I'm not sure if it's the books intentions but this is very much an allegory for homelessness. Grumpy the Iguana didn't used to be grumpy until his home was taken away. But it'll take a friend to help him find his place again and find a happier mood. The story isn't bad and reads more like a spoken word story than a picture book. The illustrations are not up to standard big five publishing. The book looks and feels very self-published or vanity published. That's not a bad thing. The story is nice and it works. I think this book would be better in Florida libraries where there are iguanas rather than Illinois where I'm at.

Ugghhh. Too long. And it feels like a guy rambling on about his work. Mr. B is a photographer who uses a helicopter to get the perfect pictures. Along the way he talks to animals and buildings. It feels and looks like a vanity exercise instead of a great children’s picture book.

Like most Boys Town books this story is very repetitive, but it is well done. It’s about using “pause power” or stopping a taking a few breaths to calm down before erupting or letting things get to you. The story works, it's just a little long, and the illustrations are fun and eye catching.

I really like the Freddie the fly books. They teach a lesson in an approachable way but are still fun. This time Freddie has a problem with being too truthful. So truthful that he hurts peoples feelings. It’s time to learn Truth or Care. How to avoid saying bad things that will do nothing but hurt someone, and how to find the positives in any situation. This is a great series of books for kids and even for adults.

A woman looks back on her family history as her children want to compare it to Gone With the Wind. But most life in slave owning Louisiana was not good, not easy, and no Rhett Butler to be found. This is the first of three volumes. It’s very intense and dark. The illustrator does an excellent job using color to display emotion both in the highs and the lows. I loved the mix of hoodoo, plantation, and slave story. I can not wait to complete the series, read and see what happens next.

Overall I liked this book. The illustrations are a crazy that is lovely and fresh. The story is way too long. 93 pages for a picture book. It is also too long for story time. The story rhymes but the cadence gets lost sometimes. I love the layout of the words, but sometimes changing the fonts and colors makes it hard to read or know what word goes where. The story has a message that many need to hear, but with its length and illustration type, I feel it will not find an easy home unless someone is specifically looking for this type of book.
#LitsyAtoZChildrens

This book has a mission and it completes it very well. It sets out to help explain dementia in a way kids can understand. And it uses the story elements to let kids know that things will be okay, even when they seem scary or confusing.

This book was fun until the end. It’s meant to be a horror story for children and I think it does so very well. Nothing too scary, just a spine tingling story to get the nerves jumping just a bit. I didn’t love the end where the storytelling felt flat but the lead up was good, the illustrations are good, and I think kids will enjoy it.

This was really fun. A new girl moves in next door and wants to be friends with the weird eccentric next door, even though all the other kids think he is a freak. He is a freak. He can see monsters and talk to dead people. That is just part of what makes this such a fun read. I like to see a character that wants to hang with the strange and unusual instead of always trying to be popular. A great and fun read for any age. I can not wait to pick up book 2.

Beware this book is in FRENCH!. I wasn't paying attention when I downloaded my galley. I used to be able to read french pretty well in high school so I really enjoyed putting my brain to work on this (even though I did have to look up a few words). The story was pretty cute and I loved the illustrations. I hope they put it out in english as well.