Book review - Catastrophe

 

Title: Catastrophe

Author: Sherri Winston

Genre: mystery

Similar books: The Case of the Stolen Sixpence by Holly Webb 

                      The Amazing Life of Azaleah Lane by Nikki Shannon Smith

Rating:

 

solid junior mystery

Summary (provided by publisher): Detective Tip #1 Try not to jump to conclusions. Wednesday and her service dog, Woof, are the best detectives in the whole world—or at least their neighborhood. But can they find Mrs. Winters’s missing cat before her big trip? Or will the case of the cat-napped kitty be their first unsolved mystery? 

My opinion: Elementary mysteries are a real challenge to pull off. The author has to set appropriate stakes that will be exciting and meaningful to the child reader without becoming too frightening or putting the characters in real danger. So most of these books center on missing pets or favorite toys, and this one is no exception. But it has a couple of things going for it. First, the vocabulary is accessibly and the writing is straightforward. This means that kids just beginning to read independently will be able to follow the plot as it will assist in comprehension. Second, there is an emphasis on proper investigation techniques and not relying on assumptions. Wednesday has to learn to examine all of the evidence to get a complete picture of what happened to the cat. Lastly, Wednesday's physical limitations, while important to her character and motivations, do not define the plot or every interaction people have with her. It simply an influence on her decision making and on important people in her life. This strikes me as a series worth watching.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Three dapper birds

 

I found this dress really cheap at the store. I liked the bright color and most importantly it has pockets. But it needed a little help. For one thing, it was 2 sizes too big. Luckily, that was easily correctable. I was able to take it in at an angle starting at the armpit and leaving the pockets untouched. Once I got it resized, it was still a bit boring. I wanted to take that basic stripe pattern and jazz it up a bit. 

I planned out a design for the bottom of the skirt that I planned to draw or stitch on some plain fabric that I would then iron onto it. As luck would have it, though, when I opened my sewing box to find my iron-on interfacing, I found instead this metalic patch fabric I'd bought on a whim. It was the perfect thing to really make my design pop.

I traced my design onto the patch fabric, cut it out, and ironed it in place. I finished it off with permanent marker, adding detail to my birds and "telephone lines" to the striping on the dress. 

 

Book review - Theo Tan and the Fox Spirit

 

Title: Theo Tan and the Fox Spirit

Author: Jesse Q. Sutanto

Genre: fantasy/magical realism

Similar books: Ace Takes Flight by Cory McCarthy

                     Dragon Pearl by Yoon Ha Lee

Rating:

 

pretty fun with decent original elements

 

Summary (provided by publisher): Theo Tan doesn't want a spirit companion. He just wants to be a normal American kid, playing video games, going to conventions, and using cirth pendants to cast his spells like everyone else. But, when his older brother dies, Theo ends up inheriting Jamie's fox spirit, Kai.
Kai isn't happy about this either. Theo is nothing like Jamie, and the two of them have never gotten along. But, when they realize the mysterious journal Jamie left Theo is filled with clues and secret codes, it's clear that something strange was going on with Jamie's internship at Reapling Corp.
But the only way onto the campus is the highly competitive "Know Your Roots" summer camp program, a celebration of Chinese and Indian cultures designed to help connect students with their heritage. Theo and Kai will have to put aside their differences long enough to honor Jamie's last wishes, or the mystery he died for will remain unsolved forever...

My opinion: At first glance, this looks like just another Percy Jackson clone. And I won't deny that they share some literary DNA. Even so, Sutanto has done a fair bit to make both the plot and the character stand out from the pack. For one thing, magic is not something that Theo falls into by surprise. It's a fully integrated part of his world. It's only his relationship to that magic that changes as the novel progresses. And Theo does not embrace his adventure or stumble through it because he has no alternative. He fights his growing knowledge of the spirit realm, resents it's intrusion on his normal life. He isn't a noble, heroic character. Theo is selfish and petty. In other words: he's a normal kid who has to learn to look beyond his own interests. There's solid character development across the board here. Add in exploration of mythology and spirits that extends beyond just the basics and a genuine meditation on the sliding scale between "good" and "evil" and there's enough to entertain a kid and give them something to chew on after they're done reading. The plot may be a bit predictable but it doesn't harm the entertainment value.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Picture books for everyone

 

