Kiwi has a problem – he wants to pull the rope and he cannot reach it! Will the reader help? This interactive beginning reader is written with cartoon-like illustrations and word bubbles. The sentences are short and the words are accessible, while still moving the story along. Readers who enjoy Elephant & Piggie will giggle along with this fun story about an engaging, but helpless, little kiwi.
Review Submitted by OHS Student, Aleena L.
Elouise (Lou) is a girl on a mission to win over an already taken guy and prevent the closing of the amusement park she works at. Lou works in a hot dog suit at the park and tries to make her way through life with similar humor. This is a book that reveals common teenage problems while also keeping things light and humorous.
There is nothing particularly great about the author’s writing style or the storyline she works with. It is a book that readers will enjoy, but not remember. Students who like teenage drama and humor will enjoy this book.
Fifth graders Eddie, Aaron and their classmates from Liberty Falls Elementary School are on a field trip to the town’s famous inventor’s home – Minks’ Mansion. Eddie, a Minks descendant, has a plan and map. He wants to find hidden inventions that might help his family keep their home. The original Mr. Minks donated his mansion and inventions to the town of Liberty Falls when he died several generations ago. There is another mystery as well. Jessie overhears the tour guide and his helper talking about moving the inventions and believes they plan to steal everything. She just needs to convince her classmates that this is a real thing.
The students, their teacher and principal are touring the mansion and barn when a huge snowstorm hits and forces them to stay the night. Unfortunately, the group is split up and all the adults end up in the barn with a class, while the other class stays in the mansion without adult supervision. Not surprisingly, mayhem ensues. Students get lost, break inventions, scare each other, have a snowball fight and catch a couple of thieves…actually, an innocent tour guide and a principal.
In the end, there is a perfectly good explanation for everything, new friends are made and a mean girl gets her comeuppance. Along the way, the students discover their strengths and make some crazy discoveries of their own.
Each chapter is told in a student’s voice and switches between four different students: Eddie, Jessie, Chloie and Aaron. It takes some time to differentiate between the students. But, as the story unfolds, their voices are stronger and more easily determined. The adults are goofy and the terrible puns are somewhat painful. This is a light, humorous adventure, with a touch of mystery. Additional purchase
Doug receives a mysterious package in the mail and opens it to find a magical rhyming parrot. Everything is great while the parrot rhymes ‘Doug” with “mug” and Doug gets hot chocolate and “Doug” with “pug” and a puppy appears. But things get crazy when the rhyming words are “slug” (Doug turns into one) and “bug” (ditto). The rhyming mayhem continues until the end when the word is “snug” and Doug is pictured in his bed. Uh-oh, did the bird just add “…as a bug in a rug”? No wonder the last page shows the same mysterious package near his friend’s car. A gift, perhaps?
Cartoon like characters and a mix of word bubbles and narrative text make this book an enjoyable tool in teaching rhyming. It is one of many out there (Seuss, et al). So, buy it if you have extra money to spend to freshen up your collection of rhyming books.
Nick has some very special powers – he has super hearing and he is super smart. Unfortunately, his super hearing comes at a price…super big ears. And, those ears make him the brunt of schoolyard jokes and mean kids. His best friend, Tess, is always there to encourage and help Nick in any way she can, though.
Nick’s talents do not go unnoticed and he is recruited to be a sidekick…er, assistant…to Super Fantastic Guy, a brawny and not-so-bright superhero. Nick trains for his job and doesn’t quite get the flying part down. But, he uses his super intellect and hearing to fight crime alongside…er, behind….Super Fantastic Guy, who loves to take credit for their fabulous crime fighting.
Fortunately, Nick’s contribution is not totally unnoticed. A reporter spots the truth and gets a few digs in to Super Fantastic Guy, who doesn’t really get it until Tess changes part of his acceptance speech at a city ceremony and he reads the truth out loud. He also reads that he has poopy pants. Geez, can’t this superhero read ahead a bit? He acknowledges at the end that he might have deserved it, though. So, we have hope that Nick will get the accolades he deserves in the future.
The bright colors and quick pace of the story through the panels makes this a quick read and it should appeal to the Captain Underpants crowd in a big way. And, that’s no cliche! Highly recommended.
