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The is good book that reads in many places like a sermon. There are some nice chapters on discipline, but methods of discipline are not really spoken of. The fact that discipline is needed is heavily emphasized. The important thing about this book is that Farrar drives home his point that the fathers role is important in the life of the son.

In this day and age of questionable influences on a young man, the father needs to be equipped to nurture his son into manhood.

This is a must read for any father. Steve does an excellent job of covering the difficult subjects that fathers need to discuss with their sons. He uses biblical references throughout to back his points up. He also uses examples from his own life to drive the points home. Some of the material is a challenge, but one that as fathers we need to step up and do.

If you are a father with a son, this book is a must. Want your son to be a man, you have to show him how to be a man and you have to tell him when he is a man. This book will help.

It is hard to argue with 4000 years of history. This is a must read for any man with a son. King Me helps you to understand how important it is to validate your son and avoid making the same mistakes so many fathers do.

I needed this for Christmas around the world at my school. The book is excellent and the children really enjoyed the story.

Another great addition to my collection. Tomie's illustrations complete this wonderful book.

Such an endearing story! This book contains beautiful illustrations. It is a Christmastime favorite.

If you are looking for the true story of the legend of the poinsettia, this is not it!!! The only thing that is the same about the legend from Mexico and this story is the fact that the poinsettias were made red on christmas eve because a little girl brought baby jesus a weed for his birthday because she was so poor. the names, plot, and special saying that the little girl's brother said in the legend is not in this book, which takes away the impact of the story. the drawings although are beautiful and the story is nice if you don't know the real legend.

I love legends. I always have. I am particularly fond of legends that attempt to explain things such as why the robin has a red breast, or why it snows on Christmas, or why the donkey says "hee haw," and other things like that. That is one of the reasons I was drawn to this little book by Tomie dePaola, The Legend of the Poinsettia.

Lucinda is a young girl who lives with her parents and younger siblings in Mexico. The colorful illustrations have that southeastern feel to it. Lucinda's community is preparing for Christmas by preparing gifts for the Christ child on Christmas Eve. I loved that the focus of gift giving was for Christ as opposed to the hustle and bustle and commercialism that is so common in American households. The gifts were labors of love too and involved special crafts, skills or homegrown gifts. Lucind and her mama have been asked to weave the special blanket for Baby Jesus as the one they have used for years is very old and worn.

When Lucinda's mama becomes ill, Lucinda is unable to finish the blanket by herself and the more she tries, the more tangled the yarn in the loom becomes. Lucinda is disheartened and worried about her mother, as well as saddened that her family has no gift to give the Christ child. Suddenly an old woman appears and suggests Lucinda pick some simple native weeds and bring them to Christ. In humility, Lucinda does that, and as you can guess, these become the beautiful poinsettia plants, the flor de la Nochelbuena, that we associate with Christmas today!

The reference and picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe was a nice touch for Catholic children who are familiar with story, and it was nice to see the shrine to our lady as part of Lucinda's everyday life. My children identified with Lucinda's fears for her mother, and also her fear of being different from the rest of the community. They also felt it was very brave of her to come forward with such a simple gift in the face of much splendor. After reading the story, my kids also became more aware of the poinsettias at church and other places and we even bought our own!

Overall I think this is a very nice book to read during the Advent season in preparation for Christmas, and a nice way for the family to focus on what is most important during this beautiful holiday.

As a language arts teacher, I read 2 or 3 books a week. I am constantly searching for well written, relevant, and riveting novels. This book delivers. I highly recommend this book for 9-13 year olds.

On vacation our family read this book out loud for our library's book club. My husband and I (40+ years old) and my two boys- 10 & 6 both adored this book. In the span of 160 pages we all had the opportunity to learn life lessons, grow to be more brave, laugh and most importantly learn about how love will always conquer hate. We do not live in a very diverse area of the country and this book was a wonderful way to introduce to our children the stuggles that African Americans have had to deal with and why civil rights are so important in this country. I had a lump in my throat when the book discussed how the Bicentennial was being celebrated and not all Americans were still being treated as Free. It isn't a book I would have ever had known about without our wonderful librarian and it will be one that none of us will soon forget. Don't be deterred by some of the serious subjects dealt with in this book, there were far more laughs than most books have. It was entertaining and a joy to read. It is a great book for parents and children.

