Robbie Cheadle's Blog

Thank you to Sally for this delightful review

Delighted to share my review for the festive collection of delicious cakes, folklore and poetry Something Fancy A Winter Wonderland Celebration Book …

Smorgasbord Christmas Book Fair – Book Review – #Christmas #Fondant #Recipes – Something Fancy A Winter Wonderland Celebration Book One by Robbie …

Background The Red Badge of Courage is a novel about the American Civil War, written by American author, Stephen Crane. Although the author was born …

The Red Badge of Courage / Stephen Crane by Robbie Cheadle

My November Treasuring Poetry guest is poet and blogger, Melissa Lemay. Melissa is also the editor of Collaborature, an online journal for poetry and…

Treasuring Poetry – Meet poet and blogger, Melissa Lemay, and a review of Bro ken Rengay

I’m late for Colleen’s Tanka Tuesday challenge because I just didn’t get around to posting on Sunday. It was my sister-in-law’s birthday so we went out for lunch and then I worked on my new short story collection which took me longer than expected. I am now happy with the first half of the longest of the stories at 5,000 words.

Colleen’s challenge for last week was visualise your joy. You can read other poet’s contributions here: https://tankatuesday.com/2025/11/11/tankatuesday-poetry-challenge-no-38-visualize-your-joy-11-11-25/

I wrote two etheree poems (I haven’t written one for ages so two was a surprise for me)

Too Much

soft

gentle

delicate

continuous

much needed rainfall

brings joy to thirsty earth

which wallows in cool wetness

drinking, absorbing, retaining

growing fat on water ingestion

until, bloated, it refuses excess

Sailing

joy

of wind

in my hair

fresh and salty

spray stings open eyes

gazing with wonder at

miniature white horsemen who

show jump over each breaking wave

thundering warrior-like shorewards

taking beachfront hostage on moon’s behalf

Picture caption: My watercolour painting of boats in the harbourEsther Chilton’s Writing Challenge

Esther challenge this week is fish. You can join in here: https://estherchilton.co.uk/2025/11/12/writing-prompts-90/

One Eyed Goldfish (tanka prose)

When I was eleven years old and Cath, Hayley and Laura were seven, three and two, respectively, we travelled by car all the way from George in the Western Cape to Johannesburg to spend Christmas with my aunt and cousins. We made the twelve-hour journey all in one go, leaving home at 4am in the morning. It was a squash for all four of us girls to fit into the car together with our parents. Cath and I lay on the backseat and Hayley lay on the self above the boot. Laura slept in the space at my mom’s feet.

It was a long and uncomfortable journey with only short stops for the bathroom. My mother had packed a food for us to eat in the car on the way, so we didn’t stop for meals.

By the time we finally arrived in Johannesburg late in the afternoon, everyone was bad tempered and antsy. Hayley, in particular, was full of jellybeans and wouldn’t stand still once released from the confines of the vehicle.

My aunt had a goldfish in a large bowl on her kitchen table. Hayley was fascinated by this fish which swam round and round in its glass prison. There were a few wavy bits of greenery in the water, and the bottom was covered with sand. There was also a little castle for the fish to swim through. Hayley was transfixed by this fish. She refused to come upstairs with us and see her room. In desperation, Mom left her in the kitchen to watch the fish while we carried all the bags and other luggage upstairs.

When we came back, Hayley was sitting on the kitchen table holding the poor fish in her hand. It was just like a cartoon where a cat finally manages to grab a fish out of a bowl. My aunt was upset and rushed over to save the fish. On its return to the water, we discovered that one of the fish’s eyes was gone. We looked all around but we never found that missing eye, so it remained a mystery. I always hoped that Hayley had not eaten it.

long, difficult day

impedes decision making

young child left alone

catches unfortunate fish

escapes, one eyed but alive

The Flower Hour

You can join in Terri’s challenge here: https://secondwindleisure.com/2025/11/18/the-flower-hour-7-the-seasons-of-a-hydrangea/

This week I have created a slideshow. Click on the arrow on the right to see all the pictures.

