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Where to Find the Best Children’s Book Reviews

Sarah S. Davis

Sarah S. Davis holds a BA in English from the University of Pennsylvania, a Master's of Library Science from Clarion University, and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. Sarah has also written for Electric Literature, Kirkus Reviews, Audible, Psych Central, and more. Sarah is the founder of Broke By Books blog and runs a tarot reading business, Divination Vibration . Twitter: @missbookgoddess Instagram: @Sarahbookgoddess

View All posts by Sarah S. Davis

There are more great children’s books being published than ever before, but how do you know which ones to read? Fortunately, today there are so many ways to access children’s book reviews. Here are some of the best places to find reviews of children’s literature.

Part 1: General Children’s Book Reviews

In this first section of our roundup of the best children’s book review websites, I’ll discuss publications that cover all things kid lit.

The Children’s Book Review

As its name implies, The Children’s Book Review is all about book reviews of children’s literature. With huge coverage of all kinds of kid lit, The Children’s Book Review is simple to browse books by subject and books by age, along with buzzy “trending” books and “showcase” books. Your typical book review lays out the specs (intended age, page count, etc.) and provides a medium-sized review with information about the author and/or illustrator. The Children’s Book Review is definitely one of the most comprehensive book review sites for kid lit, and it supplements its reviews with author interviews and curated lists.

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Common Sense Media

Common Sense Media is an organization that reviews media (books, TV, movies, apps, games) with a special focus on educating parents and other adults on “What Parents Should Know,” vis-à-vis content warnings and age appropriateness. Some of the qualities Common Sense Media covers include “Educational Value,” “Positive Messages,” “Positive Role Models and Representations,” and “Language.” Especially notable is Common Sense Media’s focus on diversity, with an invitation to reach out if they’ve “missed anything on diversity.” Also of note, Common Sense Media is one of the few children’s book reviews websites that rates books using a star system. If you just want to know quickly how good a book is, navigate over to Common Sense Media and find a book’s star rating.

The Horn Book

Children’s book review magazine The Horn Book takes its name from”horn books,” which were some of the earliest books made to educate children. The Horn Book is a leading publication in print and online for finding children’s book reviews. This treasured magazine’s website is well-organized, and you can find all the reviews in an easy-to-search database . For the best of the best, browse by The Horn Book ‘s starred reviews . If you buy a paid subscription, you’ll have access to the huge, searchable archive of more than 70,000 reviews, known as “The Guide.” There, you can browse book reviews by Authors/Illustrators, Subjects, Series, and Reviewers. Though some reviews cost a subscription to view, some content, like the “Book Bundles” (check out the one on “Our Bodies, Our Selves” for an example), which group together like-minded books based on themes and include bite-sized reviews, are available for free.

Kirkus Reviews Children’s Books

One of the leading book review sites for all genres and age levels, Kirkus has plenty of kid lit content. Kirkus lets you easily sort by different categories like age, format (picture book, chapter book, etc.), sub-genre (biographies and memoirs, historical fiction), and category (e.g. fiction vs. nonfiction). You can also filter by what books get a coveted Kirkus star. What’s great about Kirkus’s unique format is each review is brief and to the point. If you don’t want to go digging for the bottom line, Kirkus’s kid lit reviews are a good place to start.

Publishers Weekly Children’s Bookshelf

If you’re looking for the buzziest kid lit books, check out Children’s Bookshelf, the free weekly newsletter from Publishers Weekly . This publication is known for its up-to-the-minute chatter about the publishing industry, including children’s books, which are reviewed in roundups, as well as all kinds of bookish content. Subscribing to Children’s Bookshelf is one of the best ways to stay current with kid lit.

School Library Journal

Leave it to the librarians to guide you on what children’s books to read. The long-running School Library Journal has tons of reviews of every kind of kid lit book imaginable. With a special focus on advising libraries whether or not to purchase a book, School Library Journal dishes out bite-sized takeaways (known as a “VERDICT”) at the end of each review. School Library Journal also has tons of non-review content, getting you caught up with the latest news in the world of children’s literature.

Part 2: Special Focus Children’s Book Reviews Websites

In this section, I’ll highlight the places to go for more specialized kid lit coverage.

American Indians in Children’s Literature

This phenomenal site concentrates on promoting the best children’s literature by Indigenous authors and illustrators. Search the site for specific topics or skip right to the “Best Books” for the books most worth celebrating.

The Brown Bookshelf

The Brown Bookshelf is dedicated to featuring book reviews of kid lit by Black authors and illustrators. Start by searching the site or filtering for book reviews . The Brown Bookshelf also compiles great resources for finding more children’s books by Black voices. You’ll find the most up-to-date coverage on the blog .

Disability in Kid Lit

Although no longer updated, the book reviews on Disability in Kid Lit are worth consulting if you’re looking for children’s book reviews about disabled protagonists. You can use the well-indexed search function and browse by different disabilities depending on what condition or identity you’re looking for. Also of note, the “Honor Roll” puts the spotlight on the best representation of disability in kid lit.

Hijabi Librarians

The reviewers and writers at Hijabi Librarians set their lens on children’s and YA books with Muslim representation. Along with author interviews and book discussion guides , Hijabi Librarians includes book reviews and resources for Muslim voices in children’s literature.

Latinx in Kid Lit

Looking for coverage of Latinx authors and illustrators in children’s literature? Definitely be sure to check out Latinx in Kid Lit. This resource compiles reviewed books that feature Latinx representation. You can search by age range — for example, middle grade books — and find that each review includes “Teacher Tips” for educators. The Latinx in Kid Lit blog also has tons of great content, including interviews, Latinx book deals, and publishing industry news specific to Latinx creators.

Social Justice Books

Social Justice Books is focused on…you guessed it, social justice in children’s literature! This site has loads of great guidance on the best social justice topics in kid lit, like the carefully curated booklists by theme . Check out the book review database , which aggregates reviews and is organized by themes like “Activism,” “Asian American,” and “Bullying.” Each book is given a star rating, making for an easy browsing experience if you’re just looking for the best reads.

Special Focus: Can’t-Miss-It Resources for Diversity in Children’s Literature

Cynthia leitich smith’s cynsations.

Bestselling and award-winning author Cynthia Leitich Smith maintains a website all about children’s and young adult books. On Cynsations you’ll find a broad array of content, including diverse author/illustrator interviews and news roundups.

Social Justice Books’ Sources for Book Reviews and Recommendations

Already highlighted above, Social Justice Books is a terrific resource for finding diverse children’s book reviews with a social justice focus. But I also wanted to shine a light on their list of sources for diverse kid lit book reviews if you’re looking for even more sources of diverse children’s literature.

We Need Diverse Books Resources

We Need Diverse Books is a non-profit alliance to further diversity in children’s and YA literature. Although We Need Diverse Books does not publish book reviews, they do have an outstanding roundup of resources for diversity in kid lit that should be a stop on everyone’s journey to find more diverse children’s literature.

Part 3: Children’s Book Review Social Media Accounts to Check Out

Instagram is a great resource for finding children’s book reviews. A diverse range of educators, Bookstagrammers, librarians, and more all highlight great children’s books. Here are some of Book Riot’s favorite children’s book review influencers to follow on Instagram.

@babylibrarians — Margaret and Jen

Run by Book Riot writers Margaret Kingsbury and Jen Sherman , Baby Librarians will get you up to speed on the best and latest in children’s literature.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Baby Librarians (@babylibrarians)

@hereweread — Charnaie Gordon

Charnaie Gordon is a huge book influencer focusing on diversity in children’s literature. You won’t want to miss the books she loves.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Charnaie Gordon | Diversity (@hereweeread)

@leeandlowbooks — Lee and Low Books

The POC-owned Lee and Low Books is a children’s book publisher dedicated to diversity. They feature the best of the best books on their Instagram.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Lee and Low Books (@leeandlow)

@lgbtqkidlit — Laurie and Julie

This account is managed by two moms and showcases children’s book reviews with queer themes.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Laurie(s/h) Julie(s/h)disabled (@lgbtqkidlit)

@littlefeministbookclub — Little Feminist Book Club

As its name implies, Little Feminist Book Club is dedicated to sharing the best children’s books with feminist themes.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Little Feminist Book Club (@littlefeministbookclub)

@noodlenutskidsbooks — Jenn S.

Jenn S. writes book reviews of new picture books focused on diversity.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Jenn S. (@noodlenutskidsbooks)

@readwithriver — Alessandra Requena

This Bookstagrammer promotes the best children’s books.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Alessandra Requena (@readwithriver)

@shelvesofcolor — Saranya & Ishaan

Saranya and Ishaan review diverse children’s books on Bookstagram.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Saranya & Ishaan (@shelvesofcolor)

@thebookwrangler — Mike

The Mike behind this popular bookstagram account is a K–5 librarian who shares his favorite recent reads.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Mike (@thebookwrangler)

@thetututeacher — Vera Ahiyya

Educator Vera Ahiyya shares diverse book reviews on Instagram.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Vera Ahiyya (@thetututeacher)

Still hunting for more great children’s books? Check out our Children’s Books archive , as well as these helpful posts:

• 50 Children’s Books About Diversity That Celebrate Our Differences
• The Best Children’s Books By Age: A Guide To Great Reading
• 13 Places To Find Free Children’s Books Online

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Children's Literature is a respected review source helping literature professionals and children’s and YA book lovers find valuable titles. Since 1993, we have published over 100,000 reviews. Our review team comprises reviewers who are professors, teachers, librarians, authors and other specialists in the children’s literature field. Reviews are published as part of Children's Literature and added to CLCD, also known as the Children's Literature Comprehensive Database, used by thousands of librarians and educators. We also enrich the MARC record data for various library industry vendors. Our reviews are fair, and we do not insist that our reviewers provide only positive reviews. We believe that an honest assessment of the work is critical to children's reading.

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Wonder, by R.J. Palacio | Book Review

Book Review of Wonder The Children’s Book Review

Written by R.J. Palacio

Ages 10+ | 320 Pages

Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers | ISBN-13: 978037586902

What to Expect: Disabilities, Self-Esteem, and Kindness

Kindness is an outstanding trait we all possess, so long as we choose to access it. It is an essential aspect of being human.

In the captivating, award-winning New York Times bestselling novel Wonder by R.J. Palacio, the theme of exhibiting kindness is explored in an inspiring way. The story revolves around a 10-year-old boy named August Pullman living with rare facial deformities. Auggie, as he is affectionately called, yearns to be accepted for who he is and not judged based on his looks. Due to having had 27 surgeries, both big and small, and lots of illness, August (Auggie), up until now, has been home-schooled.

Through Palacio’s vivid writing, readers journey through Auggie’s first year in school and see through the eyes of fifth-grade classmates and his sister, guiding us through valuable insights into the process of accepting someone different from us. Wonder is a heartwarming tale of bravery, love, and kindness. It is a call to action for us to strive towards our best selves and to choose kindness in every situation. This powerful and inspiring book has been a global phenomenon, with Auggie’s story inspiring a growing movement of compassion and empathy toward others.

Reading Wonder will undoubtedly help you embrace its message and become a part of this growing movement.

Buy the Book

About the author.

R. J. Palacio was born and raised in New York City. She attended the High School of Art and Design and the Parsons School of Design, where she majored in illustration with the hopes of someday following in the footsteps of her favorite childhood author-illustrators, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Maurice Sendak , and the D’Aulaires . She was a graphic designer and art director for many years before writing Wonder .

We’re All Wonders , which is based conceptually on the themes of her novel, represents the fulfillment of her dream to write and illustrate her own picture book. R.J. is also the author of Auggie & Me: Three Wonder Stories and 365 Days of Wonder: Mr. Browne’s Book of Precepts . She lives in Brooklyn, where she is surrounded by magical water towers, with her husband, their two sons, and their two dogs, Bear and Beau.

