Tag: Candlewick Press

Suspending Disbelief

by sarahsbookreflections, posted in Children's Book Reviews

As writers, we know we need to make our readers to “pay no attention to the man behind the screen.”  This is especially true of those who write science fiction and/or fantasy.  Some writers pull this off quite well.  Read Beth Revis’ books or John Claude Bemis’ books to see how thoroughly we can be sucked in.  Of course, there are many other writers out there who write quite well in these genres, but I wanted mention writers who live in the Carolinas.

 

So today, we are looking at books I’ve reviewed that would have us suspend our disbelief.

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The first book makes you believe that there is a being called Love who manipulates us to fall in love with the right person.

Definitely suspending our disbelief, wouldn’t you say?


Love Charms and Other Catastrophes

Kimberly Karalius

Hijiri Kitamura goes to a special high school for charm makers and is looking forward to seeing the friends she made the year before.  Last year had been a challenge because of Zita, the reigning Love-Charm maker, who ruled the town.  But Hijiri and her friends, with help from Love himself, had gotten rid of Zita.  This year, Love wants to show Hijiri her heart isn’t small and that she can love other people. He sends her Kentaro Oshiro, a special boy, but Hijiri thinks the boy isn’t real and refuses to be attracted to him.  Hijiri and her friends, now including Ken, enter the town’s Love-Charm contest with Hijiri as the charm maker.  Things get more and more complicated with all of her friends eventually mad at each other and Ken eventually being hurt so badly by Hijiri he stops trying to win her over.  Of course, in the end, Hijiri makes the perfect love charm and the group wins the prize.  Hijiri learns Ken is a real boy who remembers her from a childhood encounter when he was dying of heart failure.  Love gave him a new heart and, in exchange, he wants Ken to teach Hijiri that she does have a big heart and is capable of love.  The story teaches the reader how to believe in herself and follow her dreams. It is quite nicely written.

BIBLIO: 2016, Swoon Reads/Feiwel and Friends, Ages 14 +, $10.99.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Young Adult

ISBN: 978-1-250-08404-0

ISBN: 978-1-250-08401-9

 

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I had a hard time believing character traits in this book.  How much can a blind person see of the world around him?

 

Nowhere Near You

Leah Thomas

Oliver, a.k.a. Ollie, and Moritz are long distance pen pals with unique problems. They met in the first book, “Because You’ll Never Meet Me.” Ollie has lived in northern Michigan woods all his life because he’s allergic to electricity which causes seizures and shorts out any electrical circuits that come within reach of his problem.  But his mother is dead and his doctor takes him on a road trip, ostensibly to meet other problem kids. Moritz, who lives in Germany, was born without eyes and gets around by listening to the world and by using echolocation like a bat to see what’s around him.  Somehow their letters get to each other.  They are both trying to be regular teenagers, but that’s not an easy task for them. They do begin to learn about themselves and Ollies learns he can control his allergies.  The story itself is sweet, but it’s hard to suspend one’s disbelief about some of their problems, in particular Moritz’s ability to “see” things a blind person couldn’t see.  Perhaps a blind person could hear someone’s eyebrows rising, but could a blind person “see” that another person had a “unibrow?”  Doesn’t seem likely.  Another of the characters takes her heart out of her chest and gives it to other people, because she doesn’t want to feel emotions.  She’s a star track runner in her school even without her heart. If the reader can continue to suspend disbelief, the story is nice read and could lead to classroom discussions.

BIBLIO: 2017, Bloomsbury Publishing, Ages 14 +, $17.99.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Young Adult

ISBN: 978-1-68119-178-2

 

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The disbelief is not on the part of the reader in this last book, but rather the main character.  All done in a charming fashion.

 

This Book Is NOT About Dragons

Shelley Moore Thomas

Illustrated by Fred Koehler

The rat who narrates this story is convinced there are not dragons in this book.  He walks into the forest and sees not a single dragon.  So, he tells the reader there are no dragons.  Of course, the reader sees shadows of dragons lurking behind the trees and breathing smoke out of caves.  Rat sees a rabbit, but no dragon.  He sees a red truck by a cabin, but no dragon. Even when the dragon catches the truck on fire, the rat doesn’t see the dragon.  Nor does he see the dragons in the sky, only clouds.  The moose sees the dragons and runs to the city, followed by the dragons and the oblivious rat.  Rat sees only pizza, but the chick sees the dragons and tells the naysayer to look more closely. Oh yes, there are dragons, much to Rat’s dismay.  In the end, he has to change the name of the book and take out the word NOT. This cute book encourages children to be observant and look for the whole picture.

