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 […]
Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword
May 23, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Review written by Jessica Banks. Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword is a graphic novel that tells the story of Mirka, a feisty eleven year old with a head full of heroic aspirations of dragonslaying and adventuring. What makes Mirka different from all the other girls is her context—she lives in Hereville, a town populated […]
Stone Fox
May 11, 2012 by Leave a Comment
My son mentioned in passing that he loved the book he was reading in school so much that he started it over as soon as he was done. Of course I had to know what this wonderful book was, and thus I first heard about Stone Fox. What’s interesting is that if you described a […]
Beryl
May 6, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Beryl: A Pig’s Tale begins in a commercial warehouse, where all the pigs live together in concrete sties. Beryl is an orphan, living with her aunt and cousins who all hate her. One of the workers comes around, putting stickers on the biggest piglets. Everyone knows this means the piglets will be leaving and not […]
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 […]
My Very UnFairy Tale Life
April 27, 2012 by Leave a Comment
In My Very UnFairy Tale Life, Jenny is an adventurer—her job is to go into the world of fairy tales and help them solve their problems. Her primary skill seems to be spouting self-described cheesy aphorisms, but the magical critters think she’s wise. She’s apparently the best adventurer they’ve had for a long time. At […]
George Washington’s Socks
April 24, 2012 by Leave a Comment
I can definitely see why George Washington’s Socks was on a book list for 5th grade book reports. It contains many lessons, just under the surface of the adventure. As an English major and former literature teacher, it felt heavy handed to me, but apparently they weren’t quite so obvious to my daughter until we […]
My Sister the Vampire, Books 1-7
April 19, 2012 by 2 Comments
Honestly, I can’t remember what happened in each individual My Sister the Vampire book and it’s hardly worth writing individual reviews. They’re relatively short and should ideally be read in order—each one picks up where the last left off. They’re cute and sweet and my daughter loves them. My only complaint is that they’re so […]
Witch & Wizard
April 19, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Witch & Wizard opens with 15 year old Wisty, her 17 year old brother Whit, and their parents about to be publically hanged for being witches and wizards by a modern day New Order. Then it flashes back to when they were first kidnapped by the New Order, which is where the story really starts. […]
The Witches
April 17, 2012 by Leave a Comment
The Witches is a classic Roald Dahl novel with an over the top plot that will probably make most parents cringe. It felt at first like a story that the grandma was telling that just got out of control—except it all turns out to be true! Witches are out to kill or otherwise get rid […]