Learn more about her at https://wonderthebook.com/about or on Twitter at @RJPalacio .

What to Read Next if You Love Wonder

• Auggie & Me: Three Wonder Stories, by R. J. Palacio
• 365 Days of Wonder: Mr. Browne’s Book of Precepts, R. J. Palacio
• Out of My Mind , by Sharon Draper

Bianca Schulze reviewed  Wonder . Discover more books like Wonder by reading our reviews and articles tagged with disabilities , self-esteem , kindness , and family .

• X (Twitter)

Bianca Schulze is the founder of The Children’s Book Review. She is a reader, reviewer, mother and children’s book lover. She also has a decade’s worth of experience working with children in the great outdoors. Combined with her love of books and experience as a children’s specialist bookseller, the goal is to share her passion for children’s literature to grow readers. Born and raised in Sydney, Australia, she now lives with her husband and three children near Boulder, Colorado.

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Blog – Posted on Friday, Mar 29

17 book review examples to help you write the perfect review.

It’s an exciting time to be a book reviewer. Once confined to print newspapers and journals, reviews now dot many corridors of the Internet — forever helping others discover their next great read. That said, every book reviewer will face a familiar panic: how can you do justice to a great book in just a thousand words?

As you know, the best way to learn how to do something is by immersing yourself in it. Luckily, the Internet (i.e. Goodreads and other review sites , in particular) has made book reviews more accessible than ever — which means that there are a lot of book reviews examples out there for you to view!

In this post, we compiled 17 prototypical book review examples in multiple genres to help you figure out how to write the perfect review . If you want to jump straight to the examples, you can skip the next section. Otherwise, let’s first check out what makes up a good review.

Are you interested in becoming a book reviewer? We recommend you check out Reedsy Discovery , where you can earn money for writing reviews — and are guaranteed people will read your reviews! To register as a book reviewer, sign up here.

Pro-tip : But wait! How are you sure if you should become a book reviewer in the first place? If you're on the fence, or curious about your match with a book reviewing career, take our quick quiz:

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What must a book review contain?

Like all works of art, no two book reviews will be identical. But fear not: there are a few guidelines for any aspiring book reviewer to follow. Most book reviews, for instance, are less than 1,500 words long, with the sweet spot hitting somewhere around the 1,000-word mark. (However, this may vary depending on the platform on which you’re writing, as we’ll see later.)

In addition, all reviews share some universal elements, as shown in our book review templates . These include:

• A review will offer a concise plot summary of the book. 
• A book review will offer an evaluation of the work. 
• A book review will offer a recommendation for the audience. 

If these are the basic ingredients that make up a book review, it’s the tone and style with which the book reviewer writes that brings the extra panache. This will differ from platform to platform, of course. A book review on Goodreads, for instance, will be much more informal and personal than a book review on Kirkus Reviews, as it is catering to a different audience. However, at the end of the day, the goal of all book reviews is to give the audience the tools to determine whether or not they’d like to read the book themselves.

Keeping that in mind, let’s proceed to some book review examples to put all of this in action.

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Book review examples for fiction books

Since story is king in the world of fiction, it probably won’t come as any surprise to learn that a book review for a novel will concentrate on how well the story was told .

That said, book reviews in all genres follow the same basic formula that we discussed earlier. In these examples, you’ll be able to see how book reviewers on different platforms expertly intertwine the plot summary and their personal opinions of the book to produce a clear, informative, and concise review.

Note: Some of the book review examples run very long. If a book review is truncated in this post, we’ve indicated by including a […] at the end, but you can always read the entire review if you click on the link provided.

Examples of literary fiction book reviews

Kirkus Reviews reviews Ralph Ellison’s The Invisible Man :

An extremely powerful story of a young Southern Negro, from his late high school days through three years of college to his life in Harlem.

His early training prepared him for a life of humility before white men, but through injustices- large and small, he came to realize that he was an "invisible man". People saw in him only a reflection of their preconceived ideas of what he was, denied his individuality, and ultimately did not see him at all. This theme, which has implications far beyond the obvious racial parallel, is skillfully handled. The incidents of the story are wholly absorbing. The boy's dismissal from college because of an innocent mistake, his shocked reaction to the anonymity of the North and to Harlem, his nightmare experiences on a one-day job in a paint factory and in the hospital, his lightning success as the Harlem leader of a communistic organization known as the Brotherhood, his involvement in black versus white and black versus black clashes and his disillusion and understanding of his invisibility- all climax naturally in scenes of violence and riot, followed by a retreat which is both literal and figurative. Parts of this experience may have been told before, but never with such freshness, intensity and power.

This is Ellison's first novel, but he has complete control of his story and his style. Watch it.

Lyndsey reviews George Orwell’s 1984 on Goodreads:

YOU. ARE. THE. DEAD. Oh my God. I got the chills so many times toward the end of this book. It completely blew my mind. It managed to surpass my high expectations AND be nothing at all like I expected. Or in Newspeak "Double Plus Good." Let me preface this with an apology. If I sound stunningly inarticulate at times in this review, I can't help it. My mind is completely fried.

This book is like the dystopian Lord of the Rings, with its richly developed culture and economics, not to mention a fully developed language called Newspeak, or rather more of the anti-language, whose purpose is to limit speech and understanding instead of to enhance and expand it. The world-building is so fully fleshed out and spine-tinglingly terrifying that it's almost as if George travelled to such a place, escaped from it, and then just wrote it all down.

I read Fahrenheit 451 over ten years ago in my early teens. At the time, I remember really wanting to read 1984, although I never managed to get my hands on it. I'm almost glad I didn't. Though I would not have admitted it at the time, it would have gone over my head. Or at the very least, I wouldn't have been able to appreciate it fully. […]

The New York Times reviews Lisa Halliday’s Asymmetry :

Three-quarters of the way through Lisa Halliday’s debut novel, “Asymmetry,” a British foreign correspondent named Alistair is spending Christmas on a compound outside of Baghdad. His fellow revelers include cameramen, defense contractors, United Nations employees and aid workers. Someone’s mother has FedExed a HoneyBaked ham from Maine; people are smoking by the swimming pool. It is 2003, just days after Saddam Hussein’s capture, and though the mood is optimistic, Alistair is worrying aloud about the ethics of his chosen profession, wondering if reporting on violence doesn’t indirectly abet violence and questioning why he’d rather be in a combat zone than reading a picture book to his son. But every time he returns to London, he begins to “spin out.” He can’t go home. “You observe what people do with their freedom — what they don’t do — and it’s impossible not to judge them for it,” he says.

The line, embedded unceremoniously in the middle of a page-long paragraph, doubles, like so many others in “Asymmetry,” as literary criticism. Halliday’s novel is so strange and startlingly smart that its mere existence seems like commentary on the state of fiction. One finishes “Asymmetry” for the first or second (or like this reader, third) time and is left wondering what other writers are not doing with their freedom — and, like Alistair, judging them for it.

Despite its title, “Asymmetry” comprises two seemingly unrelated sections of equal length, appended by a slim and quietly shocking coda. Halliday’s prose is clean and lean, almost reportorial in the style of W. G. Sebald, and like the murmurings of a shy person at a cocktail party, often comic only in single clauses. It’s a first novel that reads like the work of an author who has published many books over many years. […]

Emily W. Thompson reviews Michael Doane's The Crossing on Reedsy Discovery :

In Doane’s debut novel, a young man embarks on a journey of self-discovery with surprising results.

An unnamed protagonist (The Narrator) is dealing with heartbreak. His love, determined to see the world, sets out for Portland, Oregon. But he’s a small-town boy who hasn’t traveled much. So, the Narrator mourns her loss and hides from life, throwing himself into rehabbing an old motorcycle. Until one day, he takes a leap; he packs his bike and a few belongings and heads out to find the Girl.

Following in the footsteps of Jack Kerouac and William Least Heat-Moon, Doane offers a coming of age story about a man finding himself on the backroads of America. Doane’s a gifted writer with fluid prose and insightful observations, using The Narrator’s personal interactions to illuminate the diversity of the United States.

The Narrator initially sticks to the highways, trying to make it to the West Coast as quickly as possible. But a hitchhiker named Duke convinces him to get off the beaten path and enjoy the ride. “There’s not a place that’s like any other,” [39] Dukes contends, and The Narrator realizes he’s right. Suddenly, the trip is about the journey, not just the destination. The Narrator ditches his truck and traverses the deserts and mountains on his bike. He destroys his phone, cutting off ties with his past and living only in the moment.

As he crosses the country, The Narrator connects with several unique personalities whose experiences and views deeply impact his own. Duke, the complicated cowboy and drifter, who opens The Narrator’s eyes to a larger world. Zooey, the waitress in Colorado who opens his heart and reminds him that love can be found in this big world. And Rosie, The Narrator’s sweet landlady in Portland, who helps piece him back together both physically and emotionally.

This supporting cast of characters is excellent. Duke, in particular, is wonderfully nuanced and complicated. He’s a throwback to another time, a man without a cell phone who reads Sartre and sleeps under the stars. Yet he’s also a grifter with a “love ‘em and leave ‘em” attitude that harms those around him. It’s fascinating to watch The Narrator wrestle with Duke’s behavior, trying to determine which to model and which to discard.

Doane creates a relatable protagonist in The Narrator, whose personal growth doesn’t erase his faults. His willingness to hit the road with few resources is admirable, and he’s prescient enough to recognize the jealousy of those who cannot or will not take the leap. His encounters with new foods, places, and people broaden his horizons. Yet his immaturity and selfishness persist. He tells Rosie she’s been a good mother to him but chooses to ignore the continuing concern from his own parents as he effectively disappears from his old life.

Despite his flaws, it’s a pleasure to accompany The Narrator on his physical and emotional journey. The unexpected ending is a fitting denouement to an epic and memorable road trip.

The Book Smugglers review Anissa Gray’s The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls :

I am still dipping my toes into the literally fiction pool, finding what works for me and what doesn’t. Books like The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls by Anissa Gray are definitely my cup of tea.

Althea and Proctor Cochran had been pillars of their economically disadvantaged community for years – with their local restaurant/small market and their charity drives. Until they are found guilty of fraud for stealing and keeping most of the money they raised and sent to jail. Now disgraced, their entire family is suffering the consequences, specially their twin teenage daughters Baby Vi and Kim.  To complicate matters even more: Kim was actually the one to call the police on her parents after yet another fight with her mother. […]

Examples of children’s and YA fiction book reviews

The Book Hookup reviews Angie Thomas’ The Hate U Give :

♥ Quick Thoughts and Rating: 5 stars! I can’t imagine how challenging it would be to tackle the voice of a movement like Black Lives Matter, but I do know that Thomas did it with a finesse only a talented author like herself possibly could. With an unapologetically realistic delivery packed with emotion, The Hate U Give is a crucially important portrayal of the difficulties minorities face in our country every single day. I have no doubt that this book will be met with resistance by some (possibly many) and slapped with a “controversial” label, but if you’ve ever wondered what it was like to walk in a POC’s shoes, then I feel like this is an unflinchingly honest place to start.

In Angie Thomas’s debut novel, Starr Carter bursts on to the YA scene with both heart-wrecking and heartwarming sincerity. This author is definitely one to watch.

♥ Review: The hype around this book has been unquestionable and, admittedly, that made me both eager to get my hands on it and terrified to read it. I mean, what if I was to be the one person that didn’t love it as much as others? (That seems silly now because of how truly mesmerizing THUG was in the most heartbreakingly realistic way.) However, with the relevancy of its summary in regards to the unjust predicaments POC currently face in the US, I knew this one was a must-read, so I was ready to set my fears aside and dive in. That said, I had an altogether more personal, ulterior motive for wanting to read this book. […]

The New York Times reviews Melissa Albert’s The Hazel Wood :

Alice Crewe (a last name she’s chosen for herself) is a fairy tale legacy: the granddaughter of Althea Proserpine, author of a collection of dark-as-night fairy tales called “Tales From the Hinterland.” The book has a cult following, and though Alice has never met her grandmother, she’s learned a little about her through internet research. She hasn’t read the stories, because her mother, Ella Proserpine, forbids it.