(one last thought...I would not have liked my son to read this book without us because he would have never fully understood why there was such hate for a 10 year old black girl and why grown men dress in sheets. As disgusting as it is that people practice such hateful acts it is a reality that exists and children who are old enough to understand should not be sheltered from truth. The sooner we can educate our children about equality the better this world will be. )

I am a middle school language arts teacher and I read just about every new title that gets any hype. This book did not disappoint! The plot is well developed and the characters are endearing...Frita is so spunky while Gabe is a quirky scardy-cat afraid of his own shadow. Both Frita and Gabe learn a great about life, love, fear, racism and the nature of hate the summer before they enter fifth grade. In the end they realize that fear is a part of life - bravery is feeling the fear and forging ahead despite it. Great read HIGHLY recommended!!!

I bought this book for Christmas for my 10 year old (4th grade). He will read a chapter and then come find me and read it to me all over again because he thinks it is so funny. He has to read 1/2 hour everyday for school requirements and he will continue to read this book for over an hour. Gets him away from the computer and GameCube games. Hurray.

I bought this book because I loved the front cover and the blurb on back. The cover depicts a jar of something yellowish-green, reminding me of "The Secret Life of Bees." Perhaps I should not tell this about myself, but I will--I did not "see" that spider until after I completed the book and looked at the cover again to decide how the picture fit into the story. Then I saw the spider and the green color (grass through the jar). Wow. I decided then that the story really is about fear. Fear of spiders was near the top of Gabriel's list of fears. Frita convinces him to adopt this spider as his pet.

The blurb on back summarizes the story as a friendship between two fourth-graders moving up to fifth grade, two unusual fourth-graders, one white boy and one black girl. Then I thought about the book again. Not fear. The book seems to be about fear, and it is, but the real intangible character is integrity. The book is about integrity.

Frita Wilson is the only African-American in their small school in Hollowell, GA, not far from Plains, where Jimmy Carter hails. The story takes place during the summer of the campaign for president in 1976, a time when integrating is taking place all over the South and racial strife is evident.

Gabriel King misses his Moving Up graduation to fifth grade because some racist bullies physically prevent him. As a result, Gabriel decides he will not go to fifth grade housed in a separate wing, fearing the bullies. He will just stay in fourth. Frita makes it her summer's goal to liberate them of their fears. Even in victory over various levels of fear, Gabriel "knows" all along that his fear of bullies will not be liberated and he is not going to fifth grade.

They defeat some fears on the list and some fears win. The saddest loss occurs near the end and becomes the impetus for winning the big one. Not willing to be a spoiler, I ask you to read this most enjoyable book. Friendship is a big winner. Family love and unity are big winners. But the biggest winner is integrity. So are Gabriel and Frita because they have this integrity all along.

Having written all this, I feel I must voice my one misgiving about the book. Although it really is a cool story with racism and specific racists taking hits (in a law-abiding way, not through violence), I cannot help but question this friendship between Gabriel and Frita. No matter how I look at it, I just cannot see it happening. Not because of skin colors, but because of age and sex of the children. Boys and girls in the fourth grade just aren't best friends. They certainly don't spend the night with each other in the same room. Parents just would not allow this closed door thing with a boy and a girl of this age. Having stated these things, I still endorse this book--with four stars, not five.

Carnival at Candlelight is an awesome book. It takes place in Venice, Italy, 260 years ago on the night of the annual Carnival celebration. It starts out when Jack and Annie recieve a note from Merlin that says they have to save the Grand Lady of the Lagoon from a terrible disaster!

When Jack and Annie get to Venice, they travel to the Carnival in a gondola. Then they walk around and get into trouble from guards and go up flights of stairs, look at maps, and see statues, all the while thinking about their crazy mission. It isn't making any sense!

They go out into Saint Mark's Square and look in their research book for help. The note from Merlin says to find a tower with two men and a bell, climb it, and get on a king of a jungle. Wandering in the crowd, they spot the tower and race up it. Then they spot the lion and use one of their magic rhymes to make the lion come to life. Then they go out over the sea to spot Neptune, the god of the sea.

They learn that the Grand Lady of the Lagoon is Venice, Italy, and they have to save it from a flood. They spot Neptune and tell him to stop the flood. He does and their mission is over.

I am just a kid, but I recomend this book for any fans od the Magic Tree House series. I got this book for Easter of 2005 and read it that day and enjoyed it.

Magic Tree House #33: Carnival at Candlelight is the book for young readers.

