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Paraclete Hills Vacation Bible Camp: Prayers, Praise and Perfect Pranks
Paraclete Hills Vacation Bible Camp, by James and Crystal Bass, is a sun-drenched, laughter-laced ride through summer camp. It follows six lively kids—Annabelle, Ariel, Zion, Bo, and twins Big Jay and Little Jay—on their hilariously mischievous, often heartwarming journey of faith, friendship, and epic pranks. Through silly escapades like fart-sounding balloons in Bible class and googly eyes on school supplies, they explore what it means to grow, learn, and bond in ways that go beyond marshmallow roasts and canoe races.
I loved how genuine this story felt. The kids aren’t perfect. They make a mess, push boundaries, and pull off pranks that would give any camp counselor pause. But they’re never cruel. Their balloon prank during Pastor Coleman’s Bible lesson had me laughing. But even better was how the adults handled it—with humor, a touch of wisdom, and a good-natured lecture that turned the chaos into a lesson about kindness. That balance—fun without meanness, correction without scolding—made this more than just a goofy camp story. It felt real. Like a place I wish I’d gone to as a kid.
Then there was the moment Micah the Menace arrived. A toddler armed with the appetite of a vacuum and the tantrum power of a hurricane? Genius. But it wasn’t just for laughs. The counselors flipped the script on the pranksters. Watching the kids learn humility through a pint-sized storm named Micah was both hilarious and surprisingly touching.
As the story moved into the later chapters, especially “The Apology and Making Amends” and “A New Kind of Fun,” it honestly got me a little misty-eyed. The kids’ decision to write apology letters and then organize a camp-wide talent show? That hit home for me. It reminded me of how we grow up in spurts—first we laugh, then we reflect. That campfire scene, with everyone clapping and singing, wrapped the whole thing up in the best way possible—warm, sincere, and full of love.
If you’re a parent, a youth group leader, or anyone looking for a story that teaches lessons without preaching, Paraclete Hills Vacation Bible Camp is a treasure. It’s especially perfect for middle-grade readers who want humor with heart. Think Diary of a Wimpy Kid meets Sunday school. This book made me laugh, smile, and think, and I’d happily recommend it to anyone who believes that joy, mischief, and growth can all live in the same chapter.
Pages: 58 | ISBN : 978-1963737837
Trusting Yourself
Rewilding follows a 12-year-old girl who finds solace in nature while struggling to keep her and her brother’s difficult home life quiet. Where did the idea for this book come from?
It started when a fledgling scrub jay landed in my woodpile. I knew there was a story in my family’s experience of trying to care for the bird. We made many of the mistakes that Joy eventually makes in the book. As Joy’s journey with nature and rewilding started to bloom, the darker challenges of her life also began to surface. At that time, I had a number of friends who were wrenching themselves out of gaslighting relationships. I began to wonder about Joy and what lots of kids deal with every day. I began to ask how do you solve a problem with no good answers? Where do you turn?
Is there anything from your own life that helped inspire your characters’ traits and dialogue?
One of my favorite artistic pursuits is collage. So often my books feel like little scraps of experience pieced together to create something new and cohesive. I have a few wild and wise older women in my life who helped inspire the character of Ezzie. And Joy’s younger brother, Ian, is absolutely modeled after my daughter, Mieke, who is full of exuberant energy and big feelings. She’s now twelve, but when I started writing the book, she was about Ian’s age. She liked to climb and jump on everything. I’m happy to report that she still does.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
The theme of trusting yourself is very dear to me. So many of us grow up looking to others to tell us how to think and feel about ourselves. We look to others to see if we measure up, if we’re doing things the right way. But really, each of us is the expert on our own selves. We need to learn to listen to our inner voices.
Also, nature. It has always seemed to me that we humans are not here on this planet to dominate and control, but to care for and nurture and celebrate our home.
What is one thing you hope young readers take away from Rewilding?
I hope they see bits of themselves or others they know. I hope they find understanding and compassion for themselves and others. I hope those glimpses inspire them to look more closely at the world around them. Maybe that’s three things. Or maybe it’s all part of one big thing.
With her dad gone and her mom falling into depression, the responsibility of managing the household and caring for her younger brother, Ian, falls on her small shoulders. She struggles with the reality of wearing old clothes that no longer fit and constantly dealing with Ian’s hunger. Joy lives in fear that the school counselor might contact Child Protective Services due to their situation.
One day, a baby bird falls from its nest, reminding Joy of her dad’s warning, “You don’t know your own strength.” Desperate for help, Joy strikes a deal with their quirky neighbor, Ezzie, known as the “Ark Lady.” Through this new relationship, Joy, Ian, and her friend embark on a journey to restore the garden. In the process, they discover the concept of “rewilding,” which brings unexpected beauty and healing. This experience leads Joy to question her father’s views, opening her eyes to new possibilities and strengths within herself.
Rewilding
At its heart, Rewilding is a tender, poignant middle grade novel about twelve-year-old Joy, who finds herself juggling way more than any kid should. While taking care of her younger brother Ian and hiding their struggling home life from nosy adults, Joy stumbles into something unexpectedly healing: nature. Between dodging Child Protective Services and trying to keep her family from falling apart, she begins to rewild a neglected yard and, in the process, slowly begins to rewild herself.
