Blogcritics Category: Books: Children

Talking Books with Children's Book Author Linda Thieman

Dorothy Thompson — Thu, 8 Jan 2009 19:22:27 EST

"I am just so tired of children�s stories where the child is independent because the parents are gone."
Linda Thieman is represented by the interviewer's Pump Up Your Book Promotion.Linda Thieman writes the Katie & Kimble chapter book series and runs the Katie & Kimble blog. She is a former English language teacher who has created a set of reading skills worksheets and classroom materials that teachers and homeschoolers can download...

Book Review Ralphina the Roly-Poly by Claudia Chandler

NancyGail — Mon, 5 Jan 2009 18:25:51 EST

A look at loneliness as seen through the eyes of one of the smallest creatures.
Ralphina the Roly-Poly, by Claudia Chandler, is exactly what the title suggests. Readers are introduced to Ralphina, one of the smallest members of the insect clan. She might be tiny, but she has much to teach the rest of us. The trick is figuring out how her lessons will be conveyed to everyone else. Ralphina is unhappy because she doesn't...

Book Review: Knitting Socks With Handpainted Yarn by Carol L. Sulcoski and Cute Knits for Baby Feet by Sue Whiting

Alyse Wax — Sat, 3 Jan 2009 08:39:49 EST

From �Flame Thrower Socks� to the ill-at-ease �Bobble-Socks� effect: This "Knit Picks" entry features a pair of socks-knitting books for all age groups.
A pair of books for you today: keeping toes warm at any age. First up is Knitting Socks with Handpainted Yarn by Carol L. Sulcoski. Handpainted yarns are one of the most coveted yarns by knitters. Often created in small batches by artisan spinners, these yarns combine two, three, four, or more different colors. The color changes don’t often...

Book Review: Faeries of the Dreamdark - Blackbringer by Laini Taylor

Mel Odom — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 17:13:08 EST

Magpie Windwitch has to face the greatest evil the Faeries have ever known, and discover her own incredible secret.
Laini Taylor’s debut fantasy novel, Faeries of Dreamdark: Blackbringer, is hard to classify regarding audience. The publisher designates it as a YA book targeting nine to twelve year olds. That would put it in the same category as Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series and J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books. On some levels, I think...

The New Canon: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

Ted Gioia — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 08:58:34 EST

Is J.K. Rowling's writing just "clich�s and dead metaphors" as Harold Bloom argues, or is there something more to Harry Potter?
The New Canon is a regular feature, contributed by Ted Gioia, focusing on great works of fiction published since 1985. These books represent the finest literature of the current era, and are gaining recognition as the new classics of our time. In this installment of The New Canon, Gioia looks at Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K....

Book Review: The Case of the Left-Handed Lady (An Enola Holmes Mystery) by Nancy Springer

Mel Odom — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 08:25:49 EST

Sherlock Holmes's fourteen-year-old sister investigates again, and the game is afoot!
With The Case of the Left-Handed Lady Enola Holmes is back in her second adventure, and this time she’s in the heart of London. While she’s prowling the dark streets and dangerous alleys of 19th century England, she’s also being hunted by her brother Sherlock Holmes. Nancy Springer has created an excellent series for young readers...

Book Review: The Tales Of Beedle The Bard by J. K. Rowling

Richard Marcus — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 06:44:23 EST

Rowling once again manages to immerse us completely in a world where magic is part of the fabric of existence.
I'm not the easiest person to buy presents for. You can't just pop out and pick me up a CD or a book because chances are if its one I'm inclined to listen to or read I'll have already managed to get a copy to review for these pages. Which made it doubly surprising that my wife walked in the door beaming the other day after returning...

Book Review: The Little Man In The Map - With Clues To Remember All 50 States by E. Andrew Martonyi

Jennifer Bogart — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 08:58:08 EST

Need to memorize the names and locations of all 50 U.S. states? Having trouble? Young or old - here's your answer, hands down.
Some Canadians have an excellent understanding of the geography of the United States. Sadly, until recently I have not been amongst their numbers. That all changed for me after reading The Little Man In The Map. While it’s true that this title was created to help school-aged children memorize all 50 states through the use of mnemonic stories,...

Book Review: Glaucia the Greek Slave - A Tale of Athens in the First Century by Emma Leslie

Jennifer Bogart — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 13:13:47 EST

Darkness, confusion and loneliness give way to light and love as two forsaken adolescents find their way into God's welcoming arms in Ancient Greece.
Following the death of their Epicurean father -- a man following a hedonistic Greek philosophy that drove him into heavy debt -- young siblings Glaucia and Laon are removed from Greece and taken to Rome. The proceeds from their sale will be applied to a portion of their father's debt. Young Glaucia is sold into the service of the Gracchi family...

Book Review: Queen Vernita's Visitors by Dawn Menge, Illustrated by Bobbi Switzer

Violet Nesdoly — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 19:06:06 EST

A colorful and friendly picture book that teaches the calendar, seasons, months of the year, days of the week.
When Queen Vernita of Oceaneer misses her friends from the Land of Quail, she invites each one to visit for a month. Queen Vernita’s Visitors tells about those visits and along the way introduces youngsters to the months of the year, the days of the week and a multitude of activities.Author Dawn Menge (a Special Education teacher working...