Monday, December 31, 2012

'Honey the Hero! (A Bird Brain Book)' Book Tour



BLURB:

Honey, an inquisitive young parakeet living in the Australian Outback, decides to become a superhero after she spies a human family watching Superman. Since she already has the power of flight, all she needs to do is create a costume to conceal her true identity and then fly off in search of animals that need rescuing.

Unfortunately, every time she tries to help, Honey only ends up making matters worse. She spoils Kangaroo’s game of hide-and-go-seek by revealing his hiding place to Wallaby; Mr. Anteater must go hungry when she alerts the ants to his presence, and Mrs. Koala is made a laughingstock among bears when Honey pretends to be her Joey. Finally realizing that she’s not as heroic as she’d like, Honey gives up her day-saving efforts.

But what happens when someone actually needs Honey’s help? Will she rise to the challenge?


**My thoughts**

How many kids do you know who are like Honey? How many times have you been Honey? I think most people can relate to that desire to help, only to have it backfire. It happens to all of us at one point or another. Honey learns an important lesson to take a step back and assess a situation before diving in to help. Too often we dive in before our help is really needed.  If we are patient, we will be able to help in a special way that only we can.

I think kids will appreciate and relate to the superhero aspect, as they all want to be superheroes in their own right. After reading this book, you can have a discussion with them about ways in which they can be superheroes in their lives. 

Another great Bird Brain book. :-)


Buy links: Amazon \ Kindle     

BIO:  

Emlyn Chand emerged from the womb with a fountain pen clutched in her left hand (true story). When she's not writing, she runs a large book club in Ann Arbor and is the president of author PR firm Novel Publicity. Best known for her Young Adult novels, she is also developing a small, but devoted, following to her children's book series and is beginning to dapple in other genres as well. Emlyn enjoys connecting with readers and is available via almost every social media site in existence. Visit EmlynChand.com for more info. Don't forget to say "hi" to her sun conure Ducky!

ONLINE LINKS:
         Website & Blog:  www.emlynchand.com
         Facebook:  www.facebook.com/emlynchand
         Twitter:  www.twitter.com/emlynchand
         Goodreads:  www.goodreads.com/emlynchand
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Sunday, December 30, 2012

Review of 'Ethan's Story: My Life With Autism'

Book blurb from Amazon:

When Ethan Rice was four years old, he was diagnosed with high-functioning autism. Hedecided that he wanted to tell his first grade class that he had autism on his seventh birthday. His parents asked him many questions about what having autism felt like for him and wrote his answers down as a reference for when he told his class. Those answers are now published so more people can understand what it is like to have autism. While each child on the spectrum has unique challenges and strengths, Ethan's Story; My Life with Autism is Ethan's own story.

**My thoughts**

I snatched up this book during an Anchor Publishing Group sale for Kindle and wish I also had it in paperback. Autism is near and dear to my heart, as I have several friends with children with autism and have also taught many. They are some of my favorite kids, because I love the way their minds work. They really are just kids whose brains work differently.

Ethan decided to write this book to help explain to his classmates what it meant for him to have autism. He first points out how kids are the same because they are all different. And then that his brain works differently than most of theirs. He then explains why he does the things he does, and ways in which they can help him. He also shares how autism is a great gift and his pride in being the boy that God created. 

I admire him for doing this. I want to read it to all kids, and to many adults, to emphasize that these kids are good kids. They look at life differently and require a bit of tweaking in how you interact with them. But they are still wonderful people. I hope people can learn from Ethan.

Buy links: Paperback / Kindle 

Monday, December 17, 2012

'Poppy the Proud (A Bird Brain Book)' Book Tour



BLURB:

Poppy is the prettiest peacock in the entire garden, but one day his privileged existence is upset when an all-white peacock is born and promptly named the most beautiful by a smitten flock. Intensely jealous, Poppy no longer knows where he fits in and decides to reclaim his title as the fairest bird in all the land, no matter what it takes.

In a desperate attempt to regain the admiration of his peers, Poppy steals items from the humans that visit his park. He wraps himself in a beautiful silk scarf, wears a series of ornate bangles around his neck, and even tries to dye his feathers with colored dust from a festive Holi celebration. Unfortunately, each of these attempts not only fails to improve his appearance, they actually make it worse. What’s a poor bird to do?

In this compelling tale of self-esteem, pride, and learning what makes each of us special, Poppy the peacock discovers that true beauty lies beneath the feathers.