Alice and Ella have moved from place to place in an attempt to avoid the “bad luck” that seems to follow them. Weird things have happened. As a child, Alice was kidnapped by a man who took her on a road trip to find her grandmother; he was stopped by the police before they did so. When at 17 she sees that man again, unchanged despite the years, Alice panics. Then Ella goes missing, and Alice turns to Ellery Finch, a schoolmate who’s an Althea Proserpine superfan, for help in tracking down her mother. Not only has Finch read every fairy tale in the collection, but handily, he remembers them, sharing them with Alice as they journey to the mysterious Hazel Wood, the estate of her now-dead grandmother, where they hope to find Ella.

“The Hazel Wood” starts out strange and gets stranger, in the best way possible. (The fairy stories Finch relays, which Albert includes as their own chapters, are as creepy and evocative as you’d hope.) Albert seamlessly combines contemporary realism with fantasy, blurring the edges in a way that highlights that place where stories and real life convene, where magic contains truth and the world as it appears is false, where just about anything can happen, particularly in the pages of a very good book. It’s a captivating debut. […]

James reviews Margaret Wise Brown’s Goodnight, Moon on Goodreads:

Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown is one of the books that followers of my blog voted as a must-read for our Children's Book August 2018 Readathon. Come check it out and join the next few weeks!

This picture book was such a delight. I hadn't remembered reading it when I was a child, but it might have been read to me... either way, it was like a whole new experience! It's always so difficult to convince a child to fall asleep at night. I don't have kids, but I do have a 5-month-old puppy who whines for 5 minutes every night when he goes in his cage/crate (hopefully he'll be fully housebroken soon so he can roam around when he wants). I can only imagine! I babysat a lot as a teenager and I have tons of younger cousins, nieces, and nephews, so I've been through it before, too. This was a believable experience, and it really helps show kids how to relax and just let go when it's time to sleep.

The bunny's are adorable. The rhymes are exquisite. I found it pretty fun, but possibly a little dated given many of those things aren't normal routines anymore. But the lessons to take from it are still powerful. Loved it! I want to sample some more books by this fine author and her illustrators.

Publishers Weekly reviews Elizabeth Lilly’s Geraldine :

This funny, thoroughly accomplished debut opens with two words: “I’m moving.” They’re spoken by the title character while she swoons across her family’s ottoman, and because Geraldine is a giraffe, her full-on melancholy mode is quite a spectacle. But while Geraldine may be a drama queen (even her mother says so), it won’t take readers long to warm up to her. The move takes Geraldine from Giraffe City, where everyone is like her, to a new school, where everyone else is human. Suddenly, the former extrovert becomes “That Giraffe Girl,” and all she wants to do is hide, which is pretty much impossible. “Even my voice tries to hide,” she says, in the book’s most poignant moment. “It’s gotten quiet and whispery.” Then she meets Cassie, who, though human, is also an outlier (“I’m that girl who wears glasses and likes MATH and always organizes her food”), and things begin to look up.

Lilly’s watercolor-and-ink drawings are as vividly comic and emotionally astute as her writing; just when readers think there are no more ways for Geraldine to contort her long neck, this highly promising talent comes up with something new.

Examples of genre fiction book reviews

Karlyn P reviews Nora Roberts’ Dark Witch , a paranormal romance novel , on Goodreads:

4 stars. Great world-building, weak romance, but still worth the read.

I hesitate to describe this book as a 'romance' novel simply because the book spent little time actually exploring the romance between Iona and Boyle. Sure, there IS a romance in this novel. Sprinkled throughout the book are a few scenes where Iona and Boyle meet, chat, wink at each, flirt some more, sleep together, have a misunderstanding, make up, and then profess their undying love. Very formulaic stuff, and all woven around the more important parts of this book.

The meat of this book is far more focused on the story of the Dark witch and her magically-gifted descendants living in Ireland. Despite being weak on the romance, I really enjoyed it. I think the book is probably better for it, because the romance itself was pretty lackluster stuff.

I absolutely plan to stick with this series as I enjoyed the world building, loved the Ireland setting, and was intrigued by all of the secondary characters. However, If you read Nora Roberts strictly for the romance scenes, this one might disappoint. But if you enjoy a solid background story with some dark magic and prophesies, you might enjoy it as much as I did.

I listened to this one on audio, and felt the narration was excellent.

Emily May reviews R.F. Kuang’s The Poppy Wars , an epic fantasy novel , on Goodreads:

“But I warn you, little warrior. The price of power is pain.”

Holy hell, what did I just read??

➽ A fantasy military school

➽ A rich world based on modern Chinese history

➽ Shamans and gods

➽ Detailed characterization leading to unforgettable characters

➽ Adorable, opium-smoking mentors

That's a basic list, but this book is all of that and SO MUCH MORE. I know 100% that The Poppy War will be one of my best reads of 2018.

Isn't it just so great when you find one of those books that completely drags you in, makes you fall in love with the characters, and demands that you sit on the edge of your seat for every horrific, nail-biting moment of it? This is one of those books for me. And I must issue a serious content warning: this book explores some very dark themes. Proceed with caution (or not at all) if you are particularly sensitive to scenes of war, drug use and addiction, genocide, racism, sexism, ableism, self-harm, torture, and rape (off-page but extremely horrific).

Because, despite the fairly innocuous first 200 pages, the title speaks the truth: this is a book about war. All of its horrors and atrocities. It is not sugar-coated, and it is often graphic. The "poppy" aspect refers to opium, which is a big part of this book. It is a fantasy, but the book draws inspiration from the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Rape of Nanking.

Crime Fiction Lover reviews Jessica Barry’s Freefall , a crime novel:

In some crime novels, the wrongdoing hits you between the eyes from page one. With others it’s a more subtle process, and that’s OK too. So where does Freefall fit into the sliding scale?

In truth, it’s not clear. This is a novel with a thrilling concept at its core. A woman survives plane crash, then runs for her life. However, it is the subtleties at play that will draw you in like a spider beckoning to an unwitting fly.

Like the heroine in Sharon Bolton’s Dead Woman Walking, Allison is lucky to be alive. She was the only passenger in a private plane, belonging to her fiancé, Ben, who was piloting the expensive aircraft, when it came down in woodlands in the Colorado Rockies. Ally is also the only survivor, but rather than sitting back and waiting for rescue, she is soon pulling together items that may help her survive a little longer – first aid kit, energy bars, warm clothes, trainers – before fleeing the scene. If you’re hearing the faint sound of alarm bells ringing, get used to it. There’s much, much more to learn about Ally before this tale is over.

Kirkus Reviews reviews Ernest Cline’s Ready Player One , a science-fiction novel :

Video-game players embrace the quest of a lifetime in a virtual world; screenwriter Cline’s first novel is old wine in new bottles.

The real world, in 2045, is the usual dystopian horror story. So who can blame Wade, our narrator, if he spends most of his time in a virtual world? The 18-year-old, orphaned at 11, has no friends in his vertical trailer park in Oklahoma City, while the OASIS has captivating bells and whistles, and it’s free. Its creator, the legendary billionaire James Halliday, left a curious will. He had devised an elaborate online game, a hunt for a hidden Easter egg. The finder would inherit his estate. Old-fashioned riddles lead to three keys and three gates. Wade, or rather his avatar Parzival, is the first gunter (egg-hunter) to win the Copper Key, first of three.

Halliday was obsessed with the pop culture of the 1980s, primarily the arcade games, so the novel is as much retro as futurist. Parzival’s great strength is that he has absorbed all Halliday’s obsessions; he knows by heart three essential movies, crossing the line from geek to freak. His most formidable competitors are the Sixers, contract gunters working for the evil conglomerate IOI, whose goal is to acquire the OASIS. Cline’s narrative is straightforward but loaded with exposition. It takes a while to reach a scene that crackles with excitement: the meeting between Parzival (now world famous as the lead contender) and Sorrento, the head of IOI. The latter tries to recruit Parzival; when he fails, he issues and executes a death threat. Wade’s trailer is demolished, his relatives killed; luckily Wade was not at home. Too bad this is the dramatic high point. Parzival threads his way between more ’80s games and movies to gain the other keys; it’s clever but not exciting. Even a romance with another avatar and the ultimate “epic throwdown” fail to stir the blood.

Too much puzzle-solving, not enough suspense.

Book review examples for non-fiction books

Nonfiction books are generally written to inform readers about a certain topic. As such, the focus of a nonfiction book review will be on the clarity and effectiveness of this communication . In carrying this out, a book review may analyze the author’s source materials and assess the thesis in order to determine whether or not the book meets expectations.

Again, we’ve included abbreviated versions of long reviews here, so feel free to click on the link to read the entire piece!

The Washington Post reviews David Grann’s Killers of the Flower Moon :

The arc of David Grann’s career reminds one of a software whiz-kid or a latest-thing talk-show host — certainly not an investigative reporter, even if he is one of the best in the business. The newly released movie of his first book, “The Lost City of Z,” is generating all kinds of Oscar talk, and now comes the release of his second book, “Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI,” the film rights to which have already been sold for $5 million in what one industry journal called the “biggest and wildest book rights auction in memory.”

Grann deserves the attention. He’s canny about the stories he chases, he’s willing to go anywhere to chase them, and he’s a maestro in his ability to parcel out information at just the right clip: a hint here, a shading of meaning there, a smartly paced buildup of multiple possibilities followed by an inevitable reversal of readerly expectations or, in some cases, by a thrilling and dislocating pull of the entire narrative rug.

All of these strengths are on display in “Killers of the Flower Moon.” Around the turn of the 20th century, oil was discovered underneath Osage lands in the Oklahoma Territory, lands that were soon to become part of the state of Oklahoma. Through foresight and legal maneuvering, the Osage found a way to permanently attach that oil to themselves and shield it from the prying hands of white interlopers; this mechanism was known as “headrights,” which forbade the outright sale of oil rights and granted each full member of the tribe — and, supposedly, no one else — a share in the proceeds from any lease arrangement. For a while, the fail-safes did their job, and the Osage got rich — diamond-ring and chauffeured-car and imported-French-fashion rich — following which quite a large group of white men started to work like devils to separate the Osage from their money. And soon enough, and predictably enough, this work involved murder. Here in Jazz Age America’s most isolated of locales, dozens or even hundreds of Osage in possession of great fortunes — and of the potential for even greater fortunes in the future — were dispatched by poison, by gunshot and by dynamite. […]

Stacked Books reviews Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers :

I’ve heard a lot of great things about Malcolm Gladwell’s writing. Friends and co-workers tell me that his subjects are interesting and his writing style is easy to follow without talking down to the reader. I wasn’t disappointed with Outliers. In it, Gladwell tackles the subject of success – how people obtain it and what contributes to extraordinary success as opposed to everyday success.

The thesis – that our success depends much more on circumstances out of our control than any effort we put forth – isn’t exactly revolutionary. Most of us know it to be true. However, I don’t think I’m lying when I say that most of us also believe that we if we just try that much harder and develop our talent that much further, it will be enough to become wildly successful, despite bad or just mediocre beginnings. Not so, says Gladwell.

