Chanticleer Book Reviews

Tag: Children’s Books

THE DAY WE FOUND YESTERDAY by Tamara Dever, illustrated by Missi Jay – Children’s Books, 1980s, Picture Books

Tamara Dever’s The Day We Found Yesterday is a blast from the past, a picture book for both young readers and nostalgic GenXers to experience the ’80s. Dazzling funky illustrations with 500+ music references will catch anyone’s eye and instantly transport readers back to the days of “I want my MTV!”

Eileen, Mickey and Eddie love their grandparents, Nana and Papa. When they overhear them grieving something special they lost long ago, the grandkids set out on a mission in their grandparents’ hometown to find it. They visit their grandparents’ friends at their local businesses, hoping that one of them will have the answer to the question of the missing treasure.

Their journey quickly turns into a time-traveling adventure as they gather stories of their grandparents’ ’80s childhoods from the friends and family who watched them grow up.

The shops are covered with ’80s music callbacks, like “Karma” the Chameleon in the pet store, the travel agency slogan, “On the Road Again,” and a reminder on the doctor’s office wall that “every breath you take keeps lungs healthy.”

Each page of The Day We Found Yesterday, illustrated by Missi Jay, is a universe of detail.

Colorful signs and carefully hidden objects cover every inch, inviting children to pore over the pages, pick out favorite illustrations, and giggle over silly puns. New readers will find ’80s slang like “atomic” and “funky” to be an exciting challenge!

Once the kids’ adventure has come to an end, there’s more to explore at the back of the book.

Young readers can treasure hunt through the pages for tiny items like bells and hamsters. Meanwhile, adults can search for references to songs, artists, and even spot cameos from ’80s celebrities like Corey Hart, Debbie Gibson, and the lead singers of Men Without Hats, A Flock of Seagulls, and Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant. Mark Goodman, Nina Blackwood, Alan Hunter, and Martha Quinn also show up in colorful images as the original MTV VJs.

The Day We Found Yesterday by Tamara Dever opens opportunities for children to learn more about their parents’ and grandparents’ lives, sparking connection beyond generational boundaries in a fun, colorful adventure. This is a story that will last through the decades!

November 12, 2025
From Words to Wonder: 6 Smart Tips for Writers Collaborating with Illustrators

They say a picture is worth a thousand words.

A children’s book’s illustrations are a non-reading and early reader child’s gateway into a story.

Falling in love with books is imperative for the development of a child’s listening and attention skills, as well as their cognitive and language development. It also helps them socially and emotionally, creates bonding experiences and fosters their own creativity as they begin to express themselves through art and verbal storytelling.

All characteristics that lay the path toward a happy, successful person later in life.

Finding and working with an illustrator that you believe shares your vision is a big first step in creating a great children’s book.

Once you are finished drafting and editing your picture book and it’s time to tackle the visual component, consider the following process to find the right illustrator, establish a great working relationship, and manage the workflow all the way through to the final product. These six tips will help you manage the project.

1. Determine Your Scope of Work

Never start working with an illustrator until you have a good understanding of what your project entails. Illustrators need this information so they can plan their schedules, determine fair pricing, and set a foundation of trust in your working partnership. Make it a great experience for everyone by going into the project with a carefully considered plan. Know what you need, the time-frame of the project, how they’ll be paid, and how much you have budgeted for the project.

2. Consider Your Preferred Artistic Style

The art produced in children’s books is as varied as the stories themselves. Fun, quirky, beautiful, and serene; the images run the gamut of styles to reinforce the plot as each page is turned. There is a lot to consider when you are thinking about your preferred style. Explore books on the market now and make a decision on the general style you prefer prior to beginning your search for an artist.

3. Take your Time Choosing an Illustrator

Each artist brings something unique to your story, but if you don’t find one that can accurately reflect the tone of your story, you may end up causing confusion when the art doesn’t feel right with the story. Seek out illustrators that have proven they can deliver the tone and style that you desire. Zero in on three to five illustrators, view their portfolios and talk to them about their art and what inspires them, then go with the one who most closely aligns with your vision.

4. Negotiations and Contracts

Once you’ve found your illustrator and discussed the creative vision for your book, it’s time to get down to the business end of working with an illustrator. Before discussing schedules and pricing, do your research. Know what the typical rates are and what qualifies as a finished product: how will the images be delivered, formats, what issues could occur, and how will they be resolved, etc. Write up a simple contract that includes all the information you’ve discussed and a summary describing the style and tone will keep the vision clear for both of you as the project gets underway.

5. Now the Fun Part!

A good practice when working with an illustrator that will ensure the project gets off on the right foot is to see a few rough sketches soon after the project gets started. Discuss them with the artist, letting them know what’s working for you, and what’s not. Be honest, but kind. Respectfully ask for the changes you wish to see and don’t forget to tell them the great things you see in their work. Pointing them toward the great things is as important as telling them what you don’t like.

6. Checking In

Your illustrator will need time and space to create beautiful images, and authors should respect that. But that doesn’t mean you have to be in the dark as your book comes to life with color and shape. Schedule regular check-ins or have deadlines for a specific number of pages/images. Both you and the artist will feel confident that you are moving through this process together.

Creating a great working relationship with an illustrator will lay the groundwork for a smooth translation of your story through images and fill those young readers’ imaginations with the wonderful stories you’ve created just for them!

Take a look at the great illustrations in these children’s picture books from Chanticleer authors!

Geckos in the Garden
By Ruth Amanda
CIBA Little Peeps First Place Winner

Geckos in the Garden by Ruth Amanda is a children’s counting book that takes readers through a delightful, rhythmic, aesthetically pleasing romp past a series of hidden geckos.

Amanda starts out with just one gecko in the garden. Every page after, one more is added amongst myriad natural details such as flowers, a snail, a palm tree, garden taps, rocks, a mango tree, leaves, a gate, a bird’s nest, a pond, and more.

Amanda demonstrates a natural sense of narrative arc even within a counting book—readers will feel the climax of the adventure when they arrive at the ninth gecko and read the line, “I spot one—two—no, six—no, more! Nine!” The escalation of the words’ momentum makes the ninth and tenth geckos more dramatic. Furthermore, the clever dénouement includes the narrator realizing the geckos might watch them just as much as they watch the geckos, and this is written alongside an adorable picture of a gecko looking in the window of the narrator’s home.

Read more here!

Lily’s Mysterious Odyssey
By Anne Lacourrege

Lily’s Mysterious Odyssey by Anne Lacourrege, illustrated by Joshua Wichterich, follows a young girl named Lily through her dreaming nautical adventure.

Homes hold onto the history of their families. With only herself to play with in her family’s old house, Lily comes across a hidden chest of antique keepsakes, unaffected by generations of storms and floods across the New Orleans coastal area. Lily and her parents soon find even more items hidden away that paint the history of 1800s sailor Captain Harry and his family.

That night, Lily dreams of Captain Harry’s daughter, Anne, who invites Lily to see her father’s ship. Lily’s mysterious odyssey truly begins as the ship sets sail with Lily still on board. She soon finds herself on an journey to Greece, where she learns about Greek culture and its similarities to her home when a Mediterranean cyclone hits.

Read more here!

Bella Brown Visits a Bee Farm
By J W Zarek

Bees frighten Bella, but a learning adventure turns her fear to fascination in J.W. Zarek’s delightful children’s book Bella Brown Visits a Bee Farm.

