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Author: K.G. McAbee
Title - The Island Prison
(Crystal Staircase #2)

This book picks up where the first (The Dark Legacy) left off. Holli Macgregor is now the prisoner of the evil Captain Ambrose Craven. Holli meets another prisoner, Lady Isobel. Lady Isobel and her ocelot, Ozberto, have been Craven's unwilling guests for over six months. Shortly after meeting each other, Captain Craven escorts them to his infamous Island Prison, where rescue will be even more difficult.

Noah, Holli's brother, is determined to rescue Holli and then set off to rescue G-Bert, their dog, from Craven's secret fortress. (Located elsewhere.) He has no idea where the island or the fortress is, but with the help of several talking animal friends Noah will find out.

**** All the most enjoyable characters from the first book, The Dark Legacy, return for an encore. Readers are also treated to some new characters. This time the story is not only from Noah's point-of-view, but Holli's as well.

I would estimate that ages nine and up will enjoy this installment of the series. There is never any time for boredom. (I must report that there is one town in the story that is mentioned several times throughout the book and it is spelled two different ways. Are you up to the task of sleuthing to figure it out?) Readers must keep up with many character names, but I do not believe that will be difficult at all. A few certain talking animals tend to steal the spot light often. The chivalrous raccoon is my personal favorite, but I could be persuaded to change my mind to a certain skunk.

Of course, this ends with some loose strings for the next book to deal with; however, it stops at the perfect place so you will not be left with no closure. It looks as though G-Bert and the secret fortress will be the focus of the third book. I can hardly wait. McAbee's imagination is infinite. ****

Author: K.G. McAbee
Title - The Dark Legacy
(Crystal Staircase, Book One)

The Macgregor family arrives at their new home, Rest-And-Be-Thankful. Ten-year-old Noah and his older sister, Holli, are thrilled to see it is a massive homestead built in the 1700's by their pirate ancestor, Captain Ambrose Craven. The pair, along with their overweight Lab named G-bert, looks forward to spending the entire summer exploring the place and its equally huge grounds. They know that it just may take the whole summer to investigate everything too. The home is several stories tall and has obviously been added onto many times.

According to the lawyer, only two months prior their Great Uncle Enoch Macgregor transferred ownership of Rest-And-Be-Thankful to their dad and then simply disappeared. Great Uncle Enoch also left Holli an expensive set of paint brushes since she loves to paint in acrylics. Since Noah loves books, he receives the journals of Enoch, a mysterious French woman from 1753, and Captain Craven! Within one journal, Noah reads a short poem about traveling through the painting within Rest-And-Be-Thankful and into a whole new world and time.

Soon Noah, Holli, and G-bert find themselves in a world where animals talk, the evil Captain Craven rules, and smelly skeleton minions abound. And the only way home is through a painting that dwells within Captain Craven's fortress.

***** W-O-W! This is the perfect adventure book for ages eight and up. The book follows Noah's point-of-view. His sister, Holli, is only a couple of years older. Like most siblings, they argue a bit, but obviously care for each other. G-bert adds some wonderful humor to help off set the spooky settings, mystery, and minions. The author did an amazing job of making all the characters believable. (Even the talking animals!) Be warned that there is a cliffhanger ending, but the next book, The Island Prison, will pick up where the first leaves off. I can hardly wait! Stellar! *****

Author: Harry Markov
Title - Dragon Lady

Readers are invited to sit in as a grandmother recounts the tale of two princesses and the way they handled a challenge with their own special magic. It is a story of hope, healing, and love, the best magics of all.

*** The author exhibits a great ability to draw word images sure to enchant younger readers, though those over ten or so will want longer, more fleshed out tales. Given the youth of the author, this is a promising start to what we can hope will be a bright career. ***

Author: Sarah V. Richard
Title - Is Christmas Coming? (Children's / Ages 4 and up)

***** This is a wonderful little story, just PERFECT for reading with little ones as the Christmas holiday draws near. It begins ten days before Christmas and ends on the actual holiday. It is a daily conversation between a son and his mother. The little boy is anxious to open the presents, even just one. The mother must calmly sooth her son as they count down the days.

Each day has a rhyming beat to it. This makes it excellent as a tool to teach your young children how to read. Parents may read it to their children, but the children will want to read it to themselves over and over. It may be purchased in print form from the publisher (and possibly at B&N or Amazon) online, however, I would recommend downloading it to your computer from the publisher. By doing so, your child can get a head start on working with a computer. (Many schools begin teaching the use of computers in FIRST grade.) I highly recommend this story as a learning tool to help your child get ready for his/her school days. *****

Author: Various
Title - The Thing In The Tub & Other Poems
(Preschool and up)

***** This is a wonderful collection of poems for children. Each one made me laugh. It is full of fairies, dragons, rocket ships, funny creatures, and so much more. Children will ask for it to be read over-and-over again.

