The Colonel and the Bee by Patrick Canning

December 18, 2018 By Leave a Comment


The Colonel and the Bee by Patrick Canning
Publisher: Evolved Publishing
Genre: Action/Adventure, Historical, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Suspense/Mystery, YA
Length: Full Length (279 pgs)
Age Recommendation: 12+
Rating: 5 stars
Reviewed by Aloe

A peculiar explorer and downtrodden acrobat span the globe on a building-sized hot air balloon, in search of a precious artifact and the murderous treasure hunter who seeks it.

WINNER: Pinnacle Book Achievement Award – Summer 2018 – Best Adventure

Beatrix, a spirited but abused acrobat in a traveling circus, seeks more than her prison-like employment offers. More than anything, she wants to know her place in the world of the halcyon 19th century, a time when the last dark corners of the map were being sketched out and travel still possessed a kind of magic.

One night in Switzerland, the mysterious Colonel James Bacchus attends Beatrix’s show. This larger-than-life English gentleman, reputed to have a voracious appetite for female conquests, is most notable for traveling the world in a four-story hot air balloon called The Ox.

Beatrix flees that night to join the Colonel, and the two of them make a narrow escape—Beatrix from her abusive ringleader, the Colonel from a freshly-made cuckold. Beatrix, feeling the Colonel may have the answers to her problems, pledges to help him catch the criminal he seeks in exchange for passage on his magnificent balloon.

The criminal seeks a precious figurine, The Blue Star Sphinx, but he’s not alone. The Sphinx’s immense value has also drawn the attention of the world’s most deadly treasure hunters. A murder in Antwerp begins a path of mystery that leads all the way to the most isolated island on Earth.

What dangers await the Colonel and the acrobat?

Beatrix is an orphan who works as a trapeze artist in the circus. She performs over bare ground to make it more dangerous. Her boss uses a whip to punish any employee that acts out or gets mouthy. She gets her fair share of correction because she talks back to him. But one night she sees an Englishman at the show and finds out he rides around in a hot air balloon. She likes the trapeze because it reminds her of flying. Imagine what it would be like to ride in a hot air balloon!

Beatrix begs to ride on the hot air balloon. She wants to escape the circus. The Colonel refuses but when she offers to help him find the criminal he’s hunting he finally decides he’ll take her. He doesn’t intend to keep her long.

It’s a four-story hot air balloon. He soon teaches her how to fly and manipulate the balloon. She’s not real good at it, but she learns to stay afloat. The only thing she doesn’t like about the Colonel is that he’s a womanizer. Every time they stop somewhere he’s out looking for a woman.

She meets the other members of his team and they all become friends. They’re looking for the mysterious Christopher and he’s hard to find. Bee doesn’t know but the Colonel has more secrets. It’s a good thing she had acrobat training. It’s the only thing that keeps her alive…

Mr. Canning writes a very good story. It starts with a fast pace and that lasts the whole story. There’s plenty of danger, lots of excitement, and two unlikely characters become a team. There’s not a boring part in this story. The story flows well and you almost think you’re losing a character or two but not to worry. It ends unusually but happily.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

Being Frank by Donna W. Earnhardt

December 18, 2018 By Leave a Comment


Being Frank by Donna W. Earnhardt
Publisher: Flashlight Press
Genre: Childrens, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (32 pages)
Age Recommendation: 6+
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Frank follows the motto, “Honesty is the best policy.” He tells the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Frank never lies to his schoolmates, he always tells the truth to adults, and he’s always honest with police officers. The balancing act of finding tact, that fine line between telling the truth and telling too much truth, is the main theme of this story, and it’s very funny—although not necessarily to his friend Dotti whose freckles remind Frank of the Big Dipper, or to the teacher who hears that her breath smells like onions, or to the principal who is told that his toupee looks like a weasel. No one is quite as impressed with Frank’s honesty as he thinks they should be. He is sweet and straightforward, and, well, very frank, but with everyone annoyed at him, Frank is now honestly unhappy. He decides to visit his confidante and pal, Grandpa Ernest, who has a history of frankness himself. With a few lessons from Grandpa, Frank begins to understand that the truth is important, but so is not being hurtful. With amusing characters and expressive artwork, this story tells the powerful message of finding the good in everything—a lesson that sends compassion and understanding to take the place of rudeness in the complex concept of truth.

Honesty is a good thing, but so is treating others with kindness and respect.

