June NaBloPoMo Special Feature - Heroes

The Book Connection is once again participating in National Blog Posting Month. Blogging every day of the month can be challenging. Actually, it's only the weekends that are challenging because I have so much going on that sitting down at the computer is not easy to do.


This month's theme is HEROES. My favorite hero--as in superhero--has always been Wonder Woman. She's beautiful, strong, and smart. Gee, why couldn't have God made me like that? :) Wonder Woman also has some neat gadgets: a lasso that forces anyone it captures to tell the truth, bracelets that deflect bullets, a crown that doubles as a bommerang, and that cool invisible jet.

But, we talk books here, so unless we are talking comic books Wonder Woman really doesn't have a place. I do, however, have a few literary heroes that I would like to feature this month.

I've never been a huge fan of the classics. [GASP!] Honestly, I didn't think The Great Gatsby was all that great; Ivanhoe could have remained buried in his own time period and The Lord of the Flies gave me nightmares.

Proving once again that my heart and mind belongs to that of a child, most of my literary heroes wrote for young people. That doesn't mean I always appreciated them when I was a child; and actually, the first three authors I will feature this month wrote books I could barely sit still to read a chapter of until I was in my early twenties.

Until Harry Potter came along--I haven't read any of these books [another GASP!]--a woman who grew up on the untamed prairie had written some of the most beloved books in all of children's literature.


Laura Ingalls Wilder was an elderly woman by the time she sat down to write the first book in her now classic Little House series, Little House in the Big Woods. Had it not been for Rose Wilder Lane asking Mama Bess to put her childhood memories down on paper, the field of children's literature may never have known much about Laura Ingalls Wilder.

After losing their investments in the Stock Market Crash of 1929, and considering that so many of her family members including Ma, Mary, and her beloved Pa had passed on, Laura sat down to write the story of living in the Big Woods of Wisconsin. According to Donald Zochert's Laura, in 1931 when editor Virginia Kirkus from Harper's read the manuscript on a train ride home to Connecticut, she was so engrossed in the material she missed her station. She knew she held in her hands "the book that no depression could stop."

Harper published Little House in the Big Woods the following year and Laura Ingalls Wilder became an overnight success. The collaboration between Laura Ingalls Wilder and Rose Wilder Lane churned out seven additional titles: Farmer Boy (1932), Little House on the Prairie (1935), On The Banks of Plum Creek (1937), By the Shores of Silver Lake (1939), The Long Winter (1940), Little Town on the Prairie (1941), and These Happy Golden Years (1943). Roger Lea MacBride (Rose's heir) discovered Laura's final manuscript with Rose's belongings after her death in 1968. This manuscript became known as The First Four Years when it was published by HarperCollins in 1971.

A love of Laura's books and a desire to learn more about the girl who grew up on the prairie, survived the Hard Winter, married Almanzo James Wilder and left her family behind to start over in the Land of the Big Red Apple (Mansfield, MO), led fans flocking to the sites mentioned in her books. Many of the Little House sites from Laura's books have been turned into historical sites that continue to attract fans every year.

In 1954, the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award was created by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association. This bronze medal honors an author or illustrator whose books, published in the United States, have made, over a period of years, a substantial and lasting contribution to literature for children.

In September of 1974, Michael Landon and Ed Friendly brought the Little House books to life in a new way. With Landon starring as Charles (Pa) Ingalls, Little House on the Prairie ran until 1983 and helped catapult Melissa Gilbert, who played Laura Ingalls Wilder, to small screen stardom.

Other televised productions of Laura's life would come in 2000 and 2002 with Beyond the Prairie: The True Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder and Beyond the Prairie, Part 2: The True Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder, with Meredith Monroe (Andie McPhee, Dawson's Creek) playing Laura. Ed Friendly would team up with ABC/Disney in 2005 to create a Little House on the Prairie mini-series, with the hopes that it would be picked up by a network for a regular series. Unfortunately that didn't happen, but the actors who portrayed Charles, Caroline, Laura and Mary Ingalls have continued to be in demand in the entertainment industry.

The popularity of the Little House books also led to numerous other titles being written about or by Laura Ingalls Wilder and her family. In addition to Donald Zochert's Laura, biographers William Anderson and John E. Miller have written numerous titles about everyone's favorite pioneer.

