One For The Books: Encouraging Kids To Engage In Summer Reading

 One For The Books: Encouraging Kids To Engage In Summer Reading

Summer is upon us and with children out of school for the Summer, parents may be concerned with how to keep their sons and daughters invested in reading. With many popular Summer activities like swimming, going to theme parks, camping, playing basketball and skateboarding occupying children’s time, parents may be wondering how they can incorporate reading into their child’s daily routine. Here are some suggestions to keep your child interested in reading during the Summertime.

The first thing you can do to encourage your child to read during the Summertime is to take them to book shops and local libraries where they can choose books that interest them. You can also see if their local library has any Summer reading programs going on that they can participate in. If you opt to take them to a book shop, some book shops they can find great books from include Half Price Books, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million and Warwick’s. Some great books that may interest your child include “Anne Of Green Gables” by L.M. Montgomery, “The Secret Garden” by Frances Hodgson Burnett, “Diary Of A Wimpy Kid” by Jeff Kinney, “War With Grandpa” by Robert Kimmel Smith, “The Seventh Princess” by Nick Sullivan and “The Redheaded Princess” by Ann Rinaldi.

If your local library does not have a Summer reading program that your children can participate in, you can develop a personal Summer reading program for them. You can even make it more fun by giving them reading themed challenges or goals and rewarding them with prizes for each goal that is achieved or challenge that is completed. Some reading challenges you can include in the program is reading a certain amount of books, reading a certain amount of pages, reading a certain amount of chapters, reading books from a specific genre or reading books from a specific author. If you do decide to use reading books from a specific author as a reading challenge, some authors you can use for that challenge include Patricia MacLachlan, E.L. Konigsburg, Tui T. Sutherland, Holly Black, Louisa May Alcott, Beatrix Potter, Roald Dahl, Brandon Mull, Chris Colfer, Ann M. Martin, Enid Blyton, Jacqueline Wilson, Aaron Blabey, Liz Kessler and Elle McNicoll.

Getting them involved in a book club with other children they are friends with, especially in their neighborhood is a great way to get kids reading more. Parents can come together and create a list of books for the children to read and discuss together weekly while on Summer Break. This is also a great way to encourage social interaction with other children near them.

Creating a Summer reading list is a great idea to engage your children in reading. It also allows you to choose books that interest them that are suitable for their individual reading levels and age-appropriate. “A Little Princess” by Frances Hodgson Burnett, “Emily Of New Moon” by L.M. Montgomery, “Ella Enchanted” by Gail Carson Levine, “Aquamarine” by Alice Hoffman, “The Beast” by R.L. Stine, “Where The Sidewalk Ends” by Shel Silverstein, “Island Of The Blue Dolphins” by Scott O’Dell and “If You Give A Mouse A Cookie” by Laura Numeroff are some books you may consider putting on a Summer reading list for your child.

Setting aside a designated time for them to read every day is also a great idea. You can schedule a certain time of day such as 2 p.m. or 3 p.m. for them to sit down and engage in some reading. You can also set a designated amount of time for them to read such as 30 minutes a day, 45 minutes a day or 1 hour every day. Setting time limits for other activities children engage in such as playing video games or spending time on the computer will also help them to prioritize time for reading.

Introducing your children to books you loved to read as a child is another way you can encourage them to read. This is also a great way to bond with your child more as you can talk to them about the books together and what you both love about them. Additionally, this is also a good way to make sure your children are reading books you deem appropriate as they will be books you have already read, therefore you can determine if they are acceptable for your child’s current age and reading level.

Finally, another way you can encourage your child to develop an interest in books this Summer is by reading to them. You can read them some of their favorite books, books recommended to you by a librarian at your local library or you could even read them books you enjoyed during your childhood. Some books you may consider reading to them include “The Wind In The Willows” by Kenneth Grahame, “Freckle Juice” by Judy Blume, “Shiloh” by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, “The Hundred Dresses” by Eleanor Estes, “The Lacemaker And The Princess” by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley, “Where The Red Fern Grows” by Wilson Rawls, “Elbow Grease” by John Cena, “A Wrinkle In Time” by Madeleine L’Engle, “Snow In Summer” by Jane Yolen, “A Whale Of The Wild” by Rosanne Parry and “Tales From Wrescal Lane” by Mick Foley.

