Category: Book Reviews

No Reading Allowed

No Reading AllowedNo Reading Allowed: The WORST Read-Aloud Book Ever by Bryce Gladfelter, Chris Carpenter, Raj Haldar
Published by Sourcebooks eXplore ISBN: 1728206596
Genres: Humor, Non-Fiction
Format: Picture Book Nonfiction
Goodreads
five-stars

Homonyms made easy and fun, while building awareness, vocabulary and importance of carefully placed punctuation. Ptolemy the Pterodactyl is back from “P is for Pterodactyl: The Worst Alphabet Book Ever” (2018).  Now he’s helping readers see humor and how language can confuse, confound, and entertain.

Each side of the double-page spread has a sentence underneath a framed, full color pictures (Bryce Gladfelter, illus). Many known and silly creatures help describe each sentence. “The hair came forth” is opposite “The hare came fourth.” Many of the words are included in “The Worst Glossary Ever…Again!” 

Shelve this right beside “How Much Can a Bare Bear Bear?” (Brian Cleary, 2005), or mix it in with picture books as young readers will enjoy examining the illustrations. There are many opportunities with this book to extend learning into a variety of directions for elementary learners. Can you figure out the homonym for “No reading allowed.”?

Reviewed by Lynn Mayer, Retired Librarian, Old Town Elementary School, Old Town

 

five-stars

Show Me a Sign

Show Me a SignShow Me a Sign by Ann Clare LeZotte
Published by Scholastic Press on March 3, 2020
ISBN: 1338255819
Pages: 288
Genres: Historical Fiction
Format: Chapter Book Fiction
Goodreads
five-stars

Why was there a large population of deaf people on Martha’s Vineyard in the early 1800’s? And an ever higher rate in the small village of Chilmark? This part of the story is true, and the author has created an engaging historical fiction account of one attempt to find out. Prejudice and land ownership issues between the English and the Wampanoag worsen the relationship of the community to the outside world when Mary is kidnapped by Andrew – a man acting as a scientist to find out the reason for the deafness.

The author is deaf herself, and the in-depth backmatter she includes helps the reader understand the early settlement of this now popular island. Throughout the story she garners respect for the deaf and their families and friends, which includes freedmen and the Wampanoag. 

Reviewed by Lynn Mayer, Retired Librarian, Old Town Elementary School, Old Town

five-stars

Helga Makes a Name for Herself

Helga Makes a Name for HerselfHelga Makes a Name for Herself by Eda Kaban, Megan Maynor
ISBN: 1328957837
Genres: Adventure, Humor
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
five-stars

Helga’s a farmersdotter, says her mother. Warriors don’t come from small mountain villages like theirs, says her father. But Helga wants to become a warrior for her favorite Viking, Ingrid the Axe. Ultimately, she earns her place, and becomes known to future young Vikings as Helga the Howler.

Amusing illustrations (Eda Kaban) give the reader much to enjoy along with the humorous text.

Viking facts and websites are included in the backmatter, but this is an entertaining picture book that holds its own to share one-on-one, small groups, or read alouds. 

Reviewed by Lynn Mayer, Retired Librarian, Old Town Elementary School, Old Town

five-stars

Awesome Man: The Mystery Intruder

Awesome Man: The Mystery IntruderAwesome Man: The Mystery Intruder by Jake Parker, Michael Chabon
Published by Quill Tree Books on September 29, 2020
ISBN: 0062875094
Pages: 40
Genres: Fantasy, Humor
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
five-stars

Awesome Man  has returned (The Astonishing Secret of Awesome Man, 2011); he’s heard there’s a new superhero in town. Children will relate to his feeling blue and worried about no longer being #1 in town. In the satisfying conclusion, Awesome Man discovers the new guy has his own superpowers such as his Supersonic Burp and Slime Blast, and will be a great new sidekick, aka Captain Stinky. If you haven’t guessed, Awesome Man and Sister Sinister are now the big siblings to a new baby.

Fun words that blend in well with the story: octolizard, thermovulcanized, and, returning from the first book, positronic.  Dynamic, bright, illustrations (Jake Parker) add to the intensity of the emotions described in the text. Some important hints about being the big brother are woven in as his mom tells him how the toddler will look up to him and want to do what he does.

A great story for those youngsters worried about a new baby in their home! And a great book to add to your superhero shelf for the preschool and early elementary crowd.

Reviewed by Lynn Mayer, Retired Librarian, Old Town Elementary School, Old Town

 

five-stars

Smashy Town

Smashy TownSmashy Town by Andrea Zimmerman, Dan Yaccarino, David Clemesha
ISBN: 006291037X
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
five-stars

Smashy Town…you mean…like…? Yes! It IS the long awaited follow-up to 1999’s Trashy Town. Those who loved Trashy Town will be delighted to see that Mr. Gilly is pretty much the same except that now he controls a crane and wrecking ball and has traded in his rats for pigeons. These books are great, with their refrains that end in yelling “No!” and their unique illustrations by Dan Yaccarino. Really, there’s not much to delve into here; Mr. Gilley wrecks a building and we all get to sing and yell about it and it’s really fun to read out loud. If you’re a fan of the original book, you’ll love this one too.

Reviewed by Sarah Maciejewski, Patten Free Library, Bath

five-stars

Cece Loves Science: Push and Pull

Cece Loves Science: Push and PullCece Loves Science: Push and Pull by Kimberly Derting, Shelli R. Johannes, Vashti Harrison
Published by Greenwillow Books on February 25, 2020
ISBN: 0062946099
Pages: 40
Goodreads
five-stars

How to explain the science of “push and pull” to young readers is often not as easy as it sounds. In this emergent reader – one that offers a more complex plot , more complex text but in a simple  volume that has illustrations to support the text , the reader meets Cece, a girl who loves science and asks those how, why, what if questions. Cece and her classmates explore the forces of “push” and “pull,” how they work , what is the difference between push and pull and how to demonstrate  these forces through experimentation. Readers enjoy class doing a science experiment and begin to understand how these forces work- there is even a dog in the story.

