Shadow on the Mountain reviewed on Shepard.com

Sandy Brehl, reviewer, is the author of the ODIN’S PROMISE trilogy about the Resistance movement in Norway during the German occupation in World War II.

“This novel (historical fiction but inspired by real people and events) was released just a month before my novel. I read it immediately and was enthralled by the intensity and density of issues. Two best friends, Norwegian teen boys, choose opposite paths after the Nazi invasion of their homeland. One reveled in the potential glory and power of joining a German Youth club while the other pursued resistance and resilience in protesting the propaganda and power of the military occupation. The escalation of emotions and dangers, actual conflicts, high-stakes tension, and eventual climactic decisions are riveting. This has everything: emotional depth, action, suspicion, suspense, and complex characters in challenging situations. Add the Author Note with details about the truth behind the tale and you’ve got a guaranteed winner of a book.”

Be sure to check out Sandy’s complete list of The best books about young characters with courage, resilience, and resistance in WWII.

Shepherd.com was created by bibliophile and entrepreneur Ben Fox, who believes that books build better humans. The mission behind his website is to help everyone find the book they didn't know they were looking for. As of June 2023, he’s asked 9,0000+ authors to share five of their favorite books around a topic, theme, or mood and why they love each book. This infuses each book with a bit of magic and meaning.

Battle of the Books: Kids summer reading competition

The battle is on. The book battle, that is.

The Battle of the Books is a nationwide program that encourages kids to read and gives them the opportunity to battle others with their newfound book knowledge. This summer, the battle was on in Brainerd, Minn.

“What a great bunch of readers in Brainerd!” said Margi, “Some may have scored better on the Windswept questions than I did. Thanks to all for the warm welcome!”

Sponsored by Friends of the Brainerd Public Library, many books (including Windswept!) were written by Minnesota authors or taking place in Minnesota — of various genres with different themes. There are stories of fantasy, realistic fiction and historical fiction, dealing with themes like love, loss, forgiveness, diversity, acceptance, tolerance and war.

Participants will read four books — one every three weeks — in the summer. After finishing each book, there will be a book club event of sorts for students to discuss the books with both adult volunteers and other students. The following week, they’ll get to meet the author, who will appear either in person or via Zoom.

The final battle will take place in September. Kids will be split into groups of four and go head-to-head with their peers, answering questions about the books they read.

Minnesota Reads: Lily Leads the Way

Minnesota Reads on The North 103.3 FM features Minnesota authors talking about their work. This week Lily was featured! You can listen to the the entire interview here >

FROM 103.3 It's not frequent that a picture book focused on an anthropomorphized sailboat gets the "based on a true story" label, but Lily Leads the Way might be the exception.

Author Margi Preus recalls many trips under the lift bridge on a small sailboat that she and her husband owned. "In those days, you had to signal the bridge... with a horn," says Preus. "We had this little, short tooty horn." Traffic in the Duluth canal - where protagonist Lily is headed - can be heavy and intimidating. Lily's adventures traveling around the port are aided by the works of illustrator Matt Myers. "He's just an amazing illustrator."

Lily Leads the Way has been nominated for the Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards and is available at most bookstores. "I encourage people to visit their indie bookstores," says Preus. "Zenith in Duluth or the Bookstore at Fitger's in Duluth, and many other great independent bookstores all over Minnesota."

Minnesota Reads is produced at The North 103.3 with funding provided in part by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.

Windswept is a CBC Best Children’s Book 2023

Windswept was named a CBC Best Children’s Book of the year and with “Outstanding Merit”

The Best Children's Books of the Year [2023 edition] includes more than 600 titles chosen by the Children’s Book Committee as the best of the best published in 2022. In choosing books for the annual list, committee members consider literary quality and excellence of presentation as well as the potential emotional impact of the books on young readers. Other criteria include credibility of characterization and plot, authenticity of time and place, age suitability, positive treatment of ethnic and religious differences, and the absence of stereotypes.

You can see all the winners here: https://www.bankstreet.edu/library/center-for-childrens-literature/childrens-book-committee/best-childrens-books-of-the-year/edition/

Feb. 18: Storytime and book signing at Four Pines Bookstore

Saturday, February 18 from 11:00 am - 1:00 pm

Join Margi for storytime and book signing at the Four Pines Bookstore in Bemidji. She’ll be reading from her two latest books, Lily Leads the Way and Windswept.

Both books will be available for purchase, however Four Pines strongly suggests pre-ordering your selections before the event to ensure you are able to get a copy signed. Contact Four Pines to pre-order your books >