Diamonds In A Rhinestone World: The Potentially Darker Side Of The Pageant Industry & Why Allegations Should Be More Seriously Investigated

 Diamonds In A Rhinestone World: The Potentially Darker Side Of The Pageant Industry & Why Allegations Should Be More Seriously Investigated

The pageant industry is full of glitz and glamour, inspiring many potential queens to globally compete in these grand and prestigious competitions. To win gives them the incredible opportunity to travel the world and use their platforms to advocate for humanitarian causes that are special and meaningful to them. While many pageants are positive experiences for titleholders, some queens have claimed to have unfortunately endured negative experiences, often resulting in these queens relinquishing their titles. The 2023 Miss USA winner, Noelia Voigt and 2023 Miss Teen USA winner, UmaSofia Srivastava relinquished their titles within the same week. It was later reported that allegations of toxicity, bullying, harassment, mistreatment and abuse occurred within the environment of the Miss USA organization.

Rachel Gupta posted a video stating that she was relinquishing her title as the 2024 Miss Grand International, citing that during her time as the organization’s queen, she had experienced mistreatment, body shaming and harassment. In the video, she had also made claims that the organization did not provide her with proper security for her residence which resulted in her money being stolen from her. Miss Grand International would go on to respond to her video, dismissing her allegations and claiming them to be misleading, false and defamatory while also stating they had actually revoked the title from her.

With all of these allegations coming forth, it does make pageant fans wonder what exactly is being done to investigate these organizations and the claims being made to determine if they are true or false. These claims are both concerning and serious. They should definitely be investigated so further actions can be taken to make changes in the pageant industry that better protect contestants and titleholders while also ensuring a pageant organization’s reputability is preserved and that the organization is running its operations to its best efficiency.

Why Wrestling Promotions Should Establish Self-Defense Training For Their Talent

 Why Wrestling Promotions Should Establish Self-Defense Training For Their Talent

Online safety is becoming more crucial especially when it regards popular social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and X (Formerly Known As Twitter). Within the pro wrestling community, social media can be an amazing asset for professional wrestlers to promote their gimmick, matches, merchandise and upcoming shows as well as promoting and building up their feuds and storylines with the promotions and companies that they work for. However, a disadvantage of a wrestler engaging in social media is that it unfortunately makes them more susceptible to bullying, harassment, doxxing, stalking and gaslighting from others.

On June 3, 2025, while filming was occurring for an episode of WWE’s NXT show, an incident occurred outside of the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida, which resulted in multiple arrests being made. One of the arrests made was reported to be a stalker targeting WWE Superstar, Liv Morgan. Shortly following that incident, further reports emerged online regarding disturbing threats being made via social media towards WWE Superstars, Roxanne Perez and Dominik Mysterio.

Additionally, other professional wrestlers have previously been victims of stalking including Former WWE Superstar, Sonya Deville. On Sunday, August 16, 2020, a man from South Carolina named Phillip A. Thomas was arrested and charged with attempted armed kidnapping, aggravated stalking, armed burglary of a dwelling and misdemeanor criminal mischief when he broke into Sonya Deville’s home in Florida. In 2023, Phillip A. Thomas was sentenced to 15 years in prison for his crimes. During the investigation of his crimes, it was revealed that Phillip A. Thomas had obsessively been stalking Sonya Deville on social media for several years despite never meeting or speaking to her personally. It was also reported that Phillip A. Thomas had spent eight months planning to kidnap Sonya Deville before he traveled to her home in his attempt to abduct her and upon his arrest was found with a knife, duct tape and zip ties.

WWE Superstar, Alexa Bliss has been a victim of prior stalking. The harassment she has received from stalkers has been so extreme that they have sent threats to her husband, Ryan Cabrera and have even claimed that they are the true father of Alexa and Ryan’s daughter. One stalker named William Flickinger even claimed to be married to Alexa Bliss and went so far as to post a phony marriage certificate.

In February of 2025, WWE Superstar, Rhea Ripley revealed that a girl showed up to her home on Valentine’s Day and stood outside the front door for fifteen minutes. This prompted Rhea Ripley to post on social media later that month a request for fans to not send or personally deliver fan mail to her house. It has been publicly made aware that fan mail for any WWE Superstar should be sent to either WWE Headquarters or the WWE Performance Center.

