Welcome to the Reading Room Update with reviews for books on the shelves.
The first review is for the latest children’s book from D.L. Finn – Tree Fairies and Their Short Stories
About the book
When reality and magic meet in the forest
It’s 1969, and twelve-year-old Daniel Burns is camping in the redwood forest with his family. Danny wants to listen to his music and read, but his family has other plans. S’mores around the campfire and stories end their first day. The family is sleeping soundly in their secluded tent when Danny wakes up and finds his sister, Colette, is missing. Assuming she went to use the outhouse, he goes after her. When he finds his sister, they discover there is a thin veil between reality and fantasy. Two bonus short stories offer a glimpse into the magical world that finds Danny and Colette. These hidden beings not only share our world but have a role in protecting their forest.
One of the recent reviews for the book
My name is Ellie and I’m 14. I was looking for a book to read and the title of this one caught my eye. I’ve had fairies “on the brain” lately. My dad was recently painting this fairy picture for my sister’s bedroom and he’d been asking for my opinion and input as he went along [like…a lot]. This was a fun read for many reasons. First, it was 3 stories in one, so it seemed to go really fast and it held my interest.
I liked that the 3 stories were connected so I didn’t have to learn new characters for each one, but each story was in a different time period and from different points of view. I think the 1st one was from the time of, like, when my mom was a kid, because it talked about a portable radio. I’ve only ever had Spotify on my phone, so it was weird to think about taking a portable radio to the forest. I liked the poetry that was included, too. I like poetry and I don’t think I’ve ever read a book with that included before.
Most of all, though, I liked the environmentalist theme/moral of the story. I liked that it showed that – while there were bad-acting humans – it wasn’t just a story of fairies against the humans. The fairies worked WITH humans to protect the forest. I liked how much the fairies were like regular people, too; it made it really easy to relate to them. And I liked that it showed that something like caring for the forests isn’t something that is done just once or in a single action. It’s something that you have to work on together for years for it to work. The trees in the stories were truly wise to know that!
Head over to buy the book: Amazon US – And: Amazon UK
Other children’s books by D.L. Finn and for adults in the Cafe and Bookstore
Read the reviews and buy the books: Amazon US – And: Amazon UK – Follow D.L. Finn: Goodreads – Connect to D.L. Finn – Website: D.L. Finn Author – Facebook: D.L. Finn Author – Twitter: @dlfinnauthor
In April of this year I was delighted to read and review the children’s book by Miriam Hurdle – Tina Lost in a Crowd.
About the book
Tina invited her friend Erica to attend a popular Tchaikovsky’s Spectacular concert on a summer evening with her parents. During the intermission, her dad left the seat to buy some snacks. Tina and Erica followed him wanting to use the restroom. The shoving crowd pushed them away, and they lost sight of him. It would be impossible to fight through the 18,000 people to find him or go back to Tina’s mom. What would the girls do?
This story tells about what happened to Tina and Erica after they got lost. Children can adapt to the learning from different situations they may observe or encounter. Adults could have discussions with the children about the situations to help them develop problem-solving skills.
A recent review for the book
Like many children, the sweet main character “Tina” (based on Hurdle’s daughter in real life), has a memorable experience of getting lost in a crowd. This central conflict for the eight-year-old instantly sent me back into my own memories of being separated from my grandparents at a young age when I paused too long in front of a tank of jelly fish in a bustling aquarium in Los Angeles. When I turned around, my grandparents were gone; the brief separation felt terrifying at the time. Calm under pressure, young Tina does not panic as she relays the important lesson of staying put in this type of situation until parents or guardians can come find her and her friend. She models leadership and level-headedness for her friend Erica, and this event becomes a strong lesson learned rather than one underscored by fear.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this story with my pre-school age son, and we both enjoyed the flow of the story, well-developed characters and realistic relationships, and expressive water color illustrations. As a parent and teacher, I appreciated the enthusiasm that naturally springs from the transition from school to summertime. Mrs. Tyler collaborates with Tina to create a list of fun events or activities to comprise “Tina’s Summer” and displays earnest interest in her daughter’s choices, interests, and questions. Beyond the main event at the Hollywood Bowl, the dialogue, storyline, and illustrations provide multiple conversation points and opportunities for follow-up questions between reader and listener. Thank you, Ms. Hurdle, for such an enjoyable book!
Head over to buy the book: Amazon US – And:Amazon UK
Also by Miriam Hurdle for adults
Read the reviews and buy the books:Amazon US – And:Amazon UK – – Goodreads: Miriam Hurdle – Blog: The Showers of Blessings – Twitter: @mhurdle112
Thanks for dropping in today and I hope you will be leaving with some books…thanks Sally.
Two fabulous reviews, Sally.
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Thank you, Robbie. I appreciate your review also.
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Two books that I thoroughly enjoyed, Sally. Congrats to Denise and Miriam on the feature and the wonderful reviews. 🙂
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Thank you so much for your support, Diana! 🙂
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Thanks, Diana 🙂 xo
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Brilliant reviews for these books. Thanks for sharing.
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Glad you enjoyed Janet.. xx
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Thank you, Janet!
