Tag Archive: Art



The Seven Lady GodivasThe Seven Lady Godivas by Dr. Seuss
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Some books are meant to be devoured. Others you want to take your time and enjoy every nuance. This was one of the latter. If you’re like me you’ve read to your siblings and your children, every Dr. Seuss, you could find. So when this came along from my friends in the Reno BookCrossing group, I had to grab it. I’ve had it in my possession for far too long. But when I finally settled into my new house. I decided this would be one of the first reads.

In a world, where the common sense that we all know and love, is totally missing, it’s nice to get back to just plain old horse sense. You know those old sayings and wondered where they came from? Dr. Seuss tries to explain in this book. What a strange, and humorous book this is!

For some fuddy-duddies, this book might not be so good. It has cartoon nudity, okay? But there’s a reason for that. Dr. Seuss explains it quite well as he goes along. So ‘don’t get your tidy Whitey’s’ in a knot as my husband says. Enjoy this book for the prize it is.

As I said before, this is a BookCrossing edition. BCID 639-13580476 If there are no objections from my group. I plan to set this book free at Christmas Valley Library.

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Night of Cake & Puppets (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #2.5)Night of Cake & Puppets by Laini Taylor

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Oh, this was so fun! I didn’t even want to write the review yet because I wanted to leave the glow that this story left me in. I loved the whole series, but I think I loved this one little story the best. That’s because Zuzana and Mik were my favorite people. They were so gutsy, smart, and vulnerable. Moreso, I think, than Karou, who was supposed to be the star of the trilogy. In fact, I don’t think I have ever fallen in love with the secondary characters in such a way as I did these sweeties.

Yet… this is a love story. Girl wants to meet guy, guy wants to meet girl, but neither know how the other feels. Rather than being full of angst as most teen romances are, this is full of confidence and imagination. Sure there are self-doubts, but these two find ways to rise above and make it happen in spite of themselves and because of themselves.

This little book is so full of magic. Yes, Karou’s magic but. also, the magic of spirit. I believe that the whispersync for voice with the narration of Khristine Hvam and Kevin T. Collins respectively playing for Zuzana and Mik. They both did marvelous jobs. And though this book has text-to-speech, if you can get the audio version to read with, do so.

I hate leaving the series behind. I have so enjoyed every moment of it. It engulfs the reader and doesn’t let go. I do plan to re-read these. Suggestion: If you are going to read this one either read it after number two or after the third book. It will make more sense that way. Oh, how I wish for more!

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Drawing AutismDrawing Autism by Jill Mullin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received my book from FirstReads in the mail today: Feb 27, 2014 It is a very exciting looking book. I can hardly wait to sit and actually pour over the drawings and descriptions!

And here it is April 18, 2015. What took me so long? Why isn’t this a 5 star rating? FONT! If it were for the artwork and the inspiration I felt from them it would be worth 10 stars! But it took me months to get through the reading part. I just couldn’t read the tiny faded gray font. There are a couple pages at the beginning which are by Temple Grandin (Forward). I really wanted to read it as I was reading/read her book Thinking in Pictures. But I found I could only read it a line or two at a time. Even with magnifying glasses, or my large magnifying page reader. It took me a long, long time! The next two pages were by the editor Jill Mullin. I just finally gave up. My eyes were hurting so much! After the torture of the first few pages, I found I could get by, a page a day. The pictures were wonderful! But, again, it was the font explaining the artist or the work that nearly killed me.

Still, I highly recommend this book for anyone who loves art and are curious about those who think differently than yourself.

I found that I will have to make this part of my permanent collection as the pictures gave me ideas I’d like to try in my own artwork. BCID: 745-13301987

Thank you, First Reads at GoodReads.com for this win!

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Zentangle: The Ultimate Guide to Understand and Create Amazing Patterns and Shapes (Zentagle For Beginners, Zentangle Books, Zentangle Patterns, Zentangle ... rts and Crafts, Creativity, Graphic Design)Zentangle: The Ultimate Guide to Understand and Create Amazing Patterns and Shapes by David Adams

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Another Zentangle book on Kindle. I am so happy that there are so many now. This one is free on Kindle Unlimited and only $2.99 otherwise. Maybe for a beginner it would be worth the price but I have been researching and learning this wonderful art for a little while. I only picked it up for inspiration. And it was free then.

There are not only lovely Zentangles illustrated within the ebook, there were web links to others online. Now I have more boards to follow on my Pinterest! But that’s what that site is for, right?

One new concept that was brought up in this book that I haven’t seen (or noticed) before was how doing Zentangles can be a good habit exchange for a bad habit, such as over-eating or smoking. Great idea!

If you get the chance, look this book up. It is a great introduction to the art of Zentangling.

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Zentangle For Beginners: Elevate Your Life With Zentangle Art, Patterns and Shapes for Creativity, Focus & Well-Being (Zentangle, Zentangle for Beginners, ... Zentangle Basics, Zentangle Books)Zentangle For Beginners: Elevate Your Life With Zentangle Art, Patterns and Shapes for Creativity, Focus & Well-Being by Charlotte Pearce

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Of the freebie Kindle Zentangle books I’ve read so far, this has been my favorite. It was well written, describing the process of getting into the tangle, with zen and scientific results. I got so anxious about this just being wordy. But finally! There are enough illustrations of good Zentangles to give the beginner a chance to decide if this is for them. Worth the price (free) and maybe even worth a little more. After all, you can pick up most of this information from the website: Zentangle.com. Still it is nice that the author shared very different artists work. Try it, you’ll like it!

