Review of The Lions of Little Rock, by Kristin Levine

Children's Fiction Review, Historical, Starred Review 0

The Lions of Little Rock

by Kristin Levine

G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 2012. 298 pages.
Starred Review

This book is set in Little Rock in 1958. The schools have been ordered to integrate, and a few bold teens forced the issue. So now the mayor responds by closing the high school.

Marlee’s sister Judy is going into eleventh grade, so she’s going to have to go away to be able to go to school, leaving Marlee on her own. Marlee has a lot of fears. She doesn’t like to talk. Not to other people, anyway. But then a new girl comes to her middle school, and Marlee makes a wonderful new friend, a friend who helps her speak up and face the things she’s afraid of.

Marlee caught my sympathy early, because she uses numbers to steady herself. I also enjoyed her way of looking at the people in her life:

You see, to me, people are like things you drink. Some are like a pot of black coffee, no cream, no sugar. They make me so nervous I start to tremble. Others calm me down enough that I can sort through the words in my head and find something to say.

My brother, David, is a glass of sweet iced tea on a hot summer day, when you’ve put your feet up in a hammock and haven’t got a care in the world. Judy is an ice-cold Coca-Cola from the fridge. Sally is cough syrup; she tastes bad, but my mother insists she’s good for me. Daddy’s a glass of milk, usually cold and delicious, but every once in a while, he goes sour. If I have to ask one of my parents a question, I’ll pick him, because Mother is hot black tea, so strong, she’s almost coffee.

When Marlee’s new friend Liz turns out to be black, trying to pass for white, Marlee’s life turns upside-down. She has to examine things like true friendship, what’s right and what’s wrong, as well as facing her fears.

This novel about civil rights isn’t quite like any other I’ve read. It works just as well as a novel about a girl learning to face her fears and examine her friendships as much as it works to cast light on a particular time in history.

kristinlevine.com
penguin.com/youngreaders

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Childrens_Fiction/lions_of_little_rock.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library book from the Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I write the posts for my website and blogs entirely on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Please use the comments if you’ve read the book and want to discuss spoilers!

Review of Grave Mercy, by Robin LaFevers

Fantasy, Historical, Paranormal, Romance, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 2

Grave Mercy

His Fair Assassin, Book I

by Robin LaFevers

Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2012. 509 pages.
Starred Review

Wow. This book reminded me of The Canterbury Papers, full of medieval palace intrigue, but this had supernatural powers thrown in.

The book is set in Brittany, beginning in 1485. Ismae has been told from birth that the scar she was born with, from the midwife’s poison failing, marks her as the daughter of Death himself, an ancient Breton god now called St. Mortain. When the man her father sold her to sees the scar, he is going to have her burned, but she is rescued by strangers and sent to the convent of St. Mortain.

At the convent, Ismae learns the special powers she has as the daughter of St. Mortain. She can see a mark on a person who is going to die. Poison does not harm her. She can see a person’s soul when it leaves his body. Also at the convent, they train her to be an assassin.

“If you choose to stay, you will be trained in His arts. You will learn more ways to kill a man than you imagined possible. We will train you in stealth and cunning and all manner of skills that will ensure no man is ever again a threat to you.”

Three years later, Ismae is ready for her first assignments. But now there is political trouble, and Brittany is in danger of being swallowed up by France. Ismae is sent to the court of the duchess herself, ordered to pose as the mistress of Duval, the duchess’s half-brother.

But at court, things don’t turn out as Ismae has been led to believe they will. Those she was told to be suspicious of seem kind and seem to have the Duchess’s best interests at heart. Those she is supposed to trust seem suspicious. What is right?

Meanwhile, there’s plenty of action and adventure. There are surprise attacks and deaths that Ismae had nothing to do with. And the duchess must marry soon, preferably to someone who can bring an army to her cause. Along the way, slowly and exquisitely, we see Ismae’s heart being won by a good man.

Here’s the situation as it’s laid out before Ismae leaves the convent:

Crunard spreads his hands. “Then you know it is true. The circling vultures grow bold. The regent of France has forbidden that Anne be crowned duchess. It is our enemies’ wish to make her France’s ward so that they may claim Brittany for their own. They also claim the right to determine who she will marry.”

Duval begins pacing. “Spies are everywhere. We can scarce keep track of them all. The French have set up a permanent entourage within our court, which has made some of the border nations uneasy.”

