Month: February 2020

The Kingdom

The KingdomThe Kingdom by Jess Rothenberg
Published by Henry Holt & Company on May 28, 2019
ISBN: 1250293855
Pages: 352
Genres: Science Fiction
Format: Chapter Book Fiction
Goodreads
four-stars

“The Kingdom” by Jess Rothenberg is a young adult science fiction novel set in the relatively near future (2096) at a theme park that sounds suspiciously familiar. The main character, Ana, is a hybrid human/animatronic princess who works for The Kingdom. The princesses, called Fantasists, are required to live their entire lives in the park, interacting with guests in prescribed ways and making their visits magical. Any aberration is met with re-education and rebooting or ultimately, destruction.

Ana is starting to have feelings and notices that she is becoming less content to live within the Kingdom forever under their rules. She falls for a Kingdom worker and then finds herself accused of his murder! The book switches between interviews with Ana during the trial, court documents, and the actual events of two years before the trial.

Written for ages 13-18, this interesting science fiction and mystery book is a good addition to young adult collections where science fiction is popular.

Reviewed by Kate Radke, Walker Memorial Library, Westbrook.

four-stars

Homerooms and Hall Passes

Homerooms and Hall PassesHomerooms and Hall Passes by Tom O'Donnell
Published by Balzer + Bray on October 8, 2019
ISBN: 0062872141
Pages: 352
Genres: Fantasy, Humor
Format: Chapter Book Fiction
Goodreads
four-stars

“Homerooms and Hall Passes” by Tom O’Donnell takes the idea of modern day people being transported to a fantasy world and switches it around. Five adventurers who live in a D&D type world are cursed and the next time they play their favorite game “Homerooms and Hall Passes,” a game where they act as middle school kids and have to roll dice to avoid traps like tests and detention, they are transported to a middle school and forced to live as their characters in the H&HP game!

The book is funny and works very well as a D&D parody. It’s amusing to see barbarians and magic users having to deal with the problems that middle school throws at you (popularity, visits to the principal’s office, and quizzes to name a few). Aimed at kids aged 8 to 12, this book will appeal mostly to kids who already play D&D, are interested in RPGs, or like humorous spins on fantasy. With the resurgence in popularity of D&D, I would say this is a recommended purchase if your middle grade humor and fantasy collections are popular.

Reviewed by Kate Radke, Walker Memorial Library, Westbrook.

four-stars

The Monster Catchers

The Monster CatchersThe Monster Catchers: A Bailey Buckleby Story by George Brewington
Published by Henry Holt & Company on March 5, 2019
ISBN: 1250165784
Pages: 288
Genres: Fantasy, Humor
Format: Chapter Book Fiction
Goodreads
two-stars

“The Monster Catchers” by George Brewington is a middle grade fiction novel about a teen, Bailey, who helps run his family’s pet store (where they also keep mythical creatures in the back for special buyers). Bailey and his dad also run a “pest removal” business for monster pests. Bailey feels that monsters can have feelings and thoughts, but his father thinks of them as just pests and money makers. A monster shows up to purchase one of their favorite creatures (who has now become almost a family pet) and chaos happens.

The plot keeps moving along quickly and will keep the reader interested until the end, but the characters other than Bailey are very flat. Themes of family, empathy, and bravery are throughout the book, but overall the story feels underdeveloped. A supplemental purchase for libraries where middle grade novels about mythical creatures in modern times are popular.

Reviewed by Kate Radke, Walker Memorial Library, Westbrook.

two-stars

Born to Draw Comics: The Story of Charles Schulz and the Creation of Peanuts

Born to Draw Comics: The Story of Charles Schulz and the Creation of PeanutsBorn to Draw Comics: The Story of Charles Schulz and the Creation of Peanuts by Craig Orback, Ginger Wadsworth
Published by Henry Holt & Company on September 17, 2019
ISBN: 1250173736
Pages: 40
Genres: Biography/Autobiography
Format: Picture Book Nonfiction
Goodreads
four-stars

Comic book layouts coupled with full page illustrations done in acrylic and gouache paint tell the story of Peanuts creator Charles Schulz.  As a child he was good at school, even skipping a grade, and loved sports as well. But after high school, he didn’t know what to do with himself since the only thing he ever wanted to do was draw.  He ended up getting drafted and served for years overseas. When he came back, that’s when his career really took off. He started to draw these big-headed child characters called Lil Folks. When a newspaper wanted to start running his strips every week, they renamed the strip Peanuts, a name Schulz never cared for.  Over his lifetime, Schulz created over 17,000 comic strips. The illustrations perfectly hail back to the era he grew up in. For a bonus, Orback placed Peanuts shoutouts in some of the art, which makes poring over the illustrations that much more interesting. Back matter includes an artist’s note, a list and descriptions of the Peanuts gang, places of interest to visit, sources, and notes.  Recommended for ages 5-9.