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Thank you so much for posting the recent reviews of Denise’s Tree Faries and my Tina Lost in a Crowd. It was a great review from Stephanie and good for her to post the review. My daughter kept a whole year of her weekly book review for a class in high school. Perhaps the teachers also encourage the students to post the reviews on Goodreads if not Amazon. I also love the Amazon customer who read Tina to her preschool son as well as shared her brief terrifying moments of separating from her grandparents. It happens to kids sometimes.
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We used to do book analysis back 50 + years ago at school and I thought it was an excellent way for children to set out what they liked or understood from a book and encourages them to review.. xx
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That was what my daughter did, the pros and cons of the book and what she thought of the book. I was surprised of what she wrote at age of 13 or 14. 😊
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Girls are coming in to their own at that age ♥
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It’s wonderful when kids enjoy books, isn’t it Miriam! Thank you Sally for sharing the reviews.
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Pleasure Denise..hugsx
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It is wonderful, Denise. I’m glad Sally chose that review.
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Reblogged this on The Showers of Blessings and commented:
I’m over at Sally Cronin’s Children’s Reading Room where she shared the reviews of Denise’s Tree Fairies by a 14 years-old girl and my book Tina Lost in a Crowd.by a customer who shared her own brief terrifying moments of separating from her grandparents. Please hop over to read the reviews and share your thoughts.
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Thanks for boosting the post Miriam..hugsx
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What fantastic reviews for these great authors – congratulations to them. Toni x
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Thanks very much Toni…hugsx
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Thank you so much, Toni!
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Congratulations to Denise and Miriam on their excellent reviews.
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Thanks Pete..x
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Thank you, Pete 🙂
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Thank you for stopping by, Pete, and thank you for your review of Tina.
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I love your reviews, Sally! Wonderful reminiscense to these wonderful books. xx Michael
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Thanks very much Michael.. love the children’s books..xx
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Reblogged this on NEW OPENED BLOG > https:/BOOKS.ESLARN-NET.DE.
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Thanks for sharing the children’s books Michael..hugsx
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A great addition to them we know Its so important getting the children to read. xx
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absolutely xx
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Two fantastic authors. Although I haven’t read Tina Lost in a Crowd, I did read Miriam’s Heartstrings book and enjoyed it. And Denise’s Tree Fairies book is whimsical and delightful. I really liked that one 🙂
Great share, Sally!
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Thanks Mae.. I loved Tina Lost in a Crowd.. and I am sure Denise’s Tree Fairies are lovely..xx
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Thank you, Mae 🙂 xo
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Thank you for your lovely comment, Mae. I appreciate your review of Heartstrings.
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It’s wonderful to see a review from a young person. I really enjoyed that.
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I thought it was great.. thanks Craig..xx
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I agree, Craig 🙂
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We should encourage students to write reviews.
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True.
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Two wonderful reviews, Sally. All the best to both authors.
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Thanks very much Staci..hugsx
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Thank you, Staci!
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I’m lucky! I have read all of these books! What a sweet review from the 14-year-old!!
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Thanks Pamela and I loved that review.. ♥
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It certainly made my day, Pam 🙂
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Thank you so much for reading and reviewing my books, Pam. I just love young readers doing reviews.
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Lovely reviews of two wonderful writers! Denise’s Tree Fairies is delightful and educational. I loved Miriam’s Heartstrings, but I haven’t read her latest children’s book. Thank you, Sally, for featuring these two beautiful writers today. You’ve brightened the day! 🌞
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Thanks very much Gwen and for your recommendation for Denise’s Tree Fairies and Miriam’s Heartstrings.. I can definitely recommend Tina Lost in a Crowd..glad to have brightened your day…♥
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Thank you, Gwen:) Miriam’s book was charming.
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I appreciate your support, Gwen. Thank you for your reading and reviewing Heartstrings. I would love to know what you think if you have a chance to read the children’s book to your grandkids. 🙂
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How wonderful to see Denise and Miriam featured!!
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Thank you Jan..hugs
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Thank you, Jan:) xo
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Thank you for stopping by, Jan!
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Two great reviews, Sally. Two terrific authors too.
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Thanks very much John.. hugsxx
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😁
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Thank you, John.
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😁
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Great reviews. How nice to see a review from a fourteen-year-old.
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It was a wondeful surprise, Joan 🙂
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Thanks Joan and I agree.. nothing better…xx
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Thank you, Joan. It was great to see a review from a young person.
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Thank you for having the fairies here and sharing a review, Sally 🙂 xo
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Pleasure Denise.. lovely review. xx
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It certainly made my day, Pam 🙂
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I enjoyed both of these stories. So happy to see them highlighted here, Sally! 🙂
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Thanks very much Yvette.. and perhaps you might like to join the main cafe and bookstore with your books at some point when you have time…https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/smorgasbord-cafe-and-bookstore-free-author-promotion/
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Thank you for the invite. I’ve opened the link and hope to get to it soon. Thanks, Sally! 🙂
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Thank you for your lovely comment and I appreciate your review of Tina Lost in a Crowd.
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Congratulations to Denise and Miriam on their awesome reviews! Thanks for sharing, Sally! ❤
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Thanks Vashti, have a lovely weekend ♥
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You have a fabulous weekend too! ❤
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