The Mean Girl Who Never Speaks by Zuni Blue

The Mean Girl Who Never Speaks stars Mya Dove, a practicing detective. In this episode, Mya is given a case to figure out whether the new girl at school is "mean" or not. And what the other children should do about it. Mya currently gets paid in grapes (when she does get paid), but she hopes to one day be a true detective.

It was fun reading the little police facts that Mya would pop off. Mya is adorable and spunky, though she occasionally sounds older than six. She seems to be a "wise beyond her years" character. She didn't feel right about writing off the new girl as "mean" and it was a good thing she followed her gut. I don't want to spoil the book, but I feel like it's really important to point out that one of the topics in this book is Social Anxiety. There are so few books that cover that issue that I almost shouted when I read the words. Go Zuni Blue for using a fun story to talk about real issues! And thank you for the police facts.

Set in London, England, this book is written in British English. That was another thing I liked about the book. I think it would be cool if the book had illustrations, but it was still good without them. The book could be pretty funny at times too.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in learning about social anxiety.

Birdplane by Tonya Coffey

Birdplane by Tonya Coffey is the story about a little ant that has dreams of flying. Tiny Tom wants to fly and soar in the air more than anything. And he's willing to do almost anything to take flight. We follow Tiny Tom on his adventure as he tries a series of plans to get himself launched into the air.

My favorite thing about Birdplane (aside from the illustrations) is the determination shown by Tiny Tom to get into the air. Not does Tiny Tom show the determination to do the thing he wants, but he also shows the ingenuity to try several methods and to keep trying until he succeeds.

The illustrations are very nice. They are done on a canvas. They look great, and I think they fit the story well.

Speranza's Sweater by Marcy Pusey

Speranza's Sweater is written by Marcy Pusey and illustrated by Beatriz Mello.

Speranza lived in a troubled home until one day social workers took her and placed her in foster care. It wasn't that her parents didn't love her, (her mom comes and visits her), they just weren't able to give her and her brothers the care she needed.

Speranza wears her sweater until it becomes old and raggedy because it reminds her of the home she once had.

But will she find a forever family?

Speranza's Sweater is great introduction to adoption through foster care. It has a likeable main character and is written in simple enough terms that most children should be able to understand it. I would have liked to see more detail personally. I would have liked to delve deeper into Speranza's emotions. I feel like we only got a glimpse of her. However, it's still a great story and if you have foster children or adopted foster children, then this book belongs in your collection.

(Btw, sorry I'm a little late with this review. It's been a hectic week!)

Speranza's Sweater

The Little Blue Digger and the Very Muddy Day by Harriet Tuppen

The Little Blue Digger and the Very Muddy Day was written by Harriet Tuppen and illustrated by Branislav Gapic.

In this book, there is a red vehicle who is very attached to his red color. He doesn't want to get his red exterior messed up, but when some little sheep need rescuing, will he run away or save the day?

This is a great read for early readers who are starting to read by themselves. The story flows nicely, and it teaches a good underlying message.

I really enjoyed the soft illustrations. The sheep were so cute!

If you love vehicles or sheep or both, you are sure to enjoy The Little Blue Digger and the Very Muddy Day.

The Little Blue Digger and the Very Muddy Day - A Mucky Construction Site Story for 2-5 Year Olds

New Release! Tiramisu Tuesday by Penny LeClair

About Tiramisu Tuesday

It’s almost Valentine’s Day, and the Juniper Café is buzzing with excitement. Rosa, however, is not impressed. It’s her least favourite day of the year. To make things worse, her big sister Margaret just got a boyfriend and doesn’t spend any time with her anymore. With a story from the past, a cheesy greetings card and a delicious serving of tiramisu, Rosa might just change her mind about Valentine’s Day!

You can buy the book here. 

About Penny LeClair

Penny LeClair is a composer and writer from Ireland. She loves to read and write stories about friendship, family, music and magic. Among her favourite books are the Chronicles of Narnia, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Harry Potter.

Her first book, ‘Star Syrup’, was partly inspired by her years singing in a school choir, and she likes to put musical and theatre references into her books too. Penny now lives in Brisbane, Australia, but likes to keep in touch with writers and readers all over the world.

You can find Penny on Twitter. @Pennystarsyrup

The Reading Promise

The Reading Promise is a beautiful story about a mother who doesn't have a lot, but is determined to share her love of reading, books, and knowledge with her son. 

She makes sure that her son never misses an opportunity to learn.

The illustrations by Elisa Moriconi add a really nice soft touch to this book, which makes a great bedtime story.

Although there are a sad moments in this book, it is still a great book. 

SPOILER ALERT

*

*

*

*

*

His mom gets sick and dies when he is a young adult. I feel it is important to mention this as someone who is not ready to talk about this with their young children might want to skip this page for now. They can return to it when they are ready.

Overall, despite the sad moments, I would still give this book

5 Shovels

Teddy with the Book

Jean-Luc, snuggled up and ready to read!

The Moore Zombies: The Search for Gargoy

What better way to revive this blog than with a review of a book about zombies?

The Moore family is a zombie family consisting of a Mombie, a dad, two girls, and two boys. In this episode, all of Baby Zom's older siblings must have help her find Gargoy. 

Who or what is Gargoy? We don't find out until the end.

This a really nice story with lots of facts about zombies and some really fun illustrations. Readers will enjoy meeting and learning about each of the zombie family members.

There isn't a dull moment in the story either. Definitely a winner for any young zombie fans.

5 Shovels!

The Future of Destiny's Book Dig Up!

Hello! Welcome to my blog. If you were an avid reader of this blog, then you may be aware that this site temporarily went on a hiatus after I was in a bad car accident in 2014. I had planned to come back and start where I left off. However, a few things happened in that time.

1. I lost access to the email that I used to receive books for review. (That's part of the reason that removed it from the front page.)

2. I started attending college and needed to focus on that.

3. I spent a little more of my free time working on my own stories.

Those are the main reasons I went on hiatus.

I am going to start reviewing books again soon. If you sent me a book in the past and I did not review it, you can send it again in the future once I have a proper place for you to send it.

Thanks for your time,

Teddy