Elaine Ambrose is a bestselling author of ten books and has won prestigious writing awards in three genres: humor, memoir, and children’s books. Her newest book is titled "Melody’s Magical Flying Machine" and will be released in November 2020. The book features a 10-year-old girl with Down syndrome who creates a magical flying machine. Kirkus Reviews wrote that the book is “A joyful, well-told story that celebrates the power of imagination.” The positive story is a beginning chapter book for children ages 7 through 11.
Elaine’s memoir, "Frozen Dinners – A Memoir of a Fractured Family," was released in November 2018. The book won Distinguished Favorite from the Independent Book Awards and Distinguished Favorite from the New York City Big Book Awards Program. The book is available in hardcover, eBook, and audiobook read by the author.
Her humorous books include "Menopause Sucks," "Midlife Cabernet," and "Midlife Happy Hour." Her children’s book, "Gators & Taters," won the 2018 Distinguished Favorite for Children’s Literature from the Independent Press Awards. The bilingual storybook, "The Magic Potato," was adopted by the Idaho State Board of Education for the statewide curriculum and won the prestigious 2018 Silver Medal from the Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards.
Elaine won two writing awards from the National Society of Newspaper Columnists for her humorous blog posts on The Huffington Post and on her own blog, and she’s also an award-winning syndicated blogger on several online sites. She organizes professional writing retreats with acclaimed faculty, and she is a popular motivational speaker at college commencement ceremonies, writing conferences, workshops, retreats, book clubs, and live comedy shows.
Ambrose is an internationally recognized syndicated blogger. In 2014, she authored a humorous post on The Huffington Post that went viral with more than 800,000 likes. The post, titled Don’t Fart During an MRI was reprinted in several countries in various languages and continues to gain fans. The post was named as of one of the Top Ten Most-Read Posts in the Ten-Year History of The Huffington Post. Ambrose was interviewed live from New York, Interview on Huffington Post Live-Streaming Network.
Another post on her blog, My Mother’s Body Got Lost, was chosen as a winning entry in the Voices of the Year Competition sponsored by BlogHer. Ambrose presented her essay at the conference in New York in July 2015.
Ambrose is the founder and facilitator of the quarterly Women, Words, and Wine Writing Retreat as well as the annual Write by the River Retreats sponsored by her business, Mill Park Publishing. Write by the River Retreats have featured New York Times bestselling authors including Anthony Doerr.
Ambrose is a popular humorist and speaker at conventions across the country, and she is active on several social media sites. Find more details at www.ElaineAmbrose.com.
“A joyful, well-told story that celebrates the power of imagination.”
– Kirkus Reviews
CHILDREN'S & TEEN
MELODY'S MAGICAL FLYING MACHINE
BY Elaine Ambrose • POSTED ON Nov. 10, 2020
A fourth grade girl creates a magical flying machine with the help of an enchanted bird in this children’s book.
Melody, 10, loves hugs, daydreaming, singing, and storytelling. She also has Down syndrome; as she explains, “I can do almost everything other children can do, and I’m happy.” But she’s not so happy after being bullied by Robert, a new boy at school who mocks her storytelling and short stature. To feel better, Melody sits beneath her favorite daydreaming tree, where a tall creature with gray metal feathers introduces herself as “JuJu the Enchanted Bird.” JuJu helps Melody design and create a wonderful flying machine that looks like a giant snail shell powered by two dragons. At school, she swoops around in her machine, proclaiming: “I am Melody the tall and brave warrior.” Later on, Melody tells tales of adventure and magic to her enthralled classmates. Finally, even Robert comes around, saying: “I want you to know I like your stories. I’m sorry I was mean to you.” Though Melody is sad when JuJu must go, her friend reminds the girl of her strengths. In the end, Melody says, “I felt good about who I was and what I could do. I was a brave storyteller.” Melody is an engaging narrator whose cheerful affection, knack for happiness, and zestful imagination express themselves in every line. This extends even to her clothes; every outfit she wears is, in some way, her favorite. She appreciates others, delighting in her little brother’s silly knock-knock jokes. Whether or not readers have Down syndrome, most will relate to Melody’s sadness at social exclusion and benefit from the creative, self-affirming response that she demonstrates. Zina’s pencil illustrations are beautifully textured and shaded, with a magical quality that deftly matches the text.
A joyful, well-told story that celebrates the power of imagination.
Publisher: Brown Books Publishing Group
Review Posted Online: May 11, 2020
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