***Please Note–This Giveaway Has ENDED. ***

Please see Winners page for winning entrant information.

As I have mentioned many times in the past, my knowledge of history is, at best, subpar.  History has always been boring to me.  Because I am currently planning to home school Mister and Sister, so I know that I need to brush up.  Trouble is, I’ve never found history to be terribly exciting.  So, I embarked on a quest to brush up and started my This Day in History posts.

I recently had the opportunity to review an exciting new series of books about history.

About the Books…

Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor
Book One

Tyler Thompson hates school.  He does not have many friends, and never knows the answers to any of Miss Trimble’s questions.  He usually ends up retreating to his quiet area in the back of the classroom so no one will bother him.  But one day, Tyler gets a big shock when his nervous foot tapping unlocks a secret trapdoor beneath his desk!  He discovers a dark and mysterious basement filled with old books guarded by a magical talking dog named Barnabas Bailey.  Now, with the help of the books and his guide, Barney, Tyler can travel to any time in the past to learn about history up close.  Maybe it’s not so bad to be Tyler Thompson after all…

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: Synergy Books (October 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0982160143

Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor:
The Perseverance of Christopher Columbus
Book Two

Tyler Thompson is not looking forward to October.  He doesn’t know which will be worse:  trying out for the basketball team or giving an oral report about Christopher Columbus in front of the whole class!  But, he has a secret weapon:  the magic trapdoor beneath his school desk that lets him visit any time in history.  With his trusted canine guide, Barnabas Bailey, Tyler travels back in time and sets sail aboard the Santa Maria with Columbus himself.  When he sees all the setbacks even a great explorer can face before reaching his goal, Tyler knows he can’t give up.  Can he make the team and deliver an awesome report?  One thing is for sure:  he won’t stop trying.

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
• Hardcover: 88 pages
• Publisher: Synergy Books (October 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0982160151

Finally, something to make history FUN!  And Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor has just been awarded first place in the children’s fiction category of the 2010 Next Generation Indie Book Awards.  How cool is that?

About the author…

Lori Jordan-Rice is a former elementary school teacher who taught in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas area school districts for 10 years. She has classroom experience ranging from the kindergarten through sixth grade levels. Jordan-Rice graduated magna cum laude from the University of North Texas with a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies/elementary education and received several Lifetime Texas Teacher Certificates including Elementary Self Contained, Elementary Reading, and Early Childhood.

Disappointed by the historical illiteracy rate among American children today, Jordan-Rice was determined to provide a resource to help kids learn the fundamentals of U.S. history in an exciting and engaging way. She has always loved to write, and has had the idea for a children’s history series since college. When her third son was about three, she finally made the time for putting her story line into words.

More books in the series coming soon…

Book Three Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor: The Courage of the Pilgrims

Book Four Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor:  The Independence of the Founding Fathers

Book Five Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor:  The Adventurous Spirit of Lewis and Clark

What I thought…

I truly enjoyed reading this series.  I think history is boring, but these books even had ME wanting to keep reading.  Because they are geared for slightly older children, I had to take it one chapter at a time with my two. I liked the concept of using real history and modern day characters that children can actually relate to.  The books are well written and the chapters are short enough to keep a kid’s attention.  I will definitely be adding this series to my arsenal for home schooling!

What I would change…

Honestly, I wouldn’t change a thing.  I am looking forward to the rest of the series, and can’t wait to see how Lori Jordan-Rice handles the American Revolution in her series.

How I rate it:

Lady V dZine gives Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor and Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor: The Perseverance of Christopher Columbus five out of five hearts.

Where you can buy it…

Miss Trimble’s Trap Door (Book 1) is available on Amazon or Barnes&Noble.com

Miss Trimble’s Trap Door: The Perseverance of Christopher Columbus is available on Amazon or Barnes&Noble.com

Win It: One lucky Lady V dZine reader will receive their own copies of Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor and Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor: The Perseverance of Christopher Columbus, courtesy of Lori Jordan-Rice.

Mandatory Entry: Simply visit the Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor website and comment back with one thing you liked or one thing that you learned.

***Please note- this must be done before any bonus entries will count***

Bonus Entries:

1 bonus entry- Follow my blog publicly via Google Friend Connect (see right side bar) and comment with your profile name.

1 bonus entry- Become a Facebook Fan of Lady V dZine and comment with your screen name or profile name.  If you are already a fan let me know.

1 bonus entry- Like Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor on Facebook and comment on her wall that you were sent by Lady V dZine.  Then comment back here and let me know you did.

1 bonus entry- Follow me on Twitter and comment with your Twitter profile name.  If you are already following, let me know.

1 bonus entry- Tweet this contest, including @ladyvdzine and leave your tweet link (may be done once per day).

Feel free to use this tweet: Make history fun with Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor and @ladyvdzine.  Win at http://wp.me/pjlp7-xa Ends 5/26.

1 bonus entry- Follow my blog via Networked Blogs (see right sidebar) and let me know your username.

1 bonus entry- Subscribe to my blog via e-mail and leave a comment with the address you signed up for.  To avoid spam bots, please use the yourname[at]emailserver[dot]com format for your address.

1 bonus entry- Subscribe to my blog via RSS and leave a comment with the address you signed up for.  To avoid spam bots, please use the yourname[at]emailserver[dot]com format for your address.

1 bonus entry- For each of my other contests that you enter.  Please leave a separate comment for each, telling me which one’s you’ve entered.

1 bonus entry- For each of my non-giveaway posts that you leave a comment on.  Comment back with the post link to receive credit.

3 bonus entries- Blog about this contest, including a link back to this post.  Leave three separate comments including a direct link to your blog post (not your home page).

3 bonus entries- Grab my blog button (right side bar) and display it on your blog.  Leave three separate comments including a link to your blog where I can find the button.

