Difference between revisions of "Newest Emerging Readers Reviews"

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[[Category:Emerging Readers|*]]
 
[[Category:Emerging Readers|*]]
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{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author= Andrea Beaty and David Roberts
+
|author=Nigel Baines
|title= Ada Twist, Scientist
+
|title=A Tricky Kind of Magic
|rating= 5
 
|genre= Emerging Readers
 
|summary= The first thing you must know about Ada Marie is the way she said nothing until the day she was three. Now that's a way to pique your interest from the start. After all what sort of child does not speak until she turns three? In this case it's a very smart little girl.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1419721372</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
 
 
{{newreview
 
|author=Dr Seuss
 
|title=Horton Hears a Who
 
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Emerging Readers
 
|genre=Emerging Readers
|summary=Some books are classics and they prove this by never going out of printDo you want to pick up a copy of a Dr Seuss novel?  The chances are that you will be able to find a brand new one in any book shopHowever, do these tales still stand the test of time?  Can Horton’s adventures with the Whos remain the wonderful story it was the day it was written?
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|summary=Cooper loves to perform magic tricks.  His father was a magician, and named Cooper after the great Tommy CooperBut sadly Cooper's father died suddenly, and now Cooper doesn't quite know who to be, or how to beAnd when his dad's prop rabbit starts talking to him, he ''really'' doesn't know what's going on anymore!
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0007455941</amazonuk>
+
|isbn=1444960261
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Rose Lagercrantz and Eva Eriksson
+
|author=Jane Lightbourne
|title= Life According to Dani
+
|title= My Cat Called Red
|rating=5
+
|rating= 4
 
|genre=Emerging Readers
 
|genre=Emerging Readers
|summary=Meet Dani – and if you haven't throughout [[:Category:Rose Lagercrantz and Eva Eriksson|the three previous books]] then you certainly should. Her life has been up and down, considering she's only just finished the first year of primary school, but at the moment it's on the up, with caveatsShe's in an idyllic place – staying with the best friend imaginable for the entire summer holidays, on what might as well be a private island, and in constant contact with her father. The caveats concern what happened in [[When I Am Happiest by Rose Lagercrantz and Eva Eriksson|book three]] and the fact that her father has been run over, but at least he calls every night at teatime.  Until, that is, the night that he doesn't…
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|summary= Robin has red hair. He hates it, and the freckles that go along with it. He's been bullied and mocked at school because of it. ''Ginger Minger! Carrots!'' Kids are meanBut red hair is not Robin's only misery in life. He's already lost his dad to a mountaineering accident when his mum gets ill and is taken into hospital. She doesn't come home again.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1776570715</amazonuk>
+
|isbn= 1838216812
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Sharon Rentta
+
|author=Francesca Simon and Steve May
|title=A Day at the Animal Post Office
+
|title=Two Terrible Vikings
|rating=3
+
|rating=4
 
|genre=Emerging Readers
 
|genre=Emerging Readers
|summary= Some people love their work and I have to say that I enjoy mine, but give me the option of winning the Euro Millions and spending the rest of my days drinking Pina Coladas on a superyacht, or the office, and I choose the beach. For children there is sometimes a glamour that emanates from the working week; what tales of majesty can Bob the Builder tell me?  The fact is that work can be dull at times and repetitive, but a book written for children about gainful employment should make it sound fun?
+
|summary=In a small Viking village there live two twins, Hack and Whack, who are eager to be the very worst Vikings ever!  Nothing can stop their mad marauding, as they cause havoc at a birthday party, chaos whilst tracking a troll, and undertake a grand journey to raid Bad Island with their friends! They get up to all kinds of mischief and naughty behaviour, along with their wolf-cub Bitey-Bitey, and their crazy cast of friends.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1407162543</amazonuk>
+
|isbn=0571349498
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Clara Vulliamy
+
|isbn=1838593187
|title=Dotty Detective
+
|title=Guess What I Found in the Playground!
 +
|author=Victoria Thompson
 +
|rating=4.5
 +
|genre=For Sharing
 +
|summary=Tilly is excited.  She's just come dashing out of the classroom, pigtails flapping behind her and a big grin on her face.  Dad's come to collect her and her brother and he ''has'' to try to guess what she found in the playground today, although she concedes that he will never guess.  Dad wants to know how school was, but ''obviously'' that's not important.  Could Tilly have found more collectable things for her scrap box?  (Isn't that so much more sensible than a scrap ''book''?)  Well, actually, Tilly did find exciting stuff.  There are sequins, glittered paper and all sorts of other things in her pocket, but that's not what she wants Dad to guess.
 +
}}
 +
{{Frontpage
 +
|author=Innosanto Nagara
 +
|title=M is for Movement
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=Emerging Readers
 
