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I’ve also been reading through The Shadow Children series by Margaret Peterson Haddix. While I found Book 1 a little slow, the following novels have left me out of breath and with stubby fingernails. Haddix picks up the pace with each one. Plot twists keep readers and characters alike off balance. I’ve currently reading Book…

Officer Buckle’s crime is putting his listeners to sleep with his safety speech—until he buddies up with police dog, Gloria. Suddenly, Officer Buckle is receiving rave reviews, but unknown to the officer, his partner, Gloria, is stealing the show. What will happen when he discovers her antics? Take Peggy Rathman’s Officer Buckle and Gloria on…

Gold Rings and Pigpens “Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout is a beautiful woman who shows no discretion.”   Proverbs 11: 22 (NIV) Gold rings. Pig noses. Not something you would ordinarily put together. Gold rings belong on hands. Pig noses belong in the slop bucket of the pigpen. So why does God, through…

Twelve-year-old Michael Arroyo and his father dreamed of the Little League World Series. As the playoffs near, Michael’s chances of pitching there just may become reality. Besides having a great arm, however, Michael also has secrets—secrets that could sabotage his Little League World Series debut. Author Mike Lupica serves up  a great baseball story to…

Squeal with the pigs, bray with the donkeys, and low with the cows in the big red barn where the only quiet things at the farm are the eggs. From dawn to dark, follow the animals until the day finally winds down in Big Red Barn by Margaret Wise Brown. Which animal is your favorite? I…

Be Flakey Snow rarely falls in our part of Texas. The sight of even a few wispy flakes sparks currents of excitement through children and adults alike. Eyes widen. Smiles appear. Ooos and aahs echo from classrooms to conference rooms. After summers of triple digit heat and the normal winter fare of rain and sleet, snow…

In previous posts, I spotlighted several premiere books of their respective series. Today, I encourage you to follow through on one: Suzanne Collins’s Underland Chronicles. Join Gregor as, one by one, each of his family members find themselves entangled in the conflicts of the Underland. Collins deftly weaves her ever-present themes of war and peace…

Larry Burkett’s How Things Work Series: How Our House Works educates kids on home construction and maintenance. Burkett encourages good stewardship as he teaches readers to properly care for their home. Children learn that water and electricity come at a price and how to keep that cost to a minimum. Good spending habits and a…

The Empty Box of Turkish Delight “At last the Turkish Delight was all finished and Edmund was looking very hard at the empty box and wishing that she would ask him whether he would like some more. Probably the Queen knew quite well what he was thinking; for she knew, though Edmund did not, that…

Jerry Spinelli handles the touchy subject of peer pressure in his novel, Wringer. Most boys look forward to their tenth birthday. For Palmer LaRue, just thinking about turning ten makes his stomach hurt. In his town of Waymer, a peculiar rite of passage marks a boy’s tenth birthday and Palmer wants no part of it. Peer…