I think the author, Mary Pope Osborne, states things clearly in her books and the pictures explain them better. Mary Pope Osborne, in my opinion, is the best author in the world.

Want to hear a book that's really cool? Well, the book Magic Tree House Carnival at the Candle Light will do the trick! This book is amazing. It's about two Aencheris kids Jack and Annie who goes to Venice to save a mysterious person the Grand Lady of the lagoon. But, once they found out about that person it wasn't what they had expected! Jack and Annie figured that this job was getting harder and harder.

Jack and Annie have some wild stuff happening in this wacky book. That's why I'm telling you to read this book! What I most really like about this book is when Jack and Annie said a spell and got to ride on a Golden, shinning, flying, lion. That part was Awesome!

I would recommend this book to someone who loves and who totally enjoys mysteries, because this book has spells, a mystery, and Magic stuff. Well, that's all. I hope you will adore this book.

Mission: to save the Grand Lady of the Lagoon. Place: Venice Italy. When: 260 years back in time on the night of 'Carnival'.

Jack and Annie of Frog Creek are off again on a new mission in the Merlin Series #33. Odds of surviving a dungeon: Fair to Good... i.e., if the 'book of magic' has something to help them, and Merlin's apprentices Kathleen and Teddy, too.

Mary Pope Osborne never fails to create magic in her stories, with backgrounds of historical places, and supporting the suspense that follows Annie and Jack as they follow the instructions in a letter from Merlin -- "...When waters rise beneath the moon,/Visit the Grand Lady of the Lagoon." The heroes meet grouchy guards, a son of a famous painter, climb the Giants' Stairs, fly the sky on a Golden Lion, and meet Neptune.

Osborne visited Venice and of the city she writes: "...no photographs can truly do Venice justice. No notes or diagrams can truly capture her. Venice lives best in memory, stirring the deep waters of the imagination."

Other Recommendation: Night of the New Magicians by Mary Pope Osborne

Carnival at Candlelight is a funfilled book. It all starts when Jack and Annie of FrogCreek has the same dreams. (Which was sent by Teddy and kethleen). They decide to go to the TreeHouse
and finds teddy and kethleen fast asleep. 'Then later they wake up and they said that they will not be going with them on their adventure.' 'Oh No!' Said Annie 'But what if we need your magic?' Teddy Said 'Morgon thinks that you are ready to use magic your own.''Really?' said Jack 'Yep'. Said Teddy 'But we don't know any magic.' said Annie 'Remember what I said if we work together we can do anything.' said Teddy 'Anything is possible but you just said you were'nt coming with us'. said Annie 'Thats true thats why we give you this Wow a 10 magic rhymes book!' said Jack 'Yes,they are ment to last for your four journeys.' said teddy 'Each line is in Teddy's language, and one in mine the language of the seal people.' said kethleen. my opinion is that this is a fantastic adventures book.

"Carnival at Candlelight" by Mary Pope Osborne was a delight to read. I generally don't like the fantasy genre but I absolutely love the "Magic Tree House" series. One of the things that I love about this series of books is the author's ability to blend factual knowledge with adventure and excitement. As a teacher I appreciate this ability because I believe that students will learn a lot of facts from these books plus they will be enjoying a grand adventure too.
"Carnival at Candlelight" is the fifth book in a group of Magic Tree House books called the "Merlin Missions." Jack and Annie (the main characters) have a fantasy adventure in real places in real times. In this book they travel to the city of Venice, Italy. There they discover the mystery and magic of Venice.
This book is filled with factual informations such as, "Instead of roads, Venice has waterways called canals. People glide along the canals in shallow boats called gondolas."
Not only is this book filled with adventure and factual knowledge but it also has great illustrations. The illustrations in this book make the story come alive. The illustrations really give you an idea of how Jack and Annie feel during key moments in the story.
This is a great book for second graders as a read-aloud. Third graders could read it by themselves.

It will extend your life by years. That's what the joy of this piece and the laughs will do for you. All hail Hugh Taylor.

really, this is a laugh out loud piece! i thoroughly enjoyed it. can't wait for more.

This witty, clever excerpt introduces Havelock and Adam. Both are comically, drily cynical in a way that calls to mind the essays of David Sedaris and David Rakoff. Adam's lengthy analysis of a beverage ad, and his deconstruction of the pretty-but-shallow lives of the people in it, is hilarious, and college-aged Adam is bitter beyond his years in a way that's reminiscent of Holden Caulfield. This is more talky than plot-driven, but with characters like these, that's not a bad thing.

