Category: Book Reviews

Snakes on a Train

Pages: 32
four-stars

In her debut picture book, Dennis has taken snakes and trains and put them together. A simple rhyming text with a recurring refrain, young readers accompany  the snakes as they get on the train.Then, both reptile and reader take a train ride. They learn about switches, tracks, whistles, gears and even a brakesnake! Colorful, simple artwork makes it both fun to read and fun to listen to. A selection for pre-K -1, it can be used for units on trains, snakes? and imagination.

Submitted by Kathy George, Gray Public Library, Gray

four-stars

Hello, I’m Here

Hello, I’m HereHello, I'm Here! by Helen Frost, Rick Lieder
Published by Candlewick Press on March 20th 2019
ISBN: 076369858X
Pages: 32
Goodreads
five-stars

Helen Frost’s latest book is a poem about the first day in the life of a sandhill crane. Her rhyming text is short and has the voice of the small child, “I’m out in the world-I don’t know where. Mama? Papa? Hello, I’m here!” What makes this book special is the pairing of Ms. Frost’s words with the striking, detailed photographs of Rick Lieder. The reader is there as this chick stands, walks, and finds its first meal. As with their other collaborations: Step Gently Out, Sweep up the Sun, Among a thousand Fireflies, they offer a glimpse into the natural world. Information about the sandhill crane can be found at the back of the book. This is a book easy to read aloud with photos that will hold the listener’s attention. It is STEAM at its best. Offer it in units about babies, poetry about the natural world, or birds.

for ages pre-K- 3

Submitted by Kathy George

Gray Public Library, Gray

 

five-stars

Puddle

PuddlePuddle by Richard Jackson, Chris Raschka
Published by Greenwillow Books on March 26th 2019
ISBN: 0062651951
Pages: 40
Goodreads
five-stars

A puddle, deeper and bigger than its siblings, bemoans the fact that it isn’t as dainty and shallow as those puddles around it. The day goes from bad to worse as a seagull swoops in, a basketball splashes into it, feet  stomp in it and the worse- a dog pees in it! But as the children gather around it- they discover something beautiful as the sun hits the water. Readers are engaged by Chris Raschka’s signature bright, bold, water colored illustrations and text with such action words as swish, swoosh, splat, and euwww! This selection has an energy to it and readers will get caught up in the plight of the puddle and never look at one quite the same again.  Use with units on water, language and colors. Good for ages pre-k-3.

submitted by Kathy George

Gray Public Library, Gray, Maine

five-stars

Who’s Hiding at the Beach?

Who’s Hiding at the Beach?Who's Hiding at the Beach? by Nosy Crow, Katharine McEwen
Published by Nosy Crow on May 14th 2019
ISBN: 1536205850
Pages: 10
Goodreads

There are lots of creatures at the beach. Where are they hiding and what are they doing? In this innovative lift-the-flap book, little ones can pore over the beautiful collaged pages and explore under rocks, shells, and seaweed to find out lots of interesting facts about seaside wildlife. This is the perfect introduction to the outdoors.

Our youngest readers will spend a day at the beach, lifting flaps and discovering who and what can be found at the beach in this sturdy board book for preschoolers  by Katharine McEwen.  The text is minimal- a statement  about the beach on one page and a question about the inhabitants on the facing page.  Finding the inhabitants under sturdy flaps with a fact about each animal found, solves the mystery of who lives at the beach. Soft, colorful illustrations done in mixed media add to the fun of the search. STEAM at it’s simplest!  An excellent way to introduce the beach to those who live near one or readers far from the shore. This offering is one of a series which includes Who’s Hiding on the Farm, and Who’s Hiding in the Woods coming next year.

Submitted by Kathy George

Gray Public Library, Gray Maine

 

The Spaces Between Us

The Spaces Between UsThe Spaces Between Us by Stacia Tolman
Published by Henry Holt & Company on July 23rd 2019
ISBN: 1250174929
Pages: 304
Goodreads
four-stars

The Spaces Between Us

 

Serena and Melody Grimshaw have been best friends forever.  This book examines that friendship and, when Melody is murdered in the end, the feeling Serena has that her life is now without meaning.  This book follows the lives of two girls who are starting their senior year in high school and wanting desperately to leave their failing factory town in New York state.  Readers learn about the girls’ family members and the prejudice that has always stung Melody because her family are considered trash.  Along the way there is the Homecoming dance, a stint as a cheerleader, and a trip across country that Serena takes to attempt to save Melody from a horrible boyfriend who has hired her out as a stripper.  Just when it seems that the boyfriend may be finally out of her life she first returns to him and later he follows her from California to Nevada where he strangles her.  As a background to all this drama Serena is studying upward mobility and is interviewing many people along the way in order to fulfill an independent study requirement for a Western Civilization class she had failed.  This is an excellent realistic fiction book that reads very quickly and is recommended for grades 9-12.

 

Reviewed by Ellen Spring, Oceanside High School, Rockland

four-stars

Go Green by Fighting Pollution

Go Green by Fighting PollutionGo Green by Fighting Pollution by Lisa Bullard, John Wes Thomas
Published by Lerner Publications (Tm) on August 1st 2018
ISBN: 1541520165
Pages: 24
Goodreads
three-stars

How simple is too simple in non-fiction books for young readers? 