Last year I had the privilege of illustrating the first three books in Kaye Lynne Booth’s My Backyard Friends series of children’s books. Today, I am introducing you to the first of these books, Heather Hummingbird Makes a New Friend.

This is the first of three posts about the My Backyard Friends books.

Tell us a bit about yourself, Kaye, and your writing

I decided I wanted to be a writer at the age of 26. I started out writing poetry, mostly nature poetry. At that time in my life, I could hear the words for the poems in my head on nature walks, and I would have to hurry back to pen and paper to get them down before I forgot them. I began writing children’s stories staring characters based on wildlife I observed. I found an illustrator and publisher for the first book in the My Backyard Friend’s series, but the deal turned sour after about five years, before the book could be published. Without an illustrator, my children’s series had to be placed to the side for many years.

I wrote my first short story in response to a prompt in Writer’s Digest contest, but by the time I got the story out, it was way over the word count limit for the contest. I still tend to come out with novelettes, rather than short stories. All three of the stories I wrote for this year’s anthologies were way over the word limit which I set, which was 5000 words.

Only after going back to school for my master’s degree, did I try my hand at longer novel-length works. That’s where I discovered that I enjoyed writing western historical with Delilah. My thesis project was science fantasy, but when I outlined my book idea, I discovered I had enough for a series. Unfortunately, that project is still waiting for completion.

I found a publisher for Delilah, but the book didn’t do well. As I learned to navigate the changing writing and publishing landscapes, I created my own independent press, WordCrafter Press. By the time my contract ran out on Delilah, I had published a collection of short stories, a novelette, and a few anthologies, so I didn’t renew the contract, feeling I could do better for this book than the publisher had. I revised the book into the first book in my Women in the West series. I’m now working on the third book in that series and the second book in my Time Travel Adventure series, plus I publish two short fiction anthology and a poetry anthology every year.

I was able to come back to the children’s series when I was able to collaborate with Robbie to bring my stories to life through her lovely illustrations. Working with her, I was able to publish three of the My Backyard Friends series books. These are the books which Robbie has been kind enough to feature here.

More about Kaye and her writing next week.

Heather Hummingbird Makes a New FriendWhat Amazon says

The My Backyard Friends kid’s book series is inspired by the birds and animals that visit the author Kaye Lynne Booth’s mountain home. Beautiful illustrations by children’s author, poet, and illustrator, Robbie Cheadle, bring the unique voices of the animal characters to life. Heather Hummingbird Makes a New Friend is a picture book with a message of  friendship and cooperation.

Heather Hummingbird and Ethan Eagle are two unlikely friends who discover that it is good to accept help from others and that is what friends are for.

My reviewPicture caption: Cover of Heather Hummingbird Makes a New Friend featuring a hummingbird on a branch

Heather Hummingbird Makes a New Friend is a delightful story aimed at introducing young children to the wonders to the numerous creatures that may visit our ‘backyards’.

Heather is fast, busy, and called ‘Hyperactive Heather’ by the ponderous Ethan Eagle and the other slower birds. Her ‘zipping’ about is a little annoying for Ethan but he gets to recognise the value of Heather’s speedy nature when she assists him with a problem.

Children will enjoy the onomatopoeia in this story as the author has effectively made use of lots of words like zipped, zwiiiiiiinnng, and zzzwwwiiiipp. Parents can use these words to great effect when reading this book to a young child.

Of course, one good turn deserves another, and Ethan gets to help Heather and save her life. Children will learn about bird migration while enjoying this part of the story.

The book is illustrated with lifelike pencil drawings of birds as part of the message of communication with nature in a realistic manner.

You can purchase Heather Hummingbird Makes a New Friend from Amazon US here: https://www.amazon.com/Heather-Hummingbird-Friend-Backyard-Friends-ebook/dp/B0D9JCWCH7

Christmas for Kids Sale

Kaye’s children’s books will be available at a discounted price via the links below from 1 to 25 December.