Demand to know more about Laura's family led to Roger Lea MacBride writing a series of books about Rose. Originally published under the umbrella of Little House The Rocky Ridge Years in 1993, by the time Book 7 - On the Banks of the Bayou and Book 8 - Bachelor Girl came out in 1998 and 1999 respectively, the series was titled The Rose Years.

There have also been books written about Caroline Quiner, who would grow up to become Caroline Quiner Ingalls (Laura's Ma), and four books written by Melissa Wiley about Martha Morse Tucker, whose daughter Charlotte would end up marrying Henry Quiner, Caroline's father. Charlotte Tucker has her own series as well. Unfortunately, when HarperCollins decided to abridge the Charlotte, Martha, and Rose series, Wiley discontinued working with them, so Martha's and Charlotte's stories will remain incomplete. She has stated at her website that all the Little House prequels will go out of print.

More recently, Dean Butler, who portrayed Almanzo Wilder on Landon's Little House on the Prairie, brought Laura's book, Farmer Boy--the only book of her Little House series written about Almanzo's childhood--to life in a new direct-to-DVD documentary from Legacy Documentaries. Almanzo Wilder: Life Before Laura is available exclusively at the Wilder Homestead in Burke, NY. You can order the DVD online at www.almanzowilderfarm.com.

New readers continue to be drawn to the books that Laura wrote about her childhood. Educators still use her books to share history and to encourage a love of reading and writing in their students.

I don't know if Laura Ingalls Wilder ever realized the impact her books would make on the world; but I do know that they have foster in me a great love of the time period in which she grew up, a desire to continue learning, and they have motivated me to follow my own writing dreams.

For all that she has meant and still means to the world of children's literature, Laura Ingalls Wilder is my first featured literary hero.

March Special Feature - Giving Up, Little House Style

Some of my Little House friends are rereading the Little House books in order. These beloved children's stories by Laura Ingalls Wilder have been my favorites for years--though I admit they did not interest me as much when I was a child as they do now.

We are currently reading and discussing On the Banks of Plum Creek, the fourth in the series. The most recent dicussion centers around Chapter 12 - Christmas Horses. In this chapter, Ma talks to Laura and Mary about what Pa wants for Christmas - a set of horses to help him harrow and harvest the wheat. The girls want things too, but horses aren't on their lists.

But after talking with Ma about Santa Claus and being unselfish, the girls soberly agree that they will ask Santa for horses. And in the next chapter they are pleasantly surprised to find that while Santa Claus did bring horses, he also managed to bring a few treats for Laura, Mary, and their baby sister Carrie; so the girls have a wonderful Christmas after all.

It is this type of sacrifice for the good of the family that endears the Little House books to generations of fans. The way in which the Ingalls family always ends up pulling together and helping one another is inspiring and makes you want to have that type of family too.



When the classic televison series Little House on the Prairie aired in the 70's and early 80's, it is exactly that pull together and help each other, our love and faith will get us through type of mentality from the books that Michael Landon and the crew captured week after week. While over time the storylines were based less and less on the material from the books, the essence and tone of the television series never changed. This is what I fondly remember about watching the show on the one television our family owned.

My children live a life much better than the one I lived. Growing up we had few material possessions and our family is what would now be called dysfunctional, at best. There are few things that my children want for, though it seems their list increases by the day, and I often wonder if, as parents, we have been successful in teaching them to think of others. And then I ponder the meaning of the sacrifice made by two young girls living on the banks of Plum Creek, and hope that our family could pull together in such a crisis, where our livelihood and our future might depend on it.

The Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder might have taken place during the 1800's, but for those of us living now, they not only entertain, they teach the values that will make our world a better place.

Katie & Kimble: A Ghost Story by Linda Thieman--Book Review

Follow the adventures of a girl and a ghost in Katie & Kimble: A Ghost Story by Linda Thieman.

Katie Russell, her two-year-old brother, Toby, and her parents move into a big, empty house in the country. Well, at least they think it is empty. But after moving in, Katie begins to find objects laying around that don't belong to anyone in the family. Oh, and there's that girlish laughter Katie hears too.

