I was wrong.
The Last Bookshop in London by Madeline Martin is not cheesy.
It is, in fact, quite lovely. This time, I was quite taken with it.
Author: Sara Masarik
Curators of things Good, True, and Beautiful
Wonder Boxes
We love science! We really do! And we especially love the old science books when science was presented as something wonderful to wonder about! Inspired by this love of science in the early years, we decided to curate themed boxes that would invite your family into a love of wondering!
Picture Book Preschool at Plumfield
Picture Book Preschool is a gentle lap time curriculum for the very earliest grades made up of excellent picture books organized loosely by theme.
The Lord of the World
This year, I decided that it was time to put my big girl pants on and read Msgr. Hugh Benson’s nightmare-novel, Lord of the World. It is excellent!
The Librarian Spy by Madeline Martin
A smart, resourceful, multilingual American is recruited to be a librarian spy in Lisbon during WWII monitoring the French resistance.
Jack Zulu and the Girl with the Golden Wings
Jack Zulu And The Girl With The Golden Wings continues to be a blend of fantasy and good old-fashioned storytelling with lots of action and great drama.
Mooses with Bazookas
Mooses with Bazookas is silly, sweet in places, absolutely goofy in other places, and always interesting. It is brilliant for family read-aloud.
Crosstalk
Crosstalk is part sci-fi and part psychological adventure with a little romance thrown in. This book was a lot of fun to read and had an intriguing premise.
Bellwether
I decided to listen to Connie Willis’s Bellwether while my seventeen-year-old and I were doing a renovation in my library…
Doomsday Book
Doomsday is gross. And unsettling. And brilliant. I think that my seventeen-year-old boy (who loves Willis) will appreciate it.
The Peppernuts
The Peppernuts published in 1958, was printed by the Parent’s Magazine for their approved selections for Book Club for Beginning Readers and is a charming…
The Reuben Stories
The Reuben stories are four of the most lovely picture books I have read in the last year. I found Reuben and the Blizzard at a thrift store and fell in love.
Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk
As I read Wolf Hollow, I found myself depressed and frustrated throughout the story, and I didn’t find a powerful redeeming theme.
Come On, Rain!
Come On, Rain! by Karen Hesse is a lovely story that transports me back to the hot and sticky days of summer from my childhood.
Thunderstorm
In Thunderstorm we follow a violent storm through Midwest farm country. This nearly wordless book is rich with detailed illustrations…