Greg Pattridge hosts Marvelous Middle Grade Monday (MMGM) on his Always in the Middle website each week. Check it out for more great kidlit! Published in 1961 and receiving Newbery honors the next year, The Golden Goblet still rates high on any reading list decades later. Within, young Ranofer wants nothing more than to become a goldsmith in […]
The Magician's Nephew (Chronicles of Narnia), 1955
I published this post on my self-hosted blog last spring. Since the first five Narnia books are on this blog, I wanted to put this one here, too. I’m nearly done working my way through the Chronicles of Narnia with my son. This is the sixth and second-to-last book in the series. Oddly enough, it tells of […]
My Experience with Giveaways (Unmasking an Author Series, #2)
This is the second in a series about author visibility. Last week I discussed some challenges indies face. This week and next I’ll be discussing the use of freebies. “Giveaways are a great way to generate interest and spread the word about your book.” That is what I was told by several veteran indie authors, […]
Knee-Knock Rise, by Natalie Babbitt, 1970, Book Review
In a land of flat plains there sits a ridge of hill, and on the very top one, the one always embraced by a cloak of mist, there dwells a beast. The people of Instep, the town closest to Kneeknock Rise, hold a fair each autumn, when the weather turns surly and the Megrimum atop […]
Okay for Now, by Gary D. Schmidt, 2011, Book Review (Kind of)
I have one word for you: A.m.a.z.i.n.g. Gary Schmidt has long been one of my favorite authors. In fact, I’ve kind of made him my very own personal back-pocket author. Years ago, when I was freshly out of college and toying with a writing hobby, I discovered his book, Anson’s Way. I finished the last […]
It's Like This, Cat, by Emily Neville, Book Review by Emily, age 11
The title of this book is It’s Like This, Cat. The author is Emily Neville. This book won the Newbery Award. It is fiction. The story begins in New York with the main character, Dave Mitchell, arguing with his dad. He gets in all sorts of arguments with his dad. He goes to an apartment […]
Deltora Quest Series, by Emily Rodda, Book Review
My daughter and I have been fighting all week, and I’m thrilled! You see, I picked up the first of an eight-volume series called Deltora Quest from the library to fill her reading quota for this last week of school. Not only did she read the first one through in a day, she requested the […]