Who would have thought that bugs could be fun? Well, open this book of bug poetry and be prepared to laugh your way through a day of fun at insect school. These little critters are learning some important lessons in each poem. For example, Hiding from Spiders: Run, Don’t Count. “Teacher says, Don’t count their eyes, If you count eight- it’s too late.” And, the school motto is spot-on: “Never eat a friend at school”.
The short, rhyming poems with the accompanying humorous, multi-media illustrations are a perfect introduction to insects and poetry. The language is lively and is matched well to the actions of the buggy students and staff of this very unique school. Readers will giggle their way through a day at insect school. Add this book to your poetry collection to liven it up a bit. Highly Recommended
Super Max is your typical pretty boy superhero – big muscles, blond hair and an inflated sense of importance. Occasionally, he has to go to battle against Dr. Malevolent and always wins.
But, not this time…Dr. Malevolent has the ultimate weapon of destruction to use against humanity, snarky waiters and one vain superhero…a weapon that turns people into potatoes! And, he does just that after luring Super Max to his lair by stealing a priceless statue. Super Max is demoralized. He is now a tiny, hairless, insignificant potato. After crying for quite some time, he begins to walk home and is nearly hit by a truck but flies into the air in the nick of time. Flies? yes! He is a Super Potato!
So, Super Potato outfits himself in a doll size Super Max costume and wig, he heads back to Dr. Malevolent’s lair. He finally finds him wreaking havoc around town and turning everyone into potatoes, captures him, and breaks his evil potato weapon. He then forces Dr. Malevolent to create a de-potato-izing beam, which Dr. Malevolent actually makes into a super potato peeler (gasp). They battle fiercely until Super Potato causes an explosion and then saves Dr. Malevolent and sends him to jail.
This graphic novel is reminiscent of some of older cartoon of old with slapstick humor and over the top (funny) action. Readers will enjoy the fast pace and silly potato references. This is not the end of Super Potato. It is just the beginning…
This is the story of the first day of school for a classroom of students and their 4th grade teacher. Actually, it starts the night before when many students are in bed and Mr. Wolf is feverishly preparing his classroom for seventeen young minds. The story then moves on to the next day and all its trials and triumphs. The characters are anthropomorphized animals, but the reader will recognize the activities and characteristics of a normal human elementary school class.
Mr. Wolf is a new teacher and his day is full of firsts – his first introduction to his students, his first math pretest, his first planning time (library), his first staff room donut and his first lost (and found) student. Along the way, we share his thoughts (thought clouds) as he does a really good job with his first day with his own class.
His students are a multifaceted group, from the serious Aziza to the class clown Randy. There is also the new girl, Margot and the sleepy Penny (her baby brother keeps her awake at night). Readers will recognize themselves and their friends in this story.
The artwork is colorful and conveys the fast pace of the day. The details are fun and readers will laugh at Red Riding Hood book in Mr. Wolf’s hands and the rats that steal the lunch (walking down the hall in single file, each with a lunch item).
This is book one of a series and it should be popular. Readers will enjoy seeing a little of themselves in this story. Recommended
Cris and his cat, Crat, introduce some BIG new works in five small stories. Each story is stand-alone and uses a new big word, with pronunciation (and excitement) given by the ‘sprinklers’ who are assistants to the ‘sprinkle fairy’. Cris like things to move along in an orderly fashion while his cat, Crat, certainly does not. That is why we see words like bamboozle and discombobulate introduced.
The artwork is simple with a lot of white space, much like Elephant & Piggie books, although the text isn’t nicely confined to colored word bubbles. Although this book doesn’t have the giggle-inducing humor of the aforementioned E & P, it is a rather fun way to learn some awesome new words. additional purchase
The title invoked a colorful mix between science fiction and everyday life. The blurb addressed “not fitting in”, a concern for many middle schoolers and diversity in a small town.
The plot focuses on Chloe Cho who despite being extremely successful in everything she does is frustrated because she has no one to talk with about her cultural background. She is the only Korean girl in town, and her parents don’t talk about their heritage, so when a new teacher, also Korean, arrives, Chloe is anxious to learn from her. However, the plot twist comes when Chloe soon discovers more about her family than she ever wanted to know. Chloe struggles with the new knowledge and her status as “the best” at everything also suffers. In the end, Chloe has to come to terms with who she is and what it means to “fit in”.
The reader initially sympathizes with Chloe as a girl who is just trying to learn more about her background. However, through the plot twist, Chloe becomes harder to like, as her narrative becomes completely selfish. The reader starts to side with her parents. The plot twist does keep you on your toes, and Chloe’s reactions are normal for a teenager, it just would have been a more enjoyable read if Chloe had been a little more relatable.
