Rae: My True Story of Fear, Anxiety, and Social Phobia by Chelsea Rae Swiggett Non-fiction, young adult Health Communications, Inc., 2010 ISBN: 978-0-7573-1527-5 Rae is a true story of an adolescent girl who really struggles with different psycho-social aspects of her life. She feels uncertain of herself and everyone around her and is unable to [...]

Today, I welcome Dorit Sasson from the New Teacher Resource Center. Dorit Sasson, the teachers’ diversity coach, offers a wide range of coaching, speaking, and workshops to new and veteran teachers on how to appeal and engage students of all levels and abilities. She is also an ESL instructor and teacher’s trainer and is currently [...]

I would like to welcome, Patti Wheeler, co-author of the Travels with Gannon and Wyatt adventure series to my blog today. Patti is giving away a copy of the first book in the series, Botswana. To win a copy of this well-written book in “journal-style” that kids will just eat up, please leave a comment [...]

*Fiction picture book for preschool to third graders *3 boys as main characters *Rating: Edgar, Allan, and Poe and the Tell-Tale Beets is a cute take on Edgar Allan Poe’s scary story, “Tell-Tale Heart.” Short, short summary: Edgar, Allan, and Poe are brothers who aren’t crazy about their mom’s cooking. Well, who would be when [...]

*Fantasy, Middle-grade novel *Fairy expert Miss Edythe McFate and fairies themselves as main characters *Rating: Lesley M. M. Blume’s book is a delightful and entertaining look at these unusual creatures. Short, short summary: Written in several short chapters with titles such as “How to Tell a Good Fairy from a Bad One” or “Further Notes [...]

*Picture/chapter book, contemporary *Two best friends, elementary-aged girls as main characters *Rating: Super cute and clever book, Bink and Gollie will have fans young and old. Short, short summary: Bink and Gollie are best friends, and they are about as opposite as you can get. In the three stories in this book, Bink buys a [...]

“Fifty years before Helen Keller, there was Laura Bridgman”–so reads the tagline for this book: She Touched the World: Laura Bridgman, Deaf-Blind Pioneer by Sally Hobart Alexander and Robert Alexander. Here are the facts about this book: *Middle-grade biography *Laura Bridgman is the subject *Rating: This book is an award-winner! Short, short summary: This book [...]

A great, fun book for winter to read with preschool and elementary-aged kids *Picture book, animal fantasy *Hibernating bear as main character *Rating: Bear Snores On is one of those clever picture books I wish I would have written. . . Short, short summary: “In a cave in the woods/ in his deep, dark lair,/ [...]

Happy New Year! 2010 was an exciting year for me–especially the end. As some of you know, I had a daughter born on 10-26-10, who spent a month in the NICU. She’s doing great, and we are adjusting and starting to get on a schedule. That’s one of my goals for the New Year–getting on [...]