Reviewing The Royal Wizard Of Yurt Book Series

Fun Fantasy Series Of Books

Last week while trolling around for something new to read, I discovered an older series of books The Royal Wizard of Yurt by C. Dale Brittain. The first book in the series of fantasy fiction was published in 1991 and can be found in both paperback and digital formats. Ms. Brittain penned 10 books in total for this light and fun reading journey.

A Bad Spell In Yurt (First Book In Series)

In the first book, we are taken to a fantasy world that could be in a medieval era except that there are modern types of conveniences like telephones and lighting that would not be available for several centuries. Now, these appliances are not quite like what we know of today or even like the ones that were first invented some 140 years ago. The lighting and the telephones are made by magic by the wizards in this fantasy realm. There are small little kingdoms scattered throughout with the story taking place in a tiny little kingdom of Yurt. The modes of transportation are not as modern as the phones and the lighting. People either travel by horse or walk, unless you are a wizard and then you can fly using a flying spell or by hiring a flying contraption that resembles a dragon.

Daimbert, has been hired as the Royal Wizard of Yurt fresh out of Wizard School. He was not the best student in the class but rather a bit of a goof-off that barely graduated. Daimbert had cut most of his classes and rarely paid attention in the ones that he did attend. Imagine his surprise when he applies for the job of Royal Wizard and finds out that he has been hired!

It doesn't take long after arriving at the castle of the King and Queen of Yurt for Daimbert to figure out that something is not quite right in the kingdom. He senses an evil presence that he can't quite figure out and the people who live there all become suspect in his mind. He pushes that task aside when he finds out that his first assignment is to create a telephone system. What will he do? He didn't pay attention in the few classes where they learned the magic for telephones! Hopefully, he can find a book in the previous wizard's books that will tell him how to do it or in one of the books that he has brought with him.

This was a fun book to read! Daimbert muddles through what little magic he has retained and learns on his own spells that he should have learned at Wizard School along with some he creates himself. He becomes acquainted with the old wizard who retired from the castle and falls in love with the Queen of Yurt the moment he lays eyes on her.

There are amusing twists and turns in this light read that I enjoyed very much. The young wizard grows in his skills as he bungles along trying to figure out who is behind the evil he senses. I don't like to spoil stories so I am not going to reveal much more. You will have to read the first book yourself to find out what is going on in the land of Yurt whose Royal Wizard slept through most of his wizardry classes.

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The Swans of Kensington Garden~Perfect for Swan Lovers!

Review: The Swans of Kensington Garden

Why am I reviewing my own book? Because many people love to give coffee table books as gifts and I am one of them. Who doesn't love a beautiful book of photographs to look at? They make perfect gifts for people who seem to have everything. Plus they are a perfect accessory for the coffee table and a conversation piece when guests come over. With that idea in mind I recently published a coffee table book of my own: The Swans of Kensington Garden.

It all started with a trip to London, England and a visit to the gardens surrounding Kensington Palace. I just could not get over all the beautiful Swans in the lake there so I went home to grab my camera and started snapping away.  My husband and I love birds a lot and Swans in particular so this was a dream day in London for us. In the end I had more than 300 photos of the beautiful Mute Swans that inhabit the lake. When I got home I decided it would be wonderful to share all my photos and some fun facts about the Swans so the book was born.

 The Swans of Kensington Garden: A Photo Book of Swans

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I used Create Space to publish the book on Amazon. It was actually very easy to do, although there is a learning curve. I think the hardest thing was choosing only 36 photos out of the more than 300 I had taken. Actually maybe the hardest thing was formatting them and the text to fit in the template provided. But I am very happy with how it turned out, and now I have a permanent reminder of that beautiful day in my living room and not only do my guests get to see it, but anyone who purchases the book does too. I might be biased but I think it's a beautiful book and fun to read. I added little tidbits of information about the Mute Swan and several poems so you might even learn a little about Swans that you didn't know.

My friends who have seen my Swan book have all  remarked on the quality of the cover and the photos, so if you ever want to create a permanent memory of a trip and have a wonderful gift to give your friends, I highly recommend using Create Space to create a book very inexpensively. Very soon I will be writing an article explaining how to do that.

Meanwhile, if you love Swans, or know someone who does, my little coffee table book of Swans is sure to please them and would make a wonderful gift.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Patriotic Bedding Sets - Celebrate July 4th Even When You Go to Sleep

Find This American Bedding Set Here

"When we re-decorate our bedrooms, we normally approach it as a one-time style change until we're ready to tackle it again - Who says we have to do it that way?"

Have you ever gotten the itch to make a bedroom decor change for a special occasion like Christmas, or even July 4th but didn't think a temporary change was worth it or could be done?

It's actually easier than you think when you choose bedding duvet sets.

Why Bedding Duvet Sets?

Of course, yes, you can use a comforter set, but a Duvet Set allows you to put the duvet cover over your existing comforter. That way, when the special occasion is over, you simply remove it along with any other pieces you put out such as sheets and pillow cases.

The problem that prevents us from making these quick changes is matching it to our existing decor. The paint, wallpaper, and furniture may not match another bedding set. True enough. Sometimes it won't. However, sometimes it will, or you can make it work by strictly using accessory pieces:

If your walls are busied-up with a lot of pattern and color, then to add a full seasonal or special occasion duvet set may be difficult. 

Idea: Just because you can't feature an entire set, doesn't mean you can't feature something patriotic, like a pillow, throw blanket, or bed sheets.

When you do decide to fully re-decorate a space, selecting a fairly neutral base decor, makes temporary seasonal changes easier.

