Saturday, August 15, 2026

Sept MG and third book in trilogy: Ghost Light (The Last Resort #3)

Ghost Light (The Last Resort #3) by Sara Farizan

From the publisher, Scholastic, Published Sept 1, 2026.

The line between the ghost world and our world gets even thinner in this haunting new installment of this multidimensional series where ghosts talk from the pages.

Rosteen is dead. He knows he's dead. And yet... he's still around. He died as a kid in the 1980s, but here he is in the 2020s, brought back to The Last Resort by Lila, Tobias, and Caleb -- who desperately need his help.

The problem? An evil ghost wants to make a comeback and cause a few more disasters that will inevitably cost people their lives. The only way for Rosteen, Lila, Tobias, and Caleb to stop her is to travel to the sites of some of her more infamous disasters in the past and find objects from those times that will somehow defeat her. And to do that, they’ll need to bring back another ghost -- the one that killed Lila and Caleb's grandfather.

Rosteen has nothing left to lose... except his new friends, who could lose everything and become ghosts themselves if they make one wrong move.



If you look at all three covers from this trilogy, you can see them getting spookier. And that goes for the stories as well!

So I realized that I missed writing a review on the second book. I read it and liked it, but I think that was around a very busy/difficult time, and I hadn’t posted for a few months. My apologies to The Claiming (The Last Resort #2) by Jasmine Warga.

This third book, but the third author, brings it all together and brings it home. But not before so many adventures into the otherworld, meeting new ghosts, figuring out how to defeat the evil ghost, the Fire Maiden.

Written from the ghost’s point of view brought a longing and sadness as well as some wisdom. Rosteen was from the 1980’s, so he really was quite old even though he was still a boy. We get to hear his side, his death, and his life. I love the depth and different levels we experience.

A very important aspect is the friendship with the four kids. They really do carry each other and help however they can.

The climax is good, but I think I expected something more. It’s definitely appropriate for middle grade. The characters go through so many perils that it’s probably okay to not be over the top. And the ending did get me. I don’t often cry reading books, but this one did.

Saturday, August 1, 2026

Upcoming Picture Book - Ms. Swirly's Compliment Machine

Ms. Swirly's Compliment Machine by Jana Mattern (Author), Judit Orosz (Illustrator)

From the publisher, Marble Press, Published Sept 8, 2026.

When the Compliment Machine goes haywire, kids see firsthand how words can hurt or heal―and learn they have the power to choose to be kind. It’s a silly story with a serious heart that empowers children to use their voices for good.

Jett loves everything about Ms. Swirly’s wacky classroom―from alphabetics to the four-legged teaching assistant. Though above all, he loves the compliment machine. But he and the class love the compliment machine a little too much, and when a kerfuffle causes the machine to malfunction, it spouts off insults instead. The most shocking, ridiculous, silly insults―which can’t possibly be mentioned here! After all attempts to repair it fail, Jett must find a way to cheer up the class before they are doomed to be one big gaggle of grumps all year.

MS. SWIRLY’S COMPLIMENT MACHINE is a silly-but-sweet story about the power of a kind word. It empowers young readers to use their voice for good. The SEL component makes it a wonderful choice to read in the classroom, the library, or at home.


This is a really adorable story. Not preachy at all. The artwork is colorful, lively, and inclusive. The classroom activities are fun.

You see the kids’ camaraderie at the beginning of the story. Then you see how it gets lost when the machine malfunctions, and the consequences of taking your frustration out on something. And how the kids fix their compatibility and get the classroom balance back.

I love how Jett gets creative and becomes the compliment robot after it breaks. The kids rally for each other and realize they can do for themselves what the robot had been doing. Kindness is catching.