Books to Fall in Love With
Valentine’s Day is coming this week. So happy hearts and flowers and anything that makes your heart go pitter-patter!
Did someone say, “Books”?
The quickest way to my heart is a stack of unread books.
Here’s my stack of books to fall in love with (for kids) this month:
The Last Bear by Hannah Gold.
This is a 2021 story with an environmental twist about April and her encounter with a lone polar bear who, against the odds, remains on Bear Island.
He’s hungry, lonely, and shouldn’t be there.
The Feather Chase by Shannon L. Brown.
This is an older book (2014) that I want to read for my research of caper books.
I chose it because of that and because it has to do with a feather (if I can believe the title), and so does the story that I’m currently writing.
Oona Bramblegoop’s Sideways Magic by Kate Korsh.
In my quest to find fun and funny Chapter Books, this 2024 book was recommended to me by someone (can’t remember whom).
Oona is a Newbie fairy whose magic sometimes gets a little sideways on her, so she has to be ready for anything.
In this book, she meets the Tooth Fairy.
I’m determined to get my Chapter Book published so I need to see what’s out there.
Fortunately the Milk by Neil Gaiman.
I purchased this one in New York when I was there.
It’s also an older title (2013), but it’s Neil Gaiman!
It’s always a good idea to read books by master storytellers—which he is.
The only book I’ve read by him is Coraline.
This one had a very interesting cover, in addition to a fun title.
Wall Street Journal calls it “a delightful tale.”
The back of the book says, “I walked out of the corner shop…and saw a huge silver disc hovering in the sky…and then something odd happened.”
As if seeing the huge silver disc wasn’t already odd.
I was hooked. (Note to self: That’s a hook.)
My Name Is Barbra by Barbra Streisand.
No, this is not a middle-grade children’s book.
But bear with me here.
I’ve read the beginning of this autobiography and believe that young Streisand would make the most charming six-year-old main character in a Chapter Book.
No disrespect to Ms. Streisand! (I admire her, I love her music, I’ve seen most of her movies, I’ve seen her in concert. No one starts reading a nearly 1000-page autobiography of a person they don’t like.)
So let me explain.
You know how a lot of Chapter Book characters are sassy, spirited, feisty, insecure, and funny?
Well, that describes young Barbra to a T.
She’s the perfect model for a Chapter Book character that readers will fall in love with.
Here’s another reason her book is on my list: Streisand is a storyteller.
She made use of the three-act structure in her television productions and in her music.
She says that the song lyrics and her music need to tell a story.
As an actress, she talks about needing to know who her character is before she is able to give a more-than-satisfactory performance—just as an author needs to know their characters intimately in order to make them come alive on the pages of a book.
The other reason this is on my list today is because my daughter gifted this book to me for Christmas this past year. (Thank you, my girl!)
What’s on your reading list for February?
P.S. In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, I’d love it if you shared this post—or any others you’ve enjoyed—with someone who loves kidlit and writing and magic in books.
Until next week,
~ Gail
Countdown: 46 weeks left of 2024.
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