chapter books | Love, Laughter, and Life

July 28, 2018
by Angie Leave a comment

Book Report: The Bird and the Blade

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The Bird and the Blade

by Megan Bannen

(Balzer + Bray, An Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2018)

I recently received a free copy of The Bird and the Blade from Literary Rambles, Natalie Aguirre, and Megan Bannen.

I was interested in reading The Bird and The Blade because of the title. I like birds. The blade, I could only assume, was sword like and sharp. I was correct on one count. The blade was an actual blade, though I will not spoil the ending by telling you much more about it. The bird was not an actual bird, but the main character, Jinghua.

Without giving too much away, this story is about love, war, families, dynasties, refugees, stations in life, relationships, and courage. The tale begins with a young female slave, Jinghua. But that is not the whole of her.

Through careful revelation and continually going back in time while moving forward, readers learn about Jinghua and how her life has changed. I didn’t know before I read, but this tale was inspired by the opera Turandot and is a retelling of
“Prince Khalaf and the Princess of China.” Despite the ancient beginnings of the story, it is worth every century!

I enjoyed The Bird and the Blade. I loved how the story is organized, with flashbacks to share important details. As I read the “current” portions of the story, I eagerly anticipated the next travel back in time to find out more details. And there are some very juicy details!

Young adults and adults will enjoy this well-written tale, The Bird and the Blade. Thank you, Literary Rambles, for introducing me to this book and author.

June 1, 2018
by Angie Leave a comment

Helping Fellow Writers: Some Very Messy Medieval Magic

This is a repost from Literary Rambles. To see the complete post, go here.

Happy Thursday Everyone! Today I’m excited to be participating in the Beach Reads Giveaway Hop hosted by StuckInBooks. There’s a lot of new books that have recently released or will be published soon, and I’m excited to share them with you. I’m hoping to read more this summer and hope you’re planning to as well.

Can You Help Me Help a Friend Who Has Suffered a Tragic Loss? It’s Easy!

But before I get to the book selections, I need you to ask you to help me help an author friend who just suffered a tragic loss. Lee McKenzie has been a good friend of mine for years who I met through my blog. Her newest MG fantasy, SOME VERY MESSY MEDIEVAL MAGIC, released on May 15, 2018. Two days later, Lee suffered the tragic loss of her husband due to a sudden heart attack. I also suffered the sudden loss of my own husband a little over four years ago and know firsthand how heartbreaking this loss is.

While we cannot take away Lee’s grief, we could show her kindness and friendship by helping her promote her book. I know you all are book lovers and many have your own blogs. I’m hoping that you can do all or some of these easy things to help Lee:

Buy Lee’s book. An e-book is only $3.99. I just did that.
Post about Lee’s book on your blog and other social media sites. Ask your friends to help do by shouting out about her book and buying it
Here’s a blurb about what the book is about:

Pete’s stuck in medieval England! Pete and his friend Weasel thought they’d closed the Timelock.

But a young page from medieval times, Peter of Bramwell, goes missing. His absence during a critical moment will forever alter history unless he’s found. There’s only one solution—fledgling wizard Pete must take the page’s place. He travels to 1173 England accompanied by Weasel and Fanon, Pete’s alligator familiar. But what if the page remains lost? Will Pete know what to do when the critical moment arrives? Toss in a grumpy Fanon, the dukes’s curious niece, a talking horse, and the Circle of Stones, and Pete quickly realizes he’s in over his young wizard head yet again.

And some links:
Website: http://cleemckenziebooks.com
Dancing Lemur Press: http://www.dancinglemurpressllc.com
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Some-Very-Messy-Medieval-Magic-ebook/dp/B079V72G8R/ref=sr_1_1
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/search?query=Some+Very+Messy+Medieval+Magic

Thanks to any of you who can help out.

May 1, 2018
by Angie 2 Comments

Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling

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Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus

By Dusti Bowling

(Sterling Children’s Books, 2017)

I won a copy of Dusti Bowling’s chapter book Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus from Literary Rambles.