“My family and I ride our bikes.

That way we don’t use our car. 

Driving cars pollutes the air.”

This text from one of this book’s pages needs a LOT more discussion. Living in very rural Maine, statements such as this trouble me: 1) if you want to ride bikes, the safest places require people to drive there in their car and carry the bikes; 2) bikes are great only in summer months when it’s not raining – or in Florida & Arizona only in winter months; and 3) how do you carry your groceries or new furniture or materials to build your house?? The use of electric cars is not mentioned. 

The large, dark, thick easy-to-read font is probably the best thing about this “Early Bird Stories” book. The simple, cartoonish illustrations are adequate and emphasize the topic on each page. One one page, the narrator is shown wearing gloves when planting a tree but not when picking up garbage. Behind him stands a girl, frowning, arms crossed, apparently looking at another child holding a hose in which a dog has tangled itself. The dog looks a little angry, too. Are they thinking the water’s being wasted because the water is not yet going onto the tree being planted? 

The title says, “Go Green…” but the book does not use or explain that phrase again. Even though there are “how” and “why” questions on a few pages, this book is more of a simplistic statement for early elementary readers rather than an invitation to explore or discuss ways to reduce, reuse, or recycle.

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

three-stars

Fern and Horn

Fern and HornFern and Horn by Marie-Louise Gay
Published by Groundwood Books on September 1st 2019
ISBN: 1773062263
Pages: 40
Goodreads
five-stars

Are Fern and Horn siblings? It doesn’t matter because what matters in this story is that they are creative and polite to each other. Even though Horn is a bit sneaky and tries to trick Fern, she offers the use of her crayons and scissors, and she knows how to tame him (chocolate chip cookies!).

The author understands children and offers many strategies for getting along, such as distraction. At first the cartoonish illustrations appear a bit messy, but being creative can be a bit messy. Fern and Horn are fortunate to have a family that allow this messiness, indoors and outside. The publisher blurb on the dust jacket says they are twins, but this reviewer did not interpret that from the book. 

This book might encourage youngsters to enjoy, explore, and expand their imaginations. 

This could be used in art units, behavior units, or just for a fun read aloud, just be sure to have some paper, crayons and scissors ready! 

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

five-stars

The Truth About Crocodiles

four-stars

Much more than facts about crocodiles, this humorous presentation will entertain and inform.

This author has done other “Seriously Funny Facts…” books about elephants, dolphins, bears, and hippos. 

Although the image of crocodiles are vaguely realistic, they are shown talking with speech bubbles and have human facial expressions. An impala, turtles, and a young girl help provide humor with their comments. Earthy tones were created with pen and ink with digital coloring. 

Informative text is easy to access as sentences are placed around the page and the reader can jump around or read from beginning to end. A variety of interesting charts and easy-to-read font make this perfect for middle and perhaps lower elementary students.

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

four-stars

Prince Bertram the Bad

Prince Bertram the BadPrince Bertram the Bad by Arnold Lobel
Published by Henry Holt & Company on June 11th 2019
ISBN: 1250143667
Pages: 32
Goodreads
four-stars

Fans of Arnold Lobel will be pleased to see the release of this 1963 favorite. This Henry Holt edition includes a note from his daughter about the story and has a different cover image than the original. This review will comment on the book as she would for any current picture book.

What to do with a prince who acts so badly that even a spanking does not good? You hope a witch comes along and turns him into a small, scaly dragon that the people in the kingdom will make fun of! Even when he runs away to the big forest, the animals think he is strange and will not play with him. One day in winter, he finds the witch stuck in a snowbank and as a reward, she restores him to princedom. The reader is left with the impression that he will be a nice prince in the future.

The illustrations, done in graphite and ink, are mostly black and white with watercolors, but are spacious and hold only the necessary details pertinent to the story. The medium-size, easy to read black font is balanced throughout the pages. 

Told in a fairy tale style complete with a moral and castle and dragon, this would make a good read aloud for preschool and early elementary children. The reader could prompt a discussion about behavior and consequences, but the listeners are apt to easily discern the lesson through the humor. 

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

four-stars

Digraphs and Blends

Digraphs and BlendsDigraphs and Blends by Wiley Blevins, Sean O'Neill
Published by Red Chair Press on January 1st 2019
ISBN: 1634403444
Pages: 32
Goodreads
two-stars

Inconsistent coverage of the topic in this Sound It Out – LOOK! Books ™. Clear, close-up photographs, mostly of children’s faces, sometimes objects, such as a whale or tops appear on the right-hand side of each page. Large font text occupies the left-hand side. Some pages have  a small drawing inset showing another object mentioned on the page.

Readers may be confused by the discussion of blends.  L-blends and r-blends have the target letter as the second letter, but s-blends have ‘s’ as the first letter. The text says, “As far as blends go, this is the end.” This is misleading as there are many other blends. 

In the digraphs discussion, it gives a rule for some words and says there are some words that break that rule, but those words are not given, nor is the reader prompted to think of them. On some other pages, the reader is prompted to think up additional words.

This could be useful for a teacher to introduce digraphs and blends, but most elementary students would probably not use this as for self-guided instruction.

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

two-stars