Heather Hummingbird Makes a New Friend – $2.50 – https://books2read.com/MBF-HeatherHummingbird

Timothy Turtle Discovers JElly Beans – $2.50 – https://books2read.com/MBF-TimothyTurtle

Charlie Chickadee Finds a NEw Home – $2.99 – https://books2read.com/MBF-CharlieChickadee

Picture caption: Banner for My Backyard Friend’s Children’s Books Series featuring the covers of the three booksIllustrations Sneak Peak

This is one of the hand drawn illustrations that features in this beautiful book:

Picture caption: Hand drawn picture of Ethan the Eagle

I love this picture because the bald eagle is so regal. These birds are indigenous to North America so I had to research it to in order to create the drawings. Bald eagles are sea eagles and are believed to be a sign that divine guidance is near. The bald eagle’s fierce nature and hunting prowess symbolise strength, courage, and perseverance.

Picture caption: Hand drawn picture of Ethan Eagle in flight. The source photograph was contributed by Wayne Barnes of Tofino Photography blog. You can view Wayne’s beautiful photographs here: https://tofinophotography.wordpress.com/About Kaye Lynne Booth

Kaye Lynne Booth is a multi-genre author  who has had a whole collection of children’s stories just waiting for the right illustrator.

The books in the My Backyard Friends series are inspired by the birds and animals that visit author Kaye Lynne Booth’s mountain home. The first three books in the series are Heather Hummingbird Makes a New Friend, Charlie Chickadee Gets a New Home, and Timothy Turtle Discovers Jelly Beans.

Author poet and illustrator Robbie Cheadle does the beautiful illustrations that bring this series to life.

(Freestyle)“Hello, lovely humanIt’s good to see youThe back door was openSo, I popped in for a visitI hope you don’t mindOh dear, I can seeWhere …

“The Visitor” by Robbie Cheadle

An overview of the book Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is a historical novel written by Jamie Ford. The plot makes use of a dual timeline: …

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford and the forced interment of the Japanese Americans during WW2 by Robbie Cheadle

Today, I have selected a humorous book for my review. Bridget Jones’s Diary is very amusing but it does also have a more serious theme. The movie is different to the book from what I have read. I haven’t seen the movie so I can’t comment on it.

Bridget Jones’s Diary (Novel) Picture caption: Cover of Bridget Jones’s Diary featuring a young woman holding a cigarette and a glass of wine

Bridget Jones’s Diary is a fabulous and humorous romp through the world of an unmarried 30 something woman living on her own in London. The novel is written in the form of a personal diary and every entry starts with a list of her daily calory count, cigarettes smoked, and alcohol units consumed. This introduction is very telling as it summarises how Bridget views herself and her life. Caught up in the modern ideas of love being linked to looks and, especially, being thin, Bridget is obsessed with her weight. Although couched in humour, this theme is actually a serious one and centres around women’s unfortunate association of looks and weight with popularity, self worth, and romantic love.

Bridget has a job, but she wants to achieve more, she has friends and family, but she wants a relationship and to be part of a couple. The pursuit of these two goals are the main threads of this book which involves a career change for Bridget and also two potential romances. The first possibility is Daniel, a Casanova and womeniser, who is also Bridget’s boss – big mistake. The second is the seemingly stuffy and serious human-rights barrister, Mark Darcy, whom Bridget dislikes when they are reintroduced at a New Year’s party. Bridget’s mother is keen on Mark as a partner for Bridget and reminds her publically that they used to play together as children.

Continue reading here: https://writingtoberead.com/2025/11/12/read-and-cook-bridget-joness-diary-novel-and-moms-orange-chocolate-birthday-cake-readandcook-bookreview-baking

Today, I am delighted to welcome Darlene Foster, author of the Amanda Travels series of children’s books, for a short author interview. I’ve included my review of her latest book in this series, Amanda in Ireland: The Body in the Bog.