Kimble, the ghost of a ten-year-old girl, appears to Katie and asks her to help find out what happened to Kimble's mother. So Katie and Kimble set out on an adventure that leads them to a graveyard, the granddaughter of the man who started the town's newspaper, and a forest, to uncover the truth.

An excellent start to a new series of chapter books for young readers. Katie & Kimble: A Ghost Story explores friendship and the loss of a loved one in such a way that the reader is immediately drawn into the story. In our interview with Linda Thieman, she mentioned the importance of dealing with grief in a realistic way. Katie & Kimble does this, as the girls discover together what happened to Kimble's mother.

There is nothing that will scare a young reader within this book's pages. The mystery is there. The suspense builds as Katie and Kimble investigate what might have happened to Kimble's mother. But at no point is the material presented in such a way that a young reader will experience fear.

Thieman did a wonderful job of portraying both Katie's youth and her growth. Katie is forced to make a decision between helping Kimble and obeying her parents. In the end, this delicate issue is handled well and addressed in an appropriate fashion.

The black and white illustrations by Kim Tharp truly bring Katie and Kimble's world to life in a special way, and one of these illustrations adorns the front cover.

A bit of mystery, a budding friendship, and some wonderful adventures await young readers in Katie & Kimble: A Ghost Story.


Title: Katie & Kimble: A Ghost Story
Author: Linda Thieman
Publisher: Pale Silver Rainplop Press
ISBN-10: 0-9794396-1-2
ISBN-13: 978-0-9794396-1-2
SRP: $5.95 (U.S.)

December Special Feature: A Little House Christmas Treasury

As a child, I fell in love with the 1970's television show Little House on the Prairie. Based upon the children's classic Little House novels by Laura Ingalls Wilder, this widely popular show told the story of the Ingalls family, pioneers who settled into a little house on Plum Creek in Walnut Grove, Minnesota.

I know many Laura Ingalls Wilder fans who refuse to watch the show because it strayed so far from the books, but because I discovered the show long before I ever read the books, both the show and the books hold a special place in my heart. Special enough that I maintain a blog titled Laura's Little Houses, which celebrates the books and the shows based upon them.

My collection of books by and about Laura Ingalls Wilder is extensive, filling an entire shelf, two deep, in one of my bookcases. I have chosen a book from this collection as the next special feature for December.



Some of the most wonderful moments in the Little House books tell us about the Christmas holidays spent with family and friends. From the Christmas in the Big Woods when Pa made the decorative shelf for the China Shepherdess to Mr. Edwards bringing presents to the Ingalls girls so Santa wouldn't have to cross the creek, from the horses that Santa brought to the Ingalls Family on Plum Creek to the boughten cap and jack-knife Almanzo received as presents in Farmer Boy, from the Christmas barrel that arrived once the trains were finally able to get through in The Long Winter to Almanzo's surprise return in These Happy Golden Years, each of these stories will tug at your heart, fill you with the joys of the season, and remind you why Laura's books attract new fans year after year.

The cover on this book is simply gorgeous. The stunning gold that contrasts so nicely against the red background, is repeated on the bound edge and Garth Williams's illustrations have been brought to life in color to add a special touch to A Little House Christmas Treasury. My husband bought this for me last year as a surprise Christmas gift and it remains one of my favorite books of the season.

Anna Mae Mysteries - The Golden Treasure by L.S. Cauldwell

Anna Mae Mysteries - The Golden Treasure


About the book: Three 'tween sneaker sleuths face the unsolved mystery of Jefferson Davis'lost gold treasure with a little bit of help from a ghostly black fist and divining rods.

Twelve-year-old Anna Mae Botts, her eight-year-old brother Malcolm, and Anna Mae's best friend Raul Garcia, face a ghostly black fist on their first day of school. It blocks their entrance into school, while dropping paper clues about Jefferson Davis' lost Civil War gold. Things get more complicated when a school fire occurs.

Mysterious events soon overtake Raul, Malcolm, and Anna Mae at school as well as at home. Rats, alphabet noodle clues, floating chalk, and phantom false-bottom wagons lead the tweens to travel the same route by car that was taken by Jefferson Davis and his gold-laden wagon train.

