The three wild pigs are fishing in their boat off the Carolina coast, when a hurricane begins to blow in from the sea. They scramble back to shore and hunker down in their homes of dune-grass, thicket branches, and strong conch shells. The voice of a wolf is heard on the winds of the storm, as the wolf-winds try to blow down the homes of the pigs. Together, they survive the hurricane winds and the rising waves, despite the howling wolf-winds.

I liked the story of these three wild pigs! There is a lovely fluidity to the pacing, and there are lots of little details that make the narrative special.

Especially important to the story's roots is the repetition of lines like "I'll huff and I'll puff," and "Not by the hair of my chinny-chin-chin." The author takes this to a new level by adding in repetition of new lines like, "This is my home. I'll be okie-pig-dokie." As each pig determines to stay in their house and brave the storm, the line is repeated by each of the characters. I loved the continuity this gave to the story!

I did not like the art style of cut-out pieces of paper. It looks too busy, and it's difficult to tell what is really happening in each scene. The colors are too jumbled and it lacks clarity. I was often confused about what the characters were doing or where they were.

There is also a strange cartoon included on a few of the pages with a word puzzle illustrating how to pronounce the word "cumulonimbus". The clouds of the hurricane are being described in the story, and the little word puzzle is included each time the word "cumulonimbus" is used. It looks strange and out of place, and it serves no purpose in the story. I thought it was very odd.

I liked this little retelling with a strong coastal flavor, but I really did not enjoy the art.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

Ayana and Tyler find a magical book that teaches them a new dragon-summoning spell every month. When one of their spells goes wrong, they are whisked into a magic land that manifests from different books and furniture in Tyler's bedroom. They conjure several dragons to help them in their adventures, until they have a little entourage of creatures following them. Travelling across the wilderness, crossing oceans, and encountering strange characters from Tyler's books, the two friends struggle to reach the tower of Professor Mobius, who they hope has the ability to send them back to the real world.

I enjoyed this book so much! The plot is really imaginative and interesting. The writing and pacing are excellent, keeping the reader on their toes with lots of plot twists and surprises.

Every setting is so varied and different, because the characters move from one book world to another, visiting the settings of a fairy tale forest, a Chinese garden, the sandy deserts of Dune, the London of Sherlock Holmes, and every jungle, mountain, and ocean in between!

Tyler and Ayana have wonderful character depth and development. They each have a lot of emotion rolling around inside them, and I love how they protect and support each other. Their friendship is one of the best things about this book!

My only complaint about Tyler and Ayana's friendship is the beginning of their friendship. It's very insta-friends (as opposed to insta-love), and the scene where they meet is quite short. They say, "Hello, I'm Ayana. Hi, I'm Tyler. Nice to meet you." BOOM! They're best friends.

I needed a little more conversation, a little more build-up there. Why couldn't they talk about something they have in common? They meet in a library, so why not have a little conversation about books? At least then, I would have some groundwork for their friendship, and a reason why I should believe that these two are suddenly hanging out and doing homework together and meeting up after school and all that best friend stuff.

I felt really disappointed that I didn't get to see the beginning of their friendship, getting to know each other, realizing they have something in common, and BECOMING friends. It left a big hole in the story that could have easily been filled with just a few paragraphs.

Still... the rest of their friendship is delightful!

I worry that some of the book world settings are a bit too specific in their details of characters and plots, and will spoil anyone who hasn't read those books. I haven't read Dune yet, so I don't know if I got spoiled for anything; but there are definite spoilers for Sherlock Holmes, especially the "Red-Headed League". If you haven't read Sherlock Holmes, then don't read this one yet!
I wish the author had created more generic book worlds without so many spoilery details.

This book ends on a major cliffhanger, which has me itching to get my hands on the next book!

All in all, I really enjoyed this book, and look forward to reading more in this series! Dragons, books, and adventure... what more could you ask for?!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the author/publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

Paula travels with her merchant father to Istanbul, hoping to acquire a religious artifact of rare and precious value. There is fierce competition for the artifact, and unscrupulous merchants will use violence to get their hands on it. Paula's father hires a bodyguard, Stoyan, to keep his daughter safe on the dangerous streets. Paula befriends a wayward pirate captain, Duarte, hoping to get information from him about the artifact. The powers from the Other Kingdom send Paula on a quest, to retrieve the artifact, to unravel the riddles surrounding its history, and to learn from her perilous voyage the meaning of love and friendship.

My heart is too full! I can barely think, my mind is still reeling with all the complex details of the story. I have cried and laughed and clutched the book with white knuckles. What a journey! My heart just went on a rollercoaster ride, and I am still gasping for breath.

The plot is entrancing! The adventure and puzzles and riddles kept me guessing and wondering and full of suspense. There is so much action and chaotic commotion with everything in jeopardy for our characters. I could barely put the book down!

I loved Paula's character. She is perfection in every way. She is weak and strong, smart and foolish, passionate, kind, and full of fear and courage, all in wonderful balance that pushes her character development forward.
I adore Stoyan and Duarte too! They are both so different, but adorable and strong and compassionate. They both have good hearts, and I was swept away in every encounter that Paula had with them.

Even the supporting characters are wonderful! There is one very minor supporting character who only has a few scenes, and barely speaks three lines of dialogue, but when he died I was crying. I was so upset and emotional about this character who has a tiny part in the story, and yet, the incredible writing made me love him with just a few sentences. Now THAT is excellent writing!

