Guess what's growing in the Forest of Reading?

If you're like me, you happily belt out the Robin Hood theme while strolling through the forest. But if you happen to be in the Ontario Library Association's Forest of Reading, you'll notice Shadows on the Train blooming amid the trees! Feel welcome to pay me a visit there (bow and arrow optional).

I Spy ... a new edition!

It began with Wilfred the cat, though my sister Madge insists she started it by leaving the back door open. Wilfred wouldn't have been able to get out otherwise, she says.

That's Madge for you. She has to be the center of any story. I guess it's because she's so pretty, with her burnished red hair, lupine-blue eyes and smooth, porcelain skin. It would be hard not to believe you were the center of attention, looking like that.

"My hair is auburn," says Madge, miffed. She's peering over my shoulder at the computer screen, where I'm writing this.

Well, she's part of the story, I'll give her that. And, by letting Wilfred go, she set things off: the discovery of the bucktoothed spy and the mysterious thefts, not to mention the high-speed chases. (Okay, so the chases were on foot. They were still high-speed.)

So begins my very first adventure, first published in 2002, and now featured in a skookum new edition! As you can see, the new cover is very film noir style, very sinister and mysterious. Well, natch. The spy I chase in this story is very sinister, and the plot is very mysterious! Not to mention featuring a nummy recipe for tomatoes, courtesy my soon-to-be-brother-in-law, Jack French.

Hey, and guess what? This is the book where Madge meets Jack! And double-guess what: at first she can't stand him! Luckily, wisdom - in the person of yours redheadedly - prevailed.

Here's what Quill & Quire said (blush): “With writing as delicious as the fresh tomatoes Dinah loves to munch, Jackson weaves a lively mystery ... [nothing] will stop young readers from adoring Dinah and gobbling up this entertaining new mystery series.”

So ... if you're a gobbling mood, check out Spy!

Faeries story works magic

Know a young reader? Either an enthusiast or someone who's getting into books with the enthusiasm, say, of a turkey looking at a Christmas menu? I recommend Faeries Are Real, by Crystal Stranaghan. This past weekend, Melanie was helping a young Korean-Canadian with English, and the little cutie latched on to Faeries Are Real with the enthusiasm of a spell to a wand. The student's favourite was Sophie the Pig, but there's a whole enchanting cast of twinkling characters to choose from.