The Polar Express

The Polar Express 30th Anniversary Edition
Written by Chris Van Allsburg
Published at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

About the book

A young boy, lying awake one Christmas Eve, is welcomed aboard a magical trip to the North Pole . . . 

Through dark forests, over tall mountains, and across a desert of ice, the Polar Express makes its way to the city atop the world, where the boy will make his Christmas wish. 

For millions of readers worldwide, this mysterious journey to the North Pole has become a beloved classic. In this 30th anniversary edition, the inimitable artistry of Chris Van Allsburg is revealed in a never-before-seen fashion, with a new jacket design and expanded interior layout. Includes author’s note, downloadable audio read by Liam Neeson, and golden "All Aboard" ornament.

My Thoughts

I’ve always wanted to get this book to read during the Christmas season.  So I was very pleased to have the opportunity to get a copy of the 30th Anniversary Edition of the book.  

Contrary to the movie, the story in the book is not that long.   Beautiful illustrations are complementing the story as you go through the pages.   The story is simple and will present the magic of Santa Claus.   The book itself is a hardcover book and would make a wonderful book to discover during the season of Christmas.  

Personally, I really enjoy this story and I have no problem to read this book and watch the movie with my children.  However, I know that for many Christian parents the subject of Santa Claus is a touchy subject.   We have decided not to dwell too long on Santa because it is a fictitious character.  We prefer emphasizing the birth of Christ in our yearly celebration.    The book is a beautiful story which bring joy to the kids when I read it.    The important thing for us during the season is to spend time as a family.  Reading together brings memory.   And this book will be part of our memories this year.

And to complete the book, a gold All Aboard ornament can be found at the back of the story.   Also, you have the possibility to download the story in order to put it on your portable device and allow your children to listen to it while you are driving.   You can also visit polarexpress.com to discover activities, recipes, and a Christmas Countdown calendar.

The Polar Express 30th Anniversary Edition is available for purchase at your favorite bookstore, even on amazon.ca and amazon.com.

  

Disclaimer: Thanks to Thomas Allen for sending me the above mentioned product for review purposes. I was not monetarily compensated for this review. Please note that the review was not influenced by the Sponsor in any way. All opinions expressed here are only my own.

Build Your Own Adventure with LEGO

I stumbled of two fun products while looking at the book table at my local Wal-Mart.   When I saw them I quickly snapped a picture with my iPhone to remember the titles.   Today I am delighted to review these two amazing Build Your Own Adventure with LEGO that is published at DK Canada.

Build Your Own Adventure LEGO Friends

Build Your Own Adventure LEGO Friends is a book with bricks that will inspire kids to build, play, and learn all about the fascinating world of LEGO® Friends. It combines fan built inspirational ideas for building story starters. Your child will get inspired to build with creative ideas, then play out her own adventures using her own LEGO collection. The book comes with 77 bricks to build one exclusive model that appears throughout the book.

The book will begin by presenting Liza and her touring car.  The child will have the possibility to build the car using the bricks included in this set and following the instructions found in the book.  Once this is done, the child can now begin the adventures in the book.   Five adventures can be taken with this book: Picnic at the park, the horse show, Heartlake City carnival, adventure weekend, and surprise party.  Obviously each adventure will require the child to use her stack of Lego bricks in order to be able to build what is require for the adventure.  

I find the instructions clear to follow and easy to do.   I am impressed on how easy it is to replicate common day things like sandwiches as well as more complicated things like the swan boat. I can’t believe how detailed the campsite facilities are – even a toilet is included.  To think that all these things can be build using regular bricks that you might have already!It is incredible what can be done with bricks and a bit of imagination…

Build Your Own Adventure LEGO Ninjago

Get ready for your own Ninja adventure with this inspirational book. This fun book will allow your child to play and learn all about the thrilling world of LEGO® NINJAGO™.  LEGO NINJAGO: Build Your Own Adventure combines fan built inspiring ideas with exciting stories. The child will get inspired to build with creative NINJAGO themed story starters, then play out his own Ninja adventures using his own LEGO bricks. The book comes with 74 bricks that can be used to build one exclusive model that appears throughout the book.

