Book Reviews

Review: The Impossible Knife of Memory by Laurie Halse Anderson

| Tasha

impossible knife of memory

The Impossible Knife of Memory by Laurie Halse Anderson

Released January 7, 2014.

The amazing Laurie Halse Anderson returns with a book that is powerful, thought-provoking and personal.  Hayley and her father just have each other.  For the past five years after her mother’s death, they have been hauling freight in his truck.  But now they have returned to her father’s home town so that Hayley can finish high school and live in a normal home.  However, their home is anything but normal.  Her father can’t hold down a job because of the images and flashbacks that come over him from his time in Iraq.  He drinks to keep the visions at bay, but then blacks out and forgets what he has done.  He has never hurt Hayley, but he is getting worse rather than better and Hayley is all alone in dealing with him.  At the same time, Hayley is slowly making friends at school, particularly Finn, a boy who has his own family issues to contend with.  As things at home get darker and more dangerous, Hayley has to figure out who she can trust to help, if anyone.

Anderson has written a book about PTSD and the traumas of being a soldier that speak to vets from any war.  She herself was the child of a vet from World War II and has a father who struggled himself with these issues.  Thanks to this personal connection, her book goes deep below the skin into the world of Hayley, her love for her father, and truly connects with the horrors of heroes who return home just to be haunted by what they have done and seen. 

Hayley is a strong character but also deeply flawed.  She is hidden behind so many protective layers that readers discover her as she gets to know Finn.  She slowly reveals a bright intelligence and witty humor.  Her relationship with her father is one based on adoration but also on pure coping with his disabilities.  She herself has faulty memories and blank places that she refuses to focus on and think about.  She too is hiding from her memories, but in her case they are the happy ones.

This book is deep, dark and haunting.  Anderson writes with consummate skill here and looks beyond the headlines into what PTSD in a family member truly means.  Appropriate for ages 14-18.

Reviewed from ARC received from Viking.

Review: Paul Meets Bernadette by Rosy Lamb

| Tasha

paul meets bernadette

Paul Meets Bernadette by Rosy Lamb

Paul is a fish who just circles his bowl, over and over again in different patterns.  But his life changes when Bernadette joins him in his bowl.  She shows him the world beyond his bowl.  They can see boats, forests filled with colorful trees, a cactus, and even an elephant with babies.  Of course, what they are thinking they see isn’t really what is there.  The objects are far more mundane: bananas, flowers, a clock and a teapot and cups.  Paul’s entire world expanded and made room for the outside world but most especially for Bernadette.

Lamb’s book combines a gentle humor with a warm charm.  It is a story about the power of one person to open the other’s vision and imagination.  It is about transformation but also being able to transform while staying right where you are.  Lamb’s illustrations are done in paint, daubed thick enough at times to add plenty of texture to the images.  The colors are subtle, the globe the fish live in almost bubble-like as it floats on the page. 

This delightful picture book will have young readers wondering what Paul and Bernadette would see in their room too.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: The Night Before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore

| Tasha

night before christmas

The Night Before Christmas by Clement Clarke Moore, illustrated by Christine Brallier

Following the classic Christmas tale, this version of the story is made special by the illustrations.  Brallier has created fifteen stained glass illustrations for the book.  They range from holiday mantles to close ups of the reindeer and of course Santa Claus.  Santa does not wear a red hat here but instead has the robes of an English Santa Claus.  It makes the feel all the more timeless and special. 

Throughout, Brallier has small touches that are worth finding.  I was entranced by her use of smaller mosaic pictures on the walls as art.  She also includes decorations on blankets and tassels as well as snowflakes in the snow and stars in the sky.  Though the art is done in such a hard medium, there is no feeling of the limitations put on the art by that.  In fact, the depth of color and the texture of the mosaic glass add much to the book. 

My only quibble would be that I’d love to have had an illustrator’s note at the end of the book about her process in creating the illustrations.  I’d love to have a sense of their scale.  Happily, details like this are available on the author’s blog.

A gorgeous new version of a Christmas classic, this one is worth sharing as a holiday treat.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.

Reviewed from copy received from the illustrator.