BIBLIO: 2016, Boyds Mills Press/Highlights, Ages 4 to 7, $16.95.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Picture Book

ISBN: 978-1-62979-168-5

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Hope you enjoy the reviews and please tell me about books you couldn’t believe.

 

 

 

 

Remembering Past Books

by sarahsbookreflections, posted in Children's Book Reviews

These books have a bit of age on them, but you can probably find them in your library. Though the first two have some flaws in them, they’re still worth reading and the characters are endearing.

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Allie has her flaws as we all do, but she’s a likeable kid.

Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls: Blast from the Past

Meg Cabot

Allie is now in fourth grade at a new school and trying to prove herself responsible enough to own a cell phone—after all she’s saved a total of $36 from doing chores and helping her neighbors. Her parents say the rule is she could have her own cell phone in sixth grade, if she’s proved herself responsible by not losing things or not leaving her coat and book bag on the floor. Two whole years away! Plus, she has other things to worry about: her cat, Mewsie, is hiding in a hole in the wall of her brother’s room; her wonderful teacher is probably getting married and moving away; and she has to go on a boring field trip and share the bus with the kids from her old school—including her ex-best friend, Mary Kate, who is now hanging out with the snobby “cool” girls. Turns out the field trip isn’t as boring as Allie thought; her teacher is getting married, but not moving; Mary Kate is now her friend again, sort of; Mewsie leaves the hole on his own; and Mom says Allie may have cell phone in fifth grade. Allie is a spunky girl and her antics are amusing, but she sure is repetitive. I’m not sure we readers need to be reminded in each chapter of how obnoxious Mary Kate has been, or that Allie’s teacher’s boyfriend threw rocks at the school window, or that Allie missed going on the last field trip because of Mary Kate, but the story does have merit.

BIBLIO: 2010, Scholastic Press/Scholastic, Inc., Ages 7 to 9, $15.99.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Middle Reader

ISBN: 978-0-545-04048-8

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I reviewed an earlier book in this series, so I was not eager to review another. But Amy’s character has grown on me. I’ve always wondered if another of this series has come out.

Ask Amy Green: Bridesmaid Blitz

Sarah Webb

Another installment in the “Ask Amy Green” series takes Amy and Clover—her teen-aged aunt—on a shopping trip to Paris to pick out clothes for Amy’s mother’s upcoming wedding. Amy is a little less self-centered in this book than she has been in the past. She’s still unhappy with the new mates her parents, Sylvie and Art, have picked, but is beginning to have some sympathy for Dave, her step-dad to be. Her dad’s pregnant new wife, Shelly, is very high maintenance. Amy’s mother is feeling overwhelmed by the wedding Clover is planning for her and keeps pleading that she just wants a simple, inexpensive ceremony. Clover plots to surprise Sylvie with a trip to Paris. When Amy is finally told about the trip, she plans how she’s going to surprise her boyfriend, Seth, who is there on a school trip. In the meantime, Seth’s mother is being tested to see if her breast cancer has reoccurred or spread and the tests results are due back when Seth is supposed to be away. Now he doesn’t want to go. Dave, who is a nurse at the local hospital, comes to the rescue and asks the doctor to put a rush on the tests. To add to the tension, Shelly’s domineering mother comes to stay indefinitely, but Amy’s the one who helps Shelly through labor when the baby comes early. Amy rightfully feels left out after her new brother is born, with Art and Shelly not including her in the new family circle. Her insensitive dad finally comes to his senses though and Amy begins to bond with her youngest sibling. The next installment will undoubtedly focus on Sylvie’s cold feet about her impending wedding.

BIBLIO: 2012, Candlewick Press, Ages 12 +, $6.99.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Young Adult

ISBN: 978-0-7636-5157-2

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I can still remember the drawings in this book. It’s a charmer, especially with the message that we don’t all have to be the same.

