Author Archives: stephanielowden

The Story of Civil War Hero Robert Smalls by Janet Halfmann, illustrations by Duane Smith. Lee and Low Books Inc., New York, 2020. (Grades 3-7) The story of Robert Smalls is most likely not known by many. Born into enslavement … Continue reading →

When You Are Brave by Pat Zietlow Miller, Illustrated by Eliza Wheeler. Little Brown & Company, New York and Boston, 2019. “Some days, when everything around you seems scary…you have to be brave.” When You are Brave is the story … Continue reading →

All the Walls of Belfast by Sarah J. Carlson. Turner Publishing Co. Nashville, TN, 2018. This young adult novel begins with seventeen-year-old Fiona on her way to Ireland to meet her father. Her mother fled Ireland for America when Fiona … Continue reading →

A Green Place To Be, The Creation of Central Park by Ashley Benham Yazdani. Candlewick Press, Somerville, MA, 2016, 2019. “Central Park in Manhattan is green and growing and full of life. It’s a vibrant jewel at the heart of … Continue reading →

Out of School and Into Nature, the Anna Comstock Story by Suzanne Slade, illustrated by Jessica Lanan. Sleeping Bear Press Ann Arbor Michigan, 2017. “From the time she was no higher than a daisy, Anna was wild about nature.” Out … Continue reading →

Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, I re-read two novels that I had purchased at Milwaukee’s Irish Fest in 2008. These stories depict the immigrant experience in all it’s joys and sorrows. An interview with the author follows. The … Continue reading →

The Nutcracker by Susan Jeffers. Harper Collins New York, NY 2007. When I look for a picture book, I look for the pictures. That may seem obvious, but all picture books are not created equal. I want the illustrations to … Continue reading →

Hawk Rising by Maria Gianferrari, pictures by Brian Floca. Roaring Brook Press, New York, NY, 2018. “Father Hawk stretches wide his wings. You stretch your arms as Mars rises red in the sky.” Hawk Rising begins and ends with both … Continue reading →

Spindle by E.K. Johnston, Hyperion, New York, NY, 2016. “The little rose was only five years old when her parents ruined my mother and brought ruination to my own life. I can tell the story like I was there, though … Continue reading →

Hawk by Jennifer Dance, Dundurn Publishers Toronto, Ontario, 2016 “Less than an hour ago, I was Adam, the long-distance runner. Now I’m Adam, the boy who…I can’t even bring myself to say it.” The young adult novel, Hawk, begins from … Continue reading →