Review: Helping Paws from the Mayo Clinic, by Pat McCaw @MccawPat @mayoclinicpress @KellyALacey @lovebookstours #Ad #LBTCrew #BookTwitter

Cricket Gives Comfort: Exploring Epilepsy (Helping Paws Academy)

This inviting chapter book series explores health topics through the friendly lens of therapy dogs. Follow an adorable therapy dog helping a child through a diagnosis of epilepsy with strong messages of empathy, kindness, and courage. Therapy dogs are specially trained to help kids through medical experiences—from lifting spirits, motivating movement, modelling the power of play, and more. Nonfiction back matter provides more information about medical topics introduced in the books, from acute to chronic issues, while also providing more information about therapy dog programs and the Mayo Clinic Children’s Center.

My Review

A short chapter book with lots of illustrations, covering epilepsy. Cricket spends the day helping a child cope with his seizures and the tests he needs to help control them. Cricket also plays with a child in physio rehab and plays frisbee with another of the therapy dogs.

I liked the story. I think it explains epilepsy, and the way seizures are investigated, well, and the illustrations are very good. They’re fun and cheery. The book shows the relationships between therapy dogs, their handlers, hospital staff and, most importantly, patients.

Dash and the Cancer Center: Learning About Leukemia

This inviting chapter book series explores health topics through the friendly lens of therapy dogs. Follow an adorable therapy dog helping a child through a cancer diagnosis with strong messages of empathy, kindness, and courage. Therapy dogs are specially trained to help kids through medical experiences—from lifting spirits, motivating movement, modelling the power of play, and more. Nonfiction back matter provides more information about medical topics introduced in the books, from acute to chronic issues, while also providing more information about therapy dog programs and the Mayo Clinic Children’s Center.

Mayo Clinic Press Kids creates empowering health and wellness content in partnership with paediatric experts.

My Review

In this book we meet Dash, who helps a child with leukaemia understand their diagnosis and treatment. Again, short, educational chapters and fun illustrations, that follow Dash through their day.

Lumos Helps with Healing: Battling Broken Bones (Helping Paws Academy)

This inviting chapter book series explores health topics through the friendly lens of therapy dogs. Follow an adorable therapy dog helping a child who broke her arm with strong messages of empathy, kindness, and courage. Therapy dogs are specially trained to help kids through medical experiences—from lifting spirits, motivating movement, modelling the power of play, and more. Nonfiction back matter provides more information about medical topics introduced in the books, from acute to chronic issues, while also providing more information about therapy dog programs and the Mayo Clinic Children’s Center.

Mayo Clinic Press Kids creates empowering health and wellness content in partnership with paediatric experts. Proceeds from the sale of every book go to benefit important medical research and education at Mayo Clinic.

My Review

We meet Lumos, a therapy dog at children’s hospital, and his handler. They help Ada, a child with a broken arm, cope with her first visit to a hospital after falling and hurting her arm, and Greta, a child in a wheelchair at her rehab session. Lumos enjoys helping children and mentoring other therapy dogs, and playing with his handler’s sons once his working day is done.

This story guides children through hospital trips and what happens when you have an X-ray and brake an arm. The story sensitively explains the process of having a cast put on and how to properly care for it. The interlude with Greta normalises children being in wheelchairs and the freedom a set of wheels brings. A wheelchair opens up the world to those who need them. I wish they’d mentioned that you shouldn’t touch a person’s chair without asking. The story shows Greta and Lumos navigating an obstacle course and having a lot of fun.

I enjoyed this story; the information is explained in a way children will understand but without being condescending. I also enjoyed the illustrations and the relationship between Lumos and his handler.

There’s only so much I can say about each of the books, but overall I think these books are helpful introductions to hospitals and a variety of medical conditions, for young children. I also think they’re good introductions to the concept of therapy dogs and what they can do for patients. I found the stories engaging and characters likeable.

