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My thoughts: Reading Life After  is like taking a peek into the souls, hearts, minds, and lives of people. People who have been through a massive life changing event that shatters them to their very core. It is being enveloped in the emotions and heart wrenching hurt that they experience minute by minute and day by day. Being the sole survivor of a horrific bomb blast in the city's train, Autumn feels and experiences the "why me" feelings of survivor guilt. And then there are those she is now learning to know, people who are now in her circle of acquantaince experiencing daily life who lost their loved ones in the same train explosion. As the story unfolds new friendly relationships bloom and coping mechanisms begin to fall in place. However, the story is not just about people coming to terms and accepting what has happened to those lost in the bombing, it is about the difficulties they face in living their lives with their own personal shortcomings and interacting with f...

I continue to be amazed at the publications from Arbordale Publishing and the fun, educational material presented so well. Young readers can enjoy a bit of a story right along with a good dose of important information designed to stretch their intellectual abilities and develop their critical thinking skills. Written and illustrated by skilled professionals who write and draw in the fields about which they themselves are proficient and qualified, the stories are engaging and sometimes just downright funny. Sometimes the author and illustrator (either a photographer or an artist that draws and paints) presents basic facts and tells them in an interesting manner. Sometimes, they weave a tale that is fanciful and fun but still packed with facts about the particular subject the book is designed to impart to the young reader. Other great opportunities presented by Arbordale in relation to their books is the online material for each of the titles expanding further the information already in ...

ISBN: 978-0825444500 $14.99 | Paperback Kregel Publications My thoughts: Delectably sweet and genteel and a highly recommended read for teens and adults of any age. The author takes the reader back to a gentler, nobler time and shows the differences between the haves and have nots and how one sweet pastor's daughter seeks to help the have nots. The story is infused with a budding romance between the Earl and the pastor's daughter although their society's mores coupled with Miss Ellison's strong minded will and contempt for the arrogance she perceives in the Earl (Nicholas) seems to doom it from ever blossoming. A serious illness coupled with Miss Ellison falling ill and collapsing along the path home during a raging winter storm brings the two together although it still looks as though a relationship is doomed. I am looking forward to reading more from the author, Carolyn Miller as she carries us further into the lives of those who lived during this period of history. A...

Talk about the new movie Beauty and the Beast just releasing is seemingly on all fronts. Adults, teens, and kiddies alike are talking. So here we go on Chat With Vera - a bit of fairy tale wonder for the small ones. Board books designed with push, pull, and slide features to engage the young hands and mind and traipse a bit into the different world that is "the fairy tale." ISBN: 9781626868977 First Stories: Beauty and the Beast by Dan Taylor (Illustrations) "Do you love me, Beauty? Will you marry me?" First Stories: Beauty and the Beast is a perfect introduction to this classic fairytale. Push, pull, and turn mechanisms bring the story to life and introduce all the main characters: Beauty, her father, and of course the Beast! This well-loved fairytale is beautifully imagined for a new generation by children's illustrator Dan Taylor. My thoughts: Now I don't know, but I think I would be a bit fearful if I was taken by my father to a huge house (think castle)...

On sale March 28 2017   ISBN: 9780763648220 Picture Book, 80 pages Ages 4-8 My thoughts:   This is a fun book to read and children will thoroughly enjoy it. Just the right length for readers in grades three and four who are delving into the realm of early chapter books with a substantial amount of text and abundantly illustrated, the young reader will gleefully cheer the Princess on as she rebels the rigid scheduling of her life and escapes to explore the great out-of-doors on her own. Her co-conspirator is the wickedly cute crocodile who changes places with her in exchange for some luscious cream puffs. The illustrations will capture the attention and tickle the funnies out of every reader. Brian Floca is a Caldecott Medalist and it is easy to see why he has been so recognized because his art charms, captures the attention, entertains, and tells the story just as the author intended - with wit and clarity. The story by Newberry Medalist author Laura Amy Schlitz is just the ri...

My thoughts: I tend to think of elephants as large animals that roam Africa and as gentle giants of the animal world. I've seen them in zoos and in the circus. Recently, their plight in captivity has been recognized and many have been rescued and located where they can live out the remainder of their lives. But I recently learned that elephants are a crucial part of survival of other animals and species in the wild. They are what is considered a keystone species. As they roam they leave deep impressions where their feet impact the earth. In these impressions, small puddles of water remain from which birds and small mammals can drink. They uproot and eat small trees that sprout in the grasslands enabling the grasslands to remain intact for those species that need such. They use their tusks to dig and then eat the soil for nutrients and in so doing expose salts that other animals need to survive. They also dig down into the dry, hard earth and expose reservoirs of water so other anim...

