INTRODUCTION Where Only Storms Grow by Alyssa Coleman is a suspenseful and seminal novel centered around the dust storms of the 1930s in Oklahoma. This historic story showcases the perspectives of two adolescent twins, Joanna and Howe Stanton. Throughout a six year journey, they overcame family turbulence, natural disasters, grief, and financial insecurity. REVIEW During the… Continue reading Alyssa Coleman’s Where Only Storms Grow: A Review
REVIEW Monarch Publishing welcomes a new middle grade novel to the reading repertoire called Angels in the Sand by Lori Keating. This novel is a touching story about a contemporary family choosing joy amid hard circumstances. Jess and her mother Darlene make the annual East Coast trek to Grandma’s house during the Christmas holidays. Jess and Grandma… Continue reading Angels in The Sand: A Great MG Review by Kate Lundeen
Review and giveaway of the middle-grade fantasy, Wand by Landra Jennings.
From the publisher: There are some friends you never forget. It's the summer of 1955. For Ethan Harper, a biracial kid raised mostly by his White father, race has always been a distant conversation. When he's sent to spend the summer with his aunt and uncle in small-town Alabama, his blackness is suddenly front and… Continue reading The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones: A MG Review and Audiobook Giveaway
REVIEWBen and Scout by Denise Minnerly is the story of two dogs that are best friends and are always together, despite the greatest olds. It is a story about loss written for young children. Ben is old and sick. Scout is young and has only a superficial understanding of Ben’s condition, so when Ben dies, Scout… Continue reading BEN AND SCOUT: A Review by Guest Blogger, Janelle Ekpo
REVIEWTears to Dancing (Dancing Bear Publishing: 2012) by Laura Thomas is an intimate book tracing one young ballerina’s struggle with losing both her parents and her ability to dance in a traumatic car crash. The protagonist, Bethany, takes center stage in this character-driven novel. Few outside forces (aside from the car crash) affected the protagonist… Continue reading TEARS TO DANCING: A Middle Grade Review by Guest Reviewer Mara Scudder
To follow up on Georgie Bartlett's review of THE MEMORY QUILT, (Monarch Educational Services, 2024) here are author and illustrator interviews, a teen review, PLUS more!INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR LORI KEATINGCAROL: What were your hopes for this The Memory Quilt?LORI: I see The Memory Quilt as a catalyst that sparks deep conversations about death with children. My… Continue reading Q & A with the Author & the Illustrator of THE MEMORY QUILT + A Teen Review + A Giveaway
Today I am happy to bring you a forthcoming book from Monarch Educational Services. Lori Keating's debut picture book, THE MEMORY QUILT sensitively deals with a child's grief. But I want Georgie to tell you about it, not me.REVIEWThe Memory Quilt is a meaningful, beautifully written picture book by Lori Keating, and Illustrated by the talented Alyssa Grizenko. This… Continue reading THE MEMORY QUILT by Lori Keating: A Picture Book Review by Guest Blogger, Georgie Bartlett
REVIEW by Mara ScudderAs an avid reader who has no interest in baseball (and sports in general), I fell far from Steve Carman's upper middle-grade audience range. But Southpaw Sully’s characters are irresistible in any genre, and Sully and the rest of the cast pulled me in from the very first page. The author didn’t… Continue reading SOUTHPAW SALLY: A Guest Blogger Review and Giveaway
Today I have the pleasure of introducing a new tween blogger, Olivia A. She's a granddaughter of a friend of mine, and a bibliophile. (When her family moved from North Carolina to Texas she brought along her 1000-book library!). Let's help her celebrate her book-reviewing career with her thoughts on EVERY MISSING PIECE by Melanie Conklin.Maddy has trouble… Continue reading EVERY MISSING PIECE: A Middle-Grade Review by Debut Tween Blogger, Olivia A.