Major price break on t-shirts available through my online store! Shirts for "Beverlee" and "Sloth" as well as "Space Zombies!" and TTP's "mascot" are available (coming soon: "Tamara" shirts)! 11.99 for adults and 7.99 for children's shirts, plus 5.00 shipping. Check it out: https://squareup.com/store/regan-w-h-macaulay

...from Sue Bangert-Wood, author of  Chances Are (Guardian Angel Publishing) and Deb Gardner Allard, author of Baby Poopsie Loves Ears (Guardian Angel Publishing)

Tamara Turtle's Life So Far is a charming book with a good lesson to learn. This book would be a great read for children who are getting their first pet turtle; or any first pet. It's a lesson of responsibility and love. This would be a great addition to any library.

—Sue Bangert-Wood

I am a total fan of this book! So often children beg for pets they know nothing about. The result is often abandoned or neglected pets. Tamara Turtle's Life so Far is a story that shows what often happens to pet store turtles. If only children and their parents fully understood the care and needs of this species, they might take better care of their precious purchase. I highly recommend this book to pet stores, other places that sell Red-eared Slider Turtles, and also to elementary schools, so that children might read about this type of pet. Children will enjoy the spot on illustrations. I received an ARC of this book for an honest review.

—Deb Gardner Allard

A cover reveal for one of Mirror World Publishing's summer releases...Spellhaven by Sandra Unerman!  (Coming August 17th 2017)

The Unseen Spirits must be entertained, so that the city may prosper……

In the summer of 1914, Jane Fairchild, a young English musician, is kidnapped by magic and sent to Spellhaven, an island city ruled by magicians. Here, peace and prosperity are maintained with the assistance of Unseen Spirits bound to the service of the Lords Magician. The Spirits must be kept in good humour by the performance of all kinds of shows, dance, drama and music. Jane is one of many people kidnapped from the outside world and forced to contribute to these entertainments for a set period of service.
Only Jane is having none of it. She will not perform for her kidnapper, Lucian Palafox, but agrees to undertake an apprenticeship with another magician impresario, provided she is taught magic in return. Jane’s forays into magic lead her deeper within the mysteries of Spellhaven, her rivalry with Lucian escalates and the quarrels between them grow strong enough to shake the city to its foundations.

Visit Mirror World Publishing's site for the full cover and more information.

...but as you can see, the books in the "Read the North Kids" section are dwindling...get your signed copy of Sloth the Lazy Dragon and many other CANSCAIP member-authored books before they're gone!

TITLE: TAMARA TURTLE’S LIFE SO FAR
AUTHOR: Regan W.H. Macaulay
ILLUSTRATOR: Javier Duarte
PUBLISHER: Mirror Publishing
PUBLISHED: June 15, 2017
PAPERBACK ISBN: 978-1-61225-368-8
 
Tamara is a Red-eared Slider turtle, and this endearing story tells the tale of her life thus far. Tamara is excited to be chosen from all the other Red-eared Sliders only to eventually be forgotten and ignored by her owner and set free in a nearby creek by his mother. Tamara is found by a man who finds her and taken to a special new place where she eventually is rescued and taken home where she belongs.
 
Ms. Macaulay weaves facts about turtles and taking care of them as pets into a fun story to which kids can relate and learn from without feeling a lesson is being taught—though a good lesson on the importance of providing the best environment and pet care is being taught.
 
Javier Duarte’s illustrations are beautifully colorful and vivid and bring Tamara and Ms. Macaulay’s story to life.
 
TAMARA TURTLE’S LIFE SO FAR is a terrific book which teaches responsibility and encourages a very important conversation between parents and children about rescue and care of pets.
 
**Disclosure: I received a copy of this book free of charge from the author in exchange for an honest review. This review consists only of my truthful opinions, not influenced in any way by the author or publisher.

ADVO-CATS
Written by Christine Tricario
Illustrated by Lacey Rivers

When two careless California cats realize that their caustic kitty-condo is causing biohazard-hairballs, toxic toys, and cat-scratch-fevers they quickly decide to go green by “green-ovating” their unhealthy habitat and habits and converting their careless cat-itudes to become bio-builders for fellow felines, as well as Advo-Cats for humanity!

LAST NIGHT OF SUMMER
Written by Kevin Fontenot
Illustrated by Colin Throm

Christopher finds himself in a mysterious new land. With the help of new friends, he overcomes his fears during a grand adventure as he tries to find his way home in time for the first day of school. 

TEN SHEEP TO SLEEP
Written by Nidhi Kamra
Illustrated by Eugene Ruble

Sammy Jo counts ten sheep to put her to sleep, but tonight, ten more sheep appear. The new sheep are creating a ruckus. Sammy Jo has to find a way to calm the sheep down, count twenty sheep, and ensure everyone is happy so they can get a good night's sleep.

IS
by C.J. Lawson

As a young boy, Joshua Stone had a brief encounter one late night from his bedroom window with something so hideous and inconceivable, he did everything he could to block it from his memory forever. But forever would be short-lived, and new life would be breathed into the nightmare once more, when its peculiar presence would come back to Joshua yet again in the midst of a terrible storm – twenty six years later. The horrendously inhuman events that follow, set the stage for a shocking reality that will soon change his life, and everything he has come to know about humanity – forevermore.

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE TO READ, READ, READ
Written by Barbara Even Streif
Illustrated by Pritali Joharapurkar

Have you ever realized how much fun reading books can be? Meet this happy young girl who can turn any place into a perfectly, exciting adventure!

