GBA Book reviews: Children's fiction

I read three excellent children's books while I was acting as a judge for the Dan Poynter Global eBook Awards. One of them even made the winners circle, though it didn't win. Anyway, I thought it was probably time to post some reviews, so here are links to my reviews on gather. I'm not sure drinking coffee while reading to kids is highly recommended, though it might be a necessary antidote to sleep deprivation. Anyway, I'll include my usual coffee stars as well:

The Weaver, by Kai Strand, weaves words beautifully in a story that teaches the art of storytelling through storytelling. I would have loved to see this one win--I really enjoyed it. Read with a 4-star elegant, complex cup of coffee.

The Little Daisy, by Cathrin Hagey, offers a fun tale of a daisy who wishes she was a bit more spectacularly beautiful. It reads like a grandmother telling sweet stories to her child, with gentle lessons hiding in the tales. Brew a 1-star mild light coffee to read with this.


Pixie Tales, by Francine Trevens is a fun set of naptime tales to read with a small child--old-fashioned pixies, modern town-centers, gremlins, ogres and gnomes... all sweetly told and easy to read. Another 1-star coffee might go well.

All these are available as ebooks, so really easy to carry on your next vacation...

Comments

Kai Strand, Author said…
Oh my gosh, Sheila! Thank you for such nice, nice words about The Weaver. I'm grinning like a loon.
September 8, 2011 at 11:40 AM
maryrussel said…
They all sound charming. The art of story telling through story telling sounds like it would be helpful to read for authors.
September 10, 2011 at 9:09 AM
Cathrin said…
Sheila, thank you very much for your thoughtful comments about my ebook. I have gone on to read many of your other book reviews. I like your style.
September 15, 2011 at 9:12 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How to Connect those Connections

Taken from a talk I gave on Sunday at the Writers' Mill. This is a very low-level approach to getting connected, from one beginner to another... Internet Writing, Marketing and Networking If you’ve got an email address you’re on the internet. If you’ve got a book out or an article in a magazine, you’re into marketing. If you’ve got friends, you’re networking. And if you use Google, you can do almost anything. Google Google is your friend. Google “how to join facebook” “How to join goodreads” “How to join Twitter” etc… Google “facebook badges” “blogger widgets” etc… to spice up your pages. Anything you want to know, a nice simple question to google will almost certainly tell you. But keep safe . Don’t just click on the first link you see. Make sure it looks vaguely genuine. “F*@!book.com/badges” might take you somewhere you don’t want your computer to go. “Facebook.com/badges” tells you all about badges. Why would you want to join all these interne...
Read more

Eternal curse might hide a blessing too.

Image
Today is the official launch day for Toi Thomas's paranormal romance, Eternal Curse, and I was lucky enough to be offered a free preview copy some while ago. The novel creates an intriguing mythology of angelic beings and the Fall, binding it nicely to modern day characters in search of meaning for their lives. There's an interesting blend of the paranormal, faith and science, and the story has a nicely old-fashioned feel with separate underlying tales taking center stage on the way to resolution. So... here's the cover, the blurb, and my review: ABOUT THE BOOK 'You have plenty of time to change your mind. You have not yet seen the monster I can be.' Giovanni has been waiting his whole life to meet someone like Mira, someone from the outside world who might be able to help him. He wonders if there really is help for him as he continues to hold tightly onto dark secrets and even darker memories. Giovanni wants to be hopeful and he wants to accept Mira...
Read more

Author or transcriber, reader or visitor, greatest or least? Meet Kathryn Elizabeth Jones

Image
 Today I'm delighted to welcome Kathryn Elizabeth Jones, author of " I walked with Jesus ," to my blog. I very much enjoyed her short stories retelling miracles from the life of Christ - we clearly have faith and short fiction in common with each other.  I loved how historical, real, and relevant Kathryn's stories felt. You can find my review here:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4904771188 . I'd love to meet the author and chat in person, but inviting her to my blog is the next best thing, so I asked her to let me and you how she finds her audience. Here's what she told me. Why I think my audience is beginning to find me by  Kathryn Elizabeth Jones One of the hardest things to do as an author, other than writing or marketing a book, is to find that often illusive audience. It’s easier with mysteries or children’s picture books, probably because you know who reads them; adults and teens who love sleuthing and children and their parents who love reading....
Read more