Frank was such a likeable kid. Even though he said hurtful things at the beginning of this tale, his intentions were never to make anyone sad. In fact, he was horrified at the thought that he’d accidentally done exactly that! Figuring that out in one of the earliest scenes was all it took for me to start rooting for him to find more gentle ways to express his opinions about other people. His heart was in the right place, so I looked forward to finding out if he’d be able to make the changes he needed in order for other people to understand what he was trying to say to them.

I would have liked to see Frank’s grandfather spend a little more time explaining the difference between being tactful and lying to someone. As an adult, I totally understood exactly what he was getting at, but I do think that this age group would benefit from a more straightforward explanation of this topic. It’s an important one, and I would have chosen a perfect rating if this character had been given a few more lines to show kids how to talk about something they didn’t like without offending anyone.

With that being said, the ending was really well done. I liked the reactions that Frank’s friends and neighbors had once they realized he was trying a new way of communicating with them. Without giving away any plot twists, they were also great role models for how to behave when someone says something that you’re not entirely sure how to respond to at first.

Being Frank should be read by anyone who has ever accidentally put their foot in their mouth and said something they later regretted.

Filed Under: Reviews, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Dickensen Academy by Christine Grabowski

December 17, 2018 By Leave a Comment


Dickensen Academy by Christine Grabowski
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Contemporary, Paranormal, YA
Length: Full Length (351 pgs)
Age Recommendation: 14+
Rating: 3.5 stars
Reviewed by Poinsettia

Dickensen Academy isn’t a typical boarding school. The faculty is hiding an unbelievable secret within their fine arts program. When Autumn Mattison receives an invitation to attend the high school, she yearns to escape her overbearing father yet remains reluctant to leave her mother and brother. Her doubts fade away when a vivid dream convinces her she belongs there.

Away from home, Autumn discovers a unique school environment that awakens her creative potential, and her new friends become like a second family. However, as she uncovers more about the dark side of the school and struggles with its curriculum, she questions whether Dickensen Academy is truly where she belongs.

When tragedy strikes, Autumn must learn to believe in her own power and stand up to her greatest fear or risk having her memories destroyed to protect the school’s secrets. Caught between secrets and dreams, can she find her true self?

Autumn’s life will never be the same.

Ms. Grabowski has come up with a thought-provoking premise. I don’t think I’ve come across anything quite like it in a young adult novel. Autumn and her fellow students have a unique ability, which I can’t reveal without spoiling the story. At first glance, this power sounds wonderful and amazing. However, the potential for misuse is huge and truly terrifying. Immediately, my mind was filled with questions. How will the students learn to control their abilities? If someone is misusing their power, how could it be proven? What sort of discipline would the staff use if misuse was proven? How do they ensure the secret of the academy is kept? I eagerly anticipated learning the answers.

Autumn is a sweet girl. She is very determined and much stronger than she thinks. Autumn blossoms on the campus of Dickensen Academy, and I get the feeling this change is a breath of fresh air she’s needed for a very long time. Autumn has great potential, but she’s been living in the shadow of her father, older brother, and best friend. It is clear all these people care about her, but Autumn needs some time away to prove she is capable of succeeding on her own terms. It was a pleasure to watch her grow and change.

While Autumn is intelligent, school work is not something that has ever come easily to her. She works hard to maintain her grades, and her new-found ability is no exception. Unfortunately, Autumn is unable to push her ability to the next step. Frustrated, Autumn can only watch as her classmates progress. While it is nice to read about a character who isn’t magically good at everything, I must admit that Autumn’s struggle seems a bit prolonged, and I feel that the pacing of the story suffers as a result.

Autumn’s relationship with Ben is sweet, but moves at a very leisurely pace. While a slower approach is understandable given that Autumn and Ben are young, under a lot of pressure at a new school, and learning to control their special abilities, I do feel that the pacing suffers here as well. Autumn and Ben clearly care for each other and spend a lot of time together. I feel they could have moved on to dating sooner.

Dickensen Academy has a satisfying ending, but I have a lot of unanswered questions concerning not only the students’ power, but also a source of conflict between Autumn and a girl named Caitlyn. There is a lot of tension between these two and the potential for harm is real given the abilities of these students. There are also several serious events that weren’t explained. I’m curious to see how this will play out in the future.

I enjoyed reading Dickensen Academy. I see a lot of potential in this series and look forward to the next installment.

