"E Squared" by Pam Grout

So I've been reading this book, "E squared" by Pam Grout, about how there is this force out there that we just have to tap into to change our lives and the world. It contains nine experiments to prove that this field exists. The first one is simply suspending ones disbelief and saying (and I'm paraphrasing here) "Hey, field. I need some proof that you exist. Not just a nudge or something I can pass off as coincidence but some real proof. And hey, you've got 48 hours starting now." then you go about really looking for signs during that time frame. Simple enough.

At any rate I gave it a shot, starting at 08:48 A.M. on Oct 5 and ending at 08:48 A.M. on Oct 7, and here are my results. About 15 hours later a gal I work with pulled up in front of my truck, jumped out and gave me a chocolate bar, not a Hershey's bar (which, by the way, I'm not a huge fan of) but a 70% dark chocolate bar with chili's and a bit of orange. Something I never would have bought for my self because I have a hard time paying more than a buck for something I'm not sure I will like. But it was totally delicious and very cool to get random chocolate (thanks Teresa!).

Fast forward about another 12 hours and I'm stopped at a rest area because my bladder can't handle the amount of Monsters I've drank, and I find a colorful leather bracelet sitting by the sink. My first inclination was to find who it belonged to because it was small, possibly a child's. So I took it outside, looked around and there were no children in the rest area. I put it back thinking someone would be back for it and then started thinking, someones probably going to come in and just toss it, and I bet my daughter would like this and the owner probably isn't going to come all the way back for it before it gets chucked.

During that 48 hours I also hit one lane construction just as they were letting my side through, saw a couple of coyotes, got a brisket sandwich and chips from another one of my co-workers (Thanks Jeff!),  got a call that payroll had finally corrected the amount they were deducting for health insurance, and just had a really great couple of days.

So to conclude, whether there's a field I jacked into or whether I just noticed good things because I was looking for them, it doesn't really matter, the experiment worked. I had a lot of fun and am looking forward to trying more of the experiments.

Oh, and by the way, I told my 7 year old about it, so she gave it a shot. This morning one of our neighbors brought us a giant box of walnuts and the first thing my daughter said was. "The universe brought me walnuts, do I like walnuts?" Turns out she does!

Book Review: Plant a Pocket of Prairie

This book explores the disappearing plants and animals of the prairie and encourages children to plant a bit of prairie in their own backyard. The first 30 or so pages are filled with great illustrations of prairie wildlife and the text gives the names of the plants as well as what birds and insects might show up to eat the plants. This section of the book is geared towards a young grade school audience. There are only a few lines of text per page so children will be able to enjoy the pictures and ideas without being bogged down by information.

The last portion of the book has more detailed information on the disappearance of our nations prairies with a specific focus on Minnesota. It also gives instructions on how and what to plant to help the species of the prairie avoid extinction. The book ends with brief descriptions of the wildlife found in prairie ecosystems as well as their current endangered status.

All over the world ecosystems are being pushed aside to make room for the ever growing human population. But as we move into new territory it's good to keep in mind the impact we are having on our planet. I liked that this book introduced kids to the problem and gave them a hands on way to be part of the solution. Not to mention I think my own girls would enjoy planting things in order to attract butterflies.

This spring, when we do the Our Green World science unit I plan on reading this with my daughter and finding some native Washington plants to start outside our apartment.

I got to read a digital copy of this book for free through NetGalley

Plant a Pocket of Prairie is scheduled to be released on April 15th 2014.

Book Review: Grow a Sustainable Diet: Planning and Growing to Feed Ourselves and the Earth

The book, Grow a Sustainable Diet, is filled with in-depth information on planning and growing a garden that will not only provide food for the whole year but will also increase soil viability. Author Cindy Conner brings both research and personal experience to the table as she talks about living a sustainable lifestyle.

The beginning of the book discusses planning out a space for a garden, what different set ups the author has used and why. Through hand drawn maps and diagrams the reader can see how Cindy's garden has changed over the years as she gained experience.

