Now a welcome is also in order for a new reading audience in Jamaica, representing the 45th country reported in the combined stats of my two blogs.
With the upcoming holidays, more children will soon have access to digital readers. I feel that it is important for us to provide them with a variety of quality literature. Hopefully, some of the suggestions in this blog will help you locate it on Barnes and Noble and Amazon.com.
Apps are also available for many other devices such as smart phones, tablets, and computers. Many of them have parental control features to protect children from some of the "junk" on the internet. Investigate it and consider investing in this new reading format. Kids love it!
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My first recommendation today is by James Harriot, well-known as the author of the All Creatures Great and Small series of books about a country veterinarian. The specific Christmas story I am suggesting was published in 1993 as The Christmas Day Kitten. I had to dig hard to find it in digital format. It finally surfaced in an Audible Audible collection by Harriot on Amazon called Warm and Joyful Animal Tales. It sells for $9.95 but is free with a 30-day Audible trial membership.
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Barbara Robinson published The Best Christmas Pageant Ever in 1971. This humorous little tale has enjoyed huge popularity and been dramatized for television and stage, but don't you agree that children should have the opportunity to read Robinson's real words? Amazon sell it for the Kindle at $5.69 and Barnes and Noble offers it for the Nook at $5.99.
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Both Amazon and Barnes and Noble offer a classic holiday collection for $2.99 by Golgotha Press (published in 2011) entitled 50 Classic Christmas Stories. The contents list The Fir Tree, The Little Match Girl, The Bird Christmas Carol, and many others I have never read. Please preview this this anthology to assure yourself that its spiritual approach is compatible with your family values.
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The Gift of the Magi was published by O.Henry (William Sydney Porter) in 1906. Known for short stories with surprise endings, O.Henry does not disappoint in this classic.
B&N offers several editions priced from $.99. They also offer an "easy read" edition for $1.39 (though I prefer the author's original, myself).
Amazon also has several versions, priced from "free" to $9.99. One version is $.99 in four languages and another is in Japanese for $1.99.
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A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens was published in 1843. Several editions are offered for B&N's Nook for between $.99 and $12.99, and several for Amazon's Kindle are priced between "free" and $4.99.
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And now for a small regret again.
I had another experience similar to the one I reported last time about Shel Silverstein's poetry books not being available in digital format.
Natalie Savage Carlson's Newberry winner, The Family Under the Bridge is currently not available for digital readers. That, in no way limits my need to recommend it as a wonderful holiday story. It only limits the book's audience.
It is my hope that by including it along with my comments, publishers will soon find a way to offer it.
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And now I have a little holiday gift for you, my readers. On December 8 and 9, Amazon.com is offering my eBook Pomegranate (Agent C Series) by Lynda at no cost for eBooks. It has a futuristic setting but some connections straight out of very old Greek mythology. It also has messages about the safe use of the internet, and the importance of family and friends.
I chose to offer this book because that is where Jessie, the main character in my current writing project Jessie's Journey, was first introduced. (See www.jumpup2chapterbooks.blogspot.com.)
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And one last little piece of business. I have signed an exclusive agreement with Amazon for all eight of my eBooks for at least the next 90 days.
This means that they will only be available on Amazon.com for Kindle or Kindle apps. You will not be able to purchase them for B&N's Nook reading devices until at least March.
It also means my eBooks will have some special promotion options with Amazon, including their "Prime", and member-lending library.
However, I will continue to recommend books sold by both companies on this blog.
Next time I will recommend some favorite children's series available as eBooks.
Until then, please keep reading...
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