What first attracted me to this book was the title. I could just imagine what type of events a cactus would stoically attend, though I knew the book was not about those fascinating plants.

What attracted me next were the characters and the setting. Having grown up in Arizona, I looked forward to reading a book set in the starkly dry and hot desert. The book has a captivating cast of diverse characters. I loved reading of friends Aven (born without arms) and Conner (spits at people when he eats) and how they manage their disabilities. The strength and courage of Aven compelled me to cheer for her and will inspire others who struggle with any type of disability. Family issues, a mystery discovered in an old out building, and facing ones’ own fears come together in a nicely written page-turner.

Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus is a great read for any young (or old) person. Compassion, understanding, and acceptance of diversity will develop as readers live alongside Aven and Conner. I found that Bowlings’ book gave me the viewpoint of someone living with challenges and how they faced daily life and difficult situations. Readers will see that they can do anything if they put their mind to it!

Well done and great read!

April 28, 2018
by Angie Leave a comment

The Girl with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke

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The Girl with the Red Balloon

Written by Katherine Locke

(Albert Whitman & Company, 2017)

Last fall, I won a copy of The Girl with the Red Balloon by Katherine Locke from Natalie Aguirre’s Literary Rambles.

I immediately read The Girl with the Red Balloon. Who can not read a book with a tag that says The wall keeps us in. Magic gets us out.?

The tale is told of Ellie, a girl who visits the Berlin Wall Memorial during a school field trip. Ellie has family ties to World War II and Germany, as her grandfather miraculously escaped from a death camp. As Ellie considers the impact of that horrible time period, she notices a red balloon. Innocently, she grabs the string and is immediately deposited in East Berlin in 1988, where she is found by Kai, a member of an underground society. Ellie, Kai, and several others must work to figure out how and why Ellie was transported back in time when the purpose of the red balloons was to take death camp members over the wall and away from a certain terrible fate.

Much history is shared in the telling of this story. I loved the mixture of magical realism, history, teen relationships, family heritage, and mystery. Danger, high stakes, death, and good versus evil all blend together in this great story. Ellie is stuck in the past and must find a way to return to her own time. But this is complicated by magical developments and a budding romance.

Locke tells the story from different viewpoints, but the switch off is easy to follow as every chapter is clearly labeled with the point of view character. I had to focus a bit to understand the historical connections, but the book is well written and engaging.

The Girl with the Red Balloon is a great read for anyone who enjoys history hooked together with a bit of magic.

P.S. Look what comes out this fall!

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April 16, 2018
by Angie 2 Comments

The Countdown Conspiracy by Katie Slivensky ~ Chapter Book Review

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The Countdown Conspiracy

Written by Katie Slivensky

(Harper, 2017)

Six kids. One Mission to Mars. All systems go.

So says the front cover of The Countdown Conspiracy. All systems go, but smoothly?

The Countdown Conspiracy is the story of six kids from around the world chosen to train for the first mission to Mars. Miranda Regent was stoked to be one of the selected few. Until she began receiving threatening messages. At the training base, Miranda worked with the other international ambassadors to learn necessary information and skills. Suddenly, Miranda finds herself the target of an attack on the training base, an attack that put everyone’s lives in danger.

I loved reading The Countdown Conspiracy! It is the perfect combination of adventure, mystery, tension, and relationships. Each chapter had me hooked and I consumed this chapter book in a very short time. When it ended, I was ready for the next installment.

Katie Slivensky did a great job in writing this book. Middle graders will enjoy the clean, exciting details and intrigue woven through the relationships and outer space adventures. The Countdown Conspiracy is a wonderful debut chapter book! Two thumbs up.

I won an ARC copy of The Countdown Conspiracy from Katie and Natalie (Literary Rambles). Thank you, Katie and Natalie! Great reading!

P.S. The Seismic Seven by Katie Slivensky is coming in June!