Reviews written by Jan Farnworth, Staff Reviewer

B.B. Alston continues to write the most magical, high-stakes, complex middle-grade series I have ever enjoyed reading. Amari and The Despicable Wonders was a creative book with many fun twists, turns, and actual dark events that keep the story's stakes feeling as high as they're meant to. Amari continues to...

"The Last Elder King" by D.B. Collins takes readers on a spellbinding journey through the small town of Gilden, where magic and imagination come alive. In this middle-grade, coming-of-age fantasy, Max's life transforms when he stumbles upon his mage abilities and is transported to a fantastical realm. The novel weaves...

The Library Hides has so many twists and turns throughout the series that there wasn't a moment when I was bored. Inez was just everything. I loved her stubborn attitude and how, despite being hurt, she continued to love wholeheartedly. I love how her strength comes from her intelligence and...

All aboard for a rip-roaring, quirky, adventure-filled retelling of The Little Mermaid with pirates! Arrrrrrr. Like the previous books in the series, my Salty Mary takes a Historical Mary and puts a twist on it. The Mary for this one is about the infamous Pirate Mary Read. Mary Read left...

The Make-Believers is a debut picture book from Ryan Seacrest and his sister Meredith Seacrest Leach. The Seacrest siblings encourage readers to dream and make believe. They model starting small and continuing to grow dreams and imagination all of their lives. The focus is on children exploring their creativity and...

The illustrations for this children’s book are just next level! I adore the idea of the words from the dictionary manifesting as images jumping out of the dictionary - like a zebra galloping out of the pages. Amazing. The story itself is also lovely - seeing characters from words on...

Clive Penguin is a hilarious picture book about a constantly freezing penguin. In a huddle of penguins, you would think he would be cozy and warm, but Clive is determined to find a solution. There is a page of illustrations of the various items he tries to avoid being cold;...

Anne of Green Gables is the well-loved classic tale of a brother and sister who choose to adopt a boy to help out on their farm. When Matthew, the brother, arrives at the train station, he doesn't find a boy but a red-haired girl named Anne. Anne is one of...

Mousetronaut is an excellent book with an unmissable message: you are never too small, too young, etc, to be helpful and have purpose! I love that an astronaut wrote it and that he got the idea for his book when he observed the mice on his real space mission. The...

Croft pens a magnificent story with Thorne Bay. I enjoyed this book from the beginning, and I was introduced to Evan Spencer, a great character who embarks on a new adventure. This book has ups and downs, and the author brings her imagination to life. It's well-written, and characters like...

The Ghostly Photos is a solid sequel to the Mysteries of Trash and Treasure series by Margaret Haddix. I like how it talks about topics like death and dementia without dumbing down the issues for kids but simplifying them in a way that is easy to understand and accept as...

Little Bo Sneak is the second book in the Once Upon a Rhyme series, where the author takes a fairy tale and puts a creative twist on the story we all know. Little Bo Peep is the focus of this one, but instead of Bo being a sheep herder, she...

From the title, this book intrigued me. The concept is unique, with a mixture of Greek myths, such as Arachne, Goose Girl, Princess, and Pea. Manning wove together a perfect story that was satisfying yet held many surprises. I especially enjoyed all the wordplay involved since the main character could...

The Grandest Game is the newest installment in a book series from Jennifer Lynn Barnes that gets you caught up in puzzles, games, danger, romance, riches, and, of course, the Hawthrone brothers. This installment has seven tickets, an inland of dreams, and the chance of a lifetime. ...

A Game of Noctis is perfect for fans who like competition, masterful gameplay, and a sense of achieving something better than what you have been dealt. It is an island where you are focused on achieving a higher game standing every day so you can live a better life...