Most of the evidence Gladwell gives us is anecdotal, which is my favorite kind to read. I can’t really speak to how scientifically valid it is, but it sure makes for engrossing listening. For example, did you know that successful hockey players are almost all born in January, February, or March? Kids born during these months are older than the others kids when they start playing in the youth leagues, which means they’re already better at the game (because they’re bigger). Thus, they get more play time, which means their skill increases at a faster rate, and it compounds as time goes by. Within a few years, they’re much, much better than the kids born just a few months later in the year. Basically, these kids’ birthdates are a huge factor in their success as adults – and it’s nothing they can do anything about. If anyone could make hockey interesting to a Texan who only grudgingly admits the sport even exists, it’s Gladwell. […]

Quill and Quire reviews Rick Prashaw’s Soar, Adam, Soar :

Ten years ago, I read a book called Almost Perfect. The young-adult novel by Brian Katcher won some awards and was held up as a powerful, nuanced portrayal of a young trans person. But the reality did not live up to the book’s billing. Instead, it turned out to be a one-dimensional and highly fetishized portrait of a trans person’s life, one that was nevertheless repeatedly dubbed “realistic” and “affecting” by non-transgender readers possessing only a vague, mass-market understanding of trans experiences.

In the intervening decade, trans narratives have emerged further into the literary spotlight, but those authored by trans people ourselves – and by trans men in particular – have seemed to fall under the shadow of cisgender sensationalized imaginings. Two current Canadian releases – Soar, Adam, Soar and This One Looks Like a Boy – provide a pointed object lesson into why trans-authored work about transgender experiences remains critical.

To be fair, Soar, Adam, Soar isn’t just a story about a trans man. It’s also a story about epilepsy, the medical establishment, and coming of age as seen through a grieving father’s eyes. Adam, Prashaw’s trans son, died unexpectedly at age 22. Woven through the elder Prashaw’s narrative are excerpts from Adam’s social media posts, giving us glimpses into the young man’s interior life as he traverses his late teens and early 20s. […]

Book Geeks reviews Elizabeth Gilbert’s Eat, Pray, Love :

WRITING STYLE: 3.5/5

SUBJECT: 4/5

CANDIDNESS: 4.5/5

RELEVANCE: 3.5/5

ENTERTAINMENT QUOTIENT: 3.5/5

“Eat Pray Love” is so popular that it is almost impossible to not read it. Having felt ashamed many times on my not having read this book, I quietly ordered the book (before I saw the movie) from amazon.in and sat down to read it. I don’t remember what I expected it to be – maybe more like a chick lit thing but it turned out quite different. The book is a real story and is a short journal from the time when its writer went travelling to three different countries in pursuit of three different things – Italy (Pleasure), India (Spirituality), Bali (Balance) and this is what corresponds to the book’s name – EAT (in Italy), PRAY (in India) and LOVE (in Bali, Indonesia). These are also the three Is – ITALY, INDIA, INDONESIA.

Though she had everything a middle-aged American woman can aspire for – MONEY, CAREER, FRIENDS, HUSBAND; Elizabeth was not happy in her life, she wasn’t happy in her marriage. Having suffered a terrible divorce and terrible breakup soon after, Elizabeth was shattered. She didn’t know where to go and what to do – all she knew was that she wanted to run away. So she set out on a weird adventure – she will go to three countries in a year and see if she can find out what she was looking for in life. This book is about that life changing journey that she takes for one whole year. […]

Emily May reviews Michelle Obama’s Becoming on Goodreads:

Look, I'm not a happy crier. I might cry at songs about leaving and missing someone; I might cry at books where things don't work out; I might cry at movies where someone dies. I've just never really understood why people get all choked up over happy, inspirational things. But Michelle Obama's kindness and empathy changed that. This book had me in tears for all the right reasons.

This is not really a book about politics, though political experiences obviously do come into it. It's a shame that some will dismiss this book because of a difference in political opinion, when it is really about a woman's life. About growing up poor and black on the South Side of Chicago; about getting married and struggling to maintain that marriage; about motherhood; about being thrown into an amazing and terrifying position.

I hate words like "inspirational" because they've become so overdone and cheesy, but I just have to say it-- Michelle Obama is an inspiration. I had the privilege of seeing her speak at The Forum in Inglewood, and she is one of the warmest, funniest, smartest, down-to-earth people I have ever seen in this world.

And yes, I know we present what we want the world to see, but I truly do think it's genuine. I think she is someone who really cares about people - especially kids - and wants to give them better lives and opportunities.

She's obviously intelligent, but she also doesn't gussy up her words. She talks straight, with an openness and honesty rarely seen. She's been one of the most powerful women in the world, she's been a graduate of Princeton and Harvard Law School, she's had her own successful career, and yet she has remained throughout that same girl - Michelle Robinson - from a working class family in Chicago.

I don't think there's anyone who wouldn't benefit from reading this book.

Hopefully, this post has given you a better idea of how to write a book review. You might be wondering how to put all of this knowledge into action now! Many book reviewers start out by setting up a book blog. If you don’t have time to research the intricacies of HTML, check out Reedsy Discovery — where you can read indie books for free and review them without going through the hassle of creating a blog. To register as a book reviewer , go here .

And if you’d like to see even more book review examples, simply go to this directory of book review blogs and click on any one of them to see a wealth of good book reviews. Beyond that, it's up to you to pick up a book and pen — and start reviewing!

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9 Best Photo Book Maker Websites

Print your favorite photos and don't let them go to waste.

We've been independently researching and testing products for over 120 years. If you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. Learn more about our review process.

Best Overall Photo Book Maker

Shutterfly photo books.

Best Value Custom Photo Book Maker

Walmart photo custom photo books.

Most Aesthetic Photo Book Maker

Artifact uprising photo books.

Best Themed Photo Book Maker

Mixbook photo books.

Best Photo Book Maker for Beginners

Printique photo books.

Best Photo Book Maker for Amazon Prime Members

Amazon prints.

Best Photo Book Maker for Young Kids

Pinhole press photo books.

Best Photo Book Maker for Google Photos Users

Google photo books.

Best Photo Book Maker for Families

Chatbooks custom photo books & albums.

The product analysts and experts in the Good Housekeeping Institute Media & Tech Lab continuously test everything from photo book maker websites to the best wedding photo albums , printers and much more. When making our selections, we reviewed each product for factors like ease of use and intuitiveness of the website and app, if applicable, photo quality, speed of delivery and extra features like templates, cover options and style. These are the best photo book maker websites of 2024, according to our pros.

Shutterfly offers basic photo books at an affordable price. You can choose from a wide selection of themes, like birthday, travel or wedding, or neutral styles , such as modern or rustic. You can also create your own book and choose the book size, cover style and page style, then embellish it with Shutterfly's extensive library of stickers and ribbons to make your book extra special. We appreciate how easily users can edit within their chosen template and the brand's high-quality photo book paper, making Shutterfly a top pick.

You can also opt for one of its 6" x 6" Instant Books , which let you add photos from your phone, tablet or computer in minutes. These mini photo books have only 20 pages, but they're a great place to store goofy candids or Instagram posts you never want to forget. The possibilities are essentially limitless, though the vast array of options could be overwhelming for those getting started.

If you don't want the pressure of deciding on a layout, the brand offers a convenient Make My Book option, in which Shutterfly's professional designers curate your photos and design the book for free. Plus, you'll still have the opportunity to put finishing touches on it before it gets printed. Whether you opt for 50 or 800 photos (the maximum), you'll receive an email notification within 24 hours that your book is complete.

Crunched for time? Design your photo book online and pick up select styles at a Walmart store near you in as little as one hour. Photo books picked up in one hour can have 15 single-sided pages and a linen cover, while same-day pickups (ready in a few hours) can have up to 20 double-sided pages and the option of a hardcover.

On top of the speedy turnaround, Walmart has a great selection of styles : You can choose everything from the photo size and layout to the type of cover, including hardcover glossy or matte, linen, leather and lay-flat glossy or matte. If you need help narrowing down the choices, there's also the option to shop by occasion, whether you're looking for a one-year anniversary or 15th-year anniversary gift .

Despite the fast shipping and variety, our expert tester, Rachel Rothman , former chief technologist and executive technical director at the Good Housekeeping Institute, did note that the quality is not as high as the options offered by other photo book makers on this list — but that may be expected considering the bargain price tag. Regardless, these photo books still make a superb present that can cost under $10 without compromising on sentimentality.

No matter the occasion, you can't go wrong with one of Artifact Uprising's high-quality photo books. There are numerous design options, including preset books to celebrate the birth of a new baby or commemorating a marriage. You can choose from lay-flat albums, books with photo strips and even softcover Instagram Friendly Books for the influencer in your life. The company even has an iPhone app that lets you create a photo book right from your smartphone. However, Rothman found the app to be glitchy at times and noted there's room for improvement with the software. Still, the books come out on top for elegance and simplicity .

One online reviewer wrote, "The fabric cover is beautiful. The photos are amazing quality and look amazing even though the photos were taken on film and therefore are a bit grainy." The overall 4.6-star rating (out of 5) backs up that review. Quality and elevated designs come with a higher price tag, but there are options for $20 or less if you're shopping on a budget.

If you have a special project and a little more money to spend, Artifact Uprising offers Design Services , which allow you to work one-on-one with an expert to bring your special moments to life. Just note that the design fee is rather steep at $119 and requires an additional $100 album deposit.

When Mixbook says it has "custom photo books for every occasion," it really means it. There are 374 different themed templates to choose from, including everything f rom travel and sports to weddings and recipes. But that doesn't mean you have to give up creative control. You can still customize the look to your liking, from fun backgrounds to stickers to text using the Editor tool. Plus, there are plenty of paper varieties, from semigloss to ultra-thick matte.

Rothman appreciated the nice balance between good photo editing and price, but she did experience issues with the lay-flat option, in which the photos bled into the crease. You can also use the iPhone app to organize your photos with a tool that the brand calls "Automagic": Simply choose the images you want and select a theme. The goal of Automagic is to help arrange your camera roll so your photos are in order when it comes time to add them to your photo book.

If you're not sure where to start, our pros love Printique because it's super easy to use. You can select one of the many predesigned layouts or create an entire photo book from scratch. Choose among portrait, landscape and square orientations, as well as hardcover and softcover options. You can even store your memories in a genuine leather or vegan leather book or pick from five different fabric colors. Although you can't choose the color for a hard- or softcover photo book, you can still customize the shape, size and paper type.

Looking for something more advanced? There'sa tool for professional photographers to design and create their own photo books. But if you want to keep things simple, consider starting with one of Printique's 4" x 4" Mini Softcover photo books , which have a maximum of 40 pages and come in three sizes.

Is Amazon Photos already your preferred destination for uploading photos? Then creating a photo book through its interface is an easy solution. Similar to other photo book makers, you can create by occasion and size, or choose its 8" x 8" Premium Photo Book for a versatile option that has a laminated cover and lay-flat binding. There's also an option with standard binding at a lower cost, and all Amazon Prime members get free shipping . (Everyone else is eligible for free shipping with a minimum order of $15.)

In addition to photo books, you can shop large prints, calendars, cards and metal tabletops. There are fewer size and style options than most services when it comes to photo books, but the other photo product choices make up for the lack of available styles. After all, sometimes it's easier and quicker to have fewer options to choose from if you need to pull something together by a certain date, like a last-minute gift for your boyfriend .

RELATED: 37 Best Personalized Gifts You Can Find on Amazon

With Pinhole Press, you can choose from various photo book styles ranging from board pages to softcovers to accordion-style setups. Upload your photos and let the system do the work, or manually place the photos into the layout yourself. Rothman says her kids love the Custom Board Books , which have themes such as " Count With Me ," " Healthy Habits " and " I Can Be Anything ." These photo books aren't just visually stimulating, but they can also educate and entertain kids for years to come .

"I got my daughter the ' My First Photo Book ' as a toddler and made it all about her — like pictures with family, doing things she likes, her favorite toys, at the playground and beach, etc. — and she still is obsessed with it," says Lexie Sachs , executive director of strategy and operations at the Good Housekeeping Institute.

Rothman also notes the custom Photo Puzzle is a fun option for kids, and the Itty Bitty Books are easy to tote around in a work bag for on-hand entertainment. There's less variety in some categories, including Itty Bitty and hardcover books, but with so many additional photo categories other companies lack, there are still plenty of great options for kids.