Picture caption: Cover of Amanda in Ireland: The Body in the Bog featuring a tall tower in a graveyard against an emerald background

Welcome, Darlene!

Tell us a bit about yourself and your writing

Growing up on a prairie farm, there wasn’t a lot to do, so I entertained myself by reading books. Books took me all over the world, provided me with friends, and fueled my imagination. I also liked to make up my own stories. My wonderful grade-three teacher, Miss Roll, suggested I write my stories down. A few years later, at age twelve, I had a short story published in a local newspaper. I’ve been writing short stories off and on for many years, have won prizes and some have been published in anthologies. Fifteen years ago, I started writing a series of stories about a young girl who travels to various countries and always has an adventure or a mystery to solve. Amanda is a twelve-year-old travelling sleuth. The series is called Amanda Travels and is popular with children and adults. The stories have taken Amanda to Arabia, Spain, England, Malta, New Mexico, Holland, France, Scotland and countries along the Danube.

What prompted you to write a book for children?

I had an amazing trip to the United Arab Emirates and thought it would be a great setting for a work of fiction. I had trouble conveying the feeling of wonder and excitement I experienced while there. I tried writing the story from a child’s point of view and it worked much better. Amanda in Arabia: The Perfume Flask became the first book in the Amanda Travels series. I wanted to write a book for children that would inspire them to travel and see the world, and to step out of their comfort zone. Writing for children is important to me because I want children to develop the same love of books I had as a child.

Which writers of children’s fiction influenced you as a child and as an adult?

As a child I enjoyed reading Lucy Maude Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables. Her vivid description of Prince Edward Island and her well-rounded, very real characters made me want to read the story over and over again. I still reread it as an adult. I read everything in the children’s section of our local library so began reading adult books at a very young age. I read Gone With the Wind at age twelve, as well as A Tale of Two Cities, David Copperfield and other classics. Margaret Mitchell’s portrayal of the American South, and Charles Dickens’ depiction of Victorian England, left a lasting impression on me. Both authors created unforgettable characters, many of them flawed, who were products of their time and culture. These characters expanded my knowledge of human behaviour, and influenced me as a writer and as a person. As an adult I discovered the children’s author, Kate DiCamillo, who wrote Because of Winn-Dixie and other amazing books, who is also an inspiration to me.

What are your plans for children’s fiction for the future?

I plan to continue Amanda’s travels as there are many other places for her to visit. I just published Amanda in Ireland: The Body in the Bog and have started Amanda in Thailand: The Ghost House (working title). I plan to write a cookbook, Amanda Cooks: Recipes from Around the World. This will be a collection of recipes for food mentioned in the books. I would also like to try my hand at a picture book one day. So many ideas, so little time.

Thank you so much, Robbie, for this opportunity to discuss my children’s book writing journey.

My review of Amanda in Ireland: The Body in the Bog

This is a fun preteen sleuth book featuring twelve year old, Amanda from Canada, and written in the style of the Famous Five series by Enid Blyton but with a unique travel theme. In this book, Amanda has travelled on her own to Ireland to be a bridesmaid at her cousin, Taylor’s, wedding. Taylor is marrying and Irish lass and the wedding is to be held in a fairytale castle. When she arrives, she discovers that the bride to be has disappeared under suspicious circumstances, along with her horse.

Naturally, Taylor is frantic with worry and determined to find his fiancé. He invites Amanda along as he searches out and about the town and surrounding countryside. Amanda has plenty of opportunities to visit places of historical interest and natural beauty as well as discover clues about the whereabouts of the missing horse and rider.

There are a few shady characters and Amanda lands herself in hot water more than once, but this is a book for young readers and she is able to wriggle herself out of trouble with a little help from Taylor and her friends.

This is an interesting read that will inform youngsters about Ireland and its history in a subtle and relatable way. The storyline is fast paced and entertaining for older readers as well as younger ones.

