Elementary School

Review: Rooftoppers by Katherine Rundell

| Tasha

rooftoppers

Rooftoppers by Katherine Rundell

Sophie was found floating in a cello case after a shipwreck, scooped out of the water by a fellow passenger, Charles, who became her guardian.  He was a single man and a scholar, and unlikely to be a suitable parent, but the two of them got along perfectly well.  The Welfare Agency did pursue the two of them and it finally got so bad that the two fled to Paris before Sophie could be sent to an orphanage.  Sophie knew that her mother was still alive although everyone else thought she was dead.  And her guardian always taught her to never ignore a possible.  So they searched Paris for her mother, following the clue she found in the cello case.  There she met Matteo, a boy who appeared in her skylight and led her to a world of the rooftops.  Together they search the roofs of Paris for the sound of her mother’s cello.  But how long can Sophie search before she is caught by the authorities?

Rundell writes so beautifully, it is impossible not to stop and linger over her phrases.  She uses unusual metaphors like “…he held her in his large hands – at arm’s length, as he would a leaky flowerpot…”  She also paints gorgeous images of her characters, “Think of nighttime with a speaking voice.  Or think how moonlight might talk, or think of ink, if ink had vocal chords.”  And she also vividly shows how characters think, “Mothers are a thing you need, like air, she thought, and water.  Even paper mothers were better than nothing – even imaginary ones.  Mothers were a place to put down your heart.  They were a resting stop to recover your breath.”  I could go on and on with quotes, since her entire novel is filled with moments like this.

Sophie and Charles are great characters, entirely unique and quirky.  At first they are living in a normal society where they don’t fit at all and the tension between them and normalcy is finely conveyed.  It is when she reaches the rooftops of Paris though that the book becomes pure quicksilver magic.  Impossible to put down, one wishes that they too could climb to the rooftops of Paris in the confident hands of Matteo, who is also a vivid and amazing character.

Profoundly original and filled with shining prose, this novel is a wondrous read.  Appropriate for ages 11-13.  Reviewed from digital galley received from Edelweiss and Simon & Schuster.

Review: Monster on the Hill by Rob Harrell

| Tasha

monster on the hill

Monster on the Hill by Rob Harrell

In 1860s England, each little town has its own monster that terrorizes its population.  And they love it!  In fact, there is money to be made if your town has a popular monster.  It brings in tourism and you can sell merchandise too.  However, the monster at Stoker-on-Avon was not a popular monster.  He barely left his cave anymore, sulking on the hill above the town.  Rayburn was one depressed monster.  It is up to Dr. Charles Wilkie, an inventor whose workshop was shut down by the town and who is willing to do almost anything to get it back, and Timothy, a street urchin who snuck along, to get Rayburn back in fighting spirit again.  This graphic novel is packed with new friends, old pals, big battles, and amazing monsters. 

Harrell took this graphic novel quickly out of any stereotypical themes very quickly by having the populations appreciate their monsters so thoroughly.  The mix of delight and monsters is great fun, adding a real unexpected twist to the story.  Rayburn is a wonderful character with a gloomy perspective that plays nicely off of the enthusiasm of the human characters.

Harrell’s art is filled with color and dynamic movement.  He brilliantly captures monster battles and is equally successful at creating friendship bonds between characters.  The art welcomes children to enter the world of the book, where they will find a great mashup of modern art and humor with a historical fantasy setting.

Fun, vivid and filled with action, this graphic novel will prove popular in every library.  Appropriate for ages 8-12.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Jasper’s Story by Jill Robinson

| Tasha

jaspers story

Jasper’s Story: Saving Moon Bears by Jill Robinson and Marc Bekoff, illustrated by Gijsbert van Frankenhuyzen

Held captive for years by bear “farmers” who kept him in a too-small cage and harvested bile from his body, Jasper’s story is representative of many captive moon bears.   Now Jasper has been rescued by Animals Asia, an animal welfare organization.  He is taken to their Moon Bear Rescue Center where his medical needs are attended to and he is put into the sanctuary.  There, Jasper walks on grass for the first time in his life.  Caregivers work to teach Jasper how to find food on his own, hiding food in toys and places to dig.  In time, Jasper’s life starts to change.  He begins to play more, get stronger, and make friends.  Jasper is one success story among many, a testament to what rescue can do to save animals that might have been considered too damaged to rescue.

Robinson and Bekoff write in a very engaging way in this nonfiction picture book.  They invest time in telling the story of the abuse as well as painting a beautiful picture of moon bears in the wild: “Far away in the mist-covered mountains of China, the moon sends yellow arcs of light across the hills, softly painting the forests with a luminous glow.”  They describe the way that wild animals sleep with a sense of freedom.  The prose is beautiful, clearly painting the value of these animals and the importance of their rescue and rehabilitation.

