The Giants of the Baroka Valley: The Guardians of Elestra: Volume 2 - Tapa blanda

Derek and Deanna Hughes embark on their second adventure in the magical world of Elestra in search of another moonstone. This time, they have to go to the Baroka Valley where everything is huge, from the grains of sand to the wild chickens. With their friend Tobungus, the mushroom man, at their side, they face Green Thumb, a forest elf with a pair of magical thumbs, the Gong Beaters of the Floddan Lowlands, and the dark wizard Eldrack. The buzzing they hear is not just their heads ringing from the awful gong music, it's the sound of eagle-sized bees swarming around them in a magical orchard. The story heats up even more when they are forced to ride down the River of the Dragon's Breath on a boat that isn't really a boat. In the end, another mystery is added to their journeys as they try to figure out who is helping them behind the scenes. The twins find their journey slowed by an ornery monkey who doesn't believe that they are Mystical Guardians and a pair of twenty foot tall giant trees (or giants who are trees, or trees who are also giants, or well they're not sure how to describe them other than huge and wooden). Lava creatures, rocks that turn into milkshakes (shaken milk, according to Tobungus), a snail-drawn carriage, nut-throwing owl sprites, off key grazing animals, a goose flight over a boiling river, a zoo where the creatures are paid to tell visitors about themselves, and a spell that leaves Derek with a fashion statement that is skin deep round out the story and make the journey through Elestra engaging and magical.

Thom Jones, who does not sing "What's New, Pussycat?" lives in the Adirondacks with his wife and their three kids--the long-haired, electric guitar playing teenage son, the fuzzy-haired ninja-spiderman in training pre-teen son, and the little daughter who is convinced that she is an indestructible monkey. He started writing the Guardians of Elestra stories for his kids in 2004, and he finally decided that Tobungus the mushroom man had to move beyond his family to a wider audience. When he's not writing, he is either homeschooling his kids or running crime scene camps for kids somewhere in the Northeast. He started Peekaboo Pepper Books as a way to entertain and educate kids. His stories are filled with unique fantasy elements, challenging vocabulary, humor, and mysteries that weave their way through all of the books in the Guardians of Elestra series. His website, www.guardiansofelestra.com has more information about Elestra, including snippets from books in the library, prophecies, menus from Glabber's Grub Hut, and contests which allow readers to submit stories and artwork which may be displayed on the website and in a printed book. He will be adding a science fiction series ("The Galactic Gourmets") which finds spaceship captain Hugo Fitzboris in a race to deliver gourmet food throughout the galaxy while battling the cheese creatures under the guidance of King Gouda. And, really, how many starships have you seen with a take-out window near their landing gear? He is also working on the "Adventures of Boron Jones," a superhero series that includes a healthy dose of chemistry. Of course, sulfur will end up on the side of evil, but who can guess which side Ytterbium will choose.