I was approached by Matt Cubberly, author of Charlotte, Wander On through e-mail to review his wonderful project which I believe in wholeheartedly. Here’s what he said, “It’s a slightly dark, yet inspiring, children’s book with beautiful illustrations.” Then he gave me this You Tube link:

And I was hooked. When he sent me the PDF, I was even more pleasantly surprised. The story is told in rhyme with absolutely beautiful illustrations (by Irina Kovalova) as you can see in the You Tube video. What I love about this book, besides these illustrations, is the message that it is promoting: A young girl must use her inner strength and discover who she is in order to save her brother. Sure, she has to avoid physical danger, too, but it’s the inner struggle that really plays out. And the best part–you can discuss this with your child after you are finished reading it! Although they may not have a dangerous journey like in the book, they still face fears and struggles every day, and so you can use this book as a discussion starter. It’s sometimes easier to get an important discussion started with a book and a character, instead of personal examples.

Told in rhyming four-line stanzas, Charlotte starts her journey with a book from her grandma, and she tells the reader that she promised Grandma she would follow the instructions in the book. She has one place left to go and still hasn’t found what she seeks to save her brother. She almost gives up and could become lunch for some creatures, but she finds strength and “wanders on.”

IF you like books with strong female characters for our children, then you will love Charlotte, Wander On. Currently the author and illustrator are trying to raise enough money to get it printed. They have a Kickstarter campaign that ends in four days, and they are so close to their goal! Consider visiting their page and adding to the donation: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/685642408/charlotte-wander-on.

Also if you like to read humorous novels for adults, on my Lit Ladies blog, we have a contest for the novel, The Opposite of Everything by David Kalish. We just found out that he won first place in a prestigious contest for this book, and you could win it here: http://www.thelitladies.com/humor-novel-the-opposite-of-everything-review-and-giveaway/