StoryJumpers

What would YOU do if your father, standing in the front hall next to the grandfather clock, suddenly vanishes? Your buddy's mom helps you file a police report—but everyone is too puzzled to be helpful. Then you take a walk in your down-and-out neighborhood and find a clock shop where there had only been an empty building the day before. You walk in, and...

Phyllis Wheeler set a goal at age 13 to write a children’s book, a journey with lots of detours that have taken many years. She’s written for daily newspapers, worked on airplanes as a mechanical engineer, and raised four children including triplet boys, doing some homeschooling along the way, writing and selling the first computer programming curriculum for homeschoolers.

She has lived in various places, including as a child in pre-Civil-Rights Mississippi. But for most of her adult life, she has called St. Louis home. Phyllis Wheeler tells stories that encourage us to step outside our comfort zones. She’s done it—she and her husband spent twenty years raising their family in a black neighborhood in segregated St. Louis.

She’s been a journalist, an engineer, and a homeschooling mom. Now she’s thrilled to be following her dream of authoring books for young people.

Homeschoolers will be interested in her Youtube channel, Bringing Up Booklovers which features interviews with authors of middle-grade books, and reviews of books for homeschoolers.

Learn more about her books and get a free short story when you sign up for her occasional newsletter at PhyllisWheeler.com

Please share StoryJumpers with a friend if you enjoyed this episode. StoryJumpers is still growing, and your positive review and 5-star rating would help.

The Bridge Podcast Network is made possible by generous support from The Boardwalk Plaza Hotel and Victoria’s Restaurant on the boardwalk in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware - Open 7 days a week, year-round - Learn more at https://boardwalkplaza.com

Feedback, or Show Ideas? Send an email to [email protected]

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Oliver and The Magic Door is a journey into the imagination for adults and children alike. It is a journey that begins in the heart of a dreaming raccoon and his great friend Karla. Oliver, who has always dreamed beyond his limitations, takes on the task of undertaking his life's journey to The Magic Door.

Everyone eagerly awaits the arrival of the long-awaited celebration of Mr.Sun, but only those who persevere despite the difficulties will be able to see their dreams come true. The author invites you to let your imagination soar and together you and Oliver can take flight.

Melanie Figueroa is a local writer from Milford, Delaware who was born and raised in Puerto Rico! From an early age, she went after her dreams with tenacity and courage. She always strives for excellence, sowing joy, service, and love at every opportunity.

Melanie is passionate about music – she plays the bass and the Guitar - and she is also a runner. She is very involved in community work through Anchor Church which she attends in Milford.

The bilingual (Spanish & English) kids' book "Oliver and The Magic Door" takes place in Delaware during the summer solstice. Oliver always dreams beyond his limitations, but with the help of his friend Karla, he undertakes his life's journey to find The Magic Door! This book seeks to highlight the importance of languages, the common good, perseverance, and arouse curiosity for science.

Melanie is an entrepreneur passionate about inspiring children of all ages not to give up, and to move forward amid any circumstance or environment. She longs to conquer the hearts of each of her readers, because in each adult there is also a child, highlighting perseverance, love, faith, friendship, and the common good in her stories.

You can get a copy of her book on Amazon.

Please share StoryJumpers with a friend if you enjoyed this episode. StoryJumpers is still growing, and your positive review and 5-star rating would help.

The Bridge Podcast Network is made possible by generous support from The Boardwalk Plaza Hotel and Victoria’s Restaurant on the boardwalk in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware - Open 7 days a week, year-round - Learn more at https://boardwalkplaza.com

Feedback, or Show Ideas? Send an email to [email protected]

Download The Bridge Mobile App to get the latest podcast episodes as soon as they are published!

Megan Willis’s search for her parents will put her in more danger than she ever imagined. Can she survive the hazards she faces and reunites with her family before it’s too late?

This fast-paced YA space opera (reminiscent of Star Wars) follows a strong female protagonist, Megan, on an interplanetary search for her mother. On her journey, Megan witnesses the horrors of child trafficking and slavery and joins with a group of other teens to fight against corrupt systems and stand up for the vulnerable.

Full of unusual characters and daring escapes, Search for the Astral Dragon draws readers into a world of snarky spaceship computer systems, a variety of different sentient species, spaceship tech, and magical elements. Megan is smart and quick-thinking, competent with spacecraft technology, and a person of strong character whose experiences give readers difficult questions to consider.

Bryan Davis is the author of nine different best-selling fantasy, adventure, and mystery series

suitable for your entire family. To date, he has written more than thirty-two (32) novels along with various non-fiction works and children’s books with total sales reaching more than one million copies.

He lives in Western Tennessee with his wife, Susie – where they homeschool their four girls and three boys. His passion for the written word, reading, and writing has taken many forms and explored multiple genres - including theology, fiction, devotionals, poetry, and humor.

Learn more about his writing at daviscrossing.com and Amazon.com

Please share StoryJumpers with a friend if you enjoyed this episode. StoryJumpers is still growing, and your positive review and 5-star rating would help.

The Bridge Podcast Network is made possible by generous support from The Boardwalk Plaza Hotel and Victoria’s Restaurant on the boardwalk in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware - Open 7 days a week, year-round - Learn more at https://boardwalkplaza.com

Feedback, or Show Ideas? Send an email to [email protected]

Download The Bridge Mobile App to get the latest podcast episodes as soon as they are published!

Coloring eggs, wearing a lovely bonnet, joining in the fun of an egg hunt, and attending church with family are special things that are a part of Easter.

