The Adventures of Charlie and Jayden: Big Brother Superhero by Adrian Port #Childrensbooks

 

 

Children's Book

Date Published: June 24, 2021

 

What would you do if you found out that you were getting a new sibling?

Find out what one dog dreams when he sees his new baby brother!

 

About the Author

Adrian Port is a children's book author currently residing in Boynton Beach, FL with her husband, Jayden (son), and Charlie (4 yr old pug). While she works as a middle school Language Arts teacher, she was inspired to write a story about her son and dog. Observing how they interacted when her son, who is now 2, first came home from the hospital, Adrian wondered how her dog felt about the new addition. From that idea, the world of Charlie came to life.

 

Purchase Link

Amazon

Jokes Make You Smarter by Trey Reely #Childrensbooks, #humor #jokebooks

 

Children's Humor

Date Published: June 2, 2022

 

 

Read this book and you too can laugh and create new brain cells at the same time! Kids of all ages (including young-at-heart adults) can plunge into the fathomless, oceanic depths of knowledge with jokes about animals, foreign language, geography, math, science, health, holidays, music, poetry, sports, and pop culture. But that’s not all! There are even Dad jokes that will out-dad a dad. Read, O Grasshopper, and grow smart.

About the Author

Trey Reely earned his Bachelor’s of Education and Master’s in Education from Harding University. He began his teaching career at Paragould Middle School in 1985 and assumed the position at Paragould High School in 1991 where he taught for 17 years. He was the director of bands at Riverview High School in Searcy, Arkansas from the fall of 2008 until his retirement in 2019.

In 2018, he was selected as the Arkansas Bandmaster of the Year. Trey has served as a region chairman, a state chairman of the American School Band Directors Association, and he is an Arkansas School Band and Orchestra Association past president. He is a contributing editor to The Instrumentalist and has authored over 275 articles and 7 books.

He has served as an adjudicator and clinician in Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Illinois, Oklahoma, California, and Pennsylvania. He is currently the Executive Secretary of the Arkansas Small Band Association and spends many hours teaching lessons to area students and conducting the White County Community Band which he co-founded in 2022.

Contact Link

Amazon Author Page

 

Purchase Link

Amazon

The Invisible Sword of Flames by Patricia Okongwu #ChristianFantasy

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3xeflmF

An action-packed adventure, Dragon of Darkness, is a fantasy tale of bravery, full of divine power, mystery, and twists! The power of the forever one clashes with the dragon of darkness.

 The Followers of the Forever One are destined to defeat the giant dragon of darkness. The group of five brothers and their sister must overcome their fear to conquer the monster while preserving the waning faith of the people following the Forever One. Until Mathias is placed in the line of danger, and he’s forced to defend himself against the threat of peril. Will the Followers prevail and return peace to the land of Perea, or will they fall to defeat? 

 In The Invisible Sword of Flames Series one, readers will join the believers on their quest to strengthen the people’s faith and become empowered through the word of the Forever One. An action-packed adventure in Dragon of Darkness, the first installment in a thrilling fantasy series full of divine power, mystery, and twists! Book One of five in The Invisible Sword of Flames Series.

 

Guest Post: Give Your Pet A Chip Spotlight: DAWGS by Diane Trull #giveaway #animals #rescues

Today I am welcoming and featuring another guest poster for my blog.  Also, I am spotlighting the book DAWGS by Diane Trull. Welcome Meredith Wargo, take it away.

Give Your Pet a Chip

While everybody knows today is Valentine’s Day, very few people realize it is also Pet Theft Awareness

Day. It’s sad that there has to be a day dedicated to bringing awareness to the increasing number of pet

theft and dognapping cases but the concept behind this day is to serve as a reminder to take the

necessary steps to keep your pet from becoming a statistic in the first place.

Microchipping is one of the latest technological advances that helps keep our pets safe. Microchips are

permanent IDs that are implanted into your pet’s skin. They don’t replace a tag and collar, but they can

make a significant difference in bringing home a lost or stolen pet.

