books.

Book Reviews: Museum Kittens #1-2

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The Midnight Visitor by Holly Webb

The Midnight Visitor (Museum Kittens)
by Holly Webb, Sarah Lodge (Illustrator)

4 out of 5 stars

Three kittens (Tasha, Boris, and Bianca) live with their family in the basement of a museum, where the night guard keeps them to scare away the rats. The kittens are intrigued when a stray cat brings in a black kitten, Peter, to live in the museum. Tasha, Boris, and Bianca are not sure they want to welcome Peter. He is so different, and no one knows where he is from. Peter will have to prove his worth if he wants to become a museum kitten.

This is such an adorable book! The kittens are so cute, and I love the little adventures they have. The plot is simple, but interesting. The writing style is perfect for this age group, and even enjoyable for an adult to read.

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Picture Book: Yoga Adventure!

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Yoga Adventure! by Jamaica Stevens

Yoga Adventure!
by Jamaica Stevens, Roco Alejandro (Illustrations), Jamaroo Kids (Performance)

4 out of 5 stars

Children go on a journey around the world, visiting different animals and doing yoga poses in exotic locations. First we do a plane pose to travel to a new continent. Then we do a warrior pose with bison, and bicycle to a new place where we meet chinchilla doing happy baby pose. We stretch like grey wolves, pandas, frogs, and koalas. We sail the seven seas and hop on board a train.

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Picture Book Review: Gloria’s Porridge

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Gloria's Porridge by Elizabeth Laird

Gloria’s Porridge
by Elizabeth Laird

5 out of 5 stars

In this Ethiopian folk tale, Gloria is making a pot of porridge, but the cat eats it all up! Gloria chases the cat, who runs into the donkey, who bumps against the tree with a beehive. The bees fly around in a panic, startling the hen who drops all her corn. Everything is chaos! Only the fox can make sense of what is happening and make them all stop and calm down.

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Book Review: A Dragon Used to Live Here

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A Dragon Used to Live Here by Annette LeBlanc Cate

A Dragon Used to Live Here
by Annette LeBlanc Cate

5 out of 5 stars

Thomas and Emily are the children of a knight and lady. They live in a castle, take archery lessons, and learn courtly manners and knightly conduct. They meet Meg, a scribe, who used to know their mother when she was a child. Meg tells them stories about the dragon who used to live in the castle and how their mother became involved in a terrifying adventure. But is Meg telling the truth? Or is she just weaving a tall tale?

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3 Picture Book Reviews from Candlewick Press

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Not That Pet! by Smriti Prasadam-Halls

Not That Pet!
by Smriti Prasadam-Halls, Rosalind Beardshaw (Illustrator)

4 out of 5 stars

Mabel gets to choose a pet at the pet store, and she makes the most awful decisions, choosing pets that slither or growl or stink. The elephant is nice, but much too big. The skunk is pretty, but too stinky. The ants are fun, but they crawl into everything, including Dad’s underpants! Can Mabel find a pet that is cuddly and sweet? A pet that everyone in the family will love?

This book is so fun and hilarious! However, I did not like that one of the pets Mabel chooses is a snake. Ew. I had to skip those pages. Too scary! And she also chooses a spider. So if you have arachnophobia, this is not the book for you!

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Graphic Novel Review: Pixels of You

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Pixels of You by Ananth Hirsh

Pixels of You
by Ananth Hirsh, Yuko Ota, J.R. Doyle (Illustrations)

3 out of 5 stars

Indira is not thrilled when she has to team up with an android to put together an art show, but she quickly learns that Fawn is more than just a android. They learn to work together and explore their artistic sides through photography. Eventually, the two girls discover that friendship is possible no matter if you are cyborg, human, or android. They begin to have romantic feelings for each other as well.

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Activity Book: Where’s Waldo? Santa Spotlight Search

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Where's Waldo? Santa Spotlight Search by Martin Handford

Where’s Waldo? Santa Spotlight Search
by Martin Handford
5 out of 5 stars

Waldo and his friends are surrounded by hundreds of Santas in costume. There are a lot of festive activities going on as the Santas prepare for the big sleigh ride. And somewhere in the chaos of reindeer, presents, and Christmas trees, Waldo is hiding among all the red and white. However, each scene is covered by a dark screen, and you have to use the spotlight search tool, a handy cardboard wand, to “light up” the scenes.

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Picture Book Review: Good Night, Toucan

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Good Night, Toucan! by Joanne Partis

Good Night, Toucan!
by Joanne Partis
5 out of 5 stars

Toucan invites his friends over for a sleepover, but then begins to worry that his decorations and snacks aren’t special enough. He flies through the jungle looking for more fluffy bedding, more colorful decorations, and sweeter snacks. But as Toucan is bringing all the “better” things back to his tree, he is overloaded with too much weight and disaster strikes! When Toucan’s friends see his ordinary decorations and plain snacks, they don’t mind. The only thing that makes a sleepover truly special is having it with their friend Toucan!

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Familius Picture Book Reviews

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The Boy Who Loved the Moon by Rino Alaimo

The Boy Who Loved the Moon
by Rino Alaimo
4 out of 5 stars

A young boy falls in love with the Moon and tries to win her heart by offering her lavish gifts. He slays the dragon and travels down into the deepest ocean, but the Moon is unimpressed. Finally the boy finds one thing that will touch the Moon’s heart and win her love.

This book is so imaginative! The plot is like a dream and it doesn’t quite make sense. The magic is mysterious and strange. You never quite know what is going to happen, but if you can just let the enchantment wash over you and accept whatever wild things come along, you will enjoy it.

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Book Review: Bobbsey Twins Own Little Railroad

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The Bobbsey Twins' Own Little Railroad by Laura Lee Hope

The Bobbsey Twins’ Own Little Railroad
by Laura Lee Hope
4 out of 5 stars

A friend of the Bobbsey’s is moving and gives the twins a little train engine just big enough to pull a car that seats five or six people. The twins have fun setting up the tracks, putting water in the boiler, starting up the fire, and getting the steam engine running. They go whizzing around the track, and Bert learns how to operate the engine all by himself. But their fun is short lived when part of the train tracks are stolen! Can the Bobbsey twins solve the mystery of the missing tracks and find the thief?

I loved this simple story and all the fun adventures that the Bobbsey twins have! The plot is interesting and really kept my attention. There is something so charming about these books that takes me back to my childhood.

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