I Need My Monster is a great new read-aloud. This one turns fear of a monster being under one’s bed upside down. Ethan actually finds having his very own monster under his bed reassuring. When Gabe the Monster goes fishing for a week, poor Ethan has to suffer thru a variety of substitute monsters. Sadly, none of them are quite right. This one is a fun read!
If you have a tween or teen who has a quiet temperament in your home, this is a must read! Cain does an outstanding job of not only explaining the differences between introverts and extroverts but how both types have tremendous gifts to contribute within friendships as well as groups. I especially liked how she provides chapters specifically focused on challenges tweens and teens deal with in the classroom and in social situations. This one is truly a winner!
Oliver Jeffers is immensely talented; his illustrations can be found in many popular children’s books. He is also an outstanding author. Stuck is a terrific tale that chronicles what it takes to get a stuck kite out of a tree. Young or old, you cannot help but smile and perhaps even giggle at the creativity that is used to release the kite. This is a children’s book that would be perfect to use with older learners as a way of exploring cause and effect as well as problem solving. This one is a new favorite!
This series is filled with history, mystery, and science. The main characters are fashioned from the lives of Ada Lovelace (the world’s first computer programmer) and Mary Shelley (author of Frankenstein) in the year 1826. In this version of their stories, the girls meet as tween girls and start a detective agency. This is a fun, engaging tale. We will definitely be looking for future titles in this series!
Fantasy adventure stories are always a hit with our daughter. The Never Ending Story did not disappoint. With a hero’s quest filled with lessons and the opportunity to meet a wide variety of whimsical creatures along the way, The Never Ending Story is delight.
The Familiars is a fast moving fantasy based series which features animals. Our daughter has delighted in reading them! As a parent, I love them because they are filled with adventure but are not too scary for a sensitive child. This series is a winner!
Peter H. Reynolds is one of my all time favorite authors. His books always appear simple but supply BIG messages. Rose’s Garden takes the reader on a fantastical journey around the world with Rose and her vehicle of choice – a magical teapot. While on her travels, Rose gathers seed from each locale. She finally finds a special patch of land that needs a bit of color, but before she can begin the transformation process with the help of her seed collection, some hungry birds eat all but a few of her seeds. Determined to see her plan through, she plants her remaining seeds. Ultimately her seeds coupled with some extra special flowers presented to Rose by the neighborhood children turn the barren patch of land into a beautiful garden. Rose’s Garden is a very sweet story that highlights the powers of faith and determination.
As huge fans of The One and Only Ivan, our family was eager to see what Katherine Applegate would write next. We were not disappointed! Crenshaw is awesome! Just as The One and Only Ivan was a book we opted to partner read with our daughter; Crenshaw was as well. Dealing with serious topics is handled masterfully by Applegate, but with our daughter’s sensitive nature, reading the book together was the right choice for our family.
Homelessness is a challenging topic to read about at any age . To create a book targeted to eight to twelve year-olds that tackles the topic is particularly difficult. The use of an imaginary friend was a powerful tool in making this book age appropriate and highly enjoyable.
We love the Brave Girls series of devotionals. This is the third in the series, and our daughter was very excited when it arrived in the mail. These little devotionals provide a scripture verse and a few paragraphs about what that verse might look like in action at home, school, and beyond. Each section also includes a short prayer pointer. I have found this to be a great way for my daughter and I to start our mornings together over breakfast. These devotional books are absolutely perfect for elementary age girls.
While this complimentary book was provided for review by Harper Collins Publishing, no other compensation was given. All remarks are my personal and honest opinions.
When I was reading the original version of this book, our daughter kept asking me about the story. Although the book was a bit too much for a younger reader, I had some great conversations about the book with her and the roles teamwork and tenacity had in the story. I was truly delighted to discover the young readers adaptation. Our daughter could not put this book down once she started reading. Brown has a tremendous talent in sharing non-fiction stories in a highly engaging way. This one is really a winner in both the original version as well as the young readers adaptation!