Bella’s bespectacled Grandma Yetta asks for help in her wildflower garden. Bella hops along with her bucket of gardening tools, surrounded by beautiful hovering butterflies. But a sudden encounter with a large striped flying insect sends Bella running.

Grandma Yetta explains that the buzzing bee is merely curious or trying to protect her home or babies. She advises Bella to stand very still, and the bee will fly away. Bella gives it a try and sees her own fears fly away as the bee continues its journey through the garden.

Read more here!

Miracle on the Mountain
By Gail Heath

Gail Heath’s Miracle on the Mountain: An Appalachian Christmasshares a message of love and redemption through the heart-warming tale of Granny, a faithful, disciplined, and generous Appalachian woman.

On a blustery winter day, Granny starts down her home’s snowy, mountain landscape to attend Christmas Eve service in the village. When her dog, Shep, wanders off, Granny runs into Pete. The young man uses firewood collecting as an excuse to not attend service, hiding a deeper motive beneath.

Granny asks after his grandfather, who is in the midst of a long recovery after being attacked by a boar. Pete is forlorn, casting aspersions at Granny’s message that a miracle may yet happen, especially on this of all nights. Sensing his loss of faith, Granny offers Pete a few cups of her warm chicory as she regales the miracle on the mountain she witnessed ten years ago that made her a true believer.

Read more here!

Lorelei the Lorelei: The Problem with Science Fairs Cicadas and Sewers
By Kristen J. Anderson

Lorelei, the charismatic and outspoken seven-year-old, leaps at the chance to save her school’s science fair from disaster in Lorelei the Lorelei: The Problem with Science Fairs, Cicadas, and Sewers, second book in Kristen J Anderson’s Lorelei the Lorelei series.

Beyond excited for the science fair, Lorelei prepares a project with a mission. She hopes to change people’s perception about cicadas, which most consider a gross nuisance of a bug. On the day of the science fair, during a trip to the restroom, Lorelei encounters a plumbing catastrophe.

With the help of her family and friends, Lorelei put a plan in motion to protect the school fair, while learning valuable lessons about sportsmanship, classroom behavior, and empathy. She may be silly and likeable, but some of her quirks can get her into trouble too!

Read more here!

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November 9, 2025
Chanticleer 10-Question Author Interview Series with Ruth Amanda – Grand Prize Award-winning Author of Island Moon

CHANTICLEER 10-QUESTION AUTHOR INTERVIEW SERIES with RUTH AMANDA,
the CIBA Grand Prize Winning Author in the
Little Peeps Division!

Hello friends! We have another fabulous interview for you today, with author Ruth Amanda! Her book Island Moon took home the Chanticleer 2024 CIBA Grand Prize Award in the Little Peeps Division for Early Readers, and we are excited to share with you the joyful journey she took to becoming an author and what adventures she’s planning to take readers on now. Take a minute or two and get familiar with Ruth Amanda and her incredible journey to becoming award-winning author!

Chanti: Tell us a little about yourself: Have you. always been telling such imaginative, fun stories?

Ruth Amanda: I’ve been making up stories since I was quite small, usually with an art project to accompany it, and sometime around grade 4 or so I started writing those stories down. Not because I thought I would become a writer, but because it seemed a good way to not forget the stories.

One of my teachers in grade 7 or so, encouraged me to enter a writing competition. I won that, along with a small cash prize, and I promptly spent the money on something important like chocolate.

Writing seemed to be more school related for a while but when I had my kids, I would read to them endlessly and, as children are prone to do, they would ask incessant questions. “Why are the eggs and ham green?” “He should have been an accountant, not a pirate because he can count good…why isn’t he an accountant?” And so on…so I made up answers, like “There used to be flying pigs, but their meat was green and very tasty so people hunted them and ate them all. Now they are extinct, so we can’t by green ham at the grocery store and that’s also why we have no flying pigs.” “The Pirate Captain actually used to run a very profitable bookkeeping business at the docks until his competitor—Bahama Bob—stole his calculator. So the Pirate Captain snuck onto Bob’s ship late at night and stole it back, but he was spotted by the Pelican who ran security and had to flee in his boat…after that, a life of nautical crime seemed more appropriate than returning to shore and a very tedious job of ‘accountancy’ and ‘tax season’…funny thing, your Grandpa probably should have been a pirate…”)

We would also read chapter books when they were quite small so they could be tucked into bed and I would read to them from the hallway between their bedrooms. I would tell them to close their eyes and imagine the pictures since there weren’t any in the book. Then I would go downstairs and put paper on the walls in the playroom and doodle the characters with a magic marker for the kids to colour the next day. Together we would make up our own stories while we were coloring.

Chanti: I love those creative parenting moments! Your humor and whimsy really shine through in your work. What drew you specifically to writing picture books for children?

Ruth Amanda: I write particularly good “utter nonsense”, “total drivel”, and factual biographies of people like Stumpy (a gecko), Skippy (a bullfinch) and Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda, Diddit and Bob (the Grackle crime family).

Translation: Children’s Picture Books.

I primarily write these in rhyme as, having grown up with a lot of Dr. Seuss in my formative years, I tend to think in rhyming couplets. (Much to the dismay of my husband.)

I do have some plans to write for adults as well, but that means I will have to grow up first.

Chanti: You seem to have a gift for characters whose personalities shine on every page. Do you find yourself following the rules or do you like to make up your own rules?

Ruth Amanda: I like to think I follow the rules, but then I get gentle reminders from the people editing my work that I take liberties with punctuation and making up words.

And of course, I often break the laws of anatomy when illustrating. I mean, really!! A buzzard with it’s pinkie in the air? Buzzards lack the necessary fingers to do so, but then it happened so… (see “There’s a Buzzard on the Balcony”, 2023, Friesen Press).

Chanti: What do you do you like to do in your off-time? Are you always looking for new ideas?

Ruth Amanda: I like to go hiking and camping. Anything outdoors where I may bump into cool characters like Philbert the cane toad or a pack of green monkeys. The beach is a favourite hangout, especially with a snorkel and mask! I also enjoy sketching and painting.

“But you also illustrate your books, so that doesn’t count.” You say.

I say “Ah, but it DOES count as a hobby because (1) I don’t pay me to illustrate which makes it a hobby and (2) I sketch and paint things that have nothing to do with my stories.”

(Yet.)

Sometimes a painting gives me an idea for a book.

There should be a twelve-step program.

Chanti: Your creative process sounds inspired. Can you talk a little more about how those story ideas actually come to you? What’s your method for developing a new book?

Ruth Amanda: I think I come up with my story ideas in the usual way. Someone annoys me. I write their name down. I turn them into a frog (it’s a bit like witchcraft) and put them into a book.

All kidding aside, I see possibilities in everything.

If you were to look outside right now, you would have trouble spotting any snails. If it rains, you will instantly see thousands of them. Why? Good question. Because they can hydroplane in the puddles, which makes them go very, very fast. So, they are obviously holding races. Voila! “Ess-Car-Go!” (2024, Ruth Amanda).

You might go to bed but wake later with your bedroom flooded with light. It’s morning!-you think. So, you get up and go to the window, only to discover that it’s a very bright full moon pouring through the window. You hear the whistling frogs, the wind, the waves, a dove who is also having trouble sleeping…and again, you suddenly have “Island Moon” (2024, Ruth Amanda).

Chanti: What do you feel your writing fosters in children?