**My thoughts**

I enjoyed this fairy tale.  It is a story that has been told so many different ways over the years, yet continues to be relevant. Children need to learn compassion for each other for who they are. Snow is an excellent role model for acceptance. Children also need to learn to be happy for being themselves. Poppy eventually learns this lesson. I think many children will easily learn the lesson contained within and will be able to relate to Poppy.

The illustrations were fun and captured the gist of the story.

This is a story I would recommend for children ages 4 and up. 

I shared this story with a six year-old boy. He also enjoyed the pictures, exclaiming, "Wow!" every time I turned a page to reveal a new illustration. He chuckled here and there as Poppy made a fool of himself, trying to show off. He smiled when Snow helped Poppy realize that he was still beautiful in his own way. 

He gave me the following review:

"Tell the author that I felt sad when the other animals were making fun of Poppy. And tell her that I felt happy when Snow made Poppy feel better. And tell her that I liked her book."

So, there you have it, out of the mouths of babes.

I continue to look forward to reading more of the books in this series.

Buy links: Paperback \ Kindle      

 
BIO:  Emlyn Chand emerged from the womb with a fountain pen clutched in her left hand (true story). When she's not writing, she runs a large book club in Ann Arbor and is the president of author PR firm Novel Publicity. Best known for her Young Adult novels, she is also developing a small, but devoted, following to her children's book series and is beginning to dapple in other genres as well. Emlyn enjoys connecting with readers and is available via almost every social media site in existence. Visit EmlynChand.com for more info. Don't forget to say "hi" to her sun conure Ducky!

ONLINE LINKS:
         Website & Blog:  www.emlynchand.com
         Facebook:  www.facebook.com/emlynchand
         Twitter:  www.twitter.com/emlynchand
         Goodreads:  www.goodreads.com/emlynchand

Saturday, December 8, 2012

6 Free Christmas Books for Kids - December 8, 2012

Free is always a good thing! Check out this collection of Christmas freebies for kids.

Please note that these books are free at the time of posting. Free status can and does change without notice. Always verify the buy price, instead of the borrow price.

The Christmas Stories Book
   
Blurb from Amazon:
The Christmas Stories Book 1 includes 5 interesting, simple and easy to read books for young children who are learning to read. The books include: The Christmas Alphabet, Have You Been Good, Thank You Santa, Letter To Santa and The Night Before Christmas. The stories have simple words and sentences, repeated words, lots of pictures and flashcards with sight words at the end of each story.

These books are the perfect opportunity to introduce your child to the joys of reading.They are suitable for children aged from 2 to 6 years of age who are beginner readers. These easy sight word books will turn your child onto reading, giving them to confidence to read by themselves. At the end of each story they can practice reading the sight words in each book. This is the perfect introduction to reading!

Katrina Kahler is an award winning teacher (National Inspirational Teacher Award) who has been teaching children to read for 30 years. Her 'I Am A Reader' Series contain books that are perfect for fostering your child's ability to read.

The Christmas Stories Book 2 gives another 5 interesting easy to read sight word books. The titles include: The Very Hungry Santa, Where Is Rudolph, Santa's Message, All About Santa and Christmas Wishes. Your child will love all of these stories and read them over and over again.

Download for your Kindle: http://amzn.to/RhVZWJ

12 Days of Christmas: A Christmas Counting Book for Kids

Blurb from Amazon:
The 12 Days of Christmas is a fun and colorful Christmas Book for kids who love to count. A lovable version of the all-time favorite children's Christmas song filled with colorful illustrations and simple text, perfect for little readers.

This cheerful Christmas book for kids has simple lower case text and clear, legible, numbers so little learners will be able to identify and follow along with the story. Each of the 12 Days of Christmas has its own page, complete with the number of the day and a matching number of items to count.

Children will have fun reading along with the main character, Ella, as she invites readers to join her and her Daddy in reading and counting each of the 12 Days of Christmas. New for 2012, it is sure to become one of your little one's favorite Christmas books for Kindle.

Download for your Kindle: http://amzn.to/YYvK9G

The 'Christmouse' Boot
 
Blurb from Amazon:
On a beautiful, snowy Christmas Eve, Father Christmas is making his deliveries ~ but he soon discovers that he has a huge problem! A huge problem for Santa Claus, on Christmas Eve, could easily become a huge problem for all of the children of the world, unless he can get help ~ and quickly! Luckily, two very little creatures, with great big hearts, are on hand ~ Miriam and Marcus Mouse!

