How to use this Page

A Very, Merry, Mixed-Up Christmas Series: The Adventure of the Poodle Posse, #5 Written by Chrysa Smith Illustrated by Pat Achilles The Well Bred Book     9/01/2015 978-0-692-48293-3 44 pages     Ages 7—9 “In a Very Merry, Mixed-Up Christmas, you’ll experience the excitement that the holidays hold, the angst that Santa feels when Elfluenza …

. The Night Before Christmas: A Brick Story Written by Clement C. Moore Illustrated by Amanda Brack Sky Pony Press     10/06/2015 978-1-63450-179-8 32 pages         Ages 4—8 “’Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house, Not a creature was stirring, not even a Lego mouse! “You and your …

The Reindeer Dance Series: Holiday Jingles Written by Christianne C. Jones Illustrated by Emma Randall Picture Window Books     8/01/2015 978-1-4795-6496-5 20 pages     Ages 0—3 “Move like Santa’s reindeer, Hop in a graceful prance. Then twirl and spin and shake To do the reindeer dance!” [back cover] “Move those hooves and dance …

ENDS IN 2 DAYS! $50 Gift Certificate Holiday Giveaway Enter here:   Mudpuppy Holiday Giveaway  . The Knights Before Christmas Written by Joan Holub Illustrated by Scott Magoon Henry Holt & Co.      9/08/2015 978-0-8050-9932-4 32 pages      Ages 4—8 “’Twas December 24th, and three brave (but somewhat clueless) knights were just settling …

$50 Gift Certificate Holiday Giveaway Enter here:   Mudpuppy Holiday Giveaway  The Best Parts of Christmas Written & Illustrated by Bethanie Deeney Murguia Candlewick Press    9/22/2015 978-0-7636-7556-1 32 pages    Ages 4—8 “Fritz knows that the best parts of Christmas—from decorating to sharing treats ad opening presents—happen around the tree. And Fritz gets to …

$50 Gift Certificate Holiday Giveaway Enter here:   Mudpuppy Holiday Giveaway  . Here Comes Santa Cat Series: Here Comes Cat Written by Deborah Underwood Illustrations by Claudia Rueda Dial Books for Young Readers  10/21/2014 978-0-8037-4100-3 88 pages     Age 3—5 . “HO, HO . . . WHO? CAT! NOT AGAIN. “The holidays are around …

Last year, I was hospitalized from September until March and was unable to bring you this wonderful Christmas book from Bob Raczka and Chuck Groenink (Carolrhoda). I love this picture book and its illustrations of life at the North Pole–the simplified, down-to-earth version–and Santa’s poems, one haiku for each day, from December 1st to 24th. I am …

The Runaway Santa: A Christmas Adventure Story Written by Anne Margaret Lewis Illustrated by Aaron Zenz Sky Pony Press     11/03/2015 978-1-63450-589-1 32 pages     Ages 3—6 “Once there was a jolly Santa who wanted to leave the North Pole on an adventure before Christmas! Mrs. Claus, ever watchful of her sweet Mr. …

THE NOT VERY MERRY POUT-POUT FISH VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR The Not Very Merry Pout-Pout Fish Written by Deborah Diesen Illustrations by Dan Hanna Farrar Straus Giroux BYR    9/08/2015 978-0-374-35549-4 32 pages     Ages 2—6 “A gift should be BIG, And a gift should be BRIGHT, And a gift should be PERFECT— Guaranteed to …

Today is a special treat for me. I love the Monster & Me series by Paul Czajak and Wendy Grieb. Last year, I missed bringing you Monster and Boy’s Christmas story and Monster’s first party. So today I am giving you both. Consider it an early gift: a mashed-up double review. A first time venture …

Scaredy Cat Series: Charles Reasoner Halloween Books Written by Charles Reasoner Picture Window Books   8/01/2015 978-1-4795-8501-4 12 pages    6″ X 6″    Age 0—2 . “BLACK CAT, SCAREDY CAT. WHERE WILL YOU GO? As you prowl beneath The moon’s spooky glow? “Don’t let Halloween Kitty spook you! A black cat is anything but …

Otter Loves Halloween! Written and Illustrated by Sam Garton Balzer + Bray     7/21/2015 978-0-06-236666-5 32 pages    Age 4—8 .               .           .            .“Hi! I am Otter. “Halloween is the best holiday ever! It is also a …

Turkey Trick or Treat Written by Wendi Silvano Illustrated by Lee Harper Two Lions    8/11/2015 978-1-4778-7503-2 32 pages       Age 4—8 “Everyone loves Halloween candy—even Turkey. But how can he and his barnyard friends get any when the farmers only give it out children? With a costume, of course! As his pals …

This has been a strange week. I love commenting on others’ blogs and have actually gotten better about it, taking more time to view and read those I love and new ones I come across. But now there is an eerie creature confounding me everywhere I go. My comments will not appear on most Wordpress.com blogs, …

Well, it’s a little later than it should be,  . . . .but the voting is done and the winners have been chosen. Thank you to everyone who voted for the 2014 winners.   It was an honor to review each of these books.

