Snow Dog, Sand Dog

I thought it was really rather lame.  It didn’t really seem to flow very well.  It’s about a girl who really wants a dog but can’t have one because she’s allergic.  In the winter she makes a dog out of snow (and for some reason kids laugh and tell her there’s no such thing as a snow dog, but they don’t seem to have any kind of reaction when it comes to life and starts following her around).  Similar scenarios repeat each season as she makes a dog out of flower blossoms in spring and sand in the summer and leaves in the fall.  For some unknown reason, although the snow and sand dogs look pretty much the same in their live forms as they started out, the leaf and flower dogs stop looking like they’re made from leaves or flowers when they come to life.

Down the Rabbit Hole: the diary of Pringle Rose, Chicago, Illinois, 1871

It pains me to say it, as I’ve really enjoyed other books in this series and other books by this author, but I was disappointed with this book.  It’s like it never really committed to deciding what it was meant to be about.  It’s a little about labor unrest of the time, a little about attitudes towards the mentally handicapped, a little about the rights of women and animals, and a little about the great Chicago fire.  It’s got good characters and I started out enjoying it, but it never seemed to develop any kind of focus or purpose; it just sort of rambled on for a bit, and then there was an epilogue tacked on the end to wrap up the loose ends, but there was never any kind of actual conclusion.

The Mouse with the Question Mark Tail

A delightful story of the hidden world of mice that mirrors that of humans.  Set during the jubilee celebration of Queen Victoria, the basic premise of the tale supposes that for every human job, there is a mouse with the same job, scurrying about in the hidden spaces, staying away from human eyes.  The hero of this story grew up in the Mews outside Buckingham Palace, but has never been given a proper name, as no one seems to know his parentage:  he is simply called according to the distinctive shape his tail falls into.  A series of scrapes and adventures amidst the flurry of castle preparations for the grand celebration eventually lead the the revelation of his true identity.

Eye to Eye: How Animals See the World

Steve Jenkins knows how to rivet readers to his books, gazing at the gorgeous, large -format cut-paper illustrations.  This particular volume explores eyes in the animal kingdom and how they use them to see the world.  Twenty animals are presented…from the well known garden snail,  to the lesser known brownsnout spookfish…from the small stalk-eyed fly, to the enormous hippopotamus.   Each two-page spread includes two animals accompanied by a brief explanation their eyes.  Young children will be drawn to this book, however, they will need scaffolding by an adult to understand the complex vocabulary and concepts, which seems to be more appropriate for an older audience.  Back matter, in Steve Jenkins’ fashion, includes much more information, such as  a chart explaining the evolution of the eye, as well as more facts about the animals in the book.  This is the place where you can find the relative size of the animal, which is hard to conceptualize from the illustrations.  Bibliography and glossary are there, as well.

The No-Dogs Allowed Rule

Ishan (pronounced E-Shan) a third grade boy and his brother Sunil, a fourth grader, desperately want a dog.  However, Mom has a “no dogs allowed” rule.  Ishan goes to great lengths to try to persuade his Mom into a “dogs allowed” rule.  He helps his elderly neighbor walk his dog to prove he can be responsible (ok and to also get his dog fix for the day).  He tries to cook a special meal to please his mom and try to win her over. He even changes all the family pictures in the house to dog pictures.  Each well intentioned act becomes more of a disaster than a gift.  So much so, that Ishan is grounded to the house during a neighborhood block meeting held at his home.  During the meeting an emergency involving his neighbor occurs and Ishan saves the day.  Will this be the action that changes mom’s mind to allow a dog to enter the family home?

Written with realistic speech patterns and plausible scenarios this multicultural novel introduces readers to foods of India, Hindi words and social interactions of Indian culture and family life.

Everyone Needs A Friend

Soft, colorful oil pastels welcome the reader to a sweet story about a wolf named Jack who lives alone, filling up his time with making jam and knitting warm scarves.  Jack meets Walter, a mouse.  (They both resemble cuddly plush toys.)  They become friends while spending time together…sharing the jam on toast, and playing in the snow.  The longer Walter stays, the more Jack discovers things about Walter that are annoying…like his loud snoring and the messes that he makes.   Does his need for a friend outweigh the downside of Walter’s personality?   Readers can identify with this dilemma, in finding and keeping their own friends.   Here is an unassuming book with gorgeous illustrations and  concise text…that deals with a universal theme that all of us have dealt with at some time or another.  Yes, everyone needs a friend, and guaranteed, they will come perfectly flawed.