In a podcast interview in June of 2023, Former WWE Superstar, Joy Giovanni revealed she has dealt with online stalkers which has prompted her to be more protective of her privacy. She recalled one incident where she had received threats from a stalker who claimed they were going to come find her. Upon further investigation, Joy Giovanni learned that this stalker had just been released from a lockdown facility and had been targeting another victim. Joy Giovanni also discussed being startled by a fan in a hotel parking lot at night that approached her abruptly while she was getting her luggage out of her vehicle.

Other victims in the wrestling profession that have dealt with stalking include WWE Superstars, Brock Lesnar and Asuka, Former TNA Knockout, Angelina Love and Former WWE Superstars, Maryse, Paige, Lita, Kurt Angle, Ric Flair and AJ Lee. With stalking becoming a rising concern within the professional wrestling industry, it prompts the question of what can be done to help protect wrestlers, managers, ring announcers, referees, valets etc. from becoming victims. While properly certified security personnel being present at wrestling events is definitely essential to protecting both fans and talent, it’s not enough to help protect talents in the professional wrestling industry while they are traveling to and from events or while they are out in public places where they may be quickly and easily recognized such as hotels, airports, gas stations, grocery stores, banks, restaurants, BMV offices or gyms. This is why companies and promotions instituting and providing mandatory self-defense training for their talents is a possible way to help their talents feel safer and more protected both at and outside of wrestling events.

Former WWE Diva, Eve Torres now works as a jiu-jitsu instructor with the Gracie Academy. She, along with her husband, Rener Gracie have even led a self-defense seminar previously at the WWE Performance Center in 2017 for the female WWE Developmental Superstars training there at the time. This would be great for WWE to make as a mandatory seminar for their Superstars, both for the main roster and developmental talents. They could make this either an annual or a quarterly training for every Superstar to help them feel safer. As for other promotions and companies, both on the mainstream side and indie side, those promotions and companies can look into what self-defense classes are available in their areas to help protect their talents and help further prevent dangerous situations regarding stalkers from occurring in the future.

Why Disney’s Live-Action Snow White Might Have Found More Success As A Television Series

 Why Disney’s Live-Action Snow White Might Have Found More Success As A Television Series

Snow White is Disney’s recent live-action remake and is loosely based on Disney’s first animated film, Snow White And The Seven Dwarves. This film stars Gal Gadot, Rachel Zegler, Martin Klebba, Jeremy Swift, Ansu Kabia and Andrew Burnap. While this film received a lot of controversy for various reasons, I would honestly say it wasn’t Disney’s worse live-action remake but at the same time, it is also not its best. From a creative standpoint, I think there was still room for improvement and wonder if this film may have worked better as a television series instead.

I know some people may still have decided not to watch this, even if they had made it into a television series instead of a film, due to all of the controversy surrounding this film and its cast even when it was still in production. However, I think having made this film into a television series could have opened up the possibility for more character development for a few of the characters such as Jonathan, Grumpy and The Evil Queen. While these characters did get some more development in the film, I feel more development and backstory was needed for these characters and that too many song reprises took time away from them receiving more character details that could have enhanced the story more.

For example, it would have been interesting for Disney to go more into detail as to why Snow White’s love interest, Jonathan did not have a home and instead lived in the forest with bandits. They could have revealed that Jonathan was the long-lost prince of a neighboring kingdom and that his home kingdom had been destroyed by the Evil Queen when he was an infant, resulting in Jonathan’s parents losing their lives and him ultimately being raised by bandits in the forest who survived the kingdom’s destruction and who knew the truth about his identity as a prince. This idea would have also developed the Evil Queen’s character as a more fearsome and tyrannous villain but because this information was never revealed in this film, we can only speculate with our own imagination as to why Jonathan did not have a home and instead lived in an enchanted forest with bandits. To me, I feel more character development was needed with Jonathan than what we saw in the film especially considering Disney chose to go another route by not making Jonathan a prince at all and changing his character to entirely resemble Flynn Ryder from Disney’s animated film, Tangled, instead which to me wasn’t really necessary.

