Margo's Musings: Does Practice Make Perfect?

Margo’s favorite book this week has turned out to be entertaining for the whole family. The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires is a book that inspires. In this adorably illustrated story, a young girl is determined to create the most magnificent thing ever. She knows exactly what it will look like. Unfortunately, she has a few problems with some of her creations, but each time she knows just what to do. Eventually, she gets mad that things still aren’t being made the “right way”. What's a girl to do? Taking a walk with her dog might help her see things in the right light. Will all her practice be for nothing? Is it possible that she just needs to keep on working? I’m not telling!

Margo can’t get enough of the pictures in this book, and the dog reminds her of our little pug, Auntie Em. She points and laughs as we read. You should hear Margo telling the girl in the story, “It’s okay”. Of course, once we finish reading, it's time to make our own inventions, which is a blast, though we haven’t created the perfect thing yet. Still, it's fun for the whole family to build something together. 

This is a fabulous story that teaches a lesson we can all learn from, and I'd recommend it to book lovers of all ages.

Happy reading!

~F 

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Will Practice Be Enough for Ben?

Ben Ripley is at home, minding his own business, when he gets a visit from a man named Alexander Hale from the CIA. He tells Ben that he'll be going to spy school to hone his craft because of his promising skills. Ben can’t quite figure out how the CIA knows anything about him, but he knows he's exceptionally good with numbers, so he packs his bags and heads to his new school. Who wouldn’t be excited about attending a special school for the coolest of the cool? As soon as Ben gets there he finds the school being sabotaged by enemies with weapons, and he instantly needs to learn how to protect himself. Thank goodness he runs into Erica, who proves to be an amazing spy trained in more ways than Ben can even imagine. When he finds out Alexander Hale wasn’t completely honest with him and learns that his life is in danger, he'll have some tough decisions to make. Will Ben stay at spy school? Why was he selected for such a special school? Who can he trust? One thing is for sure, life just became a whole lot more dangerous. Read this intriguing book to find out what is going on!

Spy School by Stuart Gibbs was the first book I've read by this author, and I thought it was great. I would recommend this book to kids between the ages of nine and thirteen. It has a few bad words that might be a problem for some people (just a warning). I liked trying to figure out who Ben should trust and who he should stay away from. Lots of clues to piece together! It's always fun to try to solve a mystery! Adventure and action can be found on every page, so it's a wonderful book to keep kids reading. I learned a lot about being a spy and it is way more way work than I realized! I look forward to reading Spy Camp.

Has anyone else read Spy School? Or have you read another book by Stuart Gibbs? We’d love to hear your thoughts!

Happy Reading!
~L

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Answer to Monday's Riddle: Practice, Practice!

Excellent guessing Riddlers! Great job to those who guessed correctly. This week, we're on the topic of practice. Lizzy's review will keep getting better and better, and Friday Margo will tell us about a new story she's found. See you all around the book block. ; ) ~ F



If there's something you wish to do, here's three simple ways to give you a clue. The first is to ponder and think it away; of course, it's still there at the end of the day. The second is to do it, but with heavy heart; this isn't helpful when things come apart. The third is the wisest and simplest way, do it with care and love every day. Once you've mastered the path to your goal, you'll see many more filling the bowl. But if you train yourself, you'll focus your skill, and that gives you the power to do things at will. 

What am I referring to? Answer: Practice!

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Monday's Riddle: Things to Do? Here's a Clue...

Hello Riddlers! Can you guess our theme this week? You could say these riddles are like this for me. ; ) ~ F

If there's something you wish to do, here's three simple ways to give you a clue. The first is to ponder and think it away; of course, it's still there at the end of the day. The second is to do it, but with heavy heart; this isn't helpful when things come apart. The third is the wisest and simplest way, do it with care and love every day. Once you've mastered the path to your goal, you'll see many more filling the bowl. But if you train yourself, you'll focus your skill, and that gives you the power to do things at will. 

What am I referring to?

I gave you a clue!

Clue: Pile of draft manuscripts 

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