Month: January 2018

This and That

by sarahsbookreflections, posted in Book Reviews, Children's Book Reviews, Uncategorized

Our Story Begins

Edited by Elissa Brent Weissman

Have you ever wondered when your favorite authors and/or illustrators started writing or doodling? Well, here’s your chance to find out about a number of them, because “they share fun, inspiring, and occasionally ridiculous things they wrote and drew as kids.” Twenty-six artists and writers submitted early works of writing and drawing, some from the age of five. A number of the people in this book were inspired by a teacher or an author or a well-known illustrator. Many of the earliest works were stories or pictures about mythical creatures and events, but others wrote things happening to them. The group included in this book is an eclectic mixed of authors and illustrators known for their more polished stories, but the reader will see the nuggets of talent shining through at early ages. The common threads are the prodigious imaginations and drive these artists possess. This is an interesting read and should be very useful for inspiring children to follow their dreams. Dan Santat, R. J. Palacio, Maria Frazee, Jarret J. Krosochzka, Thanhha Lại, Eric Rohmann, Linda Sue Park, Phyllis Reynold Naylor, Gordon Korman, Elissa Brent Weissman, Kathi Appelt, Gail Carson Levine, Chris Gall, Rita Williams-Garcia, Cynthia Leitich Smith, Peter Lerangis, Candace Fleming, Brian Selznick, Tom Angleberger, Alex Gino, Tim Federle, Kwame Alexander, Grace Lin, Chris Grabenstein, Yuyi Morales, and Ashely Bryan are the contributors.

BIBLIO: 2017, Atheneum Books for Young Readers/Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division/Simon & Schuster, Ages 8+, $17.99.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Middle-Reader

ISBN: 9781481472081

ISBN: 9781481472104

And for those of you who’ve not already read Sheri S. Levy’s latest book, here’s my take on it.

Starting Over: A Trina Ryan Novel

Sheri S. Levy

Trina Ryan still misses Sydney, her service dog in training, but she soon finds herself bonding with new puppy, Colton. The black lab is younger than Sydney was when he came, so Trina is having to house break him. Fortunately, Colton is a smart dog and a eager to learn. Trina also misses her boyfriend, Chase, whom she’d met at the beach. But it’s hard to keep a long distance relationship going.

In the meantime, Trina does have her best friend Sarah to talk to and do things with. And Trina also has her time at the neighborhood stables where she helps look after the horses and take lessons on her favorite horse, Chancy.

A new girl, Morgan, moves her horse, Knight, to the stable, but she is rude and surly, and mean to her horse. Trina tries to get through Morgan’s bitter shell, but it’s a hard row to hoe.

Trina is gentle and caring soul, who cares about people and animals. She has loving,  caring parents and makes friends easily. The reader roots for her and is glad when she solves a problem. This is a nice story, and since it has dogs and horses in it, I, of course, find it special.

I look forward to Sheri’s next book.

BIBLIO: 2017, Barking Rain Press, Ages 12 +, $??.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Young Adult

ISBN: 1-935460-77-3

ISBN: 1-9411295-80-0

ISBN: 1-935460-78-1

For the Love of Animals

by sarahsbookreflections, posted in Book Reviews, Children's Book Reviews

Happy New Year, everyone. Hope this year turns out to be the best one yet.

I love animals and enjoy reading about them. Though I must admit I like some animals better than others. For instance, I don’t think it’s nice to keep reptiles as pets. It’s just a personal thing, but I keep thinking if I were a snake, I wouldn’t want to live in someone’s aquarium.

The animals in the three books I’ve reviewed here are interesting and exciting to read about.

 

Who wouldn’t want to get to know a dolphin. They are very whimsical animals and fun to watch play.