With STEAM becoming more and more a part of the school curriculum, it is good to have these early readers to promote science to our youngest reader

five-stars

Glory on Ice

Glory on IceGlory on Ice: A Vampire Hockey Story by Mark Fearing, Maureen Fergus
Published by Knopf Books for Young Readers on October 6, 2020
ISBN: 1524714518
Pages: 40
Genres: Fantasy, Humor
Format: Picture Book Fiction
Goodreads
four-stars

This fun picture book combines a vampire and hockey, what young reader in Maine wouldn’t like it?! Vlad has lived a long time and he needs a new hobby. He tries a few things before overhearing the words “pound” “crush” and “destroy”; he has to know what hobby involves these things. Hockey, of course. So Vlad signs up, get the gear, watches a lot of hockey, and then shows up for his first day. Parents who have participated in hockey will appreciate the ogrelike smell of the locker room and the mom tying skates, and kids will giggle at Vlad’s attempts to move. On ice! With blades on his feet! Vlad is not great, but he has fallen in love with the game so he is determined and persistent . In the end, his team plays a tough opponent and he gets to use some of his vampiric skills (cunning and courage), but it is not enough to win. Luckily, there is always next time. Fearing’s illustrations have movement and color and Fergus clearly enjoys writing about this beloved winter sport. This will make a great read aloud and should fly off the shelf.

Reviewed by Jill O’Connor, Merrill Memorial Library, Yarmouth

four-stars

Jane Goodall: A Champion of Chimpanzees

Jane Goodall: A Champion of ChimpanzeesJane Goodall: Champion for Chimpanzees (Rookie Biographies) by Gustavo Mazali, Jodie Shepherd, Sarah Albee
Published by Children's Press on September 1, 2015
ISBN: 0531214265
Pages: 32
Genres: Non-Fiction
Format: Picture Book Nonfiction
Goodreads
five-stars

This emergent reader introduces the reader to the life and accomplishments of Valerie Jane Louise Goodall. In text that is informative yet not overwhelming, readers meet a young Jane and follow her as her love of chimpanzees leads her to Dr. Leakey who sets her on the path that changed her life forever. Large, colorful illustrations support the text with photos of Jane and more information about her to be found in the back of the book. This slim book is a great introduction to this scientist who changed the way we look at animals.

submitted by Kathy George

Gray Public Library , Gray Me

cream

five-stars

Wondrous Rex

Wondrous RexWondrous Rex by Emilia Dziubak, Patricia MacLachlan
on March 17, 2020
ISBN: 0062940988
Pages: 88
Format: Chapter Book Fiction
Goodreads
five-stars

Grace lives next door to her Aunt Lily and spends a great deal of time with her as her parents, both doctors are often busy. Aunt Lily is a writer and Grace loves that writer’s world, the words her aunt has introduced to her, the stories her aunt has shared with her, her aunt’s writing group even the snacks served at writer’s group. With her vocabulary, Grace’s teacher urges her to use those words in a story, but Grace feels she is no writer, her journal remains empty.  When Aunt Lily falls prey to writer’s block, she puts a notice in the post office, the grocery bulletin and online- “wanted, an assistant, a coach, a helper, for inspiration and a bit of magic.” a magician appears the next day with Rex- his dog also in need of something new. Rex changes their lives.

The story invites the reader into a simple, magical story of the love of words and stories, and that each of us has a poem or story that needs to be written even if we don’t think we have it in us.

It is a  good story that brings a smile to the reader, you want to live next to Lily and Grace and share in their love of story and Rex.

Patricia Maclachlan has again offered a story to be enjoyed by readers of all ages but is especially for those readers new to the chapter book format. As she did in the Poet’sDog, My Father’sWords, Waitingfor Magic, and Word After Word After Word, she has written a bit of magic for us to share.

submitted by Kathy George

Gray Public Library, Gray Me

Cream

five-stars

The Radium Girls: The Scary but True Story of the Poison that Made People Glow in the Dark (Young Readers’ Edition)

The Radium Girls: The Scary but True Story of the Poison that Made People Glow in the Dark (Young Readers’ Edition)The Radium Girls: The Scary But True Story of the Poison That Made People Glow in the Dark by Kate Moore
on September 8, 2020
ISBN: 9781728210346
Pages: 408
Format: Chapter Book Nonfiction
Goodreads
five-stars

This is a young readers’ adaptation of Moore’s book The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America’s Shining Women, which came in at a page count of over 600. This adaptation reduces that to just over 400 pages, so while easier to digest, it is still a meaty book so it might be best for readers in grades 7 and up. Filled with personal stories, primary sources, and copious notes and an extensive bibliography, this is a well-researched and well-sourced book. The story is heartbreaking and tragic. Moore brings to life all of the women affected by the duplicitous radium companies who might have had an inkling that radium was dangerous and yet did nothing to protect their young, female workers in their quest for increased profits. Some of the descriptions of the ailments and illnesses are tough to read, so if a reader is sensitive to gore, these sections can be skimmed. But the writing and the story are gripping;  this is narrative nonfiction at its best.  And the message is necessary; radium plants were still in operation with some harmful practices as recently as 1978 and cleanup from all of the radioactive industrial waste is ongoing as of 2019. Recommend for cream of the crop.

Reviewed by Jill O’Connor, Merrill Memorial Library, Yarmouth

five-stars