Book Review: The Steps Up the Chimney

The Steps Up the Chimney by William Corlett

The Steps Up the Chimney
by William Corlett

3 out of 5 stars

William, Mary, and Alice visit their uncle Jack at Christmas in the ancient Golden House in Wales. Uncle Jack lives with his girlfriend Phoebe, and they are having a baby together, but they think it is “old-fashioned and hypocritical” to get married. The children notice some odd behavior from animals in the forest surrounding the Golden House, and they meet a Magician who says they must be tested before they will be ready to help him. William notices that there are footholds to climb up inside the massive chimney in the oldest part of the house, and their adventures lead them into magic and danger.

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Book Reviews: The Postman from Space Series

The Postman from Space by Guillaume Perreault

The Postman from Space
by Guillaume Perreault (Goodreads Author), Françoise Bui (Translator)

4 out of 5 stars

Bob is just an ordinary postman delivering mail in space. He likes his boring routine. But one day his boss orders him to take a new mail route and he runs into trouble at every stop! Gone are his predictable days and safe routines, and Bob is thrown into every kind of wild situation and difficult delivery imaginable! He delivers a package to a planet inhabited by dogs and they chase him and take his lunch. One difficult customer refuses to sign for their package until Bob draws them a picture of a sheep. One little old lady has such a messy and chaotic planet that Bob is hit with flying debris caught in the gravitational field. Bob hates his new route, until he realizes that maybe he has just made some new friends.

The Postman from Space by Guillaume Perreault

The Postman from Space: Biker Bandits
by Guillaume Perreault (Goodreads Author), François Bui (Translator)

4 out of 5 stars

Bob is just an ordinary postman delivering mail in space. He likes his familiar routine. But one day his boss orders him to take on a new trainee, and they only have one letter to deliver… to a king! When they take a detour on their delivery route, the Biker Bandits get wind that the king is receiving an important letter and they track down Bob to steal the letter! Along the way, Bob and his trainee, Marcelle, pick up a hitchhiker who was stranded on an asteroid, but Bob doesn’t trust the hitchhiker. Could they be in even more trouble if the Biker Bandits catch up to them?!

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Book Review: The Sword and the Circle

The Sword and the Circle by Rosemary Sutcliff

The Sword and the Circle: King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table (King Arthur Trilogy #1)
by  Rosemary Sutcliff

This book chronicles King Arthur’s ascent to the throne by taking the Sword from the Stone and the creation of the Round Table of the Knights of Camelot. We hear the legends of famous sword fights and adventures and quests. Sir Lancelot arrives in Camelot, and Sir Gawain confronts the Green Knight. Beaumains serves in the kitchen before anyone knows his true royal lineage. Lancelot is tricked and seduced by Elaine, and Tristan tells his sad history with his uncle’s bride, Iseult. Sir Gawain marries the Loathely Lady, but breaks the magic spell that made her ugly. And this book finishes with the mysterious arrival of Percival, a knight who wanders in from the wild.
(To read more about Arthur, Lancelot, and Guinevere, and their tragic fate, you would have to read the rest of the series.)

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Book Review: Midnight Mayhem

Midnight Mayhem by Christina Uss

Midnight Mayhem
by Christina Uss (Goodreads Author)

2.5 out of 5 stars

Kaz is the victim of a fluke that makes him unable to sleep, not one wink. He is bored to death all night long while his family is sleeping. When he meets another boy, Floyd, at a sleep clinic, they take off on midnight shenanigans all around the city, hoping their parents won’t find out and they won’t get in trouble.
Floyd takes animals from cages in the lab at the clinic, but he always brings them back. However, they lose two valuable owls from the lab, they get stuck on the roof of Philadelphia Hall and lie to the firemen who rescue them, and they knock down an airplane replica in a museum. Wherever Floyd goes, trouble follows! Kaz starts to think that maybe they should find more safe ways to beat the boredom.

