Spotlight: Mighty Meg 1: Mighty Meg and the Magical Ring by Sammy Griffin and Illustrated by Micah Player

In the first book of the Mighty Meg series, Meg receives a ring for her eighth birthday and wakes up with superpowers!

Meg's life is turned upside down when a magical ring gives her superpowers! But Meg isn't the only one who changes. Strange things start happening in her once-normal town, and now Meg must use her brand-new superpowers to keep everyone safe.

Can Meg master her new powers and find the courage to be the hero her town needs?

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Spotlight: Best Family Ever by Karen Kingsbury With Tyler Russell

Much-loved storyteller Karen Kingsbury’s Baxter Family books have captured the hearts of millions who have come to think of the Baxter family as their own. Now Karen Kingsbury and her son Tyler Russell tell the childhood stories of the beloved Baxter children—Brooke, Kari, Ashley, Erin, and Luke—to inspire and entertain younger readers.

Brooke is the perfect older sister. For that reason, Kari and Ashley work hard to make their parents just as proud of them as they are of Brooke. Each girl has her own talents. Brooke is an excellent student. Kari is a great soccer player. Ashley, a talented artist. And they are always there for each other. But when the news comes that Dr. Baxter is moving the family from Ann Arbor to Bloomington, Indiana, and the Baxters need to leave the only home and friends they’ve ever known, no one is happy. Saying goodbye is hard but the family still has what’s most important—their faith and their love for each other. 

The first book in the Baxter Family Children series, #1 New York Timesbestselling author Karen Kingsbury and Tyler Russell tell the story of what it was like to grow up in the Baxter family, the best family ever.

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About the Author

Karen Kingsbury, #1 New York Times bestselling novelist, is America’s favorite inspirational storyteller, with more than twenty-five million copies of her award-winning books in print. Her last dozen titles have topped bestseller lists and many of her novels are under development as major motion pictures. Her Baxter Family books are being developed into a TV series slated to debut fall 2019. Karen is also an adjunct professor of writing at Liberty University. She and her husband, Donald, live in Tennessee near four of their adult children.

Tyler Russell has been telling stories his whole life. In elementary school, he won a national award for a children’s book he wrote, and he has been writing ever since. In 2015 he graduated college with a BFA from Lipscomb University. Soon after, he sold his first screenplay, Karen Kingsbury’s Maggie’s Christmas Miracle, which premiered in December of 2017 on Hallmark. Along with screenplays and novels, Tyler is a songwriter, singer, actor, and creative who lives in Nashville, Tennessee, where he enjoys serving his church, adventuring around the city, and spending time with his family.

Spotlight: Spencer and Vincent, the Jellyfish Brothers by Tony Johnston and Illustrated by Emily Dove

When two jellyfish brothers are separated at sea it takes all of the ocean’s creatures to help them reunite in this heartwarming tale of brotherly love.

Spencer and Vincent are jellyfish brothers who live together in the sea, their wet and shining home. They invented a little song which went like this:

My brother, my brother,
he’s sweet, not smelly.
I love him from down in my jelly belly.

One day a wave of superior magnitude separates them! The brothers know they have to do whatever it takes to find each other again. And they’ll need some help along the way…

Sometimes friends can really make a the difference. Spencer and Vincent is a story of adventures and the bond of family.

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About the Author & Illustrator

Tony Johnston is the award-winning author of more than 100 beloved children’s books. She lives with her family in San Marino, California, where she grew up.

Emily Dove is an illustrator and author who lives in Cleveland, Ohio, where the winding rivers and fall foliage never cease to inspire her. As a certified naturalist, she uses illustration as a tool to educate and inspire others about the natural world. About her debut picture book Wendell the Narwhal, Kirkus Reviews said “children will find a lot to like in little Wendell.” She also illustrated Spencer and Vincent, the Jellyfish Brothers by Tony Johnston.

Spotlight: Sleep Little Angel by Margaret Wise Brown and Illustrated by Stephen Gulbis

This beautifully illustrated magical story from best-selling author Margaret Wise Brown—creator of the children's classics Goodnight Moon and Runaway Bunny—will enchant children and parents alike. It's a perfect bedtime story for your little one.