There are a ton of worksheets in the book to help both beginners and veterans optimize their space and yield. There's even a chart to track the temperature and rainfall each year so the gardener can better plan their planting and harvesting.

The most interesting part for me was the discussion on cover crops and ways to boost the nutrients in the soil without buying fertilizer. I tend to have trouble keeping house plants alive so this section was kind of fascinating to me.

Grow a Sustainable Diet is definitely geared towards people with a decent amount of land and at least a little gardening experience. Not to say that beginners won't benefit from it, but the amount of information is a bit overwhelming.

While this book isn't very relevant to my current situation, I live in an apartment, I plan on hanging onto it for when I am able to start my own garden.

I received a digital copy of this book through NetGalley and New Society Publishers in exchange for an honest review.

This book comes out on April 15th 2014

Book Review: Taekwondo Black Belt Poomsae: Original Koryo and Koryo

Written by two Tae-Kwon-Do masters, this book contains some interesting information on the origins of the art as well as a detailed walk-through of the Koryo form (pattern) or poomsae. The beginning of the book traces the roots of several different martial arts throughout Asia. Tae-Kwon-Do, in its current form, is a fairly new martial art which has origins in Korea, Japan and China. Secretive hand to hand combat training grew out of these countries due the ban on weaponry at the time. Much like Capoeira, which was started by slaves in Brazil to give themselves a better chance at escaping, dance like forms helped to keep martial arts practitioners under the radar.

The authors of the book stress the importance of Tae-Kwon-Do students learning not only the movements of the art but also the history and philosophy. Understanding the art is not possible without understanding where it came from and on what principals it was based. 

The end of the book contains a walk through of both the Original Koryo and Koryo forms. Each step of the forms are accompanied by a photo and instructions on execution as well as a diagram showing foot placement. After the forms, there are a series of photographs depicting the martial applications of each movement. 

I studied Tae-Kwon-Do as a kid and ended up getting my 1st degree black belt. Although the school I was taught at used the ITF forms so I never learned Koryo. This book expanded on my knowledge of Tae-Kwon-Do's history a great deal. I knew about General Choi, the Hwarang and the Silla but not about how influential karatedo was in the creation of this unique Korean art form. Taekwondo Black Belt Poomsae also gave me the opportunity to learn a new form in an easy to follow format. 

I enjoyed this book, and as a historical reference I think most people will be able to get some use out of it. However, there is a lot of content that would be best understood by an experienced martial arts practitioner. So for anyone looking to delve deeper into their Tae-Kwon-Do practice this is a very informative read, but unless the reader has studied martial arts to some degree the technicality of this book will likely overwhelm them.

Regardless of the technical aspects and the large gap in my practice of Tae-Kwon-Do I got a lot out of this book. Thank you Doug Cook and Richard Chun for a fascinating history of the art and an explanation of a form I had never seen. 

I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley and YMAA Publication Center Inc. in exchange for an honest review. 

To view this title on Amazon go to Taekwondo Black Belt Poomsae: Original Koryo and Koryo

Book Review: Tools and Treasures of Ancient Egypt

This book is part of the What Can We Learn from Early Civilizations? series. The book has four different sections each highlighting a different aspect of Egyptian history. In the first chapter, The Ancient Egyptians, children learn about the Nile River as well as the surrounding desert. They also get to see a carving of Hapi, the god of the Nile. Chapters two and three cover the class system as well as the culture of the early Egyptians. The last chapter discusses how the Egyptian civilization came to an end.

Tools and Treasures of Ancient Egypt is packed with photographs of Egyptian art, monuments and the landscape of Egypt. Each picture is accompanied with a caption that either gives more information on the photo or asks a question for kids to think about. There is not a large amount of text on each page so a younger audience won't struggle to pay attention. At the end there is a list of recommended books on Egypt.

