Today's Reader Wednesday post is all about books! I was looking for some emerging authors to spotlight on my blog, but since I didn't find any I decided to do something else. (If you are an emerging author and would like to be spotlighted please email me and we'll talk).
I always like it when people suggest a good book for me to read. Today I'd like to do that for you. I have suggestions for picture books, middle grades, and young adult. The first book under each heading is an older book you may have forgotten all about (or maybe don't even know about). The second book is a newer book.
Picture Books
James Herriot was an English veterinarian with a life long love of all things furry. Herriot's love of animals translates to his masterfully written children's stories. Peter Barrett provides some of the most beautiful illustrations ever seen in a picture book.
Moses the Kitten tells the story of a lost kitten who is near death when he is found by a veterinarian. The kitten finds the will to live and a new home in this children's classic!
Halloween Night by Marjorie Dennis Murray is the best Halloween themed picture book I've seen in a long time! Murray offers a new spin on a classic poem, reworking
Twas the Night Before Christmas for Halloween. This book is almost as fun to look at as it is to read. Brandon Dorman's digital art is amazingly detailed and each page is filled with bright and colorful illustrations.
Middle Grades
I first read Harper Lee's
To Kill a Mockingbird in my advanced 7th grade English class. I read a lot of absolutely amazing books that year, books that stuck with me. Lee's one and only novel,
To Kill a Mockingbird is sure to stick with anyone who reads it. It tells the moving story of Scout Finch, her brother Jem, and their father Atticus--a lawyer who instructs them never to shoot mockingbirds because all they do is sing pretty songs. Set during the depression, the story exposes real life issues when a black man is accused of raping a white woman and Atticus decides to serve as his defense attorney. Beautifully written and surprisingly relevant,
To Kill a Mockingbird is an excellent read for any age.
Riordan, who tackled Greek mythology in his famous "Percy Jackson" series, brings ancient Egypt to life in
The Red Pyramid. The story opens with Carter (14) and Sadie (12), a brother and sister who have been raised apart, going on a private tour of the British Museum with their Egyptologist Father, Dr. Julian Kane. When something goes horribly wrong at the museum Sadie and Carter must unearth family secrets, learn magic, and yes, defeat a God, all just to save the world! Riordan is a master storyteller and
The Red Pyramid is sure to become a classic read.
Young Adult
Written in 1922
The Great Gatsby still resonates with readers nearly 90 years later. F. Scott Fitzgerald weaves an intricate tale of love, lust, greed, and grief. Self made millionaire Jay Gastby is the title character and his love for beautiful, eccentric and married Daisy Buchanan drives the plot. Gatsby and Daisy embody the lavishness of the Jazz Age and lavishness often leads to tragedy.
The Great Gatsby was evocative when I read it ten years ago, and it's still a page turner.
Michael Scott's
The Alchemyst: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel is the first book in an exciting new series (new being relative--book four was released this summer). Flamel is the stuff of legend, literally, and Scott brings him to life.
The Alchemyst follows Josh and Sophie Newman, 15 year old twins with surprising abilities even they are unaware of. When Josh takes a job at a rare book store across the street from the cafe where his sister works the last thing he expects is to witness a robbery. When the bookstore is attacked by weird creatures with "dead-looking skin" and an important rare book is swiped, the twins learn the book is actually a Codex and the Codex mentions them! Are Josh and Sophie the twins mentioned in an ancient prophesy? Can they learn magic? Can they save the world? Check out
The Alchemyst and find out for yourself!
If you have enjoyed this post be sure to let me know with a comment, email, or by writing on the wall of my
facebook page! If you are an author who would like to be spotlighted in an upcoming post, please email me at
jenniferwelbornwrites@gmail.com. If you're a reader with suggestions, or you'd like to see a similar post with adult books, please let me know. Feel free to comment with some of your favorite reads! Here's wishing you all Happy Reading!