With divining rods given to her by her granma, computer printouts, and Spirit Journey memories that take her back to a Civil War past, Anna Mae, Raul, and Malcolm find Jefferson Davis' lost gold treasure, part of it buried on Chennault Plantation and more of it in a vacant lot on the outskirts of Warthen, Georgia.

Excerpt:

I heard someone stomping, and I thought it was Malcolm fooling around. I sniffed the air. The scent of lavender and roses invaded the hallway. I retreated into the living room and looked around. My eyes centered on the window that faced the neighbor's hedge.

The window frosted over. Letters dripped on the glass like melting icicles, ragged and blurred. A cold black hand covered my mouth. I stiffened. My eyes swung to the other side of the room. In the far corner, a mist twisted. Time stretched out endlessly. I strained my ears, but I heard nothing.

Then I saw him. An officer dressed in a gray uniform with golden buttons, high black boots and silver spurs. He glided towards me, but he faded when he reached me.

I bit the hand. It jerked away. My lips burned. I screamed, "Granma!"

I must have fainted. When I came to, Granma and Malcolm were kneeling on the floor beside me.

"What happened?" Granma asked.

"She saw another haint," Malcolm said, wiping my forehead with a damp
bathroom towel.

Granma glared. "No haints live here, oh dear Jesus. Tha' why I done made tha'
mojo. Don' eveah let me hear yo' sayin' that 'gain."

"Wha'evah," Malcolm said.

"Anna Mae, wha' happened t' yo'?"

"It started with the window. It frosted over. Written letters appeared on it."

She narrowed her eyes and clambered back to her feet. Granma pushed past the sofa and crept to the window. I saw her eyes. They widened until you could see her brown pupils. She studied the window, reached up and touched it. "The window's wet, but I reckon. I don' see any lettah spellin' words. Yo' sure 'bout tha'?"

Malcolm helped me to my feet. I trembled a bit, but kept my balance.

"Granma, look!" Malcolm pointed. On the window, letters appeared. My name,
Anna Mae, was spelled out. Malcolm ran over. He traced the letters with his fingertips.

"Cool!"

Granma looked at the window, and then swung her eyes towards me. "Wha' are
yo' goin' t' do 'bout it?"

I looked at her. "Yo' see my name?"

"Of course, chile. Wha' I want to know is wha' are yo'goin' t' do 'bout it?"

"I'm not sure. First yo' 'cuse me of lyin' and now yo'r not. Wha' gives?"

"Lost gold."

Granma said it so plainly that I thought I heard her wrong.

"Whose lost gold?"

Granma stamped her foot. "The black fist's lost gold. Child, yo' ain't been paying
'tention t' nothin' I been sayin'. Wha' are yo' goin' t' do 'bout it?"

"Why are yo' hollerin' at me? I'm doin' the best I can. This is new t' me. I need t'
think first, 'fore I act."

"Don't take too long. Someone else might figurah it out afore yo', then what will
yo' do?"

Malcolm's head darted between the two of us. He was confused. So was I. Why didn't Granma find the gold if she was so hot to trot for it? I turned and walked towards the kitchen. "Yo' still thirsty, Granma?"

"Changin' the subject? I reckon the lemonade still sounds good. Malcolm, yo' want some too?"

"Anna Mae," Malcolm screeched. "Look at it…on the living room window.

Hells bells, I thought that chicken hoodoo worked!"

"False bottoms!" was written on the window.

"Merciful heavens!" Granma shouted. Her hands flew up over her eyes and covered them.
"It's meltin'" Malcolm howled. "See? Cat prints on the glass."

Granma backed up and sat on the sofa. She stroked her throat.

"Bettah write down wha' yo see 'fore it is gone. Malcolm, run int' yo' Poppa's den and get yo' sistah a slip of paper and pencil so she can write 'em down."

Malcolm ran down the hallway. I heard Poppa's study door open and then close.
Malcolm rushed back into the room with a yellow-lined pad and a pencil stub. He licked the stub and handed both over to me. I wrote down what I saw.

I felt Granma's eyes watching me.

"Got 'em, " I said.

"Let's have our lemonade 'fore the haint comes back!"

