Book Reviews

Review: Crankee Doodle by Tom Angleberger

| Tasha

crankee doodle

Crankee Doodle by Tom Angleberger

Brace yourself for a picture book that is entire silliness and proud of it!  In a riff on Yankee Doodle, this story tells readers that it was all the pony’s idea.  Yankee Doodle is bored and goes off on rants about how he doesn’t want to go to town or go shopping.  Then the pony suggests a feather for his cap, which starts another rant.  The pony finishes with a suggestion to call it macaroni.  After that rant, he explains that macaroni is another word for fancy, and that Yankee Doodle may want to call it lasagna instead.  In the end, the two of them head off to town, just like the pony wanted all along.

Angleberger writes with such a wry sense of humor here.  The rants by Yankee Doodle are a hoot to read aloud, the text heavy with indignation and exclamation points.  The sly pony seems to know just what he is doing as he lets Yankee Doodle blow off steam but gets his own way in the end.  The book ends with a historical note about the real history of the song.

The illustrations are done in gouache with a thick black line and bold colors.  The entire book pops visually and will work with larger groups of children thanks to its clarity and strong shapes. 

This one is a winner for story times.  Expect guffaws from children who know the song!  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: The Apprentices by Maile Meloy

| Tasha

apprentices

The Apprentices by Maile Meloy

This sequel to The Apothecary continues the story of Janie, Benjamin and Pip.  It takes place three years after the first book and the three friends are all separated.  Janie is attending a private boarding school in the U.S. and working on a science project to desalinate water quickly and inexpensively.  But the closer she gets to a solution, the more danger she seems to be in.  Benjamin is traveling with his father, the apothecary, in the jungles of Vietnam, helping to heal the wounded in the war.  Benjamin has developed a powder that will allow him to communicate with Janie across the world, but it may reveal more than he is prepared to see.  Pip is now a television star in Britain, living a cushy life of fame.  But he is getting bored, and so is willing to head out to help his friends.  The three young people are up against a force that is ruthless, cruel and determined in this dynamic sequel in a great series.

Meloy writes with a great sense of pacing and plot.  She manages to keep so many different strands of the story active and interesting, allowing the story space to work itself out with a natural feel.  At the same time though, the pacing is tight and controlled, making the book readable and fun.  Her writing is both action packed and also intelligent, there are villains and heroes but they are nuanced and their motivations complex.  All of this creates a great read for fantasy fans.

A fabulous sequel in a very strong series, this series belongs in all public libraries.  Get it into the hands of children who enjoy fantasy mixed with adventure.  Appropriate for ages 10-13.

Reviewed from copy received from Putnam.

Review: Octopus Alone by Divya Srinivasan

| Tasha

octopus alone

Octopus Alone by Divya Srinivasan

Octopus lives in a bustling reef filled with all sorts of sea life.  She watches the activity from her cave and three little seahorses come and visit her.  But Octopus just wants to be left alone, so she changes colors to hide and heads away from the reef.  As she travels away, the seahorses continue to follow her, watching her change colors and hide until Octopus finally leaves in a cloud of ink.  Eventually, Octopus comes to a very quiet part of the ocean where she can be left in peace with only silent jellyfish floating by and the drama of a whale zooming to the surface.  Nothing bothers her or watches her, so she falls fast asleep.  When she awakens, she starts to think about life in the bustling reef and she returns, ready to play once again. 

This is a shining example of a book where the writing and illustrations work seamlessly with one another.  The story of an introverted octopus who just needs a little time alone will speak to children who also feel that way at times.  Best of all, there is no lesson learned where being alone is dangerous or wrong, instead it is embraced as a time to see other beautiful things and recharge.  This is one undersea world where quietness and alone time is just fine, perhaps even spectacular.

The art in this picture book shines and glows.  Octopus and the other sea life pop against the dark blues and blacks of the watery background.  The art has a wonderful internal light that gives it a real sense of being underwater.  When Octopus heads out to be alone, the moment when she sees the whale is one of the most powerful and beautiful in the book.  It is handled with a lovely pause in the text and bubbles galore in the illustrations.

This is one glorious look at an underwater world that will speak to introverts and children who may feel shy at times.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from copy received from Viking.