RELATED: 12 Best Personalized Books for Kids

If you store your snaps in Google Photos, then Google's very own photo book maker might be the most convenient option for you. Even though there are no fancy designs, the process is seamless. Choose from two options: a 7" x 7" softcover photo book or a 9" x 9" hardcover photo book. You can include between 20 and 140 pages, and you have the option to add a spine title if you hit more than 48 pages for a softcover or any number of pages for a hardcover.

Another hallmark of Google Photos is that you can make one photo book and order multiple copies to give to family members and friends who are also pictured in the photos. Since they come at an affordable price point, you could give everyone on your gift list a copy, whether you decide to create a collection of candid photos for your closest friends or a tangible memento of a fun family trip. Though there may not be as many designs and styles to choose from, that can make the customization process less daunting.

RELATED: 50 Trendy and Most Popular Gifts of 2023

Chatbooks Custom Photo Books & Albums

"Set and forget it," Rothman says about the ease of using Chatbooks, which markets itself as "ridiculously easy." You can upload images from Instagram, Flickr, Dropbox, Facebook or your computer and edit them on your desktop or via the app . The service's Custom Photo Books & Albums option is great for families looking to personalize a family vacation , as you can choose colors, layouts, cover styles, collages, captions and more. Peruse its vast collection of more than 300 unique book covers, or shop the premium lay-flat and special occasion photo books.

You can also have fun with the Instagram and Facebook series — a 6" x 6" or 8" x 8" book with 60 pages — that lets you store your favorite social media posts in a tangible place to look back on for years to come.

Unique to Chatbooks is its subscription service, which allows you to receive a softcover, hardcover or mini photo book each month. If you and your family love taking photographs of walks in the park, weekend road trips or vacations, this service is ideal for getting your photos in your hands ASAP. One thing to note about the subscription option is that there are only two sizes available (5" x 7" and the monthly mini).

How we choose the best photo book makers

At the Good Housekeeping Institute , our pros in the Media & Tech Lab have been testing photo book makers for more than a decade . For this article, we referenced a robust test of photo book makers completed in 2009, examined updates to apps and ordered new products to test in 2023.

When choosing the best photo book makers, our Lab experts consider ease of use, performance and appearance . That means our pros take an in-depth look at a wide range of features, such as how easy it is to navigate the interface and add photos and text to the book; upload and delivery time; the number of styles, covers and templates offered; and the photo, paper and binding quality.

What to look for when shopping for the best custom photo book maker

Keep the following features in mind when choosing the right photo book maker website for your needs:

✔️ Size: Whether you're looking for a small photo book for kids or a much larger album to house snapshots from a long family vacation, there are regular, large and miniature photo book sizes available. It's best to think about how many photos you want to include and where you plan to store the album (i.e., will the book be too tall for your bookshelf or just right on top of your coffee table?).

✔️ Shape: Most photo books are rectangular or square in shape, but some companies also offer photo puzzles, calendars and tabletops to choose from too. The shape is really about aesthetic preference and the orientation you prefer for your photos.

✔️ Page count: Are you compiling 20 photos from your daughter's first-birthday party? Or are you putting together an anniversary album of pictures of you and your partner throughout the years? The number of pages determines the number of photos you can include in an album, so you have enough space to include everything.

✔️ Paper quality: This is probably a no-brainer, as the quality of material your photos are printed on is as important as the quality of the photos themselves. Although companies with higher-quality paper, like Artifact Uprising , may have a higher price tag, the extra money goes toward paper that won't lead to photos bleeding into the crease. But there are still services that are affordable and offer good-quality products, like our best value pick, Walmart Photo .

✔️ Binding quality: Some companies, like Google Photos , will add a binding to your photo album. This feature is especially important when considering the durability and longevity of your photo album. Whether it's a softcover, hardcover or lay-flat book, make sure the binding can withstand accidental drops and the wear and tear of passing the family album around at holiday parties.

✔️ Templates: If your photo album will have a certain theme or be centered around a specific occasion — or it's your first time using a photo book maker — choosing a service that has a variety of templates to choose from will let your creativity flow and also help you warm up to the design process.

✔️ Editing capabilities: When looking at beginner-level or more advanced designer tools, consider how robust or simple they are to use. Having lots of control over the interface is fun, but if you're looking for a more straightforward experience, opt for a service that does the majority of the decision-making for you or offers designer help, like Shutterfly .

What is the easiest way to make a custom photo book?

" It really depends upon the service and your preference ," Rothman says. Although some online custom photo book makers also have an app, it can have limited functionality, be buggy or not as easy to use as the desktop equivalent. "Often, an app makes it super simple to upload pictures from your phone (a major plus!) but doesn't allow as much flexibility for product assortment or editing once you've selected." That said, designing a photo book on your smartphone or tablet versus a desktop may come down to how many edits you intend to make .

"If you plan to do a lot of editing, the non-app version on a larger screen would likely be your best choice. If you want to quickly make a book with limited changes, an app on your mobile device may be the way to go," Rothman explains.

Why trust Good Housekeeping?

Elizabeth Berry is the updates editor at the Good Housekeeping Institute , where she ensures product reviews reflect accurate information. Prior to this role, she was an editorial assistant at Woman's Day , where she covered everything from gift guides to recipes.

To update this article, Elizabeth collaborated with former Good Housekeeping Institute Chief Technologist & Executive Technical Director Rachel Rothman to gather testing notes regarding current picks. Rachel, who has tested several of the best photo book makers on this list, has more than 15 years of experience evaluating thousands of products, including toys and cars for Good Housekeeping’s annual Best Toy Awards and Best New Family Cars programs.

Amina Lake Abdelrahman is a product review writer and editor who worked as an editorial assistant at the Good Housekeeping Institute from 2018 to 2020, writing original content based on GH Institute Lab experts' product testing and analysis.

Amina is a product review writer and editor who worked as an editorial assistant in the Good Housekeeping Institute from 2018 to 2020, writing original content based on GH Lab experts' product testing and analysis. Amina graduated from Montclair State University with a B.A. in communication studies and journalism.

Elizabeth Berry (she/her) is the Updates Editor at the Good Housekeeping Institute where she optimizes lifestyle content across verticals. Prior to this role, she was an Editorial Assistant for Woman’s Day where she covered everything from gift guides to recipes. She also has experience fact checking commerce articles and holds a B.A. in English and Italian Studies from Connecticut College.

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Picture This

George takei 'lost freedom' some 80 years ago – now he's written that story for kids.

Samantha Balaban

George Takei was just 4 years old when when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066:

"I hereby authorize and direct the Secretary of War, and the Military Commanders... to prescribe military areas in such places and of such extent as he or the appropriate Military Commander may determine, from which any or all persons may be excluded..."

It was Feb. 19, 1942. Japan had attacked Pearl Harbor two months earlier; For looking like the enemy, Japanese and Japanese American people in the U.S. were now considered "enemy combatants" and the executive order authorized the government to forcibly remove approximately 125,000 people from their homes and relocate them to prison camps around the country.

Book Reviews

George takei recalls time in an american internment camp in 'they called us enemy'.

Star Trek actor George Takei has written about this time in his life before — once in an autobiography, then in a graphic memoir, and now in his new children's book, My Lost Freedom.

It's about the years he and his mom, dad, brother and baby sister spent in a string of prison camps: swampy Camp Rohwer in Arkansas, desolate Tule Lake in northern California. But first, they were taken from their home, driven to the Santa Anita racetrack and forced to live in horse stalls while the camps were being built.

"The horse stalls were pungent," Takei remembers, "overwhelming with the stench of horse manure. The air was full of flies, buzzing. My mother, I remember, kept mumbling 'So humiliating. So humiliating.'"

He says, "Michelle's drawing really captured the degradation our family was reduced to."

Michelle is Michelle Lee, the illustrator — and researcher — for the book. Lee relied heavily on Takei's text and his excellent memory, but it was the research that both agree really brought the art to life.

"I'm telling it from the perspective of a senior citizen," Takei, 87, laughs. "I really had to wring my brains to try to remember some of the details."

So Takei took Lee to the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles, where he is a member of the board. They had lunch in Little Tokyo, got to know each other, met with the educational director, and looked at the exhibits. Then Lee started digging into the archives.

Movie Interviews

From 'star trek' to lgbt spokesman, what it takes 'to be takei'.

"I looked for primary sources that showed what life was like because I feel like that humanizes it a lot more," Lee explains. She found some color photographs taken by Bill Manbo, who had smuggled his camera into the internment camp at Heart Mountain in Wyoming. "While I was painting the book, I tried as much to depict George and his family just going about their lives under these really difficult circumstances."

Takei says he was impressed with how Lee managed to capture his parents: his father, the reluctant leader and his mother, a fashion icon in her hats and furs. "This has been the first time that I've had to depict real people," Lee adds.

To get a feel for 1940s fashion, Lee says she looked at old Sears catalogues. "What are people wearing? All the men are wearing suits. What kind of colors were clothes back then."

But a lot of information has also been lost — Lee wasn't able to see, for example, where Takei and his family lived in Arkansas because the barracks at Camp Rohwer have been torn down — there's a museum there now. "I didn't actually come across too many photos of the interior of the barracks," says Lee. "The ones I did come across were very staged."

She did, however, find the original floor plans for the barracks at Jerome Camp, also in Arkansas. "I actually printed the floorplan out and then built up a little model just to see what the space was actually like," Lee says. "I think it just emphasized how small of a space this is that whole families were crammed into."

One illustration in the book shows the work that Takei's mother put in to make that barrack — no more than tar paper and boards stuck together — a home.

"She gathered rags and tore them up into strips and braided them into rugs so that we would be stepping on something warm," Takei remembers. She found army surplus fabrics and sewed curtains for the windows. She took plant branches that had fallen off the nearby trees and made decorative sculptures. She asked a friendly neighbor to build a table and chairs.

"You drew the home that my mother made out of that raw space, Takei tells Lee. "That was wonderful."

Michelle Lee painted the art for My Lost Freedom using watercolor, gouache and colored pencils. Most of the illustrations have a very warm palette, but ever-present are the barbed wire fences and the guard towers. "There's a lot of fencing and bars," Lee explains. "That was kind of the motif that I was using throughout the book... A lot of vertical and horizontal patterns to kind of emphasize just how overbearing it was."

Takei says one of his favorite drawings in the book is a scene of him and his brother, Henry, playing by a culvert.

Asian American And Pacific Islander Heritage Month 2022

George takei got reparations. he says they 'strengthen the integrity of america'.

"Camp Rohwer was a strange and magical place," Takei writes. "We'd never seen trees rising out of murky waters or such colorful butterflies. Our block was surrounded by a drainage ditch, home to tiny, wiggly black fishies. I scooped them up into a jar.

One morning they had funny bumps. Then they lost their tails and their legs popped out. They turned into frogs!"

"They're just two children among many children who were imprisoned at these camps," says Lee, "and to them, perhaps, aspects of being there were just fun." The illustration depicts both childlike wonder and — still, always — a sense of foreboding. Butterflies fly around a barbed wire fence. A bright sun shines on large, dark swamp trees. Kids play in the shadow of a guard tower.

"There's so much that you tell in that one picture," says Takei. "That's the art."

"So many of your memories are of how perceptive you are to things that are going on around you," adds Lee, "but also still approaching things from a child's perspective."

Even though the events in My Lost Freedom took place more than 80 years ago, illustrator Michelle Lee and author George Takei say the story is still very relevant today.

"These themes of displacement and uprooting of communities from one place to another — these are things that are constantly happening," says Lee. Because of war and because of political decisions ... those themes aren't uncommon. They're universal."

Takei agrees. "People need to know the lessons and learn that lesson and apply it to hard times today. And we hope that a lot of people get the book and read it to their children or read it to other children and act on it."

He's done his job, he says, now the readers have their job.