Filed Under: Reviews, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

The Haunting of Josh Weston by Melinda Rucker Haynes

December 11, 2018 By Leave a Comment


The Haunting of Josh Weston by Melinda Rucker Haynes
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Young Adult, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Suspense/Mystery, Paranormal, Contemporary
Length: Full Length (204 pages)
Age Recommendation: 14+
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

After the death of his cousin and his father’s subsequent death in Afghanistan, former star athlete and gifted student, Josh Weston and his mother move to a desolate ranch in the Arizona desert. Josh blames himself for his father’s death and for the shooting of his best friend. Besides giving up on everything he used be great at, he is relentlessly bullied at his new school.

Unable to see any way out of his problems, he tries to end it all one moonlit night. Two of the mystical ranch’s ghosts stop him and pull him into dangerous tests of courage and intellect. Josh must learn to draw on his strengths and confront the haunted past that threatens his life and possible future with the beautiful and daring girl next door.

It’s never easy being the new kid in town.

Josh’s traumatic reaction to the violent deaths of his relatives shortly before the events of this book began was well-written. He had obviously been left with some pretty serious emotional damage from those experiences. As sad as it made me to see him relive certain moments from his past over and over again, I was also pleased with how much research the author seemed to have done on how experiences like this can haunt someone. Based on my knowledge of this subject, she wrote an accurate portrayal of how someone would be expected to react to such a terrible and life-changing experience over the longterm.

There were pacing issues. The narrator spent a great deal of time introducing himself and the audience to his new home and community. As interesting as it was to see a detailed description of how Josh adapted to living in an unfamiliar place, this left the rest of the storyline with less room than it should have had to show what happened to this character after he met a potential friend and began settling into a routine. I found it hard to remain interested in the plot at certain points because of this.

The plot twists in this tale were well done. Ms. Rucker Haynes really knew how to throw her audience for a loop before revealing her actual intentions for her characters. I enjoyed all of the surprises she had in store for me as I read. This wasn’t the first thing I’ve read from her, but it was my favorite tale from her so far because of how much effort she put into keeping her audience on our toes.

I’d recommend The Haunting of Josh Weston to readers who enjoy fiction about the paranormal, mental health concerns, or, even better, both of these topics.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Walk on the Wild Side by Nicholas Oldland

December 4, 2018 By Leave a Comment


Walk on the Wild Side by Nicholas Oldland
Life in the Wild
Publisher: Kids Can Press
Genre: Childrens, Action/Adventure, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (32 pages)
Age Recommendation: 3+
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

This clever picture book tells readers right away what to expect. ?There once was a bear, a moose and a beaver who loved adventure. But sometimes their competitive natures got in the way of having fun.? One day, the three set off to climb a mountain together. But on the way there, they decide to make it more exciting by turning the climb into a race to the top. It’s only after being sidelined by a series of mishaps — a boulder tumbling down the path, the moose hanging off the side of the cliff, the bear hanging off the moose hanging off the side of the cliff — that the three friends realize competitions don’t always make for a good time. ?At the end of the day, the bear, the moose and the beaver agreed that reaching the top of the mountain was great, but enjoying the journey together was even better.?

This funny, contemporary fable is from Nicholas Oldland’s popular Life in the Wild series. The wonderful fun here is the comedy that highlights the adventure, in both the dry humor of the text as well as the simple, earth-toned illustrations that provide a humorous visual play-by-play of the action. This would make a terrifically entertaining storytime title, easily promoting the importance of teamwork, kindness and friendship. It could also be used in the early grades as part of a classroom discussion of woodland animals and their habitats. Another lesson here is the pleasure of getting outdoors for recreation.

If you’re not having fun when you’re out with your friends, there’s a problem.

Some of my favorite scenes were the ones that showed what can happen to someone who goes hiking and doesn’t pay attention to their surroundings. This is the kind of activity that can be a bit dangerous at times for anyone who doesn’t follow basic safety rules, so it was nice to see that acknowledged in a kid-friendly way. I also enjoyed seeing how the characters reacted once they realized that their race up to the top of the mountain wasn’t going to be as quick and easy as they originally thought. Their responses to the actual terrain they were rushing through were perfect.

There were so many missed opportunities for plot development. The storyline would briefly mention something incredibly interesting that happened to the character while they were attempting to get to the top of the mountain only to never bring it up again. While I wouldn’t necessarily expect them to go into a lot of detail about every single twist in the journey, it would have been nice to have a clearer picture of at least some of their adventures.