Review: Prairie Chicken Little by Jackie Mims Hopkins

| Tasha

prairie chicken little

Prairie Chicken Little by Jackie Mims Hopkins, illustrated by Henry Cole

One day out on the grasslands, Mary McBlicken the prairie chicken heard a deep rumbling.  She ran off to tell Cowboy Stan and Red Dog Dan that a stampede was coming!  That is the set up for this prairie version of Chicken Little.  The prairie chicken soon has a prairie dog, jack rabbit, and meadowlark running with her to report the oncoming stampede.  Then they meet the coyote, Slim, who offers to show them a shortcut.  The friends realize what is happening before they enter the coyote’s cave and attack, drawing the attention of Cowboy Stan and Red Dog Dan who come to their rescue.  In the end, the source of the rumbling is not a stampede of course!

Hopkins has written this book to be read aloud.  The entire book has a rhythm to it that works very well, quickly setting a playful but fast pace for the story.  Readers will not need to have read Chicken Little to enjoy this new version, but children who know both versions will enjoy this one immensely too.  Hopkins also uses rhyming names that take the place of rhyming lines.  This is combined with nice rhyming repetition in some of the text, making this a treat to share aloud.

Cole’s illustrations are playful and filled with action.  The animals are all cartoony and friendly, even the sly coyote is more sly than fearful.  Thanks to his bright colors and large format, the illustrations will work well with a group of children.

Energetic and funny, this book is a good one to share with children learning about habitats as well as those looking for a good giggle.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from copy received from Peachtree Publishers.

Review: The Thing about Luck by Cynthia Kadohata

| Tasha

thing about luck

The Thing about Luck by Cynthia Kadohata

Summer Miyamoto is positive that her family is completely out of luck.  Nothing is going right for them at all.  Her parents had to return to Japan because of a family emergency, leaving her behind with her grandparents and little brother, Jaz.  Now the four of them are heading out to do harvest season for the first time without her parents.  Summer and Jaz have to get all of their homework assignments, so they really don’t have the time off.  Summer is also expected to help her grandmother cook for the others working on the harvest, so she is very busy.  But she isn’t so busy that she doesn’t notice the very cute son of the people they work for or the problems that her brother has making friends.  She is also worried about her grandparents from the pain in her grandmother’s back that incapacitates her at times to the exhaustion that her grandfather seems to be suffering from.  All of this weighs on Summer who just wants the bad luck to end but it may take Summer being something her grandmother would not approve of to save the family in the end. 

Kadohata has created a very compelling story of a family who travels the United States harvesting wheat with giant combines.  She offers just enough details about the machinery and the process for readers to understand it which helps make the work much more understandable.  But this book is far more about this particular family and its dynamics.  The grandparents offer a unique mix of sage advice and confusing world views.  Jaz, the younger brother, is a great example of a very smart child who has almost no social skills.  All of these characters are written as complete people, not ever stereotypical.

Summer herself is equally well drawn.  She is at a confusing time in life in general, being a pre-teen who is starting to notice boys.  That is complicated by her grandmother’s old-fashioned take on boys and girls as well as her own responsibility for her family that puts her in situations that require her to be more adult and less child. 

A beautiful and intense look at a Japanese-American family struggling with an interesting lifestyle and just surviving a year of bad luck.  Appropriate for ages 9-12.

Reviewed from copy received from Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

Review: Miss Maple’s Seeds by Eliza Wheeler

| Tasha

miss maples seeds

Miss Maple’s Seeds by Eliza Wheeler

This book will sweep you up like a breath of brisk autumn air.  Miss Maple is a little woman who spends her entire summer searching for seeds that have not gotten planted in the spring.  She brings them back to her maple tree and nurses them back to strength.  She washes them off, warns them to take care because they are so small, takes them on field trips to learn about being a seed, and reads them bedtime stories.  In winter they all burrow down together and fill the time with songs and stories.  Then when spring arrives, the seeds learn to dance in the rain and sink into muddy ground.  In May, it is time for the seeds to find the places they will grow, so Miss Maple launches them off.  Miss Maple then starts her journey with the seeds all over again, heading off on the back of a bluebird to find another year’s worth of stranded seeds.  Lovely and warm, this picture book is a joyous celebration of the seasons and the plants around us.