Additionally, towards the beginning of the film, we are introduced to the Evil Queen, an enchantress who mysteriously appears in Snow White’s kingdom after Snow White’s mother passes away from an illness. There really is no explanation as to where the Evil Queen originally came from. If this film had been turned into a television series instead, they could have explained where the Evil Queen had come from before suddenly arriving in Snow White’s kingdom and they could have maybe even showcased a storyline that showed the Evil Queen as being responsible for Snow White’s mother falling ill and passing away, thus showing the Evil Queen’s character as even more cruel.

Additionally, to further add to the Evil Queen’s character development, they could have put more emphasis on her connection with the Magic Mirror by showcasing more how the Magic Mirror always expressed to the Evil Queen its disapproval and contempt of her through its unkind and harsh comments towards her whenever she tried to communicate with it. This could have resulted in Disney making the Evil Queen a more potentially sympathetic character for viewers and showcasing the Magic Mirror as the true villain of the story. It even could have resulted in a possible redemption story for the Evil Queen where after tiring of her numerous attempts to win the Magic Mirror’s approval and admiration, she destroys the Magic Mirror, realizing that nothing she does will ever be good enough for its respect and that she doesn’t need its validation. Snow White could have even helped the Evil Queen to realize her true worth and to help her see that the Magic Mirror was only hurting her by trying to pit them against one and that it would be better for them to work together as empowered women helping to build a better and stronger kingdom, thus adding character growth and development to their relationship. Instead, the film focused on the Evil Queen being more power-hungry, selfish, vain and greedy by emphasizing her obsession with wealth, luxury, glamour, outer beauty and extravagant jewels.

In conclusion, I feel that if Disney is going to continue making live-action adaptations of their classic animated films with a fresher take on the stories they are telling, they should realize that they don’t always need to be film remakes. It is absolutely possible to make a successful remake of some of their classic animations as a live-action television series. By capitalizing on making these remakes as a television series in opt of a motion picture, there is the potential to add more context, depth and content to their storytelling without feeling so limited due to not wanting to make a movie too long. They can easily break up the storytelling through multiple episodes while progressively telling a more detailed story over time throughout the series.

Accepting That Not Everything Is Meant For Us To Understand

 Accepting That Not Everything Is Meant For Us To Understand

Sometimes in our own personal lives as well as in the world in general, unfortunate and unexpected things happen. When unfortunate circumstances or bad things happen, we often tend to wonder why, resulting in us desperately seeking an answer that we may not always receive. While this can cause frustration, we have to remember that with some things in life we simply just aren’t meant to understand why they happen and that it’s perfectly fine to not understand everything.

By accepting that we can’t have the answers to everything, we can live a less stressful life. Life can often be unpredictable and if God had wanted us to understand everything that happens in this world and in our daily lives, he would allow that. Deuteronomy 29:29 states “The secret things belong to the Lord Our God, but the things revealed belong to us and our children forever.” As we do not understand everything, we must simply accept that God has his reasons for not letting us know why certain situations or events occur in the ways that they do.

Because of how deeply God loves and cares for us, he has our best interests at heart and that includes us not always understanding why certain events and circumstances take place in this world. We must simply trust that God allows us to know and understand his plans that are for our good, that will bless us and not harm us, that will give us hope and a future. We must have faith that the things God does not allow us to understand are him doing what it right by us for our protection. Proverbs 3:5 states “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.”

We are not meant to comprehend everything that goes tragically wrong in this world and as much as we may wish we could, we unfortunately cannot solve every problem or burden that exists in this world. To ever think that we should understand the reason for everything that happens in this world can also become absolutely exhausting. Instead of worrying about why something awful happened, let’s instead focus on helping to ease the suffering by extending God’s love, kindness, peace and grace to both ourselves and others in times of sorrow, disappointment, fear and distress.

The Importance Of Compassion

 The Importance Of Compassion

In a world that can sometimes be unfair, hurtful and unkind, compassion is so important and essential. Compassion allows us to see from other’s perspectives, promotes kindness, increases peace and encourages positive interactions in a world that can be very negative at times. It is vital we extend compassion to others around us, regardless if they are doing better off than us in life and regardless of our differences in life.

