The Camelot Kids: Part One

Written by Ben Zackheim

First book in a new middle grade series that mixes medieval history, knights, castles, adventure and coming of age with a modern twist. Protagonist Simon Sharp is a fourteen year old who becomes an orphan at the age of twelve when his archaeologist parents die in an airplane crash over Scotland. Simon finds himself in a New York City orphanage and foster care. He is clever, smart and streetwise, though he is bullied by Brad. When strangers ask how his parents died, he replies, “King Arthur killed them.” Their lifelong mission had been to find Camelot.

Simon’s unlucky situation becomes more mysterious, when he gets a letter from an uncle in Scotland who claims that he has just found out about the accident and will assume responsibility for Simon. The boy is soon on a plane to Scotland and a new life in a mysterious castle. Though he now attends a private school, the bullying situation is the same. Simon will discover hidden passages and meet mysterious creatures like gargoyles, trolls, and magicians. Who are they and what is his connection to them?

This book of slightly less than one hundred pages has charming black and white illustrations that add to the depth of the characters and setting of the tale. The writing of the plot is well-executed and the characters are interesting and endearing. Zackheim seems to have found the right combination of modern day grit and medieval fantasy in setting the right tone for the series. I think tweens and teens will want to get involved with this story. I know that many adults like me have fond memories of Camelot.

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Frankie Dupont and the Lemon Festival Fiasco (Frankie Dupont Mysteries Book 2)

Written by Julie Ann Grasso

Illustrated by Alexander Avellino

Frankie Dupont is a pint-sized detective who wears a fedora and is accompanied by his trusty dog, Sherlock. His dad, Inspector Cluesome, has provided the incentive for his ten year old son to follow in his footsteps. In his first book of adventures, Frankie solved the mystery of Elderby Manor. He returns to that setting in Book 2 to solve the mystery of what happened to the lemon orchard.

At the outset the reader meets Frankie and Sherlock attending the new composite class at Maizon Valley Elementary School. His cousin, Kat, and friend Amy will again use their smarts to help Frankie solve the case. Almost as soon as class begins, Miss Chestnut presents a lemon meringue pie to the new head teacher, Mr. Mulberry, who immediately becomes ill. Frankie is determined to find out why.

When Miss Chestnut brings the class to the lemon orchard at Elderby Manor to pick lemons for the festival, everyone living and working there is under suspicion, One by one Frankie and his friends interrogate suspects and use their detective equipment to eliminate the innocent and find the culprit. There are enough twists and turns to keep the plot interesting and the reader guessing, and the characters are believable and humorous. The illustrator, Andrew Avellino, presents charming pencil drawings for each chapter. Book length is just around 100 pages, perfect for the eight to twelve age group. Look forward to joining Frankie again in Book 3 when the science fair will be sabotaged. Available in kindle and paperback editions.

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Myth Catchers: Book 1 Dad’s Pants

Written by Alan Riehl

This short book of less than sixty pages is the first in a series exploring the trials and tribulations of a ten year old boy named Curtis Armstrong. Curtis misses his father so much that he desperately hangs on to the one thing remaining to remind him of his dad, a pair of worn jeans. To make matters worse, his divorced mother works long hours and his older sister has a roomful of unicorns that he hates. To make matters worse, Christy loves to use her imagination and is considered “Miss Popularity” at school.

But now Curtis has an opportunity to start fresh with a move to Myth, New Mexico. He is determined to be the king of his new fifth grade class. Of course that dream does not materialize. On the first day he gets into trouble with the principal when he breaks her picture frame decorated with unicorns, his most despised symbol. A new threat appears in the form of the school’s most popular and clever student, Darla.

Curtis cannot understand what is happening to him as his usually logical and stable personality becomes overwhelmed with strange dreams and incidents that he cannot distinguish as real or imagined. Lots of twists and turns in the plot as Curtis struggles to figure out what is really going on, and how his father’s pants are suddenly the vehicle to catch some very scary things.

This first book does contain a few editing errors, but is filled with the kind of humor and absurdities that tweens love in their fiction. Short length makes the book a good choice for a reluctant reader. I must say that I was disappointed in the abrupt ending which left more questions than answers. No doubt that many readers will be waiting to see Book 2 in the hopes that their curiosity will be satisfied.

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Catnapped

Written by Teena Raffa-Mulligan

Illustrated by Daniel Weatheritt

Charming early chapter mystery book of less than fifty pages that is perfect for the beginning reader. Jenna bemoans the fact that her Nanna has moved from a bustling Australian city to a quiet house on Wattle Drive. Well, actually not that quiet, Nanna has adopted several pets: Oscar a large orange cat, Goliath, a large Great Dane, Cleo, a black and white cat, Albert, a python snake, and Polly, a chatterbox parrot, who enjoys watching police shows. One night while watching TV, Nanna screams with joy when she finds out that she has just won the lottery. Nanna quickly decides that after setting some money aside for Jenna’s education and a trip to Disneyland; she will use the rest to take her friend Alice to the Sydney Opera House, but give the bulk of the money to build a special home for cats that nobody wants.

