How to use this Page

Camp Princess 2: Unicorns? Get Real! (Camp Princess) by Kathryn Lasky

Rating:
This is the second camp princess book, and it stars Alicia's no nonsense turret mate Princess Gundersnap. It's funny, clean, and a great princess book. Kathrn Lasky did a great job tying all the books in the series together by having each girl's story be part of an unfinished tapesty.

Description:
Gundersnap's mother took her prized pony into battle. Gundersnap is worried that she may never see her beloved pony again. Gundersnap must overcome what her mind is telling her and believe in the magic of the unknown.

Camp Princess 1: Born to Rule (Camp Princess) by Kathryn Lasky

Rating:
This is another great series for young girls. All of the princesses come from different backgrounds and different worlds, but when they work together, they can do anything.

Description:
Camp Princess is where young female royals are sent to learn falconry, song bird training, make-up application, etc. Most princesses love attending the camp, but Alicia doesn't want to go spend time with stuck up princesses. At camp she is relieved to find that her turret mates are not what she expected. When Alicia discovers a ghostly presence in her turret room and has trouble with her songbird, she needs the help of her turret mates to solve the mystery. Alicia and her turret mates come together and help each other achieve their individual destinies?

Totally Crushed (Candy Apple) by Eliza Willard

Rating:
This was another great book from the Candy Apple Series, and believe it or not, it was the girliest so far. Anyone that's had a crush on their best boy/girl friend or had the situation reversed, will love this book. It has all the awkwardness that comes with friends and relationships.

Description:
White for teacher's, Pink for Friends, and Red for Crushes - is the code at Annabel's school. So when she finds a red carnation on her locker, with her best "boy" friend's name attached, she doesn't know what to think. She's never thought of him as more than a friend, and to make matters worse her best "girl" friend has a crush on him. Annabel must sort out the carnation mystery before she loses both her friends.

How To Be A Girly Girl In Just Ten Days (Candy Apple) by Lisa Papademetriou

Rating:
This may have been the funniest Candy Apple Book that I have read so far. Anyone that has ever changed themselves to impress a boy could probably realte to this book.

Description:
Nicole "Nick" is a typical tomboy. She doesn't care about her hair, makeup, or clothes. Until she meets Ben. Ben is the cute new boy at school, that seems to have a crush on Nick's biggest rival and ultimate girly-girl Hannah. Nick agrees to a makeover in an attempt to win Ben's attention.

Boy Next Door (Candy Apple) by Laura Dower

Rating:
This book was quick and fun. It would be a good book for girls who are developing their first crush.


Description:
Taryn and Jeff have been best friends their whole lives. But when they enter 6th grade everything changes. Jeff makes the school soccer team and Taryn joins the carnival committee. Can their friendship survive a new school, new friends, and boy-girl relationships?

Miss Popularity (Candy Apple) by Francesco Sedita

Rating:
This was the third Candy Apple Book (all the books are about different characters, so it doesn't matter which one you read first). The main girl was into clothes and fashion, but it didn't have the boy/girl relationship stuff that the other Candy Apple Books have all had. It was more about the importance of being yourself even when you are the new kid. Other than that, it was pretty comparable to all the other Candy Apple books.

Description:
Cassie Knight was the most popular girl in her Texan middle school. She was nice, outgoing, and extremely fashionable. But when her father got transferred to Maine, she became the school outcast. Everyone at her new school was prim, proper, and only wore gray. In an attempt to fit in, Cassie decided to take charge of the annual school fund-raiser. Can Cassie pull the fund-raiser off, and convince the kids in her school that being different isn't always a bad thing?

Beastly by Alex Finn

Rating:
This was a fun modern twist on beauty and the beast. The beast was mean, arrogant, and self-centered. And the beauty character was smart, kind, and kinda pretty. Even though the characters were young and had to deal with the typical high school problems, they also had to face life in the real world. I think lots of teenage girls would be able to relate to the characters. My main criticism of the book is once again the content. There were a few swear words in the book and a couple sexual innuendos. It would have been a really good book without it, and I just don't understand why it was necessary.