The message of this tale was such a positive one. I liked the fact that the characters were given so many opportunities to learn why it’s important to cooperate with each other and what happens when a group of friends decides to treat each other like the competition instead. It was never heavy-handed, but the narrator did get their point across well.

I’d recommend Walk on the Wild Side to adventurers of all ages.

Filed Under: Reviews, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

December Book of the Month Poll Winner ~ The Boyfriend Mistake by Charity West

November 30, 2018 By Leave a Comment


The Boyfriend Mistake by Charity West
Publisher: Evernight Teen
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Short Story (116 pages)
Age Recommendation: 14+
Rating: 5 stars
Reviewed by Orchid

Voted BoM by LASR Readers 2013 copy

All Mya ever wanted was to date golden boy Prescott Monroe, captain of the football team, loved by the entire school. But when she gets her wish, it isn’t long before she realizes that things are not all as they seem. The guy everyone in her school loves is hiding something, and there’s a darkness in his eyes that only she seems to see. Can she get away before it’s too late?

Ryder James has earned his label as Central High’s bad boy, and he relishes the title. It gives him a different girl at the snap of his fingers, and more parties than he could ever hope to attend. But the one thing he’s always wanted and knows he can never have—the untouchable Mya Henderson.

Until one fateful morning Mya’s world changes forever, leaving her completely shattered, and Ryder suddenly isn’t the bad boy everyone’s warned her away from. Instead, he’s her knight in shining armor.

READ THE FULL REVIEW HERE!

Filed Under: Reviews, Romance, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: ,

The Tea Party in the Woods by Akiko Miyakoshi

November 30, 2018 By Leave a Comment


The Tea Party in the Woods by Akiko Miyakoshi
Publisher: Kids Can Press
Genre: Childrens, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (32 pages)
Age Recommendation: 3+
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

When a young girl named Kikko realizes her father has forgotten the pie he was supposed to bring to Grandma’s house, she offers to try and catch him as he makes his way through the woods. She hurriedly follows her father’s footprints in the snow and happens upon a large house she has never seen before. Curious, Kikko peers through the window, when she is startled by a small lamb wearing a coat and carrying a purse. Even more surprising, the lamb speaks, asking her in a kind voice, ?Are you here for the tea party?? Suddenly, Kikko realizes her trip through the woods has turned into something magical.

Anything can happen in the woods.

There was so much kindness woven into this book. Originally, I was planning to recommend it to a slightly older age group, but it was so gentle that I decided to include younger readers as well. Every scene was filled with so much warmth that I think it would appeal to preschoolers just as much as it would to older children. This is even more true for kids who like the fantasy genre or spending time out in nature.

While I loved the premise of this one, there wasn’t as much going on with the storyline as I would have preferred to see. Kikko’s adventures could have been summarized in far fewer pages because of how quickly everything happened. Had there been more conflict or the inclusion of a plot twist or two, I would have chosen a much higher rating for this story. It definitely had promise, but it simply didn’t do as much with the ideas explored in it as I would have liked to see.

The animals in this tale had abilities that bears, deer, and other creatures in our world do not. I can’t go into a lot of details about this without giving away spoilers, but I was amused by all of the things they were capable of doing. The descriptions of how they lead their lives in the quiet and remote parts of a forest were as detailed as they were creative.

Anyone who enjoys tea parties should give The Tea Party in the Woods a try.

Filed Under: Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , ,

Hannah and Sugar by Kate Berube

November 29, 2018 By Leave a Comment


Hannah and Sugar by Kate Berube
Publisher: Abrams Books for Young Readers
Genre: Childrens, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (32 pages)
Age Recommendation: 6+
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Every day after school, Hannah’s school bus is greeted by her classmate’s dog, Sugar. All of the other kids love Sugar, but Hannah just can’t conquer her fear of dogs. Then, one day, Sugar goes missing, so Hannah joins the search with her classmates. Will Hannah find a way to be brave, and make a new friend in the process?

Everyone’s scared of something.

It was nice to see how gentle and understanding everyone was with Hannah. She was given the opportunity to pet the dog every day, but none of the adults in her life ever pushed her to do it. They respected the fact that this was something that would be difficult for her even if they didn’t understand why. They were good role models both for adults as well as for kids who might one day make a friend with someone like the main character of this story.

I would have liked to see more time exploring Hannah’s fear of dogs. It seemed to be something that bothered her a lot, so I was surprised by the fact that the narrator didn’t go into detail about when or why it first developed for her. This seemed as thought it should have been something that was mentioned at least once while the main character was figuring out how to react after Sugar went missing.

