(I just got home from 2 weeks without internet. I’ve been off the grid and out of touch, but I’m back and trying to catch up!) 🙂 I’m very late to this party. Before there was Harry Potter (90’s), there was Redwall (80’s). Where was I? I thought perhaps I had read this long ago, […]
The Invention of Wings, by Sue Monk Kidd
This book isn’t exactly children’s literature, though it is appropriate for a young adult audience. I’m featuring it today because its subject is so incredibly intertwined with that of my latest book, Ella Wood. In fact, The Invention of Wings was recommended to me by two of my blog readers after I began sharing snipets of […]
Keeping Safe the Stars, by Sheila O’Connor
This is a sweet, unhurried story that takes place in 1972. Pride Star, newly thirteen and the oldest of three siblings, lives with their grandfather, Old Finn. Except Old Finn left for the hospital and doesn’t come back. With just ten dollars in the cupboard, Pride tries her hardest to take care of her family. […]
Ragesong: Uprising (Ragesong, 2), by J. R. Simmons
I read book one of this series last fall and loved it. (Read my review here.) Because I was also furiously pounding out Ella Wood, it took me some time to return to the series. With my project completed and the third Ragesong book just about ready to hit the virtual shelves, I picked up book two. […]
A Long Walk to Water, by Linda Sue Park
This is the remarkable story of Salva Dut, a survivor of the Sudanese Civil War that raged from 1983-2002. Salva spent years walking, avoiding the war, living in refuge camps—surviving. He was one of the lucky ones who eventually migrated to America. He then chose to return to drought-ridden Sudan and drill wells in poor […]
The Mosque Hill Fortune, by Vivienne Mathews
This is the tale of two otters, both sea captains, both strong and self-assured, both masters of their own crew. Marshall, son of the famous (and missing) relic hunter, is the darling of the Secoran navy, master of weaponry, loyal, honest, and stalwart. McKinley the Marauder, infamous pirate, quick on his feet, adaptable, brash, and […]
The Gypsy Pearl: Tye (Gypsy Pearl, 3), by Lia London
This has been one of my favorite recent series. And it just so happens to be written by a friend of mine, Lia London. (But she became a friend after I’d been introduced to her fabulous writing.) Today, I’m featuring the newly released  third and final book in her Gypsy Pearl series, which I had […]
The Distance Between Us, by Kasie West
I’ve got one more cutsie YA romance for you. Yup, read it while I was writing Ella Wood, to absorb some of the light romanciness that my system doesn’t produce naturally. Actually, the book was pretty readable. I even liked it. I guess there’s just enough demand for a happily ever after in me to push […]
Chosen (Amish Bloodsuckers Trilogy) by Barbara Ellen Brink
This is an unusual book to classify. I love that indie publishing allows for these unique books that don’t really fit into a comfortable niche, ones that publishers often reject for that very reason, no matter how well written the story might be. This one warrants a place on the virtual shelves. Jael, named for […]
El Deafo, by Cece Bell
This year’s Newbery was announced not long ago, so I rushed to grab a copy of the new winner. I was rather disappointed. In fact, I haven’t really liked a Newbery winner since 2011, Clare VanderPool’s Moon Over Manifest. Perhaps all the edgier, more experimental types of literature like graphic novels and verse I’ve been seeing lately […]