Description:
Most people considered Kyle to be the perfect boy with the perfect life. He was tall, blond, rich, and handsome and was dating the most popular girl in school. He had the potential to be smart but was too concerned with his looks and popularity to concern himself with anything else. But when he asks an ugly girl in school to the Prom as a joke, his life changes forever. The girl is really a witch in disguise, and she transforms him into a terrible beast. Ashamed of having an ugly son, Kyle's father hides him away from the world. Kyle must find true love in two years, or risk living the rest of his life as a beast.

The Scarlet Stockings: The Enchanted Riddle by Charlotte Kandel

Rating:
When I was younger I loved two things, reading and dancing. I haven't danced since college, but I still love reading about it. Most of the time when I read dancing books, I'm a little disappointed. Authors usually use the correct more complex terms for describing the dancing in detail. Which is good if you know what they are talking about. But, they usually do it in such a way that unless you have experience dancing the books are a little hard to read. This book was the complete opposite. All the terms and explanations were correct, but it was done in such a way that even people without any dance experience could enjoy this book. The author even incorporated the history of ballet into the book without making it feel like history. It was just another part of the mystery. The characters were real and believable, and the story was fun and enchanting. This is a great book for younger girls.

Description:
Daphne has always had two lifelong dreams. One is to become a prima ballerina, and the other is to find her real parents. So when a mysterious package arrives at the orphanage addressed to Daphne, she hopes that one of her dreams is about to being fulfilled. When Daphne opens the package, she finds a beautiful pair of scarlet stockings and a book on teaching yourself ballet. On closer inspection of the book, she discovers a riddle written on the inside cover. Her desire to solve the riddle sends her on a quest of self discovery and puts her dreams within reach. But in the end, she must choose what she really wants from life, and then do what it takes to deserve it.

Babysitting Wars (Candy Apple) by Mimi Mccoy

Rating:
My nine year old niece was reading this book so I decided to read it to see what it was like. I liked it. It was a really fast read and it was fun. It wasn't too in depth or complicated and seemed like the perfect level for my niece. The book also talked a lot about what it takes to be a good babysitter, so it would be a good tool for younger girls just getting into babysitting.

Description:
Kaitlyn is known as the super-sitter of Marshfield Lake. She is so good that she almost always has a babysitting job but has almost no time for her friends. When a new girl named Nola moves into town, she starts stealing some of Kaitlyn's clients. Kaitlyn declares war on the new girl and will stop at nothing to find out how Nola is stealing her clients. But when she lies to her parents, misses her best friend's art show, and goes into the city at night before herself, Kaitlyn might have to stop babysitting completely. Find out just how far is Kaitlyn willing to go to win the ultimate babysitting job with the richest family in town?

Drama Queen (Candy Apple) by Lara Bergen

Rating:
This was a great book for elementary school age girls. It was fast, fun, and entertaining. It contained all of the girly aspects typical in this type of book, but did so in a fun new way.

Description:
Charlie and her best friend Nicole decide to audition for the school musical. After a shaky audition, Charlie lands the roll of a woodland creature. To take part in the play Charlie must babysit her little sister and her imaginary friend during rehearsals. But between her audition humiliation, mean drama girls, and sister's with imaginary friends, Charlie doesn't know if she wants to stay in the play. Charlie learns that even when everything seems like it is going wrong, the show must go on and sometimes something bad can turn into something positive.

This is my submission for Illustration Friday: Visitors.

This is another attempt at softening my digital work. I'm really excited at how these are coming out.

A colláge with some aliens added with Illustrator. Done for Illustration Friday.
My Blog

Well here we are again in another great and lovely Monday, so let us break loose with inspiration and post whatever its in our minds......to all of you nice PSM! best, Choper Nawers.