NEW POSTING Cheryl's Conference: Writing, Publishing, Blogging, Speaking, and Storytelling

Join us Monday-Thursday, February 3-6, 2014, 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Ritzy's Cafe and Backerei, 2765 Algonquin Rd. Rolling Meadows, IL 60008.

Platform is so important.  I will give you a personalized plan to start your platform expanding.   
To register and ask for more info:  Click here 

It's all about your Idea and Your Platform.  

Watch Michael Hyatt nail it about platform with his new book, Platform

Great Lesser Known Books by Well Known Authors

While Caddie Woodlawn is the top book she is remembered for, Baby Island and Winter Cottage were my favorites by Carolyn Ryrie Brink.  It's possible to find these books through the intraloan system through your library or ask your library to order.  We have gotten a lot of books to borrow by asking the library to order it.  Check out used books stores, also, for these gems.

Winter Cottage is $27.00 hardcover used right now on Amazon because no one wants to give up their copy!  On another Amazon post, it's $98 for a used paperback copy.

Our family has loved this book since 1990.  Our sons and daughters alike were
like magnets to the pages and we still call our pancakes the names they named
their pancakes in Winter Cottage. Perfect to read right now during a blizzard.

An Amazon review of Winter Cottage which also tells part of the plot:  
"It is the heartwarming story of a widowered papa and his two young
daughters, Minty and Eggs, and their happy little doggie, Buster.
It takes place in a time when there were no jobs to be had, and
money and supplies were so short that every penny and every item
had to stretch as far as it could go. But, in this little family,
love abounded, and integrity, and, mmm, papa's wonderfully-friendly
and comforting pancakes and brown-sugar syrup. The story, along with 
the wonderful drawings by Fermin Rocker, will probably make you want 
to be there, in that comforting and wholesome life, in a simpler time, 
where one is so grateful just to have the simple things, including the love 
and comfort of those you love and who love you, and a secure roof over your head."


Baby Island by Carolyn Ryrie Brink is such a real great aloud book also.  It's a must to read
to boys and girls.  On Amazon you can purchase a used copy for .01 cent.  Wow.

We love this book too and read it about 20 times aloud.  It was easy to impart the love of
babies in our children anyway, but Baby Island was an additional reason why.

The basic plot:
When a ferocious storm hits their ship, young Mary and Jean become stranded on a deserted island. They're not the only survivors; with them are four babies. Immediately the sisters set out to make the island a home for themselves and the little ones. A classic tale of courage and dedication from a Newbery Medalist author.  Order now