Congratulations to Jana Leah who won T is for Thor from last week's blog.Today I'm happy to share a new picture book by author/illustrator, Katia Wish. Raccoon's Perfect Snowman (Sleeping Bear Press, 2020) will delight the young reader in your life even as it communicates an important message.REVIEWRaccoon was very serious about building snowmen.He practiced rolling,… Continue reading Raccoon's Perfect Snowman: A Picture Book Review, A Giveaway, AND an Author Interview!
Kathleen Long Bostrom's newest book, Will You Be Friends With Me? (Hachette Book Group) has come out just in time for International Friendship Day. This simple board book with inviting illustrations has a powerful message: children will look different and have different preferences--but they can still be friends. REVIEW From the opening of the book: I wake early, you… Continue reading Will You Be Friends With Me? A Board Book Review and Giveaway
REVIEW What 10 to 14-year-old doesn't enjoy a good dog book? If your son, daughter, grandchild, or student fits into that category, then Chasing Augustus by Kimberly Newton Fusco, is a book that you want to win for them. Rosie's got it tough. Her mother left her as a child to make a better life… Continue reading Chasing Augustus: A Review and an Audio Book Giveaway
Congratulations to Keturah Lamb who won my ARC of Maybe He Just Likes You from last week's blog. We're back to picture books today and I have some fun ones for you to try to win for a child, grandchild, or student in your class. Thanks to Sleeping Bear Press, I seem to have an endless… Continue reading Three Just-for-Fun Picture Books: Reviews and Giveaways
Congratulations to Susan Rice who won One Red Sock on last week's blog. REVIEW I'm a pretty big Avi fan, so when I found The End of the World and Beyond in the Recorded Books catalog, I knew it was a book I'd want to pass along. (I heard Avi speak at the SC Reading Association conference… Continue reading The End of the World and Beyond by Avi: A Review and Audiobook Giveaway
I've reviewed two other middle grade books by Miriam Spitzer Franklin on this blog (Extraordinary and Call Me Sunflower) but Emily Out of Focus is special to me. Miriam and I were in a SCBWI critique group together for many years and I heard about her trip to China in 2006 to adopt their daughter. Emily Out of… Continue reading Emily Out of Focus: A Review and ARC Giveaway
Congratulations to Jo Lynn Worden who won a Skype visit with Cathy Briesacher. As of today, Linda Phillips has accumulated almost fifty books including the twelve provided by Sleeping Bear Press for the Eastern European school. I don't know about you, but I'm thrilled with the thought that these books are the beginning of a… Continue reading Sleeping Bear Press Part III: 2 Picture Books, 2 Easy Readers
Last October I was privileged to host Lisa Williams Kline's cover reveal for her newest YA book, ONE WEEK OF YOU (Blue Crow Publishing, 2019). At that time Lisa shared her path to publication and the book's backstory. Since then I've had the opportunity to read this well-written and engaging story (I didn't want it to end!)… Continue reading One Week Of You: A Review and Giveaway
Congratulations to Sandra Warren who won the 15 minute Zoom Author Interview with Marsha Diane Arnold from last week's blog. She donated it to West Marion Elementary School in Marion, NC. ********* Many of you have heard me extol the virtues of ONE STOP FOR WRITERS a rich, on-line writing tool. I've also frequently mentioned the creators… Continue reading Behind the Scenes with The Thesauri Queens: An Interview with Angela Ackerman and Rebecca Puglisi
Browsing a recent Recorded Books catalog, I was pleased to find Wonderland (Farrar Strauss and Giroux, 2018), by North Carolina author, Barbara O' Connor. I hope one of your students, children, or grandchildren will enjoy it as much as I did. REVIEW The book opens with10-year-old Mavis Jeeter leaving Hadley, Georgia for the same reason she's left so… Continue reading Wonderland: A Review and Audio Book Giveaway