Ruth Amanda: I am most confident in my ability to make kids look at things they wouldn’t normally stop for in this age of electronics and social media. Most of them haven’t hunted for small lizards in the back yard ever…until now!

I am also quite confident in my ability to entertain children. My success is measured in children’s reactions and not in book sales. Don’t get me wrong, books sales are great, but, hearing the kids laughing and talking about what’s happening in the book is all I need. Or the sleepy smiles as they head to bed. Priceless.

My advice? Regress into your childhood. Look at things with childlike eyes and see the everyday magic that is dewdrops on spiderwebs, butterflies in aerial combat, puffins dancing polkas, and whales that snore deep in the ocean. Open up that imagination and let it spread out like a flood.

Also, do not get too caught up in a moral or a lesson for the kids. They get school. Some of them get Sunday School or other religious instruction. If you want them to read in their own personal time, provide them some fun escapist reading.

After all, when you take a book to read for your personal time, you likely are not picking up a text book or academic paper. You are going to grab a murder mystery, espionage, romance, or other fun reading. Don’t expect children to get enthusiastic over something you wouldn’t be enthusiastic about.

It can have a lesson—just don’t sacrifice story.

Chanti: Not sacrificing story for lessons really resonates with me. Writing is definitely a craft that requires ongoing development. How do you continue growing and sharpening your skills?

Ruth Amanda: I read to a great group of kids at the local library. By great, I mean enthusiastic, inquisitive and as unruly as I was at that age. They love to question the content of the books, adore getting the globe out to see how far away the story happens, and they always provide feedback on my latest writing projects. That act of reading also means I am constantly reading work in my genre of Children’s Picture Books by my peers and writers from previous generations. I get to rediscover these stories with fresh childlike eyes as I try to anticipate what the questions will be so I can be prepared.

I also try to write something every day even if it’s just a limerick.

A good game of Scrabble is also useful to keep the vocabulary sharp.

By the way, if asking for feedback from people who fall into the Picture Book target audience, be clear. Responses must be, “I don’t like it because __________” or “I like it because ___________”. This gives the opportunity for them to develop some clear communication skills, and also provides you with actionable feedback on what to tweak or which story to just scrap and move on until a better idea surfaces.

Chanti: What are you working on now? What can we look forward to seeing next from you?

Ruth Amanda: I have just released, on June 6, 2025, “Where are you, Hugh MacCoo?” which is about a young highland cow (or “coo”) that goes out hillwalking in Scotland and gets caught in some weather (as one does). The Mountain Rescue is called in to go search for him. Meantime, he has bumped into a Scottish legend. No spoilers here—buy the book. Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Chapters/Indigo, Waterstones, Foyles, and wherever fine books are sold…(And leave a review!)

I also have two Caribbean themed Christmas books in illustration to be released in November 15 (knock on wood), a middle grade sequel to “Cried the Raven” (2024, Ruth Amanda) that is stumbling through a plot flaw at the moment, and a developing manuscript about a hermit crab experiencing a fashion crisis due to a shortage of suitable shells on the beach.

If I can squeeze it in, I also have a sea turtle themed colouring book in development.

Chanti: Wow! You are so creative! What is the most important thing a reader can do for an author?

Ruth Amanda: Read their book. At the library, or buy a copy, it doesn’t really matter. Just read it. Recommend it. Leave a review on Goodreads and Amazon.

Also, send cash. A writer needs to eat.

Chanti: Your books are both fun to read and beautiful to look at. What excites you most about writing?

Ruth Amanda: A blank screen and a great idea. They go together like Peanut Butter and Jelly! Much like the chapter books I used to read to my kids, the pictures pop into my head as the words fill the page.

What excites me the least about writing? Knowing that I have to bring those pictures in my head out onto the canvas and paper…that’s stressful. Especially when you have a couple of young fans asking, “Miss Ruth, I need more books. Are you writing more books?”

Ruth Amanda lives in Barbados with her husband and a collection of wild creatures in her garden and tame creatures in her home. On most Saturdays, you can find her at the Speightstown Branch of the Barbados National Library Service where she works hand in hand with the Barbados Roaring Virtual Lions Club and the library to provide entertaining story time and activities for the kids. Ruth Amanda also conducts school visits and readings, and has some fabulous handouts for classrooms on Writing Stories and creating books.

Ruth Amanda has been helping install book nooks in various nurseries and schools in coordination with the Kiwanis Club of Barbdos in Action and President Tracey MacWatt for the program BarbadosWorking, as well as the Child Care Board Barbados and the Barbados Association of Reading. Ruth Amanda is a strong proponent of increasing literacy worldwide, and knows that literacy begins very early. She also works in partnership with the Barbados National Library Service and the Prime Minister’s Office Division of Culture along with other authors and local creators to promote literacy in Golden Square Freedom Park, Bridgetown.

October 30, 2025
Five Days Remain: The Series, Collections, Nellie Bly, and Military and Front Line Awards call!
The 2025 CIBAs Close Soon!

Don’t let your book miss out!
Only 5 days left to submit your books to these prestigious CIBA Divisions and embark on an extraordinary journey to success.

The Chanticleer International Book Awards provide ongoing recognition that amplifies authors’ digital footprints through high-traffic website features, social media promotion, newsletter spotlights, and long-tail marketing that continues promoting winners throughout the year and beyond!

The Series, Collections and Anthologies, Nellie Bly and Military and Front Line Awards are still open!

Congratulations to the 2024 Winners of the Series Awards!
- Karen Inglis – Secret Lake Mystery Adventures
- Glen Dahlgren – The Chronicles of Chaos
- Sandra Wagner-Wright – Salem Stories
- Taryn R. Hutchison – A Cold War Trilogy
- Kari Bovee – The Pryce of Murder
- J.L. Oakley – The Jossing series
- Ralph R. “Rick” Steinke – Jake Fortina Series
- Mike Murphey – Tales of Physics, Lust and Greed
- Rose Prendeville – Brides of Chattan
And a huge round of applause to our 2024 Series Grand Prize Winner:

A Vengeful Realms

By Tim Facciola

Collections and Anthologies is our Newest Division, recently split off of the SEA Shorts Award!

SEA Shorts now covers Short Stories, Essays and Novellas together, and Collections and Anthologies is for exactly that, Multi-Story Collections and Multi-Author Anthologies!
The Nellie Bly Award for Journalistic and Research-Based Non-Fiction
- Carla Conti – Chained Birds: A True Crime Memoir
- Kori Reed – Men-in-the-Middle Conversations to Gain Momentum with Gender Equity’s Silent Majority
- Bonnie Bley – Stolen Voices: Missing and Murdered in Big Horn County
- Sarah Towle – Crossing the Line: Finding America in the Borderlands
And a huge round of applause to our 2024 Nellie Bly Grand Prize Winner:

The Sing Sing Files

One Journalist, Six Innocent Men, and A 20 Year Fight For Justice

By Dan Slepian

Congratulations to the 2024 Winners of the Military and Front Line Awards for Service to Others Non-Fiction!
- Roderick S. Haynes – Unauthorized Disclosures a Navy Memoir of the 1980s
- David Huntley – The B-17 Tomahawk Warrior: a WWII Final Honor
- Patrick Hogan – Coincidence, You Say?
- Shari Biery – It’s Your Turn How To Rediscover Yourself Prioritize Your Well-Being Thrive with Purpose
- Max Lauker & Antonio Garcia – Number 788: My Experiences in Swedish Special Operations – Preparing for NATO and the War on Terror
- Bibi LeBlanc – Wings of Freedom – The Story of the Berlin Airlift | Flugel der Freiheit – Die Geschichte der Berliner Luftbrucke
And a huge round of applause to our 2024 Military and Front Line Grand Prize Winner:

Memoirs From The Front Lines

Four States, Two Years, One Pandemic

By Kim Sloan

The CIBAs provide a ladder to success with a range of achievement tiers and expert long tail marketing strategies. From the highly anticipated Long List to the prestigious Overall Grand Prize Winner, the CIBA lists energize both authors and readers, maximizing your digital footprint and expanding your fan base.

