Caraval is the story of Scarlett, a girl who is desperate to escape her violent and controlling father and to take her younger sister, Donatella, with her. Scarlet hopes marriage to a man she’s never met, a marriage arranged by her father, will save them. Donatella doesn’t believe it will, so she persuades a handsome sailor toContinue reading “Recommended: Stephanie Garber’s CARAVAL”
Category Archives: book recommendations
A Book to Pull in Reluctant Readers: Neal Shusterman’s SCYTHE
Normally, I don’t write reviews for books by established authors. Scythe was published in November 22nd, 2016 and already has 1,994 reviews on Goodreads, so my 1,995th is not going to have a big impact on Shusterman’s sales. But as a mom with one bookworm and one reluctant reader, I am always on the lookout forContinue reading “A Book to Pull in Reluctant Readers: Neal Shusterman’s SCYTHE”
Fangirl Report: The HEARTLESS Ball – Marissa Meyer’s Launch of the Prequel to ALICE IN WONDERLAND
*Spoiler alert for Cress. Skip asterisked sentence if you have not finished and plan to read!* I walked into The Heartless Ball with my daughter and her best friend, ready to celebrate the launch of Marissa Meyer’s latest book, Heartless. All around us were characters straight out of Marissa’s books and other fairy tales. Cress floatedContinue reading “Fangirl Report: The HEARTLESS Ball – Marissa Meyer’s Launch of the Prequel to ALICE IN WONDERLAND”
2016 CYBILS Awards!
This guest post by Michelle Leonard is reposted from TheWingedPen.com. The window to nominate YOUR Favorite Children’s and Young Adult books for prestigious Cybils Awards is open now through October 15th! What are Cybils Awards? The first Cybils Awards were presented in February 2007. If you are really sharp, you probably just figured out that makesContinue reading “2016 CYBILS Awards!”
Book Review: THE HUNDRED LIES OF LIZZIE LOVETT by Chelsea Cedoti
Lizzie Lovett’s disappearance is all anyone at Griffin Mills High School can talk about. Hawthorne Creely can’t believe all the attention Lizzie’s getting. She was a cheerleader and homecoming queen. Nothing bad ever happens to people like Lizzie. Plus, she graduated and moved away three years ago. Don’t people have something better to obsess over?Continue reading “Book Review: THE HUNDRED LIES OF LIZZIE LOVETT by Chelsea Cedoti”
Birthday Shopping for My ‘Tween Bookworm
I love buying books as gifts. What else can provide so much joy for so little money? Okay, the best things in life are free, as they say. But for things that have a price tag, books are really high on the entertainment value/dollar meter. I’m reminded of this every Christmas and every August whenContinue reading “Birthday Shopping for My ‘Tween Bookworm”
Jen Malone Book Review Twofer – THE SLEEPOVER and MAP TO THE STARS
I picked up a copy of Jen Malone’s At Your Service at the 2015 New England SCBWI Conference after attending her great talk on middle grade voice. (Find the book review here.) I enjoyed the story and my 11-year-old daughter became a fan. She now knows to ask for Jen Malone books when I’m heading to theContinue reading “Jen Malone Book Review Twofer – THE SLEEPOVER and MAP TO THE STARS”
Write Believable Heroes, Villains, and Emotions with The Positive/Negative Trait Thesauri and The Emotion Thesaurus
Rebecca: The Emotion Thesaurus has had its own special place on my writing desk forso long, I had to look on Goodreads to see when I’d first read it. January 1, 2014. I’ve been using it for a while. When I first started using the book, it opened my eyes to conveying emotions through actions. Well, okay,Continue reading “Write Believable Heroes, Villains, and Emotions with The Positive/Negative Trait Thesauri and The Emotion Thesaurus”
Fangirl Report: Catching Maggie Stiefvater on The Raven King Book Tour
I am an unabashed fangirl of great writing, and have the photos to prove it here. So when I heard that Maggie Stiefvater would be nearby on her book signing tour for The Raven King, the fourth and last book in The Raven Cycle, the date immediately went on my calendar. Luckily, someone cheered on Twitter about gettingContinue reading “Fangirl Report: Catching Maggie Stiefvater on The Raven King Book Tour”
A shout out to two soon-to-be-released middle grade reads.
The Seventh Most Important Thing by Shelley Pearsall – Set in the 1960’s, this story dives into the life of Arthur T. Owens, a boy who picks up a brick and throws it at an old trash picker. Instead of sending Arthur to juvie, the judge sentences him to do 120 hours of community serviceContinue reading “A shout out to two soon-to-be-released middle grade reads.”
Rebecca J. Allen 