An emperor is looking for a successor and he has no heirs. He decides to give a test to all the children iA Chinese fable about the virtue of honesty.
An emperor is looking for a successor and he has no heirs. He decides to give a test to all the children in the land. He hands every child a seed and tells them to grow a beautiful flower. Our main character Ping, has a green thumb and is known throughout the land as growing the best flowers anywhere. He can make anything grow.
A year passes and Ping hasn't been able to get anything to grow. He is so confused why it won't grow. The kids all around him have beautiful flowers they've grown. So Ping shows the emperor his empty pot and the emperor chooses him as heir. You see, the emperor boiled all the seeds, so no one's seed should have grown. Ping was the only honest one.
I love that. The true heart wins. Wonderful. The true heart is also gifted.
The artwork is more subtle for Demi. Still, I haven't heard this story before and it's so well told. She uses the giant circles to fill in on the page. She paints some beautiful flowers.
This is the 3rd book finishing off this trilogy. I thought the first book was great, I didn't care so much for the second book and this one is better This is the 3rd book finishing off this trilogy. I thought the first book was great, I didn't care so much for the second book and this one is better than the second and not as good as the first, I thought. It started out really well, but the ending was not what I wanted.
As far as I can tell, this is the first book series that has a gay man as the protagonist in a fantasy world, at least in Western literature. This was written in 1990. Vanyel finally finds a soulmate again and he is no longer alone. The love story starts out very sweet and well done. Mercedes doesn't go into details about anything having to do with the bedroom. That's all off page. She barely even says they kiss at times, so it's very squeaky clean.
Stefan is a young Bard with a large talent at singing. He is the first Bard that can use his gift to stop people being in pain. So, he is helping out the kind who has a mysterious illness that causes him to be in constant pain. Vanyel has his shields up and doesn't want to bring someone into his dangerous world and make them a target, so he does his best to keep Stefan as a friend only. Stefan has to work hard to get to Vanyel's heart and through all those shields.
In this book, we also go back to Vanyel's home and see how Van's father has changed - he invited Stefan to come along and meet the family.
The first 2/3s of the book are fantastic and I love the story. It's a great love story.
I want to speak on the end.
SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!
So, the ending is a downer. Why? Mercedes is breaking ground here giving us a gay male lead and why does it need to end in death? The Chinese would approve. If you have a boys love story over they, it has to end badly to pass censorship, because gay people can't be seen as being happy and healthy.
I really am upset about the ending. Is it really a bad ending. No, it's done well, but damnit... Why can't we have a happy ending. That's the more difficult ending in reality anyway, then the characters have to get along and live life.
Plus, Van had such a lonely and difficult life and all he gets is a heroic death - really. Plus, he's the last Herald-Mage and now, there is no one to train up the next generation. It's so very sad. I really hate the ending. I know this takes place in the wider Valdemer world and I haven't read the rest and so maybe it fits in with her overall story, but it sucks right here. I wanted to really love this story, but the ending lost a whole star for me.
Oh well. I'm still glad I read this one. I'll be looking for more good books in 2023. Happy New Year....more
I loved the first book in this series. I have to say that I wasn't loving this story. Some of it has to do with my own stuff and some of it was the stI loved the first book in this series. I have to say that I wasn't loving this story. Some of it has to do with my own stuff and some of it was the story. It's still a good story, but as a 2nd book in a trilogy, I feel this was a weak story.
Firstly, Vanyel is about 12 years older or so. We skip over so much of his life and now he is a war-worn 28 year old Mage-Herald. He is the most powerful person keeping the kingdom going. He is exhausted and lonely.
Secondly, Vanyel does discuss a few past one-night stands, but there is no love story in this one. I think what really drew me in last book was the love story and here, Vanyel is simply lonely. This is my stuff. I'm feeling that lonely and I don't really want to read about that kind of thing right now as I have plenty of it going in my life. I was looking for a new love interest or something. I mean, there is nothing here. It was rough.
Thirdly, I wasn't really into the plot. I feel like I didn't know this older grizzled Vanyel and I don't know that Mercedes did a lot to win me over. Vanyel wasn't all that compelling for me in this story. Plus, I didn't really care for the small mystery of Tasiel, did he kill people or not. It was okay, but nothing exciting.
Fourthly, Lissa, his sister comes back and there is hardly any interaction between them. She means nothing to the story really. It was disappointing.
