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2.59k reviews by:
librarybonanza
Age: 3 years - 6 years
If you were to pit a shark against a train, who would win? In different scenarios, one could easily win over the other, but what if they both couldn't quite win like performing in a piano recital? Two boys test the limits of a fight to the death between their toy shark and their toy train.
Great to use voices and sound effects when reading aloud. May not need to read every speech bubble because the story drags on after awhile.
If you were to pit a shark against a train, who would win? In different scenarios, one could easily win over the other, but what if they both couldn't quite win like performing in a piano recital? Two boys test the limits of a fight to the death between their toy shark and their toy train.
Great to use voices and sound effects when reading aloud. May not need to read every speech bubble because the story drags on after awhile.
Even though Missis was annoying as shit (I know, she was a product of her time), 101 Dalmatians is still a great read for younger readers and listeners.
Good independent reader, but also excellent for reading aloud to younger children at night (perhaps for an older sibling to read to a younger one).
Good independent reader, but also excellent for reading aloud to younger children at night (perhaps for an older sibling to read to a younger one).
Aaron tells an intense crime drama that mixes organized crime with current Native American culture. Fifteen years ago, Dashiell "Dash" Bad Horse ran away from a life of abject poverty and utter hopelessness on the Prairie Rose Indian Reservation in hopes of finding something better. Now he's come back home only to find a community attempting to rectify their scattered and anglicized identity through protest, drugs, or exploiting white people with a new, glitzy casino.
Although the gritty artwork was a bit jarring (hey, come on, I had been reading Amulet and other juvenile graphic novels for awhile beforehand) I appreciated Guera's ability to capture action, movement, and direction. However, I am still having a hard time differentiating the main characters' faces due to different angles or shadowing.
Complex characters paired with an intriguing, fast-paced plot equal a graphic novel worthy of a following. I do hope that the following issues add more complexity to the American Indian lifestyle rather than misery, despair, and pain.
Although the gritty artwork was a bit jarring (hey, come on, I had been reading Amulet and other juvenile graphic novels for awhile beforehand) I appreciated Guera's ability to capture action, movement, and direction. However, I am still having a hard time differentiating the main characters' faces due to different angles or shadowing.
Complex characters paired with an intriguing, fast-paced plot equal a graphic novel worthy of a following. I do hope that the following issues add more complexity to the American Indian lifestyle rather than misery, despair, and pain.
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Age: 9th-12th grade
Part of a series
Read-alikes: Graceling
Book cover synopsis: "Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky. In a dark and dusty shop, a chimera's supply of teeth grown dangerously low. And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal other-wordly war."
To classmates, friends, and strangers, Karou is a mysterious eccentric with ultramarine blue hair and a smattering of tattoos. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that, with a coy, sarcastic smile, she admits are real. What the outside world doesn't know is that the monsters ARE real and they are the only family she's ever known. As Karou grows older, she grows more and more curious about who her family is and who she really is.
There are four main reasons why I loved this book: unique romance, diverse female characters, well-devised plot, and kick-ass fight scenes. Also, the suspense grabs your life like the Hunger Games but allows you to absorb the storyline, with each chapter ending on a deepening plot line, not an insatiable craving for more (which was masterfully done by Collins).
Part of a series
Read-alikes: Graceling
Book cover synopsis: "Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky. In a dark and dusty shop, a chimera's supply of teeth grown dangerously low. And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal other-wordly war."
To classmates, friends, and strangers, Karou is a mysterious eccentric with ultramarine blue hair and a smattering of tattoos. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that, with a coy, sarcastic smile, she admits are real. What the outside world doesn't know is that the monsters ARE real and they are the only family she's ever known. As Karou grows older, she grows more and more curious about who her family is and who she really is.
There are four main reasons why I loved this book: unique romance, diverse female characters, well-devised plot, and kick-ass fight scenes. Also, the suspense grabs your life like the Hunger Games but allows you to absorb the storyline, with each chapter ending on a deepening plot line, not an insatiable craving for more (which was masterfully done by Collins).
Age: 7th-12th grade
Read-alikes: The Martian Chronicles (Bradbury), David Sedaris
Goodreads synopsis: "Seconds before the Earth is demolished to make way for a galactic freeway, Arthur Dent is plucked off the planet by his friend Ford Prefect, a researcher for the revised edition of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy who, for the last fifteen years, has been stranded on the planet Earth--which his lengthy research concluded is 'mostly harmless.'"
While this book is great for a wide populace, I believe science fiction readers will get the most fun out of this, observing the satire and twists that Adams puts on his space tale. What's wonderful about this book is the perfect blend between quirky humor and suspense, laughs and plot development. When a good story is built, humor appears effortlessly and only amplifies the great storyline.
This book is for people who enjoy somewhat rambling humor, commentary on the human condition, and a strong author personality within the writing.
Read-alikes: The Martian Chronicles (Bradbury), David Sedaris
Goodreads synopsis: "Seconds before the Earth is demolished to make way for a galactic freeway, Arthur Dent is plucked off the planet by his friend Ford Prefect, a researcher for the revised edition of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy who, for the last fifteen years, has been stranded on the planet Earth--which his lengthy research concluded is 'mostly harmless.'"
While this book is great for a wide populace, I believe science fiction readers will get the most fun out of this, observing the satire and twists that Adams puts on his space tale. What's wonderful about this book is the perfect blend between quirky humor and suspense, laughs and plot development. When a good story is built, humor appears effortlessly and only amplifies the great storyline.
This book is for people who enjoy somewhat rambling humor, commentary on the human condition, and a strong author personality within the writing.
