Redwing Blackbird wakes up in with the sunrise to observe his domain in the marshland.  He flies around and sees other birds, bugs, otters and beavers, too.  Redwing hears the songs of other birds and the buzz of insects at noon as well as notices the scents of all the flowers.  As the sun sets, Redwing sees forest families, fish, and lizards.  A full moon welcomes owls and bats as redwing returns to his nest. 

Song of the Redwing is a beautiful ode to the environment of the marshland and wetland.  Written for children, this can definitely be enjoyed by any nature lover.  There are some lesser known words introduced that are good opportunities to introduce new vocabulary for kids.  Written in rhyming verse from the point of view of Redwing, Song of the Redwing brings you into nature and encourages the use of all of your senses to notice the many things going on around you.  The beautiful watercolor paintings are realistic while letting you look up close into the world of wildlife.

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

Cousins, Ava and Nadeem are being ridiculed by their 5th grade classmate for being Jewish and Muslim. As they are wondering what to do about the issue, their Granny Buena shows them a special button passed down from their ancestors who helped to save Prince Abdur Rahmann. Granny Buena begins to tell them the story of Ester, who aided Prince Abdur Rahmann in escaping ancient Morocco and finding his way to Spain to create a safe haven for Muslims, Jews and Christians. However, before Granny Buena can finish the story, Ava and Nadeem find out firsthand just how Prince Abdur Rahmann made his escape.

The Button Box is a middle grade historical adventure that is a lot of fun and incorporates the heritage of Muslim and Jewish culture. Ava and Nadeem face a common problem that Muslim and Jewish kids often face and come up with a very creative way to solve it once they experience life during Prince Abdur Rahmann's time. I loved the button and the cousin's cat, Sheba as time travel mechanisms and how Ava and Nadeem were able to integrate into ancient Morocco and learn about their history as well as their cultures through experiences in the past. Prince Abdul Rahmann was in fact a real person who helped to usher in the Golden Age for Muslims, Jews and Christians in Spain and I was glad to learn of his story. Ava and Nadeem learn valuable lessons from their journey to the past and are able to apply them to their present day in useful ways once they return. The Button Box is a fast-paced magical story tying together the shared Muslim and Jewish heritage and history.

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.
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​It has been almost a year since Rill's father was taken by the Colorado River on a white-water rafting trip.  Rill believes that her father will come back and is determined to stay the same until then.  Upon visiting Camp Kruse, the treehouse that her dad built, Rill finds a girl from her class hiding out.  Perla escaped when her family was being deported.  Rill helps Perla with food, clothes and finding out if her family made it back home.  Rill finds purpose, friendship and an adventure as she helps Perla.  However, Rill soon realizes that even though Perla's family is far away, her father is still alive, and Rill's emotions burst through to the surface.

The River Between Hearts is an emotional middle-grade journey.  Rill is written as a completely believable pre-teen going through grief.  Her relationship with Perla was exactly what she needed at the moment.  Perla's story explored the world of immigration, deportation and the heartbreak it can bring as families are separated.  As Rill and Perla leaned on one another, they were able to find strength in one another and face the truth of their situations to come to acceptance and move on to the next steps.   Fast-paced writing and wonderful perspectives highlight the challenges of growing up, grief, immigration, family dynamics and big feelings in a down-to-earth manner.  

This book was received for free in return for an honest review. 

Caterpillar and her friend Tadpole want to attend the Masquerade Ball to win the blue ribbon for best disguise.  Caterpillar is concerned that she doesn't have a good disguise, but tadpole reminds her that she looks just like bird poop!  As the Masquerade approaches Caterpillar and Tadpole grow and change, soon Caterpillar feels tired and must nap.  She is worried that she might miss the Masquerade, when Tadpole can't wake her friend, Tadpole sets off to win the ribbon for her.  However, Caterpillar soon has a surprise of her own when she wakes from her long nap.  

Caterpillar's Surprise is a fun story with positive messages about change and body images as well as environmental literacy concepts about camouflage and metamorphosis.  I loved Tadpoles rhyming songs and body positivity.  Caterpillar and Tadpole have a wonderful and encouraging friendship.  The changes in both animals are shown through beautifully drawn cute but realistic illustrations.  The baby pictures that the animals brought to the Masquerade were a wonderful way to highlight additional changes within the animal kingdom.  Overall, a good book for introducing environmental concepts for children ages 2-6. 

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

Lulu the pug lives every dog's dream in New York City with her two adoring people, Bella and Doug.  They take walks, visit museums, see shows and eat at Lulu's favorite restaurant, Joey's pizza.  When Lulu watches Bella and Doug dance, she wants to waltz like them too, but pugs aren't built to dance.  Lulu finds her own doggie dance teacher, but she has to keep practicing.  Instead, Lulu keeps getting sidetracked by pizza.  Lulu has to put in the work in order to show everyone that dogs can dance too.  


Lulu the Unstoppable Dancing Dog is a fun and inspiring story about sticking with it and reaching for your goals.  Lulu is a fun and lovable character. Even though she is a dog, she faces the same trials in learning a new skill as everyone else.  Lulu's determination and passion for learning how to dance shines through.  However, Lulu's story turns out to be extremely relatable as she forgoes practice in favor of pizza.  With amazing illustrations, Lulu seems to dance off the page.  Lulu's message of skill building, determination and practicing to succeed will ring true with readers ages 4-9.

