Ava’s Secret Tea Party by Donna J. Shepherd

ava

Imagination meets rhyme in this lyrical tale of a young girl who wants to meet Santa, the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny, and the Sandman and invite them to tea. Ava’s Secret Tea Party by Donna J. Shepherd is a delightful rhyming story filled with dreams come true. Ava wants to meet the elusive visitors that perform wonderful deeds while she’s asleep. She comes up with a plan that she hopes will help her get them all together.

With Shepherd’s sweet story and adorable illustrations by Bella Sinclair, girls will love reading this book over and again. It also comes with recipes from Ava’s secret tea party and several tea party crafts. I could see this book being used to help girls plan their own secret tea parties.

Highly recommended.

Rating: 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

Paperback: 24 pages
Publisher: Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc; large type edition edition (July 15, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1616332867
ISBN-13: 978-1616332860

I received a free digital version of this book from the author. This review contains my honest opinion, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

 

Ava's Secret Tea Party Hardback

From the Family Bookshelf

Where has this month gone? I can’t believe July is almost here. The girls have been out of school since Monday. The Lil Princess joined our library’s “Go Green” summer reading program. The Lil Diva has officially declared she hates reading. When I suggested she join the summer reading program, not only did I get the eyes rolling up into her eyelids, I also received the lovely hand on the hip deal. How did I manage to end up with a kid who doesn’t enjoy reading?

In this issue of From the Family Bookshelf, you’ll once again get a glimpse into what our family has been reading lately. I, as usual, have read more books than anyone else; but that should change a bit with the Lil Princess participating in the summer reading program.

I really thought Dad would move right from Prayers for the Assassin  by Robert Ferrigno to the next book in this series, Sins of the Assassin, but he didn’t. After a short reading break, he moved onto the third book in The Zion Chronicles, The Return to Zion, by Bodie and Brock Thoene. This series is Christian historical fiction set aroung WWII. He has already read the first two books in this series, The Gates of Zion and A Daughter of Zion.

May 27th was the last time I updated this column. Sorry about that. With the wedding, the end of the school year, and preparing to leave for North Carolina on July 2nd, I haven’t been blogging as much as I usually do.

During that time I’ve read Ebeneezer’s Cousin, In My Bath, Sully’s Topsy Tale, Grin’s Message, Little Big Wolf, and Glamour Girl, all children’s books.  You can find those reviews on this site. I’ve also read Caves, Cannons and Crinolines, which is YA historical fiction from Beverly Stowe McClure. That review is also posted at this site.

At The Book Connection, I recently posted reviews of: The Wildcat’s Burden (sci-fi/alternative world) by Christopher Hoare, The Confessions of Catherine de Medici by C.W. Gortner (historical fiction), At Home with Laurie Ann by Laurie Ann McMillin Ray (home decorating), and Why God Matters by Karina Lumbert Fabian and Deacon Steven Lumbert (Catholic nonfiction). I also read The Lightkeeper’s Daughter by Colleen Coble as part of the Amazon Vine program. I am currently reading The Last Operative by Jerry Jenkins. If you want to know my Jerry Jenkins story, just ask!

The Lil Diva moved right from her Katie & Kimble books into reading Junie B. Jones.  I’ll have a separate post coming up about this book soon, but I thought kids were supposed to enjoy reading about those older than them. Junie B. Jones is a few years younger than her, so I wasn’t expecting that one. She read

The Lil Princess has been reading to herself, so I haven’t been privy to what she’s been reading lately. She hides in her room, shuts the door, and wanders off for a while. I know that she recently picked up a copy of The Raindrop by Brian McClure that I had in my office. She always asks before taking off with anything from here, since she never knows if it belongs in the TBR pile, the giveaway pile, or somewhere in between. 🙂

That’s about it for From the Family Bookshelf. I hope you enjoyed reading along. Until next time, keep reading!

Sully’s Topsy Tale by Donna J. Shepherd

What is a snake who only sings solo supposed to do when he gets laryngitis? You’ll find out when you pick up a copy of Sully’s Topsy Tale by Donna J. Shepherd.

In this final book in the Topsy Tales trilogy, Sully the Snake is so used to singing solo that when he gets laryngitis, he and the other animals aren’t sure how to deal with the silence. One by one, Sully’s friends take a turn at livening up the jungle, giving Sully time to rest his sore throat and teaching him a wonderful lesson in the process.

This is the first book in the series I’ve read. Now, I want to buy the other two.  This is a fun, rhyming tale of friendship that teaches children to appreciate each other’s talents–an excellent lesson at any age.

Having also read Shepherd’s Poodle & Doodle, I can tell you this book is just as enjoyable as the story of that prissy little poodle who became upset when a mangy mutt was brought home. I’ve always enjoyed stories that assigned human characteristics to animals and used them to gently teach children important life lessons. Shepherd’s books accomplish this task well.

Kevin Collier is the illustrator for this one, which kind of surprised me. I can usually pick out Kevin’s work easily. While you can still see his style of wide, round eyes and bright colors, the lines coming more to a point, the jagged edges, and the color selection all blend together with this jazzy story to create a lovely compliment to the words.

Sully’s Topsy Tale is a story many youngsters are sure to enjoy!

Rating:  🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

  • Publisher: Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc.
  • ISBN-10: 1616330473
  • ISBN-13: 978-1616330477
  • SRP:  $10.95


  • Bookmark & Share

    Poodle & Doodle by Donna J. Shepherd

    I just had a chance to offer a back cover blurb for this upcoming new release from Guardian Angel PublishingPoodle & Doodle  by Donna J. Shepherd and illustrated by Jack Foster, tells the story of a prissy little poodle who is upset when a mangy mutt becomes the new member of the house.

    Young readers are certainly going to enjoy this rhyming story of two very different dogs and how they become friends. 

    You can check out other upcoming titles at the Guardian Angel Publishing website.