We are always eager to support the Best Books through the CIBAs. Join the ranks of celebrated authors who have already taken this critical step in their publishing.

Your book deserves to be discovered, celebrated, and shared with the world. Don’t miss the chance to showcase your talent and gain valuable exposure at the Chanticleer Authors Conference (April 17-19, 2025) where Winners from all 28 Book Award Divisions will be announced and honored.

In a world hungry for good books, your story deserves to be heard. Submit now and leave a lasting impression.

Let’s celebrate exceptional storytelling together!

Your book deserves to be discovered

Enter Today!
October 26, 2025
MIRACLE On The MOUNTAIN: An Appalachian Christmas by Gail Heath, illustrated by Barabash Sviatoslav – Children’s Books, Holidays & Miracles, Picture Books

Gail Heath’s Miracle on the Mountain: An Appalachian Christmas shares a message of love and redemption through the heart-warming tale of Granny, a faithful, disciplined, and generous Appalachian woman.

On a blustery winter day, Granny starts down her home’s snowy, mountain landscape to attend Christmas Eve service in the village. When her dog, Shep, wanders off, Granny runs into Pete. The young man uses firewood collecting as an excuse to not attend service, hiding a deeper motive beneath.

Granny asks after his grandfather, who is in the midst of a long recovery after being attacked by a boar. Pete is forlorn, casting aspersions at Granny’s message that a miracle may yet happen, especially on this of all nights. Sensing his loss of faith, Granny offers Pete a few cups of her warm chicory as she regales the miracle on the mountain she witnessed ten years ago that made her a true believer.

In Granny’s tale, a cantankerous man named Luster appears one spring on Granny’s mountain. He lives in a ramshackle cabin with his dog and complains any time Granny makes noise. Following the guidance of her upbringing, Granny campaigns to sweat out Luster’s gruffness with kindness and prayer, but to no avail. By winter, Granny has left it up to the Lord to thaw the man’s misery.

On Christmas Eve, a snowy night much like the one ten years later, Granny feels the Lord encouraging her to visit her solitary neighbor.

She walks through the storm with a fresh loaf of bread to wish Luster a merry Christmas, which earns her his hottest bout of temper yet. The grinch refuses any of Granny’s warmth, and she reconciles that she can do no more, deciding Luster has no heart to be touched.

Later that night a tragedy befalls the village. Granny offers her warm home and hot chicory to a sheriff and his volunteers searching for a lost child. She seeks out Luster once again, hoping he would lend his mass and strength to the search effort, but his shack is empty. Luster’s hound, Shep, bounds through the snow and coaxes Granny to follow him. Together, they brave the wintery weather, and Granny encounters a miracle beyond her imagination.

What makes Miracle on the Mountain: An Appalachian Christmas special is its simplicity alongside the sharpness of Heath’s writing craft.

With lively characters in Granny and Luster and dialogue that stays true the spirit of Appalachian character, the reader gets everything they need to feel Granny’s message in their hearts.

The artwork from Barabash Sviatoslav creates an immersive Christmas atmosphere through detailed backgrounds that place readers firmly in the heart of an Appalachian winter. Each scene radiates warmth despite the mountain chill, inviting readers to step into Granny’s world of snow-covered cabins and frosted landscapes. The characters are portrayed with dynamic energy, their active poses drawing readers directly into the unfolding story and making them feel part of each scene’s emotional moment.

Miracle on the Mountain: An Appalachian Christmas by Gail Health expresses the spirit of Christmas through a fresh perspective.

Its message isn’t confined to one set of beliefs. Friendship, understanding, and sacrifice may be protected by people in ways we don’t always understand, but even at times when we’ve given up hope a surprise may just remind us that miracles do happen, sometimes where we least expect.

August 18, 2025
10 Question Interview with Shaziya M. Jaffer, Brad W. Rudover, Jessica Alexanderson of Recycling is Like Magic– Environmental Warriors and CIBA Grand Prize Winners

We had the pleasure of speaking with the amazing writing team of Shaziya M. Jaffer, Brad W. Rudover, and Jessica Alexanderson (aka: Scuba Jess) recently. Together, they authored The Girl Who Recycled 1 Million Cans, the 2023 CIBA Grand Prize in the Little Peeps division.

Jaffer, Rudover, and Alexanderson have created a program called Recycling is Like Magic (formerly Scrap University Kids), which teaches children about how they can help make our world cleaner through recycling, and their award-winning book is read to schoolchildren across the Pacific Northwest to teach them about the importance of participating in environmental projects. Here’s what we talked about:

Chanti:Let’s start with the basics. Can you tell us a little about how your writing team came together and what inspired you to start creating books to support your recycling education mission?

Magic: We noticed a lack of recycling education books in the children’s book genre, so, we decided to write one that would share our recycling knowledge to increase the overall recycling rate. Now, the book, along with our other efforts have encouraged our AMAZING readers and recyclers to recycle over 3,516,695 cans!

Chanti: That’s an incredible impact! I love that you’re combining child literacy with environmental education. When you think about your roles, do you see yourselves primarily as authors or as educators?

Magic: Yes, we are authors, and we are very happy our book was so well received, but we really think of ourselves as educators. Engaging with children by reading our book to them is a great way to introduce them to the idea that we are all responsible for taking care of the earth.

Chanti: That educator mindset really comes through in your work! When it comes to writing children’s books, do you find yourselves following traditional publishing conventions, or do you prefer to forge your own path?

Magic: As entrepreneurs, we color outside of the lines. We are always looking for ways to connect with children and seek out opportunities to get our message out to them as well as the community at large. We see our children’s books as a way to teach children through a fun story where they can identify with the characters and see themselves as recyclers. Those kids then influence the behavior of their friends and family, resulting in even more lifelong recyclers. Because of this, The Girl Who Recycled 1 Million Cans far outweighs any public service announcement or political campaign we could have offered, and it has quickly become the catalyst for change.

Chanti: How do you come up with your ideas for a story that is meant to grab the attention of young children?

Magic: Our work in protecting the environment provides plenty of opportunities to be inspired. We work with people who tell us the stories of what they see and hear about the recycling efforts in their community and the results of those efforts. Our own children also provide great inspiration for our stories. Their inquisitive nature often presents the questions we aim to answer in our books.

Chanti: Drawing from real-world experiences and your own children’s curiosity—that’s brilliant! Writing for children requires such a specific skill set. How do you continue developing and refining your craft?

Magic: Because our books are aimed at educating children, we look for opportunities to explain difficult concepts in a way that children will understand. This helps to think about our word choice and sentence length when we’re writing.

Chanti:That focus on accessibility is so important. Since you work as a collaborative team how do you organize your writing process? Do you have a structured approach, or is it more organic?