I love the gorgeous and mystic Turkish setting of Istanbul during the Ottoman empire. It was really lovely to see prim European Paula experiencing the sights and sounds and smells of a new culture in a new city. It's the perfect backdrop for a mystical story.

I love the riddles and puzzles, and the myths and magic of the Other Kingdom! It's all woven together so beautifully. I wish I could give this 10 stars!

This author writes such funny Gothic melodrama for children! It’s all gloomy and disastrous through every twist of the plot. This story is full of disguises, kidnappings, a mysterious princess, a dastardly butler , greasy porridge and stale bread for the orphans, and a hundred hilarious turns for the worst.

Toad is getting himself into trouble once again, this time with dreams of being immortalized in a bronze statue. Mole and Water Rat embark on a voyage upriver to the Beyond, but encounter disturbing rumors of a fearsome Pike that stalks the upper riverways.

This has all the charm of the original Wind in the Willows stories with a very similar old-fashioned writing style.
I love the adventurous plot, and the darling characters. Toad’s antics are hilarious and full of plot twists, while the Mole and Rat have a more serious mission, so that the humor and drama feel perfectly balanced.

Mole, especially, is always an endearing character, and I love the firm friendship he has with the Water Rat. Of course, Badger plays a major role in this story, and Otter is included in the adventures as well.


Such a satisfactory tale, and a delightfully enjoyable read. I can’t wait to read more from this series!

Calder, Petra, and Tommy are called in to investigate a terrible art theft from a local museum, along with two new kids, Zoomy and Early. The formidable Mrs Sharpe has brought them all together in the hopes that their unique way of solving puzzles may help to recover the thirteen stolen pieces of artwork. But the museum’s board of trustees is playing their own game, arguing about the future of the art museum. Only Calder and the gang can unravel the clues and solve the mystery!

I really enjoyed this book, especially because of all the great information about art! The plot takes several interesting turns, and the characters are unique and endearing.

I loved the way that Tommy and Zoomy became friends, and how Petra and Early quickly joined forces with their mutual love of words. The group dynamic is wonderful as they all bounce ideas off each other and share their thoughts.

I thought the mystery could have been a little tighter. I felt like there were a lot of superfluous red herrings and too much time was spent on rabbit trails that had no bearing on the main plot.

One of things that I both loved and that annoyed me a little in this book was the unique way that the kids talk and think. I love that they make weird connections with things they see and hear, and they find meaning in seemingly useless or mundane things. But it also got on my nerves a little because their meaning isn’t always clear. They throw in some off the wall comment, and sometimes it makes sense with the rest of the conversation and sometimes I’m left scratching my head.

Another thing that annoyed me was the constantly changing POV. The characters will all be standing around in a scene, and the narrator takes a little trip into each of their brains. Calder was thinking this. Petra thought that. Tommy said to himself this thing. Early was feeling this. Zoomy thought that. And then we jump back into the action of the scene after our little brain check-in with each character. It slowed down the pacing of the story, and I hate changing POVs, especially within the same scene.

I wish I had known that the new characters in this book are actually introduced in other books outside this series. I would have read their individual stories first, and now I’ve been spoiled for their endings. Oh well.

Still an enjoyable read, and a fun story!

This hilarious book poses the question, What would it look like if various famous artists had painted dinosaurs? The results are dancing ballerina dinosaurs in the style of Degas, Dino Noodle Soup a la Andy Warhol, a Frida Kahlo dinosaur, dinos in Mary Cassatt's garden, jazz band dinosaurs in Aaron Douglas' style, and of course, the incomparable Dino Mona Lisa!

Throughout the story, a little hamster/gerbil artist appears on each page with a paintbrush, chalk, crayon, or scissors in hand... um... paw. He guides us through the various art styles, and discovers a new friend at the end of the book. His expressions are so cute, and he adds a little flair to the story!

There is a page at the end with the outline of an artist's easel where the reader can color their own artistic creation! It's little extras like that which make this book so special.

I really enjoyed looking through all the different art styles, and searching for details similar to the original famous paintings. It's really very clever to see how they have added volcanoes and Jurassic flora and fauna to the paintings. It made me laugh to see some of those funny details in the background!

At the end of the book, there are small one-paragraph bios of the different artists whose works are imitated. But I wish that the explanations of the different artists would include a small thumbnail of the original work of art, so that I could compare it to the dino version. I was also a little disappointed that most of the artists featured are modern artists, and the only classical artist mentioned is da Vinci. I wish there were a larger diversity in the eras of art represented. Still, it's a great way to learn about many different artists.

This is such an enjoyable book to read with children, and a delight to read aloud!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the author/publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

This bedtime story shows various endangered animals and their babies/chicks/cubs settling down for the night, and snuggling in, ready for sleep. Each animal is shown in their native habitat and briefly described in rhyme.
The beautiful illustrations are delicate and cozy with soft colors and little details in the background. It's the perfect book for reading before bed with little ones!

At the end of the book, there is further information about each of the endangered species, their native environments, and why they are endangered. It's very informative and interesting! This book made me really curious to know more about endangered animals. It would definitely spark the interest of a child!

Disclaimer: I received this book from the author/publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts and are not influenced by anyone.