The Crooked-Wheel Lantern

Nessa Vale loves plans that stay perfectly still. Straight lines. Tight knots. Tools on the right hooks. No surprises.But on Lantern Day, the road to Brightwater's hilltop beacon is washed out, fog hides the trail, and Nessa's homemade handcart develops a troublesome wobble. Inside the cart rests a precious glass lens that must reach Lantern Tower before sunset-or the town's brightest celebration may go dark.With her funny, quick-thinking cousin Pip and careful friend Orin beside her, Nessa follows an unexpected route through misty fields, an abandoned canal, rain-swept ridges, and a bridge blocked by a fallen tree. Every rushed decision brings a new problem. Every scratch, slip, and crooked turn leaves a clue. To complete the journey, Nessa must stop hiding her mistakes and start learning from them.The Crooked-Wheel Lantern is a warm, exciting illustrated chapter book about resilience, teamwork, problem-solving, and the courage to try again. Filled with gentle suspense, lively dialogue, memorable characters, humor, and ten detailed black-and-white illustrations, this adventure is ideal for independent readers ages 6-8 and for families, classrooms, and read-aloud time.Perfect for children who worry about getting things wrong, feel frustrated while learning, or need encouragement to keep going, this hopeful story shows that mistakes are not the end of a good plan. Sometimes they are the beginning of a better one.A heartfelt growth-mindset adventure for young readers who are discovering that every wobble can make them stronger-together, one small, brave, imperfect step at a time.

Nessa Vale loves plans that stay perfectly still. Straight lines. Tight knots. Tools on the right hooks. No surprises.But on Lantern Day, the road to Brightwater's hilltop beacon is washed out, fog hides the trail, and Nessa's homemade handcart develops a troublesome wobble. Inside the cart rests a precious glass lens that must reach Lantern Tower before sunset-or the town's brightest celebration may go dark.With her funny, quick-thinking cousin Pip and careful friend Orin beside her, Nessa follows an unexpected route through misty fields, an abandoned canal, rain-swept ridges, and a bridge blocked by a fallen tree. Every rushed decision brings a new problem. Every scratch, slip, and crooked turn leaves a clue. To complete the journey, Nessa must stop hiding her mistakes and start learning from them.The Crooked-Wheel Lantern is a warm, exciting illustrated chapter book about resilience, teamwork, problem-solving, and the courage to try again. Filled with gentle suspense, lively dialogue, memorable characters, humor, and ten detailed black-and-white illustrations, this adventure is ideal for independent readers ages 6-8 and for families, classrooms, and read-aloud time.Perfect for children who worry about getting things wrong, feel frustrated while learning, or need encouragement to keep going, this hopeful story shows that mistakes are not the end of a good plan. Sometimes they are the beginning of a better one.A heartfelt growth-mindset adventure for young readers who are discovering that every wobble can make them stronger-together, one small, brave, imperfect step at a time.