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by Rebecca Grose SoCal Public Relations www.SoCalPR.net [email protected] One of the best ways to network with contacts who might impact sales for your book is by attending educational conferences, trade shows, and book festivals. These are celebrations of books with a mix of different audiences (teachers/librarians, booksellers, parents/families, and other booklovers) who want to learn [...]

Reviewed by Nicole Weaver

Margot Finke has done it again! Her witty sense of humor, unbridled passion and talent to write stories for children and teens shine through like a beacon in the night.

In Taconi & Claude: Double Trouble, Ms. Finke introduces the reader to the Australian outback. The two lovable characters, Taconi and his beloved best friend Claude, a cockatoo, will captivate you till the very end of the story. The story chronicles the coming of age of a boy from a tribe in the 1950s era of the Australian outback. Taconi leaves the hills to come with his father to serve an affluent family at a time when he is also to enter the manhood of his Tribe.

Taconi and the cockatoo experience daily challenges together in a fun and amusing way. Along the journey, the reader will learn much about Australian folk tales and primitive tribal living.

The most memorable moment in this delightful tale is the author’s ingenious way to show that in Australia it is not too farfetched to indulge in eating snakes and other unheard-of critters.

There are a great deal of lessons one can learn from reading Taconi & Claude. Here are a few that stand out:

1) Hard Work: Taconi learns from his dad that hard work pays off. The lesson to be learned is that nothing comes easy in life; one must be willing to work hard to achieve goals. In the end, Taconi is inspired by his dad’s willingness to work hard and he helps his father keep his job as a cook and makes his father proud of the young man he has become.

2) Friendship: I love the strong friendship between Taconi and his mouthy cockatoo. Even though Claude’s death defying curiosity led to Taconi being smothered by flesh-biting critters, Taconi managed to forgive Claude and they remained close buddies.

3) Self Discovery: Taconi searches for the power he thinks he needs to survive by diligently looking for the blue kingfisher feather. Taconi is convinced that the blue kingfisher feather has magical power that will help him obtain unlimited amount of courage. In the end, Taconi discovers the power he is looking for comes from within.

In conclusion, I highly recommend this book for both girls and boys. I believe, students can learn a lot about what it means to be loyal and the benefits one can reap from hard work. Lastly, the glossary of Aussie terms at the end of the book will introduce readers to an array of new vocabulary and expose them to a new culture.

Title: Taconi & Claude: Double Trouble
Author: M.E. Finke
Reading level: Ages 9-12
Paperback: 102 pages
Publisher: Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc (January 15, 2011)
ISBN-10: 1616331305
ISBN-13: 978-1616331306

Reviewed by Suzanne Lieurance

Bumblelina is the smallest bee in Mrs. Hornet’s pre-school class. Today the class is practicing for the Harvest Moon Hive talent show and Bumblelina wants to fly in the show.The only problem is, when Bumblelina tries to fly nothing happens. All the other bees in her class can fly. But not Bumblelina.

Bumblelina is the story of this little bee’s struggle to learn to fly even when she stumbles and fumbles and falls on her tiny bee’s knees. The simple rhythmic language and structure of this cute tale pull young children through the story – just the way a good picture book should – providing stopping points where the parent or teacher reading the text can ask, “What do you think will happen to Bumblelina next?” As children make predictions and then listen to learn if their predicts are correct, they build basic reading comprehension skills. The book is also perfect to use in the preschool and early elementary classroom as part of any of the following thematic units: spring, bumblebees, and the importance of trying.

Simple, yet charming black pen and ink drawings illustrate the story in a surprising way – there is one hidden “spot” of color on every page. Young children can point out and identify these colors. And since the illustrations are very simple, young children can be encouraged to make their own drawings to illustrate something they’ve had difficulty learning to do in their own lives.

Bumblelina is a delightfully empowering book for children. It helps them see the value in trying. It also helps them learn to celebrate their own successes!