I did enjoy how Vanyel made peace with many people in his family, like his father and the armsmaster Jarvis. That was the best part.
Mercedes dealing with Vanyel's queerness does some great things. Many people, just like they did in the 80s and 90s, assumed because Vanyel was gay that he lured young boys into his bed and Vanyel has to deal with this disgusting stereotype over and over and prove himself over and over to his family.
Overall, this book was difficult for me to get through. The first 100 pages was good, the middle 100 was so difficult and then the last 100 was pretty good. I will say that I read a book in the middle of this and I was also addicted to the Untamed and Word of Honor China dramas at this time, so I had distractions. Still, the book didn't hold my attention well. I hope the last book gets better. It might be awhile before I read that....more
I remember going to the grocery story with my parents and begging for this food or that food with all the bright colors. It was easy to be demanding wI remember going to the grocery story with my parents and begging for this food or that food with all the bright colors. It was easy to be demanding with everything one sees there. Then I went shopping with my niece and nephew and experienced this phenomenon from the other side. It is horrible. Kids fighting each other for who gets what, screaming they want this or that and crying when told no. My word, it’s a place of horrors to go to with a young kid. I felt lucky to make it out alive with my life.
I had a friend who told the story of her son threw a tantrum in line to pay about something he wanted in front of all these people. She looked at him and said, “I want you to see what you look like. This is what you are doing.� She got down on the floor and began to throw the same tantrum. The boy got quiet and she paid and left. I can only imagine what the adults around her thought. That would be a show. I didn’t have the guts to try it and my niece is so strong-willed that I don’t think she would have stopped or cared. She would have gotten louder.
Anyway, this is about a father taking his kids to the grocery store. The young daughter doesn’t think Dad buys any good food, so she loads up her cart with ice cream and cookies and has to put them all back. It really is funny and it goes on to show the girl in trouble and what happens, but the good part is the kids in the store. ...more
This is a simple little story about being with family for Thanksgiving and about preparing food. Since I can't be with my family today and its a diffeThis is a simple little story about being with family for Thanksgiving and about preparing food. Since I can't be with my family today and its a different turkey day I thought this would be a good story to read.
The story is about the youngest kid at the gathering. He wants to help with dinner and everyone says he's too small and go and do something else. So he keeps looking. Boys are shucking corn, girls are peeling potatoes and carrots and adults are cooking and dads are chopping wood. The boy is off on his own a little sad, when grandpa comes along and they go for a walk. They go to a chestnut tree and collect chestnuts and everyone enjoys them.
It's a simple story about simply being with family. It's warm and cozy and I miss having family to be with. I have lots of good memories of Thanksgiving and its one of the few years I haven't been with family.
Well, Happy Thanksgiving everyone. I read this on Open Library....more
Little Miss Contrary lives in Muddleland and so everything is confusing. Mr. Small delivers an birthday invitation to Little Miss Contrary and she conLittle Miss Contrary lives in Muddleland and so everything is confusing. Mr. Small delivers an birthday invitation to Little Miss Contrary and she confuses him so much. She isn't much fun to talk with really. Contrary goes to Mr. Happy's party and Mr. Happy quickly figures out what Contrary means, she says the opposite so he doesn't take her insults personally. We get to see many of the original Mr Men like Mr Tickle and Mr. Greedy.
I was able to let the Nephew read this for himself. He thought Contrary was funny and he liked that Mr. Happy figured her out. He has pretty much outgrown Mr. Men by now, but he was willing to read this today, so go that. He's way into Star Wars right now and everything is Han Solo. He was a bit nostalgic for Mr. Men I think and he gave this a 3 star rating.
Every morning Dudley crows the sun up and all the animals stand around praising him for such an amazing job done, all accept Gunther the goose, who is Every morning Dudley crows the sun up and all the animals stand around praising him for such an amazing job done, all accept Gunther the goose, who is filled with jealously. Gunther tries to get the animals to turn on him and it doesn’t work. They know he doesn’t really make the sun come up. One day Gunther decides to pull his feathers out and chases Dudley into the forest. As the sun is setting it sees this and decides not to come up until his favorite rooster crows. There are some mean foxes in the woods and owls trying to eat Dudley. A rescue is mounted and the book ends with a nice conclusion.
