Barbecue Sauces, Rubs, and Marinades--Bastes, Butters & Glazes, Too by Steven Raichlen

What a book. I was drooling before I finished looking through this book at all the wonderful recipes for rubs, sauces, marinades, and more.  In the first park of the book there is a wonderful section on bbq tools, definitions and more handy info.

I made bbq pork and used the extremely simple and delicious American 5-4-3-2-1 rub. My family loved it and it was so simple. 5 ingredients with 5 tablespoons or less, and I already had everything in my spice rack.  i also made some of the Garlic Mayo, my husband is in love with it.

This is really a great book to have whether you grill or not. If you like bbq you should really check out this book.

I received this book from the Author or Publisher via Netgalley.com to read and review.

Down by the Feed Mill by David Hanks

I have a thing for old barns and feed mills.. They are just beautiful to me. I love when my husband and I take trips and we see them in passing, I always try to snap pictures of them. This book is just filled with over 240 pictures of feed mills. The pictures are of the outsides and some David Hanks was able to go inside of and take pictures. There are also some historical pictures of some of the feed mills during their early years and a comparison against the pictures he took for the book. I also loved that not only were their pictures but there was also explanations of the feed mill industry and machinery. I also love how most of the pictures are in black and white. It really just adds to the beauty and the historical significance.  I was given a e-copy of this book but will be buying the hard copy as well.

I received this book from the Author or Publisher via Netgalley.com to read and review.

Sandwiches! by Alison Deering

This book is awesome.  I love how the book is broken up into skill levels. From skill 1 which are easy sandwiches like ham and cheese and PB&J to skill 5 which are more on the gourmet scale like Italian Beef.  Even if you are skill 5 you can learn new recipes from the other skill levels. There are also tons of tips and tricks throughout the book.  Like with the fish sandwich it tells you who and when it was invented, the number of Fish sandwiches sold by McDonald's the first month it was on the menu and things like that. The books shows you the ingredients of each sandwich and how to put it together. it also give tutorials like when you start level 4 it gives you a stove tutorial. The book seems to be written to and for older Children say 10 to 13 but as an adult I fund several delicious recipes.


I received this book from the Author or Publisher via Netgalley.com to read and review.

Te Quiero, Querido Dragon / I Love You, Dear Dragon by Margaret Hillert

I have read a couple of the Dear Dragon books by Margaret Hillert to the kids.  These books are exceptional. They do not just tell a story but she adds multiple lessons to the book. The book is written in both English and Spanish on the same page. The pictures are very inviting to little eyes. In this particular book the story is mainly about discovering the color Red, the pages show different red items, like a bird and a fire truck. It also has a safety lesson about the red light and it's' jobs.  Towards the end it also shows things about Valentine's day.  The words are easy for beginning reader's and the younger ones loved looking at all the busy pictures.

I received this book from the Author or Publisher via Netgalley.com to read and review.

You Are Three by Sara O'Leary

Very cute book about all the wonders and changes of being 3 years old. My Grandson loved this book we read it twice. He was able to relate to this things in the book like coloring pictures and playing with his stuffed animals.  It is a short books so great for a quick bedtime story or when you are just cuddling for a few minutes.


I received this book from the Author or Publisher via Netgalley.com to read and review.

The Land of Reverse: Where Sleep Is Just a Matter of Letting Yourself Go... by Dave Manousos

A really cute bedtime story for the little ones from ages I would say 3 to 6. The drawings are very busy and entertaining. The kids kept stopping me from turning the page so they could look at the pictures. The kids really enjoyed the story as well as the pictures. The story is written in rhyme. It is a very short story as well.

The story is about Sam who could not sleep one night. He let his mind wander to the Land of reverse. Everything Sam thought of  in reality was backwards. Your hands are your feet, cars drive on the sidewalk, the animals in the zoo have the humans caged and feed them.  Sam returns back to his bed happy and cannot wait to return to the Land of Reverse.

I received this book from the Author or Publisher via Netgalley.com to read and review.

Big & Fabulous: The Life and Times of Brenda Cankles Blog Tour

Title:
BIG & FABULOUS, THE LIFE AND TIMES OF BRENDA CANKLES

Author: Randi Sherman

Publisher: Friesen Press

Pages: 282

Genre: Humor Fiction

The time for BIG & Fabulous, The Life and Times of
Brenda Cankles is now! The emphasis is on positive body image, Big &
Fabulous is a truly entertaining story that’s strongly written, funny,
insightful and bitingly smart. Inside it’s covers, readers will find no
shortage of acidly hilarious accounts of the highs and lows of living life
inside a big and fabulous body.

Imperfect, impervious and improving Brenda Cankles is an
unlikely heroine. Unfazed by the enduring censure of society, she is determined
to realize the fabulous life that she has always believed is her destiny.

