Monday, April 4, 2016

Review - Max Lucado's Pocket Prayers


$9.99 each; Blog Tour, Amazon
There are many little bitty holidays and events that occur in the springtime, including Mother's Day, Father's Day, Memorial Day, graduations etc.. Arriving in bookstores just in time for these events are six Pocket Prayers books by bestselling author Max Lucado.

The Pocket Prayers titles are:

Pocket Prayers for Dads (co-written with Mark Mynheir) - 40 simple prayers that bring strength and faith.


Pocket Prayers for Moms (co-written with daughter, Andrea Lucado) - 40 simple prayers that bring peace and rest.

Pocket Prayers for Friends (co-written with Betsy St. Amant) - 40 simple prayers that bring joy and serenity.


Pocket Prayers for Graduates (co-written with daughter, Andrea Lucado) - 40 simple prayers that bring hope and direction.

Pocket Prayers for Teachers (co-written with blogger Jennifer K. Hale) - 40 simple prayers that bring peace and renewal.


Pocket Prayers for Military Life (co-written by Mark Mynheir) - 40 simple prayers that bring faith and courage.

Sunday, April 3, 2016

Popcorn & Coffee: My Boyfriend's Back



PG-13; 85 minutes; $9.98; Amazon
I grew up in a small Missouri with nothing to look forward to on the weekends except for watching whatever movies that the cable channels were playing. Remember, this was the 90s and there weren't as many cable channels. Back then you could actually find a decent movie to watch; whereas now as days the only thing that is on television is horrible reality shows.

Anyhow, the first time I watched the 1993 horror-comedy My Boyfriend's Back was on cable (with commercials) during my teenage years. I vaguely recall what the film was actually about, well, until I viewed the film on Blu-ray last month.

Mill Creek Entertainment released My Boyfriend's Back on a single-disc Blu-ray on March 1st. There are no special features or extras.

Directed by Bob Balaban the film centers on a unpopular teenager Johnny Dingle (played by Andrew Lowery), who finally gets the courage to ask his crush, Missy McCloud (played by Traci Lind), on a date after she had broken things off with her boyfriend (played by Matthew Fox). Unfortunately, Johnny gets killed in a convenience store robbery before he could go on a date with Missy.

Luckily for Johnny, he rises from his grave shortly after the funeral, but there is one little problem  - he is now a zombie!

Generate More Revenue With These Business-Building Strategies


 
If you're like most business owners, generating revenue is one of your company's primary objectives. However, some corporate leaders periodically run out of ideas that will empower them to optimize conversion rates. If this is your dilemma, remember that building a better bottom line doesn't have to be an arduous, complicated task. Get on the road to methodical increase now by implementing these simple strategies:

1. Enhance Your Presentations.

If you're serious about making money, get serious about giving incredible presentations. When you deliver an information-packed, engaging sales presentation that catches the attention of the audience, you can almost guarantee that many of those individuals will turn into loyal buyers. As such, it's important for you to do all that you can to ensure that your presentations are absolutely incredible. One simple way to make it happen is by hiring a team of custom Powerpoint presentations professionals to optimize the aesthetic appeal and functionality of your presentations. Companies like eSlide can take care of this work for you.

2. Hire A Digital Advertising Company.

If you really want your company to remain in a state of steady growth, be sure to access the power of digital marketing. These days, marketing experts can utilize a synergistic, customized set of advertising strategies to help you connect with and then convert your target market. There are numerous digital techniques that advertising mavens can deploy to make it happen, and some of them include content marketing, web design and development, search engine optimization, and social media optimization. When you begin looking for the ideal digital marketing firm, make sure that the company has a good reputation and substantive industry experience.

