I’m afraid I didn’t like it as much as I hoped to, given that it was by Patricia Reilly Giff.  It’s one of those early reader books that tries to build a bridge between picture books and chapter books, about a girl and her friend who notice something new happening next door, and jump to the conclusion that a witch is building a Hansel & Gretel house.  When her dog escapes the yard, Jim & Jilli set out to rescue him from the clutches of the evil witch, but in end, they come to find out it is a school being built by a very nice teacher.  It was an adequate story, but there’s nothing about it that makes it stand out as a must-have.

Every library needs to have some books in the new-baby-joining-the-family line, for parents to help prepare big brothers and sisters.  If you’re looking for something to fill this niche, this one is adequate, though the very simple, short sentences limit the target audience to the very young.

I’ve started noticing most Bible stories have a similar look to the illustrations, and this one shares that same typical artistic style.  I found the text of the story a little stilted, lacking story-telling fluency.  It’s fine, but I think there are better options available in this line if you look harder.

If there were more jokes for your money, it would probably have gotten a “recommended” rating, but hard-back books aren’t cheap, and there’s only 20 jokes in the whole books (though I believe technically they’re actually riddles).  Most of them are really quite clever, but there are a few duds that fall flat, so you’re pretty much looking at $1 per joke.  Also, I disagree with the publishers as to the reading level & interest level.  They declare it to be a K-1 reading level, and a PreK-2 interest level; though jokes and riddles appeal to all ages, they must know some very advanced kindergartners — I feel it’s more like a 2nd grade reading level, and likely to appeal to students up to grade 5.

It’s a rather flat little story that feels like something you read as an assignment, rather than because you’ve been drawn in to care about the characters.  In the last week of the swim season, shortly before the final meet, a foreign exchange students joins the team.  As soon as the announcement is made, one of the other swimmers raises the question, “Who joins a team at the end of the season?”  And the reader never does find out the answer to that question.  When the newcomer befriends one of the team’s champs, he explains how much he wants to win a medal, as he never has before, and seeks help in training. At the last minute, the two boys find themselves competing in the same event.  It’s rather predictable and simple, and I’d probably rate it as “not recommended,” except that I do have one student who has repeatedly checked out others in this series, so I’m willing to consider it may hold some appeal for students that I just don’t see.

The chapters are short so as to not be too intimidating for young readers.  The characters are believable, and well-developed, so the reader becomes emotionally entanged The plot is gripping enough to keep the reader always wanting to read one more chapter.  The historical setting allows teaches while story-telling.  As an adult I was drawn in, and finished the book in 2 days, and learned a lot along the way, and I know I’ve got a lot of boys who are interested in war stories, so I’m looking forward to recommending this one to them.  It tells the story of a twelve-year-old boy coming of age in the midst of WWII’s Nazi-occupied France.  With his father stranded in England and his older brother in a Nazi prison, he is working to keep his mother and sister safe while also assisting the dangerous and secretive work of the underground resistance movement working to get downed airmen out of the country, under nazi noses, and back into the war effort. Along the way, he experiences personal growth as well, learning to place being proud of himself over worrying about the opinions of others.  Historical notes, timeline, and glossary in the back help place the story in historical context for students who may be unfamiliar with the time period.

To be honest, I’m not particularly a fan of the Rookie Ready to Learn series in general:  I find the activities in the back of each are often formulaic and only tenuously related to the story; each one ends by telling you someone’s version of what you just learned by reading this story (besides being patronizing, they often don’t hit the mark).  But if you do like this kind of thing, or you’re willing to ignore the extra features that don’t enhance them, the central stories are often good little stories, with redeeming qualities of their own.  This one in particular I’m afraid has little to recommend it.  It has none of the repetition or rhythm or rhyme that other books in this series have to help support emergent readers.  It does have illustrations that support the simple text.  It tells the story of a cat coming to wake up a young girl, which I guess will be content that some young children will be able to relate to, but it makes for a rather bland story.

To be honest, I’m not particularly a fan of the Rookie Ready to Learn series in general: I find the activities in the back of each are often formulaic and only tenuously related to the story; each one ends by telling you someone’s version of what you just learned by reading this story (besides being patronizing, they often don’t hit the mark). But if you do like this kind of thing, or you’re willing to ignore the extra features that don’t enhance them, the central stories are often good little stories, with redeeming qualities of their own.  This spanish language story uses lots of rhythm and repetition in the text to describe what it’s like to have a loose tooth.  Fun illustrations support the text for emergent readers.

To be honest, I’m not particularly a fan of the Rookie Ready to Learn series in general:  I find the activities in the back of each are often formulaic and only tenuously related to the story; each one ends by telling you someone’s version of what you just learned by reading this story (besides being patronizing, they often don’t hit the mark).  But if you do like this kind of thing, or you’re willing to ignore the extra features that don’t enhance them, the central stories are often good little stories, with redeeming qualities of their own.  With one to two simple sentences per page, this one outlines how life is different for a young girl after her parents divorce, listing things she does with mom, things she does with dad, and things she does with both, assuring readers that they both still love her, just like always.

To be honest, I’m not particularly a fan of the Rookie Ready to Learn series in general:  I find the activities in the back of each are often formulaic and only tenuously related to the story; each one ends by telling you someone’s version of what you just learned by reading this story (besides being patronizing, they often don’t hit the mark).  But if you do like this kind of thing, or you’re willing to ignore the extra features that don’t enhance them, the central stories are often good little stories, with redeeming qualities of their own.  This one uses simple rhyming text, supported by the illustrations, to list all the things a big brother doesn’t want to do, but he does, so that he can set a good example for his baby sister.  It’s a cute book, helpful as a tool for emergent readers.