Magic: Because we work as a team, we have created a repeatable process that we follow for each title, passing the book between us as we add new pages and, eventually, we end up with a story that we can edit to make sure it flows well, makes sense, and delivers a clear message. Having said that, we all generally let the process flow rather than forcing it to happen as we feel that is the best way to create a readable book that kids will enjoy. If we feel stuck we turn to nature to break through writers block—Brad Rudover goes for a walk in the forest and Scuba Jess goes for a dive (of course!)

Chanti:I love how you each have your own way of reconnecting with nature when you need inspiration! Every writing team has their influences. Can you share some of the authors who have shaped your approach to children’s literature?

Magic: Brad Rudover loves Dr. Seuss’s creative genius, and his bright, active characters. They are the perfect model to create the bright, active characters who love recycling in our books. Shaziya M Jaffer and Scuba Jess are influenced by Dr. Seuss’s wife, Helen Palmer, who wrote A Fish Out of Water. To learn more about the craft of writing a great children’s book, we turn to Dr. Seuss’s famous book, Green Eggs and Ham, and to learn about the business of writing we turn to From Good to Great by Jim Collins.

Chanti:Dr. Seuss is such a perfect influence for what you’re doing! Your mission clearly extends far beyond just writing books. How has becoming published authors affected your involvement in your community?

Magic: Our whole mission revolves around community engagement, beginning with children. As we’ve dived deeper into spreading the word about recycling, we’ve found ourselves focusing more on philanthropy and opening doors to engagment with the greater environmental movement.

Chanti:That community focus is wonderful to see. What specific things are you doing to promote literacy in your region?

Magic: We donate our books to elementary schools that need more recycling education in our region. Shaziya M. Jaffer always says, “Our perfect readers are children who want to make the planet a better place.” And Scuba Jess relies on her experience as a diver. “I love sharing my passion for ocean conservation through underwater photography and cleanup dives, and I bring these experiences to students by visiting classrooms, hosting Zoom calls and reading our books at libraries across Washington state. My goal is to inspire kids with fun and easy ways they can help protect our oceans. With over 10 years of diving and 1,465 dives, I’ve seen firsthand how much our amazing sea creatures in Puget Sound and beyond need our help. If there’s one thing I can ask of anyone reading this: please pick up litter when you see it, never toss cigarette butts on the ground and always recycle your aluminum cans—every action makes a difference!”

Chanti:That hands-on approach is incredible, and Scuba Jess, your diving experience adds such authenticity to your environmental message! As we wrap up, what exciting projects is the Recycling is Like Magic team working on now? Are there more books in the pipeline?

Magic: We are always looking for ways to enact behavioral change for the betterment of society, so we work to create many educational and actionable avenues into the recycling world. We’ve followed up The Girl Who Recycled 1 Million Cans with another book called, A Recycling Adventure to the Scrap Yard, and we have two more children’s books in mind for our four-book metal recycling series. The third book is being written now and will be called A Recycling Adventure to the Steel Mill. It focuses on the steel melting process after Daddy’s truck was shredded at the scrapyard, and we see what it will be turned into next.

Our “Two Million Can Recycling Contest” is also a big project, with a goal to double contest participation by engaging with approximately 50 schools. It will feature more incentives for participating students, including a $500 bonus for collecting 150,000 cans, pizza parties, and more!

“Our goal is to eliminate metal from the waste stream within the next 30 years by providing recycling education to children.

Given the success of our Million Cans Recycling Contest, Beverage Can Industry Champions sponsored by leading organizations driving sustainable aluminm packaging, we can say with confidence that our book is helping increase recycling rates. we can say with certainty our book is the solution to increasing the recycling rate.

Kids gamify collecting cans which leads to immediate impact, but more importantly, it creates long-term behavioral change. They quickly learn that throwing cans (or any metal) into the trash is an unacceptable because those materials are recyclable and valuable.” – Brad Rudover, Recycling is Like Magic!

With the launch of our nonprofit, The Recycling Society, anyone who supports our mission can now donate or get involved. Learn more at: recyclingsociety.org

August 12, 2025
PORSCHE GOES HIKING by Emaan, Ehsen, & Faisal Mirza – Children’s Books, Children’s Educational Stories, Children’s Nature Stories

Porsche Goes Hiking by Emaan, Ehsen, & Faisal Mirza teaches young readers to be prepared and responsible as they follow along on Porsche’s whimsical jaunt.

With a map of the Santa Cruz Mountains hiking trails in hand, Porsche plans an exploration of a path she’s never walked before. She imagines the wonders and treasures she could find, while hopping around her house to gather all of her hiking supplies.

Porsche realizes how much clutter she’s left from room to room but uses her planner notebook to keep cleaning in mind while she focuses on the hike. With spirits high, she sets off on her bike to the trailhead.

After a few hours enjoying the beauty of nature, Porsche notices that the sun set earlier than she expected. Although she’s worried walking this unfamiliar trail in the dark, Porsche relies on her responsible preparation—and the help of a wise and friendly owl—to make it home.

Throughout Porsche Goes Hiking, Porsche shows young readers how to plan carefully, keep their things clean, and listen to the wisdom of others.

Each chapter ends with five questions on the lessons Porsche learned, prompting kids to consider how they can follow her example. While a number of scenes feel repetitive in how they teach the same lesson, the book’s central message strikes a solid balance between childlike playfulness and responsibility.

Porsche’s whimsical perspective colors the story.

Porsche plays with inanimate objects, speaking to the world around her and imagining what curiosities it might show her next.

The prose’s floaty style, with its abundance of similes, metaphors, and general flowery language, might prove difficult for young readers to latch on to. However, Porsche herself carries a bright energy throughout the book. Her nighttime guide, the grand owl Tau, buoys the final few chapters with his comedic antics and boastful attitude.

Inspired by a real-life love for sharing the natural world, Porsche Goes Hiking teaches kids how to enjoy parks and trails safely.

This book used generative AI for copyediting and to produce the cover image.

August 4, 2025
The 2024 Series First Place Round Up

The Series Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in Genre Fiction (and now Non-Fiction). The Grand Prize Winner, Tim Facciola’s Series, A Vengeful Realm will be promoted for years to come in our annual Hall of Fame article, as well as be featured on the Series contest page year ’round!

The best part about being a Chanticleer Int’l Book Award Winner is the love and attention you get all year ‘round!

While these Award Winning Series are all Multi-book sagas, we are going to showcase the most important part of a Series. The beginning. Having a good start makes it memorable. The first book is the foundation, laying the first stitches into what later becomes a whole tapestry, telling their story.

Join us in celebrating the 2024 first in the series of the First Place Series Winners!

Karen Inglis – The Secret Lake

When Stella and her younger brother, Tom, move to their new London home, they become mystified by the disappearances of Harry, their elderly neighbor’s small dog. Where does he go? And why does he keep reappearing wet-through?

Their quest to solve the riddle over the summer holidays leads to a boat buried under a grassy mound, and a tunnel that takes them to a secret lake.

Who is the boy rowing towards them who looks so terrified? And whose are those children’s voices carried on the wind from beyond the woods?

Stella and Tom soon discover that they have travelled back in time to their home and its gardens almost 100 years earlier. Here they make both friends and enemies, and uncover startling connections between the past and present.

Find it Locally and on Amazon!

Glen Dahlgren – The Child of Chaos

Nothing can stop the gods of Order… except a roll of the dice.