The Geese March in Step

Jean-François Dumont

Illustrated by Jean-François Dumont

Originally published in French, this book is a charmer about not marching in lock step just because it’s always been that way. Igor, the lead goose on the farm, insists that all the geese march at his tempo on the daily parade to the pond. He is most distraught when Zita, the newest goose to the gaggle, adds a different beat to the cadence. He kicks her out of the goose parade. At first she’s sad and lonely, but soon the woodpecker and rooster, donkey and cow, sheep and pigs, turkey and frog, plus all the other creatures on the farm, add new beats to Zita’s walk. When the new parade arrives at the pond with its unique sound, Igor is out numbered. From then on, Igor marches his regimented beat to the pond all by himself, but everyone else waits to see what Zita’s beat might prompt them to do. The amusing illustrations add to the off beat tone of this story. Children will enjoy adding their own sounds to the “Parade-to-the-Pond” music. And parents will love the message.

BIBLIO: 2014 (orig. 2007,) Eerdmans Books for Young Readers/Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Ages 4 to 8, $16.00.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Picture Book

ISBN: 978-0-8028-5443-8

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As I age, I need to remind myself that getting older doesn’t mean I’m not as good as I was. Who knows, maybe I’m even getting better on some fronts. At least I’m able to let other people cook in my kitchen, even though my golf game stinks. And though I still can’t sing a lick, my writing improves all the time.

Happy Halloween

by sarahsbookreflections, posted in Children's Book Reviews

Oh boy, Halloween is here again! Do you remember planning your costume and going door to door with your friends? How much candy you got! Since my mother decided we got too much candy, she told us we could come back half way through our rounds of our small town and leave what we’d collected so our sacks wouldn’t get too heavy. Innocents that we were, we’d come back and unload. Mother, of course, would give out that candy to kids visiting our house. We never missed the candy. This was back in the 1950s when it was safe to accept homemade goodies. Perhaps it still is, but we’ve lost our faith in each other’s goodness.

The boys in our town, when they got too old to dress up and collect candy would make mischievous instead. A favorite was to see who could ring the town hall bell without getting caught.

My husband and his friends, being farm boys, one time dismantled a neighbor’s hay wagon and reassembled it on his roof. Strangely enough they didn’t wake him up. Of course the neighbor did discover the culprits who then had to take the wagon off the roof.

Still, most of us learned our lessons and survived our brashness to become useful members of society.

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Of course if it’s a Kate DiCamillo book it’s going to be good. This one is quite amusing.

Francine Poulet Meets the Ghost Raccoon

Kate DiCamillo

Illustrated by Chris Van Dusen

Francine Poulet comes from a long line of animal control officers. The forty-seven awards she’s won prove how good she is at her job. She knows no fear whether confronting a bear or a mouse. When she gets a call about a “ghost” raccoon, with great confidence she sets out to round the critter up. Alas Francine meets her match! The raccoon screams her name. Not her usual name, Francine, but the pet name her father called her, Franny. How does that coon know her seldom-used nickname? At first Francine doesn’t realize she feels fear thumping in her heart. But when she does recognize fear, she is mortified. She grabs the raccoon, slips on her ladder and plummets three stories down to the ground and wakes up in the hospital with a broken arm and a broken leg. Eventually she recovers, promptly quits her animal control officer job and takes a job as a cashier at a bait and tackle store. One day a boy named Frank and his sister Stella come in looking for sweets to buy. Well, any knowledgeable person knows a store named Clyde’s Bait, Feed, Tackle and Animal Necessities doesn’t carry sweets, but Stella wants to be sure. Frank recognizes Francine and encourages her to get her courage back by capturing the raccoon. Ms. DiCamillo’s writing is always full of wry humor which inspires illustrators to go for the funny. This is Volume 2 of the “Tales from Deckawoo Drive.”

BIBLIO: 2015, Candlewick Press, Ages 6 to 9, $12.99.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Chapter Book

ISBN: 978-0-7636-6886-0

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Did you ever carve a pumpkin? Or draw a scary face on one? It takes a while, but that’s what happens to this pumpkin.