Review: The Nowhere Box by Sam Zuppardi

| Tasha

nowhere box

The Nowhere Box by Sam Zuppardi

George just can’t get away from his little brothers.  They follow him everywhere, even into the bathroom!  George has had enough.  So when he finds the box from the new washing machine, George builds himself a way to travel far away.  In fact, he goes to Nowhere.  Nowhere is wide open and empty, but George quickly fixes that by dumping things out of his box.  In no time at all, Nowhere is incredibly fun.  But wait, there are no dragons to fight and no pirates to sail the seas.  Perhaps there is room in this new space for a few more people to play.

Zuppardi takes a classic story of imaginative play and makes it rambunctious and fun.  George’s frustration with his younger brothers is tangible in the early pages as is the relief of being alone for awhile.  The story is simply told with a frankness and with the images and George’s own imagination carrying the tale forward.

The images are a huge part of what makes this book worth reading.  They have a similar energy level to the “No, David” books.  As the box becomes more of the story, cardboard is incorporated into the scenes, forming the ground and most of the objects.  The images are bright and bold, perfect for high energy kids.

A story of imagination and being an older sibling, this book will be enjoyed by any child who has loved a big box.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Bang by Leo Timmers

| Tasha

bang

Bang by Leo Timmers

Using only the word “bang” throughout, this nearly-wordless picture book is a humor-filled delight.  In a series of car crashes, one after another, the story is told.  It all starts with a deer who isn’t paying any attention, since he’s reading this book while driving.  Then comes the truck full of chickens driven by a pig.  Then a fashionable giraffe in an orange sportster.  A hungry alligator with a truck full of tires follows.  And more and more.  After each car enters the page, there is an enormous bang, and then each new car impacts all of the others in new ways.  Colors change, items move from one vehicle to another, and merry chaos reigns. 

Timmers fills his wordless book with wonderful details that make lingering on the pages a must.  You even start guessing from the introduction of the new elements about what will happen to the other vehicles in line.  The final fold-out page with all of the vehicles in a row is great fun to look at and makes for a grand finale.

Timmers’ art is quirky and bright.  The vehicles are all completely unique, formatted to fit the bulk of a pig, or the height of a giraffe.  The pages are filled with bright colors and lots of action.  As each new vehicle comes onto the page, there is wonderful moment before you know what happens.  This pacing is perfection and all thanks to the art.

Jolly and very funny, this is a picture book that children who enjoy vehicles or large crashes will adore.  Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from copy received from Gecko Press.

Review: The Runaway Hug by Nick Bland

| Tasha

runaway hug

The Runaway Hug by Nick Bland, illustrated by Freya Blackwood

Lucy is all ready for bed and asks her mother for a hug.  When her mother jokes that is the last hug she has left, Lucy offers to borrow it and return it.  Lucy heads off to lend the hug to different members of her family, making sure to get it back each time.  Each hug is different, some tighter others smell like peanut butter.  When Lucy gives her dog a hug though, the dog runs off and Lucy is sure that she has lost her mother’s last hug forever. 

Bland and Blackwood make a great team for creating picture books.  Black’s tone is playful from the very beginning and one knows that this family is something special just from the way they speak to one another.  Throughout there is a sense of humor and an enduring affection for one another that permeates the book.  Bland also does a great job of keeping the book securely in Lucy’s point of view, so that readers know from the very beginning that Lucy is taking this last hug seriously.  There is no laughing at Lucy for this, rather it serves as the heart of the book and this imaginative play is celebrated.

Blackwood’s illustrations have fabulous soft lines that blur and flow.  Blackwood leaves some of her lines from sketching on the page, creating a sense of motion but also a feeling of the connected nature of the world right on the page.  She also adds to the warmth of Bland’s writing, her home that she places this family in filled with warmth, some clutter, and reality.

A beautiful pick for bedtime, just make sure you aren’t down to your last hug!  Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from copy received from Random House Children’s Books.

Review: Big Snow by Jonathan Bean

| Tasha

big snow

Big Snow by Jonathan Bean

It is very hard to wait for the snow to come, as David discovers in this picture book perfect for the snowy season.  David is waiting for the snow to start, so he helps his mother bake cookies.  But then the flour reminds him of the snow so he heads out to check on it.  It’s fine and dusty in the air.  He heads back inside and helps clean the bathroom, but then is reminded of snow from the bubbles.  When he checks, there is more snow but it’s still light.  He helps his mother change sheets and is reminded of snow blanketing the ground, when he checks outside that’s exactly what the snow is doing!  Then it’s naptime, and David dreams of snow, lots and lots of snow.  Will his dream come true?

