Book Reviews

The Life and Crimes of Bernetta Wallflower

| Tasha

The Life and Crimes of Bernetta Wallflower by Lisa Graff.

Bernetta finds herself accused of being behind a blackmail scheme at her school.  She realizes that Ashley, who she used to think was her best friend, set her up.  Now she faces a summer grounded at home because her parents don’t believe she is innocent either.  When her private school rescinds her scholarship, Bernetta is desperate to earn enough money to pay the $9000 herself.  But she can only do it by turning to deceit and cons herself, exactly what she has been accused of.

The premise of the this book and its fast pace will have tweens wanting to read it.  What makes it noteworthy is the deft characterizations of Bernetta, her family and Gabe, her accomplice.  All are complex and interesting, making tough decisions in their lives.  Though the book deals with stealing and cons, the author keeps a light tone, allowing readers to draw their own conclusions, just as Bernetta must come to her own ethical decisions. 

Recommended for tweens, this would also make a great classroom read with strong male and female characters and plenty of issues for discussion. 

Monkey with a Tool Belt

| Tasha

Monkey with a Tool Belt by Chris Monroe.

I am late to the table with this one.  You have probably read the chorus of positive reviews across the Kid Lit Blogs.  But let me add my voice to it.

Chico Bon Bon is a monkey with a tool belt.  He can build all sorts of things and loves to fix things too.  Then one day, Chico sees a tempting banana split across the street and heads over too it.  Before he realizes it, he is trapped!  An organ grinder has caught him in a box and taken him to the circus.  Never fear though, Chico has a plan and of course it involves his tool belt.

This is smart picture book, celebrating intelligence and ingenuity.  The text is so much fun to read with its made-up terms and great pacing.  The pictures complete the book perfectly.   They are quirky, funny and just like the text do not talk down to the child audience.  What a treat!

Highly recommended especially for tool-loving girls and boys.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.

Sally and the Purple Socks

| Tasha

Sally and the Purple Socks by Lisze Bechtold.

Sally the duck is very excited to get her new purple socks in the mail.  When she opens the box, the socks are way too small.  Then she finds a note that says that they will grow to the size ordered.  Sally wonders if she told them her size, but soon the socks fit perfectly.  Unfortunately, the socks aren’t through growing yet.  And as they grow, Sally comes up with new and inventive uses for them other than socks.  Will they ever stop growing?

The charm of this book is in its simplicity and humor.  The story is simply told with a matter-of-fact style that matches the illustrations well.  Sally is an engaging figure on the page.  Her obvious delight is apparent as is her positive approach to problems. 

A charmer of the story, add this to your shoe and sock story time.  Simple enough to be used with three year olds, this will appeal to children through age 6 because of the humor.  Make a matching pair with New Socks by Bob Shea.

The Underneath

| Tasha

The Underneath by Kathi Appelt.

I had heard wonderful things about this book, but still approached it with a bit of hesitation.  I’m not much of an animal-book reader.  Let me assure you, there is no need for hesitation.  This book is magic.

It is the story of a pregnant calico cat looking for a safe place.  It is the story of an abused hound dog who howls the blues and needs a friend.  It is the story of a man devoured by a need to prove himself.  It is the thousand-year-old story of Grandmother Moccasin, a magical snake.  It is the story of love.  The story of need.  The story of trees, of swamp, of time.

Appelt has created here a book that is thick with passion, deep with thought and resonant with love.  She has taken risks here of writing too emotionally, too deeply, but manages to enter poetry and move with it.  She creates a story that has a feeling of timelessness, a feeling of folklore, and it is her language that makes that so successful.  Her writing is poetry in the form of prose, and it is thoroughly lovely.

This is not an animal story for the faint of heart.  Here you will see into the reality of evil.  The reality of abuse.  The horror of indifference.  The twisting of love into desire and selfishness.  It is a book that will bring you to tears, shock you into stopping breathing and stun you with its bravery and truth.

I must share at least one passage with you.  This is from page 50:

His heart pounded in a drumbeat of hunger, of pain, of want, of furious want.  He couldn’t swallow for want of air.  Couldn’t see for want of light.  Couldn’t stop for want of want.  Here was want crystallized in the shape of a damaged boy.  He kept running.

Whew.  The entire book is like that.  In fact, it’s hard to have selected one small passage.  I could have kept typing and typing and typing her prose.  It is all worthy of being pulled out and celebrated.

This is my number one book of the year for kids ages 11-14.  My vote for the Newbery!  Go already, find a copy, and enter a truly amazing novel that you will not want to leave.

Max's Bunny Business

| Tasha

Max’s Bunny Business by Rosemary Wells.

You can’t ever go far wrong with Rosemary Wells!  Ruby and her best friend Louise must raise enough money to purchase Fire Angel flashing rings.  They have to make $2.00.  They decide to sell lemonade at 10 cents a cup.  Of course, Max wants to help too.  But Ruby and Louise don’t want his help, so he decides to open a stand of his own.  He finds his old Halloween candy, displays it on the sidewalk, makes a big sign, and opens for business.  Ruby and Louise have more business than they can handle, and all Max needs his Grandma’s business to be a success.