Brenda’s story – written in unflinching first person – is
utterly unvarnished. Here, find a fantastically real person, sometimes
struggling to fit in, but mostly giving the rest of the world the mother-lovin’
bird. From her clunky childhood, through her stumbling yet optimistic
adolescence to her full figured and unapologetic emergence into adulthood.
Brenda is a special brand of warrior. She is big, bold and beautiful. While the
quirky cast of characters who surround her is eternally insistent that Brenda
live her life in the background and fit into society’s mold, she will have none
of it.

Author, Randi Sherman’s experience as a stand-up comedienne
is evident as she delivers, BIG & Fabulous, The Life and Times of Brenda
Cankles, the hilarious, often laugh-out-loud novel about the inner most thoughts
Brenda Cankles, a very real character who is confident and brave enough to
expect the world to accept her on her terms.

BIG & Fabulous, The Life and Times of Brenda Cankles is Sherman’s
fifth novel, her fourth THE LOBBY has won 17 Awards for Humor and General
Fiction.

Watch the book trailer at YouTube.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Amazon
| Barnes
& Noble

Book Excerpt:

DEAR SOCIETY,

We have a big
job ahead of us. In elementary school, I will be "the fat kid" with a
wild imagination. In high school, I'll try to fit in but won't. I will be an
outcast, considered lumbering and awkward. No one, including my family, will expect
much from me because I won't be like the other girls. Being a big and a
bold  and a brash  girl, I will be  the focus   of
your attention as you advise me to stifle myself, adjust my enthusiasm, and be
grateful for any attention I  receive.

To  the
bullies and doubters, let me be the  first to  thank  you in
advance for continually reminding me that I have the potential to end up as
someone's dusty spinster aunt who shares a can of bargain tuna with seventeen
cats, or that weird neighbor you see but try desperately to  avoid.

Although it's
hard to believe, I will cherish our relation­ship because you, Society, will
never ignore me. I don't know what I will do or have done to garner so much of
your atten­tion and devotion. I'm sure you have other and more impor­tant
things to do, like creating jobs, housing the homeless,
raising money to cure cancer, and feeding the
hungry. But, no, you will dedicate television shows and magazine articles to
me, and spend your valuable time and energy compar­ing what it is
that you consider "perfect" to my reality and encourage me to change
into someone "typical." I know it will be exhausting for
you.

I have to
admit that there will be times when my self-­esteem will be tested. Other
times, I'll be a non-believer, and want to give up, possibly disappointing you.

Because of
your often obsessive yet unwavering attention and dedication to making me aware
of my shortcomings­ or, worse, your condescending and hollow and self-serving
attempts to encourage me to accept my "inadequacies" and situation -
you will present me with a challenge. It will take all of my strength and
determination, but I will dig deep within myself to realize I have the
potential to be fabulous.

Like fine
wine, opera, and stinky cheese, I am valuable, an acquired taste, and, like all
treasures, I should be appreciated and celebrated.

Like it or
not, whether you intend it or not, I just might turn out to be a wise,
compassionate, creative, funny, gener­ous, and a kind person. You see, I have
the ability to learn and grow.

Yes, I am big
and I am bold, and I accept your challenge. Be forewarned. I will be a force to
be reckoned with because   I am special. I am beautiful and I am
a superhero. Now, get the fuck off my cape. I have things to do.

Sincerely,

Brenda
Merle  Cankles, "The Big One"

My Review:
As a not so little woman I found this book awesome. It is kind of like a Bible for fat girls. This book had me laughing and rethinking my attitude towards my body and closet. i love Randi M Sherman's attitude of writing. Parts of the book I felt kind of sorry for our heroine Brenda Cankles in the book and the way she was raised but I loved the way she basically over came it. I love the way she got beyond the size of her clothes as well. 

As a child I was not a super model myself and ow that I am grown  definitely not. I wear my extra large sized clothing more proudly now and I don't care what anyone else thinks. I think everyone who wears a size 12 and above should read this book. 

About the Author

Randi M Sherman is the award winning author of humorous
fiction books.

With an eye for detail, an ear for well-tuned dialogue and
an incredible grasp of the obvious, all honed while performing stand-up comedy
in Los Angeles and improvisational
theater in San Francisco, Sherman
adds just enough bawdiness to deliver character-driven contemporary novels that
will have the reader laughing, thinking and connecting with the characters in
her books.

A native Californian, Randi makes her home in California's
wine country. Trying her hand at country living Randi describes herself the Eva
Gabor of the Sonoma/Napa area.

Randi earned a Bachelor of Science Degree from Chapman
University.

WEBSITE & SOCIAL LINKS:

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