The Longing gnaws at young Galen, an irresistible force dragging him toward an ancient vault where Chaos slumbers. He doesn’t crave power, just an escape from Order’s suffocating grip and the twisted nightmares that haunt his sleep. But visions flicker in his mind, painting a world devoured by the very chaos he’s compelled to unleash.

He’s not alone in this desperate pilgrimage. Another soul thrums with the same Longing, fueled by ambition and vengeance. The race to the vault is a collision course, a clash of desperation and darkness.

Now, Galen stands at the precipice: trust his wild imagination, a double-edged sword that’s always landed him in trouble, or unleash the torrent that threatens to drown the world… unless, somehow, he can bend the very fabric of chance with a throw of his ancient, wood-carved dice.

Find it Locally and on Amazon!

Sandra Wagner-Wright – Ambition, Arrogance and Pride

In 18th Century Salem, Massachusetts, the ambitious Derby and Crowninshield families vie for power amid a shifting social and political landscape.

After the heartbreaking loss of their first child, Mary Hodges Derby and her husband Captain Richard Derby are blessed with a healthy son named Richard who is soon followed by four brothers and three sisters. All but one of the Derby boys follow their father to sea to secure their fortunes from America’s lucrative but treacherous trade routes to the West Indies and beyond.

When Captain Derby’s oldest son comes of age, he decides to retire from the sea and establish a merchant house. Two of Richard’s brothers follow him as captains of their own ships, but Captain Derby keeps his son Hasket ashore to manage the family’s growing trade network.

George Crowninshield, the youngest of four brothers, sails for the Derby family enterprise and ultimately marries Hasket’s sister Mary. Meanwhile, George’s sister Eliza makes a match with Hasket Derby.

Though the two families are united by wedlock, rivalries, political turmoil, and questionable choices reveal the complex consequences of unchecked ambition, arrogance, and pride.

Set during a pivotal time in Salem’s history when Americans broke their colonial ties with Great Britain, this gripping work of historical fiction explores the depth of human relationships through nuanced characters and vivid historical details. Recipes from the era bring the sights and flavors of 18th century Salem to life, while a glossary illuminates the context of the times.

From Chanticleer:

Sandra Wagner-Wright’s historical novel, Ambition, Arrogance and Pride, chronicles the rise of some of Salem, Massachusetts’s founding families, through the revolutionary war and beyond as they make their fortunes in far-off ports.

Wagner-Wright tells this story through several points of view, but it is her strong female characters who carry this story, women like Mary Derby, whose courtship and marriage to George Crowninshield begins this saga.

We follow Mary as she brings new life into the world while her husband is out at sea as captain of a merchant vessel. Wagner-Wright has done her research, making real the perils of pregnancy and childbirth in the 1700s. In keeping with the time and the rate of infant mortality, we suffer with Mary each time she loses a precious child.

Men such as Captain Richard Derby and George Crowninshield travel the sea in search of foreign ports, while women like Mary, Lydia, and Eliza hold their families together in this intricate and expertly crafted story.

Read More Here

Find it Locally and on Amazon!

Taryn R. Hutchison – One Degree of Freedom

Fifteen-year-old Adriana Nicu lives in the sheltered world of Bucharest, Romania, in the year 1987. Under the rule of Communist president Nicolae Ceaușescu, citizens of Bucharest live with the eyes and ears of the government ever present. Adriana’s future, which will involve becoming an engineer, is locked in against her will.

During a visit to her aunt’s apartment, Adriana walks through a wardrobe into a hidden room filled with stacks of forbidden novels. Stories bring light into the darkest of circumstances as her family begins to unravel and her life strangely parallels those of her novels’ heroines. Adriana’s childhood loyalties and her belief that God doesn’t exist are called into question as her circumstances force her to rethink things she once believed were certain.

Find it Locally and on Amazon!

Kari Bovee – The Pryce of Conceit

Also a Chanticleer 2024 Mystery & Mayhem First Place Winner!

Murder takes center stage!

1885. Arabella Pryce is struggling with heartbreak. In keeping with her late husband’s final wishes, she must leave behind her dazzling celebrity and breathe new life into their namesake hotel in Colorado.

But when a beloved town beauty is found dead, all eyes—and suspicion—turn to her.

With blood-stained evidence, handsome sheriffs, and libelous journalists turning her investigation into a dangerous drama, this determined thespian fears she’s missed her cue for survival.

Amid whispered betrayals and shadowed secrets, a mischievous ghost guides her through a maze of perilous clues, drawing her ever closer to a truth more shocking than the lies surrounding her.

Can she unmask the true killer and clear her name before her reputation is ruined forever?

DiscoverThe Pryce of Conceit, the riveting first installment in The Pryce of Murder historical cozy mystery series, and witness a performance where murder is the main act!

Find it Locally and on Amazon!

J.L. Oakley – The Jøssing Affair

Chanticleers 2016 Goethe Grand Prize Winner!

British-trained Norwegian intelligence agent, Tore Haugland, is a jøssing—a patriot—sent to a fishing village on Norway’s west coast to set up a line to receive weapons and agents from England via the “Shetland Bus.” Posing as a deaf fisherman, his mission is complicated when he falls in love with Anna Fromme, a German widow. Accused of betraying her husband, she has a young daughter and secrets of her own. Although the Allies have liberated France, the most zealous Nazis hang on in Norway, sending out agents to disembowel resistance groups. If Haugland fails, it could cost him his life and the lives of the fishermen who have joined him. When Haugland is betrayed and left for dead, he will have to find the one who betrayed him and destroyed his network. He will also have to prove that the one he loves was not the informer. In wartime love and trust are not always compatible.

From Chanticleer:

At a time when true identities are carefully protected and information can get you killed, heroes emerge to fight the evils of Nazi-occupied Norway in J.L. Oakley’s highly suspenseful and beautifully penned historical fiction novel,The Jøssing Affair.

In a quiet Norwegian fishing village during the Nazi occupation, risk lurks everywhere. Most residents are patriotic members of the resistance, “jøssings,” but there are “quislings,” too. Those who collaborate with the Germans and tout the Nazi propaganda of Nordic brotherhood between the nations. Mistaking the two is a matter of life and death.

At the heart of the narrative is Jens Hansen who is an exceedingly mild-mannered handyman and a deaf-mute. Jens helps his friend Kjell on this fishing boat but mostly keeps to himself, communicating with paper and pencil when asked a question.

But Jens has a secret. His real identity is that of Tore Haugland, a man who will risk his life repeatedly as a British-trained member of the resistance. He and Kjell coordinate the transport of weapons and agents via the “Shetland bus,” a fleet of small fishing boats and a few American submarine chasers, that make excursions from the coast of Norway to the Scottish Shetland Islands.

Read More Here

Find it Locally and on Amazon!

Ralph R. “Rick” Steinke – Major Jake Fortina and the Tier One Threat

At the behest of rogue Iranian government officials, two terrorists break into the grave of an American veterans cemetery in the Suresnes suburb of Paris. What they take from that grave could lead to the deaths of millions of Israeli and US citizens, as well as Jews around the world. US Army Major Jake Fortina, a military attaché stationed at the US Embassy in Paris, is called upon by the FBI and French and Italian law enforcement and intelligence officials to help defeat Iran’s nefarious plan. Beginning in Paris, this international drama leads readers from Afghanistan to England, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Turkey, and the United States in the scramble to save the world from a terror unknown since the deadly Spanish flu outbreak of 1918.

