Howling Frog Books

 The Mythmakers: The Remarkable Fellowship of C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien, by John Hendrix I recently read Hendrix' Faithful Spy , and now I've got his latest -- a chronicle of one of the most world-influencing friendships of the 20th century.  And I'm here to tell you, it's great stuff, a lovely biography/tribute to both men.  This is a graphic novel suitable for age 10 and up, but is equally absorbing for adults.  Give it to the Middle-Earth and Narnia fan in your life! Hendrix gives short biographies of each before they meet, and then he gets detailed, providing lovely illustrations in teal, lavender, and gold.  But there's just one problem; what they mostly did was talk, and that doesn't make for exciting reading.  So Hendrix introduces two metanarrating avatars: a wizard and a lion, who explain myth and epic, provide commentary upon the relationship, and generally facilitate the reader's experience, like a Greek chorus in a play.  The two s...

Hello to 2025!  Guess what, I've been reading up a storm!  It's been lovely!  Impossible Creatures, by Katherine Runnell I heard this middle-grade story, from the UK, described as comparable to Diana Wynne Jones, so I tracked down a copy to see.  While, naturally, it cannot compare in my mind, I do have to say that this is an excellent, primo-grade fantasy story, with as imaginative and intense an ending as anyone could hope for.  Highly recommended! Christopher, whom all critters love, is reluctantly headed to Scotland to stay with his grandfather for a while, as his dad has to travel for work.  But he finds that his grandfather is another animal-attractor, and it's because they're hereditary guardians of a portal... Mal loves to fly in her flying coat, which was given to her (along with her name) at birth by a seer.  Flying makes her easy to spot, and a murderer is after her.... The two meet as Mal escapes through the portal, begs for Christopher's h...