Archive for the ‘reviews’ Category
- In: Books | guest posts | reviews
- 13 Comments
Delighted to see Amanda in New Mexico being featured on Wanda´s blog. Not only is Amanda travelling the world she is visiting many blogs!
Welcome everyone! Today, I’d like to introduce you to a world-traveling children’s author named Darlene Foster. You are going to love her and her books and I know your children will as well.
I’ll let Darlene tell you about her latest book, Amanda in New Mexico–Ghosts in The Wind, in her own words…
Amanda in New Mexico – Ghosts in the Wind by Darlene Foster
The questions most asked of authors is, where do you get your ideas. Well, I get most of mine from my travels. I visited Taos, New Mexico a few years ago and was so taken with the history and art found in this area. We visited the St. James Hotel in Cimarron, which is purported to be haunted. It felt pretty spooky to me! I kept saying to my travel companion, “This would be a great setting for an Amanda story.” The seeds were planted…
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- In: Books | guest posts | reviews
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A fun chat with Linda on Linda’s Book Bag. Hop on over and say Hi!
Many moons ago when I had a career, one of my favourite roles was reading fiction aimed at 11-14 year olds and writing resources based on the books for classroom use for a large UK publisher. When I heard that Darlene Forster writes for a similar age group I just had to invite her to stay in with me and tell me about one of her books. Luckily she agreed to come!
If you’re an author who’d also like to stay in with me to tell me about one of your books, please click here for more details.
Staying in with Darlene Foster
Welcome to Linda’s Book Bag, Darlene. Thanks so much for staying in with me. Tell me, which of your books have you brought along to share this evening and why have you chosen it?
Thank you for inviting me over. It’s a perfect evening to talk about…
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- In: Books | reviews
- 37 Comments
I was delighted to read this great review on Robbie’s Inspiration blog. I enjoyed writing this book and am pleased to see it being enjoyed by children and their parents!
This is what Robbie and her son had to say 
Michael and I read this book together and we both enjoyed it immensely. It is my favourite of the three Amanda books we have read to date and we will definitely be reading more. We both learned a lot about the towns and villages in Germany, Austria and Hungary and the traditional foods, entertainment and some famous places of interest. There is a lot of research that goes into each of these books.
You can read the entire review here along with a review of Dan Alatorre’s book, An Angel on Her Shoulder.
https://robbiesinspiration.wordpress.com/2018/03/03/bookreviews-dan-alatorre-and-darlene-foster/
In other Amanda on the Danube news, the fabulous cover, designed by my talented publisher, has been chosen for a cover of the month contest. Please vote for the cover and I think you can vote every day. If you can share with your friends, all the better.
https://allauthor.com/cover-of-the-month/1515/
If you liked the cover of my book,
Amanda on the Danube: The Sounds of Music (Amanda Travels), please vote for it for the Cover of the Month contest on AllAuthor.com!
Click to Vote!As always, your support means a lot to me. Thank you so much!!
Snobbity Snowman
Posted on: December 28, 2017
- In: Books | reviews
- 27 Comments
When my daughter was a little girl she just loved Frosty the Snowman and had me read the book to her over and over. She also had a record of it and played it so many times I thought it would break. Her imaginary friend was called Frosty and he went everywhere with her. I had to be sure Frosty was in the car before I closed the door. Later, when she was a grown-up, I found a Frosty the Snowman stuffy and gave it to her as a gift. She still has it.
So I was very happy to read and review this book. Snobbity Snowman by Maria Bardyukova and Quiet Riley Jr. is a delightful picture book for anyone who loves snowmen.
The blurb:
Snobbity Snowman has everything a snowman could possibly want: a shiny hat, freshly-picked noses and enough pride to last a lifetime. In fact, he is so selfish and shortsighted that he fails to see the instance his life starts falling apart.
What disasters must take place to open his charcoal eyes? To help him see that pride and possessions cannot bring true happiness? Will he defrost his ego and embrace the warmth of companionship?
Only Snobbity can tell.
Depicting winter in rich and whimsical tones, Snobbity Snowman’s quirky characters and unexpected twists promise to leave a lasting impression on all its snobbulous readers.
My review
A cute picture book featuring a snowman who is a snob. Snobbity even has an upturned carrot nose. But when things go wrong, he doesn´t know how to cope. A clever story about the value of relationships over possessions. The drawings are delightful and very kid-friendly. At the end of the book are fun activities. A great book to read to the little ones. After all, who doesn´t love snowmen, at any time of the year!
