Book Review - 13 Words by Lemony Snicket

13 Words by Lemony Snicket

My rating: 1 of 5 stars


Bird - Despondent - Cake. These are words Lemony Snicket uses in his new picture book 13 Words.

Okay - enough said about the book's premise. I did not like this book. Mainly I do not think it should be a picture book. At least that is where our cataloger chose to place it. The book actually gave me the creeps. The bird is despondent. It reminds me of the Raven of Poe fame. The pictures are colorful but remind me of an Edvard Munch painting. (Think The Scream.) I don't believe children will appreciate or even get the imagery presented by way of a book on a table by Kafka or an angel playing a tambourine. I don't even understand some of it.

My recommendation for this book is - give it a miss.



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Book Review - Daily Comet: Boy Saves Earth From Giant Octopus! by Frank Asch

Daily Comet, The: Boy Saves Earth from Giant Octopus! by Frank Asch

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


It is "Go to Work with a Parent Day" for Hayward Palmer and he is accompanying his father for the day. His father is the lead reporter for the Daily Comet, a less then believable tabloid. As Hayward tags along with his dad on various news stories, he soon realizes that maybe the Daily Comet is not so fake as he believes.
This is a wonderfully written and illustrated story for kids and adults alike. I was delighted to find "old friends" in the illustrations. I must admit that I am a big tabloid reader. Not the National Inquirer tabloid, but the World Wide News. The "newspaper" that brought us such greats as Bat Boy and "I Was Bigfoot's Love Slave." Adults reading this book can find all kinds of allusions to tabloid stories in the past. Kids will love this book for the funny, fantastic story and adults will love it for the wonderful illustrations and tongue-in-cheek poke at the tabloids we all peek at in the grocery aisle.



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Book Review - The Plumply, Dumply Pumpkin by

Plumply, Dumply Pumpkin by Mary Serfozo

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Peter is looking for the perfect pumpkin. The perfect plumply, dumply pumpkin. Is it for pumpkin pickles? Or pumpkin stew? What will Peter do with his plumply, dumply pumpkin once he finds it?
This is a wonderful read aloud book for young children. The pictures are bright and eye catching. The rhyming of the words used to describe the different types of pumpkins Peter finds in the patch make even the reader laugh.
I recommend this book for children from 3 to 7. But I must say, it was fun to read aloud too!



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Book Review - Scat by Carl Hiaasen

Scat by Carl Hiaasen

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Mrs. Starch is the most feared teacher at Truman School. When Mrs. Starch mysteriously disappears on a class field trip to a nature preserve, Nick and Marta become suspicious about a classmate’s involvement. The suspected student, Smoke, argued with the Mrs. Starch just days before the trip, leading everyone to believe that he was involved. What follows is a “whodunit” that reveals there’s more to this story than just a simple case of a missing person. Nick and Marta uncover a deeper story about a shady wannabe Texas oilman and his intentions for the swamp.
I am a big, big fan of Hiaasen's work, both adult and teen. His quirky characters are wonderful to read about and there is a clear line between the good and the bad. As with his adult novels, his "bad guys" are usually messing with the ecology of Florida, putting building and development above the endangered flora and fauna of the region. This time we encounter the elusive Florida panther, considered endangered since 1967. If this book does nothing else, this book will make you laugh as the insanity surmounts.



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Book Review - Spoon by Amy Krause Rosenthal

Spoon by Amy Krouse Rosenthal

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Spoon has been feeling a little down. Even though he has a great family with lots of interesting relatives (his great-grandmother ran away with a dish), he just feels a little left out. His friend Knife gets to cut things. His friend Fork gets to go everywhere. Neither of them ever gets stir crazy like Spoon. But maybe things for Spoon are not so bad. Spoon might just be surprised at what his friends think of his life.

I really enjoyed this book. It is a great read aloud. It carries a message inside of an interesting story so the kids don't know they are learning about accepting themselves just the way they are. Amy Krause Rosenthal's books each carry a little lesson placed carefully inside a fun book for the kids. I recommend this books as well as her books Little Pea, Little Oink & Little Owl.

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Read Your Own Books #2

Okay so I went over to 25 Hour Books, a blog I was directed to by Mel, and found some interesting help for my book addiction.

#1 - I need to figure out what I own. I have been known to buy the same book 2 or 3 times.
#2 - Having a good friend - in this case Mel - who will keep you on the straight and narrow.
#3 - Realizing the wonderful book I saw on the shelf at the library will be here for a while. Read what I have & let someone else have first crack at it.
#4 - Admitting I have an addiction in the first place. I know I would be happy in a room surrounded by books with nothing but a comfy chair and some chips (and a Dr. Pepper too!) I could survive that way for a long time as long as you keep the chips and Dr. Pepper coming. I even think going to jail would not be so bad if they allowed me to have all the books I could read! That is how addicted I am. I measure every bad situation with "I could do it if I had a book."

This month will be tough but I am going to make it and break this addiction!

Read Your Own Books

I have joined Mel's Read Your Own Books challenge. Here are my rules: 1) Do not buy, nor check-out, any new books for the month of August; 2) Finish reading the 11 books that I have started and gotten "a part" of the way through; 3) maybe even carry this into September; 4) Do not add any new holds to my hold list until it is shorter; & 5) review more books! So you can join Mel's Read too - just click on the button to the side here. Wish me luck!