Blog tour calendar: 42 – The Wildly Improbable Ideas of Douglas Adams, Edited by Kevin Jon Davies

Blog tour calendar: Helping Paws, books 1 to 3, by Pat McCaw

Review: How to draw a giraffe the Alice May Way, by Alice G May

How to Draw A Giraffe – The Alice May Way

There is only one rule when you draw the Alice May Way and that is to have FUN!

Follow along with Alice, step by step, and learn how to draw a giraffe.

Packed with interesting facts about giraffes, the environment and what we can do to protect our planet, this all-age book is a must-have for those who love to draw animals.

Purchase Links

https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Draw-Giraffe-Alice-May-ebook/dp/B0CB3Y4RNR

https://www.amazon.com/How-Draw-Giraffe-Alice-May-ebook/dp/B0CB3Y4RNR

Blog tour calendar: How to draw a giraffe – The Alice May Way, by Alice May

Magazine Review: SWIM Issues 1 to 4

I picked up issue 4 of SWIM from the newsagent last Monday whole I was browsing for a history magazine. It’s one of the things I enjoy about going into real newsagent; you never know what you’re going to find. SWIM bills itself as a lifestyle magazine for swimmers. Anyway, I enjoyed issue 4 so I ordered back issues 1 to 3.

Quality of production: high quality printing, heavy paper, full colour printing.

Quality of content: interviews with interesting people and really helpful advice on different techniques.

I found the technical information really helpful, as I’ve never had coaching and couldn’t afford it anyway (£39.99/month for adult lessons at Grimsby Leisure Centre).

The interviews gave some insight into professional swimming and the personalities involved.

I also enjoyed the articles on wild and open swimming, and the return of the lido. I found out there’s a new one being built in Hull, which I’m considering trying out once it opens. It’ll only take me a couple of hours to get there on the train and bus, and I think a swim session is £4.90. I now have a mental list of swimming pools and spots I want to visit at some point.

General opinion: Interesting content that’s highly readable and well illustrated. There was some repetition in issues 2 and 3. I found that a bit irritating. Hopefully, it’s just because it’s a new magazine and they’ll get better with time.

I’m going to keep buying it for now.

TBR Pile Review: Fat and Queer – An Anthology of Queer and Trans Bodies and Lives, Ed. by Miguel M. Morales, Bruce Owens Grimm and Tiff Joshua T.J. Ferentini

Fat and Queer: An Anthology of Queer and Trans Bodies and Lives

Format: 304 pages, Paperback
Published: May 21, 2021 by Jessica Kingsley Publishers
ISBN: 9781787755062 (ISBN10: 1787755061)

Blurb

We’re here. We’re queer. We’re fat.

This one-of-a-kind collection of prose and poetry radically explores the intersection of fat and queer identities, showcasing new, emerging and established queer and trans writers from around the world.

Celebrating fat and queer bodies and lives, this book challenges negative and damaging representations of queer and fat bodies and offers readers ways to reclaim their bodies, providing stories of support, inspiration and empowerment.

In writing that is intimate, luminous and emotionally raw, this anthology is a testament to the diversity and power of fat queer voices and experiences, and they deserve to be heard.

2021 Reads Rainbow Awards Winner in Nonfiction
2022 AASECT Book Award Winner

My Review

I’m trying to work my way through my ‘currently reading’ pile before starting any new books. I have a shelf double stacked already, and that’s just downstairs. I’ve had this book a while and took it on holiday to Skegness with me earlier this year, and got 70+ pages in while I was away. I struggled to read it, not because of the book, but because I was worried my Dad would get upset at seeing me reading it. Last night I went up to bed at half eight (I’m ill, feeling tired by 8pm is part of it) and took this book up to read. Finished the last 250 pages four hours later at 12.45 am. I stayed up way past my bedtime because I wanted to read everything in this book. Including the acknowledgements at the end.

I’m fat and queer. There’s a lot of anti-fat bias in the Queer community. To be fair, there’s anti-fat bias in every community except the fat acceptance/advocacy community. It’s ridiculous; people who hate anyone for not being thin, white, abled, neurotypical, cisgender, middle/upper class, etc. are not going to hate a person less for being thin because they have a long list of other things they’ll hate them for. I have yet to find a community in this area, except my Autistic community.

