MORE 'REVIEWS' POSTS
(CONTINUED FROM PART ONE) I’ve heard some people complain that this book is too blatant with its incomprehensible 1962 references and props. For example, Rex lives in a home that he has named the House of Punch, due to the overabundance of old Punch magazines currently littering the basement below. Or there are his multiple […]
What Will Fat Cat Sit On? By Jan Thomas Harcourt $12.95 ISBN: 9780152060510 Ages: 4-8 On shelves now Every reviewer I know of lives by a set of self-imposed rules and regulations regarding the books they choose to willingly review of their own free will. My rules include the following stipulation: "The Reviewer will make […]
Ellie McDoodle: Have Pen, Will Travel By Ruth McNally Barshaw Bloomsbury $11.95 ISBN: 978-1582347455 Ages: 8-12 On shelves now As far as I can tell, there’s no known solution to the problem of being an adult reviewer who reviews children’s books from an adult perspective. I don’t care how immature you are or how stuck […]
(CONTINUED FROM PART ONE) The temptation here is to call this book something trite like, "Diary of a Wimpy Kid but for girls!" or some such nonsense. Don’t get me wrong. I loved "Diary of a Wimpy Kid too, but I am of the firm belief that, like this book, it is a title that […]
Howtoons: The Possibilities Are Endless By Saul Griffith and Joost Bonsen Art by Nick Dragotta Harper Collins $15.99 ISBN: 978-0060761585 Ages 9 and up On shelves now Just this past summer my brother-in-law and sister-in-law were in town for a brief little vacation. Whenever relatives come to visit you in New York you end up […]
The Lonely Moose By John Segal Hyperion $15.99 ISBN: 978-1423101734 Ages 4-8 On shelves now Sometimes I try to begin a review of a children’s book with some kind of quick association or personal recollection. Other times I’m stumped. Today, looking at the copy of "The Lonely Moose" sitting cheerily at my side, I am […]
The Coyote Road: Trickster Tales Edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling Illustrations by Charles Vess Viking Juvenile $19.99 ISBN 978-0670061945 Ages 12 and up Is it just me, or do short story collections get the short end of the stick these days? With a love of child and YA novels at an all-time high, […]
(CONTINUED FROM PART ONE) Some authors had an easier time with the assignment than others. Patricia McKillip’s story is good, but I didn’t quite see how the main character embodied the trickster aesthetic, aside from just being a person who tricks people. McKillip herself notes in that she found writing about tricksters to be "very […]
The Bearskinner: A Tale of the Brothers Grimm By Laura Amy Schlitz Illustrated by Max Grafe Candlewick Press $16.99 ISBN: 9780763627300 Ages 7-12 One shelves now For the reviewer that reviews for pleasure, every book that sits on your lap has to prove itself to some extent. Even the world’s shortest picture book is an […]
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow By Gris Grimly Atheneum (S&S imprint) $16.99 ISBN: 978-1416906254 Ages 5 and up On shelves now You ever get that feeling where a book comes out and your immediate reaction is, “WELL, IT’S ABOUT BLOODY TIME!”? I tend to get this feeling only about books that it never would have […]