This book was received for free in return for an honest review. 

Amber and Missy are both 14 year old girls facing a unique set of challenges as they enter their last year of middle school.  Amber has epilepsy, an invisible medical condition that mostly makes her blank out, be tired all the time and have memory issues.  Lately, however, her seizures have been getting worse, some leading to injury and causing her to miss even more school.  Missy's family moved to town after her brother died fighting in Afghanistan.  The death proved too much for Missy's mother though, and she retreated into her grief while Missy's father moved on and moved away.  Amber and Missy suffer in their loneliness, but soon realize that a true friend may be what they need to help them through this time. 


Being is Better is a heartfelt middle grade novel about the hardships of this difficult part of life and the power of friendship.  Told in alternating points of view between Amber and Missy, the story goes deep into their lives to gain understanding and connection to each of the girls.  Amber's struggles with epilepsy are well written, showing the physical, mental and social tolls of the invisible medical condition.  Missy's family situation is another hidden difficulty that many families silently go through. Missy's mother's depression was written in a way that didn't put the blame on anyone and showed the gravity of the situation.  While the girl's individual stories are compelling, I was waiting for a while for something exciting to happen.  The girls don't even meet until about 70% of the way through the story and finally some magic happens.  It was amazing to see what happened when Missy and Amber began to believe and trust in themselves.  With a major breakthrough near the end of the story, I know there is more to Amber and Missy's journey to come.  

This book was received for free in return for an honest review. 

​Set sail for an island made of books.  Listen to a story with animal friends, have fun and celebrate.  You just have to be still, breathe out, then in again and listen.  

Read Island takes you on a magical journey.  With rhyming prose that flows like a song enchants new readers to the wonders of reading and the worlds within books.  The hand-drawn illustrations have a collage-like quality that use parts of books within the picture and friendly animals that encourage creativity, imagination and whimsy.  Read Island is perfect to share with children ages 2-7 to spark joy in reading .  

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.  

​Instead of spending her summer with her parents and friends at a fun cottage, Alice now must spend her summer with her mom and her nursing patient, Mrs. Bishop in Blackwood House while her parents contemplate divorce.  On their way to Blackwood House, Alice's train makes a hard stop and Alice gets a concussion and must spend time resting.  Blackwood House is full of antiques that Alice can't touch and the cantankerous Mrs. Bishop;  however, Alice finds a friend in the house cleaner's daughter, Lily.  Together, they explore Blackwood House and find a dollhouse replica of Blackwood House  in the attic. Alice begins to dream of the dolls in the dollhouse and slowly, what happens in Alice's dream dollhouse world begins to affect real life and real life begins to affect what is happening in the dollhouse. 

The Dollhouse is a haunting and magical middle grade mystery.  Though written for a middle grade level, I was easily pulled in by the intrigue of the dollhouse and the wonderfully written characters.  Alice was highly imaginative and anxious, placed in a setting where her imagination could run wild and dealing with many novel situations.  Lily has a developmental difference that allows her to see the world as open and welcoming.  I really enjoyed that Alice and Lily were fast friends.  The dollhouse world was fascinating.  I equally enjoyed the girls in the dollhouse, Bubbles and Fizz and how they reflected people in Alice's real world.  The mystery of the dollhouse and how Alice was connected to it kept me guessing until the end.  The themes that Alice and Mrs. Bishop dealt with throughout the book, grief, divorce and  loss of self identity are just as engaging.  

This book was received for free in return for an honest review. 

What would you give to a dragon who came for tea? Burnt Toast?  Dragon Fruit?   Learn how to keep a dragon happy at your house with these tips for serving tea to a dragon guest at your house.


Bright, happy, digital pictures help tell about different scenarios of having a dragon over for tea.  Funny food choices create silly situations for lots of laughs on how to deal with fire breathing dragons in your home.  Perfect for kids aged 2-5.  

This book was received for free in return for an honest review. 

After the death of his favorite Author, Arthur O'Neill, high school freshman Will Morgan receives a first-edition, signed copy of Arthur's book, The Redstone Keep.  When he receives the book, Will is transported to the world of The Redstone Keep where he meets the protagonist, Tam Desmond.  Will quickly learns that everything written exists in a parallel universe that Will can access from the Betwixt and Between now that he has the Writer's Eye.  With access to the world of the Written, Will also gains powers and a familiar.  However, once Will accesses his powers, an evil force between the worlds begins to hunt Will so they can have the powers for themselves.  With the help of his friends that have unlocked their own powers, Will must figure out a way to save the world of the Written.  

Kingdom of Ink and Paper is a magical Young Adult fantasy that creates every enthusiastic reader's biggest wish- that the worlds in the books that we read are real.  I did enjoy travelling to the Written world and seeing Will's favorite characters come to life.  The explanation of the Betwixt and Between is well done and easy to understand.  I do think some passages from The Redstone Keep would have helped to bring their world alive even more.  Written for a middle grade audience, the characters are all fourteen to fifteen years old entering their freshman year.  I would have loved to see more personality from Will and his friends.  They did all have one talent that set them apart, I wish those would have transferred to powers in the Written world especially since their powers were magically and instantaneously attained without any training.  I was also very interested in the element that they were fighting, how it exists in the Written world and what they will decide to do in order to stop the evil force and find a way to help the Written world. 

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.