Blog
As a homeschooling veteran, I review middle-grade stories to help parents, librarians, and teachers choose good books.
Look for author news here too!
Five Books for Boys This Christmas
These days, a great recent book for a boy can be hard to find, what with all the new offerings featuring girl power. But boys are still out there, and many of them like to read. If you want to promote reading in your family, perhaps a list of good recent boy books is...
I got a Moonbeam Children’s Book Award!
I've got big Moonbeam news! But first, I apologize for being quiet. You may have been wondering what I am doing. I've been working on writing more fiction for kids. I've now got a study guide for homeschoolers reading The Long Shadow! And, there are plenty of tales...
Max Einstein: The Genius Experiment by James Patterson, a review
Max Einstein: The Genius Experiment is a middle grade book that takes the female scientist character to a whole ‘nother level. But does the book grab our hearts?
Spark by Jill Shope Hackman, a review
Spark by J.M. Hackman tells the Christian fantasy tale of Brenna, a Pennsylvania schoolgirl just turning 16. Brenna discovers to her dismay that flames shoot from her fingertips when she’s angry. After she sets a school display on fire, causing the sprinkler system to...
An Unexpected Adventure by Kandi J. Wyatt, a review
In this middle-grade story, An Unexpected Adventure by Kandi J. Wyatt, eighth-grader Harley and two friends help a geologist look for geodes on the beach. Instead, they find what seems to be a huge egg. Soon it hatches –into a dragon!
The Letter for the King by Tonke Dragt, a review
I was delighted to find Tonke Dragt's novel The Letter for the King. It was originally published in 1962 in the Netherlands. It won many awards and sold a million or so copies, but it made its way into English only after fifty years, in 2013. Now Tonke Dragt's tale is...
Thick as Thieves by Susan K. Marlow, a review
Susan K. Marlow's middle grade novel Thick as Thieves tells a tale of 1880s California, ranching in the San Joaquin Valley. Thirteen-year-old Andi Carter immerses herself in caring for her horses when her mare gives birth to twins. At school one day, a new kid sits...
Light of Mine by Allen Brokken, a review
Light of Mine by Allen Brokken tells an allegorical tale of three children, ages 6, 9, and 12, set in what seems like 19th century rural America. The idyllic farm life of Ethan, Aiden, and Lauren descends into turmoil when Dad declares that he will leave to fight approaching Darkness.
Mulan: Before the Sword by Grace Lin, a review
n Mulan: Before the Sword, Grace Lin takes her turn as storyteller of the Chinese folk tale of Mulan, female warrior of old.
My Novel, The Long Shadow, Is Born!
It’s here! The Long Shadow, my debut novel, is born today. I am so thrilled and thankful that so many people, including kids and adults, are reading it and telling me they love the book. Including, for example, Covenant Seminary professor Jerram Barrs: “I loved this book.”
Alone by Megan E. Freeman, a review
In Alone by Megan E Freeman, twelve-year-old Maddie meant to plan a secret sleepover with a smorgasbord of Twinkies, soda and frozen pizza. But her friends cancel and she sleeps by herself at her grandparents’ apartment. Then she wakes up to a new world–one with no other people in it.
I Am David by Anne Holm, a review
Anne Holm, a Danish journalist and author, wrote this novel in 1963 about a twelve-year-old boy who grew up in a concentration camp in Eastern Europe and remembers nothing else. David’s life and outlook are uniformly grim. He has never even smiled.Anne Holm, a Danish journalist and author, wrote this novel in 1963 about a twelve-year-old boy who grew up in a concentration camp in Eastern Europe and remembers nothing else. David’s life and outlook are uniformly grim. He has never even smiled.