Just because someone has different beliefs, ideals and views than us or just because someone may be better off than us financially, physically, mentally, spiritually etc., it doesn’t mean that they don’t deserve our compassion in times of need. We never know what someone may be going through privately and showing them even just a little bit of kindness and compassion may help give them hope, make their day more cheerful or make their week a little brighter. It is also through kindness and compassion, we can make the world a more caring, empathetic and beautiful place and help it change for the better as showing compassion can inspire others around us to do the same.

God instructs us to love others as he first loved us. Therefore, if God can show kindness, unconditional love, forgiveness, grace and compassion towards others, we, therefore should do the same. Colossians 3:12-13 further epitomizes this as it states, “Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.”

The world needs our compassion and we can show that through many ways. Simple acts of compassion such as offering someone a compliment or encouraging note, saying a prayer for them, giving them flowers, baking them some cupcakes, cooking them a homemade dinner or even buying them a coffee through the kindness of our hearts can make a bigger impact than we may realize. Therefore, I encourage you to show kindness and compassion to others daily and do your part in whatever corner of the world you are in to make the world a more peaceful, gentle and loving place. 

Should The Royal Rumble Matches Be Increased To 40 Or 50 Participants?

 Should The Royal Rumble Matches Be Increased To 40 Or 50 Participants?

The Royal Rumble matches are something that fans look forward to annually. These matches are the first step towards cementing WWE’s plans for WrestleMania each year. Because of the excitement of the Men’s and Women’s Royal Rumble matches, some have wondered if WWE should increase the number of participants for both. Here are some benefits as to why this may be a good decision to do so.

For starters, not everyone on the roster gets the opportunity to participate in the Royal Rumble matches due to the 30-person limit currently intact. Increasing the number of participants allows both men and women not always given the opportunity to partake in the match and be able to showcase their talent and abilities, regardless if they are determined the winner or not. Increasing the number of Royal Rumble participants also better allows the possibility for a completely unexpected surprise winner or for a special and memorable spot during the match between certain Superstars that fans just can’t stop discussing even after the match is over.

While it’s currently a bit of a stretch, if WWE ever was to collaborate or form some sort of partnership with AEW, this would allow some more cross-branding appearances from AEW Superstars. This could result in some interesting interactions and creative spots in the Royal Rumble matches between AEW and WWE Superstars, therefore making the matches even more exciting and surprising. This could also set up future potential feuds and storylines.

With an increased number of participants, more NXT Superstars could make appearances. This would allow NXT Superstars to showcase their skills more, have the opportunity to work with main roster Superstars more and also allow them to add a Royal Rumble debut to their career resume before their eventual debut on Raw or Smackdown as a main roster Superstar themselves. Additionally, more NXT Superstars competing in Rumble matches could result in the possibility of an NXT Superstar being declared the winner, leading to a big push and momentous debut on to the main roster.

Additionally, an increased number of participants could allow the opportunity for more TNA Superstars to appear at the Royal Rumble, which we have recently started seeing more frequently since WWE and TNA formed a partnership together for cross-branding opportunities. This could open up the potential for dream matches between WWE and TNA Superstars on their respective programming. Additionally, this could also reignite past storylines and feuds with WWE and TNA Superstars that have worked together previously.

Royal Rumble matches are also a great opportunity to build up feuds, gimmicks and storylines regardless of the outcome. By having more participants, Superstars can showcase their character development or develop their storytelling with their fellow Superstars. This could also result in creating more rivalries leading into WrestleMania where big matches involving those Superstars can take place.

There are many free agents in professional wrestling. Being a Royal Rumble match participant allows them to get their names out in the industry more and may even result in the possibility of them being signed with WWE or another mainstream company. Additionally, there are many well-known free agents on the independent scene that could receive a huge crowd reaction if they were to debut in a match as prestigious and prominent as the Royal Rumble. Whether or not it results in the signing of a free agent to a major company like WWE, a spot in the Royal Rumble match would be an impressive career achievement and a great opportunity to work and form associations with many WWE Superstars, including seasoned veterans in the wrestling industry which can be very credential to a free agent’s career resume.

Lastly, something that many fans always look forward to with Royal Rumble matches is surprise returns from WWE Hall Of Famers and other Former WWE Superstars. Adding more participants to a Royal Rumble match allows more Legends to come back and surprise the fans. Additionally, if a Legend comes back for a more long-term run with the company, this is a great opportunity for WWE to surprise the fans with a Legend’s return to the company.