Joy’s narration is painfully real, funny in all the right ways, and completely heartbreaking when it needs to be. Right from chapter one, when she eavesdrops on a conversation between the school counselor and her brother, we’re dropped into a world where Joy is already carrying the emotional weight of an adult. “Big clumsy Joy strikes again,” she says after barging into Bertie’s office, and that moment hits like a brick. She’s trying so hard to hold things together that you want to jump into the story and tell her she doesn’t have to. But that’s the thing, she does have to. No one else will.
The themes Gerlits weaves through the story of neglect, gaslighting, mental illness, and body image are handled with honesty and subtlety, but they never weigh the book down. Joy’s relationship with her own body, for instance, is explored quietly and compassionately. She’s constantly aware of her size, of how her clothes don’t fit right anymore, of how people react to her strength. And then comes the moment when Joy discovers a baby bird in the woodpile and makes the quiet but profound decision to care for it. The scene is deeply moving. When she gently says, “You trust me,” to the fragile creature in her hands, it becomes a powerful symbol of her own longing to be trusted, needed, and capable. For a brief instant, everything else in the story seems to pause around that simple, tender exchange.
But what I loved most was the metaphor of rewilding. Not just the literal ecosystem restoration Joy does in the ARK yard, but the way she’s unknowingly restoring herself. Her home life is rough. Her mom is barely functioning, her dad is unreliable, and her little brother is too young to understand the danger they’re in. Yet Joy never gives up. She mows the lawn, feeds her brother, protects her mom’s dignity, and tries (with mixed results) to raise a bird. The passage in which Joy resolves to clean up the yard to prevent others from suspecting neglect is among the most emotionally wrenching in the novel. It reveals a fierce, protective love intertwined with a desperate desire to maintain control over an unraveling situation. The moment is rendered with striking authenticity and emotional depth.
Rewilding isn’t just a story for kids. It’s for anyone who’s ever tried to make the best of a messy situation. It’s for anyone who’s ever felt unseen or overwhelmed or not strong enough, only to discover they are. I’d recommend this book to middle grade readers who like realistic stories with heart, but also to adults who remember what it was like to be young and scared and brave all at once. This book doesn’t shy away from hard truths, but it also offers hope in the shape of a baby bird, a patch of wildflowers, and a girl who learns she really does know her own strength.
Pages: 288 | ASIN : B0DZCJYQHW
What is a Gnome?
The One Great Gnome follows an 11-year-old girl that discovers a magical garden gnome that shows her a world she never knew existed. What was the inspiration for the setup to your story?
When I was 11 I moved from the Bronx to Connecticut so I experienced the same feelings that Sarah had when the story opens. The story was my idea of what I would have wanted to find the first day I woke up in a strange new state without my friends around.
What was your favorite character to write for and why?
I loved writing about Vesper. I wanted to change people’s thoughts on what a Gnome could be. He is kind and brave and loves to cook! What a fun character to write for!
Were you able to achieve everything you wanted with the characters in the novel?
Yes, I felt very satisfied. After several rewrites, I felt the story ended exactly where it should have and all the characters had a nice way to end their stories and their relationship to Sarah.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be available?
I have an idea for a sequel to this book! We will see what happens!
Author Links: Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter | Website
Eleven-year-old Sarah moves with her family from New York City to rural Hadley, Connecticut. She’s eager to explore her new home and meet new friends, but she never expected to befriend an old garden gnome.
Readers join Sarah as she is drawn into a secret world under our feet. Sarah uses her instincts to calm old rivalries and help the underworld elves, gnomes, and more join her in the upperworld.
The One Great Gnome
The One Great Gnome follows eleven-year-old Sarah who has recently moved from the busy city of Manhattan, 100 miles away in a contrastingly calm, mundane rural Hadley, Connecticut. Sarah lives with her parents and her cat Smokey. She is a bookworm that loves escaping into the world of her books. Her dream is to work in a book store and read all the books she could get her hands on, understandably so, as her mother works in the library. This gives Sarah a beautifully open mind and vivid imagination.
Author Jeff Dinardo starts the story as Sarah’s family has just moved to their new home in the country. This gives Sarah a chance to explore things she could not when living in the city. Every little detail is explored from the perspective of an eleven-year-old, which makes the book interesting for children. It is during one of these adventures that Sarah comes across the garden gnome, Vesper of Oglinoth. Vesper introduces Sarah to a world she never knew existed outside of her books. She joins Vesper on his quest to save all the gnomes.
Very similar to the magical world of Alice in Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz, in Sarah’s world, nothing is impossible. Sarah is friendly, curious, and empathetic. Sarah is creative and uses that imagination to help out her new friend, and provides a fresh and broad perspective on various issues.
Scattered throughout this imaginative novel are black and white drawings illustrated by Jhon Ortiz. He has given readers a striking visual of some of the characters and the creatures that come alive in this creative book. They really give readers an idea of the creatures Sarah meets and their personalities.
Dinardo has created an engaging and relatable character in Sarah. Her curious personality will appeal to readers that are getting started with chapter books but are not quite ready for books like Harry Potter or the Percy Jackson & the Olympians.
The One Great Gnome is a captivating children’s fantasy adventure book that is filled with action. This is a fantastic beginning chapter book that will inspire the imagination of older elementary kids.
Pages: 128 | ASIN : B08C9NRTWG
LITERARY TITAN 