Cass Snatchit and her lazy teenage brother Jack read of Nanna’s good fortune in the newspaper. They live in a run-down trailer and quickly decide that they will kidnap Nanna’s cat and demand a large sum of money for ransom. The author details their plans to spy on her and break into her house. Will they succeed in their plan to swindle Nanna and foil her generous plan for the lotto winnings?

The six chapters are short and the text is easy to read and conversational. Characters are fun, and the black and white pencil illustrations are charming. I do think the illustrations might have been more effective if they were larger and in color. This book has lots of elements a child age six to nine will enjoy: animals, the good guys and the bad guys, and a touch of humor. Recommended as an independent reader or read aloud at home, in the classroom or for siblings to share with one another.

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Cora Flash and the Diamond of Madagascar

Written by Tommy Davey

Cora is a spunky preteen who is traveling alone for the first time on a overnight train from the city to Topaz Mountain to spend some time in the country with her Uncle Andre. She meets a colorful cast of characters including a single woman, Mrs. Bronwyn, and her dog, Calvin. Almost immediately she notices a man named Mr. Sloane, who is being overprotective of a silver briefcase that he does not let out of his sight. It turns out that he has good reason for that because Mr. Sloane is carrying a valuable gemstone. The stone disappears from his sleeping car; Cora, a honeymoon couple, Mrs. Bronwyn, a college student, and the railroad porter will all be suspects interrogated by an undercover detective on the train.

The inspector is determined to solve the mystery by interrogation, but Cora has a few plans of her own. Will they be able to unravel the mystery to find out the identify of the thief? Cora proves her cleverness and keeps her cool. All the action takes place in less than two hundred pages before the passengers disembark from the train. Certainly this is a first ride that Cora will long remember and the beginning of her interest in solving many mysteries to follow.

Great story for tweens. It has the elements of a good mystery, colorful characters, and a respectful, intelligent strong female role model. This is a quick, fast moving read that will appeal to reluctant readers. Recommended highly for boys and girls eight years up and older.

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Three Little Pigs Get An Extreme Home Makeover
Written by Caprice Hokstad
Illustrated by Richard Svenson

Hokstad has done a marvelous job of putting a modern day setting and spin on classic fairy tales. Adult readers will find themselves smiling at the innovative settings and modern day language. The three little pigs live in Florida and must contend with a hurricane instead of a wolf. Goldilocks becomes the home invader and the Three Bears a model family. Hansel and Gretel are the victims of a nanny instead of a witch, and the gingerbread house meets an unlikely demise. Jack’s beanstalk is genetically modified, and an unscrupulous salesman meets his fate. Rapunzel is not the timid captive held in the tower. What will happen to those gorgeous locks of hair? Finally, in the Pied Piper story, students in an elementary school must face the music when one of their science experiments goes amiss and rats overrun the school. The principal demands a humane solution to solve the problem.

Young children won’t understand the humor, but many children in the middle grades who are already familiar with the classic tales will love the satire. Their parents will, no doubt, be amazed at the creative twenty-first century scenarios. Each of the story has an original illustration appropriate to the new version. For lovers of fairy-tales, this one is a definite change of pace.

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The Rescue Team

Written by Billi Tiner

The author of this heartwarming tale told from the point of view of a dog and a cat is a veterinarian who understandably has a great kinship with animals. Targeted for children in the eight to twelve year age range, the chapter book has no sex, violence or profanity which makes it a nice choice for a family read aloud. This book will take you on a series of adventures that will put you in their shoes.

The adventure begins when Ellie, who is a one year old Border Collie, suddenly finds herself in an animal shelter when her owners become pregnant. After what seems like an eternity, a kind woman named Anne adopts her. Ellie soon discovers that her new owner loves animals; Ellie begins to bring animals in trouble home. Soon she is sharing her home with Toby, a six-month old kitten who becomes her best friend. Together they will form an improbable but talented rescue team.

When Anne is hurt in an automobile accident, she meets a fireman named Brent and their lives become even more involved in animal and human rescue. They will all face adventures and disasters that hit close to home. The plot is simple and predictable, but the author has a real knack for using first person to get the reader in the head of the animal characters. Text level of difficulty is suitable for middle grade independent readers; younger children will enjoy listening to the story read aloud. Nice book to curl up with on a rainy weekend afternoon.

