Dad of Divas' Reviews

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

DVD Review - Flicka: Country Pride

About the DVD
From the pages of Mary O’Hara’s popular novel My Friend Flicka, the year’s most inspiring coming of age story arrives just in time for Mother’s Day when Flicka: Country Pride gallops on to Blu-ray and DVD May 1 from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. Directed by Michael Damian (Flicka 2, Marley & Me: The Puppy Years), Flicka: Country Pride stars country music superstar Clint Black (Flicka 2), Lisa Hartman Black (“Knots Landing”) and Kacey Rohl (“The Killing”) in a heartwarming adventure for the entire family.

When Toby (Black) takes on a job at a stable with Flicka in tow, the owner’s teenage daughter Kelly (Rohl), quickly bonds with the wild horse. A budding equestrian rider, she hopes to break Flicka for an upcoming competition, despite her mother’s (Hartman Black) disapproval. With the competition approaching, a rival trainer stealing business, and a growing fear they may be forced to sell the stable, Toby steps in to turn things around for Kelly and her mother.

Grammy Award® Winner Clint Black is one of country music’s superstars with over 20 million albums sold worldwide. Having written over 100+ songs including 23 #1 songs Clint is an active philanthropist overseeing numerous charities. The Flicka: Country Pride Blu-ray and DVD has two behind-the-scenes featurettes on the making of the film and a never-before-seen music video. Available at 4,000 Walmart and Sam’s Club locations nationwide and in Canada, both the Blu-ray and DVD are now available for pre-order exclusively at Walmart.com.

Flicka: Country Pride Blu-ray and DVD Special Features

The Making of Flicka: Country Pride – The Legend Continues
Black is Back – The featurette focuses on the character of Toby, played by Country Music Superstar Clint Black, his return to the Flicka franchise and how Flicka: Country Pride truly became a family affair.
Full-Length Music Video

My Take on the DVD
This was a great movie that told a wonderful story that the entire family will enjoy! While the tenor of the story speaks to tragedy and struggles, the movie brings out the special relationship between Flicka and the character of Kelly, and it is through this relationship that Kelly is able to come back from the despair and depression that she has fallen into. The story was a strong one and they did a great job at developing the characters within the movie. If you are looking for a movie that is heartfelt and one that shows the strength that lies within, this is definitely the movie to watch!

All opinions expressed in this review are my own and not influenced in any way by the company. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider. Please refer to this site's Disclaimer for more information. I have been compensated or given a product free of charge, but that does not impact my views or opinions.

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Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Product Review - Busytown Eye Found It Game

About the Game
Join Huckle Cat and Lowly Worm on a fun-filled race through the bustling city, farm, airport, and harbor of Richard Scarry's Busytown. Whenever a Goldbug card appears, team up to hunt for hidden objects on the gigantic, vibrantly illustrated game board. Everybody works together and gets a chance to say, "I found it!"

Learning fun:

Teamwork
Observation skills
Object identification and matching

Product Contents

1 Game Board in three sections
4 Movers
4 Mover Bases
1 Spinner
1 Ferry Tile
10 Magnifying Glass Tokens
6 Food Tiles
30 Goldbug Cards
1 Sand Timer
1 Game Rules Manual

My Take on the Game
This Busytown Eye Found It Game was amazing! It has been a long time since I found a game that was so much fun for the whole family and encouraged total teamwork instead of competition between players. On top of this, I also loved the fact that it encouraged you to really search for items, and each time you played the game you tend to find more and more of the items because you become more familiar with the game board itself. We have played this game now many times and it never gets old. If you have a busytown fan in your family have not picked up this game yet, you need to go out and pick it up today. This is definitely the type of game that you want your kids to play! I highly encourage the scheme to any family that I know my family is now hooked and we are huge fans!

All opinions expressed in this review are my own and not influenced in any way by the company. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider. Please refer to this site's Disclaimer for more information. I have been compensated or given a product free of charge, but that does not impact my views or opinions.

Book Review - Swipe

About the Book
Set in a future North America that is struggling to recover after famine and global war, Swipe follows the lives of three kids caught in the middle of a conflict they didn’t even know existed. United under a charismatic leader, every citizen of the American Union is required to get the Mark on their 13th birthday in order to gain the benefits of citizenship.

The Mark is a tattoo that must be swiped by special scanners for everything from employment to transportation to shopping. It’s almost Logan Langly’s 13th birthday and he knows he should be excited about getting the Mark, but he hasn’t been able to shake the feeling he’s being watched. Not since his sister went to get her Mark five years ago . . . and never came back.

When Logan and his friends discover the truth behind the Mark, will they ever be able to go back to being normal teenagers? Find out in the first book of this exciting series that is Left Behind meets Matched for middle-grade readers.

My Take on the Book
This was a great book that was such an engaging and interactive read. As a fan of books like Harry Potter and the Hunger Games, this book truly draws you in and the characters have you coming back for more. I could not put this down, wondering what the author had in store for me with each page that came next. The story was well written and his characters are ones that you truly can relate to (even though the situation they are in you may not). What I loved about the characters is that you truly see opposite characters building off of one another. Another great aspect of this book is that it is only the beginning, and the author leaves you craving for more once you get to the end!

All opinions expressed in this review are my own and not influenced in any way by the company. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider. Please refer to this site's Disclaimer for more information. I have been compensated or given a product free of charge, but that does not impact my views or opinions.

Book Review - Spirit Fighter

About the Book
Percy Jackson, move over! Jonah Stone is here!