This is another Bill Peet story where the sun has a face and it’s either happy or sad. 2nd book I have seen that. More beautiful artwork from the master and a good story too. I like that Dudley is a skinny rooster. That ol� goose is real nasty.
The nephew thought this story was alright. He wasn’t that impressed. There was at least action and he thought those foxes looked mean. He gave this 3 stars....more
Miss Brainy is actually smart and able to answer people's questions. We see several of the Mr. Men in the story and she makes her way to Cleverland anMiss Brainy is actually smart and able to answer people's questions. We see several of the Mr. Men in the story and she makes her way to Cleverland and there she meets animals like Elephant, Lion, and Pig.
Nephew loved seeing the Pig in the Tree. A pig was stuck in the tree and needed help getting out of it. He loved seeing that and it made him giggle. He also loved to see the red lion. He thought that was cute. He had fun with this and he gave this 4 stars. Its all about the pig in the tree.
Little Miss Curious asks How, Why and What. She wants to know about everything and she asks people a question the moment she sees them. Mr. Nonsense lLittle Miss Curious asks How, Why and What. She wants to know about everything and she asks people a question the moment she sees them. Mr. Nonsense loves to play with her.
I love her little question mark house. She has trees in a questions mark and even her hair is a question mark.
She does go to the library where she is kicked out for her questions, which, I didn't like that part. I don't think a librarian would boot you for asking questions. She'd stick a book in your hand.
The story was cute, but it didn't seem fleshed out, but it did leave you with questions. This was an okay stay. I would love to have some young tots and she what they thought, but I don't have that anymore. ...more
I like Mr. Perfect. He seems to me like a perfect gay best friend. Mr. Perfect is throwing the perfect birthday party so a ton of characters get to coI like Mr. Perfect. He seems to me like a perfect gay best friend. Mr. Perfect is throwing the perfect birthday party so a ton of characters get to come over for this gay bash. Mr. Uppity is rather a rude fellow. At the end of this perfect party, Mr. Uppity accuses Mr. Perfect of being without flaws. How silly to think a person doesn’t have flaws. It is too bad that Roger didn’t think to give Mr. Perfect at least one flaw of some kind. Pity.
The nephew enjoyed seeing all these characters again. He didn’t think this story was a good as some of the others. He gave this 3 stars. He thought Mr. Stringy giving a lump of coal was rude as well. ...more
What an interesting tale Gerald is telling here. Tim is poor and his family is hungry. Also, Tim is not the brightest there is. He goes looking for woWhat an interesting tale Gerald is telling here. Tim is poor and his family is hungry. Also, Tim is not the brightest there is. He goes looking for work and none is to be had. He takes a nap next to a hollow and wakes to the merry music of the wee folk. If you spy them, they are bound to give you a bounty. So, they merrily give Tim a goose that lays Golden eggs. Now, here is the important part. They told him to go straight home and tell not a soul. Very good advice. Well, Tim stops at a neighbors house and has to brag about what happened. You can imagine that those neighbors switched out that goose lickety split. Tim gets home with a goose that won’t lay. Here’s the interesting part - he gets angry at the Wee folk instead of thinking it was his fault. He stomps back and the Wee folk aren’t offended, no; they smile and give him another gift. Tim has learned nothing and repeats the same thing over again. Now the wee folk are smart and they figure out that Tim blabbed his mouth, so they correct the problem for him.
I think the lesson here is to follow instructions. When someone is giving you a gift, it is important to listen to how it works and the advice you give. If you ask me, it is simply lucky that the wee folk were kind to Tim after he ignored their warnings.
The artwork is very different for Gerald in this story. I almost can’t tell it’s his work. I thought the little story was cute and very green like the emerald isle.
The nephew thought the wee folk were a happy and funny lot. He liked them and wanted to be able to dance with them too. He gave this story 4 stars. He said they looked like the Lucky Charm guy who is one of his favorite cereals. ...more
The movie ‘Meet the Robinsons� was based on this book, which I thought was the case. I do like that movie, but I don’t think it’s one of Disney’s bestThe movie ‘Meet the Robinsons� was based on this book, which I thought was the case. I do like that movie, but I don’t think it’s one of Disney’s best. The movie has a plot while the book really doesn’t. There is no antagonist. The only plot device is they are looking for grandpa Robinson’s false teeth and so we see all these wacky areas of the house.