Title: Bumblelina
Author: Sherrie A. Madia
Illustrator: Patrick Carlson
Hardcover: 28 pages
Publisher: MommyDaughter Productions; First edition (November 10, 2010)
ISBN-10: 1935767909
ISBN-13: 978-1935767909

Donna M. McDine will be the guest author on Book Bites for Kids on Wednesday, April 13, 2011, at 2:00 p.m. CDT.

Donna will talk about her book The Golden Pathway.

Listen to the LIVE that day at www.bookbitesforkids.com and call in to ask a question or to make a comment at 1-646-716-9239.

Are you a published children’s book author and/or illustrator?

Then let us put the spotlight on YOUR book for an entire month!

Find out more about our monthly showcase!

Click here to download an application now!

Our April 2011 Showcase includes many important books for or about children. Here’s the lineup: The Golden Pathway - About This Book Raised in a hostile environment where abuse occurs daily, David attempts to break the mold and befriends the slave, Jenkins, owned by his Pa. Fighting against extraordinary times and beliefs, David leads Jenkins [...]

Happy March, everyone! Looks like spring is finally on its way! We’re so pleased to announce our March 2011 Showcase of Children’s Book Authors and Other Experts! March is Women’s History Month, and March 25, 2011, marks the 100th anniversary of the tragic Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire. Suzanne Lieurance has written two books about this [...]

A weekly column from children’s author Simon Rose

Although Lord of the Rings is set in a fictional world, many of the characters have some basis in history. Aragon as a reluctant hero, who shuns power for himself and merely seeks to free his people, has echoes of Scottish freedom fighter William Wallace, the hero of Braveheart. The wise counsellor is also a recurring character throughout history. Gandalf in Lord of the Rings is not ambitious for himself and only has his king’s best interest at heart. He thus tells the king what he should hear, not want the king wanted to hear. Queen Elizabeth I had several such wise counselors throughout her long reign. Conversely, in The Two Towers, King Theodan is ill served by Wormtongue, an excellent example of an evil adviser. In history, Rasputin wormed his way into the affections of the Russian Royal family in the First World War. He told the Tsar and his family what they wanted to hear, especially about their invalid son Alexei, even when qualified doctors told them the truth. Many factors drove Russia to revolution in 1917, but Rasputin certainly had a major role in the downfall of the Tsar.

Often books can be said to be very much a product of their time. Tolkien was writing during the Second World War, when it seemed very likely that Hitler and the forces of evil might triumph. The entire world appeared to be headed for darkness in the early 1940’s before the tide of battle eventually turned in the Allies favour. The fact that the often competing forces of the shire, Rohan, Gondor, elves and dwarves all put aside their differences for the common good has echoes of how Britain, the USA and the Soviet Union worked together to defeat the Nazis. In Lord of the Rings, the heroes are up against overwhelming odds all though the story. Sometimes there is good and sometimes there is evil and sometimes to save your civilization you have to be prepared to fight and die for it. Optimism runs through the tale. There is a refusal to give in, no matter what and to always have hope. In the end, its message is that it is possible for good to triumph over evil and the victory is worth all the blood that had to be spilt.

Carol Fraser Boles is the literacy specialist for the National Writing for Children Center. She is a former public school K-12 Reading Specialist and special education teacher.

In addition to a Master’s degree in Special Reading, Carol is certified in Special Education and has an Educational Specialist degree in Curriculum and Instruction.

Carol is also a freelance writer. She writes nonfiction for parents and teachers and fiction and nonfiction for children.

Carol Fraser Boles, literacy specialist for the National Writing for Children is the guest on Book Bites for Kids on Thursday, March 3, 2011, at 2:00 p.m. CST. She will talk about the link between reading and writing.

To listen to the show, at the scheduled time, go to www.bookbitesforkids.com. Call in to ask a question or to make a comment during the live show by dialing 1-646-716-9239.

[...] you listen to the recent Book Bites for Kids interview with Kerin Bellak-Adams, author of AD/HD Success! Solutions for Boosting Self-Esteem The [...]