Pages and Pentacles:

⚓🐙An Octopus Review, Kid Approved Reads, The Ultimate Summer Reading List, & Our Tarot Pull🌞🔮

🪸🫧Deep Ocean Discoveries: My Review of, "Remarkably Bright Creatures" by Shelby Van Pelt🐙🌊

5/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

🟢SPOILER FREE REVIEW🟢

Before you ask... No, I haven't watched the movie adaptation yet! 🎬 I'm curious to see how it compares, though I've heard mixed reviews. In all honesty, as a mom of three, whenever I actually have time to watch it, the TV is already completely hijacked by Paw Patrol or a YouTuber teaching my oldest how to do her next Minecraft build. But even if I can't catch the film, I did finish the book—and we need to talk about it.

I read Remarkably Bright Creatures last summer and instantly fell in love.It is helpful to know going in that the book is more character-driven than plot-driven. Personally, I think that structure works perfectly for this specific story.

Not just anyone could have a giant Pacific octopus narrate a massive portion of a book and make it work. Yet, it never feels cartoonish, childish, or out of place. Shelby Van Pelt was an absolute genius in how she represented our octopus friend, Marcellus. He truly makes the book!

I also adored our human co-lead, Tova. She is just as sharp and witty as Marcellus. We all know someone who thinks exactly like Tova, which makes her incredibly relatable.

This book will make you laugh, and it will absolutely make you tear up. There were twists I did not see coming, and I loved how beautifully everything wrapped up in the end.

Who Should Read This: I would recommend this book to ANYONE—especially if you enjoy stories about finding connection, overcoming grief, or learning to take accountability. There are so many inspiring life lessons woven into these pages.

The Verdict: I highly suggest adding Remarkably Bright Creatures to your summer TBR! ☀️📚

The Bookmark: Crate-Packed Summer Recommendations🦞⛵🛥️⛵🛥️🦞

• The Heart Warmer: "Remarkably Bright Creatures" by Shelby Van Pelt- Our Main Feature this month! This emotional and witty tale follows Tova, a feisty grieving 70-year-old woman who keeps her mind busy working at a local aquarium, and Marcellus, a wonderfully sassy genius octopus longing for his natural habitat. It is the ultimate boat-day read!

• The Enemy-to-Lovers RomCom: "Beach Read" by Emily Henry- Two rival authors spend the summer in neighboring beach houses, challenging each other to write each others genre. This book made me believe in love again when I first read it. Funny, Romantic, & Relatable Characters. Both characters are also handling two major life situations. The female lead tells you right away that she is grieving a parent along with some other family secrets that have came to the surface. The male lead is also dealing with some major events- but they are not revealed until later so I do not want to spoil anything. This is a beautiful slow burn 🕯️. The male lead is also one of my favorite book boyfriends FYI! Read this before the movie adaptation comes out!!! 🎬

• The Laugh-Out-Loud Romance: "Just for the Summer" by Abby Jimenez- A hilarious romcom with two characters who realize their exes ALWAYS find their soulmates immediately after breaking up with them. They decide to date "just for the summer" to break the curse- because THAT is how this works... right? Both characters are also navigating very serious life events on the side of the romance. Our female lead deals with the trauma of the mother she loves neglecting her severely as a child. Our male lead gives up his studio apartment to take custody of his 3 siblings after his mother unexpectedly goes to prison.

This was one of my summer reads this year! I could NOT put my kindle down.

• The Spooky Summer Thriller: "The Island" by Natasha Preston- Want something dark while relaxing in the sun? This YA thriller follows a group of teen influencers invited to an exclusive private amusement park on a remote island. The luxury & fun quickly come to an end once people start turning up dead & the rest of the group realize they cannot get off the island alive. This is the perfect page turner for at the airport or poolside.

The Summer Slide:

🌞Summer is all about kids relaxing, having fun, & taking their very much earned break. However, most parents do not know that the summer break without reading can cause our kids to quietly lose ground—a phenomenon teachers call the "summer slide"🎢.

The summer slide is when students lose around 28% of their reading progress during summer vacation😫.

How to prevent it without turning your living room into a classroom? By simply having your child read one book/magazine a day (I am a busy mom too- once a week is better than nothing if daily is not do-able) or reading together, you can keep their brains active🧠📖👓.

Whether they dive into comic books, graphic novels, chapter books- every page counts.

I find this is easiest by letting my kids choose their own reading material personally.