Crunard adds, “Not to mention that their presence makes it impossible to see Anne anointed as our duchess without their knowledge. But until we place that coronet upon her head before her people and the Church, we are vulnerable.”

I cannot help but feel sympathy for our poor duchess. “Surely there is some way out of this mess?”

I have addressed my question to the abbess, but it is Duval who answers. “I will forge one with my bare hands, if need be,” he says. “I vow that I will see her duchess, and I will see her safely wed. But I need information against our enemies if I am to accomplish this.”

The room falls so silent that I fear they will hear the pounding of my heart. Duval’s vow has moved me, and that he has made it on sacred ground proves he is either very brave or very foolish.

This is one book I was very happy to see called Book One. The story in this book does come to a satisfying conclusion, but I want to come back to this world. This book would be excellent if it only had the medieval intrigue and romance, but with the paranormal elements added in, there’s extra satisfaction seeing Ismae’s power far beyond what you’d normally expect of a woman in the fifteenth century.

robinlafevers.com
hmhbooks.com

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Teens/grave_mercy.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on an Advance Reader Copy I got at an ALA conference and checked against a library book from the Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I write the posts for my website and blogs entirely on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Please use the comments if you’ve read the book and want to discuss spoilers!

Review of Z is for Moose, by Kelly Bingham

Animal Characters, Delightfully Silly, Picture Book Review, Starred Review 0

Z Is For Moose

by Kelly Bingham
pictures by Paul O. Zelinsky

Greenwillow Books, 2012. 32 pages.
Starred Review

Alphabet Books are necessary preparation for a child learning to read, but they definitely have the potential to be snoozers. Here’s the most innovative alphabet book since Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.

Just before the title page we get a glimpse of all the animals and objects lined up in order, ready to go, with Zebra in charge. But Moose is excited and exuberant, and not really paying attention to Zebra’s directions. He’s the one lifting the curtain that gives us our first glimpse of the performers. After the title page, with the characters still in line, he’s poking the Lollipop with the Needle.

Things start innocently and calmly, looking like a perfectly ordinary alphabet book. Then we see “D is for Moose,” with Moose standing proudly, and a frantic Duck behind, obviously kicked off the page. Zebra tells Moose, “Moose does not start with D. You are on the wrong page.”

Moose pops in on H is for Hat, getting right in front of the camera, asking “Is it my turn yet?” The H is blocked, but the savvy child will cleverly figure out exactly what it said.

Moose continues to lurk behind or in the pictures, getting more and more excited as M draws near. Then…

“M is for Mouse”

This definitely gets a reaction. Moose throws a fit; he tries to get in the remaining pictures, and Zebra has to block him. Finally, he’s in despair — until Zebra comes up with a lovely solution. On the back endpapers, Moose asks Zebra, “Can we do that again?”

“Yes, Moose. We can do that again.”

I have no doubt at all that most preschoolers will take that as permission to start the book over again immediately.

The book has many, many details that will reward further reading. Spotting the alphabetical objects in order even when Moose gets in the way will keep children busy through many readings.

Delightful fun.

kellybinghamonline.com
paulozelinsky.com
harpercollinschildrens.com

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Picture_Books/z_is_for_moose.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library book from the Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I write the posts for my website and blogs entirely on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Review of The Mighty Mars Rovers, by Elizabeth Rusch

Children's Nonfiction Review, Science, Starred Review 0

The Mighty Mars Rovers

The Incredible Adventures of Spirit and Opportunity

by Elizabeth Rusch

Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, Boston, 2012. 80 pages.
Starred Review

This book is part of the Scientists in the Field, and focuses on a particular scientist behind the project to first send rovers onto Mars. The book is riveting, informative, and of course, timely. Though it went to press before Curiosity reached Mars, it tells about the planned landing and will make readers want to find out more, and what’s going on right now.

The scientist whose dream is the focus of this book is Steven Squyres. In a brief introductory chapter, they tell about his career that brought him to the Mars Rover mission. He actually thought for awhile of becoming a geologist — which led directly to his interest in having a robot on the ground in Mars to study the planet directly.

He ended up writing proposals for a Mars rover for eight years and for eight years got refused. But he didn’t give up, and was eventually given three years to build two rovers to send to Mars.

