fantasy

Actually, Pandora had a Book, not a Box

ByMichael Thal December 11, 2017

Pop applauds author Erin Fry for including lead characters with disabilities in her extraordinary middle grade novel, Secrets of the Book. Spencer Lemon, a pre-teen with a degenerative eye disease and his buddy Gregor, stricken with autism, manage with great effort to overcome their impairments to defeat the bad guy and save the world. Sixth…

Fantasy Christian Novel for YA Readers

ByMichael Thal November 29, 2017

Jennie Samuel’s Beyond the Pond takes readers to a Texas backyard pond where we are introduced to the pond’s animal life and an ancient Cedar tree named Thalia. In this first book, Olivia, a new fish to the pond, reaches the mythical springs and coerces the great Artesia, the spirit of all water covering the…

Wrong Side of the Rift: A YA Fantasy

ByMichael Thal November 21, 2017

About the Book Title: Wrong Side of the Rift Author: Libby Heil Genre: YA Fantasy Grape can’t unlearn what living in Sortilege Falls has taught her. Magic is real. Vampires live among us. And there’s a portal in her back yard that leads to another world. A few weeks ago, Grape lived a quiet life…

Give the Gift of Learning this Holiday Season

ByMichael Thal November 9, 2017

Holiday shopping is right around the corner. Are you really looking forward to spending hours fighting for a parking spot or waiting in long checkout lines at Macy’s, Sears, or Best Buy? If you want to avoid the hassles, think about buying your favorite child a book this year. You will want your book choice…

The Power Club: An Interview with Author Greg Gildersleeve

ByMichael Thal October 28, 2017

About the Book Title: The Power Club Author: Greg Gildersleeve Genre: MG Fantasy / Adventure “Some create darkness . . . or teleport . . . or fly. Damon creates darkness. Since he possesses a power, he must live in “the district” along with other powered teens. It’s a comfy living: a strip mall, two…

The Invisible Girl

ByMichael Thal October 24, 2017

We live in an age where people are judged by their appearance and not the content of their character. Author Jeanne Bannon understands the problem and its effects on teens. So this talented writer wrote Invisible. Lola Savullo is a high school senior confronted with a multitude of problems. First, she’s very tall and fat,…

Rotten Rapunzel: An Alternative Fairy Tale

ByMichael Thal October 9, 2017

YA author and illustrator Anita Valle has created a very dysfunctional family in her Dark Fairy Tale Queen Series. The novels begin with Sinful Cinderella, who turns out to be a not very pleasant young woman living with an even more unpleasant stepmother and two stepsisters—Lunilla and Melodie. Cinderella does end up marrying a prince,…

Psychic Girl Communicates with Animals

ByMichael Thal August 31, 2017

Lost and Found by Sharon Ledwith is an excellent read for YA readers on several levels. It teaches kids about leadership and responsibility, and it sets a fine example for us humans to care better for the animals around us Whiskey, a fifteen-year-old calico cat, is the only link of communication between the cat floor…

What is Your Hidden Super Power?

ByMichael Thal August 25, 2017

Daniel Solomon Kaplan wrote his YA science fiction novel, Elevated: A YA Sci-Fi Fantasy Superhero Series (Elevated Book #1), based on a premise: If you could have a super power, what would it be? Since life isn’t that simple, and not all of us will fly, the characters in this book only hope for the…

A Time Travel Love Story

ByMichael Thal August 21, 2017August 21, 2017

Eighteen-year-old Lucy Channing has the responsibility of marrying Dashel Rothchild, the Earl of Westington, so her soon to be impoverished father can maintain his position in 1815 London society. Unfortunately, Lucy doesn’t love Dashel, a young man she’s known most of her life, even though he is a nice enough chap. Lucy’s grandmother, Agatha, the…