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Taylor Swift’s Tortured Poetry

By Amanda Petrusich

In the past several months, Taylor Swift has become culturally ubiquitous in a way that feels nearly terrifying. Superstardom tends to turn normal people into cartoons, projections, gods, monsters. Swift has been inching toward some sort of tipping point for a while. The most recent catalyst was, in part, love: in the midst of her record-breaking Eras Tour , Swift, who is thirty-four, began dating Travis Kelce , a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs. Whenever Swift appeared at one of Kelce’s games, the broadcasters whipped their extra-high-definition cameras toward her, sending legions of amateur lip-readers scrambling for their phones. I’m paid to give legibility to such things, and even I couldn’t help but think that we were crossing some sort of Rubicon with regard to our collective sanity. Swift was everywhere, beheld by everyone. She is one of the most streamed artists of all time on Spotify; Billboard reported that, at one point, she accounted for seven per cent of all vinyl sales in the U.S. Swift is a capable and hugely savvy businesswoman (a billionaire, in fact), yet I began to worry about her in a nearly maternal way: How could anyone survive that sort of scrutiny and retain her humanity? Detaching from reality can be lethal for a pop star, particularly one known for her Everygirl candor. I thought of the oft-memed bit from “Arrested Development,” in which Lucille Bluth, the oblivious matriarch, asks, “I mean, it’s one banana, Michael—what could it cost? Ten dollars?”

This month, Swift released “The Tortured Poets Department,” her eleventh studio album. She has now reached a level of virtuosity within her genre that feels nearly immutable—she’s too practiced, too masterly, to swing and really miss. But “The Tortured Poets Department” suffers from being too long (two hours after it was released, Swift announced a second disk, bringing the total number of tracks to thirty-one) and too familiar. Swift co-wrote most of the record with Jack Antonoff and with Aaron Dessner. (The two producers have oppositional melodic sensibilities: Antonoff sharpens Swift; Dessner softens her.) The new songs suggest that, after a decade, her partnership with Antonoff has perhaps run its course. The tracks written with Dessner are gentler, more tender, and more surprising. The raw and stirring “Robin” seems to address a child—either a very young Swift (the album contains several references to her hijacked youth, including “The Manuscript,” a sombre song about a relationship with an older man), or maybe a future son or daughter.

“The Tortured Poets Department” was released following the end of Swift’s six-year relationship with the actor Joe Alwyn, and the album is mostly about the utter unreliability of love—how bonkers it is that we build our entire lives around a feeling that can simply dissipate. “You said I’m the love of your life / About a million times,” Swift sings on “Loml,” a wrenching piano ballad. “You shit-talked me under the table, talking rings and talking cradles.” Shortly after Swift and Alwyn split, she reportedly had a fling with Matty Healy , the front man for the British rock band the 1975. (“I took the miracle move-on drug / The effects were temporary,” she sings on “Fortnight.”) Healy is a provocateur, prone to making loutish jokes; onstage, he smokes, eats raw steak, and makes out with strangers. The rumored relationship sent Swifties into spasms of outrage, and revealed the unusual extent to which Swift is beholden to her fans. She has encouraged and nurtured a parasocial affection (at times she nearly demanded it: inviting fans to her home, baking them cookies), and she now has to contend with their sense of ownership over her life. On “But Daddy I Love Him,” she scornfully chastises the “judgmental creeps” who relentlessly hounded her about her love life: “I’d rather burn my whole life down / Than listen to one more second of all this bitching and moaning.” (She saves the nastiest barb for the final verse: “All the wine moms are still holding out.”) Regardless, things with Healy ended fast, and, a few months later, she did the most wholesome thing possible: she started dating a football player whose team would go on to win the Super Bowl.

Quite a few of the album’s lyrics seem to evoke Healy: “You’re not Dylan Thomas / I’m not Patti Smith / This ain’t the Chelsea Hotel / We’re modern idiots,” Swift sings on the title track, a shimmering song about broken people clinging to each other. I like that line—it suggests self-awareness—but it’s followed by one of the weirdest verses of Swift’s career: “You smoked then ate seven bars of chocolate / We declared Charlie Puth should be a bigger artist / I scratch your head, you fall asleep / Like a tattooed golden retriever.” Other lyrics lack Swift’s signature precision: “At dinner you take my ring off my middle finger and put it on the one people put wedding rings on,” she sings. Even the greatest poets whiff a phrase now and then, but a lot of the language on the record is either incoherent (“I was a functioning alcoholic till nobody noticed my new aesthetic”) or just generally bewildering (“Florida is one hell of a drug”). My favorite lyrics are the simplest, and are delivered with a kind of exhausted calm. On “Down Bad,” a woozy song about feeling like shit, Swift admits defeat: “Now I’m down bad, crying at the gym / Everything comes out teen-age petulance / Fuck it if I can’t have him.” Feel you, dude.

Each of Swift’s records has a distinct visual component—this is more or less the premise of the Eras Tour . “The Tortured Poets Department” is preoccupied with writerly accoutrements, but the vibe is ultimately more high-end stationery store than musty rare-books room. Initially, the title seemed as if it might be a smirking reference to Joe Alwyn (he once joked about being part of a WhatsApp group called the Tortured Man Club). But I find that the phrase works well as a summation of Swift’s entire self-conception. She has always made a big deal about her pain being generative. “This writer is of the firm belief that our tears become holy in the form of ink on the page,” she wrote on Instagram. She has talked about this album as if the songs were mere monuments to her suffering: “Once we have spoken our saddest story, we can be free of it.”

An unusual number of Swift’s songs portray love as combative, perhaps because she is so prone to working from a place of wounded longing. On “Better Than Revenge,” a song she wrote at eighteen, Swift sings about art as a useful weapon, a way to punish anyone who does her dirty: “She thinks I’m psycho / ’Cause I like to rhyme her name with things.” It’s a funny lyric, but, by Swift’s current age, most people understand that love isn’t about winning. (Art isn’t, either.) Yet, in Swift’s universe, love is often a battlefield. On “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?,” she catalogues the ways in which fame can pervert and destroy a person: “I was tame, I was gentle, till the circus life made me mean,” she sings. She is paranoid, wild-eyed: “Tell me everything is not about me / But what if it is ?” (After the year Swift has had, she’s not wrong to ask.) The song itself is so tightly produced that it doesn’t sound dangerous. But, midway through, her voice briefly goes feral. I found the moment thrilling, which is maybe part of the problem.

In the weeks before “The Tortured Poets Department” was released, it seemed as though a backlash was inevitable. Swift’s lyrics are often focussed on her perseverance against all odds, but, these days, she is too omnipresent and powerful to make a very convincing underdog. Still, interest in Swift has yet to diminish or fully sour. She announced the album at the Grammys, in February, as she was accepting the award for Best Pop Vocal Album, for her previous record, “Midnights.” I found her speech so profoundly mercenary it was sort of funny. “I want to say thank you to the fans by telling you a secret that I’ve been keeping from you for the last two years, which is that my brand-new album comes out April 19th,” Swift said. “I’m gonna go and post the cover.”

As I’ve grown older, I’ve mostly stopped thinking about art and commerce as being fundamentally at odds. But there are times when the rapaciousness of our current pop stars seems grasping and ugly. I’m not saying that pop music needs to be ideologically pure—it wouldn’t be much fun if it were—but maybe it’s time to cool it a little with the commercials? A couple of days before the album’s release, Swift unveiled a library-esque display at the Grove, a shopping mall in Los Angeles. It included several pages of typewritten lyrics on faux aged paper, arranged as though they had recently been tugged from the platen of a Smith Corona. (The word “talisman” was misspelled on one, to the delight of the haters.) The Spotify logo was featured prominently at the bottom of each page. Once again, I laughed. What is the point of all that money if it doesn’t buy you freedom from corporate branding? For a million reasons—her adoption of the “poet” persona; her already unprecedented streaming numbers—such an egregious display of sponsorship was worse than just incongruous. It was, as they say, cringe.

Among the other clues Swift doled out were five exclusive playlists for Apple Music (sorry, Spotify!), comprising her own songs and organized according to the five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. At first, I thought the playlists were just another bit of overwrought marketing, but the more I listened to “The Tortured Poets Department” the more germane the concept felt. Anyone who has grieved knows that these categories are not a ladder you climb toward peace: it is possible, instead, to feel all of them at once, briefly or forever. Each stage is evident on “The Tortured Poets Department.” Sometimes they oppose one another: Swift is cocky and self-loathing, tough and vulnerable, totally fine and completely destroyed. She is free, but trapped. Dominant, powerless. She wants this, but she doesn’t. Those sorts of contradictions can be dizzying, but, in the end, they’re also the last things keeping her human. ♦

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• ADMIN AREA MY BOOKSHELF MY DASHBOARD MY PROFILE SIGN OUT SIGN IN

by Lee Child & Andrew Child ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 24, 2023

An enjoyable, fast-moving yarn.

Trouble could be Jack Reacher’s middle name in this 28th adventure in the series.

In Chicago in 1992, Roberta and Veronica Sanson throw a recovering heart-attack patient out a hospital window. Thus begins a series of murders the women commit as they try to get someone to answer an important question about an event that happened in December 1969. On the team investigating the murders is Capt. Jack Reacher of the military police. Previously, he had been demoted from the rank of major, but that is literally another story. Reacher is a strange man, “naturally suited to two states of existence. Instant, explosive action. And near-catatonic stasis. It was the in-between he struggled with.” Faster and smarter than any four bad guys, he’s a superhero who deserves to have an action figure in his likeness if one doesn't exist already. But he and his team have their hands full with the Sanson sisters, who are killers on a mission. Back in 1969, there had been a team of scientists working on a secret project, and the sisters demand to know the name of the eighth team member, who all the victims insist to their death does not exist. The investigative team is puzzled as they realize someone is picking off retired scientists one by one, and “former CIA assets start dropping like flies.” There are some interesting lines: When a high-ranking government official comes under suspicion, Reacher says, “This is America. The law applies to him the same as everyone else.” Readers who follow current events may find the statement pointed. And Roberta chastises a victim: “There you go. Underestimating a woman, again. Will you never learn?” The plot gets a bit complicated, and readers will find a few nice twists. But mainly, Reacher provides the entertainment with his not quite believable fighting skills.

Pub Date: Oct. 24, 2023

ISBN: 9781984818584

Page Count: 304

Publisher: Delacorte

Review Posted Online: Aug. 25, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023

MYSTERY & DETECTIVE | SUSPENSE | SUSPENSE | GENERAL MYSTERY & DETECTIVE | GENERAL THRILLER & SUSPENSE

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by Lee Child & Andrew Child

edited by Lee Child

DAUGHTER OF MINE

by Megan Miranda ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 9, 2024

Small-town claustrophobia and intimacies alike propel this twist-filled psychological thriller.

The loss of her police officer father and the discovery of an abandoned car in a local lake raise chilling questions regarding a young woman’s family history.

When Hazel Sharp returns to her hometown of Mirror Lake, North Carolina, for her father’s memorial, she and the other townspeople are confronted by a challenging double whammy: As they’re grieving the loss of beloved longtime police officer Detective Perry Holt, a disturbing sight appears in the lake, whose waterline is receding because of an ongoing drought—an old, unidentifiable car, which has likely been lurking there for years. Hazel temporarily leaves her Charlotte-based building-renovation business in the capable hands of her partners and reconnects with her brothers, Caden and Gage; her Uncle Roy; her old fling and neighbor, Nico; and her schoolfriend, Jamie, now a mother and married to Caden. Tiny, relentless suspicions rise to the metaphorical surface along with that waterlogged vehicle: There have been a slew of minor break-ins; two people go missing; and then, a second abandoned car is discovered. The novel digs deeper into Hazel’s family history—her father was a widow when he married Hazel’s mother, who later left the family, absconding with money and jewels—and Miranda, a consummate professional when it comes to exposing the small community tensions that naturally arise when people live in close proximity for generations, exposes revelation after twisty revelation: “Everything mattered disproportionately in a small town. Your success, but also your failure. Everyone knows might as well have been our town motto.”