Wheeler has created a tiny motherly figure in Miss Maple, someone who loves and cares just for the good of the earth.  As the book progresses, she becomes almost a Mother Earth figure as her world turns with the seasons.  Wheeler’s writing is filled with wonderful small moments and details.  Miss Maple reads bedtime stories “by firefly light” and during the winter her animal neighbors share “supplies of hot maple syrup, old corn husks, and juicy fruit rinds.” 

Her illustrations show that same attention to detail.  This small world is filled with little touches that make it come alive.  The frogs in the nearby pond have a house in a log complete with front door and paned windows.  The seeds all sleep in small, cozy beds that are perfectly designed for seeds their size.  Then when Miss Maple launches the seeds off, she does it with winged baskets and other vessels that glow and float on the water.  This is a completely formed world that all readers will want to linger in.

Cozy and lovely, this picture book is a celebration of seasons and the earth, but it is also a reflection on the skill and care of nurturing.  Get this one for your Earth Day units and pull it out when covering seasons too.  Though I think it would be best of all curled up under warm blankets and watching autumn arrive.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from copy received from Nancy Paulsen Books.

Review: Benjamin Bear in Bright Ideas by Philippe Coudray

| Tasha

bright ideas

Benjamin Bear in Bright Ideas! by Philippe Coudray

This is the second Benjamin Bear book and it is just as wonderful and successful as the first!  This graphic novel offers single-page comic spreads that tell very short but very clever stories that are filled with humor.  Sometimes the gag is visual, other times there is a verbal joke.  What Coudray does best though is to vary the stories enough to make the book entirely surprising and great fun to read.  One never knows what the next page will bring, just that it will be funny and a delight. 

As with the first book, Coudray’s illustrations have a crispness to them.  Done in flat color and fine black lines, the illustrations are made for fun.  If there is humor to have, then Coudray does not shrink away from making it wonderfully bold and large. 

This is a great book for reluctant readers and a graphic novel for elementary-aged children that belongs in every public library.  Appropriate for ages 5-8.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: The Boy and the Airplane by Mark Pett

| Tasha

boy and the airplane

The Boy and the Airplane by Mark Pett

This wordless picture book tells the story of a young boy who is merrily playing with his brand-new red airplane.  He runs with it, runs around it pretending to be a plane himself, and eventually throws it up into the air.  It lands on the roof where the boy where the boy is unable to reach it using a ladder or anything else that he tries.  He sits in discouragement under a tree and then is inspired when a maple seed drifts down and lands in his hand.  He plants the seed, watching it grow through the seasons and the years.  The ending is satisfying and lovely.  This book is about patience and dedication, but is also open to interpretation thanks to its wordless design and flowing storyline.

Pett manages to create a truly timeless book here.  The art is done in sepia tones with just a dash of red for the toy airplane.  The characters are even dressed in clothes that are universal.  The book has a great cyclical quality to it that works particularly well with the timeless feel.  The illustrations also have a contemplative feel to them that permeates the entire work.  This is a book that slows you down and gets you considering other options.

A great gift book for adults, this book will also be appreciated by young children who will see the humor in the boy’s solution.  Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from copy received from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.

Review: Robot, Go Bot! by Dana Meachen Rau

| Tasha

robot go bot

Robot, Go Bot! by Dana Meachen Rau, illustrated by Wook Jin Jung

In this most simple of graphic novels, a little girl builds a robot and when she presses the big red button, it comes to life.  The robot happily plays with bubbles with her, plays ball and floats in a boat.  But then, the little girl gets more demanding and has the robot sewing, being a horsie, planting a garden, and mowing the yard.  Finally, the robot has had enough and leaves.  While the girl searches for him, she realizes that she has to be a good friend in order to have a good friend. 

Rau has written a very simple book here with only minimal words that often rhyme for even simpler reading.  It is the pictures that really tell this story completely.  Done in comic style, they have rounded panels.  Yet they also have the feel of picture book illustrations with their bright colors and playful feel.  The softness of the illustrations also invite very young children to read.  I appreciated the choice to have the main character a girl, since so many robot books have male characters.

Simple and playful, this most beginning of graphic novels is inviting to little children and has the appeal of robots as well.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Reviewed from digital galley received from Random House.