If you enjoy realistic fiction with a science fiction twist, then Unidentified Suburban Object is the book for you!
S.H.
Tina Kugler has cre
ated an engaging beginning reader book. This book contains three short story that feature Snail and Worm. Snail is a happy, likable guy that is sometimes misguided in his understandings. Worm is more astute and is friends with Snail.
The repetitive words and phrases are enhanced by the colorful, simple drawings. The page layout is a mix of traditional full page with minimal text and multiple images with in-line text. Younger readers will laugh at the absurdity of Snail playing tag with a stick and a stone, but may miss the secondary joke concerning Snail’s speed. They will giggle as Snail climbs a flower that bends under his weight, leaving him 1/2 inch from the ground. Worm cheers him on as he makes the climb. “Wow, I can see so much from up here!” Snail exclaims. Worm responds, “I’m so proud of you.” What a supportive friend!
Snail & Worm will provide the beginning reader a sense of maturity as this book is a bit different than the traditional beginning readers in shape, layout and content. It will also offer the struggling older student a good choice without embarrassment.
Revenge of the Green Banana reads like a memoir and many aspects of the fictional tale are true, but the book is considered a work of fiction – historical, humorous, and realistic. The story begins in 1958 with Jim Murphy beginning the sixth grade. He is determined that this year will be different than all of the others. This year, he will change his ways and become a serious student who is dedicated to academic excellence. Unfortunately, the teachers at St. Stephen’s Catholic School are not privy to Jim’s transformation. Jim finds himself a student in Sister Angelica’s class. Jim soon learns that Sister Angelica has a file on him and a chip on her shoulder. Jim’s journey into academic and social excellence is short lived and quickly transforms into a revenge plot to destroy his new teacher. Along the journey of revenge, Jim learns important life lessons both in and out of school. He soon questions his desire to destroy this new teacher and isn’t sure how to change the course of action. Kids will get a nice chuckle out of this book.
This coming-of-age story is funny and realistic, and it deals with issues that tween girls face today.
Lia Rollins’ mother was killed in a car accident. The other driver was busy texting when he collided with her mother’s car. Lia is still grieving her mother and refuses to use a cell phone. Lia is part of a group of friends who have known each other since childhood. All of the girls are growing up and hitting puberty at different times. The changes – physical and emotional – take their toll on this once tightly knit group of friends.There is a lot of talk about getting your period, cramps, and wearing a bra. The girls are starting to notice boys, too. Most of Lia’s friends are starting summer vacation by attending the same camp. Lia chooses not to go, but to stay with her aunt Shelby, her mother’s sister, instead of attending summer camp with her friends. When summer is over and the girls return to school, there is tension in the air. The girls are growing up and going their separate ways based on interest and, in some cases, based on poor treatment of one another. Identities are being discovered and shaped, girls are pushing each other’s buttons, and their once strong friendship is fragmenting. Lia is at a crossroads with her friends and her feelings about herself, growing up and letting go. Lia’s family turns out to be a stronger support system than she realized, Lia discovers the meaning of friendship, and Lia learns that bodies change on their own schedule. Lia finally decides to get a cell phone and discovers that moving on doesn’t necessarily mean letting go.
Anna Huntley wakes up one day to find her entire world changed because her dad is dating the super famous actress, Helena Montaine. Anna is thrust into the celebrity world as an IT girl. Unfortunately for Anna, she is not a typical IT girl. She lacks the refinement, grace, and fashion sense of her to-be 17-year-old step sister, Marianne. In this humorous first installment, Anna must learn to be an IT girl. She learns that the image doesn’t make the person and she discovers the true meaning of friendship. This quirky character will bring a smile to your face. Readers who enjoy The IT Girl will easily slip into the humorous world of Louise Rennison’s Confessions of Georgia Nicolson Series.
Anna Huntley, Britain’s newest IT Girl, continues her zany adventure in this second installment of The IT Girl series. Anna continues to amuse and delight with her dog, DOG, her soon to be blended family, and her BFFs, Jess and Danny. The story picks up after spring break with Anna trying to prove that she is a girl of substance to her love interest, her classmates, and the world. Anna has an unexpected and unfortunate experience that lands her in a plant pot which happens to go viral on social media. Jess and Danny convince Anna that leading the school Puffin team to victory in track and field is just what she needs to restore her reputation and win Connor’s affection. Readers will laugh with Anna as she attempts to become a “sporty” person and sympathize with her when Connor starts spending time with the new girl, Stephanie.