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SO MANY CHOICES

CATERPILLAR SHOES

Written by Angela Muse

Illustrated by Ewa Podles

Patches, a happy-go-lucky caterpillar, lives in the forest looking forward to new adventures each day. Because a caterpillar has six pairs of feet, one of her important choices is to make the proper shoe selection for her daily explorations. She might choose ballet shoes, sneakers, hiking boots, rain boots, or fluffy slippers at night. What does Patches do when she cannot decide on one adventure?

The illustrations in this book are adorable. They are colorful, bold, expressive and present well on a kindle HD fire. Tale is written in rhymes which are crisp and sharp. What a wonderful choice for a bedtime story or classroom read aloud! Recommended for toddlers, preschoolers and kindergarten readers.

About the Book

Title: Caterpillar Shoes | Author: Angela Muse | Illustrator: Ewa Podles | Publication Date: March 26, 2015 | Publisher: 4EYESBOOKS | Pages: 28 | Recommended Ages: 0 to 8

Summary: Patches is an energetic caterpillar who is trying to decide what activities to do. In the end, she doesn’t put any limits on herself and lives her life to the full.

Amazon  *  Goodreads

About the Author: Angela Muse

Angela was born in California to a military family. This meant that she got used to being the “new kid” in school every couple of years. It was hard trying to make new friends, but Angela discovered she had a knack for writing. In high school Angela began writing poetry and song lyrics. Expressing herself through writing seemed very natural. After becoming a Mom in 2003, Angela continued her storytelling to her own children. In 2009 she wrote and published her first rhyming children’s book aimed at toddlers. Since then she has released several more children’s picture books and released her first young adult romance series, The Alpha Girls, in 2012.  Angela’s husband, Ben Muse writes suspense/thriller books that can also be found on Amazon.    Check out what else she’s working on by visiting www.4eyesbooks.com

Website  |  Facebook  |  Goodreads  |

HEARTWOOD

Written by Polyanna Darling

Illustrated by Kirsty Chalmers

Heartwood is a heartwarming story that takes places in The Linney, which is a magical forest filled with trees that are hundreds of years old. Four trees are featured characters: Seth, The Tully Tree, Kelsey, and Tuleah. Each of these trees is inhabited by a different type of creature. A family of thirteen squirrels live in the Seth tree. Magpies sip the nectar in the flowers of the Tully tree. Tiny fairies live in the Kelsey tree, while a single raven named Bella makes her home in Tuleah. All of these creatures had lived in their homes for many years, but sadly none of them spoke to each other.

One day the peace of the forest is broken by a horrible noise. The creatures recognize it as a machine that knocks down trees. They call the bulldozer a “Smashbuster.” Forest inhabitants are in a panic about what to do, until Bella calls them together and warns them to stop quarreling if they intend to save their home from destruction. Bella berates them for their indifference and selfishness. She develops an ingenious plan to save the forest, but they must all agree to cooperate and work side by side.

The author skillfully reveals the clever plan step by step. Both the forest creatures and the humans who operate the machines have a lot to learn. This book of approximately fifty-five pages is a perfect chapter book for readers in the seven to ten age group. That is not to say that older readers and even adults will enjoy it. The charming and delicate illustrations done by Chalmers add much to the character and mood of the book. They are really exquisite. I cannot find anything not to like in this offering. Story-line flows nicely, the characters are believable, the lessons carefully crafted , and the artistic touches so well executed.

Pick up a kindle or paperback copy and enjoy!

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HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE!

The Adventures of Link: The Beginning Stage 1

Written by Cain Silverfish

This short fantasy novella describes the land of Josling, which at one time, was occupied by over 20 races that interbred and competed with each other. Hundreds of years of warfare ensued as each of the Lords attempted to unify it under their power. Eventually four main races remained: the TriBunes, Elves, Dwarves and Humans. The Humans tried to remain peaceful as they were the fewest in number.

One of the TriBunes, Professor Wei, is a respected history professor who is teaching about the Battle of Stone Mountain, which released the TriBunes from the slavery of the Dwarves. Through Holographic inserts, he paints the dramatic battle for his students of mixed races. On his way home, Professor Wei meets his old war rival, Karth Toebashar, who is clearly drunk. Out of nowhere a human appears who pleads for their help. Professor Wei invites both of them to his home. A knock at the door reveals unexpected visitors searching for “the human.” Who are they? Will Professor Wei and Toebashar reveal the identity of the secret visitor? The ending sets up for Stage 2. Silverfish entices the reader by offering this book free if you leave your email address with a review of the first book.

The first book offers a bit of history and sci-fi with the fantasy series. It is appropriate for tweens, teens and adults. Link promises to be an interesting character.

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