Little Boo

Stephen Wunderli

Illustrated by Tim Zeltner

A seed wants to be scary, but when he says Boo to a falling leaf, the leaf tells him he’s not scary at all. A grub is too busy to pay attention to the seed and when the snow flakes silently settle around him, they ask why the many of them should be afraid of the one of him. The wind comforts him, telling him to be patient, and covers him with soil to keep him warm. So Little Boo sleeps through the winter dreaming of saying Boo. Finally, the air and soil warm up and the seed sends up green shoots to feel the warmth. As he grows, he tries to scare an old boot and then a shovel and finally a watering can, but they all ignore him. So the sprout keeps growing and the wind encourages him, though the water bucket, the bees and the grasshopper blink not an eye when our growing sprout says boo. The not so little sprout grows floppy orange flowers which turn into fruit. The fruit all start small and green, but one swells much bigger than the others and is picked by hands which carry Little Boo into a house where the once seed becomes a jack o’lantern. Then his BOO is big enough to scare the cat and the ghosts and goblins. This is a nicely told story about waiting for your dreams to come true and it’s a clever way to introduce children to the cycle of life for plants.

BIBLIO: 2014, Henry Holt and Company, LLC, Ages 3 to 6, $16.99.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Picture Book

ISBN: 978-0-8050-9708-5

ISBN: 978-0-8050-9709-2

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I’m a firm believer in ghosts having felt them around me. “Yeah, sure Sarah,” you say with a snort and snigger. It’s true. Last winter I was in an old building that is now a restaurant, waiting for the rest of our group to join me and my friend. The door to the room was on my left and the windows looking over the street were to my right. My friend was sitting at right angles to me so she could see behind me. I felt a man come in through the doorway, walk behind me—the sound of his hurrying foot steps thumping in my ears—and then I saw him walk to the windows, do something and then head back out the door. He had on dark trousers and a yellow plaid vest. After he was gone, I asked my friend if a man had just been in the room. With a frown on her face, she said, “No, it’s only the two of us.” When I told our waiter what I’d seen, he said, “Oh yes, we have several ghosts.”

The Unsolved Mystery of Haunted Houses

Katherine Krohn

Are the noises and electrical glitches in old houses caused by ghosts? The little boy who fell down the well two hundred years ago wants to get out? The murdered grandfather who left his wealth to a library seeks revenge on his heirs? Maybe the old woman whose only happiness was as a small child living in the house? Or could it be the house is just old and its bones creak the way an old person’s do? Or perhaps the electrical system needs updating? The author touches very briefly on such phenomena and also points out that not all “haunted” houses are old. One of the old ones—old for the United States—is the President’s home, the White House in Washington, DC. Ghost and haunted houses have been a topic of conversation for centuries. The ones mentioned in this book are the Edinburgh Castle in Scotland and the Borley Rectory in England. There are actually people who, with many gadgets like thermometers and tape recorders, research instances of haunting. Most of the time the researchers find natural causes such as the inherent creakiness of a house contracting in the winter. The book has a number of interesting facts, but the “True or False?” sidebars are confusing in many instances. The introduction of vocabulary words is done nicely and the book makes for a fun Halloween discussion of scary things.

BIBLIO: 2014, Capstone Press/Capstone, Ages 6 to 8, $24.65.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Chapter Book

ISBN: 978-1-4765-3097-0

ISBN: 978-1-4765-3428-2

ISBN: 978-1-4765-3442-8

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Happy Halloween to you all and don’t eat too much candy.

The next day, November 1st, which some people call “All Saints Day,” was my brother Bill’s birthday and, being the obnoxious younger sister, I would always say he should have been born the day before because he was most decidedly not a saint.

Hot off the Presses

by sarahsbookreflections, posted in Children's Book Reviews

I thought I’d give you some hot off the presses books to read about this week. I just sent in these reviews of three different books. All of which were enjoyable reads. The first one is a very amusing picture book, but the second and third ones are heart wrenchers. Hope you enjoy them.

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Anybody who has ever taken a small child somewhere in public will most decidedly relate to this story. Stories like this always remind me of the meltdown I had when I was 8 years old and had to go for what eventually turned out not to be a painful shot at all. But I had just come off a month of having penicillin shots in my butt. And on the bus ride to National Institutes of Health to get said Rocky Mountain Fever shot, my older siblings had of course made the most of the ordeal. Well, we got to the line to get the shot and I was fine until it was my turn. No siree, no way was I going to have another shot. I lay on the floor and kicked my heels. I ran out of the room and onto an elevator with my mother right behind me. I bit her and kicked her and eventually got the shot that didn’t hurt a bit. Then my mother told me I had to tell my grandmother what I’d done when we got home. So I can relate to meltdowns.