Reviewed by Kara Reiman, Maine State Library

four-stars

Piranhas Don’t Eat Bananas

Piranhas Don’t Eat BananasPiranhas Don't Eat Bananas by Aaron Blabey
Published by Scholastic Press on July 9, 2019
ISBN: 1338297139
Pages: 24
Genres: Humor
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
five-stars

Though the title will make you want to mispronounce piranha so that it rhymes, this story is a rollicking good time for toddlers.  The front of the book defines piranhas as South American meat-eating fish who will eat anything, even “little children who’ve actually been pretty good.”  Brian the piranha offers his friends a number of different fruits and vegetables to try, but they insist that they won’t, and instead share a part of the body that they love to eat that happens to rhyme with said fruit or veggies.  Peas vs. knees. Plums vs. bums. Brian won’t give up and finally convinces his friends to try some fruit. In the end, though, they still prefer their meat. This book has many chances for audience interaction and using fun voices.  Perfect for a toddler storytime. It would also work well for parents trying to get their kids to try something new. Recommended for ages 3-8.

Reviewed by Kara Reiman, Maine State Library

five-stars

Finding kindness

Finding kindnessFinding Kindness by Deborah Underwood, Irene Chan
Published by Henry Holt & Company on October 29, 2019
ISBN: 1250237890
Pages: 32
Format: Picture Book Nonfiction
Goodreads
five-stars

Kindness is…. This book is a wonderful tribute to kindness in many different forms. The text is short and simple and will keep the youngest kids engaged. The color illustrations are well detailed and add to the story — the first sentence makes no sense without the accompanying illustration. There is a widely diverse representation of people in the illustrations of this book but that isn’t the focus of the book. This is my favorite form of diversity in picture books — people just being people together in everyday life. I love books with a positive message about kindness, and this one hits the nail on the head. It’s best for Pre-K-2nd grade and would make a great read aloud. Pair with Kindness Makes Us Strong or The Kindness Book for an explosion of kindness. Recommended for Cream of the Crop.

Reviewed by Jessie Trafton, Skidompha Library, Damariscotta, ME

five-stars

What is a refugee?

What is a refugee?What Is a Refugee? by Elise Gravel
Published by Schwartz & Wade Books on September 24, 2019
ISBN: 0593120051
Pages: 32
Genres: Non-Fiction
Format: Picture Book Nonfiction
Goodreads
four-stars

“A refugee is a person just like you and me.” This is an important and timely book, and it handles the subject matter gracefully and at an appropriate level. The text is simple and clearly lays out what makes someone a refugee as well as providing some reasons for people fleeing their home country. The color illustrations are simple, easy to follow, and they support the story well. There is a wide diversity of people in this book, and it does a great job at showing the commonalities between refugees and the reader. There are supplemental pages with quotes from refugee children the author met while writing the book that will help kids relate even more. These are followed by short bios of some famous refugees. This is a great book for K-2nd graders and would be an excellent launching point for further discussion.

Reviewed by Jessie Trafton, Skidompha Library, Damariscotta, ME

four-stars

Rain makes applesauce

Rain makes applesauceRain Makes Applesauce by Jerry Pinkney, Julian Scheer, Marvin Bileck
Published by Holiday House on December 10, 2019
ISBN: 0823443612
Pages: 32
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
five-stars

This is a “restored edition” of this classic book with an introduction by Jerry Pinkney. Given this book is decades old and already recognized as excellent, I’ll keep my review short. The text is full of silly talk, and the gorgeous watercolor illustrations are exquisitely detailed. You can find something new in them with each reading. The repetitive text makes it a good selection for story time as the kids could finish each page with the “and rain makes applesauce” refrain. This book is best for PreK-1st grade. The introduction, what makes this edition unique, is wonderful and talks about the impact this book has had on Pinkney’s art and illustration career.

Reviewed by Jessie Trafton, Skidompha Library, Damariscotta, ME

five-stars

Fergal and the bad temper

Fergal and the bad temperFergal and the Bad Temper by Robert Starling
Published by Imprint on April 30, 2019
ISBN: 1250198623
Pages: 32
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
four-stars

Fergal is a nice dragon, but when someone tells him what to do, he gets really fiery. He has a hard time processing his anger, and it gets him into trouble all over town. When Fergal’s mom helps him find a coping strategy that works, he finds there are more fun things to do with his fire.

This is a great book about big emotions and how to process them. Anger is a real and common emotion for kids, and learning coping mechanisms is so important. This book is an accessible and fun way to help kids with this process. The colorful illustrations really bring Fergal’s emotions to life, and add an element of humor to the story. This book is best suited for Pre-K to 1st graders, and it would be a great read aloud for a story time about feelings and emotions. It could also be used for an older child as a one-on-one share to spark discussion about processing anger.

Reviewed by Jessie Trafton, Skidompha Library, Damariscotta, ME

four-stars

Why?

Why?Why? by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
Published by Neal Porter Books on August 13, 2019
ISBN: 0823441733
Pages: 32
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
four-stars

Rabbit is always asking Bear, “Why?” Bear almost always has an answer. The beautiful watercolor illustrations in this book are crucial to understanding what Rabbit is asking Bear about. Each page simply has the words, “Why?” followed by Bear’s one sentence answer, “Because…” This book is a great explorartion of why we do some things, and why certain things just happen. Why do we fall? Gravity. Why does my belly hurt? Because I ate too much. Young kids will stay engaged with the simple and clear text, and there are plenty of opportunities for more discussion about why things happen. This book would be a great read aloud and would be good for a younger kids’ story time. It is best for PreK-K but could also be used for very early readers. Overall, it’s a sweet story of exploration and friendship.

Reviewed by Jessie Trafton, Skidompha Library, Damariscotta, ME

four-stars