My thoughts: The imagination of a child - well, an imaginative little boy - coupled with what you can experience on a raining day out in the rain is truly marvelous as author/artist Sam Usher has given us in his book Rain . The real winner and story teller of the book is the illustrations as they tell the story that words can't convey - a boy's imagation and desire to explore and enjoy. It's raining. It keeps raining and the boy really wants to go explore the puddles, catch drops in his mouth, and envision and experience the imaginary as he splashes and dashes through the rain. Granddad is busy writing a letter and other things grandpops do until when finally the rain stops and he says, "let's go."  The adventure begins. The illustrations capture ships, pirates, flags, and oh so  much more that runs through the mind of the boy as he enjoys his adventure. A lovely hardcover book with   glorious shinny spot gloss drops on the cover and inside you’ll find the enc...

My thoughts: Well respected and highly anticipated author, Sally Lloyd-Jones has used her unique talent to share Psalm 23 with the very young child and artfully created the message with easy to interpret pictures that the young child can understand. The text of the beloved Psalm 23 is simply put forth in words for the very young child. To me this is not an opportunity to actually teach the Psalm to the child. No, it is a little board book for young hands and young hearts to be able to understand how God is always with the child and He will always take care of him or her. I would strongly encourage parents and caregivers to begin teaching the actual text of Psalm 23 to the child in short phrases as soon as they are able to grasp it. Committing it to memory will surely bring comfort throughout his or her life. But for the time being and for the very young child, it is good to take an opportunity such as the book Found  presents to teach the child about God's presence. About the book:...

Age Range: 4 - 8 years Hardcover: 42 pages Eerdmans Books for Young Readers ISBN-13: 978-0802854889 My thoughts:   The use of a collection of hues and shades of blues by the artist author to create The Blue Hour  results in an engaging sensual delight. So many and varied creatures and objects exist that are of blue colorization and yet we miss it in our daily lives. Yes, we delight when we see a Blue Bird or a Blue Jay and we love blue flowers and blue skies, but there is more, so much more. Isabelle Simler has gathered this variety from across the globe and all climates. And then she has settled them what is known, especially in the photographic world, as "The Blue Hour." Just what is "the blue hour"? The blue hour (from French l'heure bleue) is the period of twilight early in the dawn each morning and late in the dusk each evening when the sun is at a significant distance below the horizon and the residual, indirect sunlight takes on a predominantly blue hue. ...

ISBN13: 9780764212956 My thoughts: The author, Dani Pettrey, has woven a multi-layered suspense story set in the Baltimore, Maryland area. Utilizing a cozy group of co-workers who probe until they find the culprits in the horrific criminal cases to which they have been assigned. Pettrey takes the reader into the world that makes up the lives of these men and women of valor. The friendship, sense of humor, and romantic entanglements show they are human and how they cope with the grimness that is their daily world. Infused with faith that sustains and gives hope, the characters learn to overcome their past and go forth forgiven. In Still Life  the main thread dances around the photographic art show from which a main piece has been swapped out and in its place another piece depicting a posed model who appears to have been dead when the picture was taken. As the team pursues the art theft a darker, twisted crime becomes evident requiring intense probing. While the team pursues thi...

My thoughts: I have enjoyed the Ideals publications (seasonal) since my teen years when my mother would purchase them - specifically the Christmas and Easter/Spring editions. Each year Ideals collects poems, sayings,  Scripture, hymns, and beautiful pictures to bring the reader a collection suitable for that season and filled with inspiration, beautiful word usage, and readings worth perusing again and again. The reading of poetry is somewhat a lost art and most folks won't sit long enough for the nuances of poetic phraseology to envelope their heart and mind. But if introduced early in life it is often enjoyed throughout life. In Easter Ideals 2017 the collection speaks to the loveliness of bursting Spring, colors of flowers, and the dressing of nature reflected in the dressing of little girls in spring dresses and bonnets. The readings segue into the more serious aspect of the Easter season - that of the resurrection of Christ the Lord. I love this aspect most of all. I recommend...

My thoughts: This is a quality board book with soft, padded cover and is sized just right for young hands. The illustrations by the Italian artist Alida Massari bear strong influence from Italian art masterpieces and a little of the Russian icon art. Beautiful and inspiring. The book is more complex than a typical child's board book in that it is a compilation of Bible stories in which Angels appeared or played a major roll. The text is simple enough to be read to young children and also for young readers to be able to read for themselves. Stories included include: Abraham and the Three Visitors, Food For Elijah, Daniel and the Lions, A Surprise Visitor (angel visits Mary), Voices Like Thunder (shepherds in field), Jesus the Children and the Angels, The Best Message Ever (stone rolled away from the empty tomb), and A Place Filled With Angels. As you can see, this is a nice selection that encompases the breadth of the Bible. A grand introduction to the study and understanding of Ang...