I do love the imagination in this book and the feeling of future-any-things-possible vibes all over. Williams imagination abounds in the story and most of it ended up in the movie. They picked up the art style for the movie as well. I would love to see more movie adaptations of really good picture books out there.
My favorite part is they all sleep in the giant tree in the back yard. I love that. It’s a beginner book for all ages. The Robinsons live in a place where anything is possible. The future is bright.
The nephew loved the robots and monsters all around. The kids love that Disney movie too. That and Chicken Little believe it or not. He was excited to find all the wacky things around and all the aunts and uncles that are so wacky. He asked me why I couldn’t be more fun like this and shoot myself out of a cannon or train frogs to sing. I told him he has such a boring aunt. He agreed, but he liked the story and gave this 5 stars. ...more
Little Miss Splendid and Mr. Funny make an appearance in this story. Mr Cheerful is always smiling. There is one thing that makes him sad and it’s undLittle Miss Splendid and Mr. Funny make an appearance in this story. Mr Cheerful is always smiling. There is one thing that makes him sad and it’s under his hat. Well, of course Little Miss Splendid has to dig this out and make it an issue to resolve. Mr. Cheerful only has 3 hairs on his head and that makes him sad. The people in the story tell him they love his smile and 3 hairs don’t matter.
I like Mr. Cheerful and he is a character I would like to hang out with. His cheeriness is infectious. There are no wizards in the story and it makes for a good story.
The nephew is less into these books these days than he used to be a year ago, but he still enjoys reading the Mr Men. He was glad Mr Funny showed up. He likes Mr Funny. He didn’t like Little Miss Splendid and she booed him. I tend to agree with him. (He told me I’m like her and I like to spoil the fun. Oh dear) He gave this 3 stars....more
I like getting to meet so many of the newer characters Roger came up with. A ton of characters make an appearance in this story. I haven’t meet Miss SI like getting to meet so many of the newer characters Roger came up with. A ton of characters make an appearance in this story. I haven’t meet Miss Somersault before and she looks zany.
I like that we see Mr. brave seems a little scared and he faces a task anyway. Being brave is about having fear and not letting fear stop you. This book gets that concept just right, I think.
The nephew enjoyed seeing all the characters in one frame. He could name just about all of them. He thought this was a pretty good book and gave this 3 stars. ...more
Little Miss Wise is beyond her years. She can also see what others are about and she doesn’t take part which means she is constantly telling people noLittle Miss Wise is beyond her years. She can also see what others are about and she doesn’t take part which means she is constantly telling people no so she can stay out of trouble. She begins to feel sad and lonely and decides to say yes anyway to whatever wacky thing people around her say. She meets Mr. Mischief and he gives her a present. Instead of saying no, knowing it won’t be good, she accepts the gift and it’s full of sneezing powder and she sneezes the rest of the day.
It’s an interesting lesson. I guess the moral is sometimes we have to deal with the inconvenience of people or risk living all alone. That’s what I get from it. This one felt more rushed and less finished compared to other’s I’ve read.
Again, the nephew didn’t want to read this. He loved that Mr. Mischief gave her sneezing powder and he laughed at her sneezing. He gave it 2 stars for that scene. He only likes the Mr. Men, but we’re going to finish this series before he gets much older. He might hate them all, but I’m going to finish it. ...more
Did you know there was a Mr. Men Wiki Fandom? I stubbled across it looking for the pub date. I was surprised, but it’s very useful. There are some serDid you know there was a Mr. Men Wiki Fandom? I stubbled across it looking for the pub date. I was surprised, but it’s very useful. There are some serious fans out there.
This is another Mr. Men where the Wizard teachers a character a lesson. Mr. Grumble gets his name honestly. He is a grumpy old man and everything is terrible. He’s so Large intestine (acupuncture joke). Anyway. The wizard doesn’t like moaning and groaning he turns him into a pig each time he does that. It takes 3 times before Mr. Grumble learns his lesson. I like that about this volume. Most of the time once is enough in this books, but I think in life most of us need more than one lesson to change a behavior.
The nephew has somewhat outgrown these books, but he still likes them. He thought Mr. Grumble was funny. He gave this 3 stars. He thought Grumble made a cute pig. ...more
The nephew and I had so much fun reading this book together. We got the giggles and we both laughed riotously through the story. We start off with theThe nephew and I had so much fun reading this book together. We got the giggles and we both laughed riotously through the story. We start off with the look of Miss Busy. I love her, she is a big head and nose with glasses and hair in a tight bun. She has a lovely smile on her face. I love the way she looks, but it tickled the nephew and he got giggling, which is infectious and I got giggling.