Rules Are Rules by Julie Scandora--Book Review

Rules Are Rules is a charming tale of rules and compromise for young children and parents to enjoy.

Maya has a problem. All the adults in her life have stupid rules and she doesn't know why she should obey them. She's told by everyone that rules are rules, but why? And perhaps the worst rule of all is having to kiss Aunt Trudy when she comes to visit. With the help of Mrs. Morales and a noisy chickadee, Maya figures out a way to make everyone happy...even Aunt Trudy.

This beautifully illustrated story reaches right to the heart of children who don't always understand the need to follow the rules that adults set for them. As Maya talks over her problem with the kind, unassuming Mrs. Morales and listens to the chickadee's song, the reader experiences the change in Maya's mood and witnesses as she is led to find a solution. And this book will help children learn how to approach their parents and others about rules they believe to be unfair or that make them uncomfortable.

Kudos go out to Scandora for bringing Maya, Mrs. Morales, the chickadee, and Aunt Trudy to life with her stunning watercolor illustrations. This hardcover comes in a lovely bright purple, with Scandora's artwork in a golden yellow border adorning the front. The one curious thing I noted in the cover art is that the chickadee stands out more than Maya, prehaps highlighting the author's love of nature and the role that nature plays in the book.

Rules Are Rules by Julie Scandora is a book your youngster will ask you to read again and again.


Title: Rules Are Rules
Author: Julie Scandora
Publisher: Book Publishers Network
ISBN-10: 1-887542-64-7
ISBN-13: 978-1-887542-64-7
U.S. Price $17.95

The Squirrel, the Worm, and the Nut Trees by Jimmie Powell-Book Review

An inspiring tale of surviving against all odds is what you'll find in The Squirrel, the Worm, and the Nut Trees by Jimmie Powell.

Mr. Squirrel goes off to gather nuts so his family will have enough food for the winter, but when he gets to the nut trees he finds silk worm webs have destroyed the nuts. And worse, Mr. Worm doesn't care.

The Squirrel family makes it through that hard, long winter by rationing their food, all the while making plans for how they can outsmart Mr. Worm and be sure to have enough to eat next winter.

The Squirrel, the Worm, and the Nut Trees is a fun and easy way to show children the advantages of ingenuity. Through the Squirrel family's struggles children see how working together and creating a plan can make all the difference.

My children, ages 4 and 6, loved this book. The detailed and vibrant illustrations immediately captured their attention. They picked up on the personality traits of each character. My six-year-old called Mr. Worm sneaky and mean. And while I don't know if this was the author's intention, I think this would make a great book on how to handle bullies without resorting to violence and meanness.

The Squirrel, the Worm, and The Nut Trees is sure to be a winner with kids everywhere.


Title: The Squirrel, the Worm, and the Nut Trees
Author: Jimmie Powell
Publisher: Outskirts Press
ISBN: 978-1-4327-1326-3
U.S. Price: $15.95

Harry's Piano by Susan Sukman McCray--Book Review

Little did anyone know when five-year-old Harry asked to take piano lessons, where it would lead. Harry's Piano is the charming tale of the young life of Academy Award-winning composer, Harry Sukman, written by his daughter, Susan Sukman McCray.

From Harry's humble birth in Chicago to his moving to California and conducting his first concert, Harry's Piano will touch the hearts of children everywhere.

Told with the loving hand only a parent's child could provide, Susan McCray shares every milestone that led to Harry Sukman becoming a successful concert pianist, conductor, and composer. Children will follow Harry as his first piano is lifted through the window into his parents' third-story apartment in Chicago. They will read about the hours and hours of practice Harry committed himself to and the music professors who helped Harry hone his talents. And children will share in the excitement of Harry's decision to leave Chicago and move to California, where he meets Mr. Young, who foretells of the future Harry will live.

The illustrations--provided by Karen C. Rhine--are as moving as the story. The book also has a CD with two piano selections composed and played by Harry Sukman.

A timeless story of hard work and determination, Harry's Piano is a gift that will inspire young people to reach for their dreams.


Harry's Piano
ISBN 13: 978-0-9790681-0-2
ISBN 10: 0-9790681-0-X
U.S. Price $18.95
Autographed copy $23.95 (US)