Our Street Books - Book News May 2018
"Among the changing months, May stands confest The sweetest, and in fairest colors dressed." ~ James Thomson, Scottish author.
May is both 'National Share a Story Month' and 'Get Caught Reading Month' and to kick-off these book-lovers events, our authors have been busy filming short readings from their latest children's books. So what are you waiting for? Go, get caught!
And if that isn't enough to inspire your next reading material, also this month we have:
11th May: Twilight Zone Day
15th May: International Day of Families
16th May: Horse Rescue Day and Love a Tree Day
22nd May: Sherlock Holmes Day and Geek Pride Day
Wednesday 16th May: Love a Tree Day
Whatever the season, pulling on your wellies and going for a stroll in the forest is always a feast for the senses. In Spring, we see carpets of daffodils and bluebells, in Summer; wild flowers are at play. Come autumn, the forest floor is strewn in bright amber and copper leaves and in winter, the morning frost can bring delight to everything it touches. But one thing remains tall and very prominent during the lands changing seasons; trees.
Trees provide breathable air, building material, fuel, food, shelter, medicine and not forgetting books. Without trees, we could not live. Aristotle did his best thinking in the olive groves around Athens, Buddha found enlightenment beneath a bo tree, and Isaac Newton realised his theory of gravity when an apple fell from the tree under which he was sitting.
Well-known to harness the power of self-healing, trees give off wood oils called ‘phytoncides’ to protect themselves from germs and insects. When inhaled by humans, these oils have a beneficial impact on our nervous systems... read more.
Find more reasons to love trees in Emma Oliver and the Song of Creation by Susan Elizabeth Hale (Our Street, £6,99/$11.95).
May Book Review
Published on 27th April 2018, Michael Strelow's debut children's book The Princess Gardener is a must-read for any fans of Charlotte's Web!
Review by: Belinda Clemens, NetGalley
“I loved this book alot. It is well written and really enjoyable. I read it in one sitting. Eugenie and Alyssa ending was surprisingly wonderfully unique. I want to read more by this author.”
Review by: Dan Pawley, NetGalley
“Thanks for the advanced copy of this one. Over to my ten year old daughter to tell us what she thought ... ‘I love this book because after the first page or so, I felt like Eugenie was my best friend and I'd known her all my life. The storyline is intriguing and once the action had started, I couldn't put the book down. If I had to rewrite the book, I would not change a thing! I would 100% recommend the book to anyone who likes adventure and fantasy. I feel like this book will be a bestseller!’”
The Princess Gardener is the story of a young girl who is a princess by accident of birth. Her passion lies outside the castle, tending the gardens. But castle duties call more and more often, and her parents insist she learn what she calls "the princess business." Reluctantly, she curtseys and bows and smiles her way through the empty rituals of the kingdom, but every day she longs for the smell of the earth. A chance encounter causes the princess to switch lives with a young farm girl, who is her exact likeness. When people begin to fall ill, the girls learn that the source of the sickness is covered-up pollution in the water supply. Will they discover their true capabilities and save the kingdom, or are the girls' lives about to become very complicated?
OUT NOW with Our Street Books in paperback £6.99/$10.95 or e-book £3.99/$6.99.
Out This Month: Melody's Unicorn by Richard Swan
Prologue ...
The wolf stood at the edge of the clearing. The subtle browns and fawns and greys of its coat made it almost invisible in the dappled light from the trees above. Only its eyes were clear, glinting pools of light fixed on Melody where she stood in the open with her father. Melody stared back. She had noticed the eyes first, and then her keen sight had begun to separate the shape of the wolf from its shadows, until she could see the whole of the beast as clearly as if it were drawn in ink against the background. There was no mistake. It wasn’t a dog, some Alsatian or wolfhound that had strayed into the forest, or been brought by an adventurous walker. This was a wolf, pure and wild, and it was standing watching her with fierce intensity. As yet it made no move to attack, but Melody wasn’t in any doubt as to its capabilities or intentions. It could rip her apart before she could move three paces, and the presence of her father would do nothing to stop it.
Melody was torn between fear and anger. The fear was a natural thing, the response of any human being out in the open, menaced by a predator. The anger was personal. To her, wolves meant one thing, the death of her mother seven years before. She too had been in this forest; she too had been stalked and threatened by a wolf. She had died.
Praise for Melody's Unicorn:
"Melody’s Unicorn is just lovely. It took me back to my childhood when I loved to read about fairies, dragons, unicorns, and all of the other entities that we believe do not exist but secretly think they possibly do. Thoroughly enchanting! Melody’s Unicorn is definitely the type of book my bookish childhood self would have jumped on. And I have no qualms about saying how much I enjoyed it as an adult!"
Jade Hughes: www.jadeannahughes.com
"Such a fascinating premise. London is a common setting for books, but rarely like this. As someone who loves the city, this was a great reading experience."
Sonja Heaney: www.nataliaheaney.wordpress.com
“You are about to enter another dimension, a dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind. A journey into a wondrous land of imagination. Next stop, the Twilight Zone!”
Beloved by children, teenagers and adults alike, the cult classic TV show The Twilight Zone has affected entire generations of people, prompting them to take a closer look at life and various phenomena and take nothing for granted, thanks to its unique combination of science fiction, mystery, and thriller/horror themes.
Today we celebrate all things ‘outer-world’ with these five Lodestone titles that any fan of 'The Twilight Zone' should read:
Alphanumeric by Nicolas Forzy - When dyslexic teenager Stu accidentally transports himself into a world populated entirely with living numbers and letters, his arrival triggers a prophecy that pulls the two rival communities into war.
Dawn of the Shadowcasters by M.R. Weston - Only light can drive back the darkness. Only Stevie Vegas can stop the Dawn of the Shadowcasters.
Desert Dwellers Born by Fire by Sarah Bergstrom - Three siblings with unique powers are chased from a home full of secrets when their parents become sick, and find answers in a rainforest clan who control fire.
The Last Stop by Michael H. Burnam - What happens when Evolution ends? It’s Ender’s Game meets Close Encounter of the Third Kind.
The Next Step by Michael H. Burnam - What price would you pay for immortality? Book Two of The Last Stop Series.
Our Street; Our Library
This month's library love goes out to The Johnson Publishing Library in Stony Island, USA. This library contains a collection of books by John H. Johnson, the publisher of Jet and Ebony magazines. This archive can be found on the second floor of the Stony Island Arts Center. In 2012, Mr. Theaster Gates, an artist and chicago-native, bought the abandoned 1920's bank from the City of Chicago for one dollar. The building is a community center dedicated to the preservation of African-american culture and history.
(Image source: thisiscolossal.com)
Little Prayer Series by Alan and Linda Parry
Join these little creatures who gather round for some traditional prayers, retold for very young children. Titles in this series include:
Classic Children's Prayers - £1.99
Prayers of Praise - £1.99
Mealtime Prayers - £0.91
Bedtime Prayers - £1.99
Alan Parry is a freelance artist, who has worked in the fashion media and has illustrated numerous books. His wife Linda is a devout Christian, who has studied the Bible since childhood. They live in Worcester UK.