Pub Date: April 9, 2024

ISBN: 9781668010440

Page Count: 368

Publisher: Marysue Rucci Books

Review Posted Online: Feb. 3, 2024

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2024

SUSPENSE | THRILLER | PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER | GENERAL THRILLER & SUSPENSE | SUSPENSE

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by Megan Miranda

THEN SHE WAS GONE

by Lisa Jewell ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 24, 2018

Dark and unsettling, this novel’s end arrives abruptly even as readers are still moving at a breakneck speed.

Ten years after her teenage daughter went missing, a mother begins a new relationship only to discover she can't truly move on until she answers lingering questions about the past.

Laurel Mack’s life stopped in many ways the day her 15-year-old daughter, Ellie, left the house to study at the library and never returned. She drifted away from her other two children, Hanna and Jake, and eventually she and her husband, Paul, divorced. Ten years later, Ellie’s remains and her backpack are found, though the police are unable to determine the reasons for her disappearance and death. After Ellie’s funeral, Laurel begins a relationship with Floyd, a man she meets in a cafe. She's disarmed by Floyd’s charm, but when she meets his young daughter, Poppy, Laurel is startled by her resemblance to Ellie. As the novel progresses, Laurel becomes increasingly determined to learn what happened to Ellie, especially after discovering an odd connection between Poppy’s mother and her daughter even as her relationship with Floyd is becoming more serious. Jewell’s ( I Found You , 2017, etc.) latest thriller moves at a brisk pace even as she plays with narrative structure: The book is split into three sections, including a first one which alternates chapters between the time of Ellie’s disappearance and the present and a second section that begins as Laurel and Floyd meet. Both of these sections primarily focus on Laurel. In the third section, Jewell alternates narrators and moments in time: The narrator switches to alternating first-person points of view (told by Poppy’s mother and Floyd) interspersed with third-person narration of Ellie’s experiences and Laurel’s discoveries in the present. All of these devices serve to build palpable tension, but the structure also contributes to how deeply disturbing the story becomes. At times, the characters and the emotional core of the events are almost obscured by such quick maneuvering through the weighty plot.

Pub Date: April 24, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-5011-5464-5

Publisher: Atria

Review Posted Online: Feb. 5, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2018

GENERAL THRILLER & SUSPENSE | SUSPENSE | FAMILY LIFE & FRIENDSHIP | SUSPENSE

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by Lisa Jewell

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Roku’s ‘The Spiderwick Chronicles’ Lacks the Excitement and Adventure of the Novels: TV Review

By Aramide Tinubu

Aramide Tinubu

• ‘Mary Jane’ Review: Rachel McAdams Makes a Solid Broadway Debut Depicting the Sacrifice of Motherhood 2 days ago
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• Roku’s ‘The Spiderwick Chronicles’ Lacks the Excitement and Adventure of the Novels: TV Review 6 days ago

There’s a lot of magic in “ The Spiderwick Chronicles .” Based on the acclaimed children’s fantasy books by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black, and adapted for television by Aron Eli Coleite, the TV show is full of mystical creatures like ogres, fetches and dragons. However, this story is no fairytale. Instead, the series, which was axed by Disney+ before finding a home at Roku , is a tale about family and acceptance. Unfortunately, though the show is supposed to be adventurous, it lacks the whimsy needed to elevate the narrative for a new generation of young adults.

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Additionally, despite aging the characters up for this adaptation, the setting and special effects aren’t creepy or dazzling enough to keep a teen audience engaged. If the twins were nine years old, as they are in the first novel, instead of 15, the series would have been able to expand as they begin to encounter more teen-centered themes. Instead, the show races to encompass all of those issues while trying to balance the show’s paranormal elements.

Though “The Spiderwick Chronicles” doesn’t offer robust thrills and scares, its focus on Jared’s struggles and how they affect his sense of self and his family’s understanding of him is effective. Having spotted Thimbletack and gotten hold of the Seeing Stone, enabling him to see faeries and other creatures, Jared is desperate for someone to believe him. Since the audience sees and experiences what he does, his family’s dismissiveness of him is poignant. “The Spiderwick Chronicles” clearly illustrates the toll of being constantly compared to his intelligent and agreeable brother and how it has affected him over the years. Simon has consistently advocated for Jared, but the easy-going twin’s new friendship with Calliope (Alyvia Alyn Lind), Dr. Brauer’s daughter, causes a split between the brothers. Meanwhile, Mallory has tried to stand out amid Jared’s chaos by leaning into perfectionism and a love of fencing. Still, this desire for excellence has become increasingly unsustainable, especially in a new environment.

The Graces’ familial relations remain intriguing throughout the season, even amid mentions of Richard (Rhys Coiro), the kids’ absentee father. Still, the fantastical elements at the core of “The Spiderwick Chronicles” are unimaginative and lackluster. While some of the storylines are interesting, like the town’s residents’ ploy to shut down the Meskawki mental hospital, the adults’ frustrating lack of foresight and the bogged-down dialogue make much of the series a chore. Tighter pacing and more streamlined plot points would have given “The Spiderwick Chronicles” the allure and fanfare needed to make this action-adventure the dazzling escapade it should be.

The eight episodes of “The Spiderwick Chronicles” premiere on April 19 on Roku.

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Child-centered play therapy.

Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT) is designed for children ages 3–10 who are experiencing social, emotional, behavioral, or relational disorders. CCPT aims to create a safe and consistent environment that allows children to grow. CCPT is a one-on-one intervention that uses play and the therapeutic relationship to improve children’s functioning.    

The therapeutic relationship is the primary technique of the intervention. During each session, the therapist follows eight child-centered principles: (1) develop a warm, friendly relationship with the child, (2) accept the child unconditionally, (3) establish a feeling of permissiveness in the relationship, (4) recognize and reflect the feelings of the child, (5) respect the child’s innate ability to solve their problems, (6) do not attempt to direct the child’s actions or conversation, (7) recognize the gradual nature of the child’s process, and (8) establish only those limitations that are necessary.    

The therapist delivers sessions in a special playroom designed with objects, décor, and toys that serve a purpose. The five types of toys that help the child with self-expression include: (1) family/nurturing toys, (2) scary toys, (3) aggressive toys, (4) expressive toys, and (5) pretend/fantasy toys. The different toys allow the child to address specific emotions, including negative emotions, or to explore the adult world through pretend and role play.   

During all interactions, the therapist lets the child take the lead and provides short verbal responses that match the child’s tone and approach. The therapist does not enter the child’s space or play without invitation and maintains an open and relaxed stance towards the child.   

CCPT may include consultation with parents, schools, and/or teachers but consultation is not required.   

CCPT is rated as a promising practice because at least one study achieved a rating of moderate or high on study design and execution and demonstrated a favorable effect on a target outcome.

Date Research Evidence Last Reviewed: Dec 2022

The program or service description, target population, and program or service delivery and implementation information were informed by the following sources: the program or service manuals, the program or service developer’s website, and the studies reviewed.

This information does not necessarily represent the views of the program or service developers. For more information on how this program or service was reviewed, visit the Review Process page or download the Handbook .

Target Population

CCPT is designed for children ages 3–10 who are experiencing social, emotional, behavioral, and relational disorders.   

Program or Service Delivery and Implementation

Therapists deliver CCPT in a series of one-on-one sessions with a child. Session frequency and treatment duration vary based on participant needs, though 35–40 sessions are recommended. Each session is typically 45 minutes in length but can range from 30–50 minutes.  

Location/Delivery Setting

Recommended locations/delivery settings.

CCPT is delivered in a specially designed playroom in a clinical setting.   

Location/Delivery Settings Observed in the Research

Education, certifications and training.

CCPT therapists must have at least a master’s degree in a mental health field. CCPT therapists can be certified through the University of North Texas Center for Play Therapy or the National Institute of Relationship Enhancement® (NIRE).  

University of North Texas Center for Play Therapy Level 1 Certified Practitioners must (1) complete a minimum of 40 hours of coursework in CCPT, through formal university courses or a workshop series led by an approved CCPT trainer, (2) complete the CCPT exam, (3) complete 30 CCPT sessions with three children ages 3–10 under the supervision of a CCPT supervisor, (4) complete a self-evaluation paper, (5) hold a professional mental health license, and (6) complete the application. CCPT practitioners must renew their certification every 5 years.   

University of North Texas Center for Play Therapy Level 2 Certified Advanced CCPT Practitioners/Supervisors must (1) hold a Level 1 certification, (2) hold a professional mental health license, (3) complete either a formal university course in Advanced CCPT or a minimum of 40 hours of CCPT supervision training through a workshop series, (4) complete 100 CCPT sessions with a minimum of 10 children ages 3–10 with an approved CCPT supervisor, and (5) provide 10 supervisory sessions for a beginning therapist. CCPT Advanced Practitioners/Supervisors must renew their certification every 5 years.   

NIRE-certified CCPT therapists must complete 13 hours of training in the basic NIRE virtual CCPT workshop or an equivalent NIRE-approved course. This basic training introduces the CCPT model, principles, and techniques. For certification, participants complete at least 26 hours of consultation with an NIRE-approved supervisor, either in person or virtually, to refine skills.   

Program or Service Documentation

Book/manual/available documentation used for review.

There are two manuals that can be used to implement CCPT.   

Ray, D. (2011). A dvanced play therapy: Essential conditions, knowledge, and skills for child practice . Taylor & Francis.  

Cochran, N. H., Nordling, W. J., & Cochran, J. (2010). Child-Centered Play Therapy: A practical guide to developing therapeutic relationships with children . John Wiley & Sons, Inc.  

Available languages

The Ray (2011) CCPT manual is available in English, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Turkish.   

The Cochran et al. (2010) CCPT manual is available in English.   

Other supporting materials

University of North Texas Center for Play Therapy CCPT Certification  

NIRE CCPT Certification  

Ray, D. C., Purswell, K., Haas, S., & Aldrete, C. (2017). Child-Centered Play Therapy-Research integrity checklist: Development, reliability, and use. International Journal of Play Therapy, 26 (4), 207. https://doi.org/10.1037/pla0000046   

Landreth, G. L. (2012). Play therapy: The art of the relationship (3rd ed.). Routledge.  

For More Information

University of North Texas Center for Play Therapy  

Website: https://cpt.unt.edu/child-centered-play-therapy  

Phone: (940) 565-3864  

Email: [email protected]  

National Institute of Relationship Enhancement®   

Web: https://nire.org/workshop-schedules/professional-training-schedule/child-centered-play-therapy/  

Phone: (301) 680-8977  

Email: [email protected]  

Note: The details on Dosage; Location; Education, Certifications, and Training; Other Supporting Materials; and For More Information sections above are provided to website users for informational purposes only. This information is not exhaustive and may be subject to change.

Extent of Evidence

Summary of findings.

Note: For the effect sizes and implied percentile effects reported in the table, a positive number favors the intervention group and a negative number favors the comparison group.

Individual Study Findings

Note: For the effect sizes and implied percentile effects reported in the table, a positive number favors the intervention group and a negative number favors the comparison group. Effect sizes and implied percentile effects were calculated by the Prevention Services Clearinghouse as described in the Handbook of Standards and Procedures, Section 5.10.4 and may not align with effect sizes reported in individual publications.

Only publications with eligible contrasts that met design and execution standards are included in the individual study findings table.

Full citations for the studies shown in the table are available in the "Studies Reviewed" section.

Study Participant Characteristics

The participant characteristics display is an initial version. We encourage those interested in providing feedback to send suggestions to [email protected] .

The table below displays locations, the year, and participant demographics for studies that received moderate or high ratings on design and execution and that reported the information. Participant characteristics for studies with more than one intervention versus comparison group pair that received moderate or high ratings are shown separately in the table. Please note, the information presented here uses terminology directly from the study documents, when available. Studies that received moderate or high ratings on design and execution that did not include relevant participant demographic information would not be represented in this table.

