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Reviving The Commander by Nadine C Keels
No Retirement Plans Reviving The Commander by Nadine C Keels is a Christian romance and the first in the Crowns Legacy series. The book revolves around the theme of love in later life. You are never too old to fall in love. We must not exclude ourselves from life when God’s not finished with us. […]
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The Medallion by Cathy Gohlke
Adonai Will Make A Way The Medallion by Cathy Gohlke is a Christian historical novel set in Poland during World War II. The foundations of the story are factual. Using Cathy Gohlke’s creative imagination a fictional story has been woven around the facts. It is a powerful story that will consume the reader. It tears […]
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Quiet Family Dramas: Four Recent Middle-grade novels
A roundup of recent middle-grade novels about family formation and dissolution. Stories, like people, begin at home, and no matter how fanciful or adventurous middle-grade fiction may be, its mainstay remains what it’s always been: the family. Four recent novels by award-winning authors present families in the process of bereaving, breaking up, or re-forming, all ending on a note of hope. No big upheavals happen, but that’s life for most of us. We come, as these characters do, to a sense of self and stability hand-to-hand, through developing relationships. The Lost Boy’s Gift by Kimberly Wilhoit. Henry Holt, 2019, 210 pages. For ages 8-12 “The art of noticing is the…
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The Pink Bonnet by Liz Tolsma
Emotional And Horrifying The Pink Bonnet by Liz Tolsma is a marvellous Christian historical suspense that will have your heart racing and your emotions ripped to shreds. In The Pink Bonnet fact meets fiction as Liz Tolsma weaves her story around the real life figure of Georgia Tann who kidnapped children and sold them to […]
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House Of Shadows by Nicola Cornick
A Love Through Time House Of Shadows by Nicola Cornick is a fascinating and compulsive contemporary and historical read. Fact and fiction combine under the author’s skilful imagination. The novel is mainly set in present day but travels back to the late seventeenth century and the early nineteenth century. It is an epic tale of […]
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Thirst Of Steel by Ronie Kendig
Loyalties Thirst Of Steel by Ronie Kendig is a thrilling Christian suspense. It is the third and final book in the Tox Files series. Once again Ronie Kendig has spun an intricate tale that keeps the reader on their toes. Familiar characters continue to fight against evil forces. The team is loyal and has each […]
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Random God Sightings by Kelly Hanes
Glimpsing Him Random God Sightings by Kelly Hanes is a powerful book of twenty six stories of seeing God in the everyday. Often in our striving to see God, we miss the fact that He is walking right beside us. We will ‘see’ Him when we least expect to. God may be at the Christian […]
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What Makes a “Strong Girl Character”? Thoughts and a Podcast
Does rejecting gender stereotypes mean there are no meaningful distinctions between strong girls and strong boys? Not so long ago, librarians and publishers were concerned about Why Boys Don’t Read. Why the gap in boy-girl reading scores? Did boys need special handling, or special reading matter? The “Guys Read” initiative by Jon Scieszka sought to write, develop, and recommend books that would be of special appeal to the Y chromosome crowd: fast-paced, humorous, gripping fiction and nonfiction. No one doubted that boys, in general (and allowing for plenty of exceptions), might need a little extra “oomph” to hook them on the joys of literature and hopefully lead to more challenging…
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Painted Horses
Painted Horses: Hunting for Treasure Within Teaching is a noble profession. Learning is not only confined to the lectures discussed within the four walls of a classroom. There are several nuggets of wisdom derived in this tale of encouragement and hope. Main character Pam came to a town called Paris to apply as a teacher of US History. The principal forewarned her that the teens have a knack of spitting a teacher out. She was desperate for the job so insurance can cover her baby’s surgery. The boy has club feet, and the young mom wanted to support his medical-related expenses. Pam sets an example of how a determined mom…
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Wile E Coyote, Physical Science Genius
Find out why that poor coyote never actually catches the speedy roadrunner in these clever science books for young physicists. Wile E. Coyote, physical science genius (series) by Suzanne Slade and Mark Weakland. Capstone Press, 2014. Zap! Experiments with energy Splat: Experiments with states of matter Thud: Experiments with forces of motion Smash: Experiments with simple machines This series turns Looney Tunes into science books. Each volume explains how, if Wile E. Coyote would just use his brains, he would catch Road Runner. Because of the principles of physics (simple machines, forces of motion, states of matter and energy), you find out why Wile’s traps don’t work. The illustrations are…