The book tells about every step of the mission, with a multitude of photographs or artist’s renderings along the way. It’s all explained clearly. Here’s an example:

Steve and Pete considered how each decision would affect every other. For example, the scientists wanted to put as many instruments on the rover as possible: cameras, microscopes, drills, and a weather station. Engineers had to design solar panels large enough to power all the instruments. But if the rover got too big, it wouldn’t fit in the lander (the case that would protect the rover during landing). Even worse, if the rover and the lander got too heavy, the whole spacecraft would crash.

Steve and his team added instruments and cut instruments. Engineers redesigned solar panels again and again. As the parts were built, engineers tested them. Too often, parts failed. Electronics malfunctioned. Cable cutters designed to set the rovers free from their landers didn’t work properly. Parachutes responsible for slowing the rovers down as they careened toward the surface fluttered in the wind and ripped to shreds. Airbags that were supposed to cushion the fall of the rovers onto the surface of Mars tore.

If the parts didn’t work, how would the team ever get the rovers to work?

The book goes through the missions to Mars and how each rover landed in a different spot. Elizabeth Rusch explains how the rovers were operated once they landed on Mars and the many different obstacles they faced. She explains the process the scientists went through trying to decide if Opportunity could climb down into a crater and how they worked to rescue the rovers when they got stuck in the Martian sand.

The author beautifully communicates the stunning accomplishments of the Mars rover mission team. She sums up in her final chapter:

Steve and his team of scientists and engineers expected the rovers to last three months, tops. Spirit and opportunity endured for more than six years — and scientists are still counting. These little machines explored a record-breaking 25 miles (44 km) of Mars’s surface and snapped more than a quarter of a million photos there, including 360-degree views of hills, plains, and craters. They became so much more than rovers. They did the work of geologists, meteorologists, chemists, photographers, mountain climbers, and crater trekkers. . . .

“What connects all this for me is that I simply love to explore,” Steve said. “I love doing something nobody else has done, going someplace no one has ever been, discovering stuff no one has ever seen.”

This book communicates the magnificence of human endeavor in science, along with nitty-gritty details. It shows how real people can do what it takes to learn things humans never knew before.

elizabethrusch.com
marsrover.nasa.gov
hmhbooks.com

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Childrens_Nonfiction/mighty_mars_rovers.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library book from the Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I write the posts for my website and blogs entirely on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Review of Finnikin of the Rock, by Melina Marchetta

Fantasy, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 0

Finnikin of the Rock

by Melina Marchetta

Candlewick Press, 2010. First published in Australia in 2008. 399 pages.
Starred Review

I didn’t read Finnikin of the Rock when it came out, though I had fully intended to. I loved Melina Marchetta’s earlier book, Looking for Alibrandi, and now she was writing fantasy, my favorite genre? Of course I had to read it! I’m not quite sure why I didn’t get around to it, but now that some of my fellow bloggers are excited about the sequel to Finnikin of the Rock, I decided I would have to remedy that situation.

Finnikin of the Rock is a complex, richly woven fantasy tale. And Melina Marchetta pulls this off. I usually prefer simpler, fairytale-like stories, which is one reason I tend to prefer young adult fantasy books over fantasy books written for adults. But again, Melina Marchetta writes in such a way that overcomes this prejudice.

The situation is complicated, and full of pain for the participants. Ten years ago, after a horrible conquest by the cousin of the king, the land of Lumaterre was cursed. No one could get into or out of Lumaterre.

As it says in the Prologue:

This is the story, as told to those not born to see such days, recorded in The Book of Lumaterre so they will never forget.

The story of those trapped inside the kingdom, never to be heard from again, and those who escaped but were forced to walk the land in a diaspora of misery.

Until ten years later, when Finnikin of Lumatere climbed another rock. . .

Finnikin is the son of the man who was the king’s general, who is now imprisoned. Finnikin was a friend of the children of the royal family, who were killed in the slaughter before the curse struck. Or at least most think they were killed. Rumor has it that Balthazar, the king’s son, escaped.

Now Finnikin, who travels with the king’s First Man, has heard that a novice in the shrine to Sagami claims to walk through the sleep of the people trapped inside Lumatere, and, more importantly, through the sleep of Balthazar, the heir. They collect her and travel with her, in hopes of finding Balthazar and breaking the curse.

Their journey has many twists and turns and many surprises. There are lies and double-crosses as well as surprising loyalties. They travel through many different dangerous lands before they can tackle the curse. And we learn more and more about the horrible things that have happened outside and inside Lumatere in the last ten years.

Finnikin of the Rock does stand alone well, but it also leaves the reader wanting more. How can they possibly hope to heal so many wrongs done? In some ways, I’m glad I waited to read this book, because I can start right in on Froi of the Exiles.

