Chad's jaw dropped. He looked at Daisy, who was already snickering, then shot up his hand. "When you say romance, do you mean like actual romance?" It all started with the announcement of the Heartstrings Publishing contest during Daisy and Chad's writers' group meeting. Daisy Fields dreamt of becoming a published romance author for ages… Continue reading Guys Can’t Write Romance ~ Tom Lewis

"A walk in the forest. What trees do we see? 1 giant Sequoia." This is a lovely little counting book that highlights different iconic trees from across the globe. Each two page spread contains a number, a tree type and a few other words to round out the script. There were quirky illustrations that show… Continue reading A Walk in the Forest ~ Cathy Goldberg Fishman

When you're hungry, when you're sad,When you don't know why you're mad,"GOO GA! MA MA!" Call your mother. This...oh gosh, where do I even start? I think this the most emotionally powerful picture book I've ever read. I loved it so much but it's going to take a few read-throughs until I can read this… Continue reading Call Your Mother ~ Tracy C. Gold 

"After weeks at sea, we finally spotted the monster." Dr. Pierre Arronax and his assistant are on the case - a mysterious being keeps sinking ships all over the ocean. But just as they make their move to take down the monster (with the help of a sailor and his harpoon), they discover that their… Continue reading 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

"I need more books. I just can't get enough." In this gorgeous little picture book, our main character is a book fiend - reading anything and everything! And just when he is about to run out of books, inspiration strikes though with one VERY big caveat! "Perhaps I could make my own. Then I can… Continue reading The Book Machine ~ Laurie Duersch

"We walk single file along the worn trail, passing oaks, Indian paintbrush, wallflower and gooseberry ... 'It's a perfect day to fish.' " In this story, the papa and his child are getting ready for a fishing adventure - going to their familiar little spot in the river...but fishing isn't just about catching fish. The… Continue reading Fly Fishing with Papa ~ Christopher Robbins

"There was a feeling of electricity running through the entire attic, and everything seemed to slow down and speed up all at once." Siblings Jack, Eva, and GG used to be excited about moving into a new house but a quick trip up a secret passage quickly unleashes something far more sinister than any of… Continue reading The Folded Ghosts ~ Scotti Mann

"...Jack met with trouble - the bullying kind.For this year a new student showed up in classAnd then some not-quite-so-nice things came to pass..." School is starting again for Jack's class and this year is already turning into a doozy. The new kid (Billy) looks like he should be a teacher - so tall and strong -… Continue reading Big Billy the Bully ~ Scotti Mann

"A is for Adzooks that walk with no head.B is for Boozins that feed on the dead." Every so often you pick up and are truly blown away. I've read quite a few alphabet books in my time - but never one like this. Working with negative space, each two-page spread contained one page with… Continue reading Alphabet of Oddities ~ Ronald Porcelli