Tag Archives: Friendship

Perfect Picture Book Friday: GROWING SEASON Plus Giveaway

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Happy Perfect Picture Book Friday, my friends. And I’ve got a wonderful book to review that fits perfectly with this season of spring.

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GROWING SEASON

Written and illustrated by Maryann Cocca-Leffler

Published by Sterling House Books (2019)

Ages: 4-8

Themes: Friendship, gardening

Synopsis: From Amazon:

El and Jo are the shortest kids in class, and they’re inseparable. But what happens when Jo starts to grow? This sweet picture book explores the joys and challenges of friendship and growing up.
 
El and Jo are the smallest students in their class—and best friends, too, like peas in a pod. Even their names are short. But in springtime, something BIG happens: Jo starts growing like a weed, while El feels smaller every day. On the last day of school, their teacher asked every child to pick a plant to care for over the summer. All the other kids reach over El to grab their plant, and she has to take the very last one: a tiny, flowerless aster. At first, she’s disappointed. But as summer progresses, the aster begins to bloom—and so does El! Continue reading →

Happy Book Birthday: GROWING SEASON Plus Giveaway

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Light the candles! Get ready to sing! It’s a Happy Book Birthday for a fabulous new picture book by one of my friends and critique buddies, Maryann Coccoa-Leffler!

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One of the loveliest things about being in this kidlit community is when a friend has a new book coming out. ESPECIALLY when you’ve seen the story in it’s early draft stages!GSReadingSpot

I’m so thrilled to be sharing this special day with such a special friend…today is the birthday of SWEET DREAMS, SARAH, as well! Woo-hoo!!!

And guess what??? If you leave a comment, you will be entered into the giveaway of a copy of this fabulous brand new book!

Julie Abery and I are training to the Bologna Book Fair today…and meeting up with kidlit friend Maria and fellow Storm agency teammate, Fiona. I’ll have the opportunity to connect with some of my editors…what fun! And we’ll be seeing some of the wonderful 2019 books on display…I’ll be looking for GROWING SEASON at the Sterling Books booth and my books at Creston, Holiday House, and Pomegranate.

Perfect Picture Book Friday: THE ROUGH PATCH Plus Double Giveaway

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Sometimes things are just meant to be.

A couple of months ago, I noticed author/illustrator Brian Lies was promoting a new book and offering a signed copy and an original illustration sketch as a giveaway. All you had to do to enter was to share the post. Of course, everybody knows I love sharing the word about new picture books…so I did. And guess what? Continue reading →

Perfect Picture Book Friday: ROCK AND ROLL WOODS Plus PB Critique Giveaway

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Happy Perfect Picture Book Friday, my friends! 

Do you love music? I do! All kinds! From classical to rhythm and blues. From jazz to folk. But best of all, I love rock and roll. Continue reading →

Perfect Picture Book Friday: SOPHIE AND LITTLE STAR Plus PB Manuscript Critique Giveaway

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Did you know that my 5-year old granddaughter’s name is Sophie? She’s a ball of fun and energy…and she LOVES books and hearing stories and having the mailman deliver envelopes with her name on them. And so, when one of my dear friends and critique buddies, Amber Hendricks, wrote a story called Sophie and Little Star and it got published, I knew I’d be getting a copy for her. And of course, sharing it with all of you for Perfect Picture Book Friday!

And guess what? This talented and generous author is gifting some lucky reader with a Picture Book Manuscript Critique…yes! Just make sure you leave a comment and you will be entered into the giveaway.

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SOPHIE AND LITTLE STAR

Written by Amber Hendricks

Illustrated by Raissa Figueroa

Published by Clear Fork/Spork (2018)

Ages: 3-8

Themes: Friendship, helping one another, determination

Opening lines: 

“Every night, when the sun had set and the stars gathered in the heavens to shine their light on the world, Little Star watched, wishing she could join.”

Synopsis:

“Sophie and Little Star is a delightfully charming tale about friendship and finding where we belong. A wonderful bedtime treat!” -Marissa Meyer, New York Times bestselling author of The Lunar Chronicles

When a little star falls from her home in the sky, she finds help from an unexpected friend. Together, the new friends search for a way to send Little Star home, but soon discover that not everyone you meet is kind, or helpful. Little Star begins to wonder if she’ll ever find a way home, and if she does, will she be able to leave her new friend, Sophie, behind?”

Why I like this book:

  • I love stories about friendship, especially those with a bit of pixie dust and magic woven in.
  • I love stories where the main character shows determination – and this one is a mighty girl who just isn’t going to give up until she helps her new friend, Little Star.
  • The illustrations are beautiful and Raissa captures the dreamy night-time feel throughout the pages.
  • I love sweet bedtime stories and so do kids!

RELATED ACTIVITIES

Star-Crafts-for-Kids-10-Ideas-433x650Photo courtesy: https://www.powerfulmothering.com/10-star-crafts-for-kids/

STAR PROJECTS FOR KIDS: For detailed instructions, please go to: https://www.powerfulmothering.com/10-star-crafts-for-kids/

Bundle up and go out in the evening to look up at the stars. Get a book for kids on the constellations and see how many you can identify. Check you library for Child’s Introduction to the Night Sky by Michael Driscoll.

