Tommy Turtle is a children’s picture book written by Mary and Michael Schmidt. In this engaging story, we follow Tommy, a shy turtle who is very reluctant to leave his home. Other turtles invite him out to play but Tommy is nervous and fearful that...

Joann Ellen Sisco's My Sister My Friend is a wonderfully warm book with a simple story that doesn't fail in any department. An exciting, heartwarming story about family, love, children and sacrifice. My Sister, My Friend is a book that can teach us a lot...

If you are looking for an inspirational book about gracefully coping with the less than appealing aspects of aging, Andrea Partee's "Aging with Humor and Grace" isn't that tale. Instead Partee provides hilarious insight into the pitfalls of aging in a self-deprecating way to which...

Stick's Masterpiece by Spencer Hanson is about a cute girl, Stick, who tries to paint small things but ends up creating absolutely beautiful pictures. The underlying message is also a sort of motivation for children to try out new things. Apart from the colors and...

Hellavey — book two in the New Breed series by Lisa Vandiver - is so much more than a gripping fantasy that puts the reader in the middle of a war between humans, Hellaveys, and Earth vampires. Hellaveys are a group of powerful creatures from...

Leave It to Beamer Presents: The Elephant in the Room by Clay Boura explores the idiom, “There’s an elephant in the room,” in a delightful way using a child’s imagination. The little boy hears his dad talk about an elephant in the room and imagines...

In Margot Johnson’s Let it Melt, two greatly disappointed people have dealt with love’s failure in radically opposing ways. Jack, once an overweight child who was bullied by his classmates, became a joker. After the failure of his marriage, he made other radical changes. Taking...

The Spruce Gum Box is author Elizabeth Wilder's debut novel and she has tweaked the imagination of readers with interest in the cultural and historical development of the state of Maine. Set by the Aroostook River in a disputed area bordering Nova Scotia, a...

Melinda Potter and Alexandra Parker have been friends for the last five years, ever since they met and shared a room at Ohio State College. So, when Mel meets a man online who lives in Texas she decides to take a trip after graduation to...

“Nimpentoad” is a cooperative effort by Henry, Joshua, and Harrison Herz. It is a somewhat interactive storybook for children, set in an alternate world. The main character is Nimpentoad, who happens to be a Nibling, but not just an ordinary Nibling. Nimpentoad is smarter than...

“Return to Cardamom” by Julie Anne Grasso is an appealing story for pre-teens through young (or not so young) adults. This is book 2 in “The Adventures of Caramel Cardamom” series; it is the sequel to “Escape from the Forbidden Planet”. Cardamom is a planet...

Sofie and Alex come from two different worlds. Alex is an agent who is working to bring a drug mafia down and avenge his friend. When he is in the game, he is in it with his whole self. There is nothing to distract him...

Gated by Matt Drabble is a horror novel as good as any you will find on the market today. The town of Eden was the epitome of good, old-fashioned, friendly small-town America. It sounded too good to be true. It was. However, Michael and Emily...

Fireflies, by P.S. Bartlett, is the story of an Irish doctor Owen Whelan and his wife Sarah. They are Irish immigrants. The Whelans had seven children. As we know all children are special. However, the youngest, Ennis, was unique from the beginning. He was born...

Abra-Cadaver by Matt Drabble is about Tommy Ross who has a penchant for adventure and magic. Something goes wrong with one of the tricks on The Captivating Cosmo X which his parents had hired for his 12th birthday. What follows is a series of scary...

From the Dedication “to all the world’s children,” to the last page, Captain Crossbones in The Treasure Hunt, written and illustrated by Victor Ramon Mojica, delivers a delightful tale for children of all ages. In verse form, Captain Crossbones tells of a treasure he must...

With the aid of a filly unicorn, full of spirit, an enormous guardian of the forest, and a phantom which chills one to the bone with its eyes, Laeka’Draeon, the last of the dragons, must venture into places that he has never seen before and...

After Darkness Falls: Volume 1 by Matt Drabble is yet another fine collection of bizarre and spine-tingling short horror stories. This is at least the third short story collection of Matt’s that I have read, and his talent and genius for composing good, solid horror...

Gated II: Ravenhill Academy by Matt Drabble is another excellent novel by this exceptional author. It is not necessary to have read Gated prior to reading Gated II, but I strongly recommend that you do. Not only will it help familiarize you with the main...

Perhaps it all gets better the second time around, regardless of which century it happens. A Conall Christmas by Bethany Claire is not only a celebration of Christmas and new birth, but a celebration of new and unexpected love that finds two willing participants who...