Whispers of Trees (Mythic Adventures Collection: Book 2)

Written by Ben Woodard

I received a copy of this book in return for an honest, non-biased review.

Bridget and Colin are walking through the Irish woods ahead of their parents and ten year old brother, Declan. Suddenly Colin disappears; Bridget thinks that he has been eaten by a wolf. A park ranger assures the family Colin will be found. When they go into town to file a report with the town constable, a strange looking lady named Mrs. O’Leary suggests that they must go into the woods so that the trees can guide them to Colin. Colin’s dad angrily puts his foot down, refusing to listen. Declan sneaks out and goes back into the dark woods to find the strange old woman who may be able to lead him to his brother. When Declan finds her in a odd cabin filled with computers and a bubbling cauldron, he is puzzled, but also drawn to follow her. Mrs. O’Leary demands that he go into the woods where the spirits of the trees will speak to him. By taming his fears, not only will he be successful in finding his brother, but he will also bring peace and tranquility to the family.

This mystery set in the mythical woods of Ireland mixes elements of adventure, myth, thriller, and family relationships. Targeted reader audience is ages seven through twelve. This is a story with many layers of meaning which are exposed by repeated readings, and one that could definitely be used for guided reading in a classroom discussion on many topics. Perfect as well for a family read aloud and group discussion.

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Rosco The Rascal in the Land of Snow #2

Written by Shana Gorian

Illustrated by Ros Webb

This is the second book in the Rosco series featuring the German Shepherd pup and his family. I enjoyed reading the first adventure set in the pumpkin patch, but the second one centering around a family weekend in the mountains entertained me even more.

Twelve year old James and his seven year old sister Mandy are classic sibling characters. Their dialogue and interactions are so natural. In this adventure James and Mandy share snowball fights, a terrifying sled race downhill, and encountering a coyote. Chapter book readers will find themselves identifying and empathizing with the characters and the tricky situations in which they find themselves. Black and white illustrations add interest. I have already grown fond of this family, their triumphs and their failures.

Recommended especially for children in the seven to ten age range, but adults will love it just as much for a enjoyable afternoon read.

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The Mermaid Tales: Celia’s Best Friends

Written by Chloe Sanders

Celia is a friendly mermaid who enjoys splashing in the water, while she plays and sings with her friends. She lives in the City of Pearl. Celia has lots of ocean friends like Ophelia the Octopus and Billy the Fish. While playing hide and seek with Billy, they come across Squatina the Shark bullying a white clownfish. Celia, who wants to be friends with everyone, devises a strategy to outsmart the shark and teach her a lesson. Squatina learns the real reasons behind her bullying, and finds ways to be a friend instead.

This early chapter book contains approximately thirty-six pages with a few color illustrations of the characters in action to move the plot along. Early readers learn some valuable life lessons while reading. Short enough to be a bedtime story. I read the kindle version. My rating would be higher if not for the numerous errors in formatting; words run into each other with no spacing. I did not read the paperback edition and cannot say whether the errors are present in that edition. It is a bit difficult to read, particularly for independent readers who have reading or learning disabilities.

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Jacob’s Secret (A Book For Kids)

Written by Emily McLeod

Book of less than thirty pages based on a fable. A small village has a secret, which Old Mathew confides to his grandson, Jacob. Mathew has been entrusted with a magic well in backyard. As long as the water taken from it is used wisely, it will multiply again and again. If bad people take water out and waste it, it will empty and the village will run out of water. Seven year old Jacob promises to keep the secret, but when the water in the village river appears to be drying up, Jacob volunteers the information that he knows the whereabouts of a magic well. Jacob is now caught between a rock and a hard place. Will the town drain the well and make their problem worse or will Jacob find a solution to his dilemma?

The ending is a surprise; it poses more questions than it answers. The illustrations in the story are colorful with very graphic facial expressions. They will assist beginning readers with the text. The size of the font also favors early independent readers. Though the book is targeted for nine to twelve year old readers, the length of the story suggests it to be more suitable for readers in the seven to ten age category.

