The Legend of Holly Claus, by Brittany Ryan

Grade 4-7–A letter written in 1878 to Santa Claus by a 10-year-old boy asking not for presents but to know what Santa himself wishes for allows the gent (aka Nicholas, King of Forever) and his wife to realize their greatest dream, the birth of a daughter named Holly. She is, however, cursed by an evil sorcerer, Herrikhan, who surrounds her infant heart with ice and promises to return to collect it one day. Holly grows up happy but lonely in the Land of the Immortals, and when she becomes a young woman, she takes a daring and possibly deadly trip to Victorian New York City, where she is determined to do good deeds. There she has adventures, brings joy to the hearts of young and old, and manages to foil Herrikhan with the shining purity of her love. The writing is acceptable, if a little precious, and the descriptions of Nicholas and his household are a pleasure to read, but the whole Herrikhan plot is jarring, inconsistent, and unnecessary; there are more than enough characters and subplots swirling through this novel already without the addition of a leering, black-tongued sorcerer. The drawings scattered throughout are detailed and a touch old-fashioned, a good match for the sentimental tone of the text. Fans of Alcott, Spyri, and Burnett may enjoy this long and convoluted tale.–Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. –This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Holly Claus: The Christmas Princess, by Brittany Ryan

When young Christopher writes a letter to Santa Claus, he poses a question no one has ever thought to ask before: Dear Santa Claus, What do you wish for Christmas?

Miraculously, Santa’s longtime wish comes true, and a baby girl is born—Princess Holly Claus. But just as the Land of Forever joyously celebrates her arrival, far away an evil is unleashed. A curse is placed on Holly, freezing her heart in ice so her future will be bound by a world of darkness. And with the Gates of Forever now locked, Santa can no longer spread the magic of Christmas to children everywhere. As soon as Holly finds a way to make a daring escape, she begins an astounding journey to the Empire City, determined to free herself and, once and for all, bring back Christmas.

This extraordinary and beautifully illustrated adventure is an everlasting gift of Christmas enchantment.

Pebble: A Story About Belonging, by Susan Milord

There once was a pebble on a rocky shore. It was small and round and nearly smooth.

Amid a seascape dotted with endless rocks, one pebble yearns to be special.

Can you find the pebble?

Susan Milord’s clear prose and exquisite collages offer a timeless message about finding one’s place in the world.

Little Kisses, by Jolie Jones

Kindergarten-Grade 2–An amiable, rambling story that has more charm than plot. Narrated by a dog named Bejinhos, which means Little Kisses in Brazil, the tale takes children through a day in the life of a pet and his girl, Jolie. The two friends get up, talk, try on clothes, eat, brush their teeth, and take a walk. A cautionary refrain, Those are the rules, is brought home when Bejinhos gets into a serious scrape while Jolie is at school. This would be a story to smile at and pass by if not for the eye-catching, cuddly watercolor illustrations. Downing captures the pup’s adoring enthusiasm, and readers will want to take him home. The real Bejinhos, though, belongs to Jolie Jones, daughter of musician Quincy Jones and a singer/producer as well as a writer.–Susan Weitz, formerly at Spencer-Van Etten School District, Spencer, NY
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The Wednesday Tales: The Palace of Laughter, by Jon Berkeley

Grade 4-7–When the mysterious Circus Oscuro arrives in the dead of night, Miles Wednesday, a runaway orphan living in a barrel, is the only person in the town of Larde to witness the event. Later that same night, he is approached by a tiger who claims he can smell the circus in Miles. Thus begins a chain of events that introduces the boy to a winged waif named Little, a captive of the circus’s sinister ringmaster. Upon Little’s escape, the two set out to rescue her friend from the Palace of Laughter, which seems to be far more dangerous and horrible than the name implies. Berkeley’s first foray into writing is mostly successful; the story is filled with captivating and ingenious descriptive passages. While the author’s habit of introducing Miles at the beginning of nearly every chapter (with definitions such as clean-shirted and cat-surrounded and dawn-chilled and hungry) does tend to get stale, the lively plot and colorful supporting cast are enough to hold readers’ attention. Try displaying this book alongside classic whimsical tales such as Norton Juster’s The Phantom Tollbooth (Knopf, 1961) or the work of Roald Dahl to create interest.–Christi Voth, Parker Library, CO

Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. –This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Sunnie Bunnies, by Margie Blumberg

Margie Blumberg has written a delightfully entertaining story about a family of bunny rabbits who spend a day at the beach…. The rhyming text is as clever as it is entertaining and children will thoroughly enjoy the surprise at the end! Charmingly illustrated throughout by June Goulding, Sunny Bunnies is a perfect pick for family, school, and community library picture book collections! –Midwest Book Review, July 2009

Sunny Bunnies Has Won a Gold Medal! Independent Publisher has announced the medal winners for its 2008 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards. In the Picture Book Preschool category, Sunny Bunnies has been awarded the gold medal! –Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards<br /><br />Two bunnies spend the day at the beach with their family and enjoy their time building a castle, flying a kite, and jumping the waves. After a campfire on the beach, the bunnies return home and say good night to their tired parents. After such an exciting day though, the bunnies are not quite ready for sleep and they sneak out of bed for a little more play. Told in rhyming verse, the story is cute and clever but nonetheless has an awkward arc to it. It seems as if the story will finish after the bunnies return home from their day and evening adventures at the beach but the surprise ending prolongs the story. The bright and cheerful illustrations are a delight and will appeal to the book’s young audience. Goulding’s ink-and-watercolor drawings are full of life and activity; she has created bunnies that are playful and endearing. Especially hilarious is the spread where the bunny children have snuck out of bed and are checking on their parents who have collapsed on top of their bed and are sound asleep, too exhausted to climb under the covers. Wide awake, the bunnies continue their beach day with a game of Go Fish! Reviewer: Margaret Orto –Children’s Literature

The Wednesday Tales: The Tiger's Egg, by Jon Berkeley

When the Circus Bolsillo lands in Larde, orphan Miles Wednesday and his angel-friend Little join its wondrous and chaotic show. They soon fall in with Doctor Tau-Tau, a mysterious and bumbling fortune-teller who once knew Miles’s parents and claims Miles’s father is very much alive. Miles sets out in secret with Doctor Tau-Tau, but to his surprise the search for his father quickly turns into a hunt for a much coveted and powerful Tiger’s Egg—a stone fabled to contain the soul of a tiger. No one knows its true whereabouts, and as Miles and Little begin to puzzle the bits together, they uncover its curious connection to Miles’s parents. Could the Egg be the key to the secrets of Miles’s own past?

Jon Berkeley’s second novel in The Wednesday Tales continues the fantastical and often comical story of Miles Wednesday, as he sets forth on another strange adventure in pursuit of the truth.

Blue Wolf, by Catherine Creedon

Grade 5-8-Jamie, a 14-year-old rock hound and cross-country runner, remains clueless for three-fourths of this generally pleasing book, despite the presence of many clues that he is part of an extended family of shape-changers that transform to and from wolves in response to tunes played on ancient stone flutes. Bothered by the apparent ease with which his widowed Korean-American professor father agrees to have him stay with his mysterious “Aunt Louise” for the summer at her primitive mountainside cabin somewhere north of Seattle, the teen nevertheless learns to enjoy many aspects of her back-to-basics lifestyle. She’s an odd one, answering few questions until Jamie forces the issue to find out more about his Uncle Ji-Min and Cicely, Louise’s goddaughter who, though the same age as Jamie, has spent more time with the pack than with people. There are minor errors of fact about log splitting, bees, breaking car windows, and cross-country, but the details of Louise’s rural homestead and Jamie’s gradual realization of his part in the strained relationships among the adults are well integrated and interestingly portrayed. The climactic confrontation between Jamie’s father and uncle, whose views of the boy’s future differ significantly, provides a satisfying and somewhat open-ended resolution. Recommend this to readers who appreciate T. A. Barron’s The Ancient One (Philomel, 1992) and the mix of human interest and ecological elements in the works of Jean Craighead George and Madeleine L’Engle.
Joel Shoemaker, Southeast Junior High School, Iowa City, IA
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