Month: March 2020

flip flap dinosaurs

flip flap dinosaursFlip Flap Dinosaurs by Axel Scheffler
Published by Nosy Crow on October 15, 2019
ISBN: 1536208264
Pages: 28
Genres: Animals
Format: Picture Book Nonfiction
Goodreads
three-stars

Advertised for ages 3-7

This flap book encourages youngsters to flip over either the top or bottom (or both) halves of the page to create a new dinosaur.   It then reveals the newly created dinosaur name, and its new unique characteristics.

I was not able to pronounce most of the new morphed names, and would have a hard time trying to fake it in a read aloud with children.  “What do you get if you cross an iguanodon and a diplodocus?  That would be an iguanodocus!”  WOW.  The concept is cute, and the publisher and author have released other similar Flip Flap books that I believe would be much easier to digest.  Flip Flap Dogs, Farm, Ocean, Safari, all seem like they might be easier to read and comprehend.

Reviewed By Irene Hall, Witherle Memorial Public Library, Castine

three-stars

STARFELL Willow Moss & the Lost Day

STARFELL Willow Moss & the Lost DayWillow Moss & the Lost Day (Starfell, #1) by Dominique Valente
Published by HarperCollins on January 28, 2020
ISBN: 0062879405
Pages: 224
Genres: Fantasy
Format: Chapter Book Fiction
Goodreads
two-stars

Advertised for grades 3-7

This Juvenile chapter book highlights a young witch and her journey and self-discovery of her magical powers.

A day is missing, and it is up to Willow, a finder of lost things, to find it.  This book has no illustrations and is not very easy to read.  It is also a tearjerker, as we discover the reason that day was forgotten.   Young, but advanced readers, might enjoy this magical tale.

I would not recommend this book.  It was not bad, but challenging to read and I do not expect a young audience to be able to rise to this challenge.

Reviewed By Irene Hall, Witherle Memorial Public Library, Castine

two-stars

JUNO VALENTINE AND THE FANTASTIC FASHION ADVENTURE

JUNO VALENTINE AND THE FANTASTIC FASHION ADVENTUREJuno Valentine and the Fantastic Fashion Adventure by Derek Desierto, Eva Chen
Published by Feiwel & Friends on October 29, 2019
ISBN: 1250297303
Pages: 32
Genres: Realistic Fiction
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
one-star

Advertised for grades pre-1

This colorful picture book explores a little girl’s dilemma in choosing an outfit for picture day at school.  The theme of the book is that she will eventually gain the self-confidence to express herself in a way she feels comfortable.

Juno travels through time and meets 10 female icons who share their fashion tips with her.  The book has a section in the back that briefly highlights each woman and their role in history.

Even though the premise of the book is that Juno will find her own vision of fashion, each role model she encounters gives her a piece of their wardrobe for Juno to layer on, items that they felt helped with “their” self-confidence.  They don’t give Juno a chance to choose, it is just passed on to her.   I shared this book with a young girl in my library, who loves everything princess and girly.  She liked the artwork (the hair pictures are snippets of real hair photographs), but she was lost at the references to the women.

I would not recommend this book.  The addition of iconic women doesn’t overshadow the value placed on fashion, and the lack of individuality that Juno is allowed.

Reviewed By Irene Hall, Witherle Memorial Public Library, Castine

one-star

Splish, Splash, Ducky!

Splish, Splash, Ducky!Splish, Splash, Ducky! by Lucy Cousins
Published by Candlewick Press on February 5, 2019
ISBN: 1536200042
Pages: 28
Genres: Animals, Realistic Fiction
Format: Board Book
Goodreads
four-stars

Advertised for ages 2-3

This board book is very cute and fun to read.  Explore with baby ducky as he ventures out in the rain to visit all his pond friends.

This book is very sweet for parents to read to their youngsters, and the children will quickly begin to repeat the “Quack, quack, quack” after each page.  Drawings are very bright, colorful and simple.

Reviewed By Irene Hall, Witherle Memorial Public Library, Castine

four-stars

Skyjacked

SkyjackedSkyjacked by Paul Griffin
Published by Scholastic Press on July 30, 2019
ISBN: 1338047418
Pages: 240
Genres: Realistic Fiction
Format: Chapter Book Fiction
Goodreads
four-stars

Advertised for grades 7-9

This exciting, easy to read thriller tells the tale of 5 teens on a private charter jet that is hijacked and the teen intern at the National Air Traffic Investigation Center who helps solve the mystery.

This story draws on current history, reflecting on the 9-11 catastrophes and the possibility that this plane could be headed for a similar fate.  Each chapter is told from a different person’s voice, with a primer at the beginning of the book identifying the main characters.  The book flows easily, with suspense to the very end to solve the explanation for the skyjacking, and the possible scenarios that might be necessary to “end” the flight.

I enjoyed that the young intern on the ground uses her knowledge of social media to explore each character as they are trying to come up with possible motives. The teens on the plane use their ingenuity and “Macgyver” skills to fashion weapons and methods of escape. Be forewarned though, not all the teens and characters survive the ordeal.

Reviewed By Irene Hall, Witherle Memorial Public Library, Castine

four-stars

Where’s the Duck

Where’s the DuckWhere's the Duck? by Ingela P. Arrhenius
Published by Nosy Crow on March 12, 2019
ISBN: 153620577X
Pages: 10
Genres: Animals, Humor
Format: Board Book
Goodreads
four-stars

A series of park animals are hiding behind brightly colored flaps made of felt. A mirror on the final page makes for a fun ending as it asks “Where Are You too? there you are!”. A fun book that little ones will surely enjoy and the cloth flaps have lasted longer with children.

Reviewed by Ginni Nichols, Gardiner Public Library, Gardiner

four-stars

Superman: Dawnbreaker

Superman: DawnbreakerSuperman: Dawnbreaker (DC Icons, #4) by Matt de la Pena
Published by Random House Books for Young Readers on March 5, 2019
ISBN: 039954965X
Pages: 336
Genres: Fantasy
Format: Chapter Book Fiction
Goodreads
four-stars

The fourth installment in the DC Icons series of origin story tales, Dawnbreaker tells us of young Clark Kent’s discovery of his powers and struggles with how to use or not use them.  In Smallville, townsfolk have started to disappear. Clark and Lana are noticing a disturbing trend in that all the missing seem to be minorities. With the help of some familiar (paging Lex Luthor) and new characters, Clark and Lana go about trying to solve the mystery and set things in Smallville right again.  While perhaps not as exciting a tale as the other Icons stories, de la Peña does an excellent job of bringing Smallville into current times. Issues included are immigration, discrimination in the form of a potential stop and search law, genetic engineering, and small farmer hardships. Direct correlations between this story and current events are easily made.  De la Peña’s Luthor is given a unique role in this story as a side character who, while we’re waiting for him to show his true evil side, is actually helpful at times, and only slightly questionable. He’s more of a privileged rich kid than a mastermind. His introduction to Clark screams for a sequel. While not the strongest in the series, Dawnbreaker is eminently readable and will be of great interest to DC/Superman fans.  Recommended for grades 6-12.

Reviewed by Kara Reiman, Maine State Library

four-stars