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The Mardi Gras Chase (True Girls Book 1)

Written by Maggie M. Larche

Fast moving middle grade mystery adventure involving three friends, Melanie, Kate, and Faye. While attending one of the mardi gras parades in Mobile, Alabama, the girls notice that some of the letters on the floats are upside down. They copy the letters R.C.E.N.R.A.P. In addition, the strange letters appear only on the high and “poufy” floats. These friends do some internet research, discovering that Mr. Simmingham is their designer. The girls visit the museum to investigate the floats stored from the parade they had missed and vow to attend the rest of the parades during the week to continue the investigation. But the friends must attend a history presentation on Saturday, so they enlist Matt to collect the information. The plot thickens when Matt is arrested; the girls are relieved to find he had already succeeded in his mission. They are unsuccessful in cracking the code until they receive help from an unlikely source. A visit to the cemetery leads to another hair raising adventure and unexpected rewards.

Targeted for a middle grade audience of eight to twelve year olds, the plot moves along quickly. There is probably a bit too much dialogue, but that is appropriate for this age group. Strong female role models, strong family relationships, a tinge of scariness and mystery, plus the unusual Mobile mardi gras setting, set it apart from the typical middle grade adventure tale. First book in a series that will succeed if the characters continue to grow and evolve.

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Toby’s Tails: Still Wagging (Fantasy Farm Tales Book 4)

Written by Susan Keefe

Toby, the Border Collie, narrates his adventures at Fantasy Farm in France. He lives with two humans and an assortment of farm animals with whom he shares many adventures. Readers learn a lot about Toby as well as real life facts about life on the farm.

The first book tells about Toby’s first year of life and how he was trained to be a proper border collie. In this book, readers are treated to adventures on the farm throughout the seasons from spring, summer, autumn and back to winter. Toby meets Scarlet, a squirrel who introduces us to her drey and new babies. On a car trip, Toby explains what log lorries are, we meet some bees in the meadow pollinating plants, and noisy baby goats who are growing fast. Young readers learn about the differences between a mouse and a vole, the arrival of the swallows and the wrens. At the market, mum buys fresh vegetables and guinea fowl. Of course, there must be a mystery adventure. When Henrietta, a brown hen is missing, Toby is on red alert. Readers learn about rabbits and how they breed in the spring. Toby has quite a strange experience when the family decides to go on a picnic and Mum has an interesting experience with stick insects. Mum is excited when a horse named Marine comes to live on their farm. As the season turns to autumn, the slow worms emerge to do their work. In practically no time at all, frost has returned and winter is just around the corner. How will the animals on the farm adapt and change?

Love this approach to teaching children about animals and life on a real farm in the countryside. The photos are beautiful and charming. This chapter book of a little more than fifty pages could be broken up in sections as a classroom read aloud. There is a lot of information packed within the pages. Perfect choice for an eight to ten year old who loves animals.

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Wagon Train Kids Headed West for Gold

Written by K.B. Shaper

Middle grade historical fiction tale focusing on Jack and his younger sister Mary. The family lives on a farm in Connecticut. One day the children are shocked to learn that their parents are selling everything and heading West on a wagon train in the hopes of finding gold in the California hills. The author traces the journey as the family heads north to Albany and then west to Missouri. There they meet Mr. Booth, the wagon master who will guide them to California.

Shaper goes into detail about the supplies and the preparation needed to prepare for the journey. I do think more time should have been spent describing in detail what the children saw on the journey. In that respect the plot is a bit uneven. One night the members of the wagon train observe someone watching them. Jack and Mary are warned to run if their father signals them. The adventure begins when the children become separated from their parents and are left on their own. A kindly stranger rescues them and brings them into San Francisco, where they work to earn their keep. Will the children be reunited with their parents and what happened to the rest of the members of the wagon train?

The story ends abruptly, if satisfactorily. Some readers may question whether telling the children to run and hide and that they will be found when the danger is past is a realistic scenario. The plot features a traditional nuclear family story with a bit of history about the mid nineteenth century, but may be short of adventure for some 21^st century readers. I would still recommend it as an easy chapter book for early middle grade readers. Teachers might use it as a read aloud to supplement this period of American history.

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Dingo the Dragon Slayer:Master Zarvin’s Action and Adventure Series #1

Written by M.R. Mathias

This author has written many short stories and young adult tales about dragons and wizards. In this selection of under one hundred pages, Mathias is aiming toward a wider audience, targeting this book for ages seven and older. There are no illustrations and the text might be a stretch for seven and eight year olds, but I do think that middle grade readers who love fantasy will enjoy the book. The characters are well-developed, the reader rapidly feels their strengths and weaknesses.

