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  • Getting a Fresh Perspective

    By Beth | March 2, 2014

    It’s been cold where I live — the sort of cold that gets into your bones (and makes them rattle, even when they’re well-padded, like mine. 😉 ) The church where I play the piano responded to the cold this week by holding the Sunday service in the basement. It’s toasty warm down there. But…

  • Moving Forward — with learnings from a picture book

    By Beth | February 23, 2014

    As I continue my year’s theme of moving forward, and continue to discover what that means for me, I’ve drawn some excellent learnings from a picture book. When I set myself toward a goal, no matter what that goal is, I tend to want to get to it as quickly as possible. When I make…

  • The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips by Michael Morpurgo (MG)

    By Beth | February 20, 2014

    Title: The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips Author: Michael Morpurgo Publisher: London: HarperCollins, 2005. Genre: Middle Grade, fiction Audience Age: 9 – 12 years old Themes/topics: World War II, adventure, friendship

  • A Word with Beth — Giving a Hoot about Who and Whom

    By Beth | February 16, 2014

    No questions were submitted for this month’s Word with Beth, so I will have to wing it. I’ve called on the resident wise owl to assist me. After all, whooooo better to give a hoot about whooooo and whooooom than an owl? The use of ‘whom’ isn’t as common as it once was (rather like…

  • Perfect Snow — Perfect Picture Book Friday

    By Beth | February 13, 2014

    Title: Perfect Snow Author/Illustrator: Barbara Reid Publisher: Toronto, ON: North Winds Press (Scholastic), 2009. Genre: Picture book, Fiction

  • How to Make a Picture Book — The Making of Bubblegum Princess: Part 1, Series Intro

    By Beth | February 9, 2014

    I am delighted that Julie Gribble has agreed to do this series of blog posts on the process she went through in creating, publishing, and marketing her picture book, Bubblegum Princess, (written by Julie, illustrated by Lori Hanson). Julie’s background, as you can see from the brief post I did last month, is in film…

  • Celebrating the Year of the Horse with Books about Horses

    By Beth | February 2, 2014

    How else would a reader and a writer celebrate? There have been some cherished horses in my life, and most of them were the stuff of story. A few, like my grandfather’s prize Clydesdale, Prairie Prince, came alive for me in stories told to me by my parents, but most of the horses I knew…

  • Punxsutawney Phyllis — Opera Star!

    By Beth | January 29, 2014

    My friend, the clever, creative, and fun-loving author Susanna Leonard Hill, has decided that we need a little fun in the midst of this wicked winter. Not only is Susanna all the adjectives aforementioned, but she is the creative spirit behind PUNXSUTAWNEY PHYLLIS, Girl Weather Prognosticator Extraordinaire. As you’ve probably noticed, it’s nearly Groundhog Day,…

  • Moving Forward — Open to Possibilities

    By Beth | January 26, 2014

    As I said in my last blog post of 2013, I won’t be doing my month-end accountability posts this year. Instead, in keeping with my chosen theme for the year of moving forward, the last Monday of each month will feature a post designed to get us all thinking about some aspect of moving forward…

  • FLYGIRL by Sherri L. Smith (YA)

    By Beth | January 23, 2014

    Title: Flygirl Author: Sherri L. Smith Publisher: New York: Speak (Penguin Group), 2008 Genre: YA Fiction Audience Age: 13 to 17 years

  • A Word with Beth about Quotation Mark Quandaries

    By Beth | January 19, 2014

    It’s the third Monday of the month, and that means it’s time to look at a grammatical question sent in by one of my readers. Today’s question has us looking at quotation marks. My thanks to the reader who sent this in. Here’s the question: I know when there’s a quotation, the end punctuation goes…

  • Elsie’s Bird — Perfect Picture Book Friday

    By Beth | January 16, 2014

    Title: Elsie’s Bird Author: Jane Yolen Illustrator: David Small Publisher: New York: Philomel, 2010