About the Book Title: Sally Sleuth and The Missing Mice Author: Majanka Verstraete Age Group: Lower Grade / Chapter Book Genre: Mystery Sally Sleuth, a fourth-grade self-proclaimed detective, is charged to bring the class’s pet mice home for the evening. But with her brother’s snake crawling around, her dad locking himself up in his office…
What are you reading? It’s a simple question that could elicit a complex response and an exchange of ideas. It’s a question that can cut through all the tedious niceties and get right to the issue—the depth of your mind and that of your friend. This is our time of year for resolutions. “I’ll lose…
Earlier this month the Royal Dragonfly Book Awards announced its winners in its Middle Grade Fiction category. Taking First Place was Star Sapphire and the Land of Gems: The Crystal Cavern (Book3) by Anthony Pardoe. The Second Place winner was Koolura and the Mayans (Koolura Series Book 3) by Michael Thal. The Royal Dragonfly Book…
Nine-year-old Portia Maddox needs to use the restroom every time she drinks water. She’s always thirsty and hungry and still bone thin. School Nurse Bryant recommends a doctor appointment, and Dr. Thomas confirms her suspicions—Portia has childhood diabetes. She now needs to test her blood regularly and inject herself with insulin; which turns out to…
The Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators (SCWBI) is holding its annual six-week Book Blast promotion that started October 10 and will continue until November 18, 2016. Book Blast highlights traditionally and independently published books on individual author pages. Picture books for young children, chapter books for older readers, middle grade novels and young…
The Resistance Duchess, a YA fantasy, is the second book in The Resistance series where Garritt’s twin Baylee takes center stage. Baylee has a hard time being a leprechaun, but when she is captured, she must figure out if she wants to be a normal teenager, an elf for her people or a ruler of…
Remember the good old days when you could walk into Crown Books, Borders, or Barnes & Noble and browse the tombs for your favorite author or curl up in a corner to check out a fun read? With most bookstores closed, where can a mom purchase books for children and teens besides logging onto Amazon?…
School in Los Angeles begins August 16, 2016. It’s been a long hot summer, so slow the pace a bit, kick back, and read a book. It’s so important that the reading skills of children remain sharp. According to an article in Reading Rocks, “Summer Reading Loss,” thirteen academic studies covering 40,000 students discovered that…
Tyler Dunsmore, a thirteen-year old boy from Providence, Rhode Island is best friends with Dirk, a powerful wizard from a distant star. Tyler first met Dirk in Brian Wu and Scott Spotson’s first My Wizard Buddy novel. In Target: Earth, number three in the My Wizard Buddy Series, Tyler is kidnapped by the Genzi, evil…
A new children’s book, Shmulik Paints the Town, is out just in time for Israel Independence Day. Israeli Independence Day is coming up and the mayor is planning a celebration with awards and speeches, music and dancing. To prepare for the festivities, the mayor asks Shmulik to paint a mural and decorate the park around it, and…