CAMP MAX – Book Review by Kathryn Dover

I enjoyed reading the delightful children’s story, Camp Max by Penny Reeve. The illustrations drew me into the book. The first page is an illustration of the main character, Tania Abbey, and several more exist throughout the book. Camp Max goes beyond being a simple children’s story; it reveals powerful life lessons. Through Tania’s point […]

Barking with The Big Dogs: Hope and Honesty for Children by Karley Conklin

“It is necessary to be hopeful to write successfully for children, yes, because children themselves are generically hopeful, but the quality of hopefulness is not an immature quality.” -Natalie Babbitt ( pp 42) Natalie Babbitt’s book Barking with the Big Dogs is a collection of her essays and speeches written over several years. In all the […]

This is Your Captain Speaking: Book Review by Teen Reviewer, Kathryn Dover

This Is Your Captain Speaking is not a typical actor’s memoir, so I was pleasantly surprised when I purchased this autobiography for a quarter at a used bookstore. The title is derived from Gavin MacLeod’s popular role as the captain on the 1970s television show The Love Boat. Interestingly, MacLeod dedicates the book “to the […]

Driven: Book Review by Teen Reviewer, Kathryn Dover

I first noticed the inscription in front of DRIVEN by Betty Pfeiffer that all profits go to Hmong charities. This is a great tribute to the subjects of this book, Payeng Yaj and Shongfue Khang. I also noticed that on the back cover of the book, the pictures of the real Payeng and Shongfue are blurred […]

Writing Resources: Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams

“This book is for you–the person who wants to be published or grow in your writing craft  . . . My desire is for your writing to thrive and move into a higher gear after you read these pages.” (W. Terry Whalin, pp. 20) Writing for publication is a skill that must be learned, and […]

Any Good Thing: Adult Christian Fiction by Joy Rancatore + Giveaway

Joy Rancatore‘s debut novel dramatically opens with 15-year-old Jack Calhoun’s life permanently altered: a teenage drag race ends in death and disaster. From that point onward, Jack shoulders the guilt of four deaths–compounded later by two other deaths for which he takes responsibility. Set up in five acts (you may have to look up “instauration” […]

Book Review of THE HEART CHANGER by Guest Blogger, Kathryn Dover

I enjoyed reading The Heart Changer by Jarm Del Boccio. Before I even started reading the story, I noticed on the copyright page the use of King James Version text as the basis for the story. This is rare and instantly caught my attention. This biblical basis is crucial because The Heart Changer is based […]