Praise for On Wings of Wonder

Traveling with a sense of wonder

If you want your children to be intelligent, let them read fantasy and science-fiction. If you want your children to be very intelligent, let them read this book. On Wings of Wonder is a beautifully written book about traveling with a sense of … well… wonder. Using the kids' imaginations, On Wings of Wonder whisks the reader off on a worldwide tour to places you can actually visit. Angkor. Colorado. Kilimanjaro. Kalahari. Or, as the illustrator notes in the afterword, "Every wonder they come upon in this book really exists." I can’t think of a better book right now for kids' summer reading lists or holiday reading lists. On Wings of Wonder goes to the top of my recommended books for the fourth, fifth, and sixth grades. ~ Paul Aertker author of the Crime Travelers series

Yay! A paradigm shift!

I could eat this book I love it so! Thank you Mr. Doug and your magical daughter. Let's ride on these Wings of Wonder out of the dark drama we love to bemoan. Let's re-member the power of our heart's wisdom and crank up the Merry-go-Round to full speed. What a grace, an offering, what a challenge you have laid upon the world.

~ Bee h

Wondrous title! Initials spell O WOW!

On Wings of Wonder may sound like a youth book, yet it calls to that wisp of wonder in all of us. I quickly fell in love with several of the characters & their accents. Learning tidbits about other countries was a great bonus. Wonder is all around us each & every day, but if not nurtured, it is lost. On Wings of Wonder is part travelogue, part fantasy, part coming of age, part world politics, part standing on principles, part saving the Earth, part accepting others & all magical! Already placed orders for several friends. Lent out my copy, but need to read it again to discover all that was inside. The beautiful and artwork throughout the book adds to the story line. The line of the song goes, “What the world needs now is love...” That final word should be Wonder! This book is Wonder-filled to be enjoyed by all! ~ Mary Rose, Rockford Il.

p.s. I am so excited about this book. I want all my friends to see it & read it. When I gave my book away to Marie, I actually missed it! I love the colorful cover. My 1st Barnes & Noble order arrived today, so now I have one to show people I see. This morning on my walk, I was enchanted by swallows skimming over the lagoon behind my condo. I always greet toads when I see them. I am the crazy person at fireworks, squealing & yelling “ooohh” & “aaahhh”! Life is too short not to enjoy it. Hoping your book brings people back to WONDER! ~ Mary Rose

Important for children to reflect

A great book to have children reflect on their world. What are the similarities and differences? How are they handled? How do children want their world to be when they are adults and what will they do to help create this? This is also an important book for teachers to provide and guide reflective discussions. The world's conflicts and ways we handle them as adults is an important critical thinking piece for everyone. The book presents a wonderful fantasy woven with real circumstances and challenges. A wonderful read for everyone! - Alana Young-Morrison

An outstanding read

Dear future readers, 'on Wings of Wonder' by Doug Cosper, and illustrations by Anna Cosper, is an outstanding read. We read it first, and then purchased one for our adult children. Then also one for our grandchildren. It is a book that causes you to feel good, and also think. It's an inspirational book, as well as being fun. We think it's really for all ages. Wonderful book. ~ Rocky and Susan Knickerbocker

A riveting supernatural tale that’s delightfully down to earth

The detailed locations and the intriguing cast supply much of the excitement. In fact, backstories from some of the (human) Guardians outshine Case’s. Cosper superbly describes real-world environments, from the Kalahari Desert in Botswana to Cambodia’s Tonle Sap Lake. Particulars on Flinder are equally appealing, as when Case latches onto the butterfly’s silky blue fur during their flights. There’s a none-too-subtle criticism of the digital age, with “virtual worlds” making it hard for adults to “nurture children’s wonder.” But rather than condemn smart tech outright, the story good-naturedly suggests looking for escapades in the outside world. ~ Kirkus Review

What a wonder-filled read!

What do our kids need to hear right now? Scratch that. What do we need to hear right now? It is THIS story. Steeped in reverence for wonder and curiosity, as the quest unfolds the author brings us historical and cultural subtales. Some talk about the origin of mankind and conflicts between cultures without the easy answers of all good guys and bad guys. Other tales are part of a travelogue of the natural world. This is an author that would walk a mountain trail and pick small fronds that reflect the beauty of this world in an ancient spiral.

Speaking of beauty, the author's daughter, Anna, captures the spirit and story in wonderful drawings. Even the battle (Spoiler Alert - every good quest has a battle) pits those that are against wonder and want to take away that small child in each of us. It is not a battle of Cowboys and Indians, or nation-states. If your best moments are seeing a small child discover the beauty of a butterfly, a ride on a carousel, or learning that it is about what we can do, and not about blaming others, then this book is what you need to read. And your kids too ~ DallasJim

Well worth letting yourself enjoy.

In my old age, having now watched the quality of life steadily decline over decades, I'm inclined to dismiss fantasies as unwarranted escapes - especially in such dire times as these. I loved that stuff when I was in my teens, but that was sixty years ago. Sure, things were bad. Nuclear weapons had recently appeared and shown how dangerous we could be to ourselves and the planet. But things weren’t so clearly near the point of no return then. Environmental pollution was not so obvious, the division between rich and poor not yet so great, the growth of human population not so clearly a threat to the balance.

Now, twenty-some years into the once fabled Twenty-first Century, even our planet’s ability to support Life seems catastrophically threatened by human activity. Our primary duty is to correct our course somehow – not to waste our time on stories about, for instance, giant blue talking butterflies.

But consider. Human activities are ultimately matters of individual human choices. This story (the one with the giant blue butterfly) places those choices in one or the other of only two categories: those inspired by our capacity to Wonder, and those guided by Greed. No story could be more germane to our present situation. And no way of more effectively dealing with correcting our activities than by directing our choices. That's the lesson so entertainingly taught in On Wings of Wonder. ~ Gumbo

A great adventure & fantasy yarn with grounding in current events

This is a surprisingly great example of a middle grade novel, with aspects of fantasy literature and hidden worlds, but it's a book that is also deeply engaged with real-world issues like the treatment of the Rohingya people. The lead characters are kids who seem real even if their circumstances are in a fictional universe where magical creatures exist, both good and evil ones. The adventure these kids go on is in a sense educational, but none of the book is dry history or factual reporting. Instead, it sweeps its characters up in a battle for a meaningful life through its storytelling, and through telling stories that include many places on the globe and many people of those places. The sense of wonder that is crucial to the book's characters extends to how the book itself carries the reader along, each page crafted to make you want to get to the next one. A very good read. – Greg, Nicaragua

Good for preteens and adults. Can be read to younger kids

This book is great, such great descriptions of geography. The characters are believable for the fantasy they are in. I really like the main point of not losing our wonder. ~ Sharon H.

A rattling good tale, well told

This has got all the elements of a classic book for pre-teenagers – a mission, a mystery, new friendships, real dangers and travels to faraway lands where the young hero learns about different cultures and some of the great sights of the world - as well as tolerance, loyalty and ultimately his own powers. The writing just flows along to its exciting and moving conclusion. Loved it. ~ Ian R, Great Britain

Such a beautiful concept, the wonder in our world which, is free and available to all, is what will save us. ~ Mary Hughes

doug@onwingsofwonder.com