What if Nephilim—the children of angels and men—still walked the earth? And their very presence put the entire world in danger? In Spirit Fighter, Jonah and Eliza Stone learn that their mother is a Nephilim and that they have special powers as quarter-angels. When their mom is kidnapped by fallen angels, they must use those powers to save her. Along the way, they discover that there is a very real and dangerous war going on between good and evil and that God has a big part for them to play in that war.

Parents today are looking for fiction that makes Christianity and the Bible exciting for their kids. This series is the Christian answer to Percy Jackson and the Olympians, The Kane Chronicles, The Secret Series and other middle-grade series packed with adventure, action, and supernatural fights. Son of Angels, Jonah Stone will be the first series in the market to explore this topic from a biblical perspective with content that is appropriate and exciting for middle-grade readers.

About the Author
Jerel Law is a gifted communicator, pastor, and church planter with seventeen years experience working full-time in ministry. He holds a Master of Divinity degree from Gordon-Conwell Seminary and began writing fiction as a way to express his faith and communicate God’s love to others. Law lives in North Carolina with his family.

My Take on the Book
This book was great! As a fan of the Percy Jackson series, this book reminded me much of the action and plot that I have seen there. That being said, it is not the Percy Jackson series, not even close. The book had amazing characters that are developed well by the author, and as a reader you find yourself cheering them on throughout the book. Even though the book is geared for teens and young adults, I found it also to be very enjoyable and I think other adults will too. Another fun part of the book though was the way that it engages the reader in biblical teachings. I had not seen it done in this same fashion, so this was a refreshing way to have your children become closer to God through a fun story.

All opinions expressed in this review are my own and not influenced in any way by the company. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider. Please refer to this site's Disclaimer for more information. I have been compensated or given a product free of charge, but that does not impact my views or opinions.

NEW VIDEO FROM FRESH BEAT BAND "REACH FOR THE SKY" DEBUTS ONLINE!

All opinions expressed in this review are my own and not influenced in any way by the company. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider. Please refer to this site's Disclaimer for more information. I have been compensated or given a product free of charge, but that does not impact my views or opinions.

Cypher 3D Interactive Cards Bring Learning to Life

About the Product
Harnessing the creative power of augmented reality technology, Cypher Entertainment today announced a new line of 3D learning products for kids ages 3 and up. Grouped by subject matter, the first series of Cypher’s Live 3D Interactive Cards will be available in late April and will cover the basic building blocks of learning, to include Colors and Shapes, Letters, and Numbers, as well as popular categories like Wild Animals!

How It Works
Each card comes with its own 3D marker that when held up to a web cam, initiates an interactive animation sequence that can be seen in 3D. For example, in the Wild Animals pack, AR technology lets lions roar as they stalk across the savannah and polar bears hunt seals from the ice pack – all in the palm of your child’s hand. New interactive friends, Digi and Beebot, spring to life to help your child with colors, numbers and shapes. Each pack contains 18-26 different cards that are filled with informative facts, cool sounds and special commands that let kids control their new 3D world!

“Cypher’s Live 3D Interactive Cards combine a visual and audio component to help children learn about the world around them, and do so in a fun and interactive way,” said David Elmekies, CEO of Cypher Entertainment. “The entire process is extremely intuitive and easy to learn, and the expression on kids’ faces when they realize they are controlling a 3D world is priceless. We are excited about our first line of products and look forward to introducing additional content -- including licensed properties -- in the near future.”

Cypher’s Live 3D Interactive Cards will be available in July at select retail outlets for a suggested retail price of $19.99 per pack. There will also be an iPad app version launching this summer. To learn more about Cypher’s Live 3D Interactive Cards be sure to visit http://www.cypherkidsclub.com.

My Take on the Product
This was a very cool product that truly did make the computer and the card come alive. It did take a little bit of time to get used to the positioning of the card, but once we figured it out, the cards were so educational and so much fun, and best of all the kids loved it! What I loved most about this is that based on how you position the card you can see different aspects of the animals themselves and you learn something new about the animal each time (or at least I felt that I did). You also have the opportunity to interact with some of the animals to have them do specific things as well. This is a great new product that I highly encourage all to check out!

All opinions expressed in this review are my own and not influenced in any way by the company. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider. Please refer to this site's Disclaimer for more information. I have been compensated or given a product free of charge, but that does not impact my views or opinions.

Procuct Review - K'Nex Mario Kart WII - Mario Vs. Piranha Plant Building Set

About the Product
Bring Mario Kart Wii to life! Build Mario in his Sprinter Kart and race past the Piranha Plant from the Mario Circuit Track. The set includes the parts to build Mario, a Sprinter Kart with a superfast, batterypowered motor, a Piranha Plant obstacle and 2 collectible items from the game a Mushroom and a Green Turtle Shell! Also includes 6 pieces of buildable, interconnectable track combine this set with other sets from the Mario Kart Wii Series to build even bigger tracks! Ages 6+. Standard KNEX parts made in the U.S.A. Special components made in China. Packaged in the U.S.A.

My Take on the Product
This was such a fun product to not only play with but also to build! I had a blast building this with my oldest daughter and she loved the fact that it had Mario on it (as she loves playing Mario based games on our WII). I loved the fact that not only was it fun to build, but the Mario Kart itself was motorized and you could have even more fun with it beyond just building it yourself. While I will say that I wish it came with more track, you can purchase the rest of the sets to complete the whole Mario Kart set for the family. We are having a blast with this thus far and I know that you will too!

All opinions expressed in this review are my own and not influenced in any way by the company. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider. Please refer to this site's Disclaimer for more information. I have been compensated or given a product free of charge, but that does not impact my views or opinions.