Thank you so much for stopping by. Please make sure you leave a comment to enter the giveaway…and come back tomorrow when Amber visits Picture Books Help Kids Soar and shares her writing journey and a very special No-Bake cookie recipe from her mom.

This post joins all the others on Susanna Leonard Hill’s Perfect Picture Book Friday link up where bloggers review their favorite picture books.

And please don’t forget that our favorite authors need our help to spread the word about their books. BUY THEM! REVIEW THEM! TELL OTHER PEOPLE ABOUT THEM!

 

 

 

Perfect Picture Book Friday: OPERATION RESCUE DOG Plus GIVEAWAY

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Friday is one of my favorite days and I’m sure you all know why. It’s the day I get to review a brand new picture book! Hurray!

And today’s selection is from one of my favorite kidlit authors, Maria Gianferrari, who is so generous and kind. She is offering a copy of OPERATION RESCUE DOG as a giveaway. Please make sure you leave a comment for a chance to win!

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OPERATION RESCUE DOG

Written by Maria Gianferrari

Illustrated by Luisa Uribe

Published by Little Bee Books (September 2018)

Ages: 4-8

Themes:

Synopsis: From Amazon: 

This sweet story about a girl named Alma and a stray dog named Lulu shows how a girl and a dog can rescue each other.

Lulu’s ears flap in the wind

as the rescue truck rolls into the lot.

Lulu’s tail thumps—

Everything smells . . . new.

Lulu sleeps under the moon, drinking from mud puddles and is covered in ticks until she is rescued. She waits for the Operation Rescue Dog truck, scared and uncertain.

Alma misses her Mami, who is far away in Iraq. Alma wears Mami’s scarf around her like a hug. She wonders: Can a dog feel like a hug?

Why I like this book:

  • You’ve got a dog who needs a home and a little girl who needs a friend…that’s a formula for a book filled with heart…and I love books filled with heart.
  • Wonderful illustrations will keep the kids wanting to turn the page to see the next one.
  • Maria has such a wonderful understanding of dogs…and the relationship they have with people.

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RELATED ACTIVITIES:

Dog-Crafts-for-KidsPhoto courtesy: https://www.easypeasyandfun.com/dog-crafts-for-kids/

WOW…what a fabulous collection of dog crafts for young kids. If you’d like detailed instructions, please go here: https://www.easypeasyandfun.com/dog-crafts-for-kids/

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. Autumn is definitely here…our leaves are already changing color and the temperature in the morning is decidedly crisp. I am fortunate to live in New England because the fall foliage is something many people travel here to see.

School is underway in just about every town and city…but this is a perfect season to do day or short weekend trips with the kiddos. Do you have any travel plans in the near future? My son is flying in from Chicago next week to participate in the Tough Mudder in Gilford, NH. What is a Tough Mudder you ask? Here a short video clip: https://toughmudder.com/events/2018-northeast

It’s a 10 mile race with 20 obstacles…like a slog through ice cold water (filled with ice cubes), a run between wires that have electricity going through them…and you…OUCH! As well as climbing up walls, swinging from rings and more! My daughter and I will definitely not be participating…only cheering him and her hubby on. And then the next day, we’ll be making a bittersweet drive to Connecticut to hold a tribute to my husband at the river where he fished for decades. 

And my writer friends…how is your writing life going? We are in the last quarter of the year…are you working on anything new? Revising manuscripts? I just finished a new story and just need to polish the author’s note (it’s another nonfiction pb) befoe I send it to my agent. And then…a new story! YAY! I just came back from visiting a dear friend in New Jersey. We stayed up late…talking for hours and hours. In fact, her husband was sure we would lose our voices. But we didn’t! And I came home with TWO fabulous story ideas that I can’t wait to start researching and writing.

Please don’t forget to leave a comment to be entered into the giveaway for a copy of Maria Gianferrari’s brand new book: OPERATION RESCUE DOG…it’s available for preorder and launches in just a few days!!!!

PB Manuscript Critique Giveaway over at Sarah Hetu-Radney’s blog

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Hello dear friends!

I’m so excited to invite you over to Sarah Hetu-Radney’s new website. She’s one of my in person SCBWI buddies and she kindly asked if I’d be willing to do a three-part interview for her new blog, EYE ON WRITING.

You’ll find out a couple of interesting facts about me from when I was a little girl.

PLUS, I’m giving away a Picture Book Manuscript Critique to one lucky winner who leaves a comment on Sarah’s blogpost: https://sarahheturadny.com/meet-vivian-kirkfield-part-i-friendship-justice-and-determination/

Please share on social media, because I’m sure that everyone wants to find out what happened on that picnic in the park with my best friend, Jane, when I was seven years-old. And it will be nice for Sarah to get to meet all of you!

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I’m sure there will be no doubt as to which one is me and which one is Jane.

I hope you all have a beautiful weekend. I just finished the revisions for the big HMH compilation book – more news ahead as soon as they sign the illustrator. And I’ll soon be sharing information about my traveling plans for 2019…all I’ll say right now is that I’ll be traveling through FOUR continents! And hope to be hugging lots of kidlit friends in person!