Although this is fantasy, there’s not a lot of magic floating around. There are two goddesses worshiped by the Lumaterans, Lagrami and Sagrami, aspects of one goddess. A priestess of Sagrami is the one who cursed the kingdom with a blood curse when she was burned at the stake. Now the novice, Evanjalin, claims a gift from the goddess is what enables her to walk the sleep.

But mostly, this separate world enables the author to talk about people without a homeland and how they are treated without encountering any prejudice as might happen if she used people from our world. The truths are universal, and the people are flawed in places but also shining brightly in places, just like people in our world today.

This is an epic tale with many nuances and food for thought. As I write this, I have begun Froi of the Exiles, and this is the sort of book where reading the next one increases your appreciation for the first. The groundwork has been laid well, when I didn’t even realize how much groundwork was being laid. I’m definitely glad I’m taking on this saga.

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Teens/finnikin_of_the_rock.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library book from the Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I write the posts for my website and blogs entirely on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Please use the comments if you’ve read the book and want to discuss spoilers!

Review of Ghost Knight, by Cornelia Funke

Adventure, Audiobooks, Children's Fiction Review, Fantasy, Starred Review 0

Ghost Knight

by Cornelia Funke
read by Elliot Hill

Originally published in German in 2011.
English translation by Oliver Latsch, Random House, 2012.
Listening Library, 2012. 5 hours on 4 compact discs.
Starred Review

I’m a sucker for a good British accent, and Elliot Hill is simply marvellous at reading this audiobook. I’m not sure I would have enjoyed the book as much if I had read it myself, since I’m not a big fan of ghost stories. But Elliot Hill started off with the pitch-perfect voice of a British schoolboy angry with his potential stepfather “The Beard,” and sent off to boarding school in Salisbury. (And be sure you hear “Salisbury” in your head with a British accent!)

There’s wonderful atmosphere. The school is located in an old Bishop’s Palace, and the Cathedral is haunted by some of the knights buried there. But right away, Jon Whitcroft finds out he’s in trouble. A horrible ghost with a rope around his neck comes with four servants and they are after Jon, calling him “Hartgill,” his mother’s maiden name. It turns out that dead lord was executed for murdering a Hartgill centuries before.

Only Jon can see the ghosts, and he’s in trouble until one of his schoolmates — the only one who believes him — suggests that he ask a dead knight for help. Though it’s not as simple as Jon hopes.

Like I said, I’m not a huge fan of ghost stories. But many children are, and this one would make a fabulous family listen-along. You’ve got a likable 11-year-old kid caught in the middle of truly scary adventures with historical overtones. And did I mention the wonderful British accents?

listeninglibrary.com

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Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Childrens_Fiction/ghost_knight.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library audiobook from the Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I write the posts for my website and blogs entirely on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Please use the comments if you’ve read the book and want to discuss spoilers!

Sonderling Sunday – Book of a Thousand Days – Day 6

Sonderling Sunday 0

It’s time for Sonderling Sunday — that time of the week when I play with language by looking at handy-dandy phrases translated into German — from children’s books. You do not have to understand German, nor do you have to have read the books in question, in order to enjoy this. You simply have to be a little bit of a Sonderling — a little nerdy.

Today I’m going back to Shannon Hale‘s Book of a Thousand Days, Buch der Tausend Tage.

Last time, we left off on Day 6 of the 1000 Days of the title. This section begins on page 5 of the English original, and Seite 17 in the German version, but the German version counted all the front matter, and the English didn’t.

So, let’s start off with phrases you’re sure to want to use:

“dried and salted mutton” = getrocknetem und gesalzenem Hammelfleisch

I just like the sound of this one:
“boxes of candles” = Kisten mit Kerzen

“a stack of parchment” = einen Haufen Pergament

“flat barleycakes” = flachen Gerstenkuchen

“fresh mare’s milk” = frischer Stutenmilch

“crude term” = grobe Wort (not grosse but grobe. Interesting.)

“wrapped in dough” = in Teig gewickelt

“cooked on coals” = auf Kohlen gegart

“beautiful and bright” = schön und strahlend

“dried peas” = Dörrerbsen

“raisins” = Rosinen

“pinch of sugar” = Prise Zucker

“Delicious” = Köstlich

“lady’s maid” = Dienerinnendasein (Google: “servant be there inside”)

“then you’ll never hear me complain” = wird keine Klage mehr über meine Lippen kommen (“will no action over my lips come”)

Here’s a good one!
“Even so, she swears she’s starving.” = Dennoch schwört sie Stein und Bein, sie wäre am Verhungern. (“She swears she’s stone and bone from hunger.”)

