Friends Share Scottoline's Books

I have loved every Lisa Scottoline book I have ever read, and for full disclosure, Lisa and I are not friends. Well, actually on Facebook we are, but not in "real" life. However, after reading her latest book Does This Beach Make Me Look Fat: True Stories and Confessions, I truly believe we could be friends, maybe even the best of friends!

Does This Beach Make Me Look Fat?: True Stories and Confessions
by LIsa Scottoline & Francesca Serritella

Lisa (I'll call her by her first name since I think we could be such great friends) writes as if she was sitting across from you having a conversation. She holds nothing back. I guess I feel like I know her so well because I know her dogs Kit, Peach, Pip, Ruby, and Tony - and dare I forget her granddog - Pip and grandcat Mimi! I have seen her beautiful garden, laughed as her horse made a snow angel, been green with envy seeing all of the people she has invited into her home for her Book Club Party, and cried when I heard of the passing of her dear Mother Mary.

I, like Lisa, am a task master. I guess so much so, that I haven't put up a Christmas tree in over three years, but if I did put up a tree a lot of the ornaments would be handmade and would also display the names of much loved and long gone fur babies. I'm not into the The Bachelor like Francesca, but I LOVE playing Fantasy Football. I would like to go to the beach with Lisa and Francesca to eat a spaghetti sandwich. I will be in New York City next week, just FYI.

She and daughter Francesca have a wonderful way of pulling you into their life through their writing. If you need a perfect book to take to the beach or to have in your purse for the quick chapter between chauffeuring your children around this summer, pick up a copy of the latest collection of stories by this fabulous mother / daughter duo.

*To comply with new guidelines set for by the Federal Trade Commission, St. Martin's Press, provided a complimentary copy of this title in eBook format for review purposes. This review is my opinion and is in no way influenced by the authors, the author's publicist, or the publishing company.

My Relaxation

I usually post about books I have read, but today is going to be a bit different. Today I am posting about a book I have discovered that helps me to relax while listening to books.

I have been a colorer for MANY years. Back when I taught Kindergarten (1993-1999) I colored all of the time. I colored with my students, but I also colored for my students - file folder games. Coloring provided me a means of relaxation while creating a great resource for my students. I LOVED the Carson Dellosa file folder games. They had wonderful pictures and were great games for my students.

Now that I am no longer in the classroom, there is little need for me to make file folder games, so I had to find another outlet for my coloring. I purchased traditional coloring books for awhile, but I can't stand the cheap paper used for children's coloring books. I remember Dover coloring books from my childhood, but I was never really one for coloring the very detailed clothing and landscapes.

When I discovered Mandalas, Paisleys, and Mosaic coloring books I felt like I had found the perfect relaxation tool for me. Like I said, I have been coloring for years. It has only been in the last few years the publishing industry has discovered what I have known all this time - adults like to color too! Now, my Amazon account is filled with tons of coloring books for adults. I have all of the coloring books people write posts about on Facebook - Secret Garden, Adult Coloring Book: Stress Relieving Patterns, Enchanted Forest: An Inky Quest & Coloring Book, Color Me Calm: 100 Coloring Templates for Meditation and Relaxation, Color Counts (Landscapes, Travel the World, Tropical, Travel the USA, etc.) and Flower Designs by Jenean Morrison - but I have recently discovered my favorite by far - Querkles by Thomas Pavitte.

I'm sure Amazon targeted me for this new "Puzzling Colour by Numbers Book" based on my previous purchases, and I have to say how happy this makes me! All I want to do is sit and color in this fascinating book. You can watch a short video clip of how the Querkles works here. I have to admit, at first glance these pages can look VERY intimidating!

Here is what one of the pictures looks like when you first open the book.

I'm not going to ruin the surprise on this one as to what the final image will be when it is colored. It is NOT one of the ones I have already colored. Here is one in progress (purple), as well as three I have already completed. To know exactly how much I LOVE this book I have only had this book four days and have already finished three of the pictures and started working on the fourth. I am completely addicted to coloring these pictures. 

I have not found another coloring book that has provided me with this much joy in a very long time. I love being able to work on these beautiful works of art while listening to an audio book. It is a wonderful combination of relaxation and creativity rolled into one.

Be sure to check out the second book which will be released in October, Querkles: Icons. 

Thomas Pavitte is the creator of these 20 great works of art. He is also the author of the 1000 Dot-to-Dot series of books. I hope he continues to create more Querkles! I have already ordered a second copy of Querkles: Masterpieces. I'll get to choose different colors to use for them the next time I color the same pictures.