Santino Marella

A non-fiction, Hi/Lo book about World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) champion, Santino Marella.  This short biography of Marella features full color photographs, statistics, signature moves and career history.  A table of contents, index, glossary and “to learn more” page round out the book.
The publisher states that this book is intended for grades 3rd – 7th, but advanced 2nd grade readers interested in this subject would enjoy the book as well.

Seriously, Snow White was So Forgetful! : The story of Snow White as told by the Seven Dwarfs

A fractured fairy tale that shows us Snow White as a very chatty, forgetful sort. Staying mainly on course for the plot line, Loewen gives us a different look at Snow and Prince Charming too. The story is told by Seven (Snow can’t remember the dwarfs names but can remember their designated number).  He tells a tale of how Snow came to live with the seven dwarfs and how it takes the Queen three attempts to finally curse Snow (with the spell she casts in the  traditionally version of the story). But no yucky kissing to break the spell, no sir.  The spell is broken by an unfortunate slip and the possibility of some lunch.
Nicely illustrated by Gerald Guerlais.  Children will enjoy concentrating on the pictures during a read aloud.  Independent readers may linger a bit longer on each page just to absorb the content of the drawings.

Scaredy Squirrel Goes Camping

Scaredy Squirrel is afraid of the big outdoors.  Well, actually, he’s scared of more than that, a lot more, but he knows how to deal with his fears – by making lists and planning to overcome any trouble he encounters. Camping outdoors seems like way too much trouble, so he decides he would rather watch it on TV instead. In order to enjoy the outdoors on his TV he will first need to plug in his extension cord at a local campground. After making his list of fears and creating solutions to deal with them, he dons his protective gear and bravely heads out into “the wild”. Of course, something happens to derail his plans (oh no! Penguins! His worst fear!). Curiosity overrides fear as he learns a valuable lesson.

Another cute, funny and entertaining book in this series.  Large colorful pictures and simple descriptive text are used to create a story that both children and adults will enjoy.

Titanic

Titanic has intermittent pages set up that asks the reader questions about the event. This book is informative from the creation of the Titanic and its physical description to its sinking, including locations of the ice field and the other ships in the area at the time. Large color photographs of the Titanic and recreations of the event, diagrams, time lines and graphs are found all throughout the book. Details allow the reader to understand the pieces of that evening and the order of their occurrence allowing the reader to make judgments of how the evening developed.   Eyewitness accounts from survivors well as photos of those who did not survive can be found throughout the book. Primary sources are a strength as well as the ability to download a digital book: True Survivors’ Stories.

Toucans

This book is a basic account of Toucan facts. It includes information on the Toucans’ physical appearance, classification, habitat, and food sources. It includes a table of contents, glossary, index and learn more pages. Colorful photographs accompany each page spread.

This book is a basic account of eagle facts. It includes information on the eagles’ physical appearance, classification, habitat, food sources and development of their young . It includes a table of contents, glossary, index and learn more pages. Colorful photographs accompany each page spread.

Alligators

This book is a basic account alligator facts. It includes information on the alligators’ physical appearance, classification, habitat, and food sources. It includes a table of contents, glossary, index and learn more pages. Colorful photographs accompany each page spread.

The Strangers

When 12 year old Olive Dunwoody goes trick-or-treating, Strangers come to see Olive, and they are very interested in her house with the portals to Elsewhere. Suddenly her parents go missing. Olive vows to get them back, but does not know who to trust. Her mission gets more dangerous as she encounters dark magic with the three talking cats. Olive courageously brings her parents back while learning even more about the stone house she loves on Linden Street.

Thirteen-year-old Mina Masako Tagawa is a Japanese-American girl who lived in Seattle with her family until the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. Simply because Mina’s father is of Japanese descend, he is imprisoned. Mina is confused to see that Japanese Americans have become the enemy and are spat upon as well as viciously called “Jap.” Each family member reacts differently to their new life.  Her brother’s frustration and anger are the reasons he disappears for days somewhere in the confines of the camp. Eventually Mina’s father is released from prison and is sent to rejoin his family in Idaho. However, her family is further troubled when her brother decides to prove his patriotism by enlisting in the military. For three years the family is torn apart while kept captive in Idaho. This fictional account of an effect of WWII is written in verse and is a quick read.

Binky: License to Scratch

Binky the cat and Gordie the dog are panicked as their humans pack suitcases for a trip.  Suitcases can only mean one thing – their humans are leaving them behind!  They are told not to worry, that they’ll be in a pet hotel and their friend Gracie the cat will be with them.  But, horror of horrors,  the pet hotel turns out to be boarding at the vet clinic!   The trio hatch a plan of escape only to tumble into trouble with Professor Tuffy – a cat who has a grudge against humans and a plan to get even with them.