Here are a few tips for making sure you get the most benefit out of your pet’s microchip:

 Be sure to register your pet’s microchip and keep your contact information current. If you change

phone numbers or move, contact the company that provided the microchip and update your

information in their system.

 Have your pet’s microchip scanned annually to be sure it’s working correctly. The best time to do

this is when you take your pet in for his yearly check-up.

 The U.S. doesn’t have a national microchip database that houses all microchipped information. So

be aware that if your pet is microchipped in one state but gets lost in a different state, the chip

reader may not detect the microchip.

 Matted fur can make detection of a microchip difficult. Keep your pet well-groomed to ensure best

results when scanning for a microchip.

Do your pets a favor ~ don’t skip the chip!

SPOTLIGHT: DAWGS

About the book:

Elementary-school teacher Diane Trull's life-defining moment happened when her fourth-grade reading class saw a photo of a cardboard box overflowing with homeless puppies. Trull was no stranger to rescuing abandoned animals. She and her husband Mark had made it their mission to find permanent homes for stray dogs and cats. Now her young students were determined to save these lost pups and others like them. And in that moment, the Dalhart Animal Wellness Group and Sanctuary--known as DAWGS--was born.

How Trull and her fourth graders started their own animal shelter is a story of dedication, commitment, and perseverance. In this eye-opening, deeply personal book, Trull describes the challenges they faced, from rescuing and caring for the animals to teaching children about compassion and responsibility, to facing local interests opposed to having a shelter in their town. She shares inspiring stories about animals and animal lovers of all ages in this moving story of hope and compassion. DAWGS is a testament to how love and a strong measure of determination can offer second chances--one animal, one child, and one day at a time.

:

Facebook:  @meredithwargo.freelancewriter

 

Instagram: @merebear1961 

Giveaway:

Enter to win author signed copy of DAWGS: A True Story of Lost Animals and the Kids Who Rescued Them (one winner) (USA only) (ends Mar 3)

https://gleam.io/pzqIS/dawgs-book-tour-giveaway

The World Small by Kelly Anne Manuel #Poetry #childrensbooks

"The World Small" was born as a poem and remains so in this newly minted Book Two of Kelly Anne Manuel's Essentials Series. In this story the Child is invited to experience their sleep time ritual with the comfort of Nature nearby.

 It is a remarkable combination of relaxation yet imagination igniting prose. "The World Small" offers a standing invitation to the Child. The Child will learn that no matter where they are on the planet, Nature has common elements. She is always available for discovery and wonder.

In the story Nature is personified as a unifying presence to our planet. The simple words take on new meaning as the illustrations pair perfectly with their presentation. The illustrations spark curiosity as they start with a map and end with the evening sky. The story identifies common elements such as the sky, sun, clouds and rainbows, to create continuity for any number of on the topic. It is in Early Childhood that a Child's view of the world and their place in it is under major construction.

 

Find author:

Goodreads

Amazon

Black Boy, Black Boy by Ali Kamanda and Jorge Redmond #BlackHistoryMonth #dreambig #childrensnonfiction

About the book:

Inspiring book that allows  black boys to imagine all the great things they can do while celebrating remarkable moments from Black history!

My review:

Walt Disney was quoted as saying, "If you can dream it, you can do it." 

Martin Luther King had a dream he looked to fulfill and he did it, along with other black boys and men like President Barack Obama and Arthur Mitchell. These are just a few of the nine men highlighted in this awesome children's book aimed at black boys.

This book is illustrated by Ken Daley with large and bold pictures. Each follows a rainbow road to a different person that highlights the person's achievement. Each page gives black boys the opportunity to set their life like each man and to dream big.

I love this book and highly recommend it! 5 stars!!!

PS. I have heard through the grapevine that there will be a second book out from black girls. I cannot wait to read that one too!

Disclosure: I received an ARC copy of this book for review. The opinions expressed here are 100% my own and may differ from yours. ~Michelle, Reading Authors Network

What the Monkey Saw by Lynn Chandler Willis #review #crimenovels

About the book:

When F.B.I. agent Emily Gayle’s partner is brutally murdered, Emily forsakes her career at the bureau and re

turns home to the North Carolina mountains to care for her disabled father. Guilt ridden over leaving her partner alone to die, Emily takes a job as an end-of-life caregiver.