Purchase Amanda in Ireland: The Body in the Bog from Amazon US here: https://www.amazon.com/Amanda-Ireland-Body-Travels-Book-ebook/dp/B0FT75TVC6

About Darlene Foster

Darlene Foster grew up on a farm/ranch in Alberta, Canada, where her love of reading inspired her to see the world and write stories. Over the years she has worked in rewarding jobs such as an employment counsellor, ESL teacher, recruiter and retail manager; writing whenever she had a few spare minutes. Her Amanda Travels series features spunky Amanda Ross, a twelve-year-old girl who loves to travel. All ages enjoy following Amanda as she unravels one mystery after another in unique destinations. Darlene is now retired and has a house in Spain where she writes full-time. When not travelling, meeting interesting people, and collecting ideas for her books, she enjoys spending time with her husband and entertaining rescue dogs, Dot and Lia. Her constant interest and enthusiasm about everything keeps her young at heart.

Find Darlene Foster

Website: https://www.darlenefoster.ca/

Blog https://darlenefoster.wordpress.com/

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/darlene.foster.777

Twitter/X https://x.com/supermegawoman

Bluesky @darlenefoster.bsky.social

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/darlene6490/

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Darlene-Foster/author/B003XGQPHA

Tanka Tuesday

Yvette is the host of this week’s Tanka Tuesday challenge which you can find here: https://tankatuesday.com/2025/11/04/tankatuesday-poetry-challenge-no-37-the-veil-11-04-25/

Within the Veil (shadorma prose)

The beautiful homestead of Groot Constantia nestles among numerous oak trees and vineyards in the suburb of Constantia in Cape Town. Established in 1685 by Simon van der Stel, the first Governor of the Dutch Cape Colony, this property is South Africa’s oldest wine estate.

Simon van der Stel was interested in botany and wine making and he produced a famous dessert wine. One of his daily habits was to take a constitutional dip in a small ornamental swimming bath situated a short way about the great house.

The path leading to this pool is lined with old oak trees which form a shady tunnel. It is said that during the hot summer months, the spirit of Simon van der Stel is frequently seen strolling along the avenue to take his invigorating swim.

old oak trees

veil harsh summer sun

creating

dark shadows

home to ghostly form with hat

Simon van der Stel

Glass topped coffee table (shadorma prose)

My family moved from Cape Town back to George in the Western Cape when I was 10. We’d spent two years in Cape Town and Dad was itching for a change.

For Cath and I it was another move, another house, and another school. This time, my parents enrolled us in the Catholic convent which was English speaking and small in size. All the teachers were nuns and the number of girl learners vastly outnumbered the boys.

Mom bought a few new pieces of furniture for this larger house, one of which was a coffee table with a glass top. Mom was very pleased with this table and placed it proudly in the centre of the lounge.

It was a rainy and miserable day and Cath and I were bored. The weather had been relentlessly wet and we were tired of being inside. Even I had run out of interesting ideas to keep us entertained. I was reading ‘What Katy Did’ by Susan Coolidge and this book inspired the idea of a game of chase inside the house.

Before long, Cath was running away with me hot on her heels. We charged into the lounge and Cath tripped on the edge of the carpet, cartwheeling right on top of the new coffee table. She went straight through the glass. I shrieked in terror, thinking my sister must be dead. Through some sort of divine intervention, she was not dead. She wasn’t even cut or harmed in any way. She rose up out of the glass debris like a small angel.

Dad shouted at me for being so silly and running about near the coffee table which disappeared never to reappear. To this day, my blood runs cold when I think of this accident.

glass table

impractical choice

accident

in waiting

thank goodness for miracles

walked away unharmed

The Flower Hour – Day of the Lilies

You can join in the Flower Hour with Terri here: https://secondwindleisure.com/2025/11/04/the-flower-hour-5-shadows-fall-on-these/

Picture caption: Crimson day lilies with yellow centresPicture caption: This is another crimson day lily. It has this interesting yellow patch – I think it looks like a birth markPicture caption: peach day lilies on the pathPicture caption: A single day lily with a yellow centrePicture caption: This is a day lily but a different type. I’m not sure what its called