Interesting, the translator didn’t translate this exactly.
English: “The mouth grumbles more than the stomach, my mama used to say.”
Translation: Die Augen sind grö?er als der Mund, hat meine Mama immer gesagt. That means “The eyes are bigger than the mouth,” which isn’t really the same thing at all.

I will go on with phrases from Day 11:

Here’s a phrase as lovely in German as in English:
“It tosses and bobs like a spring foal.” = Sie zuckt und ruckt wie ein Frühlingsfohlen.

“floating fevers” = Schlammfieber (“mud fever”)

“still in two braids” = noch zwei Zöpfe trug

“summer pastures” = Sommerweiden

“the hopping tune for buried pain” = die trällernde Weise für begrabene Schmerzen

“a lady in fits” = eine Dame mit Weinkrämpfen

“calluses” = Schwielen

“What a strange and wondrous time it was.” = Was für eine seltsame und erstaunliche Zeit war das!

“the secret language of ink strokes” = die Geheimsprache der Tintenstriche

Here’s a figure of speech that we saw last week in Der Orden der Seltsamen Sonderlinge! I still love it:
“when I tossed on my mattress” = wenn ich mich auf der Matratze wälzte (Google says that just means “I rolled on my mattress,” but I think it’s pretty clear that’s where we got the word “waltz,” so I much prefer to think of it as meaning “I waltzed on my mattress.”)

“mostly” = im Gro?en und Ganzen (“in the big and all”)

I’ve mentioned this one before, I know, but I like it so much:
“shriveled” = eingeschrumpelt

“ginger roots” = Ingwerwurzeln

“a world to do their bidding” = eine Welt, die nach seiner Pfeife tanzt (“a world that dances to their pipe”)

That’s all for tonight! Some fun ones. Can you use these phrases in a sentence? Or maybe let us know how they’d be translated into some other language? Have we hit on any interesting turns of phrase in some other language? How would you translate “It tosses and bobs like a spring foal,” “the secret language of ink strokes,” or “the hopping tune for buried pain”? Well, I’m going to eat something before I become Stein und Bein. (Ha! As if there’s danger of that!) Ah! Was für eine seltsame und erstaunliche Zeit war das!

Review of Goliath, by Scott Westerfeld

Adventure, Alternate History, Audiobooks, Science Fiction, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 3

Goliath

by Scott Westerfeld
read by Alan Cumming

Simon & Schuster Audio, 2011. 9 CDs, 10 hours, 30 minutes.
Starred Review

I finally read, that is, listened to, the concluding volume of the Leviathan trilogy. Although each book does have a reason to be an individual book and the separate episodes are distinct, this is not a trilogy where you’d want to start anywhere but the beginning. So go back and read Leviathan and then Behemoth!

The narration is well done, and I recognized the voices back from when I listened to the first book. There were times when I did get tired of the breathless pace, but I think that was more a function of the writing and it fitting the style of WWI adventure novels. I’d just take a breather between CDs and then be willing to listen again. And to be fair, once I got more than halfway, I couldn’t wait at all between CDs, but was eagerly popping the next one in immediately.

This trilogy provides an alternate steampunk history of World War I, where the Darwinists, who use genetically modified creatures, are pitted against the Clankers, who use fantastical steam-powered creations. Alek, the Prince in exile of Austria-Hungary, is back aboard the Leviathan, the giant British air beast where Deryn Sharp is serving as a midshipman, disguised as a boy, because she loves to fly.

Each book involves a progressively bigger weapon. The first book, Leviathan, was about the giant air beast itself. Then there was a water weapon called Behemoth. In this book, they pick up Nikolai Tesla in Russia. He claims to have leveled miles of Siberian forest with the power of his electrical weapon, Goliath. With it, he hopes to stop the war.

Alek believes Mr. Tesla, and wants nothing more than to stop the war, too. Deryn is not so sure. But either way, the Leviathan is bound across the Pacific and then across the continent on its way to take Tesla back to his laboratory in New York City. The United States is neutral, so they have to go through Mexico, where they are not completely successful getting past revolutionary generals.