The book immediately start with instructions on how to build Lloyd’s Mech.  Once the child has completed this building project, the adventures can start.   There are five adventures included in this book:  trouble at home, jungle battle, going underground, volcano quest, and icy lands.   Please keep in mind that the pieces included in this set only allow you to build Lloyd’s Mech.  To build anything included in the adventures in the book, the child will have to use his own Lego bricks he has at home.

The instructions are easy to follow and the images are very precise in demonstrating what the scene of the adventure should look like.  I am impressed with the creativity included in the scenes to make them realistic as much as possible.   The interior of the cave is interesting and even includes a crack in the wall.  Note that the scenes do not necessarily include step-by-step instructions.  The book could be a bit advanced for a younger child.  However, an older child would take the time to figure out how to build the house or the vehicles.

These two kits could made a great Christmas gift under the tree for a child in your life.   Both Build Your Own Adventure LEGO kits are available at your favorite store, even amazon.ca and amazon.com.

Seven Women

Seven Women and the Secret of Their Greatness
Written by Eric Metaxas
Published at Thomas Nelson

About the book

In his eagerly anticipated follow-up to the enormously successful Seven Men, New York Times best-selling author Eric Metaxas gives us seven captivating portraits of some of history’s greatest women, each of whom changed the course of history by following God’s call upon their lives—as women.

Each of the world-changing figures who stride across these pages—Joan of Arc, Susanna Wesley, Hannah More, Maria Skobtsova, Corrie ten Boom, Mother Teresa, and Rosa Parks—is an exemplary model of true womanhood. Teenaged Joan of Arc followed God’s call and liberated her country, dying a heroic martyr’s death. Susanna Wesley had nineteen children and gave the world its most significant evangelist and its greatest hymn-writer, her sons John and Charles. Corrie ten Boom, arrested for hiding Dutch Jews from the Nazis, survived the horrors of a concentration camp to astonish the world by forgiving her tormentors. And Rosa Parks’ deep sense of justice and unshakeable dignity and faith helped launch the twentieth-century’s greatest social movement.

Writing in his trademark conversational and engaging style, Eric Metaxas reveals how the other extraordinary women in this book achieved their greatness, inspiring readers to lives shaped by the truth of the gospel.

My Thoughts

While I was reading Seven Men to review a few months ago, I realized that the author was going to publish Seven Women in the fall.   I was greatly excited because I was enjoying Seven Men so much.  I was pleased to see the title being available to review through the publisher and quickly jumped on the opportunity to read it.  I wasn’t disappointed.   Seven Women is as interesting as Seven Men was.   Reading about strong pillars of faith is very good because it allows you to discover how they lived their life as Christians.    

The book contains the biographies of seven women who are still a great example of faith to many who discover their lives.   The seven women that you will read through the pages of this book are Joan of Arc, Susanna Wesley, Hannah More, Saint Maria of Paris, Corrie ten Boom, Rosa Parks, and Mother Teresa. Each of these women are extraordinary in their own ways.   Think of Joan of Arc for example.   A young lady who was called by God to lead and liberate the French from the English.  She had to face the fact that back in these days women were not leaders of an army and persuade the future king of France that she would be able to do so.  

I was familiar with some of these women like Joan of Arc, Susanna Wesley, Corrie ten Boom and Mother Teresa and less familiar with the other ones.  However, the author had a way of presenting the information that even if I knew about some of them, I was captivated by their lives and learn a few things about them.  The book is a great introduction to the lives of seven women whose faith was strong.   I think it is a wonderful book, along with the Seven Men one, to discover whether you are an high school student or an adult.   

Seven Women is available for purchase at your favorite bookstore, even on amazon.ca and amazon.com.

  

The book is also available for Kindle.

 

Disclaimer: Thanks to Thomas Nelson for sending me the above mentioned product for review purposes . I was not monetarily compensated for this review. Please note that the review was not influenced by the Sponsor in any way. All opinions expressed here are only my own.