To become a Top Book, and in the running for Best Book, a book must receive a 6-star review here at Kid Lit Reviews, released within the 2013 and 2014, and have been reviewed between December 1, 2013 and November 30, 2014. Voting normally occurs in December and the results announced in January. This year the only variation was the actual voting, which took place in March. Hopefully 2015 will be a healthier year and all will go as planned.

So, without any further delay, here are the winners.  Congratulations to all.

Best Picture Book

The Grudge Keeper

Author:  Mara Rockliff

Illustrator:  Eliza Wheeler

Publisher:  Peachtree Publishers    (April 1, 2014)

x

Best Middle Grade Novel

The Guardian Herd #1: Starfire

Author:  Jennifer Lynn Alvarez

Cover Artist:  David McClellan

Publisher:  HarperCollins Children’s Books    (September 23, 2014)

x

Best Nonfiction Book

Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker

Author: Patricia Hruby Powell

Illustrator: Christian Robinson

Publisher: Chronicle Books    (January 14, 2014)

x

Best Poetry Book

Rhyme Schemer

Author:  K. A. Holt

Publisher:  Chronicle Books (October 1, 2014)

x

Best Holiday Book

Lobo’s Howliday (The Adventures of Loveable Lobo #5)

Author:  C. L. Murphy

Illustrator:  C. L. Murphy

Publisher:  Peanut Butter Prose    (December 1, 2013)

WINNERS: I can offer you the files for your “stamp,” if you are interested. Otherwise this is more bragging rights than anything. Please email (or use contact form). Once again, congratulations to all the winners!

(flags and reading cat © Laura Strickland @ My Cute Graphics)

.

Custom Confections: Delicious Desserts You Can Create and Enjoy

by Jen Besel

Capstone Young Readers      2014

978-1-62370-136-9

Age 9+     112 pages

.

“Bake up surprises in cupcakes and cookies. Create custom desserts with ease. Or decorate all kinds of creative confections like a pro. Forty fun, simple recipes will have kids (and kids at heart) creating delicious desserts to devour! Step-by-step instructions and photos make red velvet cookies, black-and-white angel food cake, cheesecake stuffed strawberries, and more easy to achieve and tasty to eat. Sweetly simple, appetizingly fun!”

Review

Just in time for Father’s Day, Custom Confections gives the artistic baker in you—something every kid has somewhere, and eager to bake—40 recipes of beautiful desserts and snacks. I was without electricity most of the day, unable to bake anything, but if this dessert book is anything like Dessert Designer: Creations You Can Make and Eat, also by Capstone Young Readers, I can guarantee these desserts are as scrumptious as the pictures are delectable. Most are quick fixes, meaning kids still have time to create something special for dad. An easy cupcake recipe, The Sweetheart Cupcake, with a magical surprise, can express your love for dad in one bite.

Kids can find a different fun recipe for every week of summer. Custom Creations contains fun snacks for the entire family. Cake recipes are in the majority. For the bibliophile in your life bake the Pile of Books Cake. Five layers of cake, each made to look like a bestseller, with noticeable pages and luscious covers—Photoshop not needed.  If you like ice cream with your cake, and really, who doesn’t, the Striped Ice Cream Cake will satisfy your sweet tooth. A fun treat for those who enjoy popsicles is the Frosty Frozen Cakesicles individually prepared on a Popsicle sticks.

Every recipe has step-by-step instructions that are easy to understand and written without any extraneous information. To the side of the page is a list of ingredients and supplies needed for that particular recipe. No recipe requires unusual or strange tools kids have never seen. There may be a tool your child does not know how to use, which is where an adult comes in handy. It is also wise, depending on a child’s proficiency, for an adult to help turn ovens on to the correct temperature and help remove hot desserts from the oven. For those in the UK, the author included a conversion chart.