The Bad Decisions Playlist is a wildly funny story of a sixteen-year-old stoner, slacker, kid Austin, who cannot seem to make even one smart decision. All he wants to do is get high while writing and playing music. He uses self-deprecating humor to joke his way out of situation after situation, until he gets into so much trouble that he’s about to be shipped off to military prep school. Fortunately for him, its at this moment that his long-lost dad Shane, who Austin thought was dead (according to Mom), shows up on his door step.
Shane is, in fact, a rock-star who seems to have passed on to Austin his music talent, and also his bad habits of drugs, dropping out, and screwing up.
Austin is pulled into his father’s world of show business, and has the readers laughing as they follow along as Austin plays through his list of bad decisions.
A fun graphic novel that early elementary will enjoy.
Johnny Mutton is a sheep who was raised as a boy because Momma had “weak eyes and a warm heart” so she didn’t even notice. Johnny has a spunky, positive, can-do attitude. Lessons on kindness and making friends are subtly slipped into the story lines. The Complete Adventures of Johnny Mutton is three books with five short stories in each. Young readers will enjoy how each book is wrapped up with a section titled “where are they now”. Also included in the book are two extras, a Q & A with the author (James Proimos) and a section titled “I Believe” with some cute and silly statements written by Johnny ( I believe….. bees sting out of love …. mittens run away from home…if you bow after you say something people will applaud…). Body humor, colorful kid-like drawings and silliness will appeal to both boys and girls. And perhaps the messages on kindness, friendship and just being a good person (or sheep) will sink in as well.
Isabella Antonelli is living a lie. She didn’t intend to deceive all of her classmates and friends at her new private school. But it happened and she didn’t work very hard to correct their false assumptions. Plus, she starred in a video series for her cousin for a class project that wasn’t supposed to be posted to the Internet. Her luck was such that not only did the video get posted, but it went viral. Which, of course, meant all of her friends and classmates found out that Isabella is not a contessa’s daughter but a regular girl who ends up being a pretty funny reality tv character.
The story starts with Isabella hiding away from news cameras. When she finally leaves her room, it is to try to come up with a way to convince her friends that she really is a contessa’s daughter. She is also dodging her family to avoid having to admit to her ongoing charade and lies. Ultimately, she fails at her deceit. She must face her friends and her family as the real Isabella.
The book is mostly text, but is enhances with cartoon sections to that mostly show Isabella’s active imagination. This is a quick read which will have readers chuckling from time to time.
The book “Tru & Nelle” written by G. Neri is interesting and great book. This fiction book combines couple genres. It’s mix of true story, mystery, adventure and historical facts. That makes this book interesting for readers.
When you read this book you fall into real friendship that starts from the childhood, and ends in adulthood. The main characters of this story are Tru (Truman Capote) and Nelle (Harper Lee). Tru is a seven year old boy, who came from New Orleans. His unreliable parents sent him to live for a couple years in “tiny town” of Monroeville, Alabama with his more caring relatives. Nelle is six, and she‘s always allowed to run by herself. She was born and lived in this small town Monroeville. In this story we can see how the friendship began between the city boy, Tru, who was out of place in this town, and a village girl, Nelle, who acts and looks like a tomboy. It shows us, that anyone could look and act very different, but also share a lot of interests, which bring them closer and results in real friendship. The same happens with the book’s main characters, Tru and Nelle, or as author called them “the prince and the pauper.” Even though they look different, they both share the same problems in their extraordinary families. They both love to read, especially the book “Sherlock Holmes,” which inspired these friends to have fun by creating their own investigations in a simple and boring town. When you are reading this book, you become a part of their mystery investigation team, trying to solve the robbery at the town’s drugstore. Although it takes you, as a reader, on many different adventures throughout this mystery, leading to a lot of fun and dangers along the way, like the threatening encounter with the Ku Klux Klan, or planing a high tension Halloween party. During this adventure, the children were daring and very funny the whole way through.
The author was very successful in demonstrating overall purpose of this book. He did a great job in describing the details of the town, families and their relationships, as well, as the people’s life. Especially in the short stories at the end of the book, that expend the overall story. They give us additional information about the main characters’ life in future with some picture.
