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Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus :: Book Lady Linda’s Review :: Spoiler Free

At age 14 Nakahama Manjiro was shipwrecked on a deserted island with a few others from his fishing boat off the coast of Japan. This happened in 1841. Continue reading Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus :: Book Lady Linda’s Review :: Spoiler Free

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Roller Skates by Ruth Sawyer :: Book Lady Linda’s Review :: Spoiler Free

Meet Lucinda, a New York City child of the 1890’s exploring her neighborhood on skates. This book won the Newbery Medal in 1937. Continue reading Roller Skates by Ruth Sawyer :: Book Lady Linda’s Review :: Spoiler Free

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The Strange Boy

There’s a new boy in town. Who could he be? A strange boy came to town one day, He must have come from far away. Nobody knew who he might be, He didn’t look like you or me. He stopped at the store that sunny day, He thanked the clerk and I heard him say: “To get here I traveled hundreds of miles, This is a fine town, but nobody smiles. People don’t let their happiness show, And I have to…

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The Painted Wagon

It is market day in a cold, dusty town called Tampur. A child named Lea looks for a new friend. Continue reading The Painted Wagon

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Book Review: Moon Over Manifest, by Clare Vanderpool

This novel takes place in Kansas during the Great Depression of the 1930’s. Continue reading Book Review: Moon Over Manifest, by Clare Vanderpool

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An Idea for Generating Children's Story Ideas

Here’s a quick way to generate children’s story ideas. Continue reading An Idea for Generating Children’s Story Ideas

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Angel's Kitten

Broken home, busy Mom, playful kitten: Angel’s life is stressful, but a kitten makes it better. Continue reading Angel’s Kitten

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Book Review: The Family Under the Bridge, by Natalie Savage Carlson

How cold it is when three small children are forced to live under a bridge in Paris with their homeless mother! While she works they stay near the river and discover an old hobo, Armand. The first lines in the book belong to him: “Once there was an old hobo named Armand who wouldn’t have lived anywhere but in Paris. So that is where he lived. Everything that he owned could be pushed around in an…

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A Child With a Problem - Your Story's Main Character

Once a child has one problem, it can open up the door to many more. Continue reading A Child With a Problem – Your Story’s Main Character

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Book Review: When You Reach Me, by Rebecca Stead

A city child of the nineteen-seventies studies time travel and copes with disappointment, while forging new friendships. In When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead, Miranda, age twelve, is a New York City child with a penchant for reading A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle – a book that makes her think about time travel and tesseracts and other amazing things that just don’t happen to ordinary…

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Go Outside and Write

The beauty of a spring day, fresh air, a pen, and a notebook. What could be better? Continue reading Go Outside and Write

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The Laughing Tree

A little girl, lost in the forest, is befriended by a laughing tree. The Laughing Tree by Linda Jo Martin Once upon a time a brown-eyed girl sat down next to a big tree in the forest to eat her lunch. She opened her bag and found a bit of white bread and a chunk of cheese, and pulled them out to nibble on, but something didn’t feel right. “Is someone watching me?” she asked, but there was no…

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How to Make Money as a Writer of Children's Literature During Hard Times

Even in a dreadful, difficult economy, writers of children’s literature can find ways to be paid for the stories they produce. Continue reading How to Make Money as a Writer of Children’s Literature During Hard Times

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Scrivener: Relearning From Step One

It has been a while since I’ve written anything and I have in mind the idea of relearning how to write creatively. I’ve had a lot of turmoil in my life the past few years with moving from Idaho back to Northern California, and then the fire that destroyed the new mobile home I moved into. After three years I had a new house built and I’m spent most of this year living in it and furnishing it and…

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This reminded me of my ex-boyfriend Keith who was Irish... I sometimes called him a leprechaun. It fits.

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Happy Resurrection Sunday - commemorating the most important day in history!

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The ongoing story of my life.