Hard to believe some days I am the mom of a third grader. I had to clean out bookshelves because mini me has been asking for more books and has outgrown so many of her read books. These days, she likes series books as she wants to stay with the books characters when finished. I have some classics on the list, naturally, some books I enjoyed at her age, and was thrilled to be offered a book from The Jim Henson Company’s Enchanted Sisters Series to review.
The series targeted at girls age 7 to 10, tells the story of the Mother Nature’s Sparkles, four sisters: Autumn, Winter, Spring, and Summer whose job it is to change the seasons and have fun in between. The Sparkles world is magically different from our own, yet you can relate to them.
I like books with bold characters and these sisters are; they are confident too. The books are co-authored by Elise Allen, author of the book Anna’s Icy Adventure (Disney Frozen), and Halle Stanford, eight time Emmy-nominated children’s television producer and senior vice president of children’s entertainment at The Jim Henson Company. Paige Pooler, whose artwork can be seen in American Girl magazine, and the Liberty Porter, Trading Faces, and My Sister is a Vampire middle grade book series, is the illustrator.
I received Enchanted Sisters: Summer’s Friendship Games, the story of Summer who secretly has befriended Thunderbolt who with his brothers can be mischievous. The friendship was affirming and honest, though they had to work through conflict and shows being true to your friends. The competition and games between the two groups added fun and excitement.
A sweet and fun story, I knew it would capture mini me’s attention. The book was around 100 pages, so not too long for my daughter’s interest and she felt sense of accomplishment as she breezed through the pages. She loved seeing the illustrations which were black and white and every few pages. The nice thing with this series, you can just jump into any of the four books in any order without missing anything.
Loving stories of adventures, magic and friends, mini me was engrossed in the story in no time. She put it down after chapter 3 and told me, “Mommy I really LOVE this book. I can’t stop reading it!” She finished and when rereading at bedtime one night fell asleep book on her chest, she couldn’t put it down!
What mini me liked about it:
- “The pictures!” Granted, this is a chapter book and they are NOT on every page, but for a rising third grader, I remember liking an illustration every few pages too when I was young.
- “I liked all the characters – they were fun, especially the sisters. They all had magical powers. That was cool. I wish I had the powers to change the seasons, that would be awesome. I like playing games with my friends and I like some competition, just like Summer. The ending made me laugh. I want to read the other books about the other sisters.”
Three additional Enchanted Sisters books in the series are available: Winter’s Flurry Adventure
Autumn’s Secret Gift,
If you are a fan of The Jim Henson Company, look for Doozers coming out this fall!
If you have a young reader in your family, look for Doozers in August. Inspired by the wildly popular characters from the classic Henson series Fraggle Rock, a series for modern families that encourages kids to design, create and innovate.
The Doozer kids bounce from one fabulous adventure to the next, engaging in exciting challenges that require them to imagine, invent and build, all while they have a blast playing and learning together. Watch Doozers exclusively on Hulu Kids!
Have you been caught reading? In conjunction with the Association of American Publishers (AAP) Get Caught Reading Campaign, two NEW posters were added featuring the newest books from the Jim Henson Company: Enchanted Sisters and Doozers joining three characters from The Jim Henson company and are FREE to teachers and parents for use classrooms, libraries and other locations!
The posters are available for everyone here! Posters are FREE plus a $5.00 Shipping and Handling Charge per set (1 – 12 posters each of the same title) ! The order form is available here. Great gift to give your children’s library!
Want to help others Get Caught Reading?
A great way to improve the reading achievement of low-income children is to increase their access to print. Communities ranking high in achievement tests have several factors in common: an abundance of books in public libraries, easy access to books in the community at large and a large number of textbooks per student.
Anyone can get together to help increase reading achievement and literacy by organizing a book drive. This tool kit provides the basics to run a book drive, organize your group, and make an impact.
Or, do what I did with all the books mini me had outgrown when we cleaned out her bookshelf: Commit to donating your gently used books to local organizations. Here are some tips:
- Consider libraries, non-profit children’s organizations for homeless, foster children and struggling families, Goodwill and Children’s Hospital’s thrift stores, and after-school programs.
- Call the charity or organization and see if they accept used children’s books and what their guidelines are.
- Go through your books and make sure all pages are present, readable and stain-free.
OK…LOTS of GREAT Stuff from Ready to Read and The Jim Henson Company today. Thanks to Bloomsbury Publishing for providing me a book to review and one to giveaway!
Would you like to win a book of your own – I have one to giveaway to one of my readers! One US Resident 18 and over will win one of the Enchanted Sisters Books selected by the publisher. Giveaway ends June 28th at 11:59 PM ET. Void where prohibited by law. Enter on Rafflecopter below.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Do you think your kids would like Enchanted Sisters or Doozers?
Follow along the new series on social media with #EnchantedSisters!
Follow The Jim Henson Company on Facebook and Twitter for the lastest news.
Follow Bloomsbury Children’s Publishing on Twitter and Facebook.
- Five Reasons to Visit Volcano Bay - October 3, 2018
- Raccoon Mountain Caverns A Fun Family Adventure - August 10, 2018
- New Marvel Boutique Opens at Universal Orlando Resort With All the Gear a Super Stylish Super Hero Needs - August 3, 2018
the enchanted series!
Its a winner Trish!
This looks like a cute book series! I’m a children’s librarian and this might be one we should buy – I think it would be popular!
Becky @ Disney in your Day recently posted…DL Half Marathon training: 12 weeks to go
I think so. The stories are fun and who didn’t doesn’t like magic!
Julie @RunWalkRepeat recently posted…Get Caught Reading with The Jim Henson Company’s Enchanted Sisters Series – A Review and Giveaway
I think my girls would love the Enchanted Sisters series!
Tania recently posted…What’s New for Walt Disney World 2016 Vacation Packages
I think they would and your younger girls would love the stories read aloud. Fun series!
Julie @RunWalkRepeat recently posted…Get Caught Reading with The Jim Henson Company’s Enchanted Sisters Series – A Review and Giveaway
These books look cute! I bet my third-grader would also enjoy these.
My daughter really loved them! She wanted to read the Winter one next and of course we had to purchase it because it has an artic fox on the cover. She enjoys re-reading them too.