Clarence (A K-3 Story) by Stephanie Baruffi

Clarence: A Story about an Italian Boy with Big Ears and Big Problems (Ages K-3)

Clarence is the story of an Italian boy who doesn't look like the rest of his dark-haired, dark-skinned family. He is quiet and shy and cannot understand why his family is so loud! Most of all, Clarence feels left out at school because the kids tease him about his big ears. They bully him and taunt him because he doesn't look like the rest of them, or so they think!

This story reflects the feelings we all can have when we don't think we fit in. It demonstrates that with a little "reflection" we can all discover that we are beautifully and wonderfully made! 

https://youtu.be/tTaY77Uaalg

Stephanie Baruffi is an Early Literacy Specialist who lives in New Jersey with her husband Art and their three sons. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from Rowan University with a Masters in Reading Education in 2014. Her grandfather Clarence, who passed away in 2012, inspired this book. He loved his big family too and truly did have a big, beautiful set of ears!

Website: www.slbaruffi.com

Blog web addresses:    http://www.stephaniebaruffi.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/slbaruffi/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SLBaruffi

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16598798.Stephanie_Baruffi?from_search=true

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/slbaruffi_author/

Excerpt: The students headed outside to the large wooden playground. As usual, Clarence walked around the playground alone. That is until Giovanna and Vinny pushed him from behind. Clarence turned to face them when Vinny grabbed Clarence by the shoulders and pushed him again. This time, Clarence flew backward and hit his back against a wooden pole near the slide. Clarence began to get angry, but then he took a deep breath. He realized this was his chance. He was finally able to say what he wanted to say for so long.

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Clarence-Stephanie-Baruffi-ebook/dp/B06XKL47BG/

Print: https://www.foundationsbooks.net/book-library/

A New Hope by Christina Escue

A New Hope is the second book in the Second Chance Series by Christina Escue.  It will be released on March 28th.  I had the privilege of reading this book very recently and I have to say, I like the story line to it and while we see the characters as more like children in the first book, you can definitely tell that they have grown up some in this book since many of them are facing challenges that have went from being accepted when they were younger to now having the challenges of deep relationships and whether to have sex or not since they are so young.  This is a clean book so it does not condone teenage sex or anything and I like the outlook that the adoptive dad, Andrew, has on this issue in particular.  Andrew tells his daughter's boyfriend, Connor, that he doesn't really approve of it but still wants them to be safe and that Connor can talk to him about whatever should he need to.  This book has a few different stories in it though, the most prominent being the appearance of Karla, the adoptive daughter, welcoming her brother, Elliot into the family.  After his grandmother dies, he comes to live with Karla and her family.  It is a tough adjustment for him.  He has dyslexia and has a really hard time reading.  It shows his struggles in and out of school.  My favorite though has to be the chemistry between Manuel and Callie.  Manuel is Karla's brother and Callie is Connor's twin sister.  The two of them have a kind of chemistry between them that is there from the moment Manuel shows up in the story, but he irks Callie to no end and she doesn't know what to do with her feelings.  This is a good read!  One definitely to check out when it is released!

Blurb:

Upon discovering she had a younger brother in Texas; Karla, Leslie and Andrew immediately go to him. What they didn’t expect was for tragedy to strike within days of their arrival. 

Elliot Matthews had known nothing but love his entire life. When his father was killed in a terrible accident he discovered his beloved grandmother was too ill to care for him, so she tracked down the mother he’d never known. Instead of a mother he got a sister he didn’t know existed. 

Now Karla must help Elliot deal with his grief as he adapts to new surroundings, makes new friends and learns that life really does go on. 


Amazon Buy Link:  http://www.amazon.com/New-Hope-Second-Chance-Book-ebook/dp/B00U4K9S1I/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1425705425&sr=8-2&keywords=christina+escue

A Fish, A Wolf, A Mouse, And A Raindrop by Bethany Bull

I recently had the privilege of reading this collection of short children's stories and I have to say that they are very imaginative and creative.  Not only that but they teach as well as entertain.  I love stories that give morals and other lessons.  These stories have some science-based lessons in them as well as morals of the story. My favorite was Blue, The Story of a Raindrop.  He has a long and exciting adventure and it explains a lot about the cycle of rain and evaporation.  It was a cool little story!  These are definitely stories I would let my own children read, or read to them!



Blurb:

"A Fish A Wolf A Mouse and a Raindrop" is a collection of short stories for the young intermediate reader. Included are: Max and Goldie, a story about the life of fish; The Wolf of Ghost Mountain, a story about animals being captured; Brown and His Wonderful Escape, about a mousely adventure; and Blue, The Story of a Raindrop, where the process of evaporation is told in a context young readers will find fun.


Amazon Buy Link:  http://www.amazon.com/Fish-Wolf-Mouse-Raindrop-Stories-ebook/dp/B00IHFQ21G/ref=sr_1_4?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1425160348&sr=1-4&keywords=bethany+bull

Find Bethany here:  https://bethanybull.wordpress.com/about/

The Amazing Adventures of Toby the Trilby by Angela Castillo

   Toby is a one of a kind.  He is 12 and was created in a lab.  He calls the six who created him, his grambles.  Kind of like grandparents.  Toby has mostly human DNA with a bit of cat DNA as well that has given him a few feline features like how he is rather short for his age, has a tail, ears, and a keen sense of smell.  But he looks much like a human boy would otherwise.  He lives underground with his grambles and has never seen what is on the surface.  It was foretold that the end was coming for mankind and the grambles were scientists sent down below to prepare massive areas for people to escape to, however, they never came.  So no one knows what is up there.  Toby has a keen interest in going to see, and he keeps hearing a voice that it is obvious no one else is hearing.  He seeks to find the owner of the voice and to find the answer to his greatest question: does he have a soul?  Because of how he was created, he has doubts about it.  So he sets off on an adventure to find out.  This adventure will be dangerous.  Not all of those who are left are nice.
 
   This book is geared to a younger audience, but I still found myself intrigued with the plot.  It is an interesting story and very clean.  This would be a great kids book and a safe one.  No romantic gestures in this one to worry about and it is inspirational.  Toby is seeking the Soul Creator to find the answer to his question.  He comes upon the good, the bad, and the ugly of what is left of humanity.  Not only are people sometimes openly hostile, but some have pretty much lost their minds.  It is a dismal state of affairs really, but Toby's journey is one of hope.  And hope can change everything.  I am interested to see where Toby's journey takes him next!

On Kindness

This is not a normal run-of-the-mill post for this blog, but I am rather proud of the fact I had a small feature published today on the Arkansas Women Bloggers website!  It is about teaching our children kindness and how it matters!  Check it out!

http://arkansaswomenbloggers.com/2013/09/kindness-matters-lessons-learned/