Reviews written by Angela Blount

Pace yourself! Reading this primer is a bit like taking a college-level literature class. Or perhaps an entire semester worth of literature classes… Acknowledging that storytelling is as old as humanity itself, The Literature Book takes on the daunting challenge of giving readers a historical and...

Disclaimer: Unfortunately I was issued only a one-chapter sample of the book (15 pages) rather than the book in its 256 page entirety. As such, my impressions are woefully limited in some respects—for which I apologize. I absolutely loved the idea of this book. As huge...

A captivating gem of a story—an absolute treasure. I hated having to put it down to attend to ‘real life,’ and relished the joy of picking it back up again. “I could feel the beginning of the story gathering in her throat. Stories are that way, like...

A fast-paced, volatile follow-up to Alive. "Our creators designed our bodies. Our faces are theirs--these scars are the only things we can truly call our own." In the first book the so-called “Birthday Children” awoke—twelve-year-old minds in the bodies of 18 to 20-year-olds—unsure...

An excellent resource for children who may be interested in getting a better sense for how characters, places, and things fit into the DC universe—cleverly depicted via LEGO’s highly accessible style and age-appropriate adaptations. This 144 page guide is impressively extensive, without being overwhelming to its target...

A sweet coming-of-age historical romance--featuring a dangerously bold heroine and a hero who is bound by duty is to bring her to justice. Taking place in the author’s prime element, 14th century Germany, The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest is a sort of gender-flipped Robin Hood/Swan Lake...

Based on the TV specials, Star Wars gets a child-friendlier facelift—LEGO style. In this abbreviated made-for-kids version of episodes 1 through 3, C-3P-O acts as our cybernetic bard. This combination comic and young reader chapter book is initially set at what would be the very end...

A sweet YA/NA crossover romance appealing to all ages, with strong themes of courage and fortitude in the face of emotional and psychological abuse. The fifth book in Dickerson’s fairytale retelling series, this Germanic-inspired historical adapts the treasured story of Rapunzel. It is told in 3rd-person...

From the international street artist whose single piece of interactive artwork sparked a global campaign, this heartening and hopeful coloring book strives to be as motivating as it is lovely. In the first few pages the author/artist, Montague, goes into detail about the origins of...

A masterful work of storytelling through imagery. The first thing readers should know up-front about this book is this: There are no words. That’s right—32 pages, and no actual prose to speak of. If that bothers you, then this isn’t the children’s story for...

This YA contemporary centers around an almost 16-year-old boy named Michael Wilson, and his coming-of-age struggles as he shoulders the burdens of a strained family life—9 years after his father died in the war in Afghanistan. In addition to working a heavy labor job and handling his own family’s unending...

Ninjas and Pirates and Djinns… oh my! This 32 page comics and activities book is an engaging cross between an educational magazine and supplemental short stories—all rooted in the LEGO Ninjago universe. Activities include: descriptive finds, matching, image unscrambling, map-based pathfinding, coordinate reading, pattern association, and a...

This Urban Fantasy is a quick, simple read with an intriguing premise and a younger YA appeal. High-schooler David “Sully” Sullivan is a low-income kid trying to keep his tiny family afloat through sphere-hocking. Nobody knows exactly what the spheres are or how they work—but it’s...

A brave and potentially valuable story about toxic families, childhood sexual trauma, and searching for healing. Innocent is a mature contemporary YA, bordering on New Adult in content and tone. The story is told entirely from the first-person past-tense point of view of seventeen-year-old Missy (who turns...

A techno-magical good time! This 32 page comics and activities book is the perfect cross between an educational magazine and a set of supplemental short stories—all rooted in the NEXO Knights realm. Activities include mazes, puzzles, pattern recognition, match reasoning, and even a creative opportunity for kids...