Looking forward to Hugh Taylor's next book as this one left me wanting to read more. The characters were intriquing and the story plot kept my interest until the end.

Rarely does a piece operate on so many levels as this. It can be read as just a fun rompy character piece. But also conveys a lot of social commentary on what our society and those who teach us really value. And the relationships really pulled me in. Loved it!

This product was just what I was looking for. I am a therapist and use a mindfulness approach with my patients. Having access to such a welldone resource that is easy to use and understand for beginners has been very helpful.

While going through classes to try and grasp this concept I still could not grasp the practice. This CD made things so clear. It is extremely helpful & informative. I appreciate the authors tone and easy to follow language!
I will probably purchase follow up products from this author.

Jon Kabat-Zinn gives a most complete introduction to appreciating the now and quieting your mind. I highly recommend these cd's for the beginner.

I have been lucky enough to take two Mindfulness courses and they have changed my life. Both were run by excellent course leaders but nothing compares with hearing Mindfulness founder Jon Kabat Zinn discuss the philosophy and methodology behind it. His wit, compassion and way with words themselves make CD1 compulsive listening as well as explaining the reasons for CD2 which are the practices themselves. I cannot recommend this highly enough to anybody who wants to learn about themselves and especially those seeking release from troubled mind states such as anxiety and depression. Buy it- Mindfulness practitioners will tell you honestly that they make no promises to 'fix things' but it might change your life too...

A very useful program to help each one of us get in touch with what's real and important. It makes a lot of sense when you think about what John says. And you can't help but relax listening to his voice.

I am not a particularly polished reviewer, so I'll make this short. Larry Brown's final book, even unfinished, is a stunning work of fiction. This is the rare book that will have your heart breaking for a child who loves his daddy when the man is unlovable, have you worrying about the welfare of a giant catfish AND give you some insight into Tourrette's syndrome. That doesn't even tell you about the beautiful, perfect writing that will have you seeing, feeling, hearing and even smelling the land that his characters, his beautifully drawn and tangible characters, live in. I never met he man, and I didn't even read him until he passed, but I miss Larry Brown tremendously. When you finish this book, you will, too.

A Miracle of Catfish is an unabridged audiobook presentation of a countryside novel by Larry Brown, which he completed and sent to his editor shortly before his unfortunate death in 2004. Young Jimmy feels alienated from his cold and distant father, and tries to find a friend in next-door neighbor Cortez who has started to truck in catfish for his new pond. But Cortez is plagued with a tangled mess of difficulties: his contentious daughter has a son with Tourette's; his farm hand might be a murderer; and he keeps a terrible secret hidden away in the barn. Additional notes on the story's ending are included, in this modern-day classic that continues Brown's traditional themes of coping with isolation and loneliness, as narrated and performed by professional actor Tom Stechschulte. 15 CDs, 17 1/2 hours.

This book is THE book fans of Larry Brown had been waiting for. Brown's style is fully realized with this book (a book that unfortunately was never finished--Brown died suddenly before that could happen)and every one of his dented and warped characters step off the page and into the readers head fully formed--and then they don't want to leave. And while an ending would have been nice, this plump novel is worth reading (and rereading) and it proves not only Brown's vision and purpose but also that life is one unpredictable trip and that we'd best do what we need to/want to NOW. Thank God Larry Brown did!

Another reason to mourn Larry Brown's untimely death is the fact that we will never know just how the lives of the people he created in his final masterpiece would have turned out. Would Cortez have become the father little Bobby deserves, replacing the hapless and clueless daddy who can think of no one but himself? Would we ever know any more about the fish man? Perhaps we already know enough about all the living, breathing, all-too-real characters Larry imagined for us by the time we come to the page where we are left wanting to know more about them and about the others living in his imagination, waiting for future books that won't be written. It's a rare talent who can keep us interested in and even hopeful about the fates of some pretty unlikeable and apparently unredeemable people. Bobby, Bobby's daddy, and Cortez are among Larry Brown's finest creations.

'A Miracle Of Catfish' was unfinished when author Larry Brown died unexpectedly. Because the book was almost finished, publication of Brown's last offering to his fans was possible. The book uses ellipsis to show where editing was done, and though unfinished, includes the notes that Brown left behind as to how he planned to wrap up the novel.