Rock your child gently to sleep with this soothing lullaby, Sleep Little Angel, passing through the seasons of a perfect year.

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Spotlight: The Simple Art of Flying by Cory Leonardo

Quirky characters, plucky humor, and a heartwarming message come together in this big-hearted debut novel about friendship and the true meaning of family.

Sometimes flying means keeping your feet on the ground…

Born in a dismal room in a pet store, Alastair the African grey parrot dreams of escape to bluer skies. He’d like nothing more than to fly away to a palm tree with his beloved sister, Aggie. But when Aggie is purchased by twelve-year-old Fritz, and Alastair is adopted by elderly dance-enthusiast and pie-baker Albertina Plopky, the future looks ready to crash-land.

In-between anxiously plucking his feathers, eating a few books, and finding his own poetic voice, Alastair plots his way to a family reunion. But soon he’s forced to choose between the life he’s always dreamed of and admitting the truth: that sometimes, the bravest adventure is in letting go.

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About the Author

Cory Leonardo grew up believing she’d replace Vanna White on Wheel of Fortune, but when that didn’t work out, she decided she’d turn letters and phrases in a different way (but minus the glittery dresses, sadly). A born and bred upstate New Yorker, she currently lives in the Syracuse area with her husband and three plucky children. Cory was selected and mentored in Brenda Drake’s Pitch Wars 2016 and has been an active SCBWI member for the past five years. The Simple Art of Flying is her first novel.

Spotlight: The Carnival of Wishes & Dreams by Jenny Lundquist

In the tradition of Wishtree and You May Already Be a Winner, this hopeful middle grade novel tells the story of three former friends who must come together at their annual town carnival to heal and reconnect after a tragedy.

The small town of Clarkville has seen better days. Ever since the Cohen factory burned down a few years ago, jobs are scarce and unemployment is high. But each year for one night the Carnival of Wishes and Dreams comes to town and everyone gets to indulge in a little wonder and delight. And for three girls who each receive notes asking them to meet the anonymous sender at midnight at the Ferris Wheel, it’s an evening that promises to be truly magical.

Audrey McKinley can’t believe someone would ask her to ride the Ferris Wheel. Everyone in town knows she’s afraid of heights; the last time she rode the Ferris Wheel it ended with her having a panic attack. But ever since her dad lost his job after the Cohen factory burned down he’s been working too little. The carnival gives him a chance for some seasonal work, and she plans to spend the evening checking up on him and making sure he does his job. Maybe she’ll face her fears tonight, after all.

Grace Chang isn’t supposed to go to the carnival. It’s too close to the burned remains of the old Cohen factory—the place where her firefighter father lost his life. And they always rode the Ferris Wheel together, so that’s also something Grace isn’t supposed to do. But since her mom just announced they’ll be moving away from Clarkville the day after the carnival, Grace is sick of only doing things she’s supposed to do. She’ll be at the carnival. And she is definitely riding that Ferris Wheel.

Harlow Cohen is surprised anyone would want to ride the Ferris Wheel with her. Harlow used to be popular. But ever since her grandparents’ old factory burned down and so many people lost their jobs, many of the kids at school blame her—and her rich family—for their own parents’ worsening economic situations. Harlow can never resist a dare, but when a note arrives asking her to meet an anonymous person at the Ferris Wheel at midnight, she’s far from certain it will be a friend waiting for her.

Can these three girls put their differences aside long enough for their wishes to come true? And is it possible to save a friendship that once seemed lost for good?

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About the Author

Jenny Lundquist is the author of The Charming Life of Izzy Malone, Seeing Cinderella, and Plastic Polly. She grew up in Huntington Beach, California, and earned a degree in Intercultural Studies at Biola University. Jenny has painted an orphanage in Mexico, taught English at a university in Russia, and hopes one day to write a book at a café in Paris. Jenny and her husband live in northern California with their two sons and Rambo, the world’s whiniest cat.