Plot centers around Dingo, a dwarf who is the great grandson of Dingo, the Dragon Master who succeeded in roping a young blue dragon. Dingo is far less famous. His job is to guard the vent holes of the cave in which the dwarves of Dropull Mountains live. One day Dingo encounters a human heading toward the cave. The old man urges Dingo to abandon his post and follow him. Reluctantly agreeing to do so, Dingo discovers a dragon wants to lay her eggs in their shaft. He must warn the king.

So the adventure is set for Dingo to somehow convince the dragon to abandon her plan. How will the little dwarf succeed in that monumental task to save his people.? Who is the mysterious old man who suddenly appears to warn them.

Readers who enjoy dragons, magic, dwarves and adventure will enjoy this book. Also makes a good classroom read aloud choice as the chapters are fairly short. Reluctant readers will find the book interesting and appealing .

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1. Our Mission: The MCCBD team’s mission to spread the word and raise awareness about the importance of diversity in children’s literature. Our young readers need to see themselves within the pages of a book and experience other cultures, languages, traditions and religions within the pages of a book. We encourage readers, parents, teachers, caregivers and librarians to follow along the fun book reviews, author visits, event details, a multicultural children’s book linky and via our hashtag (#ReadYourWorld) on Twitter and other social media.

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NOW I AM PLEASED TO PRESENT MY BOOK REVIEW

Obstaclēs

Written by Gregory E. Ransome

Obstaclēs has a difficult problem. He is facing his thirteenth year and his prospects of being accepted at Fo Fum Prep, the school for training giants is next to nil. While he has a stout heart, he lacks the size of a giant and he suffers from AED (Attention Elsewhere Disorder). If Obstaclēs is not accepted, he faces banishment from his homeland of Humongopolis. But Obstaclēs has a plan, he will introduce the dreaded Dragonbush Rash and then swoop in with the cure of Saw Grass Tea and become a hero.

Unfortunately, Obstaclēs never gets a chance to implement his plan. His grandmother engages her neighbor Zorgon, the bean giant farmer to whisk Obstaclēs away to Podunkia Educational Academy and Remedy for Lost Sheep (PEARLS). To get there, the travelers will have to cross The Forest of Future Regret,the Lake of Lost Souls, the Willow Hawk Raptors and the lizard kingdom. Obstaclēs,will meet up with a human friend named Griff, and together they will outsmart their enemies. As the adventure unfolds, Obstaclēs learns a lot about himself, those he loves, and how to be true to oneself.

This book is the perfect choice for middle school students coping with issues of bullying,mental or physical disabilities, self-esteem and coming of age. The author artfully combines alliteration, onomatopoeia, and colorful imagery to paint the plot. There are a few well-drawn black and white illustrations inserted at critical junctures of the story line. Combining elements of fantasy, science fiction, fairy tale, and adventure, this fictional account of less than two hundred pages is a good choice for multicultural students ages eight through twelve, reluctant readers, and parents or teachers who want to enjoy a well-written story that hits the mark on addressing so many issues children growing up in today’s complex world.

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HERE IS A GAME THAT PARENTS OR TEACHERS CAN SHARE WITH THEIR CHILDREN TO PROMOTE FEELINGS OF SELF-WORTH:

Dearie: A Tale of Courage (Chapter Books Book 1)

Written by Gita V. Reddy

Beginning chapter book of approximately thirty-five pages which is just right for a new or reluctant reader. The protagonist is a deer named Dearie. At first, it appeared that Dearie was too weak and frail to survive. Beating the odds, he soon grew strong and fast. As time went on, a bigger problem surfaced. Whenever danger appeared, Dearie froze. He could not respond to danger. That put the rest of the herd at risk.

Despite the pleadings of his mother, it is agreed that Dearie must leave the herd to learn how to overcome his fears and master the skills needed to survive. Dearie must face wild boar, wolves, lions and crocodiles. Will Dearie find his courage, and more importantly, will he ever rejoin his beloved herd?

This is an animal coming of age story that teaches children we all must not be afraid how to learn to be independent. Simple pen and ink drawings accompany the short chapters. I think the plot begins a bit slowly; the real story unfolds halfway through the book in Chapter 5. Recommended as an independent read for eight to ten year olds or for reluctant readers who feel challenged by the length of most middle grade chapter books. Short enough to be used as a read aloud classroom discussion.

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