KJK Reads

Rating: 4 Stars Themes: Christmas, Children, Holiday Thoughts: This is soo cute. It’s almost like a peep into the type of parent that J.R.R. Tolkien was and sprinkles a touch of childlike christmas magic to anyone who reads it, regardless how old they are. Favourite Quote: "The appalling destruction and misery of this war mount hourly: destruction of what should be (indeed it is) the common wealth of Europe, and the world, if mankind were not so besotted, wealth the loss of which will affect us all, victors or not. Yet people gloat to hear of the endless lines, 40 miles long, of miserable refugees, women and children pouring West, dying on the way. There seems no bowels of mercy or compassion, no imagination, left in this dark diabolic hour. By which I do not mean that it may not all, in the present situation, mainly (not solely) created by Germany, be necessary or inevitable. But why gloat! We were supposed to have reached a stage of civilization in which it might still be necess...

Rating: 4 Stars Themes: Historical Fiction, Christmas Thoughts: I really enjoyed this story. This is my first war civilians/evacuee story and it was a perfect place to start. I mainly reached for this as it is December and I wanted a christmassy story but I really got into it and was glad to see that there are more installments for Connie and Jessie’s life in evacuation. I found this book managed to tackle the experiences of children who landed in good and bad billet but still manage to leave us with hope for all children involved. I also liked how Peggy was included as I have to admit I forgot that pregnant women and the elderly were also eligible for evacuation so it was a nice reminder and helped give the twins in the story a touch of home while away.

Rating: 4 Stars Themes: Romance, Contemporary Fiction  Thoughts: This is such a sweet read. I wasn’t a fan of the initial lie, especially after we find out why Sam has such an aversion for christmas and Blythe originally set out just to make Sam conform made me think she’s the kind of character that I would struggle with. But in reality I understood where she came from and she did it in a more caring way and started to care for Sam along the way. This was a really slow burn but worth the wait and by the time a coworker meddles in it I had actually forgotten about some of the more minute details. It was like reading a hallmark movie in book form and I have a soft spot for Turpin. Favourite Quote: "Holly Cross isn't about Christmas.. What it's really about is community. It's the people. Christmas is just an excuse. It gives them a purpose to get together, to support each other and create something special that benefits others. It's the people who make Holly Cross, no...

Rating: 5 Stars Themes: Memoir, Holocaust, Non-Fiction, Psychology, Self-Help Thoughts: I felt like this book was perfect for me. As someone who has spent a lot of professional time studying the human psyche and specifically trauma this book spoke to me on that and the human emotion elements. Edith prefaced the book with a small extra introduction by telling us that there is no hierarchy of suffering which is often something we all forget be that complaining that others shouldn’t complain because we have it worse or feeling that we aren’t entitled to our suffering as there are people worse off than us. It also helps to outline her attitude for us to take into the book and throughout her story with us. This is especially powerful with her experiences throughout the Holocaust, experiencing many different unimaginable horrors in only a few years. I also loved that Edith continued to take us through her life after the initial events of the Holocaust and how that had a long term effect on h...

Rating: 4 Stars Themes: Historical Fiction, Regency, Romance Thoughts: I found this final installment of the Bridgerton siblings sweet. I like that the way the initial paragraph being that of bursting into the church then back to meeting which could have left us guessing which woman Gregory actually falls for if it wasn’t for having the paragraphs from only one female POV. I did find the chapter titles somewhat off putting as it was trying to outline the chapter in one sentence which didn’t flow as much for me personally and I don’t remember in the other books but I did read this one at least a month apart so that could be my poor memory instead.  Overall, I appreciated watching the two fall for each other and didn’t see the blackmail twist turning out the way it did until the moment it was revealed which was intriguing.  Favourite Quotes: "She didn’t want to change the world. She just wanted to make it lovely and wonderful for the people she loved."

Rating: 5 Stars Themes: Short Stories, Winter, Fables, Heartwarming Tales Thoughts: I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. This is an amazing book. First of all I love the diversity in this book with tribal stories being represented alongside those from majority populations in countries. The illustrations are beautiful and appear almost hand painted or coloured which added a more delicate feel to the book on top of the stories. I also enjoyed learning new stories even from my own origins as there was some I didn’t recognise even from my own country. 

Rating: 3 Stars Themes: Non-Fiction, Trivia, Christmas, Family, Puzzles and Games Thoughts: Thoughts I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. This is a great little advent calendar full of facts and activities for the whole family. The celebrities born on this day is cool and it was great to see some celebrities sharing birthdays with some of my family members. I also thought the activities threaded throughout are great for the younger children and who doesn’t love a cheesy christmas joke so one a day is perfect.

Rating: 3 Stars Themes: Non-Fiction, Trivia, Christmas, Family, Puzzles and Games Thoughts: I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. I really enjoyed this book, I love learning new things and the facts were broken down into bite sized chunks so you can come back to it whenever you have a moment. The book itself is broken down helpfully too. However, a couple of facts were repeated in different sections but they did have different witty comments with it to keep it a little fresh.

Rating: 3 Stars Themes: Mystery, Christmas Thoughts: I wanted a cozy christmassy book and I wasn’t disappointed. The mystery was an interesting one with a definite festive twist (think marley and cratchit style) and I enjoyed the twist on most mystery books with the main characters being cats, and the name changes for books were witty. I usually find the it was all a dream trope lazy writing to avoid tying up loose ends but it was actually well done and answered most things anyway, there’s only one thing I found myself still unsure on by the end. I also think the mild focus on food was great characters as most cats I’ve known have loved food and I’m a little disappointed there wasn’t any recipes included at the end.

Rating: 3 Stars  Themes: Short Stories, Christmas, Contemporary Thoughts: This was a bit of a weird short story to me, it’s advertised as a Christmas short story but the only overtly Christmassy thing about it is that the women are due in December and some of the potential names. I would say the final lesson with the screen is in the christmas carol spirit but it threw me off at first as to how it was supposed to work. I do think the underlying messages with what each expectant mother learns (prioritizing work over children isn’t easy,, even young you can do it, reporting everyone over anything small  isn’t kind and can end up backfiring in the long run) are great messages and Ginny’s lesson (treat the dad to be with more patience and kindness) is a great thing to leave a lasting impression. Favourite Quote: "Motherhood. Being responsible for another life."