|genre=Emerging Readers
|summary=Dorothy Constance Mae Louise, otherwise known as Dot, has just moved house and has had to change schools. Luckily she soon finds a friend, Beans, and together they form the top-secret 'Join the Dots Detectives'. Both Dot and Beans are huge fans of the TV programme 'Fred Fantastic – Ace Detective'. They've watched every episode and memorised all Fred's techniques. It's just as well they have because their classmate Laura has hatched a plot to prevent shy Amy singing in the talent contest and it's up to Dot and Beans to uncover the plan.  
+
|summary=Set in Indonesia, in the not too distant past, this is a story about social change. Dealing with some difficult issues, such as political corruption and nepotism, the book is neither boring nor preachy. It educates gently, with vibrant, challenging illustrations, and it portrays how social movements need people who will try, even when it seems that they will fail. The message is a positive one; that in an increasingly uncertain world, we do still have the power to instigate change.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0008132496</amazonuk>
+
|isbn=1609809351
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Elli Woollard
+
|isbn=1949471004
|title=The Secret Pirate (Swashbuckle Lil: The Secret Pirate)
+
|title=Dog on a Log Chapter Books: Step 1
 +
|author=Pamela Brookes
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
|genre= Emerging Readers
+
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
|summary= School girl Lil is a secret pirate. Her classmates think she's an ordinary girl and assume they're just imagining things when they hear her bag squawk. They don't know that's where she keeps her parrot (whose name is Carrot). Her teacher, Miss Lubber, thinks Lil's naughty and is unaware that Lil's really trying to save the teacher from being kidnapped by the wicked pirate, Stinkbeard. But Lil doesn't mind because she knows the truth – she's a bold and brave pirate and all her adventures are true (at least to her).
+
|summary=What do you do when your child has dyslexia and you need books which will help them to achieve the wonder that is reading?  You can risk buying early readers, but the sounds in the book might not be the ones you've been working on and encountering words which are just too challenging can have more of a negative effect on the young dyslexic than a child without that problem.  You need to be able to buy books at a reasonable price which concentrate on what you've been working on, without anything else being thrown into the mix. You need a story which engages the young mind and you need stages which progress steadily through the learning process without there being any large jumps.  Some online support and games wouldn't go amiss, either.  Reading - and ''learning'' to read - should be a pleasure. It should be ''fun''.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1509808825</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
+
{{Frontpage
|author=Dr Seuss
+
|isbn=099334030X
|title=Oh, the Places You'll Go
+
|title=Can You Draw the Dragosaur?
 +
|author=Peter Lynas and Charlie Roberts
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
|genre=Emerging Readers
+
|genre=Crafts
|summary=''Oh, The Places You'll Go'' is the classic Dr Seuss tale of one man's journey through a bizarre landThe book takes you on a trip into the imagination of an author who was never shy of the bizarreYou will sail high into the sky in a hot air balloon and walk through strange forests with trees that you have never seen.  One thing is for sure, this will not be a dull outing and if you are new to Dr Seuss, one you may never forget.
+
|summary=You're going to get a hint of what this book's about very quickly.  When you see the title page, you'll find out what the book's called and that it's been written by Peter Lynas.  Then we move on to who has done the illustration - and there's a gap.  ''You'' are going to put your name thereIt's ''your'' responsibility to provide the pictures for this book about one of the largest creatures ever to roam the earthThere's some help available, but your name is on the title page - and you have work to do!
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0008122113</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Pip Jones
+
|isbn=1609809335
|title=Squishy McFluff: Seaside Rescue!
+
|title=The Lizard
|rating=4.5
+
|author= Jose Saramago, J Borges, Nick Caistor (translator) and Lucia Caistor (translator)
|genre= Children's Rhymes and Verse
+
|rating=2
|summary= Ava and her invisible cat – Squishy McFluff – are off to the seaside for their latest adventure together. They have great fun digging in the sand towards Australia and sitting on the beach eating ice cream. (Although the adults who fall in their hole and the ice cream man may not share their enthusiasm.) Everything is purr-fect until invisible cat Squishy decides to chase an invisible fish. Now it's up to Ava to stage a 'seaside rescue'…
+
|genre=Emerging Readers
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0571320686</amazonuk>
+
|summary=One day a giant lizard appears in the city. We don't even get told how it arrived, but it certainly appeared. People took against it, and if they weren't shrugging it off as a hallucination brought on by tiredness just as they fled it, they wanted something done about it.  Can something be done about it, though?
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author= Posy Simmonds
+
|isbn=1789016320
|title= Lulu and the Chocolate Wedding
+
|title=Tadcaster and the Bullies
|rating= 5
+
|author=Richard Rutherford
|genre= Emerging Readers
+
|rating=4
|summary= Unusual, quirky children's books can be hit or miss, but this one is a definite hit. Told in cartoon strip form, with illustrations reminiscent of the brilliant ''Raymond Briggs'', it mixes the real world with dreamy fantasies that have a touch of [[Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll and Sir John Tenniel]] to them.
+
|genre=Emerging Readers  
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>178344407X</amazonuk>
+
|summary=In some ways it was a gentler time: video games were around, but children usually went outside to enjoy themselves.  They flew kites and went sledging if there was snow around.  Tim and Mary's great-grandfather started a business in 1899 so our story is probably set in the nineteen seventies.  Something which hasn't changed, unfortunately, is bullying and two lads are making life miserable not just for Tim and Mary but for other children who gather in the playground.  Tim's probably about ten - just at the stage where he's beginning to feel responsible for his younger sister, who's two years younger than him, but he's not yet at the stage where he knows how to deal with bullies.
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Swapna Haddow
+
|isbn=B01N0OZQOD
|title=Dave Pigeon
+
|title=Nickerbacher
 +
|author=Terry John Barto
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=Emerging Readers  
 
