Thursday, March 6, 2014

Shadows on My Wall -- Review and Giveaway

Thought for the Day:



“If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.” ~ Albert Einstein ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:


Nancy Stewart posted some fascinating, albeit a little scary, information about how much people read by country. Click HERE to see this interesting information. 


HERE is a good article on 20 Common Grammar Errors almost everyone makes. 

Tara Lazar over at Writing for Kids (While Raising Them) had a post recently that should give us all a good laugh. Click HERE and brighten up your day.

Last Friday when I posted my first Perfect Picture Book Friday post, I was so excited to review one of Nancy Bo Flood's lovely books, Cowboy Up!, and be able to offer a signed copy to one lucky winner. I am happy to announce that the winner is the lovely Shannon Hitchcock. If you don't know Shannon, check out her web site HERE. She is author of a wonderful historical novel written in verse, The Ballad of Jessie Pearl. I reviewed it shortly after if came out. If you haven't read it, what are you waiting for? You can read my review HERE. Shannon, I'll be in touch. 

If you didn't win, read to the end for another giveaway and make sure to come back next week for something really special.

Today I have another sweet picture book to offer. 
Title: Shadows on My Wall
Author/Illustrator: Timothy Young
Publisher: Schiffer Publishing
Year: 2012
Intended Audience: Ages 3-6
Opening Line: The street lights make shows on my wall.

Most little kids are afraid of things they don't understand. Shadows can be really creepy and scary. Timothy Young's illustrations are a perfect representation of what goes on in a child's mind. The first picture shows kind of creepy looking shadows that are clearly bare tree limbs, but as the little boy's imagination takes over, those shadows become a lot of very scary things that only an imagination could create -- monsters, scary animals, pirates and others. But the boy finds that he can make shadows too, and he makes a shadow friend for one of the creatures. Soon he understands he can be in control of what the shadows seem to be. This is a lovely way for parents to help little ones understand how to use their imaginations to their benefit. In the back of the book. the author has included a lesson on making shadow animals. There is a link listed, but it seems to not work. 

I love the illustrations in this book. They are charming. Kids should love this book and get lots of giggles from it along with a pretty good lesson they won't even know they are learning. This is a perfect picture book.
Timothy Young

I have a gently used hardback copy of this book that would be perfect for any children or grandchildren in your life. If you leave a comment and are a follower (free and easy -- just check the right-hand column) and if you have a U.S. address, I will put your name in the proverbial hat for a chance to win this sweet book. If you spread the word -- Twitter, Facebook, your own blog, etc. -- let me know you have done that and I will give you an extra chance. Make sure you hop on over to Susanna Leonard Hill's wonderful blog to find more perfect picture books. There is always quite a list and Susanna always has a great book to tell you about. You can find her blog by clicking HERE.