Pick a couple of your favorite holidays or special occasions and find sets that are easily interchangeable with your room's base decor and go ahead and switch out your bedding for that much needed decorating pick-me-up. When you're ready, just remove the duvet set, and it's back to the way it was.

Have funk'n fun!

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Camera Day and a Review of a Canon PowerShot Digital Camera

June 29 is National Camera Day

Source: Pixabay

National Camera Day is an unofficial holiday with no known creator.  We observe this day each June 29 to celebrate this irreplaceable tool we all use to record and save memories of events, people and places.  Before the invention of the camera, recording such memories could only be done on a painting.

Brief review of the camera

From 1825 to today, we've come a long way in how we take photos.

• French inventor, Joseph Niépce invented the heliograph, which was a technique used to produce the world’s first known photograph in 1825, the view from the window at Le Gras the families estate.
• In 1839, Louis Jacques Daguerre took the first fixed image that didn’t fade, inventing the daguerreotype process of photography
• George Eastman invented flexible and unbreakable film that could be rolled. This led to the first Kodak that was offered for sale in 1888.
• In 1948, Edwin Land invented the Polaroid, the world’s first instant-picture camera with no development needed.  This camera was able to produce finished positive prints from the exposed negatives in under a minute.
• Japan produced the first digital camera commercially sold in December of 1989.
• By 2010, nearly all mobile phones featured a built-in camera.

My New Camera - Canon PowerShot SX410 IS 

 

I've gone from a Kodak Brownie to slide cameras to a simple Kodak digital camera.  Recently, my Kodak digital camera wore out and I replaced it with the Canon PowerShot SX410 IS.  My new camera has so many more features that, in the 3 months I've had it, I've only learned a very few of them. 

Amazon says this camera has:

• 20.0 Megapixel sensor and Canon DIGIC 4+ Image Processor
• Powerful 40x Optical Zoom (24-960mm) and 24mm Wide-Angle lens
• 720p HD video at up to 25 frames per second with clear sound
• 3.0-inch LCD screen with a great resolution of approximately 230,000 dots 

(c) Wednesday Elf

I don't (yet) understand 'megapixels' or resolutions, but I do LOVE the 40x zoom and wide angle lens.  This picture was the first 'zoom' image I captured on Day one of owning my new camera. I took this picture outside my apartment looking up at the clouds through the trees.

As time goes by, I hope to learn all the features this camera offers and try out the other shooting modes available.  For instance, there are ways to shoot under low light and specific ways to shoot portraits.  I can also apply special effects, such as shooting in monochrome, with long exposures, in vivid colors, and with a self-timer. Next month I am taking my new camera with me on a trip to visit my grandchildren.  You KNOW what I will be shooting then! 

Say Cheese!

Grandson Ryan at age 7

 

So on Camera Day and every day, celebrate with snapping photos of all the memories you want to preserve.







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While We Were Watching Downton Abbey Book Review

While We Were Watching Downton Abbey is a light and easy read designed for those of us who were addicted to the highly popular PBS mini-series Downton Abbey. I will readily admit that I am one of those addicts and that I enjoyed this lightweight book. I bonded with the characters and at moments laughed out loud.

While We Were Watching tells the story of a group of women discovering not just Downton Abbey but friendship, too. Written by Wendy Wax, it shares their modern day struggles and how they support each other through the ups and the downs that life has thrown at them.

Set in The Alexander, a historic Atlanta apartment building that sounds absolutely lovely, this story features three main female characters:

Samantha Davis, a wealthy woman who married for money for herself and her younger siblings.

Claire Walker, a struggling author now also struggling to be happy on her own as an empty nester in a new environment.

Brooke MacKenzie, a woman married to an unfaithful husband and a decidedly un-nice husband.

Author Wendy Wax pictured George Clooney
playing butler Edward. What do you think?
Picture available on Amazon.

All three are brought together inadvertently by the male concierge, Edward when he decides to host a Downton Abbey night once a week in the building's movie room. Of course, he does so brilliantly and you will wish you could watch the series with this cast of characters. You will want to join them for a glass of wine and you will want some of the Downton-style British-themed treats, too.

The story unfolds with both drama and humour. You will find yourself cheering the ladies on. The story will quickly draw you in and, unfortunately, be over far too soon.

If you are looking for something fun to read that harks back to Downton Abbey, you might want to pick up While We Were Watching Downton Abbey. It would of course make an excellent gift choice for someone who is enthralled with the series. You can order your copy of While We Were Watching Downton Abbey from Amazon by clicking right here.

Are you a Downton Abbey fan?

Happy Reading!
Brenda

MORE BOOKS BY WENDY WAX

Wendy Wax set aside other projects in order to write about Downton Abbey since she and the rest of the world were so keen on that series. Her other books include the Ten Beach Road four-book series shown here. You can check out all of Wax's books for yourself on Amazon by clicking right here.

MORE DOWNTON ABBEY

Downton Abbey Tea Cups 
A page from the 31 Days of Coffee Mugs; a great set of teacups.

Downton Abbey Christmas Video Parodies 
Did you see the Downton Abbey Christmas parody videos? They feature all of the original cast members and a few surprises.

MORE PERIOD BOOKS

Writing Jane Austen Book Review 
Imagine if you were given a chapter of a seventh Jane Austen novel. A novel, that is, which she never finished. Then imagine being asked to finish the book for her and you will have a basic understanding of what this book is all about.

Austenland Book Review 
As a huge fan of Jane Austen movies and books, my antennae perked up when I heard of the new movie, Austenland. I would love to have a vacation there.

The Pink Dress by Anne Alexander
A 1950s story of teenage life. Written for high school aged girls, who fondly remember the book and want to share it with their female children and grand children.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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