Deep in Appalachia, Jude Courtland is desperate for a fast buck to pay for his grandmother’s chemotherapy. Together with his brother Crispin and cousin Devo, the trio takes to hijacking insulin delivery vans and selling the stolen drugs on the black market. When Emily is assigned to cancer patient Hazel Courtland, the line separating right and wrong begins to blur.

As the hijackings escalate and turn violent, Emily’s intuition hones in on startling evidence she can no longer ignore.
Struggling with the truth, Emily is torn between her conscience and her loyalty to a dying woman. With her own life in jeopardy, Emily’s forced to take a side. Right or wrong, the consequences are deadly.

My review:

I was initially intrigued by the title of the book, although not that great of a cover but still intrigued. However, for the most part, this book has nothing to do with a monkey which isn't even secondary to the whole story. I think just making the title "Death Doula" would have actually been better.

So, the story was intriguing in itself because who steals insulin? These guys did and for a dang good reason but the trouble they go through just to steal it is too much. The twist near the end of the book tells just how much and as the synopsis says, "turns deadly" and actually, rather heartbreaking. This reader knew it was coming but the book took forever just to get there. In other words, the book was a slow read.

I did love the compassion that was given by the character Emily for the dying patient Hazel. This part of the book was a hard read for me as it hit too close to home. I was disappointed that the character, Jude, was also compassionate throughout the entire book but gets to the end and whammo, change in personality. The love he had versus the person he supposedly was...well, again, disappointing for the two main characters. The ending like I said was not surprising but yet...

I am giving this book a 3 star. I think with a little bit less in some areas and a little bit more in others, this could be a solid 4.

Disclosure: I received an ARC copy of this book from the author. The opinions expressed here are 100% my own and may differ from yours. ~Michelle, Reading Authors Network

Where to find the author:

Amazon * Goodreads

Guest Post: Writer's Block Spotlight: The Blood of Faeries by Dan RIce #YAFantasy

Allison Lee wilts under the bright light of celebrity after being exposed as a shape-shifting monster. She'd rather be behind the camera than in front of it. Being under the tooth and claw of her monstrous mother is even less enjoyable. All she desires is for everything to go back to the way things were before she discovered her true nature. But, after she accidentally kills a mysterious man sent to kidnap her, she realizes piecing her old life back together is one gnarly jigsaw puzzle.
When Allison's sometimes boyfriend Haji goes missing, Allison and her squad suspect his unhealthy interest in magic led to his disappearance. Their quest to find Haji brings them face-to-face with beings thought long ago extinct whose agenda remains an enigma.



Amazon * Goodreads

Hello my readers. I am hosting a guest blogger on my page who is talking about writer's block. 

Please enjoy. 

Writer's Block. Does it exist? I suppose it's a subjective thing. If you think you suffer from it, you

probably do.

My critique group, the Puget Sound Writers' Guild, had a resident writer, may he rest in peace, who

staunchly did not believe in writer's block. If you can't come up with ideas and bring them to fruition, then

you aren't creative enough to cut it as a writer. He could be hard, but he was a best-selling author under

several pen names, so who were we, his pupils, to contradict him.

Now, I won't go so far as to say writer's block simply does not exist. But I do think there are practices a

writer can implement to overcome it. Personally, I've never suffered from writer's block. For example, the

characters and plot for Dragons Walk Among Us came easily to me. It probably helped that I've been

thinking about some of the central fantasy elements of the story for years. Here's my remedy, or put

another way, how I avoid writer's block.

I start small with a one-page concept that lays out the story from start to finish in broad strokes. This isn't

easy; it's hard. It takes me numerous drafts to get the concept down to one page, but I think it's worth it.

From that, I create a scene-by-scene outline that I ultimately treat as a road map. It shows me how to get

from the start line to the finish line, but I can always take detours and side trips along the way. I find the

rough draft flows quite naturally from this road map.

If you suffer from writer's block, start small. That strategy has always served me well.