The illustrations are equally evocative.  The paintings have a wonderful sense of place, showing the workers at the sanctuary and the horror of the small cages with equal attention.  I particularly like the way that the opening image relates to that at the end, showing that Jasper is once again more like the wild moon bears than the abused ones. 

A great book on the importance of animal rehabilitation and rescue, this book will speak volumes to every child who picks it up and meets Jasper.  Appropriate for ages 7-9.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: No Monkeys, No Chocolate by Melissa Stewart

| Tasha

no monkeys no chocolate

No Monkeys, No Chocolate by Melissa Stewart and Allen Young, illustrated by Nicole Wong

A close-up look at the favorite sweet treat of chocolate, this nonfiction picture book explains exactly what it takes to get chocolate.  The book quickly moves to the tropical rain forests of Central and South America and the cocoa beans that grow there and how they are treated to get cocoa powder from them.  The book then moves to explaining cocoa pods, cocoa flowers, and cocoa leaves, but animals quickly come into the process from the midges that pollinate the cocoa flowers as they lay their eggs to the maggots of the coffin flies that take over the brains of the leaf-cutter ants.  Lizards and monkeys play a role too, but the monkeys are tantalizingly left to the end of the book.  Told in factual information, the book also offers asides by two funny bookworms who wonder along with the reader what in the world monkeys have to do with chocolate!

This is a fascinating look at the complexities of something that many of us take for granted.  Stewart, author of over 150 nonfiction books for children, worked with Allen Young, the world specialist on cocoa tree pollination and growth.  The result is a book that is enticing both in its premise and its execution.  Turning pages lets you learn more and the entire process is both odd and amazing.

The art by Wong has a wonderful lightness to it that fits the subject particularly well.  The clever little bookworms add a whimsical note to the entire book with their ballooned speech bubbles, ballcap, flower and skirt. 

A winner of a nonfiction picture book, this is one sweet addition to any library.  Appropriate for ages 6-8.

Reviewed from copy received from Charlesbridge.

Review: Lulu and the Cat in the Bag by Hilary McKay

| Tasha

lulu and the cat in the bag

Lulu and the Cat in the Bag by Hilary McKay

This third Lulu book continues the story of Lulu’s love affair with any type of animal.  In this story, a cat is dropped off on Lulu’s doorstep in a bag.  Lulu opens the bag over her aunt’s objections.  Her aunt is watching her while her parents are on vacation and is not fond of animals at all.  When the bag is opened, the cat goes running off and disappears.  Though Lulu searches for it, she is unable to find it.  When she returns to her room later, the cat is there on her bed, having climbed in through her open window.  Steadily, the big orange cat starts to become part of the family, even changing Lulu’s aunts thoughts on cats in general.  It dominates the two dogs, scares the bird and even gathers flowers from the garden to scatter about the house.  Then the cat simply disappears, they search for it with Lulu’s aunt’s help, but no one can find it.  Until Lulu makes a surprising discovery!

I’ve enjoyed all of the Lulu books so far and this just adds to the delight that is this series.  Lulu is a wonderful protagonist.  It is a pleasure to see a child character so into animals who does her chores and takes good care of her animals with no complaining.  Lulu is also quite a scamp, so the book are filled with a natural childhood zest and Lulu’s own special take on things.  This is another great treat of a book from McKay.

A series to rival Clementine, get this into the hands of those readers and they will find a new feisty young heroine to love.  Appropriate for ages 6-8.

Reviewed from digital galley received from

Review: Bluffton by Matt Phelan

| Tasha

bluffton

Bluffton by Matt Phelan

Nothing ever happens in Muskegon, Michigan in 1908.  So when a troupe of visiting vaudeville performers sets up their summer camp in neighboring Bluffton, young Henry just has to take a peek.  There he meets Buster Keaton, a boy his age who performs on the vaudeville circuit with his parents.  His father tosses him around as part of their act, gaining him the nickname of The Human Mop.  Henry longs for Buster to teach him how to do tricks and falls, but Buster is much more interested in playing baseball and swimming in the lake.  The boys forge a summery friendship that is renewed as each year passes and summer returns.  It is the story of a young Buster Keaton who will soon take the world by storm when he starts making movies and also captures a time of perfect summers filled with baseball and elephants.

Phelan has returned with another amazing graphic novel.  He takes his own unique approach to them, using the classic framed structure but pairing it with paintings that are done in ink and watercolor.  The result is a gorgeous mix of modern and historical, matching the theme of the book nicely.