Miss Busy loved to work and clean house from 3am till midnight. Horrible, a person needs more sleep than that. Anyway, she gets sick, of course she does. She hates not being busy. (She has some internal Kidney Fire, anyway). Dr. Make-you-well tells her she needs lots and lots of rest. We see a picture of her falling back on her bed and to show she is falling, Roger put two puffs of air flying out from under her. It looks like she is farting. My nephew saw that picture and he started laughing his head off and I was right there with him.
Mr. Strong, Mr. Greedy, and Mr. Nonsense come see her and each person tells her to rest and she falls back on the bed again looking like she is farting. My nephew died. We howled with laughter. Both his sister and his parents had to come in there and check on us. As soon as we finished, the nephew had to read it again to everyone and he laughed all over again and we were all rolling around. The nephew kept the book to read on his own again and you could hear him laughing at times during the day at the book. He got a real kick out of this one.
Needless to say, the nephew gave this 5 stars. I did too, but not for the same reason. I thought it was a better Little Miss story than others and I like Miss Busy. Nephew’s funny bone was contagious. I don’t know if was really that funny, but it was in the moment. The nephew said Miss Busy was busy farting, that's why she got her name. He got so tickled....more
Now we are talking. This is a great story back to Gorey form. A family can’t stand their daughter, who looks funny and creative by the way, and she c Now we are talking. This is a great story back to Gorey form. A family can’t stand their daughter, who looks funny and creative by the way, and she can’t stand that feeling of being despised anymore. She throws herself in the sea where she meets a giant sea creature who protects her and slowly takes care of her family. That bathtub can be a killer sometimes.
This story amused me so. I love the sea creature and the wicked family almost deserved it’s fate. Who knows what really lies in the sea. It was epic.
I did read this to the nephew and he found it delightful and amusing. He loved Theoda at the end wearing a line of pearls around her head riding the sea monster at the end. He gave this 4 stars too....more
The first page and I was about to check out and rate this low and then Chris brings his vision to us and I love this book. It’s about our environment The first page and I was about to check out and rate this low and then Chris brings his vision to us and I love this book. It’s about our environment and how we are the stewards of the world. It is up to us what the world will look like. It is a little Sci-fy tale. You know how the Native Americans are always asking themselves how this decision affects the next 7 generations. This story has a long perspective like that, encouraging us to think long term instead of day-to-day.
A boy only cares about his TV program and the future with robots and flying cars. I told my nephew it sounds like him. He was supposed to set out the recycling, but he threw it all away. The boy wakes up at night and his bed has taken him to the future and he sees various ways the future is going. There are no flying cars or robots, only pollution and trash. Over and over he wakes up to see a sad world. Fisherman catch 2 tiny fish and rejoice. It’s depressing. The boy wakes up and changes his tune.
Anyway, I love this story. How nice if we could get a nightly glimpse to see how our actions affected our lives and our world 7 generations away. That would be a powerful tool to help us make decisions. I thought this was a wonderful idea.
The nephew was disappointed that the boy saw no robots in the future. He sort of missed the meaning of this story and was focused on robots. I will have to read it to him more than once and hope something leaks in. He gave this 2 stars. ...more
I know this is a girl, but this is so much like my nephew. He is always in a hurry and does everything quickly and carelessly and doesn’t slow down. II know this is a girl, but this is so much like my nephew. He is always in a hurry and does everything quickly and carelessly and doesn’t slow down. It’s amazing to watch him and he will not get it in his head he has to be slow and careful. He is like a bull in a China shop. My mom said that to my brother growing up all the time, so he comes by it honestly. My brother also took care of his things and didn’t try and destroy them, unlike the nephew.
Little Miss Quick wants to help, but her carelessness only breaks things and makes people angry. She even goes to the zoo and sets some lions loose on accident.
The nephew is not a fan of the Little Miss series. He recognized Mr. Strong when he showed up, but that’s all. He gave this 2 stars. Well, I’m determined to finish this series with him, even if he gives them all 1 star. His aunt can be stubborn too about books. ...more
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