This graphic novel is drawn in muted tones, is easy for young readers to follow the sequence of panels and is a fun read. The addition of many different sound effects will have readers giggling as they read and the story line will make them read without wanting to put this book down.

This is book five in the Binky Adventure series.  Spires nails the cat-titude that every cat lover will be able to identify with.

Year of the Jungle: Memories From the Home Front

Collins bases this story on her own experiences as a child.

Set during the summer of 68/69, Suzy’s father is sent to Viet Nam.  She is told he will be gone for one year. But these statements, while simple to an adult, are very difficult for a young child to comprehend.  What does her Dad’s going away mean exactly?  What and where is Viet Nam?  Why does he have to go there? How long is a year?

As the story unfolds we follow Suzy to the start of first grade and throughout the year. We follow along too, with postcards that Dad sends to Suzy. Holidays come and go as Suzy wonders how much longer Dad will be gone.  Confusion sets in and worry mounts as the postcards become few and fewer, to the point that months pass without word from Dad.  Will her father come back at all?

Collins examines the feelings that young children go through when a parent deploys. The happy ending helps alleviate tension that does build when reading this book. The cartoon like images also help soften the edge on an otherwise difficult situation and topic.

This would be a good book to facilitate discussion for military children during large, extended deployments; although, I would tend to choose select portions of it to foster discussion.  I wouldn’t want to needlessly build any extra fears in young ones’ thoughts.  That being said, reading after deployment, and a safe return, would be a good use of this story as well.

Written for grades K – 3, I feel this book would work well for grades 2 – 4.

Scaredy Squirrel Prepares for Halloween

Scaredy Squirrel is ready to teach readers about the perils of Halloween and how to avoid them.

As his name implies, Scaredy Squirrel is afraid of many things.  In this book he guides readers in celebrating a non-threatening Halloween.  Tongue-in-cheek tips include: how to make your house look festive with a ghoulish (but not too ghoulish) interior, how to safely carve a jack-o-lantern (always go with a friendly look),  costume choices (with a scare factor rating for each), acquiring candy (always have an inspection before attempting to eat any…do not attempt to eat a toad that is stuck to your candy) and rational excuses for not entering a haunted mansion. Full color drawings riddle the pages making this series fun to read and entertaining.

This is the eighth book in this series and like the others, it generally will not make it back to the shelf before it is checked out again.

 

The Haunting of Apartment 101

Jinx, a high school girl, spends her time planning to use technology to investigate paranormal activity. When a girl Jinx dislikes asks for help with mysterious events in her family’s apartment, Jinx is extremely skeptical. But Jinx’s friend, Jackson, convinces Jinx that they should take the case. Jinx uses the equipment and her research to solve the mystery. This ghost story will grab reluctant readers with its intristing plot.

Unbroken

In this second book of the Ruined series,  Rebecca Brown returns to New Orleans to enjoy spring break with her father, best friend and boyfriend. However, a handsome, blue-eyed ghost named Frank appears to her, explaining his need to retrieve a locket from an old, abandoned house. Rebecca knows she has to help. Since Frank was supposed to have delivered the locket when he was murdered, he must complete the delivery soon or else be trapped in the ghost world forever. Unfortunately there’s another ghost, the very one who murdered Frank, plus her personal enemy, Toby Sutton, who continue to threaten her each step of the way. Rebecca outsmarts both of them, keeping her promise to Frank, and returning the locket to its rightful owner.

In the book, the locket contained a painting by the artist, Edgar Degas. According to history, Degas spent a some time in New Orleans in the same time period as Frank, the ghost. Paula Morris took the opportunity  to weave history into the book.

Crush It!

Crush It! plays to the interest of most little boys, ages six and seven, who are fascinated with cars and destruction.  The cover is colorful and shows a smashed up car and would draw any young child’s attention.  The text is appropriate and shows exactly what the pictures are telling them.  The very first picture shows old cars in a scrap yard–but the cars shown are from the 1950’s.  It makes me wonder how long ago the photos were taken and leads me to think that a more recent photo, taken on a sunny day rather than an overcast winter day, would show better.  The photos of various cars getting smashed is good and you can imagine hearing the noise, especially with the sound effects written in large colorful letters across the page.  Little boys will enjoy calling out the action.  The book seems a bit pricey for just 24 pages, which is why I gave it an Ad+.  I believe that a full 32 pages could have been used to show the processing plant and maybe some of the products made from these recycled cars.