In Brown's languid southern prose, he explores the lives of several people living in the quiet, countrified outskirts of a small town. Cortez Sharp, a 72 year old man who's wife is disabled, decides to dig out a large pond on his property and stock it with catfish. He lives a solitary life, preferring to be left alone with his vegetable patches and herds of cows. His daughter Lucinda lives in Atlanta with her boyfriend Albert, who suffers from Tourettes Syndrome. Cortez calls Albert 'The Retard', driving a wedge between him and his only surviving child. Cortez carries a dark secret with him, one of horrible proportions.

There's Jimmy, a ten year old boy with bad teeth, who lives near Cortez's farm in an old trailer. Jimmy struggles with his father's temper, his two half-sisters Evelyn and Velma, and his desire to fix the go-kart his daddy built for him. Jimmy's Daddy (known only in the book as 'Jimmy's Daddy') is a typical redneck loser. He drives around in his old '55 drinking beer and smoking cigarettes, fights with himself over trying to treat Jimmy better, and has an affair with a woman at the stove factory where he works that turns out bad (in pregnancy) which threatens his life and marriage to Jonette.

And then there's Cleve, an old black man who used to work for Cortez, mean as a polecat, and murderous to boot. He's been in prison twice and though he swore he'd never go back, he's not quite done committing crimes.

Typical of Brown's unhurried and languorous prose, there's lots of smoking, beer drinking, and driving around. There's surprises like DUI's, tractor accidents, unwanted pregnancies, affairs, fishing, hunting, and a young boy worried about having puppies.

These aren't exactly people you would want for neighbors, but Brown brings them out fully fleshed and alive, and you know there are people out there just like Brown's characters. Everyday folk struggling with everyday problems, inner monologues that both repulse and enchant, and scenes that will suck you into the story despite their slowly building climaxes.

While I highly recommend Brown's work, I would recommend 'Joe', 'Fay', and 'Father And Son' as a warm up to 'A Miracle Of Catfish', simply because this is an unfinished work and may leave the novice Brown reader feeling flat at the abrupt end. It's sad that this is the last time we will hear Brown's voice in the literature world. Enjoy!

It is summertime and I wanted my daughter, who is eleven, to read at least one book. This was one of the books on a reading list recommended by her school. Once she started it, she couldn't put it down. She loved the "mystery" aspect of it. She said that it was the best book she has ever read!

This book was so fun to read, and so engaging, that I could not put it down. The characters are very real and endearing, and the plot line makes the reader think about how different people will see right and wrong differently. You gotta read this book!

Sallie March, 11 year old spunky, tomboy and her older ladylike sister Maude live with Aunt Ruthie until their Aunt has the misfortune to be accidentally shot dead by the notorious Joe Harden.

The two girls are taken in by Reverend Peasley and his wife, who immediately put the girls to work running the household while they take it easy. Maude, on whom falls the brunt of the work and being courted by an elderly gentleman, decides it is time to take her's and Sallie's fortune into their own hands and brave the wilds of the frontier in search of their last living relative, Uncle Arlen.

But Maude and Sally soon find that losing their Aunt Ruthie is only the beginning of their problems as they ride out of Cedar Rapids and into the kind of trouble Sallie has only read about in her beloved dime novels.

Told by Sallie as she tries to set the record straight and punctuated by the erroneous newspaper reports of "Mad Maude and her gang", this rollicking Wild West adventure story will leave you begging for more.

Very engaging story. Characters are likable, plot is well paced. The sequel is great, too.

If your child or student doesn't like historical fiction, try them on this one. They won't be able to put it down. The book also has enough period details to make it great supplemental reading for an American history unit.

Annie Sullivan, Helen Keller's teacher and lifelong friend, tells her own story for middle grade to high school readers in this fictionalized autobiography. Each chapter begins with an excerpt from Sullivan's letters to Sophia Hopkins, a mentor and friend (as well as housemother) from Perkins Institute for the Blind. Annie was sent to serve the Keller family after her own hero journey from Tewksbury orphanage to Perkins, half blind most of the time. While the story will be familiar to anyone who has seen The Miracle Worker with Patty Duke and Ann Bancroft, the details of Sullivan's first teaching job, counter pointed by details from her personal history (sent to the almshouse, the ensuing loss of a brother, her blindness, her trepidation hidden carefully from the Kellers about not being able to help Helen at all) will ring true. The courage and determination of a young woman triumphs in the face of family reluctance and interference which made her efforts to teach Helen Keller the "true meaning" behind the fingerspelled words very difficult. Annie's emphasis on civilized behavior despite disability is remarkable in our own "anything goes" world where comportment has fallen into the world of archaic concepts. The author's afterword is perhaps the heart of the book, telling the story concisely of how 20-year-old Sullivan broke through Helen's shell in a month, and for the next fifty years accompanied her on the incredible journey into the wider world. 11 photographs, an extensive bibliography including books, articles, films and videos plus online resources will help readers continue inquiry if they desire. A two-page chronology of events is also included. The cover includes Braille rendition of the title and subtitle.

