Amazing Grace by Megan Shull

4 out of 5 stars

Excellent, clean young adult fiction that gently covered issues of mental health, teen drinking, and environmentalism.  And it's set in Alaska!  I don't know why but I love Alaska books.  This is weird even to me.... One less than 5 stars because of the requisite teen angst (it is young adult fiction) I'm very very thankful to be past at this point in my life.

The Book of New Family Traditions by Meg Cox

5 out 5 stars

This book is basically a collection of briefly presented ideas for making memories and rituals out of both every-day and special occasions. I especially appreciated the ideas for memorializing a child's first day of school, giving a child both a new privilege and a new responsibility every birthday, and the section for traditions specific to adopted children. I also really like how easy to find event-related ideas are in this book. This one's been permanently added to our family bookshelf.

No Escape by Shannon K. Butcher

3 out of 5 stars

I think anyone who likes romantic suspense will enjoy this book, but I personally thought the suspense levels were too high due to too many people trying to kill the heroine. Because of this, I couldn't appreciate any romantic tension between the hero and heroine. I do like that the author brought up the issue of foster care and the children in it - I just hope readers with less exposure to it than myself come away convinced that good foster parents are desperately needed and can make a world of difference rather than that foster kids will possibly grow up to be murderous psychopaths.

Better Than Peanut Butter & Jelly by Marty Mattare & Wendy Muldawer

4 out of 5 stars

The most useful parts of this book to me were the chapters on the nutritional needs of vegetarian children, list of animal-free protien options, and "quick substitutions" chart.

Clean Food by Terry Walters

3 out of 5 stars

There are numerous unusual ingredients used in this cookbook but the author doesn't tell you where to get them or what they look like and I don't see how using imported specialty items is eating close to the source. Also there are no photographs of either ingredients or finished dishes. I was happy with how many of the recipes were gluten-free and most dishes do sound yummy, like Tofu Pumpkin Pie with Gingersnap Crust which we added to our very small list of dairy- and gluten-free Thanksgiving pie options (our local grocers carries gluten-free gingersnaps).

Sticky Fingers' Sweets by Doron Peterson

3 out of 5 stars

It was fun to read about her Cupcake Wars win, but I didn't see a single gluten-free recipe in this collection - something plenty of vegan baker offer.

Good Housekeeping Christmas Joys by Good Housekeeping

3 out of 5 stars

Mostly recipes (with lots of meat, dairy, and gluten) - I was hoping for more decorating ideas. The few ideas that are in here are pretty good but instructions on their creation are minimal.

Gourmet Vegetarian Slow Cooker by Lynn Alley

4 out of 5 stars

All but a few of these recipes are gluten-free. Four stars so far just on presentation and how good the recipes sound. Will re-rate when recipes are tested.

Allergy-Friendly Food for Families by Kiwi Magazine

5 out of 5 stars

Lots of vegetarian & vegan recipes - we especially like the "Polenta Mini Pizzas", "Greener Sloppy Joes", and "Coconut No-Cream Pie". I also appreciate the sections for "Party" (with finger foods and cake & ice-cream substitutes) & "Snack" recipes. My favorite feature of this cookbook is the "Cooking with Kids" pages sprinkled throughout the book on how to get your smaller children involved in the cooking process.

Pretend Soup and Other Real Recipes by Mollie Katzen

This is one of those books I wish I could give two ratings. The clarity of recipe instructions is wonderful and they could easily be followed by a preschooler if read aloud. However there were may be 3 recipes in the entire book that my family could use due to our lactose- and gluten-free requirements. So while I would recommend this book to friends with budding young chefs, it's not a cookbook we'll be using.