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In The Wednesday Wars, author Gary Schmidt walks a young man through life lessons as he and his teacher read the works of William Shakespeare. Okay for Now continues with Doug Swieteck, a character we saw in the first book. Doug’s family has moved to a small town in upstate New York. Family life presents…

Rosemary Wells crafts the perfect Mother’s Day book with Only You. Moms, when you’re tying that knot to hang on, read this with your little one. Only You reminds us that the sacrifices of parenting are so worth it. A precious book.

The Benefit Package: Life Insurance I was reading Psalm 103 when something caught my eye. In verse 2, David instructs us to “forget not all his (God’s) benefits.” As I thought about how I can’t even think of all of His benefits, I noticed this “—,” followed by a list. David felt led to name…

When a teacher at her new school recommends her for an after-school job, Elizabeth is grateful both for the opportunity to make some money and to make some new friends. She begins work at the New York Circulating Material Repository which lends items rather than books. Costumes, props for plays, tools, and—the Grimm Collection. The…

Wouldn’t it be great to be invisible? Well, maybe not, as Sy Kravitz, the fruit man, discovers in Arthur Yorinks’ Invisible Man. Sy has a fruit for every ailment, but finds his own fruit basket overturned when he mysteriously becomes invisible. Life becomes rotten as Sy finds himself accused and convicted of anything and everything…

Summertime is swimming time in Texas and I can’t wait. I love the water. My daughter and I teach lessons in our backyard pool. Every summer, two types of students give me the greatest concern: 1)      The child that is so afraid of the water that he can hardly stand to be in it, and…

Summertime is swimming time in Texas and I can’t wait. I love the water. My daughter and I teach lessons in our backyard pool. Every summer, two types of students give me the greatest concern: 1)      The child that is so afraid of the water that he can hardly stand to be in it, and…

The adventures of Grandma Dowdel continue in Richard Peck’s sequel to A Long Way from Chicago,  A Year Down Yonder. The novel’s focus shifts from Joey in the first book, to Mary Alice, now 15, in the second. A recession hangs over the country. Mom and Dad must downsize to one small room and Mary…

Busy zoo keeper Amos McGee always makes time for his friends. Daily tortoise races and chess games with the elephant. A faithful friendship with the shy penguin and a handy handkerchief for the drippy-nosed rhino. One day Amos awakes with his own drippy nose and a host of other symptoms too. What will the animals…

Summer camp. I have a stack of forms waiting to be filled out and sent. Football camp. Basketball camp. Dance camp. Strength and conditioning camp. While summer brings a much needed break from the school routine, it also allows us to give extra time to our favorite things. Have you considered giving God some of…