This is sure to a hit with fans of Diary of a Wimpy Kid and the Dork Diaries due to the "journal" format of the book. Timmy is a lovable but extremely conceited and humorously inept character, and I have to say that I really loved his polar bear Total. Pastis is great at saying one thing with his words but showing something very different with pictures. This is also a great read for anyone (child or adult) who likes Pastis' syndicated comic strip Pearls Before Swine.

A fascinating collection of recipes that will be sure to please folks looking to make vegan versions of the omnivore foods they knew growing up. If you're looking for recipes with whole, unprocessed foods, however, this is not the book for you. Many recipes call for fake meat and/or dairy which, although tasty, are certainly processed.

Interesting premise with a very strange follow-through. Surprisingly grotesque sometimes, as if with an intention to shock. The relationship between Penryn and her little sister feels a little like the relationship between Katniss (of Hunger Games) and Prim, and Penryn's mentally ill mother bears a faint character resemblance to Katniss' mother, but by the end of the book I think the similarities disappear and Angelfall starts to become its own book.

Oh, Chloe! Your desserts are so fabulous! I made the Bollywood cupcakes (saffron in the cake, cardamom in the frosting) two weeks ago and the Salted Caramel cupcakes last week in their gluten-free forms - both were really good. The Salted Caramel ones even passed inspection with a non-gluten-free non-vegan! The cupcakes are really quite delicate so make sure you don't overfill your liners, otherwise there won't be enough support to keep them from collapsing. Also, I generally find that I can halve the frosting recipe and still have enough to frost a full batch of cupcakes (a goodly sized shmear, but not a mountain of frosting like on the cover!).

Update: I tried making the chocolate chip cookies. Failed miserably. They tasted fine, but they came out flatter than a pancake. I'll be trying them again but baking them from frozen, on a chilled sheet.

Beautifully illustrated and poignant, this book is a wonderful introduction to children on the issues regarding animal welfare. The topics are heavy but important ones, and Roth touches gently on them all. The picture for animal testing may be somewhat disturbing to children because it shows animals with sores, but then, that topic IS disturbing, and the picture is rather mild in comparison to the reality of animal testing.