The Seeds of Time by Shamini Flint

I am a follower of this author's Facebook. I love her books especially the "Inspector Singh Series".

Last week, I saw the author posted up in her Facebook that she is giving this book away for free . 

Here is what she wrote :  -

Dear Readers,

FREE BOOK!!

Like many of you, I caught the environmental bug some time back. I belatedly realised that our lifestyles are unsustainable and our children are going to inherit the mess. In a panic, I began to write books (printed on recycled/sustainable paper) about endangered species and did a lot of school visits to talk to kids about environmental issues.

Approximately five years ago I wrote a book, an environmental fantasy, called The Seeds of Time, for children aged 9-12. I wrote it to try and inspire children, the next generation, to care about the future of the planet (partly because I'd given up on us adults doing the right thing by our kids). It did pretty well, selling over 10,000 copies and is still widely available in bookshops, on online sites and as an ebook.

From the blurb:

"Honesty Smith and Spencer Jones - two ordinary children on a quest to save the planet. But is it too late for the orangutans of Borneo and the polar bears of Alaska?"

This week, we here in South East Asia, have been engulfed in unbreathable, hazardous air from the burning of the rain forests in the region.

I've been irate as I watch my children red-eyed and wheezing, shut into one air-conditioned bedroom ... unable to go outside.

Anyway, to cut a long story short, I was reminded of why I wrote The Seeds of Time in the first place.

To do what I can ... I've decided to give the book away for FREE (the entire book is downloadable from Goodreads if you're not a member, its easy to sign up and there's no cost or email me at shamini@shaminiflint.com to ask for the PDF). I would really appreciate it if you read it, give it to your children to read and generally spread it as far as possible. Please share.

I hope it makes a tiny difference!

Kind regards

Shamini

PS If any teachers/educators would like bulk sets of hard copies for the kids, please let me know and I will make the necessary arrangements (while stocks last!)

Synopsis from www.goodreads.com :

Features Honesty Smith and Spencer Jones, ordinary children who are on a quest to save the planet. This title features a story that ranges from the plight of the Orang Utan in Borneo to the Polar Bear in Alaska and tells how the young people and the animals team-up to save the world.

My Comment : 

In the beginning it was hard for me to get the hang of talking animals relating to modern time. Yeah, am too used to Enid Blyton's books where talking animals are used in relations to ancient time. Gradually I got the hang of it.


The story started slow, probably to let readers get accustomed to the characters.

I love the character, Honesty. I feel that she really brings out the charm of this book. It's not easy to resist peer pressure. Nobody wanted to be unpopular in school . It's wonderful to see how she react to t and how she learn from her experience


The pace of the story started to pick up when Honesty met Spencer. The two characters mixed well together.



Personally, I think this is a good book to give to the young ones to read. To get then started at an early age on the importance of taking care of our environment.  Sometimes it's hard for adult who is fixed in their habit to change but there are still hope for the young ones.

Am looking forward to read Book 2 of this series.

Inferno by Dan Brown

Synopsis from www.goodreads.com

Dan Brown’s new novel, Inferno, features renowned Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon and is set in the heart of Europe, where Langdon is drawn into a harrowing world centred around one of history’s most enduring and mysterious literary masterpieces.

As Dan Brown comments: “Although I studied Dante’s Inferno as a student, it wasn’t until recently, while researching in Florence, that I came to appreciate the enduring influence of Dante’s work on the modern world. With this new novel, I am excited to take readers on a journey deep into this mysterious realm…a landscape of codes, symbols, and more than a few secret passageways.”

My Comment :

First, I would like to thank Cleffairy for giving me this copy of "Inferno" by Dan Brown to read.

It took a lot of patience to really start getting hang of this book. As usual, everything in the beginning was confusing and the short snippets of a chapter here and a chapter there did not help. Who is Provost? Why are there people chasing Robert and trying to kill him?

Plot wise it's pretty similar to Da Vinci Code and Angel and Demons, which I loved. It was full of suspense and thrill of the chase.

I find that reading this book feels "educational", not in a bad sense but rather it inspired me to google and find out more of the things that he mentioned in the book . For example, it made me want to read Dante's work. I have download Dante's work from Project Gutenberg. Hopefully I can find time to read it.

Also I learnt quite a few interesting facts such as the horrifying origin of Ring Around The Roses nursery rhyme.

I can't help feeling a bit upset at that ending. Let me give you a hint...it's something like what happen in Mockingjay (The Hunger Games)

Nevertheless am giving it full stars as I like the story very much. It's a book that inspire me to read more of other books and I can say that I've learn a lot of interesting facts and ideas from it. Aren't it wonderful to have fun while learning?

The Witches by Roald Dahl

Synopsis from www.goodreads.com

This Roald Dahl classic tells the scary, funny and imaginative tale of a seven-year-old boy who has a run-in with some real-life witches! 

"In fairy tales witches always wear silly black hats and black cloaks and they ride on broomsticks. But this is not a fairy tale. This is about REAL WITCHES. REAL WITCHES dress in ordinary clothes and look very much like ordinary women. They live in ordinary houses and they work in ordinary jobs. That is why they are so hard to catch." 

Witches, as our hero learns, hate children. With the help of a friend and his somewhat-magical grandmother, our hero tries to expose the witches before they dispose of him.

My Comments :

It had been ages since I last updated this blog. Not because of I have not read any good books but rather lack off time. Too many books, too little time. Don't you sometimes feel this too?

Was at Bookxcess on Mother's Day and being "kiasu" I bought this to make up to RM50 purchase so that I can get a Carnation and photo session. Yup...It's kinda hard to that many books to buy in order to make up to RM50 coz the books were so cheap. 

Spotted this book. I have heard of Bigfoot and Matilda but have yet to read them. So far I think I have read Roald Dahl's My Uncle Oswald and that is on juicy adult book. 

Feeling kinda mellow hence grabbed this.

Oh boy ...I did not regret snapping up this book as it was a pleasure to read. It's an imaginative easy read. I guess Roald Dahl gets the last laugh after all since his school Master had put nasty comments in his Report Card where he was said to have "not a scrap of imagination".

This book certainly not for definitely not for those "logical" people who likes to question the logic of turning kids into mice.


Apart from that the book was full of witty humor. Can't help smiling at how he described the reactions of some people over some mice. 

I give this book full 5 stars.