From Chanticleer:

Why would Iranian terrorists break into a Paris cemetery and steal the bones of an American Jewish WWI veteran? The answer lies in the deadly parallel history of WWI and the Spanish flu, but it’s a mystery that Jake Fortina will have to uncover in Ralph R. “Rick” Steinke’s thriller, Major Jake Fortina and the Tier One Threat.

During WWI, the Spanish Flu killed millions of people—some estimates as high as 100 million—but a Jewish nurse tossed off the flu like a cold and continued to serve her country. Iran’s leaders believe the DNA in her bones will let them develop a virus that could kill Americans and Israelis by the millions while simultaneously developing immunity for Iran’s own population.

This threat drives the story as it reaches deep into multiple countries and their governments, who collectively try to figure out the importance of the bones theft and, ultimately, what to do about it.

Read More Here

Find it Locally and on Amazon!

Mike Murphey – Tales of Physics, Lust and Greed

In the mid-21st century, time travel becomes a reality through a top-secret government-corporate initiative. Enter Marshall Grissom: socially awkward, perpetually overlooked, and unexpectedly thrust into the heart of this groundbreaking project.
Joined by the alluring and mischievous Sheila Schuler and the dangerous industrial spy Marta Hamilton, Marshall embarks on a journey that challenges everything they thought they knew about time and causality. As evidence mounts that the past may be irreversible, corporate investors demand proof the past can be manipulated—or threaten to pull the plug.

The unlikely trio is sent back to Marshall’s high school days with a seemingly simple mission: save the life of his unrequited love. But in a world where powerful corporations will stop at nothing to protect their interests, the travelers find themselves in a deadly game of cat and mouse. With time running out and lives on the line, Marshall and his companions must navigate the treacherous waters of temporal manipulation, corporate greed, and their own conflicting motivations. Can they change the past without destroying their future?

Find it Locally and on Amazon!

Rose Prendeville – Mistress Mackintosh and the Shaw Wretch

Also a Chanticleer 2023 Chatelaine First Place Winner!

In 1725, a secret convent has been established on the Aberdeenshire coast.

Jory Mackintosh is more excited by healing herbs than husbands or holy prayers. She craves freedom—and a chance to sneak into medical school. Instead, on the eve of her escape, she becomes an unwilling pawn in her family’s schemes with a rival clan.

Finlay Shaw, the disgraced younger brother of the laird, has spent ten long years atoning for his past failures, but nothing can wash away the stain of fratricide. When the clans order him to escort Jory to her new life as a nun, thus securing an alliance with the freshly formed Black Watch, it’s his last chance for redemption. Too bad for Finn, Jory has no intention of following orders.

Trapped on the road together, often with only one bed between them, the two butt heads and match wits, forced to acknowledge the dark shadows that have haunted them both for years. Can they learn to trust each other, and themselves, to fly in the face of their families’ wishes, or will they choose the solitary futures they always believed they deserve in this unorthodox runaway bride story?

Find it Locally and on Amazon!

Thank you for joining us to celebrate the 2024 Series First Place Winners!

Your book can join the Tiers of Achievement, but only if you submit to the Chanticleer Int’l Book Awards!

Got a great Fiction Book? The 2025 Series Book Awards are open through the end of July!

Submit to the Series Awards Today!

July 2, 2025
VALLEY Of The GIANT SNAKES: Adventure Ace Book One by Mac Bell, Illustrated by Andrew Vanderbilt – Children’s Books, Action & Adventure, Picture Books

After crash-landing his jet, young Ace must embark on an epic adventure through the treacherous Valley of Giant Snakes in this fun tale about imagination by Mac Bell and illustrated by Andrew Vanderbilt.

Valley of the Giant Snakes, the first installment of the Adventure Ace series, takes readers journeying with Ace through a vast and fantastical wilderness.

Ace encounters a humongous moth gliding overhead, casting an ominous shadow on this unknown world. He weaves his way through a forest of colossal mushrooms as he walks to a mountain in the distance.

A pair of mysterious eyes glow inside a tunnel, and a giant snake blocks Ace’s path when he backs away. Ace has only his ingenuity to make it past the beast.

Andy Vanderbilt’s illustrations hearken back to the adventure cartoons of the 70s and 80s, with a fresh look for the modern day.

Just as you can see the influence of cartoons like Jonny Quest in the story’s action, you can see it in the strong color blocking and dynamic linework.

Valley of the Giant Snakes delivers its action with a lightness and sense of adventure perfectly fit for young children.

Adventure Ace will take 5-8 year olds through a land as exciting as it is imaginative. Young readers will enjoy challenging themselves with a few new words, and those who aren’t reading yet will find themselves captivated by the images as they listen to the story.

Just like any great adventure, the story finishes with a surprising twist!

Valley of the Giant Snakes by Mac Bell, illustrated by Andrew Vanderbilt, is a promising opener for the Adventure Ace series. Exciting, fearless, and always using his imagination, Ace encourages his young fans to come up with adventures of their own.

June 11, 2025
Happy Birthday, Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of The Little House on the Prairie series!

For many generations of children, their first introduction into the world of the Western genre is through The Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Born in the “Big Woods” of Wisconsin, Laura spent her youth traveling across the great American prairie in a covered wagon. She watched as her father was the first to break ground on their Kansas farm and followed the construction of a railroad across the Dakotas. Laura lived an iconic American life, and lucky for us, she created stories from those memories and gave us a beloved children’s series.

Laura Ingalls was born on February 7, 1867. Today, that would make her 158 years old. Our own Dena Weigel was one of the children influenced and inspired by Ingalls, and we are delighted to have her share what she learned about the Western genre from Ingalls’ work. So cozy up around the fire and join us as Dena takes us back in time to see the world as it once was when a child crossed the country in the back of a covered wagon.

Dramatic Surroundings

For me, the most meaningful part of Laura’s writing comes through in her talent for setting the stage. Colorful sunsets, the smell of an approaching storm, or the screech of a panther as it pursues it’s prey—Laura had a special talent for describing her surroundings. Likely, that comes from years of “being the eyes” for her blind sister, Mary.

Perfect for young readers, she wrote simple sentences that didn’t condescend, and sprinkled them with slightly uncommon, but more specific, words for them to learn. It wasn’t just a pink sky; it was a salmon-colored streak across a lavender sky. For a young reader and future writer, this illustrated that word choice is impactful in both meaning and substance. It adds to the meaning of the sentence, but it also adds to the feeling the sentence provokes in the reader.

The Ingalls Family (left to right): Caroline, Grace, Laura, Charles, Carrie and Mary

Colorful Characters

The cast of characters in Laura’s stories follow the traditional hallmarks for the Western genre, enhanced by the unique voice of the protagonist.

Until this point, most imagery for the Wild West featured cowboys, gunslingers, and bounty hunters, but in the Little House series it is Laura, a girl the age of four to around eighteen throughout the series, who offers a new voice and a new perspective. That’s just the start of what makes her Little House books so special.

Given the time period, most Westerns have limited space for female characters. Teachers, wives, sex workers, and the stray “wild” woman are about all the fairer sex can claim in this genre that’s frozen in time. Laura offers something new. The main protagonist is a spunky girl with complex thoughts and a yearning for adventure. Through her experience we get a new perspective in this very familiar genre.

Ingalls rethought more than just women on the page. Other more typical Western characters set the stage for interesting challenges and interactions. Settlers, Native Americans, and townspeople bring a variety of conflict, wants, and needs that make Westerns so relatable more than a century after the era.

