Jacqueline K. Ogburn

Baker extraordinaire Cora Lee Merriweather, with her lemon-pucker mouth and scraped-back bun, haunts her famous shop after she passes on in this humorous and ultimately heartwarming ghost story from author Jacqueline K. Ogburn and illustrator Marjorie Priceman. Driving away every subsequent proprietor, she eventually meets her match in Annie Washington, the new owner and no slouch as a baker herself. After their initial standoff, they reach a deal: if Annie can bake Cora Lee a cake like she show more herself baked, but which no one ever baked for her, one that will bring tears to the old ghost's eyes, then Cora Lee will desist. But is Annie up to the task...?

There's never much doubt as to the outcome, but watching Annie get there is half the fun in The Bake Shop Ghost, which has plenty of appeal both as a ghost story—Cora Lee can really get up to some mischief!—and as a story of friendship, and healing the wounds of the past. I suspected what the cake in question would be, and was not wrong. A lighthearted and entertaining read, pairing an engaging story with expressive illustrations that match the madcap antics being described, this would make an excellent book for the Halloween season, but also for all year. Recommended to children who enjoy ghost stories that are a little bit scary and a little bit sweet. show less

When Eric Harper sees a luminous white unicorn in the woods near his house one evening, the eleven-year-old boy follows the magical equine to his neighbor's property, where he discovers that the veterinarian owner is treating some very unusual creatures, in addition to her regular animal patients. Despite some complicated feelings about the fact that Dr. Brancusi and her somewhat aggressive daughter are living in the farmhouse which once belonged to his grandparents, Eric is so entranced by show more Moonpearl (the name given the unicorn) that he takes a job as an assistant at the doctor's clinic. As he learns more about unicorns, and the other magical creatures cared for by this most unusual practice, Eric must also contend with his grandmother's illness, and the ethics involved in trying to use Moonpearl's magical healing powers...

Having greatly enjoyed some of Jacqueline K. Ogburn's folkloric picture books, particularly The Lady and the Lion and The Magic Nesting Doll, I approached The Unicorn in the Barn—her debut as a novelist—with some anticipation. I was not disappointed, finding the narrative quite engaging, and the story both interesting and heartwarming. I appreciated the idea of a veterinarian treating magical creatures, a premise which reminded me of the (adult) fantasy novel The Magic and the Healing by Nick O'Donohoe, which I read years ago in high school. Of course, in that novel the vet travels to another world, whereas here the treatment of magical creatures happens in our own world. In any case, I enjoyed this one a great deal, reading it in two settings. I thought Eric was a sympathetic hero—skillfully depicted as a goodhearted boy with many good qualities, without being too good to be true. I found Allegra less sympathetic, given her needless aggression and bullying tendencies, but I thought she was skillfully depicted as well, as were many of the secondary characters. I also thought the way that Ogburn handled the death of Eric's grandmother well, depicting the real loss, but also offering hope and continuity, in the legacy she left to him, as a Harper who cares for magical beings, and owns Harpers Wood. Although close to three hundred pages, this one feels very young to me, with large print and frequent illustrations from the talented Rebecca Green. I'd recommend it to younger middle grade readers, as a result, particularly those who enjoy stories about magic intruding into the everyday world. For my part, I would certainly read a sequel, or perhaps a prequel about some of Eric Harper's ancestors. show less

In this INSANELY beautiful picture-book retelling of the Brothers Grimm fairy-tale, The Singing, Springing Lark ("Das singende springende Löweneckerchen," in the original), a merchant and his daughter must confront the consequences, when the daughter's innocent request for a singing lark, and her father's not-so-innocent effort to obtain one, arouse the ire of a fearsome lion. Agreeing to live with the lion, in order to spare her father's life, the daughter discovers that her captor is show more actually a prince, cursed to remain in lion form during the day, but reverting to human form at night. Soon, the pair have fallen in love and married. But when an accidental exposure to candlelight sees her husband transformed into a dove, a dove who then flees, the lady must set out in pursuit of him, aided by the sun, moon and wind, and eventually rescuing him from the enchantress who wishes to keep him as her own...

With elements of both Beauty and the Beast (the merchant's illicit attempt to obtain the lark, his daughter's sacrifice of herself, to save him) and East o' the Sun and West o' the Moon (the quest to rescue the beloved, the aid given by natural phenomena like the sun, moon and wind, the conflict with the enchantress), this story has immense appeal in its own right, and will be of interest to fairy-tale lovers of all kinds. The lushly ornate artwork by Laurel Long - whose fairy-tale illustrations always remind me of the fabulous Kinuko Y. Craft - simply has to be seen to be believed! Two of my favorite scenes from the book are the one in which the lady meets the lion for the very first time, and the one in which the lady is aided by the moon, in her quest to rescue her beloved. Just beautiful! I will definitely be adding The Lady and the Lion to my permanent fairy-tale collection! show less

I was expecting a retelling of the Beauty and the Beast story, but instead I got East of the Sun and West of the Moon which is even better! Of course, there's very little original material in the telling of the story (why mess with a classic), but what makes this book a great read is the stunning artwork. Long is clearly a master of oil painting, as each illustration is lush with colour, highly detailed, and perfectly composed. The background details are slightly more stylized than I'm used show more to seeing in classical oil painting (which often tends to a blurred softness), but this fits the storybook format quite well and leads the reader to focus on the more ornate foreground and subjects. My only complaint (and it's more of an observation than true criticism) is that Long mixes so many distinct stylizations (I got some Japanese, Chinese, Middle Eastern, Western, and Indian influences) that it might be a bit overdone for some tastes. show less