Photographs of each dessert clearly show the finished dessert, which is always helpful. For a delicate dessert, try making the Edible Flower Lollipops. Placed inside the clear homemade lollipops are pesticide-free, edible flowers from a florist. They look too good to eat. Cheesecake lovers will like Blueberry Cheesecake Tarts and the PB&J Cheesecake Brownies. On the last day of school, surprise that favorite teacher with a Mini Apple Cake, seeds included. My favorite, and the recipe I was planning to make, is the Molten Caramel Cake. Nothing is more luscious and creamy, or spruces up a dessert better, than a rich caramel. Mm, yum!

Middle grade and older kids, and adults, who like baking and using their creativity will like Custom Creations. Who can turn away a luscious, interesting dessert? Not me. Custom Creations is a nice addition to any cookbook collection. It also complements Dessert Designer:  Creations You Can Make and Eat also for middle grade kids by Capstone. The only thing missing is a nice index of the recipes. There are several tips and tricks, plus a few icing recipes that are simple to make located after the last recipe: a Hedgehog Cake made with buttercream frosting, rice treats, almonds, and a cake of any flavor. The hedgehog is a cute little creature looking too loveable to eat with his big milk chocolate candy eyes. Kids, lacking such sentimentality, will dig right in. Enjoy!

CUSTOM CONFECTIONS: DELICIOUS DESSERTS YOU CAN CREATE AND ENJOY! Recipes copyright © 2015 by Jen Besel. Reproduced by permission of the publisher, Capstone Young Readers, North Mankato, MN.

.

Buy Custom Creations at Amazon—B&N—Capstone—your local bookstore.

.

Learn more about Custom Creations HERE

Meet the author, Jen Besel, at LinkedIn:   https://www.linkedin.com/pub/jennifer-besel/b/943/635

Find more books at the Capstone Young Readers website:   http://www.capstoneyoungreaders.com/

Capstone Young Readers is an imprint of Capstone

.

Coming Soon from Jen Besel & Capstone Young Readers

Baking Bliss!: Baked Desserts to Make and Devour

Sweet Tooth!: No-Bake Desserts to Make and Devour

Sugarcoat It!: Desserts to Design, Decorate, and Devour

.

.

Today we have two books from the Little Masters, Baby Lit® Books collection from publisher Gibbs Smith, author Jennifer Adams, and illustrator Alison Oliver.  The first, A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, is a coloring primer that will paint this week’s big day red and green. Then Bram Stoker’s Dracula, a counting primer, will put [...]

5 Stars The Shepherd Girl of Bethlehem: A Nativity Story Carey Morning Alan Marks 32 Pages     Ages: 4 + …………………….. Inside Jacket:  The shepherd’s young daughter helped with the sheep every single day. How she longed to help through the night as well; but her father said it was too dark and she needed sleep. [...]

4 Stars Drummer Boy of John John Mark Greenwood Frané Lessac Lee and Low Books Pages: 32         Ages: 4+ Jacket:  Carnival is coming and the villagers of John John, Trinidad, are getting ready to jump up and celebrate with music dancing, and a     parade. Best of all, the Roti King has promised free rotis—tasty friend [...]

CHRISTMAS BOOKS FOR 2012 Today we have a sampling of seven Christmas Books. The first five are new to Kid Lit Reviews. Next to each small cover is the beginning of the review. Click on the link “HERE” and you will see the full review. At the bottom of each review will be a link [...]

5 Stars Santa’s Eleven Months Off Mike Reiss Michael G, Montgomery Peachtree Publishing 32 Pages   Ages: 4 to 8 (+) Cover & Jacket:  From December first through Christmas, Santa Claus got down to business, making fifty zillion toys for the world’s good girls and boys. All that month, he worked his rear off. Then he [...]

5 Stars Santa’s Last Present Marie Aude-Murail & Elvire Murail Quentin Blake Pages: 32       Ages: 6+ Inside Jacket: Julian is almost too old to believe in Santa Claus. But since his parents talk about Santa constantly, Julian decides to write the big guy in red one more time . . . just in case. This [...]

4 Stars The Christmas Story Karen Williamson Marie Allen 104 Pages   Ages: 3+ Back Cover: The Christmas Story retells simply but memorably the whole story of the first Christmas—from the angel’s wonderful news for Mary to the quest of the wise men. ………………………. The Christmas Story is a four-chapter book for ages three and up, [...]

5 Stars Scrooge: A Christmas Carol & A Remembrance of Mugby Charles Dickens Papercutz 96 Pages   Ages: 8 and up   Scrooge is actually two books in one. In addition to the traditional Dickens classic  A Christmas Carol there is also another Charles Dickens classic, A Remembrance of Mugby. Chances are good you have not [...]