The photographs in this book are amazing. After reading it I went back and looked through all of them again. My daughter did a history unit on Egypt a few months ago and we read quite a few books on the topic. So I was pleasantly surprised that this book contained information that we had not come across yet. For example, I had no idea that Hieroglyphics were not the only form of writing in Egypt. There was apparently a simpler version that was used by merchants and upper class citizens. I was also surprised when I read that the Greeks ruled Egypt as Pharaohs. I knew that Alexander the Great had conquered Egypt, but I didn't know the Greeks had mostly left the culture intact instead of replacing it.

While this book would work well in elementary school classrooms, I think it would be just as useful to have at home. The pictures alone kept me going back through the book and I imagine a lot of children would enjoy being able look through them a second or third time. I know my daughter will sometimes take out a book like this and use it as inspiration for her art work.

Though this book is relatively short, 40 or so pages long, it is filled with great information. I definitely wish we would have had this a few months ago for Sky's history class.

I got to read a digital copy of this book through NetGalley and Lerner Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

To view this book on Amazon go to
Tools and Treasures of Ancient Egypt (Searchlight Books - What Can We Learn from Early Civilizations?)

Book Review: The ABC's of Yoga for Kids

This book introduces yoga poses to kids in a fun way. There are illustrations for every pose as well as a rhyme about how to do it. The illustrations are of kids performing the yoga poses and pictures that go with the name of the pose. In the picture of the Dog pose, for example,  there is a boy doing the pose next to a puppy stretching in a similar position. The rhymes explain how to do each one and emphasize not stretching beyond what is comfortable, not to mention they are rather entertaining so it does not seem like a lesson.

I started reading The ABC's of Yoga for Kids with my oldest daughter (7) Sky. She has never really been interested in stretching as she always wants to run and move, so I wasn't sure whether she would enjoy the book or not. To my surprise, Sky loved the book and actually remembered how to do most of the poses she had learned when we read it the next day. Of course, she still wants to move a lot during the exercises but the fact that she stops long enough to try them is a huge win in my book.

While older kids may not enjoy the ABC theme or simple explanations, as an adult I got a lot out of this book. I have some experience with yoga (okay rather shaky attempts at yoga) and I enjoyed the fact that this book made it simple and fun. I imagine if I were to seriously practice I would need to find some more comprehensive instruction but for just starting out this worked well for me.

I got to read a digital copy of this book for free compliments of NetGalley.

To view this book on Amazon go to The ABCs of Yoga for Kids

Book Review: Street Smart Vegan: A Simple Guide To Going Vegan

This book has a ton of great information not only on going vegan but also on eating right. Jay Wesley Anderson does a great job of showing the benefits of the vegan lifestyle without preaching to the readers. He outlines the dangers of chlorine, fluoride, high fructose corn syrup and aspartame as well as the problems with dairy and meat. Not to mention he backs up all his claims with hard evidence. The best part about this book was that it was easy to read and even though there is a lot of information packed into the pages it doesn't feel overwhelming.

The only negative thing about this book is that it has some editorial errors. There's a few places where words are doubled up or misplaced.

A few years ago I was having some digestive problems and cut meat out of my diet for about 6 months. During that time I felt better and seemed to have more energy. I have been toying with the idea of becoming a vegan for some time now and this book gave me a few more reasons to give it try. I think I just found another new years resolution.

I got to read this book for free compliments of Story Cartel.

The above review was originally posted on Amazon.

This book is a really good reference guide for starting out on the path to becoming a vegan. The recipes look like they would be good although I have no idea where I would find wheat-grass juice, among other things, in my town. There are also a few websites listed with vegan recipes if the ones in the book don't look appealing. 

I really enjoyed the interview with the guy that lost 125 lbs by going vegan. He gave some great insights into what it was like and what he ended up struggling with. 

Regardless of whether the vegan diet/lifestyle appeals to you this book has some great information on healthy living. 

To check out this book on Amazon Street Smart Vegan: A Simple Guide To Going Vegan