This book attempts to convey basic facts about earthquakes, geology and seismography. The book is heavily illustrated, and packed with facts. However, I struggled with reading Earthquake due to the arrangement of text and graphics. The font sizes and styles were too mixed for me to understand the concepts being described. If the author is attempting to make you feel like you were in an earthquake, she succeeded, although I never attempted to read while I experienced the many earthquakes we had while living in San Diego. This book is 30 pages and is available as a .pdf for $5.00.
Andy and Spirit Go to the Fair is the story of a young man who uses a wheel chair but does not let that limit him. He competes at the fair in horseback riding. I appreciated the glimpse into a way of life that I have not experienced. It is one of three books about Andy and his horse Spirit. This ebook is 24 pages long and is available for $5.00 as a .pdf document.
This lighted hearted tale of two flamingos reminds me of the ugly duckling, except these two have a supportive community around them. The two young chicks wonder if they are supposed to be white and gray when all the others are bright pink. Upon learning that they will change colors as they grow, so long as they eat the right foods, they decide Maybe We Are Flamingos. I enjoyed their light-hearted reaction to the idea of “you are what you eat” as they began to draw themselves after eating broccoli, tacos, and pizza. This is a fun 30 pages to read, and I discovered a fellow Michigander at the same time. The illustrator of this ebook lives not far from me.
The Sum of Our Parts: No Bones About It is a rhyming book that begins at the toes and ends at the skull, giving the names of the major bones and groups of bones as it goes. The rhyme is well-structured; I didn’t struggle to read the text. A few of the illustrations would definitely “gross-out” my daughter, but my sons loved it. Along with the rhymes, each page contains a factoid about the body, skeletons, or bones. Each double page features two bones or groups, keeping the pages clean and focused on each area of the body. This 30 page ebook would be a great addition to any study of the skeletal system. $5.00 for .pdf file.
I’ve saved my favorite for last. While I struggled a little the first time I read this story, once I understood that Rainbow Sheep is completely fanciful, I enjoyed it immensely. The illustrations truly make this book. Kim Chatel is a textile artist and it shows in every picture. She even includes 4 pages of instructions on creating your own felted sheep. This is definitely a keeper. The .pdf version of this book is $5.00.
Overall I still don’t like ebooks. When I first viewed these ebooks in Adobe, I was frustrated that I could not see the pictures and the facing page of text at the same time. I played around and discovered that you can set the view for page display on “two up” which places the pages side by side. It was amazing how much better I felt about the books!
All of these books are also available as CDs and in print form from the Guardian Angel Publishing website. The cost ranges from 9.95-10.95 plus shipping and handling.
Disclaimer: Guardian Angel Publishing provided me with free copies of these five ebooks to review and use in order to write this review. I receive no other compensation, and my reviews are based on my opinion and the feedback I receive from my family.
