Isabella: Star of the Story – Jennifer Fossberry

As the mother of a little girl who adores reading, the cover of this book immediately caught my attention.  Then I started reading, and it did not disappoint.  Isabella: Star of the Story is wonderful!  Isabella discovers that a journey of discovery can be found in books.  She jumps into a number of familiar tales within the story and takes the reader with her on quite an adventure.  This is an imaginative tale enhanced by darling illustrations which would make a great read-a-loud.

The Very Fairy Princess Sparkes in the Snow – Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton

The Very Fairy Princess Sparkles in the Snow is a cute story.  Geraldine, the main character, reminds me of Fancy Nancy.  She is full of spunk and fun.  The story provides an opportunity for the reader to see that things do not always turn out how we might hope and how to deal with such situations.

Redwoods – Jason Chin

Jason Chin writes amazing books about the world around us.  Redwoods is a terrific book which incorporates fictional elements with non-fiction details.  A little boy is waiting for a subway train while reading a book about redwoods.  As he continues to read he enters the redwood forest to explore and learn.  The illustrations in this book are outstanding and bring the text to life.  This magical tale is a winner!

Dream Animals – Emily Winfield Martin

Dream Animals is an absolutely wonderful bedtime story.  As each child in the story starts to slumber, he/she is met by a special dream animal who transports the child to a magical world of dreams.  The rhyming text is well done, but the illustrations take center stage in this book.  They are amazing.  I found that I enjoyed lingering over each page to look at all the details as much as our daughter did.  Dream Animals is a delight!

The Painted Table – Suzanne Field

The Painted Table would make a great selection for a book club pick.  It is a rich novel which explores mental illness and provides the reader with a great deal to process.  A strongly emotional tale, this book is well written and highly engaging.  I found I kept coming back to the book whenever I could in order to find out what happened next in the lives of these characters; I genuinely cared about them.

While this complimentary book was provided for review by Litfuse Publicity Group, no other compensation was given.  All remarks are my personal and honest opinions.

The After-Christmas Tree – Linda Wagner Tyler

It is always a bit sad to take down the Christmas tree.  This charming book features the story of a family who shares their tree after the holiday season comes to an end.  They “decorate” their Christmas tree with homemade bird feeders and other treats and then take the tree outside for the animals to enjoy.  Our little animal loving daughter really liked this story!