As a special treat, each poem is illustrated with a wacky picture that can be printed out for coloring! There are over twenty poems and pictures for hours of fun! This would also make a terrific present for your kids, nieces, nephews, or to be used by teachers in their classrooms for years!

I can only hope that these talented authors get together again real soon to create another delightful book of poems. I will be waiting! *****

Author: Rita Y. Toews
Illustrator: Jon Ljungberg
Title - The Bully (Ages 6-12)

This is a FREE book that anyone can read about dealing with bullies. You can either download to your computer, it takes only seconds, or open it up from the site. It looks like a picture book! Simply click the arrow to turn each page. And just like a "print" book, the reader sees the page flip. COOL!

The story is set in an elementary school and teaches how a bully operates and what your child and you can do to stop it all. There is also a multiple choice quiz for parents/teachers and children to do together. For the younger kids, there are lots of wonderful drawings that can be printed out for coloring.

Highly recommended reading for ages 6 - 12.

(Author) Karen Sue Wiesner
With Linda Derkez
(Illustrator) Candace J. Hardy
Title - Cody Knows (Pre-school)

This story follows one weekday in the life of little Cody. It begins at daybreak and ends at bed time. Most any child will be able to relate with the story of Cody.

**** This is a wonderful picture book for pre-schoolers. Simple words to follow and short sentences per page so your child can read along with you. The illustrations are bright and colorful, very eye-catching, with many details.

Many schools introduce the computer in first grade. Therefore, this ebook is a perfect way to help your child learn to read, as well as, assist your child in becoming comfortable with simple commands of computers. It is a story your child will ask you to read many times. ****

(Author) Karen Sue Wiesner
(Illustrator) Robert Lee Beers
Title - Taking Responsibility Builds Trust
(First Book in the Making Good Choices series)

The Making Good Choices series is an interactive set of stories and illustrations designed to help parents and kids understand each other and to work together toward making good decisions. The series is designed for preschoolers and elementary school-aged kids.
Each book has a set of short stories where the character (a child) makes choices. This book focuses on "responsibility" and "trust". This book has a boy with two stories. In the first, his choices are made on a playground. In the second, his choices are made during a sleep-over with a friend.

Your child will read this story and decide whether the story's character made good choices or not. By clicking on YES or NO your child is able to be interactive with the story. Which ever answer your child clicks on, the story will take your child to another section of the book and tell him/her if the answer they chose was good or not. Then it explains WHY.

***** The host of the book is Reb Raccoon. Reb will award your child gold stars for good choices, as well as, plant "seeds of knowledge". Children will enjoy interacting with Reb Raccoon and will read the book over and over. It is a perfect way to help children learn about building trust and taking responsibility for their own actions. A print version of the series will be released later. PERSONALLY, I prefer the electronic version of the series. WHY? A simple click of a mouse shows your child whether his/her answer was a good choice or not. The print version will have the answers in the back of the book. I look forward to the second book of this series. Highly recommended! *****

(Author) Wendy Peterson
(Illustrator) Ardy Scott
Title - Ocean Fairies

Jesse is a teenager who lives at the beach. Known only to her, fairy penguins live in nests hidden on the foreshore. Part of their magic is that they could understand and speak every language in the world. When they are near Jesse, she could understand other creatures too.

While exploring a sunken ship with the fairy penguins one day, Jesse's rubber dinghy is torn. She is rescued by the Selkie. The Selkie is the mightiest of all the merfolk. He can summon the wind and storm. The ocean obeys his every whim. As he leaves Jesse, he promises to grant her a wish. Jesse is enchanted with the Selkie and wants nothing more than to meet him again.

***** Thus begins a magical journey for Jesse and her little friends as they search for an elusive island. They meet a few mythical creatures and experience many magical things.

The story is like the fairy tale of "The Little Mermaid", only in reverse. The heroine is human and longs for a prince of the sea. This story will amaze readers of all ages. Yet it is written simply, so even those around the age of eight can understand it. Highly recommended. *****

(Author) Rita Y. Toews
(Illustrator) Jennifer Macaire
Title - Christmas Stars

Catherine's father had decided that she was old enough to help him decorate and put lights on the trees outside. Winter had come early. The snow was deep. When Catherine noticed two hungry deer eating seeds from the bird feeder in the back yard, she asked her father if they could help the deer through the rough winter.

***** Author Rita Toews warmed my heart with this touching story. She showed that by doing little acts of kindness, such as putting food out for the deer, the rewards would come back three-fold.

Illustrator Jennifer Macaire created lovely pictures for each page of the story. In addition, there is a picture of Catherine's trees that, when you touch them with your mouse, they light up!

As a special bonus, once the story is over, there are a few pages with puzzles, games, and projects. This is a perfect way for parents and children to have some delightful time together. Children will beg, "Can we read it one more time?" Highly recommended! *****

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