Another thing I like about this series is they way they cover the whole world. Leviathan started in Great Britain and Austria. In Behemoth, they spent most of their time in Istanbul. In Goliath they head through Russia to Siberia and then go on to Tokyo. Then it’s across the Pacific, landing in California, flying across Mexico and then up to New York. So we get to see how all the countries are aligned in this steampunk alternate world Scott Westerfeld has created.

There’s plenty of intrigue, peril, and real historical characters put into somewhat different situations than they actually faced. Of course, best of all is the resolution of the story about Alek and Deryn. They can’t possibly have a future together. Or can they?

scottwesterfeld.com
audio.simonandschuster.com

Buy from Amazon.com

Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Teens/goliath.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library audiobook from the Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I write the posts for my website and blogs entirely on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Please use the comments if you’ve read the book and want to discuss spoilers!

Review of Once Upon a Toad, by Heather Vogel Frederick

Children's Fiction Review, Fairy Tale Variant, Fantasy 0

Once Upon a Toad

by Heather Vogel Frederick

Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2012. 263 pages.

I always like fairy tale take-offs, and this book takes elements from the classic fairy tale “Toads and Diamonds” and puts them in a modern context, with two stepsisters living in Portland.

What would you do if you suddenly started spouting toads any time you made a vocal noise? And what if your mean stepsister, at the same time, started spouting flowers and diamonds?

This isn’t intended to be an exact copy of the fairy tale, set in modern times. No, the idea for the spell in this story was taken from the classic fairy tale. Only it got a bit muddled, and the stepsister we would have called the good one (since she is, after all, the narrator) is the one who got the toads.

Cat Starr has to live with her father’s new family while her mother is in outer space (really!) on the International Space Station. That wouldn’t be so bad — Cat loves her Dad and her little brother and gets along great with her stepmother — if it weren’t that she had to share a room with her stepsister and go to middle school classes with her. They have nothing in common, it seems, and Olivia can be just plain mean.

But when Cat talks it over with Great-Aunt Abyssinia, she’s not at all prepared for what happens next.

This is a fun take-off on the fairy tale. There are plenty of implausibilities. There are bumbling crooks, sinister government figures, and some mysterious magic happening a bit randomly. But, hey, when were fairy tales ever plausible?

heathervogelfrederick.com
KIDS.SimonandSchuster.com

Buy from Amazon.com

Find this review on Sonderbooks at: www.sonderbooks.com/Childrens_Fiction/once_upon_a_toad.html

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.

Source: This review is based on a library book from the Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I write the posts for my website and blogs entirely on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Please use the comments if you’ve read the book and want to discuss spoilers!

Review of And Then It’s Spring, by Julie Fogliano and Erin E. Stead

Contemporary, Picture Book Review, Poetry 0

And Then It’s Spring

written by Julie Fogliano
illustrated by Erin E. Stead

A Neal Porter Book, Roaring Brook Press, 2012. 32 pages.

As you would expect from Caldecott-winning illustrator Erin Stead, this book is beautiful. This isn’t so much a book for storytime (though it would work for that if the kids could sit up close to see the pictures and the details) as it is a meditative book for sitting with a child in your lap and looking slowly and enjoying the pictures.

This is a book about time passing, specifically the time when winter is finishing up, and you’re waiting for Spring. It’s not particularly a book for southern California (where I grew up), but it’s lovely for more northern climes.

First you have brown,
all around you have brown.

The bundled up boy and dog and turtle (even the turtle has a stocking cap at first!) plant some seeds. They wait and wait. They shed some wraps. It’s amazing how many different scenes Erin Stead makes out of that premise. And the poetry of the lines has its own music.

One page I especially like is:

or maybe it was the bears and all that stomping,
because bears can’t read signs
that say things like
“please do not stomp here —
there are seeds
and they are trying.”

On that page, three bears are in among the plantings, and one bear is scratching himself with the described sign.

On another page, we see creatures that have made tunnels inside the earth as we look at a cross-section, with the boy and a rabbit with their ear to the ground and the dog and the turtle looking at a creature coming out of a tunnel.

and the brown,
still brown,
has a greenish hum
that you can only hear
if you put your ear to the ground
and close your eyes”

But don’t worry! Spring does come.

but the brown isn’t around
and now you have green,
all around
you have
green.

This book has grown on me. The first time I read it, I leafed through it too quickly. This is a book for poring over, for reading again and again, and for sharing with a child.

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Source: This review is based on a library book from the Fairfax County Public Library.

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