The essays in the book are about a variety subject from people in many intersections we like to classify people as. All the writers are from the Americas, giving the reader an interesting insight in to the culture and practices in that part of the world. I enjoyed reading about the experiences of fat, Queer people trying to work out who they are, what their journeys have been and the emotional impact life has had on them. I discovered reading this book, that there is such a thing as ‘gainers’ and ‘encouragers’. I’d vaguely heard of feederism as a kink, but never read anything by a ‘gainer’. That was really unexpected; I think I learnt something.

I loved the poetry! I enjoy poetry and occasionally write poetry myself. I’ve never written about being fat, my gender identity or my sexuality. I have written about being autistic, my often unstable friendships, and my mental health. And potatoes, because why not? I might give writing about my big belly a try.

It’s a good book, a collection of poetry and essays that will make you think, and, in my case at least, cry like a little baby!

Audio TBListened List Review: Emergency Skin, by N.K. Jemisin

2 pages, Audible Audio
First published September 17, 2019

Blurb

What will become of our self-destructed planet? The answer shatters all expectations in this subversive speculation from the Hugo Award–winning author of the Broken Earth trilogy.

An explorer returns to gather information from a climate-ravaged Earth that his ancestors, and others among the planet’s finest, fled centuries ago. The mission comes with a warning: a graveyard world awaits him. But so do those left behind—hopeless and unbeautiful wastes of humanity who should have died out eons ago. After all this time, there’s no telling how they’ve devolved. Steel yourself, soldier. Get in. Get out. And try not to stare.

N. K. Jemisin’s Emergency Skin is part of Forward, a collection of six stories of the near and far future from out-of-this-world authors. Each piece can be read or listened to in a single thought-provoking sitting.

My Review

Someone recommended this story to me and this morning I felt like listening to it. It’s only an hour or so of audio, so I put it on while showering, eating breakfast, and checking emails.

I loved it. Entertaining and thoughtful, with a clear politic. N.K. Jemisin is a lefty, anyone who reads her work will know that, and in this novelette that is made clear. Jemisin takes current rhetoric from the right wing manosphere – women hating, billionaire worshipping, great man theory of history loving, wealth hoarding – and extends it to the extreme, then sends someone back to Earth to get HeLa cells. The protagonist learns that not all is as he has been told and develops a plan to save the descendants of the ‘minions’ who went with the billionaires.

I loved it. Entertaining and thoughtful, with a clear politic.

Poetry written at Autscape 2023

I only got home from Autscape at 5.15pm on Thursday. It was amazing. I learnt so much from the most amazing people. It was a wonderful experience, among autistic people being themselves. People wondered around in a variety of clothing, with or without shoes. They joyfully engaged in games and arguments. I cried so much, from being overwhelmed by everything. I met some lovely people, played a great ttrpg campaign, and learned to spin from Jo the Spinner.

I’m still exhausted, so this might be a bit disjointed.

I attended two writing workshops at Autscape this week. I wrote several poems in the process, met some poets and writers, and a few Discworld fans. I am not the only Autistic person who thinks Sir Terry was Autistic!

The first writing workshop I went to was ‘NeurodiVERSE’ with Kate Fox and Janine Booth. I have a copy of Fox’s The Oscillations, and Booth’s Autism Equality in the Workplace: Removing Barriers and Challenging Discrimination. I bought a copy of NeurodiVERSE which they co-edited, and another poetry book from Kate Fox.

The first prompt was: In an ideal world

In an ideal world…

We wouldn’t need Autscape
We wouldn’t need this oasis of Auties, away from everyone else
The food would be better

In an ideal world…

Trees would dominate the world and lights wouldn’t buzz and sting
And libraries would be fully funded

In an ideal world…

I wouldn’t feel lost and alone, or lessened by their disbelief
I wouldn’t feel anger at every ‘but you don’t look autistic’

In an ideal world

I’d be in a swimming pool all the time
Or a never-ending bookshop.

We followed this with writing a list of things we want to communicate in poetry and then write a poem about it. I eventually chose my love of fantasy special editions.