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My Intro to Zentangle Art


I can’t believe that it has been nearly three years since I discovered the magic of Zentangle. A good friend of mine mentioned it as something he likes to do. He uses his designs in wood burning projects. ย I started researching this form of art. Zentangle.com is the best starting place.

When I finally could afford it I bought the kit from the website. Here are some of the goodies in that cigar box kit.

2015-02-22 13.44.29

At the top of this picture is my little gold Zentangleย drawing pad I found in the dollar bins at some store. This is what I try to organize the different designs that you can click on at the top of the Zentangleย site organized in alphabetical order. As you can see there is a little chart that has 20 designs to choose from. That’s for the beginner who needs a little nudge to get started. The 20 sided die is to make the choice easier. There are the special pens and pencil and shadow-maker. There’s a CD to get you started and an instructional booklet to learn the first picture. Which you draw on the included little cards. Here is my first:

2015-02-22 13.38.21

As is my usual bent, I got into this Zentangle thing and made two more within a couple days.

20120311 DM Zentangle

2015-02-22 13.40.15

I don’t know why this last one ever got finished. I didn’t seem to shadow anything. But see those two teardrop shapes? I could never figure out how to deal with them. I think that was why I gave up on it. Now I like those white empty spaces so I think I will just shade here and there and start something new.

I haven’t done much since those projects except occasionally keep up my alphabet design book. Now that I have read those two books I reviewed yesterday I feel this art calling me. It’s time!


Zentangle Basics: Easy to Learn Zentangle Method. 12 Basic Elements of Fine Tangling Process and Art Mediation (Zentangle books, Zentangle basics books, Zentangle basics featuring ideas books,)Zentangle Basics: Easy to Learn Zentangle Method. 12 Basic Elements of Fine Tangling Process and Art Mediation by Leroy Barnes

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I have to admit that I have a bit of confusion going on here. I picked up two Zentangle books at the same time. One because it was free and the other because I could get it for free with Kindle Unlimited. This one was $2.99 last I looked. Though I got it for free through Kindle Unlimited. Now do I have you confused, too?

Either book is a good starting point for learning about the good that doing a bit of Zentangling can do for you. Both have written instructions for getting started. This one had fewer illustrations. Just as a hint of the type of designs that one can do simply even if you are not an artist. In fact, that is a point made in both books.

Both books are quick reads, even without pictures. And so I read them both yesterday one after the other.

Which one is best? The one with more pictures. But only because of that. I wish either of them had more visual instructions. Can you imagine being taught to draw without anything to look at to compare to? Yeah. Oh, some are upset about the size of the pictures. I found if I clicked on the tiny picture I can enlarge it to a satisfying size.

My advice? If you see these for free, grab ’em and read ’em. After that head over to Zentangle.com and play around that site. Then go check out the Youtubes that the site recommends. Pick up a Zentangle kit. I did and have loved working with it. One of these days, I will post some of my resulting tangles on my website: darsword.wordpress.com.

Now I am going to copy and paste this review into the other books review changing only the price range and a word or two here or there. Try Zentangling!

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Zentangle: Zentangle Art Basics: How to create beautiful patterns and shapesZentangle: Zentangle Art Basics: How to create beautiful patterns and shapes by Hailey Leman

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I have to admit that I have a bit of confusion going on here. I picked up two Zentangle books at the same time. One because it was free and the other because I could get it for free with Kindle Unlimited. This one was $2.99 last I looked. Though I got it for free. Now do I have you confused, too?

Either book is a good starting point for learning about the good that doing a bit of Zentangling can do for you. Both have written instructions for getting started. This one had a couple more illustrations. Just as a hint of the type of designs that one can do simply even if you are not an artist. In fact, that is a point made in both books.

Both books are quick reads, even without pictures. And so I read them both yesterday one after the other.

Which one is best? The one with more pictures. But only because of that. I wish either of them had more visual instructions. Can you imagine being taught to draw without anything to look at to compare to? Yeah. Oh, some are upset about the size of the pictures. I found if I clicked on the tiny picture I can enlarge it to a satisfying size.

My advice? If you see these for free, grab ’em and read ’em. After that head over to Zentangle.com and play around that site. Then go check out the Youtubes that the site recommends. Pick up a Zentangle kit. I did and have loved working with it. One of these days, I will post some of my resulting tanglesย here.

Now I am going to copy and paste this review into the other books review changing only the price range and a word or two here or there. Try Zentangling!

View all my reviews


Tell Me WhyTell Me Why by Trista Hendren

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Another amazing gem! This one was dedicated to the author’s son and the male community at large. Still there was a lot of wisdom to be inhaled by all.

Once again, this was one I couldn’t afford right now but when I saw I could get it through Kindle Unlimited, I just grabbed it up and gobbled it down. The illustrations by Elisabeth Slettnes were breathtaking. The quotes by wise ones worth rereading over and over. That’s why I must buy this one once I get paid. Not only do I want the whole series on my Kindle, I want the tree copies to highlight and meditate over.

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Mother Earth (The Girl God)Mother Earth by Trista Hendren

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When something intrigues me, I do not stop until I have chased down every butterfly! This was the next book by Trista Hendren. Another wow!

Again the illustrations were amazing. The story to all children of all ages touched me, inspired me. Again, there are quotes to go along with each picture. They made me wish I had the tree book to highlight and review from time to time.

I picked this up for free with Kindle Unlimited. It was a shame to let the book go back, but I plan to buy my own copies when I get paid.

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