The Escape is a contemporary novel written by Lisa Harris. It is book one in the U.S. Marshals series.
Summary: U.S. Marshals Madison James and Jonas Quinn have been tasked with a dangerous prisoner transfer from the Pacific Northwest to Denver.
But the transfer ends up being anything but routine. A storm crash-lands them in the middle of a forest, and one prisoner is able to escape.
What follows is a desperate chase as the marshals race to catch a man who will do anything to get away.
My Thoughts: This book was pretty good. It definitely has plenty of action with all of the chase scenes. I liked the characters, the writing was solid, and there is also an underlying mystery that is left at a cliff-hanger to entice you into the next book!
If you enjoy a book with lots of action and plenty of twists and turns, this one will be right up your alley.
I would like to thank Revell for providing me with a free digital copy of this book in exchange for my review. Thank you!
*Please note: this book will be released on November 3, 2020.
Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.
We recently received six months access to Smart Kidz Radio: Member’s On-Demand Radio Program Library by Smart Kidz Radio. This subscription-based membership contains hundreds of on-demand and entertaining radio programs designed especially for kids.
Smart Kidz Radio contains a wealth of programming choices-all accessible from one main screen broken out into specific topics. If you don’t see what you are looking for, there is even a search bar at the top.
The site is very intuitive and easy to use. You can begin playing one program, and still continue to explore other sections. A bar at the bottom of the screen details what you are listening to, and allows you to pause, rewind, or fast forward at any time.
It is also very easy to pause your selection, and pick up right where you left off the next time you choose to listen.
A section on the main page even shows programs you have recently listened to, so you don’t have to go back and try to find them.
Many selections have a narrator or DJ that offers an explanation of the topic, or some background history in the beginning track.
The variety of programming is extensive. Kids can delve into school subjects such as Math, Science, and Spanish. Or, they can wind down with Kids Relaxation Programs, or Soothing Bedtime Songs.
Kids can learn all about our world through stories and songs. There are topics appealing to different interests-including Huge Helping Machines, Seals & Walruses, Dinosaurs, Insects, and more.
There are classic fairy tales and nursery rhymes like Jack and the Beanstalk, The Three Little Pigs, Little Red Riding Hood, and Peter Rabbit-complete with sound effects and music.
There are also many programs dedicated to music appreciation. Kids can learn patriotic songs, explore multiple genres of music including Classical, Blues and Jazz, Gospel, Country, Caribbean, and more.
Want to listen to authentic music from another country like France, India, Japan, or Greece? It’s all there. We actually had some fun with these-I played sections of music, and my kids tried to guess the music’s origin.
You can also listen to music from a specific era. You can pick from the 50s, 60s, and 70s. I especially liked hearing the history behind the origins of particular eras of music-very fascinating.
There are Christmas Classics, Sing-along Camp Songs, Bible songs-the list goes on and on-with new releases coming all the time.
But what makes this programming truly unique, is that the programs contain not only enjoyable stories and songs, but also provide actual history and background information on the specific topics in a fun and entertaining way.
They SAY this programming is for kids, but I have to admit I didn’t mind listening to it too. I liked listening to the music from other countries, the history behind musical eras, and some of the fun and silly stories too.
I mean-who doesn’t want to hear a story about an elephant in a bathtub- right? Sounds good to me!
My extra special kiddo is completely hooked on the Kids Bible & Inspirational Songs channel, and loves to listen to it. A lot. Fortunately, there are several hours worth included so the rest of us can get some variety!
And my seven year old kiddo really enjoys listening to the Storytime Programs while he builds his latest creations.
Another cool thing about Smart Kidz, is that they donate twenty percent of their membership fees to the Smart Kidz Foundation. This non-profit foundation supports programs that give opportunities to young people to make a difference by following their career dreams and use their talents to make the world a better place.
The only caveat I would make, is to note that this site does contain secular educational programming, so you will find references to dinosaurs living millions of years ago, etc.
Overall though, this is a really extensive site of entertaining and educational programming for children, and we are enjoying it.
This project was simple and fun, had minimal supplies, and turned out great.
Here are how the kids’ projects turned out:
The Little Guy:
The Boy:
The Girlio:
These are so cool!
I am really glad we got to some fun Halloween projects this week. It is always so much fun to enjoy the seasons, and too often I let them slip away without doing some themed projects.
I would definitely recommend the writing project and the art project if you are looking for some fun and easy projects.
That’s it from me today! Tomorrow, I will be sharing a homeschool review, and look out-my first Christmas card share is already coming on Sunday-yikes!
It’s that time of year, and Halloween is fast approaching!
I’ve been so busy (as you can probably see by my lack of blog posts!) BUT, I couldn’t let Halloween get away without adding in some fun projects to our homeschool week.
So, we took the week off from our assigned Language Arts, and did this activity from Teachers’ Pay Teachers instead:
It includes everything you need to write a story-practicing characters and settings, story outlines, and even themed stationery for the stories.
It’s labeled for 2nd-5th grade, but you can really use it with any grades. With the littles, you can write the story down for them, and the bigger kids can just go for it on their own.
So first I printed everything, and then I laminated the different parts for durability.
And, I will say, this was a BIG hit in our family. We will definitely be making this an annual thing. It never hurts to review the parts of a story, etc., and this kit does it in a super fun way.
I loved seeing the creative stories the kids came up with, and we are going to read them out loud at the little Halloween party we are having with my parents this week, which will be fun.
I think I am going to see if I can find ones themed for other holidays as well, because it would be great to do this type of activity again later in the year.
We had so much fun, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the kids end up writing more stories later with it too.
Well, that’s it for today, but stay tuned because on Thursday I am going to share the Halloween art project we did this week!
Slow Down, Enjoy, and Create 