The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson​

Click the link below for family discussion questions.​

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​Treasures of the Snow by Patricia St. James

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Age Range: Middle grade

Back cover copy:

“A beautifully written and engaging story that captures the innocence of childhood, and the joys found in the little things. Learn as well what the healing power of repentance and forgiveness can bring as we heed our Savior’s voice in our lives.”

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The Good: Treasures of the Snow is a true Christian fiction classic for middle schoolers. The book is brimming with spiritual and moral truths while still holding the attention of the reader regardless of age. I found myself captivated by the simple story and have read it many times to own children. It’s also an exceptional aid in history or geography studies. Written about a Swiss family in the early 1900s, it was set in the same little village where Ms. St. John lived as a child. Her scenic descriptions leave the impression that you’ve once visited the village. Emotionally, the book is wonderful. Good wins on every front: leaving a satisfied, all-is-right-in-the-world feeling.  

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The Not-So-Good: The book has a few antiquated words that you may need to explain. This opens a positive opportunity if you’re using this as a family read aloud, which I recommend doing. But if that is not possible and your child is reading this on their own, please scan the chapter ahead of time and make sure they understand the new vocabulary. Another potential negative is that while the book keeps interest, it does slow down a few chapters near the end. I think Ms. St. John could have wrapped up the story with a bit more conciseness.

 

Books in the series:

Treasures of the Snow is a stand-alone, however, Patricia St. John wrote several other books that you may consider purchasing as well. Here are her most famous. Of these listed below, Star of Light is my favorite.

• Star of Light

• The Secret at Pheasant’s Cottage

• The Tanglewoods’ Secret

• Rainbow Garden

 

Where to get it:

Free online at googlebooks. However, the formatting is not great, and I typically watch the time my kids spend in front of the screen, even if it is while reading a great book.

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My Recommended Option: You can purchase it used on Amazon for around $5, including shipping. It’s a solid addition to any family library and you might find yourselves reading it multiple times or loaning it out to friends.

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You can also buy it at Walmart but it’s more expensive because it would be new and require shipping costs.

If money is an issue, then before purchasing, check your local public library or church library where you have a solid chance of finding it on the shelves.

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​The Green Ember by S.D. Smith

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Age Range: Middle grade and YA

Back cover copy:

“Heather and Picket are extraordinary rabbits with ordinary lives until calamitous events overtake them, spilling them into a cauldron of misadventures. They discover that their own story is bound up in the tumult threatening to overwhelm the wider world.

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Kings fall and kingdoms totter. Tyrants ascend and terrors threaten. Betrayal beckons, and loyalty is a broken road with peril around every bend.” – S.D. Smith

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The Good: The Green Ember is one of the best family reads enjoyed by the Swan family. It kept the interest of my youngest son, age 8 at the time, alongside my teenage daughter. My husband and I were even held captive by the story.  The Green Ember is not an overtly spiritual book, but is told with so many Biblical truths, that it could easily be used alongside a family devotional reading. To help with that, I’ve written discussion questions for each chapter to guide your family in drawing Biblical parallels and relating these truths to the world in which we live. Get the book, print out the Word file provided below and start up those life-growing conversations!

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The Not-So-Good: There’s not much here I can write because it’s a great book. However, I would say that the Prologue story seems out of place and was a bit confusing considering the main story. Throughout the book, I kept waiting for some clarity on the initial prologue tale, but it never came. I believe it’s addressed in subsequent books but seems out of place as the start of this book. There’s also a lot of backstory throughout the chapters that is sometimes interesting but not all the time needed and may distract the youngest of readers from the true story line. One other warning might be in order: there is an abundance of fighting, death, and loss so if you have a child that is sensitive to any display of violence, then this may not be the right book. However, I believe these elements add realism to the story, and I would judge it appropriate for most middle-aged children.

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Books in the series:

Here is the recommended reading order as published by S.D. Smith. However, my family just read the Green Ember books first and then went back to the Archer series and Tales of Old Natalia. You have some freedom as to the order and the story is still understandable.

• The Green Ember

• The Black Star of Kingston (Tales of Old Natalia I)

• Ember Falls: The Green Ember Book II

• The Last Archer: Green Ember Archer I

• Ember Rising: The Green Ember Book III

• The Wreck and Rise of Whitson Mariner (Tales of Old Natalia II)

• The First Fowler: Green Ember Archer 2

• Ember’s End: The Green Ember Book IV

• The Archer’s Cup: Green Ember Archer 3

• Prince Lander and the Dragon War (Tales of Old Natalia III) - Brand new – so looking forward to checking it out!

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Where to get it:

It’s free! Well, you can get the first one free on audible. Check out S.D.Smith’s website for more information. Just for reference - it’s $20 for the audible at Books a Million.

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Before purchasing, check your local public library or church library for the older ones but here are the places online I found that you could buy a copy:

• sdsmith.com

• Amazon

• Books a million (Only audio)

• Barnes and Noble (Only audio)

Here are the places I did NOT find it:

• Walmart.com

• Christianbook.com

 

Price Range:

The older books start at paperback used about $8 and go to the brand new, Prince Lander, on Amazon for $13. There are also cheaper bundles sold on Amazon and sdsmith.com if you want all of a subset together.