Compelling writing, and a good protagonist, who is neither too naive nor too informed. I'm not totally convinced by the world-building, mostly because I want the 500 words. Where is my List? Also because John Noa is too perfect a bad guy. Where is his motivation? It doens't make much sense. Still, I enjoyed this as a gentle dystopia, perfect for our younger readers who might not be ready for the more heavy-hitting works that are bordering on YA, but would like to explore the world of dystopias in a way that is solidly mid-grade.

In a way that could be great or could be annoying, this book has a number of recipes on varying levels of difficulty. For example, a recipe for avocado toast using coexists with a recipe for gyoza, the Japanese dumpling, complete with making the dough form scratch. This could mean that the age range for the book is large and kids can engage at a number of levels, but I could also see it being frustrating to a young child to be able to complete some recipes and be thwarted by others.

The images, however, are terrific. And I love that many of the recipes are visual as well as written out.

This is a VERY important book to exist in the world. I do have a few minor quibbles with it, but on the whole I don't think I've seen another book as clear and detailed as this, and it's very well done.

My quibbles:
- Page 24 is the very first mention of consent being somethign that other people have, that oyu need to respect, as opposed to it only being about you and your body. Once it's introduced, it's done well, but I think this concept should have been in the opening pages.
- At one point two characters agree to pain their faces blue. The color is clearly green, or perhaps teal. Just change the wording to match the printing, it's not that hard. It's a little detail, but it irked me.
- Inappropriate touch is mentioned, but not elaborated upon. I think that's ok...but the last page says "there are some things kids can't consent to" without any further detail at all. If I were a kid I would find this perplexing. If I had trusted adults to ask, that would be great, but not all kids do. And some adults might think a kid asking such a question is inappropriate. I understand that the author didn't want to get into heavy things, but I think it's better to either not say anything or to say something substantive.

So so sweet

I love the mingling of scientific process with magical creatures. Theories are proven and disproven, experiments are set up with controls, and little factoids about real animals are thrown in as well. Reminds me of Doc McStuffins, with magical creatures instead of toys.

Top notch, and hits the edge between easy reader and early chapter book quite well. I will say that for some reason the suspense of having the duchess waiting back at the castle was too much for my little, and we had to skip to the end to find out what happened. On the whole though, the conflict is gentle in a wonderfully sweet way.

The vocabulary is a bit heavy for an early chapter book, but the message of friendship and not needing to win is spot on. Side plot mystery was fun as well, and also upped the complexity of the read. I would only hand this to an early reader who is almost ready to move into midgrade fiction, or someone who is reading with support.

Kind of perfectly what i needed right now. A fantasy quest, following the tried and true form to the letter. There is nothing extraordinarily inventive here, but neither does anything feel derivative. The world is well built and convincing, and character portrayal just the right combination of simple and realistic. I look forward to reading a sequel, should it be written in the future. Would hand to any fantasy lover, or adventure seeker.

Love this world. And the second book is totally different from the first, which is delightful.