Wells once again brings her classic Max and Ruby style and humor to a picture book.  Max is the classic younger brother who is pesky, messy and very bright.  While Ruby is a wonderful older sister with plenty of patience but a need to do her own thing.  Wells’ art is her own unique style, less finished than the TV show and even more charming. 

This story works really well and will be a great read aloud for preschoolers and children in kindergarten.  It nicely combines math and finance with story. 

Manfish

| Tasha

Manfish: a story of Jacques Cousteau by Jennifer Berne, illustrated by Eric Puybaret.

Learn the story of the journey of Jacques Cousteau from a young boy to the scientist and filmmaker through this vibrant picture book.  Cousteau was fascinated by both film and the sea from a young age, dreaming of breathing underwater as a child.  It was his invention of the aqualung that made all of his exploration possible.  This is also the story of the Calypso and Cousteau’s best friends who worked with him throughout his life. 

Berne’s words make this a vibrant book.  Her ability to tie Cousteau’s dreams of the ocean to children of today is powerful.  The tone of the book is one of wonder at Cousteau’s accomplishments, completely appropriate for a figure of such discovery and adventure.  Puybaret’s illustrations continue this tone as we venture underwater visually.  There is a whimsy about them, a playfulness that was also part of Cousteau’s own work.  And again there is the sense of wonder that matches the text so well.

Recommended as a great biography for elementary students.  This could be used in science classes about the environment or when studying different habitats.  It should also be given to those children who shun picture books in favor of nonfiction, because it is a lovely blending of the two.

The Red Necklace

| Tasha

 

The Red Necklace by Sally Gardner.

This book had me immediately upon reading the first page.  The writing was flowery but intense, filled with images but equally gripping and fast paced.  It was the tone of the French Revolution itself.

Set during the French Revolution, this is a tale of Gypsies and aristocracy, vengeace and wealth.  Yann Margoza works in a magic show with Topolain, the magician and Tetu, a dwarf who can move objects with his mind.  Yann himself can throw his voice and read minds.  All of their skills are used when they animate their latest act, a wooden Pierrot.  Their act is brought to a bloody end when they are asked to perform for Count Kalliovski and Topolain in killed.  In the aftermath of the murder, Yann meets Sido, neglected daughter of a rich marquis.  Sido slips closer and closer to the trap Count Kalliovski has laid for her while Yann is sent to England for safety.  But he will be unable to leave France behind that easily.

Sally Gardner, author of I, Coriander, returns with an equally stunning book.  Her language is incredible, filled with details but still nimble, evocative but not verbose.  And the story she tells is not only riveting but unique.  One never knows where the story is headed, as it twists and turns in unexpected ways.  Her characterizations are flawless, never stereotypical, but always revealing and interesting.  Even the villains have great backstory and reasons for being who they are. 

This is a glory of a book.  Highly recommended and one of the best of the year.  Appropriate for ages 13-16.  There is plenty of romance but no sexuality in the book, and there is plenty of gore and death as well.  What more would you expect from the French Revolution?

Trout Are Made of Trees

| Tasha

 

Trout Are Made of Trees by April Pulley Sayre, illustrated by Kate Endle.

The title will immediately have children puzzled and intrigued.  Fish made of trees?  Will they be wooden fish?  What could it possibly mean?  Is this another of those strange surreal books mommy sometimes finds?  But slowly and lyrically the story is told of tree leaves falling into the stream, settling to the bottom, bacteria feeding on them, and then small creatures eating the leaves.  The cycle of life is right before our eyes as the trout feed on the creatures and the leaves become part of them. 

The author has created a book that is pure fascination.  Even if you know the book is about the cycle of life, it’s impossible to not want to follow the story.  The illustrations are an interesting combination of cartoon friendliness and detailed naturalism.  They manage to be warm and factual at the same time.  The text walks this same line, creating a story where pure fact could have been cold and impersonal.

Highly recommended for elementary science classes looking at the life cycle.  My children immediately realized that we too are made of trees and started listing all of the other things we are made of: grass, rocks, and much more.  I love any book that immediately sparks such interested conversation and animated sharing of ideas.  Appropriate for ages 4-7.

I'm Bad

| Tasha

I’m Bad by Kate and Jim McMullan

The creators of I Stink and I’m Dirty, the stories of a garbage truck and backhoe respectively, now turn away from trucks and to another very popular subject: dinosaurs!  Here we meet a T-Rex with plenty of attitude, showing off his huge teeth, big claws, stomping feet.  But he becomes less impressive as he tries again and again to catch something to eat.  It takes his much larger mother dino to come to the rescue with "takeout." 

In this book the McMullans continue their trade-mark dialogue style that will have readers flexing, brandishing and showing off with abandon.  It is impossible to read their books aloud without style and a new persona.  This makes them not only great fun to read aloud, but mesmerizing for audiences.  Equally successful are the illustrations that fairly pop from the page with greens, oranges, blues and plenty of action too.  The words and illustrations have obviously been created together because they work effortlessly together. 

Highly recommended as a staple in your dinosaur story times or units.  Appropriate for ages 3-6.