Friday, April 1, 2016

Popcorn & Coffee: Identicals


   
Rated R; 100 minutes; $25.99; Amazon
Arriving on DVD on April 5th from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is the British science-fiction thriller Identicals. Directed by documentary maker Simon Pummel, the film was released to limited theater screens,Digital and On Demand on March 25th. It stars Nick Blood (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D), Lachlan Nieboer (Charlie Countryman), Nora - Jane Noone (Brooklyn), Michelle Asante (London Boulevard) and Tony Way (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo).

Special Features on the single-disc DVD includes:

Discussion with Writer/Director Simon Pummell

Visual Effects Breakdown

Set in a strange futuristic world, Identicals centers on Slater (played by Lachlan Nieboer), a man who witnesses his girlfriend's abduction by the Brand New-U Identifies, a network that helps people have a better life by walking into the body of someone else.

After a confrontation with Nadia's look-alike (played by Nora-Jane Noone), Slater is accused of murder, well that is until the Brand New-U Identifies offers him a choice - take the rap for the murder or upgrade his life.

Slater chooses the latter and becomes an Identical. Sadly, he can never let his past disappear, and he ends up searching for his only true love, Nadia.

Book Blogger Hop: April 1st - 7th


Book Blogger Hop

Welcome to the new Book Blogger Hop!

If you want schedule next week's post, click here to find the next prompt question. To submit a question, fill out this form.

What to do:

1. Post on your blog answering this question:

  This week's question is submitted by Elizabeth @ Silver's Reviews!

Have you ever ventured out of your comfort zone in terms of reading a genre you have never read? If so, did you get hooked on that new genre?

2. Enter the link to your post in the linky list below (enter your Blog Name and the direct link to your post answering this week’s question. Failure to do so will result in removal of your link).


3. Visit other blogs in the list and comment on their posts. Try to spend some time on the blogs reading other posts and possible become a new follower.  The purpose of the hop is to give bloggers a chance to follow other blogs, learn about new books, befriend other bloggers, and receive new followers to your own blog.
  

My Answer: 

  I mostly read horror novels (Stephen King, John Saul, etc.) when I was a teenager, but after I first read a Beverly Lewis novel when I was in my early 20s, I quickly became addicted to Amish-romance genre.


Linky List:

Thursday, March 31, 2016

Review - Rotten School: Got Cake?



128 pages; Amazon
No, I didn't forget about this week's Thursday ReReads. I had read Rotten School: Got Cake? early yesterday morning (Thursday), but I was so busy during the day, I was just too tired to write the review for it; which explains why I'm posting this today (Friday), though I'm posting it under a Thursday post (yesterday). Does any of this make any sense?

Anyhow, this the 13th entry in the Rotten School series (out of 16) once again has our favorite 4th-grader Bernie Bridges is up to no good.

After giving us, readers, a quick understanding on how to be popular, Bernie runs into Leif Blower, a 6th-grader, who is in charge of this year's Rotten School Yearbook. To celebrate the 100th year edition of the yearbook, there will be a special page called "The Most Popular Rotten Egg," in which the most popular student will get one whole paged dedicated to them.

As you can probably guess, Bernie wants to be featured on the 100 anniversary page, and he will do anything and everything to prove he is the most popular student.

How will he do this?

Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Spring Reads: The Princess Twins and the Tea Party


32 pages; $3.99; Amazon
There is no better time than the present to get your kids into reading with the I Can Read! books, a series that has five different reading levels:

My First - ideal for sharing with emergent readers.
1 - simple sentences for eager new readers.
2 - high-interest stories for developing readers.
3 - complex plots for confident readers.
4 - the perfect bridge to chapter books.

Now available in bookstores from ZonderKidz is the picture book The Princess Twins and the Tea Party by author Mona Hodgson with pictures by Julie Olson.

The Princess Twins and the Tea Party centers on Emma and Abby, twin princess with big imaginations. Princess Emma is excited that today is Spring Tea Day, in which their friends will be coming over to their home for tea.

Everything has to be just perfect for tea party. Princess Emma double-checks to make sure the cakes have enough sugar in them, the table is set correctly and that the perfect tea is going to be used.