Bean creates a book not only about waiting for a big snow, but also about the different types of snow that arrive in the course of a storm.  It is a wonderful tribute to loving snow and wintry weather and hoping for the white to cover the barren landscape.  Bean cleverly ties in David’s reminders of snow with the level of snow outdoors.  Children will immediately get the connection and will enjoy watching the storm outside progress.

Bean varies the illustrations from close ups of David helping his mother and their cozy home interiors to distance images of their home and neighborhood as it transforms under the snow.  One can see the magic of snow happening firsthand.  I also love the humor of David disappearing to check on the snow, only the end of his scarf still in the room.  And bravo for Bean creating a family of color in a book that doesn’t have anything to do with race.

Even with the icy temperatures outside, this is a book that will get everyone looking forward to the next big snow.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from copy received from Farrar Straus Giroux.

Review: Palace of Spies by Sarah Zettel

| Tasha

palace of spies

Palace of Spies by Sarah Zettel

Peggy is an orphan who lives with her uncle, aunt and beloved cousin, until she is thrown out of the household for refusing to marry the man her uncle has chosen for her.  Peggy has few options, so she turns to a gentleman who seemed to know her mother when she was alive but whom she only met the day before.  With no other choices, Peggy is drawn into the sparkling grandeur of being a lady in waiting at the palace of King George I.  But she does not go as herself, instead she assumes the identity of Lady Francesca Wallingham.  As Fran, she joins the circle of girls serving the queen but she also must be watchful for anyone discovering her.  As the intrigue increases, Peggy realizes that anyone around her could be a spy and starts to question what happened to the real Fran.

Zettel manages the near impossible in this novel.  She has a historical novel that stays true to the time period and yet manages to read as swiftly as a more modern teen novel.  Without ever breaking out of the setting or inserting modern sensibilities, Peggy still manages not to turn off readers with her opinions.  Readers are quickly shown what life was like for an orphaned and penniless girl in this time with a sexual assault on Peggy soon after we meet her.  This helps underline her lack of power and explain why she takes on the danger that she does for the rest of the book.

Zettle plots this book with great skill, revealing the true motivations of the characters slowly.  There are several mysteries at play here and more that emerge as others are figured out.  The pacing of the book is don’t very well too, with enough historical detail to make sure the setting is strongly presented but never too much to slow down the speed of the storytelling.

A dark and mysterious historical novel, this is much less froth and much more intrigue and betrayal with some romance too.  Appropriate for ages 14-17.

Reviewed from ARC received from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Review: The Tiny King by Taro Miura

| Tasha

tiny king

The Tiny King by Taro Miura

There once was a very tiny king who lived all alone in a big castle, guarded by an army of big soldiers.  He ate at a huge table with an enormous feast that he could never finish.  He rode a big horse that threw him off every time.  He had a big bathtub with a fountain.  But all of these things did not make him happy.  He slept alone in a big bed and could not sleep very well.  Then the tiny king married a big princess and they were very happy.  They had ten children and everyone was happy.  The soldiers were given a vacation, the castle was bright and busy, they finished the entire large feast, they all rode together on the big horse, everyone bathed together in the big fountain, and best of all, the king could now sleep soundly with all of them fitting perfectly in the big bed.

Miura is a graphic designer from Japan and he has created a book that is gorgeously designed.  His illustrations are big and bold, strong shapes popping with color against the solid backgrounds.  The backgrounds change as the tone of the book changes.  When the king is lonely, the backgrounds are solid black.  The page where he meets the big princess is white.  Then the pages where he has a family are bright colored.  Throughout, Miura incorporates pieces of paper with letters, writing, or stylized vintage objects making it even richer.

The story is a simple one, but also one that speaks volumes about how riches and power do not mean that you are living a fulfilling life.  It was not until love and people entered this tiny king’s life that he was happy.  Don’t expect a subtle storyline here.  It is too basic a book for that, one appropriate for very small children to enjoy.

The story of a tiny king with a big heart and huge amount of love to share is one that toddlers and young preschoolers will enjoy.  Appropriate for ages 2-4.

Reviewed from library copy.