Book Review: The Ansgar Kids Treasury by Aleksandra Layland

*Editors Note* We would like to apologize for the misspelling of author Aleksandra Layland's name in our previous review.

The Ansgar Kids Treasury is a collection of four books for younger readers which are part of the Windflower Saga epic fantasy series. These books introduce kids to characters from the first two books in the Windflower Saga trilogy of novels: "Ansgar: The Struggle of a People. The Triumph of the Heart." and "Of Wisdom and Valor: The Art of War. The Path of Peace." 
The four books in this collection are two short picture books for K-2nd grade: "Tiyo, The Dog Who Saved Ansgar" and "Bright Star, A Pony of the Kimbrii." It also includes a short chapter book, "Keri and Kalina" and a middle-grade novel, "Golden Skye of Ansgar." "Keri and Kalina" is the story of two cousins aged about 10 and 7 who are orphaned or left with only one parent and share a room at a boarding school run by nuns. "Golden Skye of Ansgar" is about a horse belonging to Queen Keridwen of Kimbria, now in her 40s, who was Keri in "Keri and Kalina." The Queen has children who have adventures with horses, a dog, a cat, and several parrots.

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REVIEW

Fully completing the Windflower Saga is THE ANSGAR KIDS TREASURY: A WINDFLOWER SAGA COLLECTION. This treasury collection features the kid-friendly books Tiyo, The Dog Who Saved Ansgar; Bright Star, A Pony of the Kimbrii; Keri and Kalina; and lastly Golden Skye of Ansgar. 
You may think to skip this treasury collection since they are kids themed books.  You also may wonder why input kid friendly books into the more adult oriented Windflower Saga? The answer is I have no idea, but oddly it kind of works for if you read each book they give you a hint of a new perspective on the main trilogy. To be honest, they are charming books, and Layland’s tackle at writing for kids is fair. I just love how these books are like the final touches on a great epic cake. Kids books or not if you have read the main trilogy saga you are going to want to read the kids books too. These little books actually add the finishing touches that complete this epic fantasy saga that Mrs. Layland created.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Aleksandra Layland is a retired civil engineer and a federal civil servant who worked primarily for the United States Air Force as a senior installation engineering manager responsible for buildings, airfields, infrastructure, fire protection, and emergency preparedness. She also served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Western Caroline Islands where she helped build school classrooms and cafeterias, low-income housing, and simple village water distribution systems. Her other interests include arts and crafts, family genealogy, religion, and spirituality, fostering peace in the world, and enjoying retirement with family and friends.

The Windflower Saga series is comprised of the following volumes which trace the lives of members of the fictional Ansgar ducal family against a background of struggles between forces such as good and evil, love and hate, and war and peace. The series is a unique blending of traditional love stories and adventure and action stories in an "other world" setting, with serious spiritual and moral themes which are addressed in an overall uplifting tone. For all that the characters may face harsh realities, the story of the Ansgar family is a happy one.