Blog
As a homeschooling veteran, I review middle-grade stories to help parents, librarians, and teachers choose good books.
Look for author news here too!
My Year in the Middle by Lila Quintero Weaver, a review
My Year in the Middle by Lila Quintero Weaver Published 2018 by Candlewick Press, 268 pages Genre: Middle Grade historical It's April, 1970, in Red Grove, Alabama. Lu, a sixth-grade girl from a Venezuelan family, just wants to get along socially. The schools have been...
Greetings From Witness Protection! by Jake Burt, a review
Greetings From Witness Protection! by Jake Burt, a review Published 2017, MacMillan Publishing Group, 358 pages Genre: Middle Grade Contemporary Thirteen-year-old Nicki woos the reader with her strong and quirky personality. We quickly fall in love with this kid in...
The Language of Spells by Garret Weyr, a review
The Language of Spells by Garret Weyr, illustrated by Katie Hartnett Published by Chronicle Books, 2018, 299 pages Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy Grisha the dragon had a very unfortunate encounter with a sorcerer named Leopold, and as a result spent a century or so as an...
The Unintentional Adventures of the Bland Sisters by Kara LaReau, a review
The Jolly Regina and The Uncanny Express by Kara LaReau, Books 1 and 2 of the Unintentional Adventures of the Bland Sisters, a review. Published 2017 and 2018 by Amulet Books, New York, each about 160 pages, illustrated by Jen Hill Genre: Middle grade, aimed at...
Little Bigfoot, Big City by Jennifer Weiner, a review
Little Bigfoot, Big City by Jennifer Weiner, Book 2 of the Littlest Bigfoot series, a review Published 2017 by Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, 317 pages Genre: Middle grade fantasy, aimed at readers approximately 12 years old I was trying to get a recently...
Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson, a review
Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson, Alcatraz series #1, a review Published 2007 by Scholastic, 308 pages Genre: Middle grade humorous fantasy, aimed at readers approx. 12 years old This engaging and funny book promises to encourage reluctant...
The Hostage Prince by Jane Yolen and Adam Stemple, a review
The Hostage Prince by Jane Yolen and Adam Stemple, Book 1 of The Seelie Wars, a review Published 2013 by Viking/Penguin Young Readers Group, 232 pages Genre: Middle grade fantasy, aimed at readers approx. 12 years old Snail is her name, and she's an odd person in the...
Dear White Christian, a review
Dear White Christian by Aaron J. Layton Published 2017 by the Committee on Discipleship Ministries, Lawrenceville, GA Nonfiction, 120 pages I am a writer of fiction for twelve-year-olds. In my manuscripts, I have found myself returning again and again to the theme of...
Prince Oleomargarine, Mark Twain’s new book for kids: a review
The Purloining of Prince Oleomargarine by Mark Twain and Philip Stead, illus. by Erin Stead Genre: Middle Grade read-aloud picture book, 8 1/2 x 11-inch format, 152 pages Published 2017 by Doubleday Books for Young Readers Great news for Mark Twain fans! An unfinished...
I am hopeful about my latest book!
As you know, my loyal fans, I've been working on learning the novel-writing craft for about twelve years. I've learned a lot along the way, and I've been able to bless others as an editor and publisher. But my own fiction work remains unpublished. That's because the...
Ella Hough, full of promise
My great-aunt, Ella Hough, was an amazing artist. I know because I have her sketchbook. She was born in 1868 to Thomas Hough and his wife Jane. Thomas was a successful entrepreneur who immigrated in his early twenties from Yorkshire, England, in about 1865. He'd left...
Update on editing and publishing
I notice I haven't posted in eleven months. I'm not very focused on promoting myself, I guess. But I have been a busy bee! I have a manuscript that is ready for publication, in my professional opinion and that of other professionals, but it's not *exactly* what is...