 

My Best Friend is a Dolphin and More Dolphin Stories

Moira Rose Donohue

How cool to be friends with a dolphin! The three friendships between a human and a dolphin described in this book give proof that humans aren’t the only intelligent creatures on this planet. The first story is about Kelly and her human friend, Tim, a marine mammal trainer, who uses whistles and fish snacks to train dolphins at the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies. Kelly, a particularly smart girl, used her intelligence to keep her group safe when they were swept out to the Gulf during Hurricane Katrina. The next story is about JoJo and his human, Dean. Dean first met a dolphin when he was only five and was rescued after being knocked over by rough waves. The dolphin nudged him back to safety. Dean’s been a fan ever since. When he was grown, a dolphin he named JoJo befriended him. Even if Dean doesn’t see JoJo for months, the next time he gets to the dolphin’s neck of the ocean they become instant friends. When JoJo was badly injured by a water biker, he trusted Dean enough to allow his friend to hold him upright so he could breathe until the dolphin was stabilized. JoJo also has a canine friend named Toffee. JoJo likes to show Dean his world and even talks to him. The final story is about Flip Nicklin who decided underwater photography was the career for him after seeing a photo of his father sitting on an injured whale’s back. Early on in his career, he discovered dolphins are pranksters and love to clown around. He enjoys playing with them. The book is full of interesting facts and wonderful photos, including some by Flip.

BIBLIO: 2017, National Geographic Partners, LLC, Ages 6 to 9, $5.99.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Chapter Book

ISBN: 978-1-4263-2902-9

 

Squirrels are amusing animals to watch as they wander around our yards. They are adventuresome and comical. But flying squirrels are amazing to watch, I would think.

 

The Flying Squirrel Stowaways: from Nova Scotia to Boston

Marijke Simons

Illustrated by Marijke Simons

Since 1917, Nova Scotia has sent a large spruce tree to Boston as a thank you for Boston’s help when it was needed. This particular year, they pick a tree that turns out to be the home of two flying squirrels. The squirrels are asleep when the tree is cut down and hauled to Boston. But first the tree is prayed over by a Native American tribe and other people came to watch the ceremony. The squirrels slept through the whole thing until the flatbed truck that was carrying tree and squirrels to Boston started to move. They looked around and went back to sleep. They woke up during the celebration in Halifax, but were still very tired so they went back to sleep. While riding on the ferry to Saint John Harbour, the squirrels glided all over the boat, but nobody saw them. And nobody saw them when they crossed the border into the United States, even though the guards looked. When the truck and its cargo reached Boston, the squirrels flew out of their tree and escaped a green-eyed cat. But they had to find somewhere to make a new nest. Finally, they found a tree with the perfect hole and below it was their Nova Scotia spruce tree, all lit up for Christmas. Lovely illustrations and a sweet story make this book a winner.

BIBLIO: 2017, Nimbus Publishing Limited, Ages 4 to 7, $22.95.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Picture Book

ISBN: 978-1-77108-550-2

 

Books that add a surprising element to a classic story always tickle my imagination bone. This one gives the reader a surprising twist to Goldilocks, but also a giggle with the bear’s antics.

 

The New LiBEARNian

Alison Donald

Illustrated by Alex Willmore

The children could hardly wait for story time at the library, but where was the librarian? Mrs. Merryweather wasn’t at her desk. The children looked for her, but instead of footprints, they saw paw prints. Big paw prints, that took them to the solar system, the ocean, a pirate ship, and finally to her desk which was covered in honey. Mrs. Merryweather wasn’t there, but a bear was there as the new librarian. He read the children a scary story in which he roared. And growled. And stomped. And to top it off, he roared some more. The children loved and asked him to read it again, but Mrs. Merryweather showed up just then, explaining that an exploding volcano made a mess in the Ancient History section. Then she announced that she would read Goldilocks and the Three Bears to the children. The children all exclaimed that they loved bear stories. But when she opened the book, baby bear wasn’t in the story! He was wandering around library until the librarian ordered him back into his story. This is a sweet story about the magic of libraries.

BIBLIO: 2016, Clarion Books/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, Ages 4 to 6, $16.99.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Picture Book

ISBN: 9780544973657

 

 

Here’s to a year full of new adventures, both real and imaginary.