In this graphic novel, readers get to meet Buster Keaton through the eyes of another boy.  Those of us who grew up watching Keaton perform amazing stunts will recognize the amazing man in this young boy with no hesitation.  Fascinatingly, the book does not rely on his feats to tie the boy to the man, instead it is about attitude and a defiant fearlessness. 

Strong characterization, a glimpse of summers gone by, and one amazing true story create a graphic novel that is pure radiance.  Appropriate for ages 8-12.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: I Am the World by Charles R. Smith, Jr.

| Tasha

i am the world

I Am the World by Charles R. Smith, Jr.

In this book that combines verse and photography, children from around the world are celebrated.  The images and verse both speak to the wide diversity of people and cultures that make up our world.  At the same time, the universal aspects of children from all cultures are celebrated too, including their strength and spirit.  The combination of a simple and powerful poem and dynamic photographs make for a book that is just as vibrant as its subjects.

Smith is a Coretta Scott King Award winner and his photographs here speak to his skill.  He captures children mid-motion and often in full smile.  His photos are combined with a poem that is simple but also strong, offering subtle rhyme and incorporating enough culture-specific words that a glossary is offered at the end. 

Beautiful, warm and inclusive, this title is a celebration of children across the globe.  Appropriate for ages 6-8.

Reviewed from copy received from Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

Review: Binny for Short by Hilary McKay

| Tasha

binny for short

Binny for Short by Hilary McKay

Binny’s life had been perfect but now she lost two of the most important things she ever had.  First, her father died, taking his stories along with him.  Then, because money became an issue, Binny’s dog had to be given away.  Her dog was taken by her mean Aunty Violet, who never told anyone where Max had been sent.  So when Binny found herself alone in a car with her Aunt, she told her exactly what she thought.  Aunty Violet died soon after that conversation and left Binny and her family her old cottage by the sea, a tiny house but one of their very own.  Now Binny finds herself in an idyllic seaside town, meeting great new friends and even better enemies, but still missing Max.  Binny though is not a girl to easily give up, so she sets about planning to find her dog, no matter what.

I am such a fan of McKay and her writing.  She has a natural flow both in her narrative and in the very real voices that all of her characters use with one another.  Additionally, her characters are all flawed and realistically drawn which adds greatly to the veracity of her books.  In the end, her books are filled with human beings who live in messy ways through their messy lives, beautifully. 

Each member of Binny’s family is worthy of their own novel.  Her older sister is glamorous and musical, yet works incredibly hard to afford the necessary lessons to be a musician.  She is also as much a parent as their lovely but scattered mother.  It is James though, her little brother, who completely steals the book.  As he wears a wetsuit that he found in the trash every day that is pink and green, he has to prove that he’s a boy often, which of course means undressing in public.  He is also growing poison lettuce in his window box from stolen seeds that just happened to find their way into his pocket.  In other words, he’s a delight.

Strong characters and splendid writing result in a virtuoso start to a new series that will have McKay fans cheering for more.  Appropriate for ages 9-12.

Reviewed from copy received from Margaret McElderry Books.

Review: Al Capone Does My Homework by Gennifer Choldenko

| Tasha

al capone does my homework

Al Capone Does My Homework by Gennifer Choldenko

Released August 20, 2013

This is the third and final book in the Alcatraz trilogy.  Moose is growing up on Alcatraz where his father has just been made Assistant Warden.  But with the promotion also comes dangers that he had not faced as a guard.  Moose quickly discovers that the inmates have a point system where his father is now worth a lot more points if he is attacked.  Moose has far more to worry about though, when there is a fire in their family apartment.  Moose feels very guilty because he had been watching his sister Natalie who is autistic, but he fell asleep.  Others are all too quick to blame Natalie for setting the fire, though Moose and his family don’t see her doing something like that.  Now Moose feels that he has to solve the mystery of the fire as well as protect his father as best he can, but there may be more mysteries along to solve, one that is even hinted at by a note from Capone himself!

I have loved this series from the first book.  The historical perspective of a family living on Alcatraz is tantalizing.  Yet it is Choldenko’s skill in creating characters who are immensely human and wonderfully heartfelt that makes this series so good.  Moose is a character who grows from one book to the next and within each book as well.  The growth is strong and believable.  The mystery here fits nicely in the historical setting and one finds out from the Author’s Note that the reason it is so credible is that Choldenko based much of it on real events of the time.

This series has been strong from the first book, never suffering from lagging in the middle book or from the final book trying to do too much.  Nicely, each book is individually satisfying as well, so they stand just as nicely on their own as they do in a trio.  However, I could never not find out what happened next to Moose and the other children on the island.

Satisfying and superbly written, this book is a great conclusion to a wonderful trilogy.  Appropriate for ages 9-12.

Reviewed from ARC received from Dial Books.