Category: Uncategorized
Middle Grade Ninja: 7 Questions For: Author Lois Lowry
Lois Lowry was born in Hawaii and grew up in New York, Pennsylvania, and Japan. After several years at Brown University, she turned to her family and to writing. She is the author of more than thirty books for young adults, including the popular Anastasia Krupnik series. She has received countless honors, among them the […]
Middle Grade Ninja: 7 Questions For: Author Sheila Kelly Welch
Sheila Kelly Welch is the author of Waiting to Forget. Click here to read my review. Sheila Kelly Welch began writing and drawing in elementary school. Her black crayon was always worn to a nub from sketching horses with long manes and sweeping tails. Now she writes and illustrates for children of all ages. Her […]
Middle Grade Ninja: A Writer’s Best Feeling
What a fine day it is, Esteemed Reader. As I write this, the world outside is a frozen landscape of things quiet and dead. I have a pile of snotty tissues beside me and I’m hacking my head off every few moments. My vision is blurred, I have no strength, and my brain is as […]
Middle Grade Ninja: An Afterword for PIZZA DELIVERY
WARNING: This ADULT novelette is mean and nasty and intended for a mature audience. It is absolutely not appropriate for younger readers. It is a gruesome, repugnant tale sure to warp young minds and it contains EXTREMELY COARSE LANGUAGE. Seriously. The following is an afterword for Pizza Delivery, but I’m not going to spoil the story and I’m mostly […]
Middle Grade Ninja: Book Review: BANNEKER BONES AND THE GIANT ROBOT BEES by Rob Kent
First Paragraph(s): IN SOME WAYS, SCHOOL IS better than prison. Not many, but some. Like prison, school is all about routine. At 5:30 each morning, Ellicott Skullworth’s mother woke him. At 6:30 he rode the school bus. At 7:00 the first bell rang and class began, recess was at 9:30, lunch was at 12:30, […]
Middle Grade Ninja: Book of the Week: CRACKED UP TO BE by Courtney Summers
Note: This week’s book is actually YA and filled with adult language and adult content. It is absolutely not appropriate for younger readers and adults should view it as the equivalent of an ‘R’ rated movie. I am gaga, over the moon crazy about a book by a debut author. It’s just so very, very […]
Middle Grade Ninja: Book Review: THE FOURTH STALL by Chris Rylander
First Paragraph(s): You need something? I can get it for you. You have a problem? I can solve it. That’s why they come to me. By “they” I mean every kid in the school. First graders up to eighth graders. Everyone comes to me for help, and most of the time I’m happy to provide it. […]
Middle Grade Ninja: Book of the Week: JAMES AND THE GIANT PEACH by Roald Dahl
It’s to be another Roald Dahl classic this week, Esteemed Reader. Whoo hoo! As you know, Roald Dahl is my favorite author and James and the Giant Peach is one of my all-time favorite stories. It’s the sort of book that will convince even the Mike TV’s of the world to pause their video games […]
Middle Grade Ninja: Book Review: MOLLY FYDE AND THE PARSONA RESCUE by Hugh Howey
WARNING: This book is actually YA and contains some adult language and content. I wouldn’t go so far as to call it an ‘R,’ but maybe a strong ‘PG,’ if not edging toward ‘PG-13.’ First Paragraph(s): Molly floated in the vacuum of space with no helmet on—with no protection at all. In the distance, a starship […]
Middle Grade Ninja: Book of the Week: THE ROTTEN ADVENTURES OF ZACHARY RUTHLESS by Allan Woodrow
Do you like winning free stuff, Esteemed Reader? You don’t? Oh. Awkward. Well… why don’t I offer you something for free anyway and you could just pretend you like free stuff. Sound like a plan? The free thing I’m offering is your very own copy of The Rotten Adventures of Zachary Ruthless. And it’s an […]