🛒We go to our local store or utilize online shopping. You can also check out age-appropriate Summer Reading Lists provided by Scholastic.📚

💌Another thing you can do is have a penpal for your child. This could be a grandparent, a friend, cousin, etc and they do not have to live far away though that makes it more fun. This helps your child practice reading and writing while they also get to receive their own mail. You can make it extra fun by having your child send stickers in with their letter or artwork. This doesn't even feel like school work to most younger children.💌

🌸📚Some families even utilize a reading chart to keep track. A simplified way to do this is by having an everyday calendar hanging in your childs room (to make it more fun for them) or in a central place in the home where everyone can see it and just coloring in even just one day a week where you are dedicated to making sure your child reads. Once a week is not once a day- but it's better than absolutely nothing for months. As a busy mom myself I completely get that reading a book a day may not be do-able. 🌸📚

The Kids Shelf📚

to help beat that summer slide, I sat down with my eight-year-old to get an official and UNFILTERED report on what is keeping the kids busy this month. Here is the breakdown:

• Pete the Cat: Pete at the Beach by Kimberly and James Dean- 4/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Difficulty: Very Easy Read). "It's all about the water and beach stuff. It's a really quick and easy book to read on my own without help from my parents. I read it before school one day."

• Sisters by Raina Telgemeier- 5/5⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Difficulty: Medium Read). "It's SO funny. It's a graphic novel with nice pictures and it reminded me of me and my little brother. I read it in only one day in the back of mamas car. It's about two sisters who go on a summer road trip and have to get along. I can totally relate because now that we have 3 kids in my mom's car I am smooshed between my new sister and my little brother for all car rides."

• Independent and Unofficial Let's Play Minecraft: How to Build, Play, and Explore- 4/5⭐⭐⭐⭐(Difficulty: Medium/Variable). "It isn't really difficult- it just can be kinda confusing if you are new to Minecraft. You have to read it while having Minecraft open to understand it sometimes- but it has actually really helped my Minecraft builds and helped me in survival mode. I go back to it when I need to remember something."

• "Ziggy Piggy and the Three Little Pigs" by Frank Asch- 5/5⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐(Difficulty: Medium Read). "My FAVORITE book ever! It's a retelling of the Three Little Pigs, but the ending is SO funny. My parents used to read it to me every night and now I still reread it on my own. I LOVE Ziggy Piggy!"

For the Toddlers (My 2-Year-Olds Verdict):

Since my two-year-old cannot give me a rating yet, I am tracking the vibes.

My toddler constantly is seeing his mom or sibling read- so naturally he is looking at books quite often on his own as well. These are the ones he tends to return to most right now.

1. "Clifford the Big Red Dog: It's Pool Time!"
2. "The Pop IT! Book COLORS"
3. "Blue Hat, Green Hat (the OOPS book)"
4. "Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel"

🚗📖Kids Books for Screen Free Airplane Rides, Road trips, or Poolside🏊‍♀️✈️:

My children used the first two as things to do on a airplane and in our rental car during a beach vacation as of recent. Both books kept the kids busy, content, and it also prompted conversation with my oldest to ask questions about the ocean and animals native to our vacation spot at that time.

• "1001 Things to Spot on Vacation" by Usborne Books
• "1001 Things to Spot in the Sea" by Usborne Books
• "125 Wacky Roadside Attractions" by National Geographic KIDS
• "Junie B. Jones: Aloha-Ha-Ha!" by Barbara Park
• "Magic Treehouse: Pirates Past Noon" by Mary Pope Osborne

Navigating the Currents🌊🌊: Your Monthly Tarot Pull✨🔮🌛

✨The July Tarot Pull for viewers shows that this month is all about out with the old and in with the new.✨

🔮In depth: the tarot is showing not only something deeply painful or stressful finally coming to an end- but a bright new begining coming forward.

I see the ending of illusions that took place & several different pathways and options opening for those reading this in July.

The best part of this pull in my opinion would be, "The Magician".

The Magician is representing that you have the tools & the means to make this brand new begining and pathway happen independently WITHOUT the help or assistance of others.

July you are getting out of that temporary severe pain/clouded thinking. For some of you, you are no longer being fooled by manipulation or deception even. You have learned another life lesson the universe set before you and unfortunately those life lessons are the majority of the time very painful.

The last note I get for July is that there will be some sort of message or communication coming from someone that you need to be on the look out for. This communication is either something you have been waiting for or it will in the future end up being very important for some reason. This is a general reading for viewers so the details will be different for everyone- but generally speaking there is someone reaching out of significance in July.🔮

✨🎱The Short & Easy Version: Painful & troubled times are finally coming to an end, new opportunities are on the horizon, the possibilities are endless, you do NOT need to depend on anyone this month, & communication is on its way!🎱✨

The Sip Feature: The Energy & Coffee Drinks Keeping This Mama Afloat☕⚡:

As a mama currently on maternity leave with a newborn & two young kids- lets get real... There is no time to make a Lavender Matcha.

I have been indulging in Alani Nu Energy Drinks (the aesthetic cans are a bonus!).

The Dunkin' Fluffernutter Coffee Chiller is also the perfect fuel for a summer walk through the marina. I grab this sweet, nutty treat through the drive-thru right after loading up the double stroller and my eldest’s scooter.

🗓️📚🔮

Thanks for keeping me company during this issue of Pages and Pentacles!

🗓️📚🔮

Sneak Peek 🫣:

AUGUST:

From Boat Bags to Backpacks🍏🎒