MMGM is a weekly meme hosted by middle grade author, Shannon Messenger. (Finally! A meme that fits perfectly with my content!) If you have never read The Princess and the Goblin, I’d recommend starting with my review of that book. This is the sequel, and nearly as good as the first. George MacDonald wrote in the Victorian […]
Papa’s Latkes, by Michelle Edwards, illustrated by Stacey Schuett, 2004, book review
Happy Hanukkah, everyone! No, we’re not Jewish, but my family likes to celebrate Hanukkah. And this is one of the picture books I like to read every year. It doesn’t really explain the meaning behind the holiday, so it’s not a great teaching tool, but it’s flavored with hope and family, two of the holiday’s […]
The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett, 1911, Book Review
This is an oldie but goodie. Within, young Mary Lennox has been raised in India, but her socialite parents had little to do with her. When they die in a cholera epidemic, she’s sent to live with her uncle in England. Unfortunately, Mary has become a sickly, ugly, and a nasty little tyrant. And misfortune […]
Peter and Wendy, by J. M. Barrie, 1911, Book Review
Who hasn’t grown up loving Peter Pan? I still enjoy the Disney movie, and just last year I took my kids to a high school production. Peter has prompted several excellent spinoff stories, such as the 1991 live action movie, Hook, and the Starcatchers children’s literature series. I haven’t seen the 2003 movie version, but I […]
Pie, by Sarah Weeks, 2011, Book Review
This book is delightful. That’s not a word I usually use. It’s sort of an old-fashioned word that’s not really my style. A word old ladies might use to describe a chickadee singing on a sunny day or a glass of spiced tea in the winter. But it’s the word that comes to mind. Pie […]
Leaf and the Sky of Fire, by Jo Marshall, 2010, Book Review
My son was asked by Ms. Marshall if he would read and review this book on his homeschool blog. He agreed, and he’s still plugging away at it, but it was a pretty large undertaking for a low reader. In the meantime, I picked up the book and beat him to the punch. The setting […]
Out From Boneville (Bone, book one), by Jeff Smith, 2005
I’ve heard good things about this series of easy graphic novels from several sources. And I admit book one was engaging. Fone Bone is a cute little white critter that reminds me a bit of Casper the ghost. He’s even-tempered, reasonable and likeable. But he, along with his cousins Phoney Bone and Smiley Bone, are […]
The Island Stallion, by Walter Farley, 1948, Book Review
After rereading The Black Stallion a few weeks ago (read my review), I had to revisit my second favorite book by Mr. Farley. This is the first of a companion series, one I put off reading as a child because after cruising through a dozen books featuring the Black, my loyalties were firmly entrenched. I […]
The Hidden Stairs and the Magic Carpet (The Secrets of Droon, book one), by Tony Abbott, 1999, Book Review
Early chapter books aren’t my specialty. I don’t read them often, but my son was in need of a new series, so I read The Hidden Stairs and the Magic Carpet, the first book of The Secrets of Droon. I was impressed. The story was very simplistic, of course, but what takes me twenty minutes to […]
The Princess and the Goblin, by George MacDonald, 1872, Book Review
First published in 1872, The Princess and the Goblin is still a wonderful children’s story. I read an unabridged version that was a little wordier—more old-fashioned—than the abridged version I read in college, but I was amazed at all the layers of meaning I picked up on this time around that I missed back then. I […]