This is a heart-warming seasonal tale, which would make an ideal December bedtime story for young children.

Download for your Kindle: http://amzn.to/SOgton

Santa's Diary

Blurb from Amazon:
A unique opportunity to hear Santa's story first hand. Find out how he gets down chimneys, visits everyone and hear amusing elf tales.

A quick message from Santa ...

Hello everyone, and welcome to my diary.
People have been asking me for years to write about my experiences and what's going on in my world. So I have finally given in and I'm going to share with you all what I'm getting up to. I’ll be keeping a record here of all my preparations for Christmas and news for the next fews month. And what a time it's going to be. The elves are already hard at work, and Rudolf and the other Reindeer are well rested. We’re all looking forward to another great Christmas. I hope you’ll read this diary regularly and send me lots of nice letters, and even track my movements over the coming month.

Download for your Kindle: http://amzn.to/SGFMr1

Harold and the Bad Dog Xmas Puppy

Blurb from Amazon:
Harold, the Golden Retriever, is having another strange Christmas. First he hears the people in the church talking about him again. Its amazing how this happens on Xmas! "Harold be your name," the people are saying. "Your Will be Done." Of course, Harold is really happy about this. But then another strange thing happens--the dad brings home a Xmas puppy. Prince, the Tibetan Terrier, wants Harold's doggy biscuits. And he has his eye on the turkey. Then Prince knocks over the Xmas candles. Can Harold saved Xmas again?

Download for your Kindle: http://amzn.to/TLL0UC

Letters from Santa: A Christmas Alphabet

Blurb from Amazon:

Santa shares his favorite things about Christmas in this alphabet book. Learn the ABCs with holiday cheer and a fun rhyming children's book about Christmas. For children ages 2-5.  

Download for your Kindle: http://amzn.to/12dVnCx

The Frizzy Tizzy series


Frizzy Tizzy Goes to the Park is the latest in a series by author Wendy Hinbest. I reviewed it a few weeks ago, by sharing my eARC on my Kindle Fire with my preschool and kindergarten students. The other day, I was getting out the Kindle to start another review book with them. They got very excited and started calling out, "Frizzy Tizzy?! Are we reading more Frizzy Tizzy?!"

That is a HUGE compliment to the author!

Check out this excerpt from Frizzy Tizzy Goes to the Park and then preview other books in this series.

Frizzy Tizzy climbed the stairs to go down the slide, but when she got to the top she was afraid to go down. Frizzy Tizzy felt the ground looked so far from up there.

“What’s wrong, Frizzy Tizzy?” asked Mommy.

“I’m scared to go down,” answered Frizzy Tizzy. She turned around and noticed a little girl standing behind her. 





Frizzy Tizzy attempts to face her fears and begins to second guess herself, until she realizes things are not always what they seem.


Buy links: Paperback \ Kindle












Amazon Blurb:

Frizzy Tizzy plans to have a camp-out with Mommy, Daddy and her friend Emma, but plans change when it starts to rain.

Buy links: Paperback \ Kindle











Amazon Blurb:

Frizzy Tizzy is enjoying her day with Mommy and Daddy, but is devastated when one of her favourite shoes gets ruined. What will Frizzy Tizzy do about her shoes?

Buy links: Paperback \ Kindle












Amazon Blurb:

Frizzy Tizzy really wants to go outside and play with Emma, but she's not allowed until she cleans up her toys.

Buy links: Paperback \ Kindle











Amazon Blurb:


Frizzy Tizzy loves music and loves to dance. She looks forward to going to dance class and gets upset when it's time to go home. Mommy and Daddy help Frizzy Tizzy turn her frown upside down.

Buy links: Paperback \ Kindle






Meet Wendy Hinbest:

I like writing children's books and blogging. I live in Burlington, Ontario with my husband and three young children. I have an Early Childhood Education diploma and I am certified to teach children from birth to six years including children with special needs. I have worked with many children and have read many books to them. My
daughters enjoy the books I read to them so I decided to write books of my own. I am also a real estate agent.

Links

Website: http://www.frizzytizzy.com

Blog: http://frizzytizzy.blogspot.ca
Twitter: https://twitter.com/wendybooks1
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/frizzytizzybooks?ref=hl

Google Plus: https://plus.google.com/105622797279713054090/posts?hl=en (Google Plus)
Amazon: amazon.com/author/wendyhinbest

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5216542.Wendy_Hinbest
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/whinbest