She believes that books can open up a whole world of delightful experiences. And because she thinks reading is so much fun, she wants to share her love of books with you!

TEACHER CONFESSIONS:  Chilling in the Barn
Written by Deanna Scelzo
Illustrated by Dan Smith

"Ms. Scelzo, why you always tell us to write about this stuff? It's so hard. I don't have no special place." Tyriq scowled. Ms. Scelzo, feeling like a failure once again, is frustrated when her students struggle to write about the topic she assigns. Why can't these kids use their imaginations? Must be all those video games and too much T.V., she thinks to herself. In an attempt to help her students with their writing assignment, she tells them of a place where she spent so much time as a child. The big, old barn was her special place to get away and just "chill." She describes a much simpler time when life was more carefree, and time seemed to pass much slower. Ms. Scelzo realizes how lucky she was to have had this childhood and the reason her students struggle with some of the topics she assigns is not from lack of imagination, but because of a much different existence.

WALLACE AND ROO
Written by Roo Yori and Neal Wooten
Illustrated by Swapan Debnath
Roo is a young boy with no one to play with. Wallace is a stray dog with no family. One day they run into each other... literally, and their lives are changed forever. As these two best friends learn, we all need someone to love. Join Wallace and Roo as the adventure begins...

To learn more about the real life Wallace and the organization set up to help homeless dogs in his honor, visit www.wallacethepitbullfoundation.org Your support is greatly appreciated as they strive to improve the lives of dogs in need. Adopt your next dog!\

THE WORRY GLASSES
Written by Donalisa Helsley
Illustrated by Kalpart

For ages 3-9... Do you find yourself worrying about almost everything? Do your worries seem extra large? MJ knows the feeling. She's a big worry wart. Visit with MJ as she learns how to take off her "Worry Glasses" and take control of her anxiety.

UNCHARTED
Written by Justine Alley Dowsett and Murandy Damodred

From the Mirror World Publishing site:
Fated to be a Priestess of Saegard, Meredith dreams of leading a normal life with a family and a home of her own, something she’ll never have if she swears her life to the Order.  A chance encounter with a stranger in the sacred Celestial Chamber sends her previously well-ordered life into a tailspin of adventure and mayhem as she is blamed for the theft of a legendary artifact. Now a fugitive, Meredith must join forces with Captain Reginald Lawrence, the son of the man who initially brought her to the Temple, and his enigmatic business partner,  the charming yet at times infuriating, Grey Rhodes, to find the Celestial Bowl and clear her name. From the cosmopolitan capital of Saegard to the coast of Ismera and back again, Meredith’s journey will reveal the true nature of her past, present, and ultimately, her future.

LOST AND FOUND
Written by Sharon Ledwith

From the Mirror World Publishing site:Imagine a teenager possessing a psychic ability and struggling to cope with this freakish power, all the while trying to lead a normal life. Now, imagine being uprooted and forced to live in a small tourist town where nothing much ever happens. It’s bores-ville from the get-go. Welcome to Fairy Falls. Expect the unexpected…

The Fairy Falls Animal Shelter is in trouble. Money trouble. It’s up to an old calico cat named Whiskey—a shelter cat who has mastered the skill of observation—to find a new human pack leader so that their home will be saved. With the help of Nobel, the leader of the shelter dogs, the animals set out to use the ancient skill of telepathy to contact any human who bothers to listen to them. Unfortunately for fifteen-year-old Meagan Walsh, she hears them, loud and clear.

Tamara Turtle’s Life So Far, by Regan Macaulay, illustrated by Javier Duarte, is part human interest and part environmental science. Ms. Macaulay tells the story of Tamara, a red ear slider pet store turtle, who is adopted as a pet for a little boy. However, the boy loses interest and doesn’t take care of Tamara. So his mother releases Tamara turtle into the backyard creek. Tamara’s afraid and lonely but soon meets some painted turtles who tell her red ear slider turtles don’t belong in their environment. Tamara leaves and luckily is found by a kind man who takes her to a rescue organization. There she meets other red ear slider turtles. Later Tamara finds a new home with the proper care for her species.

The story shows children the importance of providing the right environment and care for animals they adopt. Kids can relate to the feelings that a lonely and ignored pet would have. There’s just enough pull on our heart strings to want the best for Tamara. Reading this story is a good way to impress upon children what they should know before they commit to keeping an animal. The artist, Javier Duarte, has done a good job of illustrating the imagined events and emotional upset in the life of a pet turtle.

I can totally relate to this story, having tried to keep two pet turtles some thirteen years ago. I felt badly about the poor quality of life our turtles had, even though I did my best to keep their tank clean and give them the food and light they needed. I finally found a better home at a local school’s nature center pond. There our turtles could swim freely and bask in real—not artificial—sunlight.

This story is recommended for teachers’ classroom libraries, school and local libraries, to help children understand responsibility and the environmental impact of keeping pets.

Reviewed by:
Penelope Anne Cole
Tri-Valley Writers Conference 2017 Prose Award winner; San Mateo County Fair Short Story Award winner, 2017; Award Winning Author of Magical Matthew, Magical Mea,
Magical Mea Goes to School, Magical Max and Magical Mickey, and Magical Max and Magical Mickey’s Big Surprise; In and Out, All ‘Round About – Opposite Friends; What’s for Dinner? and ¿Qué vamos a comer? For Halloween: Ten Little Tricksters and Diez pequeños bromistas; New:  My Grandma and Me Coloring Book: and Coming Soon:  My Grandma’s Pink House
Web/Blogs:  http://www.penelopeannecole.com/