Meltdown

Jill Murphy

Illustrated by Jill Murphy

Roxy and Mommy go grocery shopping and Roxy is very excited to help. Perhaps a bit too excited since she has to be reminded to not crush the chips or the bread or race down the aisle with the cart. But she pretty much behaves until she and Mommy pick out a cake with a piggy face, which Roxy wants to hold. Look out, here comes MELTDOWN! Roxy wants to eat the cake now! And boy does she let the world know. ALL THE WAY HOME. Unrepentant even when scolded, Roxy asks in her quietest voice and with her smarmiest smile to have piggy cake now. Everyone who has ever taken a screaming child some where in public will cringe and laugh throughout the story, though the child probably won’t understand what the problem is. The story prompts a good discussion about proper behavior in public. Though rabbits and other animals are used instead of children, the illustrations surely do depict a young child in a store. This book is definitely worth a read.

BIBLIO: 2016, Candlewick Press, Ages 3 to 6, $15.99.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Picture Book

ISBN: 978-0-7636-8926-1

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Life isn’t always a walk in the park for people. Those of us who live in our almost safe enclaves tend to forget how much darkness and sadness there is around us. Being strong is sometimes not easy.

On Guard

Patrick Jones

This book is a stellar addition to the “Bounce” series which seems to focus on kids playing basketball in school and how it can help them through the rocky rapids of high school. Mercedes Morgan is an outstanding point guard for her team on her way to breaking state records for shooting three-point baskets, but family life gets in the way. Mercy was able to shift focus when her family moved away from the rougher parts of Birmingham, Alabama, and is headed towards a full ride at the University of Alabama. But her older sister, Callie, is still pulled in by the “corner” and her boyfriend. The girls’ younger brother, Lincoln, is heading in the same direction until Callie is murdered by her gang. She lingers in a coma as the family tries to carry on and Mercy tries to concentrate on winning the three-point record and a scholarship to college. Mercy’s girlfriend, Jade, who came from the same rough neighborhood, gives support as best she can, but Mercedes loses focus as she watches Callie die and feels she losing Lincoln to the old neighborhood. With Jade’s help and support from her teammates and coach, Mercy saves her brother, at least for the time being, and ends up with her full ride. The though all of the characters are seen only through Mercedes’ eyes and feelings, the reader gets a real feel for them and Mercy’s helplessness in making things right. All kinds of school room discussions emanate from this book and writing is concise. This book is a winner.

BIBLIO: 2016, Darby Creek/Lerner Publishing Group, Inc., Ages 14 +, $26.65.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Young Adult

ISBN: 978-1-51241-123-2

ISBN: 978-1-51241-207-9

ISBN: 978-1-51241-134-8

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Sometimes I get to read a book that stays with me for a long time because of how nicely it’s written, but also because of the story’s essence. This is one of those books.

The Memory Book

Lara Avery

Samantha Agatha McCoy, a.k.a. Sammie, has an incurable disease that is killing her as it steals her brain. She writes a journal to her future self so that she’ll remember her past. The disease is called Niemann-Pick Type C and it usually attacks children much younger than high school senior, Sammie. She is partner in a winning debate team that’s on its way to winning the National Debate Championship. She has a crush on Stuart Shah, a super hot guy who’s now studying in New York City. But, just as things are going well for Sammie, her disease worsens. She has seizures and blanks out. Her speech slurs and her memory worsens. She tries to have a normal life and looks forward to her plans for her future. She never does make it to college, but she does make the best of the time she has left. The story could break the reader’s heart except for all the hope and love Sammie and her family have for each other. In addition to the story being about Sammy dealing with her disease, the author also neatly folds in the usual trials and tribulations of a nerdy teenager. It could lead to interesting classroom discussions on relationships and diseases. This book is definitely worth reading.

BIBLIO: 2016, Poppy/Little, Brown and Company/Alloy Entertainment/Hachette Book Group, Ages 14 +, $17.99.

REVIEWER: Sarah Maury Swan

FORMAT: Young Adult

ISBN: 978-0-31628-374-8

ISBN: 978-0-31628-377-9

ISBN: 978-1-47890-971-2