Special Edition #1

Grinning glee in a box

Folded in bubble wrap

A new treasure, just for me

Squealing glee

What will I find?

Shining covers protecting pictures, smooth under hands.

Colours and textures feeding me information in skin and eyes.

A new treasure, just for me.

Crack it open, hear the paper slide, the binding creak.

A new treasure, just for me.

Ink and paper, shade and weight – just right!

The heft, the tone, the contrast – Just right!

Feel it, see it, smell it.

Inhale. Imbibe. Take it all in before I read a word.

End papers rich in colours. Edges Sprayed. Gold foil, unique designs.

Special Editions.

I love them all. New treasures, just for me.

Special Editions #2

Touch

Embossed covers
Smooth plastic
Rough paper
Weight in my hands
Weight on my fingers

Smell

New paper
Ink
Brown
The smell-taste of a newly opened special edition
Breathing in the microscopic particles of ink, cellulose, air from another place.

Sight

Rainbow paintings
Little pieces of art
Vibrant colours highlighted in gold
A story told before a word is read.
Sprayed edges and end papers – hints and chapters untold

Hearing

Blue glide on fingers ocver pritective plastic
Creak and crack of new books opening
Sandpaper slide and shift of page on page.

Taste

The taste-smell of a newly-opened special edition.
Breathing in microscopic particles of ink, cellulose, air taking me away to another place.

The second workshop was based on the Writing East Midlands Beyond the Spectrum creative writing workshops. It was meant to be run by Pippa Hennessy, but she wasn’t well and her wife Rachel (I’ve probably got her name wrong – she’s a lecturer at one of the universities on Nottingham) ran the workshop instead. In 2020 I interviewed for a shadow writer job on the Beyond the Spectrum project. I didn’t get it, obviously. However, I learnt some useful information from both the workshop on Wednesday and the discussion on Thursday. I’m running a weekly writing workshop at Neurospace in October to December for Faraway, and it turns out the Beyond the Spectrum are trying to find funding for a three-year project, rolled out across the country, and partner organisations to host the workshops. There might be a chance for us to work together in future.

Pippa and Rachel are lovely people.

The first poem I wrote had the prompt:

The best thing about being Autistic.

The best thing about being Autistic is my brain’s ability to make unexpected, often entertaining, and sometimes very weird connections between seemingly unconnected concepts, ideas, and events.
The best thing about being Autistic is monotropic flow – learning all the things – and monologuing – sharing all the things!
The best thing about being Autistic is knowing myself better, understanding how I process.
The best thing about being Autistic is hearing the birds sing, even when there’s traffic; smelling the changes in the weather; spotting the unexpected wildlife; touching the wind; tasting the sea on the air.
The best thing about being Autistic is senses that take in everything – when I’m out in nature.

The second exercise involved writing a list of things that bring me joy, then choose one to write notes about, describing it. Then we had to think about two people who don’t get it and write down what they might say. Finally, I had to write a poem or prose that will help people understand.

I chose the potato, because I’ve just harvested the first potaotes from the allotment.

Ode to the humble spud

Trodden into the dark, cold, wet earth, a mucky old spud.

Buried under layer after layer as leaves of emerald sprout, uncurl from the sodden clay. Only to disappear again.

Still you keep in growing, you, the seed potato, who in time becomes a multitude, seeding, growing, accidentally left in the ground.

Starch hoarded to feed the plants until sunlight and warmth return. Going mushy, rotting when you’re used up all your stores.

Don’t put a fork through it!

Leaves sprout and spread, stems lengthen and slouch against each other in ranks and squares

(And in the stack of tyres, because we had to use them for something).

Forgotten brethren appearing unexpected among the peas and sweetcorn. And the flower beds.

Roots swelling as flowers like stars bloom against a field-sky.

New potatoes from mud and a mucky old spud.

Some people were kind enough to say they enjoyed my poems when I read them out. I put a certain intonation into my reading, so it’s possible they found that entertaining rather than the actual work.

I hope you enjoyed them.