Please welcome back Elliott Kurta with his evaluation of an 8-book series by Sarah Mlynoski, Lauren Myracle, and Emily Jenkins. REVIEW The Upside-Down Magic series spreads a message of positivity and acceptance by using magic as an analogy for individuality. Perfect for upper elementary and middle-school students, these novels capture a fifth-grade class as they make… Continue reading UPSIDE DOWN MAGIC- Part I by Guest Blogger, Elliott Kurta
REVIEW OF UNICORNS OF THE SECRET STABLEI'm joined by my granddaughter, Eleanor Edgar, in this review.Almost 7-year-old Eleanor, withher new books, unicorn, and favorite dog. It’s been a long time since I’ve read early chapter books. But when my fellow SCBWI-Carolinas friend, Laurie Edwards, reached out to me with the promise of books, how could I say no?Below… Continue reading UNICORNS OF THE SECRET STABLE: Early Chapter Books Review and TALKING STORY
Today I'm bringing you another clean-read, young adult fantasy. The Button Girl, by Sally Apokedak is a well-plotted book with thorough world-building and memorable characters. Next week, Sally will answer questions I had about the book including how her Christian faith impacted the story and her publication journey.Like Ships, Secrets, & Survivors, each chapter is prefaced with a… Continue reading The Button Girl: A Review and Autographed Giveaway, Part I
Congratulations to Sarah Maury Swan who won ORDINARY HAZARDS off last week's blog. **** REVIEW Last fall I attended the SCBWI-Carolinas panel in which Lina Maslo co-presented "Bringing Your Voice to Non-Fiction." I heard about her forthcoming book, THROUGH THE WARDROBE which she wrote and illustrated. Immediately I knew I wanted to share it with all of you--and… Continue reading THROUGH THE WARDROBE: How C.S. Lewis Created Narnia
Congratulations to Danielle H. for winning The Smallest Tadpole's War in the Land of Mysterious Waters. ******** If you, or a teenager you know, is a fan of clean science fiction/fantasy, then The Wizard’s Daughter by Jeff Minerd, is a book you should consider. Minerd sets his three-book series, The Sky-Riders of Etherium in a… Continue reading The Wizard's Daughter: A Book Review and Autographed Giveaway
Some of you will remember my interview with one of my writing students, Sydney Kirsch, which I posted at the beginning of November. Please welcome her back for Part II. Carol: How did you fit NaNoWriMo into your homeschool curriculum? Sydney: Being in high school, I do have a lot of work to do on a regular… Continue reading A Lover of Words: Sydney Kirsch, NaNoWriMo Teen–Part II
Congratulations to Clara Gillow Clark who won "Diary of a Waitress" off last week's blog. ******* Fans of Between the Lines, a young adult novel that crosses back and forth between fantasy and contemporary fiction, will be happy with the recent release of Off the Page (Delacurte Press, 2015); the companion book which Jodi Picoult wrote in collaboration with… Continue reading Off the Page by Jodi Picoult and Samantha Van Leer
Congratulations to Connie Saunders who won Blue Birds from last week's blog. ********* Readers of this blog are no strangers to book reviews by North Carolina author, Alan Gratz. He is well known for historical novels, like Prisoner B-3087 and Samurai Shortstop. But he also writes contemporary books like his newly released, Code of Honor, (Scholastic, August 2015)… Continue reading The League of Seven by Alan Gratz
Congratulations to Linda Andersen for winning a copy of Two Girls Staring at the Ceiling. ********** When I recently completed reading John Bemis' first book in the Clockwork Dark Trilogy, The Nine Pound Hammer, I considered reviewing it here. But then I found this excellent review and figured I couldn't do any better. Instead, John agreed to answer questions about how… Continue reading The Nine Pound Hammer: An Interview with John Bemis and a Giveaway
When Allan Wolf was thirteen, he lost a penny behind the baseboard in his bedroom. He grabbed a pencil and wrote, "Penny lost down here on the night of April 12, 1976 at 2 til 9 PM and 5 seconds by Allan Dean Wolf." In some ways, that was the genesis of Zane's Trace, a… Continue reading Zane's Trace