Bradley Trevor Greive

What a little gem this book was! I picked it up on a whim and fell in love with it within a few pages. At times heartbreaking, at others "Penguin Bloom" was humorous and heartwarming. I was moved by the Blooms' story and Penguin captivated my heart. The gorgeous photos of this little magpie with her family made this book special. While Penguin might be the smallest Bloom in stature, she certainly has the biggest personality. As the author stated, 'angels come in all shapes and sizes.' A show more beautiful read. show less

I believe the book has photos, which in my opinion would cement this story into the reader’s mind quite firmly. However, I listened to the audiobook, so naturally I did not see the photos, but the words alone were magical.

Such a tragic story, yet inspiration and love shone through. The husband and father of the Bloom family wrote about their worst nightmare, sharing the details of his wife’s terrible accident and what followed. My heart went out to her, and to the rest of the family. And show more my heart swelled when Penguin came into their lives to help and be helped. It’s a marvelous story, but I wish they didn’t have to experience any of it.

I cannot know what Sam went through, and continues to experience. But this book shows that even in the worst circumstances, love and light and sheer will power can improve the situation. Truly, I’m lost for words and can only say that the book is worth your time. Be prepared for tears, and that warm fuzzy feeling you get when love conquers all.

Highly recommended. show less

A book of utterly pointless, occasionally wince-inducing suggestions for expressing your feelings to your fellow human beings. I found nearly all of them entertaining, some causing me to laugh so hard my co-workers were peering over cubicle walls to see if I was alright, or if I had suddenly been lept upon and strangled by some sort of primate. Alas, I have a hard time picturing myself ever using these bon mots in actual conversation.

I would recommend this to anyone with a certain sense of show more humor... just don't read it at work. show less

My mum sent me this book a while back (presumably when I was bitching non-stop about my job), but I’ve only just gotten around to reading it now. It’s pretty cute, and it definitely falls on the silly side of so-called self-help books since it employs the tried-and-true method of pairing amusing animal photos with the text to parlay its advice. I wasn’t sad when I read this book, so I can’t fully judge its validity as a source of cheering up, but I still got a few laughs and that is show more enough. show less