I would recommend this book for children in elementary and middle school. Although, it’s also a great book for everyone, who enjoys intriguing adventure which is easy to read. I really enjoyed reading this book.
-Marianna
Florian Bates is not your typical 12 year old. True, he’s a seventh grader doing typical 7th grade activities: eating pizza and serving on the student council. His family recently relocated from Europe to Washington D.C. His mom works for an art museum and his dad’s in security. Florian meets and becomes friends with Margaret, a new neighbor who will be attending the same school as Florian in the fall, but this isn’t what sets him apart from other 12 year olds. Florian employs the power of observation to provide insight, explanation, and anticipation. Florian calls his observational skills T.O.A.S.T. which means, Theory of All Small Things. He teaches T.O.A.S.T. to Margaret and they practice this observational technique with friends and family and in numerous different locations. Florian and Margaret stumble upon clues that become important in solving a crime. Florian is secretly employed by the FBI to help solve the crime. This mystery is funny and suspenseful with enough twist and turns to keep the pages turning at a quick clip. A recommended who-done-it for mystery readers!
A hilarious remake of the story about a reindeer named Rudy and how he helps Santa at Christmas. Written as a rhyming poem with consistent cadence and some repeating phrases, it is a good book for beginning readers. The book has multiple, colorful ways of describing flatulence and my favorite is the use of “trump”. Eating too many sprouts can have unexpected results. Read aloud, this book will have everyone laughing!
Third in the series of Mr. Pants books, Trick or Feet is as funny and entertaining as the other books.
It’s Halloween and all Mr. Pants and his siblings, Foot Foot and Grommy, want is to get lots of candy and play zombie tag. But their plans are ruined when they get stuck in the airport because of bad weather. All is not lost when Mom saves the situation and hilarity ensues.
From an elementary school librarian’s point of view, this is a book series that will be destroyed from overuse – a very good thing. Children will identify with the antics of the three siblings. For readers who want chapter books (but who may not be ready for the “real thing”) these books will be a good transitional choice.
Bottom line: full color, engaging, humorous and worth buying the series for your young readers.
A fractured fairy tale that shows us Snow White as a very chatty, forgetful sort. Staying mainly on course for the plot line, Loewen gives us a different look at Snow and Prince Charming too. The story is told by Seven (Snow can’t remember the dwarfs names but can remember their designated number). He tells a tale of how Snow came to live with the seven dwarfs and how it takes the Queen three attempts to finally curse Snow (with the spell she casts in the traditionally version of the story). But no yucky kissing to break the spell, no sir. The spell is broken by an unfortunate slip and the possibility of some lunch.
Nicely illustrated by Gerald Guerlais. Children will enjoy concentrating on the pictures during a read aloud. Independent readers may linger a bit longer on each page just to absorb the content of the drawings.
Binky the cat and Gordie the dog are panicked as their humans pack suitcases for a trip. Suitcases can only mean one thing – their humans are leaving them behind! They are told not to worry, that they’ll be in a pet hotel and their friend Gracie the cat will be with them. But, horror of horrors, the pet hotel turns out to be boarding at the vet clinic! The trio hatch a plan of escape only to tumble into trouble with Professor Tuffy – a cat who has a grudge against humans and a plan to get even with them.
This graphic novel is drawn in muted tones, is easy for young readers to follow the sequence of panels and is a fun read. The addition of many different sound effects will have readers giggling as they read and the story line will make them read without wanting to put this book down.
This is book five in the Binky Adventure series. Spires nails the cat-titude that every cat lover will be able to identify with.
A boy had a pet fly.
Right from the very first sentence we know that Arnold will take us on a whimsical adventure. After all, how many people relish the idea of a pet fly?
The boy’s name is buzz, which is very convenient for Fly Guy as he can easily pronounce his best buddy’s name!
This is book #12 in the series. We find Buzz and his family are on vacation. As the family goes to lunch at the hotel restaurant, Fly Guy goes to lunch in the hotel trash. Gross humor ensues (he is a fly of course) that most kids will find very funny. After he gets all yucky and covered with garbage, he decides he needs a bath. The unfortunate use of a diner’s soup as his bath cause a lot of commotion and mess.
Young readers cannot get enough of Fly Guy and Buzz. Like the other titles in this series, this book will also be in high demand.