In this bouncy rhyming board book, Bunny is determined to find out if Easter is all about special breakfasts, chocolate bunnies, and fancy new bonnets, or if it might be about a little bit more.

Laura Sassi has a passion for telling stories in prose and rhyme. She is the author of five picture books including the best-selling Goodnight, Ark, which was a 2015 Christian Book Award Finalist.

In addition to books, she’s published over one hundred poems, stories, crafts, and articles in various children’s publications.

Laura is a graduate of Princeton University and UCLA. She had a successful teaching career before becoming a children’s author. She’s been a homeschool mom, children’s ministry director, historic museum interpreter, and more. She writes daily from her home in New Jersey and finds special joy in sharing her love of reading and writing with the next generation at school visits and other book events.

Learn more about her writing at https://laurasassitales.wordpress.com

Please share StoryJumpers with a friend if you enjoyed this episode. StoryJumpers is still growing, and your positive review and 5-star rating would help.

The Bridge Podcast Network is made possible by generous support from The Boardwalk Plaza Hotel and Victoria’s Restaurant on the boardwalk in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware - Open 7 days a week, year-round - Learn more at https://boardwalkplaza.com

Feedback, or Show Ideas? Send an email to [email protected]

Download The Bridge Mobile App to get the latest podcast episodes as soon as they are published!

Beneath the Hood is a familiar tale woven with biblical truth.

Little Red stands with a basket in hand, and the dark forest stretches out before her. She is afraid of what might be in the forest, but the King has given her this path to walk.

Her sister stands beside her to remind Little Red that she is a Child of the King, and she won’t be alone.

Once inside the dark forest, Little Red meets a Wolf with many questions. The Wolf doubts she will finish the King’s errand, but Little Red keeps moving along the path.

Distractions and the Wolf tempt Little Red to step off the path every few steps.

Can she remember who she is to finish the King’s errand?

Author Valerie Fentress writes children's books for all ages, seeking to challenge her readers to look at the world around them and find God's love reaching out to them. She hopes to communicate biblical truths through simple stories. Valerie wants everyone to look at familiar things and find the truths and secrets hiding within them. Beneath the Hood is her debut children's book.

Valerie lives in Texas with her husband and three boys, who challenge her daily to find joy between imagination and chaos. While in college, Valerie trained a service dog. She loves both Star Wars and literary classics like Pride and Prejudice equally. She is an amateur gardener!

You can find more of her books and thoughts at ValerieFentress.com

Please share StoryJumpers with a friend if you enjoyed this episode. StoryJumpers is still growing, and your positive review and 5-star rating would help.

The Bridge Podcast Network is made possible by generous support from The Boardwalk Plaza Hotel and Victoria’s Restaurant on the boardwalk in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware - Open 7 days a week, year-round - Learn more at https://boardwalkplaza.com

Feedback, or Show Ideas? Send an email to [email protected]

Download The Bridge Mobile App to get the latest podcast episodes as soon as they are published!

A school project goes terribly wrong in EASY TARGET – a middle-grade thriller about ex-homeschooler and Christian teen Hudson Sutton and his experiences in his new school.

When Hudson makes two friends and attempts to take on an established hierarchy of bullying, he doesn’t realize he’s taking a risk he never expected—becoming a bully himself.

EASY TARGET is a realistic look at the extent and reality of bullying, especially through social media, with a Christian main character who learns that relationships, bullying, and doing the right thing are a bit more complicated than he realized.

Parents – while not included in this clip, the book does touch on the subject of suicide.

EASY TARGET is an exciting and encouraging read for tweens and teens which covers the complicated realities of social media, relationships, bullying, and doing what’s right. This Clean Young Adult novel is fiction that parents and librarians will love. The page-turning adventure is intended for 12 to 15-year-olds. The relatable characters do their best to do what’s right. Taking on bullies comes with hidden danger . . . becoming one yourself. Thrust into public school his eighth-grade year, ex-homeschooler Hudson Sutton is an outsider―and an easy target.

When he sticks up for “Pancake” he makes two allies and plenty of enemies. Hudson wants to protect his new friends, so he puts a bold plan into action. But as school bullies retaliate and Hudson’s plans to stop them get out of hand, Hudson fears he’s making the situation worse. The more he tries to help his new friends, the more he hurts others.

Too late Hudson learns who the real easy target is. What happens when that person’s hurt is so big, she believes she’s beyond fixing? And what happens when she’s so desperate, she’ll do the unthinkable to send one last cry for help? Sometimes the best way to change others is to start with yourself.

TIM SHOEMAKER author of sixteen books, including Easy Target, Escape From the Everglades, and Code of Silence to name a few. Tim speaks at schools, churches, and other organizations (such as Focus on the Family, Iron Sharpens Iron Men’s Conferences, and Pastor Conferences). He also speaks at retreats, conventions, and workshops all across the country.

Learn more about all of his books - and gain some other life lessons - when you visit him online at TimShoemakerSmashedTomatoes.com

Please share StoryJumpers with a friend if you enjoyed this episode. StoryJumpers is still growing, and your positive review and 5-star rating would help.

The Bridge Podcast Network is made possible by generous support from The Boardwalk Plaza Hotel and Victoria’s Restaurant on the boardwalk in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware - Open 7 days a week, year-round - Learn more at https://boardwalkplaza.com

Feedback, or Show Ideas? Send an email to [email protected]

Download The Bridge Mobile App to get the latest podcast episodes as soon as they are published!