My Dawg Koa by Kelly Brakenhoff


My Dawg Koa by Kelly Brakenhoff
Duke the Deaf Dog ASL Series, #3
Publisher: Emerald Prairie Press
Genre: Children’s (0 – 6 y.o.), Contemporary
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Deaf friends Duke and Koa are the same, but they are also different.

Duke the Deaf Dog learns about similarities and differences between friends and families. A fun, engaging way to teach children that best friends share common interests. Their houses may look different, and their parents may have different rules and expectations, but Duke finds one thing families share no matter what: LOVE.

Kindness is the key to everything.

Duke and Koa’s friendship made me smile. Both of them were used to how their parents ran things and were occasionally surprised by the different types of rules that exist in other households. It made me smile to see how they adjusted to these moments and how their habits rubbed off on each other. They were both wonderful friends to each other, too. What could be better than that?

I did find myself wishing the narrator had spent a little more time developing the plot. Yes, it was important to explain how someone who is deaf knows when someone is knocking at the door or wakes up at a specific time in the morning, but I thought it was just as important to give a few more examples of how Duke and Koa evolved as a result of their friendship. Had this happened, I would have happily gone for a full five-star rating.

Some of my favorite scenes were the ones that showed how Duke and Koa’s families had adjusted their homes to be more accommodating of the deaf folks – or dogs! – who lived there. I live with someone who is hard of hearing, and we’ve used some of these accommodations in our home! Different solutions are sometimes necessary for people who are completely deaf versus those who can hear certain sounds but not other ones, so it was nice to see such a wide range of options here. I’d happily recommend it to everyone I know who has hearing loss or who loves someone who does.

This is part of a series, but it can be read as a standalone work.

My Dawg Koa was a heartwarming slice of life.

We Just Had a Baby by Stephen Krensky


We Just Had a Baby by Stephen Krensky
Publisher: Capstone Young Readers
Genre: Children’s (0 – 6 y.o.), Contemporary
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

It’s not easy getting used to a new baby in the house. Everyone in the world thinks whatever the baby does is amazing! And if you aren’t the baby, everyone acts like you’re invisible. This clever, funny picture book is told from a slightly older sibling’s point of view. The observations about living with a new sister or brother are poignant, spot-on, and will make even the youngest reader chuckle.

Change isn’t always easy, especially for children who had no say in the matter.

One of the things I liked the most about this picture book was how honest it was about the positive and negative aspects of becoming an older sibling. The main character loved his sister, but he also had some perfectly reasonable reasons to be occasionally irritated with how she had affected his life. For example, some adults favor babies over older children, and all babies cry. Acknowledging the difficult portions of this experience can make it easier to also notice the benefits of it.

I found myself wishing that the narrator’s parents would have been a little more involved in the storyline. Yes, this was about the creation of a brand new sibling relationship, but parents influence how these things develop in both helpful and unhelpful ways. It would have been nice to see the mom and dad encourage their children to become close as the baby grew up.

The ending made me smile. I enjoyed seeing how the main character had matured as a result of his experiences. He was a kind kid who ultimately needed some time to adjust to his family’s new routines. This was such a realistic take on the subject matter. It made me wish for a sequel about these siblings as they grow older, but I was also satisfied with how the reader left them in the final scene.

We Just Had a Baby was a well-balanced look at how a family changes after they have another child.

Papa the Shoemaker by Kyra Kalweit and Dayán Mantecón Roldán


Papa the Shoemaker by Kyra Kalweit and Dayán Mantecón Roldán
Publisher: Tellwell Talent
Genre: Children’s
Rated: 4
Review by Rose

Hi there, my name is William and I have a question for you!

Would you like to know how your shoes are made?

I invite you to come inside my papa’s workshop and learn all the secrets of the ancient art of shoemaking and more.

Let’s embark on a creative adventure of fun challenges and life lessons along the way.

This is a very interesting look at how custom shoes are made along with a life lesson. Papa is very good at explaining things to his son in a clear and concise way. I do wish it had been a little clearer about what the shoe lasts were — I had to look that up, and I think it would have been interesting to know about that aspect of the process too…just where the last comes from. But, that did not take away my enjoyment from the book. The lesson was not as subtle as in the previous book I read from this couple, but still a book I would choose for my classroom or for my grandchildren.

A good book for the early reader.