The ending made me smile. Hannah’s decision to help everyone go looking for Sugar after that pet went missing was a brave one. I was pleased by the fact that she decided to join in so quickly despite how nervous she was around dogs in general. There was also something to be said for the way no one made a fuss over this choice. Hannah was included without a second thought, and her help was appreciated. All of this made the final scene even more poignant than it would have already been.

Hannah and Sugar should be read by anyone who has ever been afraid of something ordinary.

Filed Under: Reviews, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , ,

The Boyfriend Mistake by Charity West

November 28, 2018 By 1 Comment


The Boyfriend Mistake by Charity West
Publisher: Evernight Teen
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Short Story (116 pages)
Age Recommendation: 14+
Rating: 5 stars
Reviewed by Orchid

Voted BoM by LASR Readers 2013 copy

All Mya ever wanted was to date golden boy Prescott Monroe, captain of the football team, loved by the entire school. But when she gets her wish, it isn’t long before she realizes that things are not all as they seem. The guy everyone in her school loves is hiding something, and there’s a darkness in his eyes that only she seems to see. Can she get away before it’s too late?

Ryder James has earned his label as Central High’s bad boy, and he relishes the title. It gives him a different girl at the snap of his fingers, and more parties than he could ever hope to attend. But the one thing he’s always wanted and knows he can never have—the untouchable Mya Henderson.

Until one fateful morning Mya’s world changes forever, leaving her completely shattered, and Ryder suddenly isn’t the bad boy everyone’s warned her away from. Instead, he’s her knight in shining armor.

Mia doesn’t know what to do. Girlfriend of the school’s football star she discovers he’s not as nice as he makes out. However, it would be social disaster for her if she ditched him. The other boy in her life is Ryder, the school hottie, but his reputation precedes him and he is always sarcastic to her so she tries to steer clear of him.

Things come to a head when her boyfriend tries to take it a step too far and she says no. Ryder intervenes and everything changes for Mia.

I really liked the way the author got inside both Mia and Ryder’s heads to show how they reacted to the most horrible thing a girl can go through. The whole story seemed so real and the characters were three dimensional and appeared to be very caring of each other.

This book is brilliant. If I had a teenage daughter I would insist she read it. It’s a story which shows how a teenager can be brave in the face of adversity. Totally deserves a 5 star rating.

Filed Under: Reviews, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Rabbit’s Snow Dance by Joseph Bruchac and James Bruchac

November 27, 2018 By Leave a Comment


Rabbit’s Snow Dance by Joseph Bruchac and James Bruchac
Publisher: Dial Books
Genre: Childrens, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Historical
Length: Short Story (32 pages)
Age Recommendation: 3+
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Rabbit loves the winter. He knows a dance, using an Iroquois drum and song, to make it snow—even in summertime! When rabbit decides that it should snow early, he starts his dance and the snow begins to fall. The other forest animals are not happy and ask him to stop, but Rabbit doesn’t listen. How much snow is too much, and will Rabbit know when to stop?

The father-son duo behind How Chipmunk Got His Stripes, Raccoon’s Last Race, and Turtle’s Race with Beaver present their latest retelling of Native American folklore.

With great power comes many opportunities to misuse it.

Repetition is one of those things that can make or break a children’s book. Luckily, the repetition in this book was handled perfectly. It happened often enough to give the storyline a sense of rhythm, and the words used in it were so catchy that I actually really liked seeing them pop up over and over again. They also gave the audience a lot of insight into Rabbit’s personality. The more he repeated those terms, the more I learned about who he was as a character.

The only thing I wish had been added to this tale was an explanation of where Rabbit’s powers came from. His ability to control the weather was impressive. I only wish I could have known if it was something he’d always been able to do or if his decision to make it snow in the middle of summer was a one-time mistake. With that being said, this is a minor criticism of something I enjoyed reading quite a bit.

There was so much humor tucked into the plot. I chuckled my way through many of the scenes, especially the later ones when Rabbit’s wish for winter weather began to come true. There were so many moments where his stubborn insistence on skipping ahead to his favorite season had consequences that he couldn’t have seen coming but might have taken they risk they’d happen anyway if he did. It was delightful to watch this character react to everything that happened to him as a result of his stubbornness.

I’d recommend Rabbit’s Snow Dance to readers of all ages, from kids to adults, who love legends.

Filed Under: Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , , , ,
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