For more information on how Clearinghouse reviewers record the information in the table, please see our Resource Guide on Study Participant Characteristics and Settings.

“--” indicates information not reported in the study.

* The information about disabilities is based on initial coding. For more information on how the Clearinghouse recorded disability information for the initial release, please see our Resource Guide on Study Participant Characteristics and Settings. The Clearinghouse is currently seeking consultation from experts, including those with lived experience, and input from the public to enhance and improve the display.

Note: Citations for the documents associated with each 5-digit study number shown in the table can be found in the “Studies Reviewed” section below. Study settings and participant demographics are recorded for all studies that received moderate or high ratings on design and execution and that reported the information. Studies that did not report any information about setting or participant demographics are not displayed. For more information on how participant characteristics are recorded, please see our Resource Guide on Study Participant Characteristics and Settings.

Studies Reviewed

Studies rated high.

Blanco, P. J., Holliman, R. P., & Carroll, N. C. (2019b). The effect of child-centered play therapy on intrinsic motivation and academic achievement of at-risk elementary school students. Journal of Child and Adolescent Counseling, 5(3), 205-220. https://doi.org/10.1080/23727810.2019.1671758

Blanco, P. J., Muro, J. H., Holliman, R., Stickley, V. K., & Carter, K. (2015). Effect of child-centered play therapy on performance anxiety and academic achievement. Journal of Child and Adolescent Counseling, 1(2), 66-80. https://doi.org/10.1080/23727810.2015.

Blanco, P. J., Holliman, R. P., Ceballos, P. L., & Farnam, J. L. (2019a). Exploring the impact of child-centered play therapy on academic achievement of at-risk kindergarten students. International Journal of Play Therapy, 28(3), 133-143. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pla0000086

Blanco, P., Holliman, R., Farnam, J., & Pena, A. (2018) Effect of Child-Centered play therapy on academic achievement with normal functioning school children. Journal of Counseling Research and Practice 3(1), 1-15. https://egrove.olemiss.edu/jcrp/vol3/iss

Taylor, L. & Ray, D.C. (2021). Child-Centered Play Therapy and social-emotional competencies of African American Children: A randomized controlled trial. International Journal of Play Therapy, 30(20), 74-85. https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1037/pla0000125

Wilson, B. J., & Ray, D. (2018). Child-Centered Play Therapy: Aggression, empathy, and self-regulation. Journal of Counseling & Development, 96(4), 399-409. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcad.12222

Schottelkorb, A. A., Swan, K. L., & Ogawa, Y. (2020). Intensive Child-Centered Play Therapy for children on the Autism spectrum: A pilot study. Journal of Counseling & Development, 98(1), 63-73. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcad.12300

Jones, E. M., & Landreth, G. (2002). The efficacy of intensive individual play therapy for chronically ill children. International Journal of Play Therapy, 11(1), 117-140. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0088860

Studies Rated Moderate

Blanco, P. J., & Ray, D. C. (2011). Play therapy in elementary schools: A best practice for improving academic achievement. Journal of Counseling & Development, 89(2), 235-243. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.1556-6678.2011.tb00083.x

Blanco, P. J., Ray, D. C., & Holliman, R. (2012). Long-term child centered play therapy and academic achievement of children: A follow-up study. International Journal of Play Therapy, 21(1), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0026932

Ray, D. C., Stulmaker, H. L., Lee, K. R., & Silverman, W. K. (2013a). Child-centered play therapy and impairment: Exploring relationships and constructs. International Journal of Play Therapy, 22(1), 13-27. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0030403

Ray, D. C., Stulmaker, H. L., Lee, K. R., & Silverman, W. K. (2013b). Child-centered play therapy and impairment: Exploring relationships and constructs: Correction to Ray et al (2013). International Journal of Play Therapy, 22(3), 158. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0032898

Ray, D. C., Burgin, E., Gutierrez, D., Ceballos, P., & Lindo, N. (2021). Child-centered play therapy and adverse childhood experiences: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Counseling & Development, 100(2), 134-145. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcad.12412

Fall, M. (1999). A play therapy intervention and its relationship to self-efficacy and learning behaviors. Professional School Counseling, 2(3), 194-204.

Fall, M., Navelski, L. F., & Welch, K. K. (2002). Outcomes of a play intervention for children identified for special education services. International Journal of Play Therapy, 11(2), 91-106. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0088866

Cochran, J. L., & Cochran, N. H. (2017). Effects of child-centered play therapy for students with highly-disruptive behavior in high-poverty schools. International Journal of Play Therapy, 26(2), 59-72. https://doi.org/10.1037/pla0000052

Post, P. (1999). Impact of child-centered play therapy on the self-esteem, locus of control, and anxiety of at-risk 4th, 5th, and 6th grade students. International Journal of Play Therapy, 8(2), 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0089428

Studies Rated Low

Ritzi, R. M., Ray, D. C., & Schumann, B. R. (2017). Intensive short-term child-centered play therapy and externalizing behaviors in children. International Journal of Play Therapy, 26(1), 33-46. https://doi.org/10.1037/pla0000035

Ray, D. C., Blanco, P. J., Sullivan, J. M., & Holliman, R. (2009). An exploratory study of child-centered play therapy with aggressive children. International Journal of Play Therapy, 18(3), 162-175. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014742

Kot, S., Landreth, G. L., & Giordano, M. (1998). Intensive child-centered play therapy with child witnesses of domestic violence. International Journal of Play Therapy, 7(2), 17-36. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0089421

Studies Not Eligible for Review

Study 12843

Baggerly, J., & Jenkins, W. W. (2009). The effectiveness of Child-Centered Play Therapy on developmental and diagnostic factors in children who are homeless. International Journal of Play Therapy, 18(1), 45-55. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0013878

This study is ineligible for review because it does not use an eligible study design (Study Eligibility Criterion 4.1.4)

Study 12852

Bratton, S. C., Ceballos, P. L., Sheely-Moore, A. I., Meany-Walen, K., Pronchenco, Y., & Jones, L. D. (2013). Head Start early mental health intervention: Effects of Child-Centered Play Therapy on disruptive behaviors. International Journal of Play Therapy, 22(1), 28-42. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0030318

This study is ineligible for review because it does not use an eligible study design (Study Eligibility Criterion 4.1.4).

Study 12858

Cheng, W.-Y., & Tsai, M.-H. (2014). The effect of play therapy on socially withdrawn children's behaviors and self-concept. Bulletin of Educational Psychology, 46(2), 165-185. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2015-16532-001

This study is ineligible for review because it is not available in English (Study Eligibility Criterion 4.1.3).

Study 12871

Garza, Y., & Bratton, S. C. (2005). School-based Child-Centered Play Therapy with Hispanic children: Outcomes and cultural consideration. International Journal of Play Therapy, 14(1), 51-80. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0088896

Study 12872

Gholamalizadeh, S., Asghari, F., Farhangi, A. (2018). The effectiveness of Child-Centered Play Therapy on social anxiety and communication skills of preschool children. Indian Journal of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, 12(1), 198-203. https://doi.org/10.5958/0973-9130.2018.00039.7

This study is ineligible for review because it is not a study of the program or service under review (Study Eligibility Criterion 4.1.6).

Study 12889

Massengale, B., & Perryman, K. (2021). Child-Centered Play Therapy's impact on academic achievement: A longitudinal examination in at-risk elementary school students. International Journal of Play Therapy, 30(2), 98-111. https://doi.org/10.1037/pla0000129

Study 12892

Morshed, N., Babamiri, M., Zemestani, M., & Alipour, N. (2019). A comparative study on the effectiveness of individual and group play therapy on symptoms of oppositional defiant disorder among children. Korean Journal of Family Medicine, 40(6), 368-372. https://doi.org/10.4082/kjfm.18.0045

Study 12894

Perryman, K. L., Robinson, S., Bowers, L., & Massengale, B. (2020). Child-Centered Play Therapy and academic achievement: A prevention-based model. International Journal of Play Therapy, 29(2), 104-117. https://doi.org/10.1037/pla0000117

Perryman, K. L. & Bowers, L. (2018). Turning the focus to behavioral, emotional, and social well-being: The impact of Child-Centered Play Therapy. International Journal of Play Therapy, 27(4), 227-241. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pla0000078

Study 12898

Ray, D. C. (2007). Two counseling interventions to reduce teacher-child relationship stress. Professional School Counseling, 10(4), 428-440. https://doi.org/10.5330/prsc.10.4.x3403022427l5705

Study 12899

Ray, D. C., Schottelkorb, A., & Tsai, M.-H. (2007). Play therapy with children exhibiting symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. International Journal of Play Therapy, 16(2), 95-111. https://doi.org/10.1037/1555-6824.16.2.95

Study 12900

Ray, D. C. (2008). Impact of play therapy on parent-child relationship stress at a mental health training setting. British Journal of Guidance & Counseling, 36(2), 165-187. https://doi.org/10.1080/03069880801926434

Study 12905

Schmidtchen, S., Hennies, S., & Acke, H. (1993). Zwei Fliegen mit einer Klappe? Evaluation der Hypothese eines zweifachen Wirksamkeitsanspruches der klientenzentrierten Spieltherapie. To kill two birds with one stone? Evaluating the hypothesis of a two fold effectiveness of client-centered play therapy. Psychologie in Erziehung und Unterricht, 40(1), 34-42. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.puhe.2017.10.019 

Study 12906

Schottelkorb, A. A., Doumas, D. M., & Garcia, R. (2012). Treatment for childhood refugee trauma: A randomized, controlled trial. International Journal of Play Therapy, 21(2), 57-73. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0027430

Study 12907

Schottelkorb, A. A., Swan, K. L., Jahn, L., Haas, S., & Hacker, J. (2015). Effectiveness of play therapy on problematic behaviors of preschool children with somatization. Journal of Child and Adolescent Counseling, 1(1), 3-16. https://doi.org/10.1080/23727

Study 12912

Smith, N., & Landreth, G. (2003). Intensive filial therapy with child witnesses of domestic violence: A comparison with individual and sibling group play therapy. International Journal of Play Therapy, 12(1), 67-88. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0088872

Study 12914

Stulmaker, H. L., & Ray, D. C. (2015). Child-Centered Play Therapy with young children who are anxious: A controlled trial. Children & Youth Services Review, 57, 127-133. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2015.08.005

Study 12918

Swank, J. M., & Smith-Adcock, S. (2018). On-task behavior of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: Examining treatment effectiveness of play therapy interventions. International Journal of Play Therapy, 27(4), 187-197. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pla0000084

Study 12923

Tsai, M. H., & Ray, D. C. (2011). Play therapy outcome prediction: An exploratory study at a university-based clinic. International Journal of Play Therapy, 20(2), 94-108. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0023441

Study 12925

Urban, T. H., Nguyen, T. T. T., Morford, A. E., Spinelli, T., Martinovich, Z., Schewe, P. A., & Risser, H. J. (2020). Utilization of evidence-based treatment models at community-based mental health settings for young children exposed to violence. Children and Youth Services Review, 116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2020.105233

Study 12926

Wicks, J. M., Cubillo, C., Moss, S. A., Skinner, T., & Schumann, B. (2018). Intensive Child-Centered Play Therapy in a remote Australian Aboriginal community. International Journal of Play Therapy, 27(4), 242-255. https://doi.org/10.1037/pla0000075

Study 14323

Blalock, S. M., Lindo, N., & Ray, D. C. (2019). Individual and Group Child-Centered Play Therapy: Impact on social-emotional competencies. Journal of Counseling & Development, 97(3), 238-249. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcad.12264

This study is ineligible for review because it does not report program or service impacts on an eligible target outcome (Study Eligibility Criterion 4.1.5).

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