Category Archives: By Genre

Review: Pablo and Splash: Time-Traveling Penguins by Sheena Dempsey

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , , ,
Pablo and Splash by Sheena Dempsey

Pablo and Splash: Time-Traveling Penguins
Sheena Dempsey
Bloomsbury USA Children’s
Published September 3, 2023

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Pablo and Splash: Time-Traveling Penguins

Join time-traveling penguins Pablo and Splash on an unexpected adventure to the time of the dinosaurs in this hilarious full-color graphic novel, perfect for fans of Dog Man and InvestiGators.

Antarctic penguins Pablo and Splash are polar opposites and besties for life. Pablo is a home-bird and a careful planner. Splash is easily bored and hungry for adventure. Sick to her flippers of the harsh, freezing weather, Splash persuades Pablo to go on a beach vacation with her. When they accidentally find themselves in a scientist’s time machine, they end up on the beach….back in the age of dinosaurs! Can Pablo and Splash make their way home before they become dino snacks?

This full-color graphic novel is perfect for animal lovers, reluctant readers, and graphic novel fans!

My Review

This is a fun read. The story follows the duo Pablo (the practical, methodical penguin) and Splash (the creative dreamer) as they decide they need a vacation from the bitter cold of Antarctica. The character differences between the two penguins make for a lot of humorous moments and silliness that young readers will appreciate.

What could make a graphic novel about penguins even more fun? If you said dinosaurs, then this is the perfect book for you. Haha! What’s wild is that immediately when I saw this book, I thought of my nephew, who loves both penguins and dinosaurs and is going to think this is a hoot. So, weirdly, it’s not as niche a market as one might initially think.

Dino lovers will also appreciate that the dinosaur species are easily identifiable, and the story includes a bit of trivia about a few of the prehistoric animals that appear in the story. There are also a few facts about different prehistoric periods, with maps showing changes in land masses.

The book is about 220 pages, so it’s comparable to the length of the InvestiGators series books. Readers looking for a light, goofy graphic novel will get exactly that, with bonus science facts here and there.

This is definitely one I’ll keep around for the late elementary-aged readers in my life.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 7 to 10.

Representation
Main characters are a boy and girl penguin. There’s a female scientist who appears briefly.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. The penguins run from a scientist who appears to try to capture them. The capsule they hide in takes them on a journey with a destination of the sun, and they panic as the interior of the ship gets hotter and hotter before they’re able to change course.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday

Check out the weekly round-up of middle-grade posts called Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday at Always in the Middle with Greg Pattridge.

Review: How to Make a Movie in Twelve Days by Fiona Hardy

Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , , , , ,

How to Make a Movie in Twelve Days
Fiona Hardy
Kane Miller Publishing
Published September 1, 2019

Kane Miller Website | Bookshop | Goodreads

About How to Make a Movie in Twelve Days

‘How to Make a Movie in Twelve Days’ is the story of what happens when 11-year-old Hayley Whelan tries to bring her horror-movie vision to the big-screen over the summer holidays.

Friendships will be tested, the fake blood will flow, and the snacks budget will be well and truly blown in this wonderful, heart-warming reel of contemporary Aussie MG.

My Review

How to Make a Movie in Twelve Days is a companion novel to How to Write the Soundtrack to Your Life. I read the other book first, though this one takes place first. They’re only loosely connected, so I think you could read them in any order.

Truthfully, I think the other novel is more compelling. I found Murphy (the main character in How to Write the Soundtrack to Your Life) immediately resonated with me. I enjoyed Hayley as the main character of this book, but I guess I didn’t find her as moving. By the end of the book, I felt like I understood her and loved her, but it was a connection that developed more slowly for me.

One of the things I do love about this book is that it focuses on Hayley’s grief over the loss of her grandmother. The movie was a project that they talked about working on and planned out together, so finishing it is part of Hayley’s grief process.

Her grandmother sounds like quite a character, too. She had quirks and bad habits, but she supported Hayley’s interest in filmmaking and celebrated her ideas and successes. I like that Hayley’s memories of her include hard moments or moments when her grandmother was rude or abrasive. That made her character seem well-rounded, even though she never appeared on scene.

I also enjoyed the scenes that explained Hayley’s filmmaking process, from her film schedule to her finding locations and props to her editing process. There was enough detail to keep me oriented to what was happening, but not so much that it overwhelmed me or slowed down the story.

On the whole, I enjoyed the book and the fact that it followed a young filmmaker and a group of kids making a movie about a carnivorous, terrifying rosebush. It’s a fun story for middle-grade readers who enjoy making their own movies or summer adventures.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
A few characters are indigenous. One is Latine.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
References to characters dating one another. In one scene, a couple is spotted holding hands.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
References to bullying. A boy hurts his back and his ankle. A five-year-old is hospitalized with abdominal pain.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: Animal Farm by George Orwell

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , , ,

Animal Farm
George Orwell
Signet Classics
Published April 1, 1996 (Orig. 1945)

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Animal Farm

A farm is taken over by its overworked, mistreated animals. With flaming idealism and stirring slogans, they set out to create a paradise of progress, justice, and equality. Thus the stage is set for one of the most telling satiric fables ever penned –a razor-edged fairy tale for grown-ups that records the evolution from revolution against tyranny to a totalitarianism just as terrible.

When ANIMAL FARM was first published, Stalinist Russia was seen as its target. Today it is devastatingly clear that wherever and whenever freedom is attacked, under whatever banner, the cutting clarity and savage comedy of George Orwell’s masterpiece have a meaning and message still ferociously fresh.

My Review

I’d never read ANIMAL FARM before, but I’ve heard lots of people talk about it. It was a pretty quick read, honestly. The story moves quickly and the telling of it is straightforward. The toughest thing about it is the number of named characters. The names felt kind of random to me. I kept mixing up Clover (horse?) and Muriel (a goat, I think?), and I’m not sure what the dogs’ names were.

I started listening to the audiobook, but ended up switching to an ebook version from the library. Tthe name confusion, and the fact that things happened so quickly made me feel like I had to really pay attention. If you want to do the audiobook version and find the large cast difficult, it might be helpful to make a cheat sheet of names and descriptions to keep handy.

Anyway, the story progresses quickly. The animals get rid of the farmer and celebrate their newfound freedom. Only, before too much more happens, the pigs place themselves in charge. They’re the most educated– having learned to read and write. Some of the other animals try to learn but can’t manage it. One opts out because he believes things will always be bad no matter what he does.

Honestly the way things unfold, with this steady creep toward total control by one character and various levels of willful ignorance or futile truth-telling by others reminded me a lot of LORD OF THE FLIES. It’s kind of a “what happens when someone pursues absolute power” sort of story.

There’s more to it than that, of course. Orwell wrote the story with an eye toward Stalinism and what was happening in Russia at the time. You can read more about that if you search for an analysis of the book.

Conclusion

Overall, it really made me think about the importance of not taking freedom for granted and not accepting what someone in power says without at least doing some critical thinking about it. I’m glad I read the book, and I can see why the story has endured.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Representation
Major characters are farm animals.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
A raven tells the animals stories of a place called Sugarcandy Mountain, where he says animals go after they die and live a life of ease and bliss.

Violent Content
Animals rebel, fighting against and chasing off the farmer and farm workers. One man is kicked in the head and goes unconscious. A few animals are injured when they’re shot. Dogs kill several other animals.

Drug Content
Mr. Jones, the farmer, drinks too much alcohol and neglects the animals. Some of the animals drink alcohol.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog.

Review: Skyriders by Polly Holyoke

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , ,

Skyriders (Skyriders #1)
Polly Holyoke
Viking Books for Young Readers
Published March 7, 2023

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Skyriders

An Amazon Best Book of the Month!

Wings of Fire meets Skandar and the Unicorn Thief in this epic fantasy adventure set in a world where human and skysteed share a deep bond of friendship and love.

When monsters emerge to attack the empire, it’s up to Kiesandra and her beloved winged horse N’Rah to prove to herself and the imperial army that she has what it takes to lead them to victory . . . and survival.

Thirteen-year-old Kiesandra’s best friend isn’t human, but that doesn’t stop her from sharing jokes and secrets with her winged horse, N’Rah. She, like every other person with a skysteed, can communicate with N’Rah through her mind. Their bond is critical when one day, monsters from long ago reemerge to ravage a nearby village. No one knows how to fight the fearsome chimerae except Kie’s uncle . . . and now Kie.

Injured in the battle, Uncle Dug makes her promise to bring his attack plan and weapons to the capital. Kie reluctantly agrees. At the palace, she and N’Rah attempt to gain the trust of the royals and train the army in Dug’s lessons. But how can a young girl and her skysteed convince anyone that only they know how to defeat the deadly monsters?

Buzzing with action, heart, and friendship, this first book in the Skyriders series show that kids can achieve the impossible—especially with flying horses on their side.

My Review

This book made me feel like I was reading fantasy from an earlier decade (but in a really good way). Some of the language was a little nostalgic. For example, Kie refers to her skysteed (winged horse) as “Dear N’Rah” in some intense moments.

While Kie is a great fighter, her passion is for her work as a courier and running her family’s apple farm back home. So when she has to drop everything and journey to the capital in a desperate bid to get generals to change battle tactics for fighting the chimerae, which everyone believed to be extinct, she’s not very happy about it. Especially since she has to leave her injured uncle and his skysteed behind.

A lot of the critical characters in the book are skysteeds, which I enjoyed. They had slightly different ways of thinking about things or approaching things than the human characters. I liked that the bond between skyrider and skysteed had to be continually nurtured. It felt like a real relationship, and the issues between skysteeds and skyriders highlighted the importance of communication and relationship-building.

The only thing I wish was different about the book is the pacing of the ending. A lot happens in the last forty pages or so, and it’s a really important chain of events. It felt a little bit rushed, since so much happened in so few pages, and I wish things had unfolded a bit more slowly. I felt like rushing through made the events seem smaller or less crucial than they were.

That said, I’m still really looking forward to reading the second book, which I also have on my shelf, so look for that soon! This is definitely a series for fans of Wings of Fire or Skandar and the Unicorn Thief.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Characters are from a variety of (made up) races.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Brief references to gods and goddesses worshipped in the world. Long ago, a powerful mage helped forge the agreement between humans and skysteeds. Skyriders can communicate telepathically with their skysteeds. Humans called Scourge Masters control the chimerae, possibly through some dark magic. Chimerae are created to destroy humans.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Brief battle violence. Kie’s uncle and others close to her get severely injured, and she isn’t immediately sure whether they’ll recover.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman by Gennifer Choldenko

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Contemporary, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , , , , , , , ,

The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman
Gennifer Choldenko
Knopf Books for Young Readers
Published June 11, 2024

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman

Readers will be rooting for a happy ending for Hank in Newbery-Honor-winner Gennifer Choldenko’s gripping story of a boy struggling to hold his family together when his mom doesn’t come home.

When eleven-year-old Hank’s mom doesn’t come home, he takes care of his toddler sister, Boo, like he always does. But it’s been a week now. They are out of food and mom has never stayed away this long… Hank knows he needs help, so he and Boo seek out the stranger listed as their emergency contact.

But asking for help has consequences. It means social workers, and a new school, and having to answer questions about his mom that he’s been trying to keep secret. And if they can’t find his mom soon, Hank and Boo may end up in different foster homes–he could lose everything.

Gennifer Choldenko has written a heart-wrenching, healing, and ultimately hopeful story about how complicated family can be. About how you can love someone, even when you can’t rely on them. And about the transformative power of second chances.

My Review

This book is as good as everyone says it is. Every review I’ve seen has raved about how full of heart and unbelievably fabulous this book is.

Well. It really is! Oh my gosh. Hank’s relationship with his little sister Boo is the absolute sweetest. He takes care of her so attentively. They have these little rhymes or songs they do together, rituals that he uses to comfort her or help her settle.

After he takes Boo to a family friend’s house to wait for his mom to return, the story really kicks into high gear. Hank has a challenging relationship with his new caregiver, who keeps referring to him (age eleven) as a teenager in a way that leaves no doubt she’s got some baggage or past trauma somewhere in there. Their relationship makes so much sense, though. Sometimes Hank does kid things, and she reacts as if he’s deliberately trying to be hurtful. It’s not all bad, though. She is an excellent caregiver for Boo and helps Hank regear their relationship into one more appropriate to siblings rather than child and caregiver.

Hank is awesome, too. He draws pictures, plays basketball, and skateboards. I could see him being a really relatable character at a lot of levels.

