Stoop of Mastodon Meadow is the sequel to Stout Hearts & Whizzing Biscuits. Oliver’s father is now the American Ambassador to Patria, so Oliver and his family are living in the castle with Farnsworth and Rose. Oliver and Farnsworth begin the school year at the boys’ school, Mastodon Meadow, while Rose goes to Madame Mimi’s […]
How to Be a Pirate
July 12, 2012 by Leave a Comment
How to Be a Pirate is the second book in the How to Train Your Dragon series. The look and tone are pretty much the same—scrawled illustrations, vaguely rude humor, splotches in the margins, changing fonts and random capitalization, maps and lists and such that further explain parts of the story. Hiccup is still far […]
The Quest of the Warrior Sheep
June 25, 2012 by Leave a Comment
The Quest of the Warrior Sheepbegs to be read aloud—sadly, I read it to myself so I had to imagine all the baaing and bad puns in my head. It may need to be our next read aloud with the kids, though. The story is about, well, the quest of the warrior sheep—a group of […]
Lulu and the Brontosaurus
June 20, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Lulu and the Brontosaurus is a delightful book for younger readers. With short chapters and illustrations by the wonderful Lane Smith on every page, it’s great for kids who are transitioning from picture books to chapter books. That said, it’s likely to appeal to older kids as well because of its sense of humor. The […]
How to Train Your Dragon
June 18, 2012 by Leave a Comment
How to Train Your Dragon is a funny adventure that has absolutely nothing but a few names in common with the movie based on it. A bunch of young Vikings are attempting to survive their rites of passage, which include capturing and training a hatchling dragon that will serve as a hunting companion. Hiccup Horrendous […]
The Ordinary Princess
June 15, 2012 by 2 Comments
Review written by Jonathan Lavallee. The Ordinary Princess is a great tale about a young woman who appreciates the value in being a strong willed individual while everyone around you is obsessed with the way you look and who you’re going to marry. It’s set in a kingdom called Phantasmorania, a place full of strange […]
The Snarkout Boys and the Baconburg Horror
May 25, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Review written by Jonathan Lavallee. The Snarkout Boys and the Baconburg Horror is a fun, silly book that deals with two boys that sneak out of their house at night to watch the late night double feature at The Snark. They occasionally meet up with their friend Rat—a teenaged girl with a penchant for cars […]
Geronimo Stilton, Secret Agent
May 24, 2012 by Leave a Comment
At my kids’ suggestion, I finally got around to reading my first Geronimo Stilton book, Geronimo Stilton, Secret Agent. It’s more or less what I expected—a sparse plot but visually interesting. Geronimo is the only character even slightly developed in the story. I was fascinated, though, to learn that the books are originally written in […]
Stout Hearts and Whizzing Biscuits
May 16, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Stout Hearts & Whizzing Biscuits is an amusing story of 11 year old Oliver Stoop whose family inadvertently stumbles on the kingdom of Patria, a sovereign nation nestled in Indiana and founded thousands of years ago by ancient Greeks. It’s somewhat inexplicably similar to medieval Europe with castles and knights (plus an old Studebaker), although […]
The Mysterious Disappearance of Leon (I Mean Noel)
May 6, 2012 by 2 Comments
Ellen Raskin was one of my favorite authors as a kid, so after the success of reading The Phantom Tollbooth with my kids, I was eager to share her books with them as well. The first book we read was The Mysterious Disappearence of Leon (I Mean Noel). It led to much laughter with the […]