I Am One with the Universe by Kyra Kalweit and Dayán Mantecón Roldán


I Am One with the Universe by Kyra Kalweit and Dayán Mantecón Roldán
Publisher: Tellwell Talent
Genre: Children’s
Rated: 5 stars
Review by Rose

This children’s book teaches young readers to reflect on a simple yet profound message: We are all connected to everything we see and experience in this world. The essence of God is within each one of us and in everything we see, touch, feel, taste and dream about.
With rhyme and playful illustrations, I Am One with the Universe will help children realize their unity with all things and that they are not separate from God or anyone else.

What a beautifully written story that’s perfect for early readers or for parents to read with the children. The illustrations are eye-catching; the rhythm and rhyming of the text make this a fun book to read aloud.

A wonderful way of showing children (and parents) how closely everything in the world is connected.

Definitely recommended for all families with young children.

Not Yeti by Kelly DiPucchio


Not Yeti by Kelly DiPucchio
Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
Genre: Children’s (0 – 6 y.o.), Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Monsters are loud. And rude. They like to smash things and they always need to be right. But not Yeti. Yeti bakes banana bread and sings to whales and always has a nice word to say. But sometimes you find yourself alone when you’re different. And Yeti doesn’t know there’s a special surprise in store for him.

Anyone can change if they really want to.

It was refreshing to read about a monster who was gentle and loving instead of scary. Yeti spent his days making the world a better place for others, from crocheting sweaters for penguins to protecting baby turtles right after they hatched. I adored this character as soon as I met him and looked forward to seeing if his dreams would come true for him.

The ending felt abrupt and confusing to me, especially since this tale was written for such a young audience. While I soon understood the point the author was attempting to make, it was vague enough that I would have felt compelled to explain it if I’d been reading this to a small child. I found myself wishing that the narrator had been more forthright about the benefits of being different and choosing to be kind even if others don’t make the same choice.

Yeti’s character development was handled beautifully. The reader soon learned that he hadn’t always been a nice monster, and the explanation for how and why he’d changed was well worth reading. What made this even more interesting to me were the unpleasant interactions he had with a couple of other monsters. He could have so easily slipped back into old habits, and yet he stuck to his principles no matter how others tried to provoke him. What a great role model he was for anyone who is trying to fix a bad habit or personality flaw.

Not Yeti was a thought-provoking read.

The New Enchantress by Sunayna Prasad


The New Enchantress by Sunayna Prasad
Publisher: Self Published
Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Rated: 4 stars
Review by Poppy

Cursed by a sorcerer’s hex, Alyssa McCarthy finds herself in a fight she can’t afford to lose, or everything she knows will be lost!
After she finishes her final year of junior high, fourteen-year-old Alyssa faces an uncertain future in more ways than one when a sorcerer casts a hex that leaves her with involuntary magical powers that are too dangerous to remove.

Unable to control her newly gained abilities Alyssa’s end-of-middle-school sleepover ends in disaster when she knocks her friends unconscious when her powers go out of control. If Alyssa can’t learn to master her magic soon, she will be cursed to forget her loved ones and serve as the warlock’s slave for all of eternity.

Her only hope is to focus on controlling her emotions if she is to break the curse. However, the difficulties of adolescence, along with the perils and growing disasters she faces, make Alyssa struggle even more. From putting her friends’ lives at risk to losing their trust, she continues to fear what will become of her if she fails.

Will Alyssa be able to break the hex and become the enchantress that she was meant to be, or will she become enslaved to the sorcerer forever?

A cute middle grade fantasy of sorts that I enjoyed. I say “of sorts” because it takes place in our world, but … there’s magic. Didn’t we all dream of having magic powers as a kid? I know I did. This book shows what might occur if that actually happened.

Alyssa is a typical tween, worried about her grades, hanging out with friends, except right at the starts of the book while she’s trying to raise her grades with a special project, magic inserts itself into the story. And so the crazy ride begins.

Alyssa is believable as a character. She isn’t perfect, she has flaws that you’d expect from a girl her age. There are squabbles with friends, doubts and worries. I liked her. The world-building is good, too, and I can see how this would appeal to the target middle grade audience.

I only had a few quibbles. First, I’m not the target audience, and so there were things that happened that were meant to be a surprise that I could see coming. And, sometimes the mom in me wanted to take hold of the kids and give them a good shake. Also, this book is the third in a series and there were times I felt a little lost. I imagine the whole experience would be richer if you started with book one.

Still, this was a good read. It had a solid plot, believable characters, decent world-building and you understood Alyssa’s motivation throughout. As a reader and reviewer, I certainly can’t complain about that!

Death at Dusbar College by Laura DiNovis Berry


Death at Dusbar College by Laura DiNovis Berry
Publisher: Indies United Publishing House
Genre: Middle Grade (8 – 12 y.o.), Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Contemporary
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Welcome to the world of Antyfas where invisible monkeys play and dragons fly! Cristiano has just turned eleven, and his aunt has invited him to visit her at the magical Dusbar College. Wondrous acts of magic and fantastical beasts await him, but can he solve the Grand Magician’s riddle?

What could be better than visiting a magical college?

Some of the best scenes were the ones that showed how Cristiano tried to figure out the mystery that everyone else was also trying to solve. There was a riddle attached to it that was the key to everything. I grinned as he worked through the possible answers to the riddle and hoped he’d be the one to come up with the right answer and win the prize at the end.

I would have liked to see more conflict included in this novella. As fascinated as I was by the world building, there wasn’t much going on with the storyline itself other than the mystery that was soon cleared up. There was so much more the author could have done with these characters and this setting. If she writes a sequel, I hope she’ll give her characters more complex problems to solve as the writing itself was wonderful.

The magic in this universe was delightful. My favorite examples of it were the ones that explained how to do ordinary things like summon a fresh glass of apple juice or tailor a shirt to fit perfectly onto the person wearing it. They weren’t the sort of experiences that I’d ever think of trying to make interesting if I had magical powers, so I was thrilled by how the narrator turned those moments into something unforgettable.

Death at Dusbar College was a playful middle grade mystery that I’d recommend to anyone who also loves modern fantasy.

Book of the Month Poll Winner ~ Teddy Loses His Ears by Christine Milkovic Krauss


Teddy Loses His Ears by Christine Milkovic Krauss
Publisher: Tellwell Talent
Genre: Children’s (0 – 6 y.o.), Contemporary
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Voted BoM by LASR Readers 2013 copy

Teddy is a rescue cat who lost his ears from frostbite. Teddy has inspired a series of stories with his true-life adventures that share relatable messages of kindness and acceptance. Teddy hopes that his stories will raise awareness to the organizations that saved his life, and thousands of other animals’ lives every year.

READ THE FULL REVIEW HERE!

Amethyst by Rebecca Henry


Amethyst by Rebecca Henry
Publisher: Finch Books
Genre: Young Adult (14 – 18 y.o.), Sci-Fi/Fantasy, LGBTQ, Romance, Contemporary
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

She was sent away because of her feelings for another girl. But what she discovered at her aunts’ lake house was a birthright of magic.

Thirteen-year-old Zinnia is about to turn fourteen when her life is flipped upside down. With her parents on the brink of a divorce, Zinnia is sent to spend the summer with her eccentric great-aunts at their lake house away from her home in Manhattan. Zinnia arrives at her aunts’ massive Victorian house with a heavy heart after a recent falling out with her best friend Charlotte, who betrayed her trust by showing the meanest and most popular girl in school a letter Zinnia wrote confessing her feelings for Charlotte. The aunts rely on practical magic, acceptance and old family friends to help heal their great-niece in more ways than one.

What Zinnia discovers on Ambrosia Hill is more than just her birthright to magic—she meets Billie, a girl who conjures feelings inside Zinnia that she can no longer deny.

What’s better than a summer in the countryside?

It can be hard for kids to understand topics like divorce and marital conflict. Zinnia was a smart teenager, but even she struggled with the idea that her parents were fighting and might not stay together. Some of the most memorable scenes in this novella were the ones that explored her feelings on this topic and tried to explain her parents’ anger with each other in ways that were appropriate for a fourteen-year-old to hear. These aren’t easy things to discuss by any means, but they are quite important. The author did a great job of giving Zinnia a chance to understand her parents a little better than she had before and to learn about how adult relationships sometimes work.

I would have loved to see more character development in this piece. As intrigued as I was by the setting and plot, it was disappointing to meet characters whose personalities weren’t well defined and who didn’t seem to grow very much as a result of their experiences even when they were the main focus of the storyline. There seemed to be plenty of opportunities for them to do so. I simply needed more examples of them reacting to those moments, sharing their personalities in more complex ways, and showing the audience how they’d changed.