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Book Review: Sir Edmund of the Wild West: Mystery in the Grand Canyon

Sir Edmund of the Wild West by Dusti Bowling

Sir Edmund of the Wild West: Mystery in the Grand Canyon
by Dusti Bowling (Goodreads Author), Beth Hughes (Illustrator)

3 out of 5 stars

Edmund is a highly-trained British service dog who can detect seizures. He has a new owner, Willy, who makes videos about tracking down ghosts at historic locations. They hike through the Grand Canyon, searching for clues about what might have happened to some river rafters who disappeared decades before under mysterious circumstances. Although dogs can’t talk to the living, they can see and communicate with the dead ghosts that haunt the canyon. Edmund meets a lot of friendly ghosts who kindly lead him in the right direction to solve the mystery.

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Book Review: Nell O’Dell Hates Quests

Nell O'Dell Hates Quests by Emily B. Martin

Nell O’Dell Hates Quests (The Golden Crossroads #1)
by Emily B. Martin

5 out of 5 stars

Nell is sick and tired of quests. She works at the crossroads inn where she constantly hears about chosen ones, grand prophecies, and magic weapons. She sneers at all the questers who pass through the crossroads looking for glory and fame. Nell just wants a quiet life at the inn taking care of her chickens and her garden. But when there is a problem with the deed to the inn, Nell’s parents send her on a “journey” (NOT a quest!) to the capital to present the deed at the Exchequer’s office and prove their ownership of the inn. She is joined by an overly-excitable goblin, Midge, who is delighted to be included on the journey (NOT a quest!). Along the way they run into a mysterious thief, a hermit faun, a dragon keeper, and a sad troll whose name has been stolen by an evil fairy. Their journey (NOT a quest!) is fraught with danger and adventure and mystery, but Nell O’Dell hates quests, so it just CAN’T be a quest… can it? If a quest is “just a trip with a goal that’s important to you”, will Nell embrace the questing legends or find a way to complete her quest on her own terms?

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Book Review: Sneaks

Sneaks by Amy Tern

Sneaks
by Amy Tern (Goodreads Author)

1 out of 5 stars

Valory has a reputation as a thief and liar. She is rude to all the adults in her life, especially her mother’s boyfriend. She gives adults rude nicknames that she calls them behind their backs. She is well-known at her school for elaborate pranks and for stealing from the teachers. She disobeys her mother on various occasions, saying she knows she will get in trouble, but she doesn’t care.

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Book Review: Castle Rackrent and The Absentee

Castle Rackrent / The Absentee by Maria Edgeworth

Castle Rackrent / The Absentee
by Maria Edgeworth

4 out of 5 stars

Castle Rackrent is about a servant of the Rackrent family, who sees four generations of the landowners go through bankruptcy and scandal. Thady Quirk remains loyal to the family despite their drunken debaucheries, years of wasted income, and scandalous relationships. His narration gives excuses for their bad behavior and turns a blind eye to their evil ways, steadfastly claiming that the Rackrent family are all saints and the kindest masters in the world. On the one hand, his loyalty is admirable, but it could not have attached itself to a more unworthy object. Eventually, the family comes to ruin and a circumspect lawyer snaps up all their land and livelihood and the last of their house dies in poverty.

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Book Review: The Thing About Giants

The Thing About Giants by Christopher Galvin

The Thing About Giants
by Christopher Galvin (Goodreads Author)

3 out of 5 stars

Jacq’s parents are giant hunters, but she has always thought the practice was barbaric. Despite growing up in a city literally made from giant bones, Jacq is dismayed when she is chosen to be trained as a giant hunter and follow in her parents footsteps. On her first mission outside the city, Jacq is lost in the wilderness where she meets Corman.
Corman is a young giant travelling with his father to find some medicinal herbs when they are attacked by giant hunters, throwing them all into a dangerous adventure and an awkward friendship that could change both their cultures forever.

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Book Review: Graciela in the Abyss

Graciela in the Abyss by Meg Medina

Graciela in the Abyss
by Meg Medina (Goodreads Author), Anna Balbusso (Illustrator), Elena Balbusso (Illustrator)

3 out of 5 stars

Graciela is only thirteen when she falls off a cliff and dies in the ocean. One hundred years later, she wakes from her death sleep and becomes a ghost. The friendly ghost community welcomes her, and her mentor Amina teaches her about living in the ocean and trains her to be a sea-glass artisan.
Jorge is a living boy from a family of blacksmiths. He discovers that his grandfather created a mystic harpoon capable of killing ghosts and sending them to a final death. He puts his own life at risk in order to destroy the terrible weapon, but he can’t do it alone.

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