|genre=Emerging Readers  
|summary=The tag line on the cover of ''Dave Pigeon'' probably sums this story up. It's about ''How to Deal with Bad Cats and Keep (most of) Your Feathers''. Or, if you want a bit more, it's about two Pigeons – Dave and his trusty friend Skipper – who are unceremoniously attacked by a cat while on a routine croissant heist. Dave's wing is injured so he and Skipper set out to get their own back at the vicious cat. They plan to evict Mean Cat from his home and install themselves in his place with the kind Human Lady and her enviable supply of biscuits. You won't be surprised that things don't go exactly to plan.
+
|summary=Nickerbacher is doing his dragonly duty as all dragons do. That dragonly duty is, of course, princess-guarding. That's what dragons are for, after all. But Gwendolyn isn't any princess. She finds the whole princessing thing quite boring really and she is much less interested in fairy tales than she is in watching comedy on ''The Late Knight Show''. Nickerbacher likes ''The Late Knight Show'' too - in fact, it's his favourite TV show because he wants to be a stand-up comedian himself. He tries out his jokes on Princess Gwendolyn but they don't always come off quite as Nickerbacher intended.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0571323308</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author= Elys Dolan
+
|isbn=0008265836
|title= Steven Seagull Action Hero
+
|title=Rory Branagan Detective
|rating= 4.5
+
|author=Andrew Clover and Ralph Lazar
|genre= Emerging Readers
+
|rating=5
|summary= Steven Seagull is a retired cop. He used to patrol Beach City but those days are over. He was fired, you see, so that retirement wasn't entirely voluntary. Fired for being ''a renegade'' (quite a fancy word). But a crime wave is underway and no one has been able to find the culprit. Can Steven be coaxed out of retirement to see if he can help?
+
|genre=Emerging Readers  
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0192738704</amazonuk>
+
|summary=Ten-year-old Rory Branagan isn't just a normal kid. He's a detective and he has a mystery to solve – why did his dad disappear when he was three? Rory doesn't know where to start but, then, Cassidy moves in next door and he discovers he has an accomplice who is full of ideas. This is just as well as they soon discover a very serious crime: Corner Boy's dad has been poisoned and is at risk of dying but no-one else will believe he's in danger. It's up to Rory and Cassidy to uncover the truth and save a life.
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Michael Bond
+
|isbn=0192758748
|title=Love from Paddington
+
|title=Horace & Harriet Take on the Town
|rating=4.5
+
|author=Clare Elsom
|genre=Confident Readers
+
|rating=4
|summary=Consider some of the more pertinent questions of literature. Would things have been better if Rhett Butler ''did'' give a damn?  What would Jane Eyre have done if the men with the truth hadn't made the church in time?  And, of course, how does a little bear with a fondness for marmalade actually turn up in Paddington Station, so very, very far from home?  Well, while the actual short stories may never have answered any of those questions, this work does – in amongst suggesting why bears don't play cricket, and a host more. As a result it may have a very different structure to the original books of linked short stories, but it's just as wonderful and characterful.
+
|genre=Emerging Readers  
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0008164355</amazonuk>
+
|summary=When Harriet, aged seven and a quarter, decides to go to Princes Park to practise 'Going to the Park on Her Own' (i.e. with her Grandad walking at least thirty steps behind) she can't believe her eyes. The statue of Lord Commander Horatio Fredrick Wallington Nincompoop Maximus Pimpleberry the Third (or Horace for short) starts to move. He not only moves but stamps his foot, shouts something that would get him in serious trouble with Harriet's mum, and climbs down from his pillar. Understandably Harriet can't resist following and quickly finds herself dragged all around the town as Horace searches for a new – and more suitable – home. His sights are firmly set on the Mayor's mansion and it, therefore, falls to Harriet to persuade him that there must be a better alternative. Sadly, Horace's visits to the museum, cinema, train station, playground, bank and library all cause mayhem. Luckily, however, a competition in the park reveals the perfect answer.
}}
 
{{newreview
 
|author= Harriet Whitehorn and Becka  Moor
 
|title=Violet and the Smugglers
 
|rating= 4
 
|genre= Confident Readers
 
|summary= Violet's godfather has inherited a sailing boat and invites Violet and her family and friends to join him on a sailing adventure in the Mediterranean. How could Violet possibly say no? This turns out not to be quite as relaxing as you may imagine. It is not long before our heroine has suspicions about the captain of another boat and Violet's detective skills are needed again. With the help of her friends, Rose and Art, Violet is determined to solve the mystery. Will she be able to put a stop to a dangerous smuggling ring?
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1471122638</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Elizabeth Schaefer and Brian Rood
+
|isbn=Saulles_Bee
|title=Star Wars The Force Awakens Illustrated Storybook
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|title=Bee Boy: Clash of the Killer Queens
 +
|author=Tony De Saulles
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
|genre=Emerging Readers
+
|genre=Emerging Readers  
|summary=A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…  Well, ours, last year, really…  A film came along that seriously impressed lots of mature audience members who had very valid reasons to doubt it, and that made goggle-eyed popcorn munchers of a lot of youngsters. It had rollicking spacecraft dog-fights, it had emotional revisits for well-loved characters, and had a sting in its tail that lasted at least a couple of days before being leaked to the wider world.  I know there is a DVD and Blu-Ray of it coming within days of me writing this, but I can only assume the reason the junior books about the film are being released now and not in time with its cinematic release is down to the chatter of the young and their rampant ability to say what they shouldn't – which includes what happens about eighteen pages before the end of the story here.
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|summary=Young Mel's friend has left and the beehive is now his to look after. Unfortunately, Mel lives in a tower block and not all of his neighbours agree that it is the correct place for a hive. Things change when Mel suddenly realises he has an amazing superpower; he can become a bee.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1405284021</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Katrina Pallant and Robert Ball
+
|isbn=Davidson_Night
|title=Star Wars Bounty Hunt: Lift the Flap
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|title=Night Zookeeper: The Giraffes of Whispering Wood
|rating=3
+
|author=Joshua Davidson
|genre=Emerging Readers
+
|rating=5
|summary=If you need to give credit to the Star Wars universe for anything, beyond sheer entertainment, it may be the way it makes such great store of putting evil characters to the fore. They're often the more memorable for being in tune with the dark side of the Force, and even if we're not meaning full-on Darth Vader or the like we're talking about Hutts, bounty hunters and sheer nasty people as the focus of the stories. All in all the good guys will win the day, but the baddies have a heck of a lot more attention given them than in some franchises. And such is the case here, where we have a small episode in the life of devious and dogged bounty hunter Bossk, who was in films 5 and 6 and the Clone Wars animation, but isn't generally well-known on the street. Or in the nursery school, for this is seriously geared at the younger end of the SW audience.
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|genre=Emerging Readers  
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1405279907</amazonuk>
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|summary=A straight-laced student makes one defiant act of creativity and has a world of magic and imagination opened up for him. Will is the new Night Zookeeper and his tenure in the role of protector to a magical world starts with the repulsion of a dangerous invasion.
 +
 
 +
Joshua Davidson has written about the Night Zookeeper before and there are online cartoons devoted to the character but this marks a new launch and a new series. This is not just a book but a whole online event with huge educational tie-ins and a push to get children using their own imagination. The story itself mirrors what the author is trying to achieve in real life; the power of the imagination makes everything better.
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Alex T Smith
+
|isbn=Seuss_Read
|title=Claude Going for Gold!
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|title=I Can Read With My Eyes Shut
 +
|author=Dr Seuss
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
|genre=For Sharing
+
|genre=Emerging Readers
|summary=I've been a fan of Claude from the beginning.  He charmed me from the start, with his plump tummy, little legs, red jumper and rather fetching beret.  I can't help but love a dog who wears a beret!  He also has a charming best friend, Sir Bobblysock, (who is indeed a woolly sock) who always makes me laugh.  In this particular book they are off on another hunt for an adventure, and although it seems for a while that there is simply no fun to be had outside of the house they finally fall, literally, into a Very Exciting Sports Competition!
+
|summary=''The more that you read,''<br>
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1444926489</amazonuk>
+
''The more things you will know.''<br>
}}
+
''The more that you learn,''<br>
{{newreview
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''The more places you'll go.''
|author=A A Milne and E H Shepard
 
|title=Eeyore Loses a Tail (Winnie the Pooh Classics)
 
|rating=4.5
 
|genre=Emerging Readers
 
|summary=Eeyore, the Old Grey Donkey stood in the thistly corner of the forest and thought about things.  He was quite a philosopher in his own way, but his most profound thought occured when Winnie-the-Pooh came along and enquired as to how he was.
 
  
''Not very how'', he said.  ''I don't seem to have felt at all how for a long time.''
+
This is a classic Dr Seuss quote from this book, and one that I painstakingly stickered onto the wall of my children's school library!  The book is very silly, as Dr Seuss always is, but is also a good rhyming ode to the joys of reading.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1405281359</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
{{newreview
 
|author= Polly Faber and Clara Vulliamy
 
|title= Mango and Bambang: Tapir All At Sea
 
|rating= 5
 
|genre=Emerging Readers
 
|summary= Mango is a sensible, resourceful little girl who is good at a great many things including playing the clarinet and karate. Most importantly she is good at being kind, especially to her best friend, Bambang, a slightly timid Malaysian tapir. In this second book in the series Bambang learns to become a little braver. He has to really, as he becomes involved in a series of daring escapades involving dancing classes, a diamond ring, time spent behind bars and a particularly dangerous enemy. Throughout all of this Bambang is accompanied by his faithful friend, Mango. Sometimes, even the closest friendship may be taken for granted. Will Bambang remember what matters most?
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>140636147X</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Neil Griffiths and Janette Louden
+
|isbn=Neal_Words
|title=The Dog with No Name
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|title=Words and Your Heart
 +
|author=Kate Jane Neal
 
|rating=4
 
|rating=4
|genre=Confident Readers
+
|genre=Emerging Readers  
|summary=Ella and Harry had been nagging their parents ''forever'' about getting a dog, but it wasn't until after the death of the goldfish ''and'' the Russian hamster, which they'd only seen five times because it was nocturnal, that their parents relented. Off they went to the dog rescue centre and after what seemed like ''ages'' and lots of red tape they had their very own dog.  He'd not been in the centre long and had no name but the whole family fell for him and brought him home.
+
|summary=Trolling, bullying, cyber-shaming, whatever-it's-called-this-week-ing – all act as proof that the adage about sticks and stones is actually a lot of piffle. In a world where we all have hearts, we should have a heart that what we say to other people is positive. We can examine our world and the sound it makes through communication, we can make each other smile, laugh, sing and be happy together, and bit by bit the world can be a better place. And hang the 'no, after you' attitude some people would have in response. There, I've given the entire plot of this book away in my summary, but that's not really an issue.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1908702249</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Jenny Colgan
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|isbn=Tavares_Red
|title=Polly and the Puffin
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|title=Red and Lulu
 +
|author=Matt Tavares
 
|rating=4.5
 
|rating=4.5
|genre=Emerging Readers
+
|genre=Emerging Readers  
|summary=Polly was in bed when there was LOUD bang from downstairs. It wasn't the storm which was raging outside.  It wasn't a monster or an alien from outer space. It was a puffin who had crashed through the front door and he had a broken wing. Polly's mummy got the first aid kit out whilst Polly went to get the puffin some food and the next day they went to see the vet.  By then Polly had decided that the puffin would be called Neil and the vet asked her if she would be able to look after Neil until his wing was better, on the strict understanding that he would then have to return to the wild.
+
|summary=Meet Red and Lulu. They're a committed couple of cardinals and they have lived for some time in someone's garden, safely in an evergreen tree. It seems to them that every year people mention their home in a lovely song, which tells the tree thy leaves are so unchanging. But one year, just as the seasons turn for the cold of winter, the tree vanishes, taking Lulu with it…
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0349131902</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Ian Beck
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|isbn=Dickens_Search
|title=Grey Island Red Boat
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|title=Search and Find A Christmas Carol
|rating=5
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|author=Charles Dickens, Sarah Powell and Louise Pigott
|genre=Emerging Readers
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|rating=3.5
|summary=Princess Opal lived with her father, the king, on the Island of Ashes.  It was a grey island, set in a grey sea and Opal lived in a grey castle surrounded by a cold grey moat. The gardens were grey and so were the trees and flowers.  Princess Opal even sat on a grey granite throne in a grey granite room - and she wished that her life could be different. She couldn't help but think that something was missing.
+
|genre=Emerging Readers  
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>178112521X</amazonuk>
+
|summary=Recently I got to applaud a book that branched away from the Where's Wally? style volume, and taught the explorer about a non-fiction subject as they went a-searching. Well, it seems tweaking the form is going to be a big thing, for this book tries yet another different approach – to teach us about a fictional story. They've started at the deep end, with a book hastening towards being two centuries old, and one that has been adapted countless times before now, yet always has people returning to it at a certain time of the year for its ageless lesson. But does the rich content of Dickens, even at his most populist, survive this quirky variation?
 
}}
 
}}
{{newreview
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{{Frontpage
|author=Michael Morpurgo and Sam Usher
+
|isbn=Seuss_Eggs
|title=We Are Not FROGS!
+
|title=Scrambled Eggs Super
|rating=4
+
|author=Dr Seuss
|genre=Dyslexia Friendly
+
|rating=4.5
|summary=After the storm the frogs and the toads all came out onto the lawn to play long jump.  This was the frogs' choice as they could jump further and the toads just wanted an easy life.  But - through a series of unfortunate incidents involving lorries, dogs, children, a cart and an ice cream container, first the toads ended up in the ice cream container and after they sold the frogs down the river in exchange for being put into a muddy ditch, the frogs - all twenty two of them - were in the same prison and it was only thanks to Mutt the dog that they escaped.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1781125120</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
{{newreview
 
|author= Holly Webb
 
|title= Sammy the Shy Kitten
 
|rating= 4.5
 
|genre= Emerging Readers
 
|summary= An adorably, warm and cute story about what happens when Emma falls in love with a tiny sweet feral kitten whom she names Sammy. To persuade Mum and Dad to let her keep him she must learn all she can about taming wild kittens – and, of course,  win little Sammy's confidence and trust.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847156487</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
{{newreview
 
|author=Rachel Hamilton
 
|title=Unicorn in New York: Louie Lets Loose!
 
|rating=4
 
 
|genre=Emerging Readers  
 
|genre=Emerging Readers  
|summary=Louie's parents are worried when Louie announces he wants to leave home to enrol at the New York School of Performing Arts. He's a unicorn and they can't believe he'll be happy without the sunlit meadows, enchanted waterfalls and beautiful maidens of Story Land. But, like all good parents, they accept that Louie must make his own way in the world. Luckily Louie always looks for the positive in life – a skill that's going to prove essential when he arrives in New York.
+
|summary=Peter T. Hooper doesn't mean to show off, but he is ''very'' good at cooking. Some would say he is ''The Best'' capital T, capital B. And his signature dish is scrambled eggs. You might think that's quite an easy dish, one with which it's a little hard to showcase one's prowess, but not so. For Peter T. Hooper, what makes his scrambled eggs so super is the choice of the egg itself, and he will go out of his way to procure the best of the best from whatever nest.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0192744976</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
{{newreview
 
|author=Wenhua Wang, Amann Wang and Yu Yan Chen (translator)
 
|title=Mr Horton's Violin
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=Emerging Readers
 
|summary=Meet Mr Horton.  He is one of the world's most famous and rich musical instrument players, and has done it all – except, that is, stumble on a music tree. You have to stumble on them, for not carpenters, not sculptors, not even simple woodsmen would give them a second look and think of them as anything special.  But when Mr Horton does find one he is able to fashion the best, most magical violin imaginable out of its wood.  The only problem after that is working out who deserves to play it…
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0993215459</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
{{newreview
 
|author=Wenhua Wang, Amann Wang and Yu Yan Chen (translator)
 
|title=The Chief Cellist
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=Emerging Readers
 
|summary=Meet the Chief.  A new cellist in a quite horrible orchestra, he has suddenly turned their fortunes – and his – round.  He is now a superstar, and asking for more and more grandeur and help in his life.  But one night, when his chauffeur doesn't turn up for him after yet one more sterling performance, he finds himself alone in a world that doesn't care how good a cellist he is, but one where destiny might just depend on him learning the power of teamwork…
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0993215440</amazonuk>
 
}}
 
{{newreview
 
|author=Chris Judge and Andrew Judge
 
|title=Create Your Own Alien Adventure
 
|rating=4
 
|genre=Emerging Readers
 
|summary=Choose Your Own Adventure books were massive during the 80s.  They allowed the young reader to pick up a book and be the hero; your choices determined if you live or die.  Invariably, it was a game of leaving your finger in the previous page to make sure you could skip back should the fate that befell you not be to your liking.  Well, its 2016 and just choosing your adventure is no longer enough, we want to interact even more with the story, we want to create our own adventure.
 
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1407158090</amazonuk>
 
 
}}
 
}}
 +
 +
Move on to [[Newest Entertainment Reviews]]

Latest revision as of 13:05, 8 December 2022

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Review of

A Tricky Kind of Magic by Nigel Baines

4.5star.jpg Emerging Readers

Cooper loves to perform magic tricks. His father was a magician, and named Cooper after the great Tommy Cooper. But sadly Cooper's father died suddenly, and now Cooper doesn't quite know who to be, or how to be. And when his dad's prop rabbit starts talking to him, he really doesn't know what's going on anymore! Full Review

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Review of

My Cat Called Red by Jane Lightbourne

4star.jpg Emerging Readers

Robin has red hair. He hates it, and the freckles that go along with it. He's been bullied and mocked at school because of it. Ginger Minger! Carrots! Kids are mean. But red hair is not Robin's only misery in life. He's already lost his dad to a mountaineering accident when his mum gets ill and is taken into hospital. She doesn't come home again. Full Review