The differences in society’s understanding of prejudices do stand out at times in Laura’s books, and there is much worthwhile commentary on her writing. While they undeniably exist, during Laura’s day they were, sadly, common. She wrote about these controversial moments in a way that doesn’t question it, but she does present the separation of cultures that were a part of our country’s commonly accepted ethics at the time.

Exciting Plotlines

Raging rivers, fierce tornados, and roving bandits all show up in the Little House series. Always miles from the civilized world, there is plenty of opportunity to up the ante with intense plotlines. But there’s also the gentle spirit of a loving family to be a counter balance to the sudden, jarring, dangerous experiences each book brings to the table.

Reading them as a child, I often missed the level of danger Laura and her family experienced, but as an adult I understand the seriousness of the glances her parents shared when they talked of a week long blizzard or their rush to put out a prairie fire. The family was nearly murdered, almost starved to death, and much worse during their nomadic years, and Laura handles all these events with the soft truth a child requires.

Action! Action! Action!

When you think of Westerns, you think action. In the saddle, in the saloon, and on the farm. While Laura doesn’t take us into the saloon, she does provide us with the action you’d expect from a Western. Her father stands up against an angry mob while working as a railroad paymaster. A bully gets what she deserves when Laura drives her into a leech infested creek. And we see Laura racing at breakneck speed on a bareback horse across the open prairie. If your child likes the freedom you’d expect in the Wild West, Laura’s stories are a great choice. She’s bold, she’s adventurous, and she represents a childhood that both boys and girls will be excited to read about.

Just like Laura, I grew up on the Kansas prairie and the Little House series often captured many of the things I experienced there. The sound of a meadowlark in the morning, cooking over campfires, and watching as a sunset lights up the evening sky. For young readers, the Little House series continues to open the door to the beautiful landscapes, wily characters, and amazing adventures that fans of the Western genre yearn for as they ride off into the sunset.

Happy birthday, Laura Ingalls Wilder!

Thank you for introducing me to the beautiful, untamed world of Western literature.

Are you looking for a reading adventure for your children? We encourage you to dig into stories written by these Chanticleer authors.

Exostar
Rae Knightly
Grand Prize Winner of the CIBA Gertrude Warner award

It has been said that “the Golden Age of Science Fiction is twelve.” Rae Knightly’s Sci-Fi adventure, Exostar, embodies this childlike sense of wonder that the best of the genre evokes in its readers.

Twelve-year-old child-robot Trinket takes off on a rocketing spaceship straight towards danger and excitement, with the mostly able assistance of the blue-furred spy and saboteur Woolver Talandrin. Trinket is searching for identity—as all the best young science fiction protagonists do. Woolver is trying to bring down an evil empire—as all the other best science fiction protagonists do.

Together they’ve been thrust into the kind of epic tale that is guaranteed to keep young readers on the edge of their seats—including the twelve-year-old that lurks inside every science fiction fan.

Read more here!

The Ghost in the Garden
Alisse Lee Goldenberg

In Alisse Goldberg’s engaging young adult mystery, The Ghost in the Garden, a curious 11-year-old must face the challenges of moving to a new city, losing old friends, making new ones, and encountering historic specters in her new home.

Sophie Madison seems none too happy about her recent move from the bustling city of Calgary, Ablerta to the smaller, quieter landscape of Stratford, Ontario. But upon arrival with her parents, she begins noticing the charm of the place, appearing like a step back in time. Their new house in particular catches her interest, with its tall turret topped by stained glass window panes where Sophie’s bedroom will be. In addition, the wild beauty of the backyard garden draws her in.

Soon, a mysterious blonde-headed girl named Tabitha appears in the garden.

Read more here!

Tommy Rocket and the Goober Patrol
Thomas R. Kuhn

Tommy Rocket and the Goober Patrolby Thomas R. Kuhn follows Nate, a young boy growing up in the 1970s, whose friendship with the kid genius robot builder, Tommy Rocket, leads him into mysterious adventures.

Tommy’s father invented the Prometheus chip that gives sentience to robots, and from a young age Tommy started creating a gang of robots called the Goober Patrol. Eccentric and wheelchair-bound, Tommy prefers to tinker with his robots at home. But he befriends Nate after he saves Tommy from bullies.

When Tommy’s aptly named ‘Monster-bot’ gets loose, Nate is tasked with finding and securing the rogue bot before anyone finds out. But the two boys soon find out there is more at work than one missing robot. There’s another tinkerer in town and they’re building their own special group of robots—which look just like one of Tommy’s creations. Nate and Tommy have to find out who has gotten their hands on the Prometheus chip before it’s too late.

Read more here!

Mayday
Sue C. Dugan

In Sue C. Dugan’s middle grade adventure,Mayday: Land, Sea, and Air Series Book 2,thirteen-year-old Jessie and her father, Adam, take an unexpected detour when their plane crashes on a secluded island.

On their final vacation before Adam begins chemotherapy for thyroid cancer, Jessie and her father take off in their Cessna aircraft over the boundless, azure Atlantic Ocean. Jessie’s anxiety about her father’s health is on high-alert during the trip, especially when she remembers her mother’s cancerous death.

Twenty minutes into their flight, the sky grows gloomy, and the wind picks up speed from all sides.

Read more here!

If you’d like to loose yourself in tales of the Old West, we suggest these Chanticleer authors.

A Grave Every Mile, Book One of the Ghosts Along the Oregon Trail
David Fitz-Gerald
Grand Prize Winner of the CIBA Series award

Each day’s trumpet blasts the predawn quiet of the sleeping wagon train, demanding that its migrating families face what’s ahead, whether incredible scenery or mortal danger, in David Fitz-Gerald’sA Grave Every Mile.

This beautifully told story mixes adventure, survival, community, and history, all shown through the eyes of Dorcas, a feisty mother of four. She’s dreamed of hitting the trail to the storied West for so long, but much about this trip and their destination remains unknown.

Another wagon travels alongside hers. Who are they? Will they remain strangers, or become friends? Now that Dorcas stands with her family at the trail’s starting point and on the brink of changing their lives forever, a tremor of doubt surfaces about what lies ahead. Is her family strong enough to face their future? Will it be everything she and her husband hoped for? That future is 720,000 turns of the wagon wheels away, and there may beA Grave Every Mile. It all starts with that first pull by the team of oxen.

Read more here!

Guarded Hearts
T.K. Conklin
Grand Prize Winner of the CIBA Laramie award

Guarded Hearts by T K Conklin is a sensual romance in the Wild West, with all the passion and excitement natural to the setting.

Sparks fly between a man with an outlaw past and a woman with a terrifying gift to heal or harm. Strykes is a man haunted both by a violent childhood and his time in an outlaw gang. But he has found a place in Rimrock, where he met LaRisa, an auburn-haired woman whom the townspeople have labeled a “witch” due to her healing herbs and rumors of her “powers”.

LaRisa has kept her distance from people, afraid of her gift of healing touch that can turn dangerous, even deadly. But, when she comes to town to deliver her medicinal herbs, she makes her way to the livery with tasks for Strykes such as shoeing her horse or fixing a spring in her wagon. He is only too happy to oblige the auburn-haired beauty. The attraction between them is instantaneous, yet they both are hesitant to act on it, fearing they would hurt the other– he from his violent past, and she from her “witch” power.

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February 7, 2025