Norton and the Bear by Gabriel Evans

There is no shortage of picture books about the importance of individuality and being true to yourself. A few are written about the idea of copycats, usually a younger sibling who wants to be "just like" the older one causing a great deal of frustration for both and resulting in the realization that copying is a compliment but finding ways for the younger one to be different. I like that this book doesn't try to explain the bear's behavior. It just admires Norton's style and replicates it. It's not about the bear needing to be exactly like Norton but rather sharing the same tastes, much to Norton's great annoyance. The plot is more about Norton's intense need to be different to the point that he can't see how he hurts the bear until it's too late. Evans is suggesting to the reader that other peoples choices are not about you and don't have to effect you. All of this is done with simple prose and charming illustrations featuring expressive characters that support the text well.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Book review - Esme's Birthday Conga Line

 

Title: Esme's Birthday Conga Line

Author: Lourdes Heuer

Genre: early chapter book

Similar books: Henry and Mudge series by Cynthia Rylant

                     Kitty and Dragon by Meika Hashimoto

Rating:

 

cute and easy to understand

 

Summary (provided by publisher): Esme lives with her grandparents on the uppermost floor of the topmost best building. It's her birthday. Mimi and Pipo gave her a beautiful guitar. But they didn't plan a birthday party.
Esme thinks this is the way with grandparents. They don't know about parties or piñatas or birthday cake. No problem! Esme is great at problem solving.
With the help of her cat, El Toro, and a LOT of help from her neighbors in the topmost best building, the irrepressible Esme gets the birthday party of her dreams. 

My opinion: This book straddles the line between picture book and chapter book, much like Henry and Mudge. The plot has the simplicity of a picture book, a basic conflict with only minimal complications. Much of the complication is seen more in the illustrations than in the text itself. The writing is a bit more fleshed out, including more details and descriptive language than would be typical of a picture book. This leaves us with a quick, charming, easy to follow story that helps a beginning reader gain confidence. It helps that Esme is an irrepressible character. When her birthday isn't what she expected, she makes it happen for herself. She doesn't moan about not having a birthday party; she plans her own. Sure, that leaves some chaos in her wake but her cheerfulness wins over even the grumpiest of neighbors.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Listen with me

 

All the Best Liars by Amelia Kahaney

This book promises some great elements: the straining of a lifelong friendship between girls, complicated secrets, and multiple perspectives on a single dramatic event.

Book review - Duet

 

Title: Duet

Author: Elise Broach

Genre: realistic fiction/magical realism

Similar books: Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo

                      Fleabrain Loves Franny by Joanne Rocklin

Rating:

 

charming and not overly dramatic

Summary (provided by publisher): Welcome to the world of Mirabelle, a young goldfinch who loves to sing and dreams of becoming a musical star. She lives with her family in the backyard of a piano teacher, and she is quickly intrigued by Mr. Starek's newest pupil. Michael Jin is an eleven-year-old keyboard sensation, but lesson after lesson, he refuses to play.  With the prestigious Chopin Festival looming at summer’s end, how will he be ready in time?  Mirabelle is responsible for Michael’s breakthrough—to her own astonishment, she sings the Chopin piece he is beginning to play at the piano. It is their first duet.
Thus begins a secret adventure that will take Mirabelle and Michael further than they ever imagined—in music, in friendship, and in solving the mystery of a lost piano that could be worth millions.  A house full of treasures holds the clues. There, Mirabelle, Michael, and their friend Emily will make an important discovery that links the great composer Frederic Chopin, the trailblazing author George Sand, and the French Romantic painter Eugene Delacroix.
A fast-paced, history-rich mystery will have young readers hooked as they root for boy and bird in this beautifully told novel, full of emotion and suspense.

My opinion: At face value, this is a story about a boy and a bird that learn to recognize their own abilities and rely on their shared strength to accomplish things. Even more than that, though, there is a celebration of the beauty, artistry, and near magic of music and musicians. Of their instruments. Broach addresses the way that the same song played by the same artist may sound different with different instruments. Composition affects resonance which can become important with instrumental music. It was cool to see that explored in any book, much less one for children. And that exploration as well as the historical mystery involving Chopin is explained with enough detail to be interesting without ever becoming overwhelming. There's enough tension and mystery to keep the reader engaged but nothing that will become too much for sensitive kids.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley