Treasure of the Magical Mine Moppets reviewed by The US Review of Books

Treasure of the Magical Mine Moppets, published by Mindstir Media (2017) and written by K.J. Blocker, received high praise from The US Review of Books recently: 

RECOMMENDED by the US Review of Books:
The magical mine creatures will no doubt fascinate children. Older readers may well be reminded of the Munchkins from The Wizard Of Oz. Plus Jimmy's bug pal may well have parents reliving their own moments with Walt Disney's Jiminy Cricket ... Morals are abound in Blocker's book. The virtues of honesty, loyalty, friendship, and belief in one another take center stage with the all-encompassing value of love. His is a story meant to teach as well as entertain ... For both the young and the young at heart, Treasure Of The Magical Mine Moppets is a fun and family-friendly adventure.

The book has also received its share of positive reviews at Amazon.com, including this 5-star review from Lillian:

 "I wasn't sure what to expect from K.J. Blocker's book. The title and old-fashioned cover instantly brought back the childhood idea of Fraggles, but this book was far from that imaginary world of my childhood. However, it was a still a pure delight to read. As the mother of two middle-school daughters, I read a lot of books to my children. It is truly unique to find a modern book that delves deeply into realistic situations while remaining light, fun and magical.

Above the ground, the book focuses on a central family that faces the challenges faced by many families. The father, Tom, worries and works hard to provide for his family. His wife and son, Jimmy, feel his absence. His father, Pappy, also has problems. The family together faces a villain straight from a staged melodrama and intent on taking away their family farm. Underneath their farm is the magical world of Moppets. Although they are mystical, iridescent little creatures, they too face their own problems.

What I enjoyed most about the Treasure of the Magical Mine Moppets is the unique interpretation on a classic good versus evil storyline. Everything is over the top stereotypical, which I find appeals vividly to young minds. Underneath it all is a reminder of the basic values we should all seek -- kindness, friendship, perseverance and integrity. The book entertains and teaches at the same time. The beautiful illustrations combine with the vivid writing to create a true classic for your children's library."

MindStir Media book "Monarch Buddies" receives rave reviews

Lynn Rosenblatt recently published her second children's book with MindStir Media. Her first book, Rockin'-Rollin' Alphabet, was published in 2015 and won silver in the 2016 Moonbeam Children's Book Award. This second book, Monarch Buddies, was released last month and has already received some rave reviews from Amazon customers:

One Amazon reviewer, "Steve McD," gave the book 5 stars and said, "I am familiar with the author's earlier works (including Monarch Magic) so when my 10-year-old kid who loves science, nature, photography and butterflies was talking about his desire to go back to Butterfly World in Florida, I knew I needed to buy him whatever Lynn Rosenblatt had on the market these days. Wow, I am glad I did! She's a gifted educator who has a quarter-century of investment in this particular subject. This book captures every important moment in the lifecycle of the Monarch.The story is compelling for a kid and I have to say that I was drawn in, too. Even with prose geared for the younger reader, this older reader admits to finding it fun, captivating and really informative. I learned a lot I didn't know and have a whole new appreciation for the Monarch and its wondrous story of birth and survival. My son gets his love of photography from me and we are humbled bye the amazing photos in this work. The nice thing about the large format of this book (it is 8x10 in the hand), is that it serves as a nice alternative to what I am sad to say we've defaulted to -- looking at pics on my tiny iPhone screen. The book is easy to read with larger text and majestic photos... My son and I both rate this 5 stars. I hope parents and teachers take note of this book, and that it inspires more kids and adults to pay attention to the smaller and sublime details of our every-day natural world. If more kids were engaged in the study, storytelling, and photography of what captures their interest in nature, we'd have lots more adults who engaged early in what might have become life-long passions that enhance our collective appreciation for and care of the world around us. (Maybe someone out there should do this kind of work on the Honey Bee sometime really soon....) But we don't need this to be the result of book in order to enjoy it for what it simply is: a gift to us by someone who has studied this for so long."

Lynn Rosenblatt, award-winning author, also praised MindStir Media recently for a job well done with her book, Monarch Buddies:

“It is with great pleasure that I compliment (for a second time around) the staff of MINDSTIR MEDIA, for bringing my monarch butterfly children’s book, MONARCH BUDDIES Munch-A-Bunch of  Milkweed to fruition.  My first adventure with MINDSTIR in 2014, led me to a Moonbeam Children’s Book Award, Silver Medal for Reading/Literacy with my children’s educational book, ROCKIN’- ROLLIN’ ALPHABET. I highly recommend MINDSTIR MEDIA to any budding author in need of a professional publisher! They helped to bring my cherished manuscript to completion for the world to see! MONARCH BUDDIES Munch-A-Bunch of Milkweed was created over 25 years ago under the title of the children’s story, Butterfly Buddies, accepted for publication, but interrupted in the final publishing process. The original story was never published ... until now!  It was redirected as the framework for my 1998 book, MONARCH MAGIC! Butterfly Activities & Nature Discoveries, which became a national resource for monarch enthusiasts.  ‘Thank You,’ Mindstir President, J.J. Hebert ~ my story has finally come full circle with your guidance! You stand behind your authors and offer professional availability and consultation!”