Category Archives: Print

The Benefits of Being an Octopus

Posted on March 21, 2019 by

Here’s another author from my Kidlitcon panel, which I’m posting from the airport on my way to Providence! The Benefits of Being an Octopus by Ann Braden. Sky Pony Press, 2018. Seventh grader Zoey mostly keeps her head down on … Continue reading →

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So Done by Paula Chase.

Posted on March 18, 2019 by

Kidlitcon is coming up!  I’ll be moderating a panel called “You Can’t Say That in Middle Grade!” with four wonderful authors who are willing to tackle issues that have in the past been reserved for teen audiences, if they’re discussed … Continue reading →

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The Girl with the Dragon Heart by Stephanie Burgis

Posted on March 15, 2019 by

This is the sequel to The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart, which won the 2017 Cybils award for Middle Grade Speculative Fiction.  It came out in the middle of my 2018 Cybils reading, and was one of the first books … Continue reading →

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Peasprout Chen

Posted on March 14, 2019 by

The nice thing about reading books that were published earlier in the Cybils cycle is that sometimes the sequel is ready to read very shortly afterward!  Here are a pair of Taiwanese-flavored fantasies, the first of which was one of … Continue reading →

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4 Unique Fantasy Books for Kids

Posted on March 6, 2019 by

Seeing as how it’s March already, I’m going to try to finish reviewing all my Cybils books this week, so I can move on to the books I’m reading this year.   Dragonfly Song by Wendy Orr. Pajama Press, 2017. This … Continue reading →

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The Rose Legacy and The Third Mushroom

Posted on March 4, 2019 by

The Rose Legacy by Jessica Day George. Bloomsbury, 2018. Anthea has been raised as an unwanted orphan, shuttled from relative to relative.  (This is just the first chapter, but it was so painful for my daughter, a big fan of … Continue reading →

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The House in Poplar Wood and The Boy, the Bird and the Coffin Maker

Posted on March 1, 2019 by

Back to the backlog of Cybils books!  Here are two creepy-beautiful stories, both on the shorter side. The House in Poplar Wood  by K.E. Ormsbee. Chronicle Kids, 2018. There are three great shades, all rivals, who take human apprentices in … Continue reading →

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A Perilous Journey of Danger & Mayhem: a Dastardly Plot

Posted on February 27, 2019 by

A Perilous Journey of Danger & Mayhem: a Dastardly Plot by Christopher Healy. Harper Collins Childrens, 2018. 1883 – It’s the Age of Invention in an alternate New York City.  Molly Pepper is trying to help her mother Cassandra succeed … Continue reading →

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Thornbound by Stephanie Burgis

Posted on February 23, 2019 by

Stephanie Burgis has a new book in the Harwood Spellbook out on February 25!  Thank you so much to the author for the review copy! Thornbound. The Harwood Spellbook II by Stephanie Burgis. Five Fathoms Press, 2019. Cassandra Harwood overcame … Continue reading →

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Nightbooks by J.A. White

Posted on February 11, 2019 by

Here’s a brief take on another one of the books I read for the Cybils.   Nightbooks by J.A. White. Harper Collins Childrens, 2018. Alex is tired of being made fun of for being different. He’s on his way to … Continue reading →

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