Our mission is to help authors bring their stories to light with professional editing, design, and good exposure to the marketplace. Through Belle Isle Books, we offer personal guidance and accessibility, encourage authors to actively participate in the publishing process, and produce high-quality books that exhibit editorial quality of the highest caliber.
We treat the publishing process as a partnership because when the book comes off the press, we want our authors to be confident and successful.
Damaged Discount
New & Upcoming Releases
Eleven Dollars and a Half Tank of Gas
ON SALE 7/22/2019!
written by Greg Drost
In this candid memoir of a classic American boyhood, Greg Drost—teacher, family man, and self-taught surfer—takes a moment to look back on the events that led him to where he is today. From summer hijinks and schoolboy woes, through hardship and heartbreak, and down the long and winding road to self-discovery, this delightful collection of anecdotes is more than the story of one man’s coming of age. It is an examination of all those moments, great and small, that shape us into the people we grow up to be.
Gloria's Hope Tree
ON SALE 8/12/2019!
written by Stephanie Parwulski
illustrated by Tania Ramírez Cuevas
Hope the maple tree is often overlooked by shoppers at the garden nursery because of her small size, crooked branches, and few leaves. Then, one spring day, Gloria and Daddy choose Hope, bring her home, and plant her by the roadside. Despite Hope's joy in her new home, Gloria and Daddy sometimes seem so sad. Why did they choose Hope, and how will she fit into their little family? Join Hope, Gloria, and Daddy to find hope in unlikely places.
“A lonely maple tree and a grieving father and daughter come together to discover time, nature, compassion, and love can heal. Stephanie Parwulski’s Gloria’s Hope Tree is an excellent primer for young children learning to define emotions and to relate to how others may be feeling.”
- KarenMarie Kauderer, BSW
“Just as she did with Beatrice and the Sunflower Gift, Stephanie has eloquently spread the much- needed message of love through the universal language of kindness with Gloria’s Hope Tree. She has mastered the art of capturing, understanding, and translating the essence of the human condition from adult concepts into simple children’s literature, expressing the infinite power of nature to comfort. The result is pure magnificence. Readers will laugh and shed tears of joy with this heartwarming tale. Storytime’s end is sure to result in a shared hug.”
- Mary Clista Dahl, founder of Capture Life Writing and author of Reconciliation of the Heart
“Stephanie does it again with her inspiring upcoming children’s book, Gloria’s Hope Tree. In this beautiful and timeless tale, we learn a story of love, strength, and hope for a better tomorrow. Gloria and her father, both grieving the painful loss of their mother and wife, encounter a courageous young tree, and through the power of love and hope, they all find a way to blossom together beautifully. Any young reader searching for answers in the pain of despair will find hope for a better tomorrow with the help of Gloria. A wonderful story that will surely touch the heart.”
- Will Mason, author of The Boy with the Rainbow Heart children’s book series, Keep
Walking, The Backyard, and Duffy, the Famous Wing
“Stephanie Parwulski shines again in her second book with an authentic and heartwarming story of eternal love, beauty, and acceptance. Gloria's Hope Tree intertwines delicate topics such as grief, belonging, and compassion in a gentle approach. Truly inspiring!”
- Tara Schafer, Executive Director of Literacy NY Buffalo-Niagara
"Gloria's Hope Tree is a touching story about how one family, during a season of sadness, finds hope in planting and growing a young sapling maple tree. This book teaches children that all their feelings are valid and important during the journey of grieving. In writing this book, author Stephanie Parwulski has given a beautiful gift to the world by encouraging young readers to plant and grow trees. This book shows the reader how powerful and beneficial nurturing new life can be for both the plant and the gardener."
- Liz Ballard Hamm & Andrew Ballard, authors of The Great Big Ark in the Sky
The King of the Stars
ON SALE 8/24/2019!
written by Brandon Layne
In the land of Kama, the stars are magical and constellations determine the future. Stars can even grant a person the power of astromy, enabling them to manipulate elements of nature. However, only one person is destined to be king. But of course, not everyone believes in the stars, and dark forces lurk with their own plans for the world.
Brian, the teenage son of a legendary warrior, is fated to possess the gift of earth astromy, but he can barely lift a rock. With a villainous overlord ruling the town, Brian needs to develop his skills -- and quickly. But then a strange boy appears in the woods, and Brian has the feeling there's more to this kid than meets the eye. It's a race against evil and against the odds to rightfully throne the king of the stars.
“Brandon Layne has created an imaginative fantasy world that young readers will love.”
—Colleen R. Lee, school librarian
“Brandon’s book is a great read to stimulate the minds and imaginations of a technologically overloaded generation.”
—Amy Powroznik, art educator for grades K-5, Henrico County Gilman Award winner 2009
A Caterpillar at the Dentist
ON SALE 6/5/2019!!!
Written by Dr. Shweta Ujaoney
Illustrated by Kelly O'Neill
She’s never had a filling before! When Ira meets Zack, a talking caterpillar, in the dentist’s waiting room, Zack knows just how to make her feel better. Zack will explain that the dentist’s tools are simple, harmless objects used in everyday life. Through their imagination, Ira will learn to understand the nature and importance of getting a filling.
The Ride of Molly Tynes: A Tale Passed Down
written by Mary Alice Barksdale and Donna Jessie Fogelsong
illustrated Emily Hurst Pritchett
When Molly Tynes learns of an impending attack on a neighboring town, she mounts her horse without hesitation, risking life and limb to warn and protect her community. Four mountains, rough trails, and wild animals stand between Molly and her journey’s end. Through this legendary tale of a courageous Civil War-era woman, the storytelling tradition of Southwest Virginia lives on.
The Great Big Ark in the Sky
written by Liz Ballard Hamm and Andrew Ballard
illustrated by Lucy Koo
Where do animals go when they leave this world? After losing their family dog, a little girl and her brother embark on a magical voyage aboard a flying ark to seek the answer to that question. Come aboard this adventure into the great beyond!
The Mystics' Treachery
Anna Volkov has a lot on her mind. Her father has just been appointed Russia’s ambassador to the UN, uprooting the family from Moscow to Manhattan—and with her relationship with her twin sister already on the rocks, it’s shaping up to be a lonely, boring school year.
However, when a strange old woman appears on the street one night to deliver a cryptic warning, Anna finds herself thrown headfirst into a war that has been raging in secret for hundreds of years—a power struggle between the evil Mystics, and the Aura Readers who oppose them. Unsure of whom to trust or what to believe, Anna must rely on her wits as she masters an ancient power, and put a stop to a conspiracy that could change her fate—and the fate of the world—forever.
There's an Elephant in My Bathtub
written by Connie Bowman
illustrated by Kelly O'Neill
There’s an ELEPHANT in the bathtub!
And a CAMEL in the study—and a LION on the couch—and a GORILLA in the kitchen! When wild animals make themselves at home, what’s a dad to do?
A Jar Full of Kisses
story by Heather Bennett
illustrations by Amanda Spiers
Prickles is the happiest little hedgehog—except when she has to say goodbye. She loves her mom and dad more than anything, so one whole night without them seems like forever. Stick with Prickles to learn how to make goodbyes so much easier!
