Welcome to Squeaky Clean Reads.  Here you will find overall and "content" reviews for books.  Our content reviews discuss any possibly objectionable material that a book may contain.  We understand that every reader has their own comfort level when it comes to the content found in books, and it is our hope that you will use this information to select books that you feel are appropriate for you and your family. 

In our review process, we give an overall review (a review of the book's literary qualities), and then a content review (a discussion of possibly objectionable material found in the book).  We want to let our readers know that our overall reviews and ratings are NOT affected or influenced by the book's content.  We aim to provide a professional, literary review of each book, and then go on to simply provide the book's content for your consideration. 

We also have a Squeaky Clean Booklist, which is a list of books that have earned the Squeaky Clean label!  There are great choices on this list for every age!

So now you get to meet us!  We are all avid readers who love books!  We (Melissa and Shelley) started the website, and we now have 10 reviewers working for our website.

SHELLEY
Squeaky Clean Reads Co-Founder & Contributing Editor 
Book Reviewer

 Some of my very favorite memories from my childhood include my mom reading me stories at bedtime. I listened to her read books like "Island of the Blue Dolphins" and "Where the Red Fern Grows" and that's where my love of reading really began. I determined that someday I would be a world-famous author. Although I haven't reached that goal yet (I'm working on it!) I wanted to find a way to share my love of literature and reading with other people.  I am a stay-at-home mom with two beautiful little girls (and another little one on the way). I have a very handsome and sweet husband who is studying hard to become a doctor. I love to read! I also love to sew, cook, decorate cakes, and spend time with friends and family. Someday I hope to love exercising as much as I love eating chocolate.  Reading is something that I find myself doing everyday. I sneak it in a few minutes here and there while my children are happy and playing and indulge in hours at a time when they are taking naps or asleep. Reading is a habit that I can't (and don't want to) kick. Books of all types bring me happiness, peace, and a little escape from my daily life.

STEPHANIE
Book Reviewer

When I was little I would spend hours in front of my “book cabinet” reading each book cover to cover and out loud—just soaking them in. My mom would tell me to take a stack out and bring them to the couch to read. No way. I liked to sit sandwiched tightly between the cabinet and the end table, boxing myself in with books stacked high in front of me. I actually would have preferred to sit inside the cabinet if I could have fit comfortably.  Twenty years later I’ve traded my reading nook for a knock-off Snuggy, and I prefer literary fiction to picture books.  I also enjoy cooking and baking, going to the pool, playing the flute, and reading to my two little boys.

CINDY B.
Book Reviewer

As a kid, I used to tell people that I wanted to be a "professional book reviewer" when I grew up (along with writer/ballerina/figure skater/mom). I thought that any profession that involved the full-time reading of books was my idea of heaven. Getting the chance to review for Squeaky Clean Reads is a little dream come true! Books have always been a major part of my life; characters like Anne Shirley, Jo March, and Harry Potter feel like old friends. In high school, I would beg my friends to give me Amazon gift cards for my birthday so that I could add to my library of old favorites. My tastes in reading run the gamut, from young adult fantasy to nutrition and psychology—and my poor husband gets to hear me talk incessantly about them all! I'm already collecting books to give to my future children!

RACHEL
Book Reviewer

My mother was the one who sparked my love of books. Long before school instruction, she sat me down and taught me to read. My childhood was filled with trips to the library and bookmobile to find great books. My first loves were The Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder and the Pippi Longstocking series by Astrid Lingren.  Now as a mom and speech pathologist, I am constantly looking for good, clean books to use at home and in therapy. I enjoy reading many different genres, but my favorites are usually historical fiction. I married my best friend, the "boy next door", and we have a beautiful little girl who we often find sprawled out on the floor, flipping through picture books. Together our family likes to swim, run and play tennis. Besides reading, I also love to bake, garden and travel. 

MEGAN
Book Reviewer

I have always enjoyed reading.  In kindergarten I loved books so much that I would memorize them and whenever I checked out library books I could "read" them to my mom.  In first grade my mom started reading The Boxcar Children to me every night and we often had late nights because we had to know how it ended.  I still stay up late having to know how the book I am reading is going to end.  Despite my lack of sleep, I continue to do it over and over again.  It's an addiction I hope I never break.  I am excited to be part of this reviewing process so that I can point people toward quality books worth staying up for.

KRISTEN
Book Reviewer

I honestly don't remember when I started to love books, they have always been a huge part of my life.  My parents are avid readers and seem to have garnered that characteristic in all of their children.  I remember several late, late nights completely immersed in books while growing up, while the rest of the house was quiet and asleep.  I think picking up Patricia C. Wrede's books introduced me to the world of fantasy literature, and that genre has been a favorite ever since.  My favorite activity is cuddling up in a blanket with a good book, especially in the wintertime in front of a fire with a mug of hot chocolate!  With my history degree, I was able to study great writers from ancient times to modern and explore their writing styles and my own.  I love a book whose language flows so smoothly that you can't help but experience the world the author has created.  I have three children, and when I am not caring for them or reading, I enjoy writing, singing, cooking new and yummy foods, drawing and painting (once in a blue moon), watching my favorite tv shows and good movies, and being with friends. 

JEN
Book Reviewer

As a lucky SAHM of three beautiful children, I find such excitement in sharing my love of books with my kids!  This past year I introduced my oldest daughter to some of my childhood favorites - the Bobbsey Twins and Beverly Cleary  - and now she is addicted!  I have to limit her to one chapter book a day so she'll go play outside!  She definitely comes by it naturally!  As a child, I spent countless hours with my nose in a book.  I would come home with stacks of books from the library every week during the summer.  I became very skilled at sneak-reading: under the covers with a flashlight.  If my parents popped their head in I would be prepared to quickly and quietly flip off the light and pretend to sleep.  I started out with Beverly Cleary, The Baby-Sitters Club, and Sweet Valley High, and recent favorites are Princess Academy, Flavia de Luce, and Hunger Games.  To me, reading is a way to escape the ho-hum of life and immerse myself in another world. There are so many places I would have never known or paradigms I would have never explored without literature!!

AMBER
Former Book Reviewer

I've been an avid reader ever since I was young, loving many genres, and never afraid to try something new.  I'm blessed to be a WAHM (work-at-home-mom) as a massage therapist for 10 years and help with the business aspect of my hubby's chiropractic practice.  I'm always busy with a project (like when I homeschooled, or as PTA President), but love to curl up with a book as often as I can.  Some of my favorite times with my 3 wonderful kids is snuggling them close and reading to them.  Books are my all-time favorite hobby!

The purpose of Squeaky Clean Reads is to empower readers and give them the information they need to choose appropriate books for them or their families.  By considering all the rating and review information found in each book's review, readers can decide if a book is good for them.  We completely understand that every reader has a different "comfort" or acceptance level for the content in a book.  For example, Shelley and I have completely different thresholds for what we will read--so we both use these content reviews to select books that we feel comfortable reading. 

While we do have a Squeaky Clean Booklist (books that meet strict content requirements), this is not meant to mean that these particular books are the only good books to read.  We hope that the Squeaky Clean Booklist will be a wonderful resource for readers who are looking for truly clean reads, but there many other great books out there!

The other important fact about Squeaky Clean Reads is that we include both books that are considered clean, and books that are not!  We get a lot of questions about why we have books that are not clean on our website, and the answer is that we want readers to be able to choose for themselves!  We are simply a resource for readers, and we want everyone to use the information provided here to make their own decision.