Tehanu and Tenar have traveled to Havnor to meet with the King and parley with dragons. Ged is left alone at Gont, and is visited by a wandering sorcerer who has terrible nightmares of the dead calling out to him. Their stories intertwine into the perfect ending for this incredible series!

There are extremely deep themes in all the Earthsea books, but they all come to a head in this last book. Death and life, meaning and identity; all these themes are analyzed and emotionally inspected through the characters and their experiences.

As with most of Le Guin's books, I'm not quite sure what to think. It's masterfully written with truly beautiful prose, and a deep story full of meaning and emotion. But it's just so strange and other-worldly and odd. The best thing about her writing is that it makes you think about things... really think and ponder.

And I love that she never explains things to the reader in a condescending way. She expects the reader to have the intelligence and imagination to fill in the little gaps between the words. It's like she gives you the first half of a well-known sentence, and your heart calls out the end of the sentence before you realize it. She lays such a subtle pathway for you to follow that you KNOW what the character is feeling, or what the character wanted to say behind the dialogue they actually said, without a lengthy explanation of the inner workings of the character. One word suffices.

I love this series!

This short story in the Earthsea series is the tragic tale of a daughter whose father has been cursed into stone. She keeps watch for years, waiting for the day when he can be released from the curse, but when that day finally comes, the outcome of their actions are unpredictable.

This is certainly powerful for a short story. There is a lot of emotion and folklore packed into a few pages. But it's so gruesome and tragic. I didn't exactly enjoy it, but I can appreciate how brilliant the writing is.

Charlie is a liar. He meets the Skull of Truth and is cursed to always tell the truth, and his life changes in unexpected ways. Telling the truth gets him into a lot of trouble, and the curse begins to affect other people around him.

I didn't enjoy this book as much as some of the others in the Magic Shop series. I thought some of the plot points didn't quite fit in with the rest of the story. There were some radical leftist political ideas that I didn't agree with. I was surprised to find them in a children's book.

I was pleased to find that the skull himself is not scary at all. He's a humorous and silly character, and there's nothing frightening or creepy about him other than the fact that he's a skull.

There are some funny bits of dialogue, and some interesting character development. The plot is all over the place though, and I didn't really connect with any of the characters.
It's a good story, but not amazing.

A new neighbor has moved into the house next door on Cherry Tree Lane, and the Banks family are horrified. Only Mary Poppins has the magical wisdom to deal with the drama that threatens to engulf the whole street.

I love the whimsical writing and the funny magic! Mary Poppins is perfect as always, and the Banks children are silly and adorable. The plot has some interesting turns, and I love how all the neighbors on Cherry Tree Lane have their own little additions to the story.

Mary Poppins is just the right mixture of sweet and strict. She plays games with the children, but also lays down the law in the nursery. I love how she reacts to each twist in the plot with grace and elegance.

Another hilarious and whimsical story in the Mary Poppins series! I love the clever dialogue and imaginative plot. Mary Poppins is perfection, and when magical things begin to happen, she always keeps an elegant and calm disposition.

I was surprised to find some of this story told from the Park Keeper’s perspective. He’s such a funny old character, but he and Mary Poppins never get along.
He criticizes Mary Poppins for taking the children into the Park for a late picnic on Midsummer Nights Eve, and gets dragged into one of their magical adventures with the Banks children.

A lovely book and a fun one to read in the summer!

This guided journal is for parents and children to write in together as a reminder to be grateful for something each day. The prompts include things like being grateful for friends, laughter, favorite books, pets, acts of kindness, and teachers.

A guided entry might ask the writer to do an act of kindness or generosity and then journal about it and how it made them feel to help someone. Another entry will ask the writer to write about a time when someone helped them, and how grateful they are for the generosity of others.

Each prompt is a little different; some are questions, or lists, or even drawings. You can list five things you love about your home, draw a picture of your favorite animal, or write a letter to someone telling them why you admire them.

Each page is divided into spaces for the child and for the parent to write, answering the same guided prompt. The layout is excellent. The lines for writing are large with plenty of space for young hands to write.
There are sweet drawings and designs around the edges of each page with cute cartoon animals and plants.

This is a really special little book to share with a child!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

I really hated this book. Madame Bovary cheats on her husband and hides her adulterous affairs and runs up a lot of debt. I hated her character. She has a very complex and deep character, and her story is excellently written, but I hated her as a person.
The one good thing about this book is the lovely writing style. The descriptions are very powerful and the emotions of the characters are clear. There are really vibrant scenes with vivid words that plunge the reader into the story. Too bad I hated the subject material.

I enjoyed reading this manga especially bc it perfectly mirrors the TV episodes with the exact same dialogue and even the same wardrobe for the characters.
It’s lovely revisiting this favorite show in a different format.

This story is so indescribable. I love it! The plot just sucks you into this world, and you never want to leave. Even though there's not a ton of action in the beginning, it's the suspense that keeps you reading. So many unanswered questions, and the characters are up to all kinds of mysterious stuff! The pace really picks up towards the middle and end, and there are many surprise twists.

I love seeing the sisterly relationship with Rose and Laura, and how as their circumstances change, they have to re-learn how to be friends. That whole family are so concerned with caring for one another and protecting each other that I'm interested to see in the second book how they will react to all the turmoil that is happening.

This book ends with a big cliff-hanger, so it's smart to have the second book in the duet ready to read right away. They really should be read as one book, I think.

This book is...
mysterious
suspenseful
imaginative
heartbreaking
Deliciously frightening
emotional
dramatic
gripping
dazzling like a dash of cold water