Why I liked it
I really liked this fun picture book as children can relate to it. It also has a good message about thinking you are better than others but not in a preachy way. Some interesting new words are introduced. Other cool characters are cleverly presented and it has a surprise ending. Every time a child reads this book and looks at the pictures, they will notice something new. This is one that will be read over and over.
Where to buy it
I hope your holiday is going well and you have had time to relax and read!!
- In: Books | reviews
- 22 Comments
A wonderful review from a savvy young reader. This is some of what he has to say.
Looking for a great holiday gift? If you have a child who loves a great adventure with characters they can connect with, I highly recommend the Amanda series. Amanda is a bit of Nancy Drew, Laura Croft and Carmen San Diego all rolled into one!
Amanda in New Mexico: Ghosts in the Wind
Series: Amanda Travels #6 (#1, #2, #3, #4, #5)
By Darlene Foster
128 pages – ages 9+
Published by Central Avenue Publishing on October 1, 2017
Synopsis from Publisher- “Amanda Ross is on a school trip to Taos, New Mexico with several of her fellow creative students. Join Amanda, Cleo and their funny friend, Caleb, as they visit an ancient and beautiful landscape where a traditional hacienda, an ancient pueblo, and a haunted and spooky hotel all hold secrets to a wild and violent past. Does Cleo really see ghosts? Can Amanda escape the eerie wind that follows her everywhere? Perhaps the Day of the Dead will reveal the mysteries of Taos in this latest adventure of Amanda’s travels.”
What I Thought- This was a neat book in the Amanda Travels series. Foster has written a great…
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- In: Books | reviews | Writing
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I am delighted at the response to Amanda’s latest adventure. Here is a wonderful review from Patricia Tilton on her blog Children’s Books Heal. Patricia reviews meaningful books for children and I am so pleased she has included Amanda in New Mexico. Check out her blog for great ideas for the young readers on your list.
Amanda in New Mexico: Ghosts in the Wind
Darlene Foster, Author
Central Avenue Publishing, Fiction, Oct. 1, 2017
Suitable for Ages: 9-12
Themes: Adventure, School trip, New Mexico, Haunted hotel, Ancient pueblo, Ghosts
Synopsis: Amanda Ross is on a school trip to Taos, New Mexico with several of her fellow creative students. She shares a room with Cleo, an anxious classmate who insists she see ghosts. Although Amanda is determined to prove there is no such things, she can’t seem to shake the feeling that something or someone is watching her.
Join Amanda, Cleo and their funny friend, Caleb, as they visit a rugged and beautiful landscape where a traditional hacienda, an ancient pueblo, and a haunted and spooky hotel all hold secrets to a wild and violent past.
Does Cleo really see ghosts? Can Amanda escape the eerie wind that follows her everywhere? Perhaps The Day of…
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- In: Books | Food | guest posts | reviews | Travel | Writing
- 44 Comments
I love my blogging community. Everyone is so supportive and I am delighted when I´m featured on their blogs.
Robbie Cheadle and her son Michael have been reading the Amanda Travels books and recently wrote a wonderful review on Robbie’s blog. This is what she had to say about Amanda in Arabia – the Perfume Flask
The story was sufficiently fast-paced to keep him interested and he wanted to read every night [instead of his usual practice of procrastinating for as long as possible before getting down to his reading]. I enjoyed the book too and thought the language was pitched at the right level for a middle school reader.
You can read the rest of the review here
https://robbiesinspiration.wordpress.com/2017/09/23/book-reviews-the-amanda-travels-series/
Please check out her blog. Robbie and her son not only write exciting children’s books featuring Sir Chocolate, they create the most amazing things out of fondant. The series of books about Sir Chocolate and his friends are also cookbooks. Each book includes a children’s story written in poetry form about the world of Sir Chocolate and five recipes that children can make with adult supervision. How cool is that?
Fishing boy cake created by Robbie Cheadle. Love those fondant cows!
My good blogging friend, Sally Cronin is running a feature on her blog called The Ultimate Bucket List and invited us to share two things on our personal bucket list. If you want to know what mine are read on.
Sally has also asked us to share posts from our archives. I decided to share one of mine from three years ago that features inspiration for my most recent book, Amanda in New Mexico-Ghosts in the Wind.
Sally, a talented writer herself, works tirelessly at promoting other writers. She is like the Fairy Godmother of Writers and we all appreciate everything she does. Check out her blog Smorgasbord – Variety is the spice of life if you haven’t already. There is something for everyone.
The Fairy Godmother of writers and bloggers
Check out this and Sally´s other amazing books https://www.amazon.com/Sally-Cronin/e/B0096REZM2
Thank you to everyone who reads, likes, shares and comments on my posts. It makes my day!!
