Book Review: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind

Seriously I have been so behind on reviews and everything, oh the crazy life I lead.

Anyways, a while back I was contacted by someone at Harper Collins asking if I'd be interested in receiving this book and who am I to turn down a free book so of course I said yes. And I'm so glad I did because this book is amazing. I found myself wanting to know more and looking up William's story and interviews online because it was just that fascinating.

In a nutshell the synopsis of the book is something like this: William, a young boy in Malawi, is forced to leave school due to the fact that his family has become poverty stricken in a country where everyone is suffering. However William doesn't stop learning, he continues to use the resources around him and ultimately teaches himself everything he needs to know to construct a windmill to provide his family with electricity for the first time ever.

Amazing right?

Overall I loved the way William was able to tell his story. There were pictures to outline some of the physics that not everyone (me especially, I was horrible at Physics) would understand, there were snippets into his childhood, there were pictures of his family and friends, there was an overall sense of sincerity that made me just like William even more.

So if you want an uplifting story of perseverance this is definitely one to check out and add to your reading lists.


Check out William's blog here for more information about his amazing story as he continues to help others and further his education.

I was given this book free-of-charge to provide an honest review. The opinions are mine and were not influenced by any source. I was not compensated monetarily to advertise this book.

Brand Review: Wii Fit Plus Party

Last week I had the lovely fortune of attending a Wii Fit Plus party hosted by Ev'Yan and Brand About Town. Now I already own the Wii Fit and was pretty familiar with a lot of the basic activities it came with, but the Wii Fit Plus...oh it is magical. It has so many new features and a couple news games, it's basically heavenly and pretty much is going to help get my butt back in shape.

It was so fun to just hang out and mingle at first with some of my favorite bloggers and my sister came as well, and we enjoyed lovely smoothies before we got our Wii Fit Plus lesson. Once we had our lessons we were split into groups of two and got to try out some yoga techniques. I was pretty horrible (it had been a while since I used my Wii Fit) but it was still fun watching everyone trying.

it was in the same place as my DS party but
man did it look different but just as awesome.

After our yoga exercises we had a delicious dinner with lots of fun snacks (mmmmcheese) and wine (yeah I know right? Wine and working out? Works for me!) and awesomeness. And then we were free to try out any of the new games that we wanted and just have fun, which of course we all did.

Andrea and her friend practicing
their skateboarding moves.

Kerri trying out one of the games
while Amanda enjoys some wine, loverly.


I decided to get in on the action too.

Eventually the night came to an end and none of us left empty handed, we all got a new Wii Fit Plus and a schnazzy Nintendo jacket! Seriously it was such a great night with great friends and a great game.

all the fabulous bloggers with our new
Wii Fit Plus boards, woo!

and a big group shot.

Thanks Ev'Yan and Brand About Town!

Game Review: Personal Trainer: Walking

Oh yes I know it's been a while since I've reviewed anything but man I've been busy!!

Anyhoo moving on.

A couple weeks ago I received a new game for my Nintendo DS from Brand About Town, Personal Trainer: Walking. And it's pretty cool I must say.

Basically I carry around a digital pedometer with me all the time (well most of the time, I've been slacking a bit lately and not wearing stuff with pockets, but that's besides the point) and then I connect it to my DS and it uploads all my walking stats for the day.

So far I only hit my walking goals when I go walking with my mom at the Rose Bowl, otherwise I'm not doing a whole lot of walking in my every day at work (which I could have pointed out without the game, haha). However it does break it down to how many steps I'm taking, when I'm most active, when I'm inactive the longest and other fun stats. Clearly it's hard to be active when you're at a desk all day but this game is sort of helping to motivate me to walk around the office or down the block just a bit more frequently.

So if you want a fun way to monitor your walking habits I highly recommend checking this game out!

Book Review: The Help

Before I started reading The Help, I knew nothing about it. And that's sort of how I like going into books, without any back story, no ideas of characters, time frame or anything. My aunt lent me the book saying "It's so good, you need to read it" and I'm quite glad I did. It was definitely a book that kept my interest and definitely opened my eyes to a time when I wasn't even born.

The Help follows the story of three women with three very different lives from Mississippi in the 60s. Ms. Skeeter is a young white woman who has always grown up with everything and been oblivious to the life around. However after returning home from college and really opening her eyes she begins to notice the very real effects of "separate but equal." Aibileen is a black woman working as a nanny/maid in the house of one of Skeeter's friends. She's been around long enough to raise many white children and acknowledges her standing in society. Minny, on the other hand, is Aibileen's best friend yet is nothing like her. She is younger, louder and all around sassier than any other woman in Mississippi. Although from very different worlds, all three womens' lives intersect as they embark on a journey to share their stories with everyone. (For a more detailed synopsis go here).

Basically I loved this book. I loved how each woman got to narrate different chapters and how seamlessly it transitioned from one to the other without confusing the reader. I also loved the story overall. One white woman, in the midst of segregation, standing out and risking everything in a society that shunned her to expose the truth is amazing. And Minny and Aibileen? They are such amazingly strong depictions of black women in the South and I loved it. Although they knew what they were risking and what could happen to them, they continued on with the book anyways because they knew it needed to be out there, needed to be exposed.

I also loved the ending. At first I was a bit torn about it because I wanted everything to be resolved. But then I realized it was better not wrapping everything up. It left me wondering, questioning, anticipating another book to continue where this one left off. So all in all, a very fitting ending for such a emotionally gripping book.

So do I think you should run to your library or bookstore and pick up this book? YES! Go get it, enjoy it and then come tell me about it.

Brand Review: Gap Born to Fit Party

So remember how I went to Tara's GAP Born to Fit party a while ago? Yeah well I was fortunate enough to get invited back, this time hosted by the fabulous Kerri and Nicole! I sort of love jeans (especially when they're free, haha) but I love hanging out with the LA blogger ladies just a wee bit more. So this time I ended up not getting any jeans for myself but being a fabulous fiance and getting Matt and brand spanking new pair. Basically it was quite fun to have some snacks, hang with the ladies, introduce my sister to the blogging world and meet some new people. Gotta say these GAP parties are great and there should probably be one every weekend.

umm LOVE this girl.


Yeah she's fabulous.


Love Kerri too, and her schnazzy new jeans.


Nicole and Andrea showing off their new jeans.


All the bloggers, woo!
Andrea, Amanda, Nicole, Ev'Yan, Kerri, me
and Michelle.


My sister helping me find some jeans
for Matt, haha.

All in all it was a great time and a fun change up for the regular Sunday night activities. Thanks again Kerri, Nicole and Brand About Town, twas loverly.

Oh so what jeans did I get Matt? I ended up getting him the Standard jeans, I thought they were a pretty good fit for him, not too straight legged and not too too baggy or anything. And I must say, he looks quite dashing in them :)

Oh I am a fan.


Clearly Matt is too.