Be blessed,

Virginia

Lady V dZine

A special thanks to Lori Jordan-Rice, who provided me with copies of Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor and Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor: The Perseverance of Christopher Columbus to facilitate this review and who is also providing the copies for the winning entrant.

Contest open to the US.  Contest ends at 11:59 p.m. CST on 05/26/2010.  Winners will be selected via random.org.  Winner will be notified by email and will have 72 hours to respond with mailing address.  If no response is received from the winning entrant, a new winner will be selected.

FTC Compliant Disclosure: I received copies of Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor and Miss Trimble’s Trapdoor: The Perseverance of Christopher Columbus to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are 100% mine.

Do you like to take surveys?  I belong to several survey sites and enjoy taking the occasional survey and getting paid to do it.  Survey Panel Group can help you get started!

Be blessed,

Virginia

Lady V dZine

***Please Note–This Giveaway Has ENDED. ***

Please see Winners page for winning entrant information.

Do you have children?  Do they have toys?  Then you know the importance of batteries.  Before my son was born, 29 months ago, I never would have imagined how important batteries would become in our household, or that at the tender age of two, he would know where the battery compartment on a toy was and be able to point to it and say, “Need new battery.”

Just this morning, we are experiencing a meltdown because the battery on his RC car is dead.  Oh now, how terrible is that?

In case you haven’t heard, Energizer launched a  “Kids Take Charge” video campaign asking families across the country to post a video of their child explaining the mischief they can get into when the toys that keep them occupied run out of battery power – www.energizer.com/recharge. The first 250 to enter will receive a brand NEW Energizer Smart Charger.  Ten video finalists will be chosen and then they will pick a charity of their choice to have a portion of $10,000 that Energizer will be donating to the charities.  The more views the finalist’s video gets, the bigger the percentage of the donation the finalist’s charity will receive. The process is very simple and you get a FREE Charger just for entering!

HOW TO ENTER (please note—the video contest ends 05/17/10)
1. Film a video – 60 seconds or less – of your child explaining what  happens when their toy runs out of battery power (have fun with it!)
2. Include why the Smart Charger is a good way to keep batteries charged and toys working, or show a “Take Charge or Else” sign like the one in the video (download it here or get creative and make one yourself)
3. Upload your video to www.youtube.com and include #recharge in the title
4. Click on the ENTER HERE on www.energizer.com/recharge and enter the required information

More about the Energizer_® Recharge Smart^™ Charger

Energizer developed a charger that delivers on consumer demand by communicating information about rechargeable batteries and the charging process in three ways:

A countdown clock with large LCD numbers displays how much charging time remains

A fuel gauge communicates the current level of power in the batteries

A bad-battery detector alerts users if the batteries are no longer useful or if they’ve inserted a disposable battery by mistake

Buy It:

It will be available this spring at national retailers for an MSRP of $19.99.

Win It: ***Please note: You must have your email in your comment or in your profile in order to win.***

One lucky Lady V dZine readers will receive one Energizer_® Recharge Smart^™ Charger.

Mandatory Entry

Visit www.energizer.com/recharge and comment back with what you like best about the Recharge Smart Charger.

Bonus Entries (optional)

1 bonus entry- Follow my blog publicly via Google Friend Connect (see right side bar) and comment with your profile name.

1 bonus entry- Follow me on Twitter and comment with your Twitter profile name.  If you are already following, let me know.

1 bonus entry- Follow Energizer on Twitter and comment with your Twitter profile name.

1 bonus entry- Tweet this contest, including @ladyvdzine and @Energizer, and leave your tweet link (may be done once per day).

Feel free to use this tweet: @ladyvdzine and @Energizer are giving away a Recharge Smart Charger  #giveaway ends 5/26/10. http://bit.ly/cVSyr1 Pls RT

1 bonus entry- Become a Facebook Fan of Lady V dZine and comment with your screen name or profile name.  If you are already a fan let me know.

1 bonus entry- Like the Energizer Bunny on Facebook and comment on their wall that I sent you.

1 bonus entry- Follow my blog via Networked Blogs (see right sidebar) and let me know your username.

1 bonus entry- Subscribe to my blog via e-mail and leave a comment with the address you signed up for.  To avoid spambots, please use the yourname[at]emailserver[dot]com format for your address.

1 bonus entry- Subscribe to my blog via RSS and leave a comment with the address you signed up for.  To avoid spambots, please use the yourname[at]emailserver[dot]com format for your address.

1 bonus entry- For each of my other contests that you enter.  Please leave a separate comment for each, telling me which one’s you’ve entered.

1 bonus entry- For each of my non-giveaway posts that you leave a comment on.  Comment back with the post link to receive credit.

2 bonus entries- Tweet this phrase: First 250 to submit a video in the Kids Take Charge contest get a free @Energizer #Recharge Smart Charger: www.energizer.com/recharge.  Comment back with your tweet link.

3 bonus entries- Blog about this contest, including a link back to this post.  Leave three separate comments including a direct link to your blog post (not your home page).

3 bonus entries- Grab my blog button (right side bar) and display it on your blog.  Leave three separate comments including a link to your blog where I can find the button.

Be blessed,

Virginia

Lady V dZine

A special thanks to the folks at Energizer for offering an Energizer_® Recharge Smart^™ Charger to one lucky Lady V dZine reader.

Contest open to the US.  Contest ends at 11:59 p.m. CST on 05/26/2010.  Winners will be selected via random.org.  Winner will be notified by email and will have 72 hours to respond with mailing address.  If no response is received from the winning entrant, a new winner will be selected.

FTC Compliant Disclosure: Energizer is supplying me with an Energizer_® Recharge Smart^™ Charger. All opinions expressed are 100% mine.