Genre: Middle Grade

Bite-Sized Reviews of The Chance to Fly; You Should See Me In a Crown; Salty, Bitter, Sweet; The Memory Keeper; and The Stars of Whistling Ridge

Today I’ve got some bite-sized reviews of some of my recent reads: Two MG contemps, a MG contemporary fantasy, and two YA contemps. I hope these bite-sized reviews are enough to feed your fiction addiction! An utterly empowering book for anyone with a disability, The Chance to Fly follows Nat, a young girl with a spectacular singing voice who has always wanted her chance to shine in the spotlight. The only problem? She’s in a wheelchair, […]

Posted April 14, 2021 in Reviews / 4 Comments

Bite-Sized Reviews of Cybils Nominees: A Game of Fox and Squirrels, Wishes and Wellingtons, Mulrox and the Malcognitos, Cleo Porter and the Body Electric, and Another Dreadful Fairy Book

Yes, I know I’m STILL working my way through all my Cybils reviews. I just don’t want to leave any of these books out! So, even though the awards have been doled out, I still want to feature some very quick reviews of the nominees I read since there were so many good ones. I’m calling this the Long-Titles Cybils List. I hope these bite-sized reviews will be enough to feed your fiction addiction. This book […]

Posted March 23, 2021 in Cybils, Reviews / 5 Comments

Bite-Sized Reviews of Legendborn, Ana on the Edge, Furia, The Mystwick School of Musicraft, and Amal Unbound

Today I’ve got some bite-sized reviews of some of my recent reads: A YA fantasy, a YA contemp, a MG fantasy, and a MG contemp. I hope these bite-sized reviews are enough to feed your fiction addiction! This YA paranormal reimagining of King Arthur’s court is utterly addictive! The book goes deep into the world of secret societies when sixteen-year-old Bree goes to her late mother’s private school and discovers that demons are running amok—along with […]

Posted March 4, 2021 in Reviews / 13 Comments

Bite-Sized Reviews of Cybils Nominees: Dragon Assassin, The Girl Who Speaks Bear, Mulan: Before the Sword, Bones in the Wall, and The Barren Grounds

The Cybils Awards winners have been announced, and you should definitely check them out! Congrats especially to Rival Magic, which won in the MG spec fic category, which is the category I judged for round one. Even though the awards have been doled out, I still want to feature some very quick reviews of the nominees I read since there were so many good ones. It will take me quite some time to get to […]

Posted February 18, 2021 in Cybils, Reviews / 3 Comments

City of the Plague God by Sarwat Chadda: An Exciting and Enlightening Read!

One grade school memory that stands out most vividly for me is the huge project I did on Mesopotamia when I was probably in about fifth grade or so. I was entranced by all things Mesopotamian—the culture, the mythology, the political landscape, even the geography. Now, I’ll confess that I don’t remember a whole lot of it anymore, but all these (many) years later, something still thrills within me at the mere mention of the […]

Posted February 4, 2021 in Reviews / 6 Comments

Bite-Sized Reviews of Admission, Meow or Never, The Canyon’s Edge, and You Have a Match

I still have some more Cybils reviews to post, but I’m taking a little time off from that to post some newer releases. (Though I will be coming back to some of my favorite Cybils books still). Today, I have two YA contemps and two MG contemps (one in verse!) I hope these bite-sized reviews will be enough to feed your fiction addiction! Let’s face it, we were all more than a little fascinated when […]

Posted January 21, 2021 in Reviews / 11 Comments

Alone by Megan E. Freeman: Review, Giveaway & Freeman’s Top Ten Addictions

Today I’m featuring my good friend Megan E. Freeman’s debut ALONE, a middle grade retelling of Island of the Blue Dolphins in verse. Alone releases tomorrow, January 12th, so get yourself to a bookstore and buy it now (I can’t wait to pick up my finished copy)! This book so accessible and beautiful—it’s sure to capture the hearts and minds of even the most reluctant readers. Make sure you also check out Megan’s list of […]

Posted January 11, 2021 in Author Top Ten Lists, Giveaways (Ended), Reviews / 18 Comments

Bite-Sized Reviews of Cybils Nominees: The Sisters of Straygarden Place, Rival Magic, Quintessence, Horace Fox in the City, and The Clockwork Crow

As my regular readers know, I’m a round one judge for the Cybils Awards in the Middle Grade Speculative Fiction category. Because of that, I’ve been reading LOTS of books lately! I’m not allowed to share any details about our process for choosing the finalists, but I am allowed (and encouraged) to review the books as I read, so I figured I’d share four of them with you today. I hope these bite-sized reviews will […]

Posted December 11, 2020 in Cybils, Reviews / 7 Comments

Bite-Sized Reviews of Cybils Nominees: The Unexplainable Disappearance of Mars Patel, The Time of Green Magic, When You Trap a Tiger, and The Lost Wonderland Diaries

Posted December 5, 2020 in Cybils, Reviews / 6 Comments

Bite-Sized Reviews of Cybils Nominees: Kiki’s Delivery Service; Embassy of the Dead; The Total Eclipse of Nestor Lopez; Middle School Bites; and Into the Tall, Tall Grass

Posted November 19, 2020 in Cybils, Reviews / 10 Comments