Title: Painting in the Dark: Esref Armagan, Blind Artist Author: Rachelle Burk Illustrator: Claudia Gadotti Publisher: TumbleHome Learning Reviewer: Yolanda Ridge ISBN: 987-1-943431-15-1 This nonfiction picture book, aimed at 8 to 12 year-olds, introduces readers to Esref Armagan, a blind artist from Turkey. In typical biography style, author Rachelle Burk outlines Esref’s life chronologically, which […]
Category: Reviews
OCDaniel
Title: OCDaniel Author: Wesley King Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers Reviewer: Yolanda Ridge ISBN: 9781481455312 Based at least partly on the author’s own experience with obsessive compulsive disorder (as outlined in the author note at the end), this book is a must read for all school aged kids. With up to 20% of children experiencing some […]
Bad Luck
Title: Bad Luck Author: Pseudonymous Bosch Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers Reviewer: Yolanda Ridge ISBN: 0316320420 If you are 10-years-old (or have a 10-year-old in your life) and you haven’t yet read The Secret Series, stop surfing this blog immediately and go check out The Name of this Book is Secret. There’s a reason these books […]
Extraordinary
Title: Extraordinary Author: Miriam Spitzer Franklin Publisher: Sky Pony Press Reviewer: Yolanda Ridge ISBN: 9781632204028 First, I have to start with a disclaimer: there is no way I can objectively review this book. It was written by my critique partner and great writing friend, Miriam Spitzer Franklin, and I’ve the pleasure of reading it at various stages of production. […]
The Walking Fish
Title: The Walking Fish Author: Rachelle Burk & Kopel Burk Publisher: TumbleHome Learning Reviewer: Yolanda Ridge ISBN: 987-0-9907829-3-3 This middle grade novel, aimed at students in grades 4-7, got off to a slow start for me. There was a typo on the first page. And the “action” starts with a collection of groan-worthy puns that define the relationship between […]