Last year – 2011 – was a great year for great books!  It was most difficult to narrow down my long list of outstanding books for this review.  The list of exceptional books is geared for ages nine and older, as that’s the age I’m most interested in keeping the excitement and interest in reading. [...]

These picture books may not actually scare kids ages four and up, but they’ll sure enjoy reading them over and over again.
Creepy Monsters, Sleepy Monsters:  A Lullaby, by Jane Yolen, and brilliantly painted from top to bottom of every page by Kelly Murphy, is a most creative story about the most unique-looking monsters waiting [...]

Here are some perfect picture and fiction books that will surely help put you in the mood for this fun holiday!
Mouse and Mole:  A Perfect Halloween, by Wong Herbert Yee, is a new story for ages six to eight to add to the “Mouse and Mole” series. This early reader has all of the elements [...]

Everyone likes a scary story and a good mystery, right? October brings out the stories that might keep us up at night. Here are some great reads good for ages nine and up.
43 Old Cemetery Road: Over My Dead Body, by Kate Klise, and cleverly illustrated by M. Sarah Klise, is Book Two in the [...]

Itsy Mitsy Runs Away, by Elanna Allen, is a cute and funny story about how little Mitsy plans to run away to a place where she’ll never have to go to bed!  But dad is one smart dad and tells her that she’ll need to pack her favorite stuffed dinosaur, and food, and on and [...]

President’s Day brings about a better appreciation for America’s great leaders of the past, as well as highlighting the tremendous sacrifices our ancestors experienced. Here are some outstanding new publications on the subject that are good for ages nine through adult.
The first five books are part of a wonderfully engaging historical fiction series, “Dear America”, [...]

The day of celebrating love will soon be here and what better way of showing your love for your little ones than through books?  Here are some wonderful, fun and loving examples for Valentine’s Day. All of these books are good for ages 2 through 7, except for the first four books which are good [...]

Christmas time is the greatest time of year to give: a gift of love, a gift of thoughtfulness – and how about a gift to read?  Here are some wonderful new books that are perfect gift giving ideas and great for all ages.
Let’s start with some outstanding and enlightening new pop-up books. Wild Oceans: A [...]

These wonderful books will surely help satisfy the great anticipation of this best season of the year!
The First Christmas: A Changing-Picture Book, by Sophy Williams, is the retelling of Baby Jesus with clever flaps that open and change the pictures in an over-sized book. The illustrations are beautifully painted in soft pastels.
Christmas in the Time [...]

Tricks and treats are most abundant in these chapter books for ages nine and older, making it my last installment for Halloween books for 2010.
Ghoul Strike!, by Andrew Newbound, finds twelve-year-old Alannah in the midst of searching for her parents who went missing over 3 years ago while searching for ghosts. Now, it seems that [...]