Age: 4-8 years
Art: watercolor
The artwork was beautiful and perfect for capturing action and emotions. It's unfortunate that it was paired with such a jumbled and misleading story. While the story does encourage creative thought, it is to spite their mother and her attempt to control her slobby, destructive children. I think the problem was putting the story in the misbehaving child's perspective without much depth to the child's personality.
I think a caregiver would be horrified after reading this story which promotes disrespect, slobbiness, and mayhem. And where did those ghosts come from?
Art: watercolor
The artwork was beautiful and perfect for capturing action and emotions. It's unfortunate that it was paired with such a jumbled and misleading story. While the story does encourage creative thought, it is to spite their mother and her attempt to control her slobby, destructive children. I think the problem was putting the story in the misbehaving child's perspective without much depth to the child's personality.
I think a caregiver would be horrified after reading this story which promotes disrespect, slobbiness, and mayhem. And where did those ghosts come from?
Age: 8-12
Art: cross-sections, foldouts
Starting in 340 BC with Pytheas the Greek and ending in 1969 with the Apollo 11 moon landing, Ross and illustrator Stephen Bietsy fill this exemplary nonfiction book with intriguing facts and near peril. "These journeys of exploration are not necessarily the most important in terms of what they found, but each one is extraordinary for the way it was made."
Somewhat as an explorer himself, Ross has traveled all over the world to teach history, giving him acute insight into how students best learn the subject. Past the written word, the intricate cross-section by artist Stephen Bietsy (Incredible Cross-Sections) reveal the intense labor and dedication of the adventurers involved. Furthermore, the maps provide a valuable visual understanding. of each expedition. The foldouts also provide a unique feeling of discovery for the reader.
Art: cross-sections, foldouts
Starting in 340 BC with Pytheas the Greek and ending in 1969 with the Apollo 11 moon landing, Ross and illustrator Stephen Bietsy fill this exemplary nonfiction book with intriguing facts and near peril. "These journeys of exploration are not necessarily the most important in terms of what they found, but each one is extraordinary for the way it was made."
Somewhat as an explorer himself, Ross has traveled all over the world to teach history, giving him acute insight into how students best learn the subject. Past the written word, the intricate cross-section by artist Stephen Bietsy (Incredible Cross-Sections) reveal the intense labor and dedication of the adventurers involved. Furthermore, the maps provide a valuable visual understanding. of each expedition. The foldouts also provide a unique feeling of discovery for the reader.
Ages: 8-12 years
"We know less about this huge watery kingdom than we do about many planets in our solar system." From 2000 to 2010, more than 2,000 researchers from 82 countries sought to understand more about our oceans conducting the most extensive investigation of ocean life ever attempted. Johnson details 8 oceanic sections filled with creatures of the shores to creatures of the deep.
Johnson journeyed across the globe to get first hand accounts from scientists that participated in the study, quoting 18 scientists throughout the book. Her second-person narrative captivates children considering future marine biology professions, and also reveals her own passion for the ocean (being an avid scuba diver). Great provision of yet-to-be-named oceanic life pictures mixed in with an exciting narrative of discovery.
"We know less about this huge watery kingdom than we do about many planets in our solar system." From 2000 to 2010, more than 2,000 researchers from 82 countries sought to understand more about our oceans conducting the most extensive investigation of ocean life ever attempted. Johnson details 8 oceanic sections filled with creatures of the shores to creatures of the deep.
Johnson journeyed across the globe to get first hand accounts from scientists that participated in the study, quoting 18 scientists throughout the book. Her second-person narrative captivates children considering future marine biology professions, and also reveals her own passion for the ocean (being an avid scuba diver). Great provision of yet-to-be-named oceanic life pictures mixed in with an exciting narrative of discovery.
Ages: 5-10 years
Cumulative tale may be good for felt storytelling.
The land in Hargigo, Eritrea, Africa is dry and dusty. With little rainfall, the livestock do not have enough to eat, leaving little meat and milk for the citizens. Part biography, part environmental success story, Roth and Trumbore describe the scientific undertaking of Dr. Gordon H. Sato to save this little town in Africa with mangrove trees built for salty water. With fertilizer, the diligent hands of women villagers, and the hungry stomachs of sheep and goats, the mangrove trees' leaves plumped up the livestock, thus providing food and milk for the families.
This story is part cumulative tale (for younger listeners) and part fact-filled story (for older readers/listeners). The fact-filled story is told in a start-to-finish manner, including a lot of useful, scientific data. However, the large pictures are much more suited for the cumulative tale, which may leave listeners bored and unable to comprehend all the facts without a visual point of reference. The artwork is fun and textually intriguing. The afterword provides an excellent story of Gordon Soto, a glossary, and a pronunciation guide, perfect for school projects. Both authors showed an interest in the subject matter, but do not have expertise.
Cumulative tale may be good for felt storytelling.
The land in Hargigo, Eritrea, Africa is dry and dusty. With little rainfall, the livestock do not have enough to eat, leaving little meat and milk for the citizens. Part biography, part environmental success story, Roth and Trumbore describe the scientific undertaking of Dr. Gordon H. Sato to save this little town in Africa with mangrove trees built for salty water. With fertilizer, the diligent hands of women villagers, and the hungry stomachs of sheep and goats, the mangrove trees' leaves plumped up the livestock, thus providing food and milk for the families.
This story is part cumulative tale (for younger listeners) and part fact-filled story (for older readers/listeners). The fact-filled story is told in a start-to-finish manner, including a lot of useful, scientific data. However, the large pictures are much more suited for the cumulative tale, which may leave listeners bored and unable to comprehend all the facts without a visual point of reference. The artwork is fun and textually intriguing. The afterword provides an excellent story of Gordon Soto, a glossary, and a pronunciation guide, perfect for school projects. Both authors showed an interest in the subject matter, but do not have expertise.