I thought the story did a great job showing some of the big feelings that kids experience in a family in crisis and some of the layers to those feelings. Hank shuts people out, not wanting to connect since he doesn’t know how long he’ll be with his caregiver. He holds his anger close. Because his ability to trust adults (starting with his mom) has been broken, he has a really hard time trusting the other adults in his life. His behavior felt pretty realistic.

I can easily see why so many people love this book. I felt like I flew through the pages and could not stop reading. If you enjoyed Kyra Just for Today by Sara Zarr, definitely check this one out.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Hank enters the foster care system shortly after the book begins. His mom is an alcoholic. He has a diverse group of school friends and is close to a Latine family.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
References to someone getting a divorce in the past. References to Hank’s mom’s past boyfriends.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Someone has gotten in a car accident (off scene), and the car shows the damage still. A toddler sits in the back seat of a car without a car seat. A drunk person attempts to operate a vehicle with children inside it. A caregiver abandons children at a store.

Drug Content
Hank sees his mom drink alcohol. In one scene, she’s very drunk. At one point, he tries to reconcile her behavior and her statements about it. He rationalizes that every adult drinks sometimes. It doesn’t mean his mom has a problem. It sounds like he’s regurgitating things that his mom has said about her drinking. He can’t escape the knowledge that when she drinks, she doesn’t take care of him or Boo very well.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: Mama’s Chicken and Dumplings by Dionna L. Mann

Blogger's Favorites, Book Review and Content, Historical, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , , , , , ,

Mama’s Chicken and Dumplings
Dionna L. Mann
Margaret Ferguson Books
Published August 6, 2024

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Mama’s Chicken and Dumplings

Growing up in segregated 1930’s Charlottesville, ten-year-old Allie is determined to find a man for her mama to marry— but not just any man will do!

Allie’s life with Mama isn’t bad, but she knows it could be better if Mama would find someone to marry. Allie’s worst enemy, her NOT-friend Gwen, has a daddy, and Allie wants someone like that—someone to fix things when they break, someone who likes to sing, and has a kind-smile.

So Allie makes a plan—her super secret Man-For-Mama plan. She has a list of candidates with a clear top Mr. Johnson, who owns the antique store. Best of all, Mr. Johnson went to school with Mama, and he wants to get reacquainted! The battle’s half won, and Allie is sure that when he tries Mama’s yummy chicken and dumplings, he’ll be head over heels.

But someone else is interested in Mr. Coles, Allie’s teacher, who’s also Gwen’s uncle! Mama can’t marry him—no way is Allie going to be related to Gwen. On top of it all, Allie’s best friend is moving to Chicago; Allie keeps getting in trouble; and everyone seems to think she’s jealous of Gwen, for some reason. Nothing is going how she planned, but Allie is determined to get things back on track toward the life she knows she and Mama both deserve. . . even if Mama doesn’t agree yet.

My Review

Earlier this year, I read I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou, and it made me realize how little literature I’ve read set before the Civil Rights Act written by Black authors. It seems wild to me now that I’ve noticed it. When I saw this novel, I decided reading it would be a great opportunity to add some more perspective.

I love Allie’s voice. She’s precocious and smart. Her friendship with Jewel is incredibly sweet. The girls support one another and share such a close bond. It was easy to empathize with Allie’s grief when Jewel moves away.

I think the story also has great layering in terms of showing the difference between Allie’s perspective on what’s happening and making the larger picture, or what the adults see going on, available to readers to pick up between the lines. Some of those moments made me laugh. A few were pretty poignant.

One of the things I enjoyed a lot is that Allie is a musician who plays the flute. She also often describes her experiences in terms of sounds, so the story contains a lot of onomatopoeia. The sounds were well-described, so I knew exactly what the descriptions meant. I thought that was a cool way to showcase Allie’s connection to sound as a musician and add a fun element to the story.

All in all, this is a delightful debut. I am really excited to see what Dionna Mann writes in the future. I have a feeling I’ll be picking up any subsequent novels she writes as well as recommending this one.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Major characters are Black.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Allie is trying to start a romance between her mom and a local businessman.

Spiritual Content
References to attending church. A couple of scenes take place after the service.

Violent Content
Two girls get into a fistfight after one swipes a toy belonging to the other.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday

I’m sharing this post as a part of a weekly round-up of middle-grade posts called Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday. Check out other blogs with posts about middle-grade books today on Marvelous Middle-Grade Mondays at Always in the Middle with Greg Pattridge.