The world building was delightful. I loved the way magic was woven into every facet of the characters’ daily lives, from the messages that were left in the arrangements of soggy tea leaves in the bottom of a teacup to the spells the aunts cast to help their visitors reach any number of personal goals. It wasn’t always clear to me where the magic ended and ordinary explanations for certain events began. I reveled in how beautifully ordinary the author made certain scenes feel even if they included moments that can’t be explained with modern science or physics. There is something special about visiting a world that accepts these shades of grey and invites the reader to come up with their own explanations for them.

Amethyst was a playful read.

Dreaming of Flight by Catherine Ryan Hyde


Dreaming of Flight by Catherine Ryan Hyde
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult (8 – older)
Rating: 5 stars
Reviewed by Ginger

Never knowing his parents, eleven-year-old Stewie Little and his brother have been raised on a farm by their older sister. Stewie steadfastly tends the chickens left by his beloved late grandmother. And every day Stewie goes door to door selling fresh eggs from his wagon—a routine with a surprise just around the corner. It’s his new customer, Marilyn. She’s prickly and guarded, yet comfortably familiar—she reminds the grieving Stewie so much of the grandmother he misses more than he can express.

Marilyn has a reason for keeping her distance: a secret no one knows about. Her survival tactic is to draw a line between herself and other people—one that Stewie is determined to cross. As their visits become more frequent, a complicated but deeply rooted relationship grows. That’s when Stewie discovers how much more there is to Marilyn, to her past, and to challenges that become more pressing each day. But whatever difficult times lie ahead, Stewie learns that although he can’t fix everything for Marilyn or himself, at least he’s no longer alone.

I don’t know where to start on my review about this book. I enjoyed it tremendously! The writing style, the characters, the realness of the story and the teachable moments – all of it. I enjoyed it all.

This conversation between Stewie and Marilyn’s daughter, Betty will stay with me.: “You’re just upset because she doesn’t say the same things she would have said before. Instead of being so sure about exactly how you want her to be, why can’t you just be glad because she’s there?”

In a world where I’ve found myself drawn to watching more television shows and movies than I read, this book made me want to read. I enjoyed the time spent following the story of eleven-year-old Stewie Little. A young boy who has lost several loved ones at a very early age. He lives with his older sister, Stacey and brother Theo.

Stewie continues to take care of his deceased grandmother’s chicken. One day on his egg delivery route he meets a new customer, Marilyn. Marilyn seems to be a tough character to deal with, but Stewie took a liking to her, as her spry ways and mannerism reminds him of his grandmother.

This starts the beginning of a relationship that Marilyn didn’t want to happen. Neither did Stacey, Stewie’s older sister. Stacey’s concern for Stewie is touching to read. She recognized the many losses that Stewie has faced but she didn’t know what to do. Though their family was small I felt the closeness that the three must have needed to cope. At times it seemed they walked on eggshells for Stewie, but I like that Stewie is a strong and courageous young boy. I liked that if he didn’t understand something he spoke up. This was humorous in how he stated he didn’t know what words or phrases meant. Marilyn always took the time to explain it to him. Marilyn came into Stewie’s life at a time when Stewie really needed her. And Stewie in turn was there for Marilyn. I enjoyed and took to heart the words of wisdom from Marilyn to Stewie, in fact I’ve highlighted them on my Kindle; they are just that impacting. Towards the end of the book Stewie starts to give Marilyn and others, words of wisdom. (Hence the quote at the start of this review)

The relationship between the two is beautiful and heartwarming. I found joy that Stewie had someone he could be close to, that didn’t take advantage of him and also able to sense what he needed. Marilyn uplifted him up, educated him and filled a void that Stewie had. Stewie didn’t have biological parents or grandparents, but he had a village. Dr. Briggs helped Stewie through his complicated emotions by giving him thought provoking questions. It was a little concerning that Stewie didn’t have friends his age, but I could see that Stewie was mature for his age and didn’t seem to fit in with others of his age.

The ending felt true to life, but also hurt. The author touched on a lot in this book. Loss, and grief, from both Stewie’s view and also Marilyn’s view. Overcoming what life throws at you and having someone or people to help you along the way. That family or people that love you aren’t always blood related. That we should pay attention to those we love in case they do need help. Getting help is okay. Doing something good for someone else also helps you in return. It also gives some insight of those that are of age who feel like they have lost their freedom, their choice, and maybe even their personal rights once they’ve been moved into an assisted living facility.

I can go on and on about how much I enjoyed this book. So instead of reading my review I suggest you go ahead and get a copy of the book and enjoy it for yourself.