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Review of

Two Terrible Vikings by Francesca Simon and Steve May

4star.jpg Emerging Readers

In a small Viking village there live two twins, Hack and Whack, who are eager to be the very worst Vikings ever! Nothing can stop their mad marauding, as they cause havoc at a birthday party, chaos whilst tracking a troll, and undertake a grand journey to raid Bad Island with their friends! They get up to all kinds of mischief and naughty behaviour, along with their wolf-cub Bitey-Bitey, and their crazy cast of friends. Full Review

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Review of

Guess What I Found in the Playground! by Victoria Thompson

4.5star.jpg For Sharing

Tilly is excited. She's just come dashing out of the classroom, pigtails flapping behind her and a big grin on her face. Dad's come to collect her and her brother and he has to try to guess what she found in the playground today, although she concedes that he will never guess. Dad wants to know how school was, but obviously that's not important. Could Tilly have found more collectable things for her scrap box? (Isn't that so much more sensible than a scrap book?) Well, actually, Tilly did find exciting stuff. There are sequins, glittered paper and all sorts of other things in her pocket, but that's not what she wants Dad to guess. Full Review

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Review of

M is for Movement by Innosanto Nagara

4star.jpg Emerging Readers

Set in Indonesia, in the not too distant past, this is a story about social change. Dealing with some difficult issues, such as political corruption and nepotism, the book is neither boring nor preachy. It educates gently, with vibrant, challenging illustrations, and it portrays how social movements need people who will try, even when it seems that they will fail. The message is a positive one; that in an increasingly uncertain world, we do still have the power to instigate change. Full Review

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Review of

Dog on a Log Chapter Books: Step 1 by Pamela Brookes

4star.jpg Dyslexia Friendly

What do you do when your child has dyslexia and you need books which will help them to achieve the wonder that is reading? You can risk buying early readers, but the sounds in the book might not be the ones you've been working on and encountering words which are just too challenging can have more of a negative effect on the young dyslexic than a child without that problem. You need to be able to buy books at a reasonable price which concentrate on what you've been working on, without anything else being thrown into the mix. You need a story which engages the young mind and you need stages which progress steadily through the learning process without there being any large jumps. Some online support and games wouldn't go amiss, either. Reading - and learning to read - should be a pleasure. It should be fun. Full Review

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Review of

Can You Draw the Dragosaur? by Peter Lynas and Charlie Roberts

4.5star.jpg Crafts

You're going to get a hint of what this book's about very quickly. When you see the title page, you'll find out what the book's called and that it's been written by Peter Lynas. Then we move on to who has done the illustration - and there's a gap. You are going to put your name there. It's your responsibility to provide the pictures for this book about one of the largest creatures ever to roam the earth. There's some help available, but your name is on the title page - and you have work to do! Full Review

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Review of

The Lizard by Jose Saramago, J Borges, Nick Caistor (translator) and Lucia Caistor (translator)

2star.jpg Emerging Readers

One day a giant lizard appears in the city. We don't even get told how it arrived, but it certainly appeared. People took against it, and if they weren't shrugging it off as a hallucination brought on by tiredness just as they fled it, they wanted something done about it. Can something be done about it, though? Full Review

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Review of

Tadcaster and the Bullies by Richard Rutherford

4star.jpg Emerging Readers

In some ways it was a gentler time: video games were around, but children usually went outside to enjoy themselves. They flew kites and went sledging if there was snow around. Tim and Mary's great-grandfather started a business in 1899 so our story is probably set in the nineteen seventies. Something which hasn't changed, unfortunately, is bullying and two lads are making life miserable not just for Tim and Mary but for other children who gather in the playground. Tim's probably about ten - just at the stage where he's beginning to feel responsible for his younger sister, who's two years younger than him, but he's not yet at the stage where he knows how to deal with bullies. Full Review

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Review of

Nickerbacher by Terry John Barto

4star.jpg Emerging Readers

Nickerbacher is doing his dragonly duty as all dragons do. That dragonly duty is, of course, princess-guarding. That's what dragons are for, after all. But Gwendolyn isn't any princess. She finds the whole princessing thing quite boring really and she is much less interested in fairy tales than she is in watching comedy on The Late Knight Show. Nickerbacher likes The Late Knight Show too - in fact, it's his favourite TV show because he wants to be a stand-up comedian himself. He tries out his jokes on Princess Gwendolyn but they don't always come off quite as Nickerbacher intended. Full Review

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Review of

Rory Branagan Detective by Andrew Clover and Ralph Lazar

5star.jpg Emerging Readers

Ten-year-old Rory Branagan isn't just a normal kid. He's a detective and he has a mystery to solve – why did his dad disappear when he was three? Rory doesn't know where to start but, then, Cassidy moves in next door and he discovers he has an accomplice who is full of ideas. This is just as well as they soon discover a very serious crime: Corner Boy's dad has been poisoned and is at risk of dying but no-one else will believe he's in danger. It's up to Rory and Cassidy to uncover the truth and save a life. Full Review