While most people have at least heard of Helen Keller, few know much about her teacher, the dedicated and passionate Annie Sullivan. Sarah Miller's MISS SPITFIRE may change that. The novel gives a fictionalized but well-researched narrative, in Annie's own voice, of the first month Annie spent with Helen. Her struggle to reach this wild, blind, and deaf child and overcome the obstacles presented by Helen's family makes a riveting read.

Miller delves deeply into her subject, letting readers in on Annie's early life through memories and flashbacks--of her abusive father, of the horrible years she spent at a state almshouse, and of the better but still difficult years in a school for the blind. Readers will find it easier to sympathize with and relate to her loneliness and longing for affection. It's wonderful to see the parts of her personality that had long been considered flaws--her stubbornness, her fierce temper--become assets in dealing with Helen. More than just a historical figure, in MISS SPITFIRE Annie Sullivan becomes a fully realized human being.

It's clear from the novel that Annie's success didn't come easily. It details every setback and every triumph, no matter how minor, until readers will be racing through the pages waiting to see how she will finally break through to Helen. They may be a little disappointed to discover that the novel ends shortly after that major breakthrough, wishing to read on and continue the journey with Annie. A sequel would certainly be welcome!

MISS SPITFIRE is everything a historical novel should be--richly imagined, true to its period, and providing an engaging story that will feel completely relevant to modern readers.

Reviewed by: Lynn Crow

I love this book! When I first read it, I was reminded of reading the play, The Miracle Worker. Ms. Miller has written a wonderful book for children about Annie Sullivan, the teacher who helped Helen Keller connect to the world. I have shared the book with my students and other teachers. Some of my students have commented that they never knew about Annie Sullivan, and how important she was to Helen's education.

"My heart is singing for joy this morning."
-Anne Sullivan to Sophia Hopkins, March 1887

So begins one of the chapters in Sarah Miller's debut novel Miss Spitfire: Reaching Helen Keller, and her quote from Annie Sullivan describes just how I felt when I finished this magical book.

Last spring, I issued an invitation to authors of historical fiction, to send me information about their books for a presentation I'm doing this fall at the New York State Reading Association Conference. I heard from wonderful writers -- some whose works I knew and some who were new to me. But one title REALLY caught my eye: Miss Spitfire by Sarah Miller. First, it got my attention because the titles of our books are so similar(Mine is called SPITFIRE). When I opened it up to start reading, it got my attention in another way -- a sweep-you-away-in-the-story kind of way.

Miss Spitfire: Reaching Helen Keller tells the story of Annie Sullivan, the young woman who battled beliefs of the time and fought with every ounce of energy she had to give Helen Keller the gift of language. Sarah Miller tells the story in Annie's voice -- and tells it with a passion that speaks to the depth of her research and her pure love for this historical figure. Miss Spitfire not only tells the story we see in The Miracle Worker -- the story of Annie's time with Helen -- but also plunges into Annie Sullivan's past, and in doing so, provides a deeper understanding of the commitment and determination that led to her success.

The portrayals of Annie's emotional, psychological, and physical struggles with Helen were so vivid that I found myself reading with my brow furrowed in determined solidarity with Annie as she plunked Helen back into her seat at the dining room table for the tenth time. Truly, Annie had to be a spitfire to survive this monumental challenge when she was little more than a girl herself.

The minor characters in this novel sparkle, too. One of my favorite scenes brought Helen together for a lesson with the Kellers' servant boy Percy. I felt like I was about to burst with pride right along with Annie when Helen began to turn from a student into a teacher, helping Percy with some of the letters. Mr. & Mrs. Keller, too, are painted with a tremendous depth of understanding. It would have been easy to portray Helen's parents as one-dimensional characters who got in the way of Annie's work, but instead, Sarah Miller helps us to see their complexity and feel some of their anguish at having a beautiful, broken child.

Early in the book, Annie tells Helen's mother why her lessons are so vital to Helen.