No, No, Bunny (March 7, 2017; ISBN 9780824916510; $7.99; 16 pp), Little Bunny has been taking things that don’t belong to him: pennies from Mama’s purse, a friend’s toy car, and a candy bar from the store. Taking everything seemed like a good decision at the time, but now Little Bunny feels sad. He confesses to his Mama and returns the items to their owners, learning that doing what’s right is always best. Uh-Oh, Bunny (March 7, 2017; ISBN 9780824916503; $7.99; 16 pp) finds Little Bunny being a bit careless: drawing on walls, knocking over a plant, tearing pages from a book. When Mama asks him about the messes, Little Bunny chooses to be honest, which makes Mama happy. With Mama’s help, Little Bunny cleans up each mess. Preschoolers will learn, in a gentle, non-didactic way, that telling the truth is always best. My thoughts: Both of the Adventurous Bunny books are charming, fun reads that teach young bunny (and young human toddlers) that there are just some things they shouldn't d...

ISBN 9780763668198 Hardcover $15.99 US / $21.00 CAN Ages 4-8 My thoughts:  The art of Origami is typically thought to be Oriental. However, anyone who loves folding paper to make pretty objects can fall in love with the art form of Origami. That is certainly the case with young Joey. "Joey loved things that folded...." He love his accordian, had a folding bed to sleep in, and loved to fold road maps. Then (yep, enter the Oriental influence) young Sarah Takimoto's mother visited the school and a new type of folding was introduced into the life of young Joey. Joey practiced and found it was much harder to do than he thought. Then he found a new way to practice that actually helped a friend. The story is sweet and will encourage a child that is trying to learn to do something new. The illustrations show Joey and his family and friends drawn with boldness and colors that will grab the attention of the young child. I found this book to be entertaining and packed with the lesso...

ISBN 978-1-4964-0616-3 Hardcover $26.99 About the Book: As he prepares to deliver the State of the Union address, the president of the United States is convinced the Islamic State is on the run, about to be crushed by American forces once and for all. But New York Times foreign correspondent J. B. Collins tells the president he’s dead wrong. With the Middle East on fire, the Israeli prime minister dead, and Amman in ruins, Collins fears a catastrophic attack inside the American homeland is imminent. He argues that only an all-out manhunt to capture or kill Abu Kahlif―the leader of ISIS―can stop the attack and save American lives. But will the president listen and take decisive action before it’s too late? Read a PDF Excerpt - click here My thoughts:  When Joel Rosenburg "puts pen to paper" he opens doors to areas of life unknown and inexperienced to the average person. His fiction into the political, espionage, terrorist world of today reads like reports to heads of state and...

ISBN13:  9781426769931 My thoughts: This is a gentle story about a young woman and young man who really care for each other but whose lives aren't meshing as they would wish. For personal familial reasons, John and his two brothers had left their Amish home and community and ventured into the outside community and away from the Amish. Eventually John's two brothers returned to the Amish community and church and married young Amish women. John just couldn't seem to do this and his former sweetheart, Rose Anna, really wished he would return back to the Amish fold and to her. John does live and work nearby on a horse farm owned by a retired big city attorney but he also works two other small jobs. He is not in the Amish church and this is the major reason he can not court and marry Rose Anna. John does help his two brothers on their farms typical of the way that the Amish have of helping each other. His relationship with Neil, the owner of the horse farm, soon becomes close an...

ISBN: 9780736966559 Harvest House Publishers $14.99 Paperback Dystopian fiction My thoughts: I always highly anticipate reading Vannetta Chapman's new releases. Raging Storm  is certainly no exception and reading it has further cemented my opinion of her as an author with varied talents who can and does write fiction that is clean, exciting, interesting, and thought provoking. As book two in The Remnant Series opens, Raging Storm  has the featured individuals from book one ( Deep Shadows ) now venturing forth to find medical supplies for the inhabitants of their small town. They must try to avoid raging gangs of evil, unscrupulous people caught up in the devastation that resulted from the solar flare that left civilization totally uncivilized with no electricity or other utilities, no food, no medical supplies or hospitals, no protection. Conditions are bad. In fact, they are now so much worse than bad. As they pierce the evil that is enveloping the large capital city, they do...

To celebrate Women's History Month we are looking at how women drove boldly into the Twentieth Century. Various contributions of women to the events in history and in today's world is highlighted in a variety of manners. Chat With Vera celebrates and acknowledges the women who bravely jumped into the seats of early automobiles and challenged the roads that lead to their abilities to participate more in the events that changed the world. International Women's Day is on March 8. ISBN 978-1426326974 Ages 10+ - Grades 5 & Up Hardcover 96 pages $18.99 Motor Girls: How Women Took the Wheel and Drove Boldly Into the Twentieth Century (National Geographic Kids Books) by Sue Macy Sixty plus pages of photographs and drawings placing various women in automobiles during the turn of the century coupled with text that states the facts of events as they unfolded showing women rolling boldly forward will enable the reader to share the history and excitement of these participants who p...