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Review of

Horace & Harriet Take on the Town by Clare Elsom

4star.jpg Emerging Readers

When Harriet, aged seven and a quarter, decides to go to Princes Park to practise 'Going to the Park on Her Own' (i.e. with her Grandad walking at least thirty steps behind) she can't believe her eyes. The statue of Lord Commander Horatio Fredrick Wallington Nincompoop Maximus Pimpleberry the Third (or Horace for short) starts to move. He not only moves but stamps his foot, shouts something that would get him in serious trouble with Harriet's mum, and climbs down from his pillar. Understandably Harriet can't resist following and quickly finds herself dragged all around the town as Horace searches for a new – and more suitable – home. His sights are firmly set on the Mayor's mansion and it, therefore, falls to Harriet to persuade him that there must be a better alternative. Sadly, Horace's visits to the museum, cinema, train station, playground, bank and library all cause mayhem. Luckily, however, a competition in the park reveals the perfect answer. Full Review

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Review of

Bee Boy: Clash of the Killer Queens by Tony De Saulles

4.5star.jpg Emerging Readers

Young Mel's friend has left and the beehive is now his to look after. Unfortunately, Mel lives in a tower block and not all of his neighbours agree that it is the correct place for a hive. Things change when Mel suddenly realises he has an amazing superpower; he can become a bee. Full Review

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Review of

Night Zookeeper: The Giraffes of Whispering Wood by Joshua Davidson

5star.jpg Emerging Readers

A straight-laced student makes one defiant act of creativity and has a world of magic and imagination opened up for him. Will is the new Night Zookeeper and his tenure in the role of protector to a magical world starts with the repulsion of a dangerous invasion.

Joshua Davidson has written about the Night Zookeeper before and there are online cartoons devoted to the character but this marks a new launch and a new series. This is not just a book but a whole online event with huge educational tie-ins and a push to get children using their own imagination. The story itself mirrors what the author is trying to achieve in real life; the power of the imagination makes everything better. Full Review

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Review of

I Can Read With My Eyes Shut by Dr Seuss

4.5star.jpg Emerging Readers

The more that you read,
The more things you will know.
The more that you learn,
The more places you'll go.

This is a classic Dr Seuss quote from this book, and one that I painstakingly stickered onto the wall of my children's school library! The book is very silly, as Dr Seuss always is, but is also a good rhyming ode to the joys of reading. Full Review

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Review of

Words and Your Heart by Kate Jane Neal

4star.jpg Emerging Readers

Trolling, bullying, cyber-shaming, whatever-it's-called-this-week-ing – all act as proof that the adage about sticks and stones is actually a lot of piffle. In a world where we all have hearts, we should have a heart that what we say to other people is positive. We can examine our world and the sound it makes through communication, we can make each other smile, laugh, sing and be happy together, and bit by bit the world can be a better place. And hang the 'no, after you' attitude some people would have in response. There, I've given the entire plot of this book away in my summary, but that's not really an issue. Full Review

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Review of

Red and Lulu by Matt Tavares

4.5star.jpg Emerging Readers

Meet Red and Lulu. They're a committed couple of cardinals and they have lived for some time in someone's garden, safely in an evergreen tree. It seems to them that every year people mention their home in a lovely song, which tells the tree thy leaves are so unchanging. But one year, just as the seasons turn for the cold of winter, the tree vanishes, taking Lulu with it… Full Review

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Review of

Search and Find A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, Sarah Powell and Louise Pigott

3.5star.jpg Emerging Readers

Recently I got to applaud a book that branched away from the Where's Wally? style volume, and taught the explorer about a non-fiction subject as they went a-searching. Well, it seems tweaking the form is going to be a big thing, for this book tries yet another different approach – to teach us about a fictional story. They've started at the deep end, with a book hastening towards being two centuries old, and one that has been adapted countless times before now, yet always has people returning to it at a certain time of the year for its ageless lesson. But does the rich content of Dickens, even at his most populist, survive this quirky variation? Full Review

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Review of

Scrambled Eggs Super by Dr Seuss

4.5star.jpg Emerging Readers

Peter T. Hooper doesn't mean to show off, but he is very good at cooking. Some would say he is The Best capital T, capital B. And his signature dish is scrambled eggs. You might think that's quite an easy dish, one with which it's a little hard to showcase one's prowess, but not so. For Peter T. Hooper, what makes his scrambled eggs so super is the choice of the egg itself, and he will go out of his way to procure the best of the best from whatever nest. Full Review

Move on to Newest Entertainment Reviews