2INSPIRE ~ THE DIAMOND COLLECTION - SERIES II

The complete editions of the Ruby (Gifts of Compassion) and Sapphire (Timeless Memories)  Collections under one cover 

Number of pages: 268

Age/Interest level: 10 +

• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1507618050
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1507618059

Amazon link: bit.ly/3sQ8AbO

Reviewed by: Foluso Falaye 

Posted on: Readers' Favorite

Review: Tales2Inspire: The Diamond Collection - Series II is created by Lois W. Stern is a riveting collection of nonfiction short stories by award-winning authors. Each story inspires consciousness, empathy, and appreciation for the little things we take for granted. The book is divided into two sections. The first part focuses on stories of compassion while the second one is about timeless memories. In one story, we see how training dogs helps in teaching dropouts to be responsible. Another story reveals the effect of the horrors of the Holocaust on a survivor. An assistant DA shares the values he stands by while relating an encounter with some good-looking burglars. As these stories are told, each author is introduced with an "about the author" page that follows their brilliant contribution. We experience their amazing stories and connect with their important memories, as well as the life-changing messages they hold.

I found several parts of the book quite relatable, especially being judged by a lover's parent for having different hair. Additionally, I loved that each story doesn't have too many characters or themes but maintains a concise structure that allows for quick assimilation and deep intrigue. The collection includes themes of family, loss, health challenges, pets, sports, mental illness, and romance. Apart from the stories, readers are engaged with the book's other fantastic features, including book club discussion questions, pictures of protagonists and authors, and an "about" section. I loved all the tales so much that I am now convinced that everyone should tell their story. Like the authors in Tales2Inspire: The Diamond Collection Series II, everyone has a profound experience of life that sheds light on what truly matters. All nonfiction short story fans will be happy to read this beautiful, heartwarming book by Lois W. Stern.