"Words, Mrs. Keller, words bridge the gap between two minds. Words are a miracle."

Indeed, they are. And Miss Spitfire will have you believing in that miracle all over again.

Authors that try to tackle any aspect of Helen Keller's life in a children's literary format are simultaneously blessed and cursed. On the one hand, talk about God's gift to authors. The emotional ups and downs of Helen's tale, the (dare I say) hope of her life, I mean she's a great historical character. Loads more interesting to a nine-year-old than your average everyday biographical figures. So there's that. On the other hand, none of this is a secret. As a result, my library's Helen Keller section of biographies is rivaled only by Martin Luther King Jr. So when I saw that someone had done a middle grade work of fiction regarding Helen and Annie Sullivan's early days, I hardly gave it a thought. Why read what we already know? I mean, if everyone knows a series of facts about someone, can there be any worthwhile reason to read yet ANOTHER story about her life and trials? The answer, as it happens, is yes. Debut author Sarah Miller shows us that even the most familiar story can become edge-of-your-seat gripping when the writing's cool and collected.

There's a reason this book is called "Miss Spitfire". Turns out, that was the nickname bestowed on Annie Sullivan when she attended the Perkins Institute for the Blind. Irish, alone in the world, half-blind, and with guts galore, Ms. Sullivan is terrified at the prospect of her very first job. She's being sent to work with one Helen Keller, a blind, deaf child. The hope is to work a "miracle" on her and teach her to bridge the gap between signing and the use of words. The task turns out to be more than she gambled for, however, when it appears that Helen has had the run of her household for years. Uncivilized, uncouth, and unrepentant, her wishy-washy parents have failed to discipline, thereby allowing Helen to always get what she wants. If Annie didn't see Helen coming, though, you can be darn certain that Helen didn't see Annie either. Now the battle between the two firebrands has begun and it's time to see whether or not the stubbornness of a child who has always had her way can compete with the stubbornness of a woman as tough and smart as Annie Sullivan.

The reason the Helen Keller story works is because Helen is hell on earth. She's not the angelic creature just waiting for a helping hand. No dewy-eyed, saintly personality-challenged naïf she. She's not Little Eva or Little Nell. No she was, to use my grandmother's phrase, a pistol. So for a book like this to work you need to really feel for Annie Sullivan. When Helen cracks her in the jaw with a hardheaded doll, you have to want to strangle the child with your own bare hands and not just Annie's. As an author, Miller's smart enough to know how to tease out the dramatic elements of this tale. Seeing Ms. Sullivan's background, you are all the more impressed at her restraint around Helen. Considering that the girl has enough crafty qualities to try the patience of a saint, and considering that Ms. Sullivan's own father was abusive, you would think such tendency towards violence might easily pass down from father to daughter. Instead, the opposite is true. She does not hit because she knows what it is like to be on the receiving end of a blow. I was very taken with the moral in this story that rules and order breed love. It is Annie's restraint and discipline that in the end manages to tease out that love.

Annie's loneliness and need almost becomes their own characters in this book. Right from the start we learn that "The loneliness in my heart is an old acquaintance." Yet Miller plays Annie as increasingly desperate for human affection. She constantly looks for love from Helen, even though the child has little to no interest in forming any kind of a relationship at first. And when a baby gives Annie a kiss (lunging at her, as the text says, "like a lecher"), the woman says that, "Warmth ripples down to my toes," and that she is "Woozy with pleasure." The writing here, as you can see, is good.

Technically I should probably have a copy of The Miracle Worker in front of me for reference. It would allow me to note whether or not the emotional beats in both the play and Helen's story are identical or not. Then again, maybe it's better this way. It's clear that "Miss Spitfire" is a story of Helen's teacher, not just Helen herself. I'm sure that if Miller had wanted to she could have written the book from Helen's point of view, but as far as I can tell that way lays only tears. Seeing Annie's past allows us to note how much she and her young pupil have in common. It's a clever motif. So clever, in fact, that I feel certain that the kids who read this story will have little difficulty getting inside of the mind of an adult. Sometimes there's a disconnect between the protagonist and the reader, particularly in children's novels, if the hero is fully grown. Here I have no qualms.

The book is meticulously referenced, much to my relief. There's an author's note, photographs of the characters and locations, books for further reading, a plethora of websites and videos to visit for further info, a timeline, and even a list of sources (print and online). Better still, Miller knows enough to point out the elements of her tale that jar with the narrative. At one point Annie sing-signs the words to the song "Bessie's Song to Her Doll", because they fit the situation so well. In her Author's Note, Miller is quick to point out that the poem was written some years later by Lewis Carroll and could not have been used as it is here. It just happens to fit the book well.

I did have some questions here and there. As I've said, you get the feeling that Miller was a stickler for historical accuracy. So much so that there is no cleaning up of the real Annie's references to the "little negro boy" who worked in the house. So it was interesting to me that at no point does Annie go about wearing dark glasses ala Anne Bancroft. I assume that this was a theatrical flourish in the stage production of Helen's story that didn't accurately occur at this point in time. I did wish for a mention of it somewhere in the book, though.

And I had some other confusions elsewhere. Miller's book never really clarifies how Annie got out of the almshouse and into the Perkins school for the blind. How was her way paid? We see a brief encounter between her and a man in charge of Perkins, but there's never a full explanation of how that led to her acceptance into the school. I had hoped that maybe the author's note in the back would offer some background, but the only mention of the incident is a cryptic sentence reading, "Annie enters Perkins Institutions for the Blind" without any attention paid to the "hows" behind the sentence.

For me, the book is summarized nicely in the real life quote taken from Anne Sullivan's letters to a Ms. Sophia Hopkins, appearing at the beginning of Chapter Six. "The greatest problem I shall have to solve is how to discipline and control her without breaking her spirit." In the solution we find the heart of the novel. I've read very little historical fiction this year that stayed with me. I like to think that Ms. Miller's book is one of the few worth keeping close at hand. A really enjoyable story.

I have partially read so many bad romance novels recently (e.g., boy meets girl & saves the day). The plot of this book was unique and kept me reading straight through. The characters were very likable (the hero was not the overbearing Alpha male so often written into a romance novel). I did not read the other books yet in the trilogy - this was my first Holling book. Not having read the other two was not a problem for me. I hope her other books are as entertaining.

I truly enjoyed this series. There is so much depth and emotion in all three books. My Shadow Warrior concludes the story of the three sisters; Isobel, Gillian and Rose. Rose is a strong heroine, intent on saving her dying father at any cost. She seeks out the Wizard of the North, William in hopes that he will be able to save her father using his powers. After a rocky start he agrees to travel home with Rose to heal her father. The story is romantic and dark with lots of sexual chemistry. Deidra, William's daughter who is the heroine of My Immortal Protector (my favorite Holling book) is introduced in this book.

The fascination with the paranormal implies a big dose of imagination; Jen Holling is creating three heroines of different mystical powers: Isobel, Gillian and Rose MacDonell; in My Shadow Warrior, they merge the powers toward solving the mystery of the illness of Allan MacDonell, their father, and the fate of Lilian MacDonell, their mother.
Must read the entire trilogy

I am a die hard fan of romantic novels. I have all three of the series and I absolutely love them they are all really good.

This is the third installment of The Brides of the Bloodstone trilogy. It's the story of Rose, youngest of the three MacDonell sisters. While they were little girls, their mother, a powerful witch, was burned at the stake. In fear for their lives, their father hid them separately. Now many years later, and on his deathbed from a mysterious illness, the MacDonell has summoned his daughters home.

Their lives are still in danger so he has arranged each of them to be married to men he can entrust with their safety. Rose, the youngest and blessed with the healing touch, is betrothed to Jamie MacPherson, a childhood friend she hasn't seen in years. Her wedding, however, has been postponed so she can devote herself to discovering the source of her father's illness.

Despite her many efforts, her father continues to deteriorate. To Rose's mind, her only hope is William MacKay, a gifted healer also known as the Wizard of the North. Since her many letters to him have gone unanswered, Rose decides to travel to his fortress to see him in person.

William is determined to shun the girl who has traveled many miles to see him, but curiosity forces him to disguise himself and seek her out. What he finds is a beautiful woman who is dedicated to helping others, even at risk to herself.

His fascination with her finally forces him to see her and eventually agree to travel to MacDonell castle to see her father. But in truth there is a sinister plot behind the MacDonell's illness and his wife's death and this mysterious enemy will stop at nothing to get what he wants.

This was such a great ending to a wonderful trilogy. The plot of the MacDonnell's illness and the mother's death at the stake is woven throughout all three books. It is finally resolved in this last tale but what an ending. Jen Holling has done a masterful job weaving several storylines together to create an enchanting tale of love, treachery, and greed.