animals – Page 5 – One Chapter

The Puppets of Spelhorst by Kate DiCamillo

5 stars Tale

They were together and then, they’re not. I heard about this book, so I picked it up. It’s a Norendy Tale about five puppets that’s told in 3 Acts consisting of 28 chapters. Kate brings us this story about a lonely sea captain who discovers five puppets and the story they were meant to tell. The wooden trunk for which they were housed becomes their home, their shelter, as they traveled about experiencing the world. They were a unique group, a bonded family who knew they held greatness within.

The sea captain, a man alone in his thoughts, was out for a walk because today was one of his good days as the weather was nice and his body felt good. On bad days, the sea captain would lie in his bed all day and just exist. Spelhorst was a lonely man as he listened and watched the world around him. Today on his walk, there’s a toy shop in the alley that grabs Spelhorst attention. Floating midair, in the glass display there are a group of puppets: a king, an owl, a wolf, a boy, and a girl. It’s the girl puppet that captures his heart. As he attempts to buy this female puppet from the merchant, the face on this female puppet fills his head with memories. Unable to buy just one of the puppets, Spelhorst buys the whole set and sets off for home.

Upon entering his home, Spelhorst sets the girl puppet on his table, casting the other puppets into a wooden chest on the floor. Spelhorst is overcome with emotions as he begins talking to the girl puppet, calling her Annalise and apologizing to her. Retiring for the night, the emotional spent sea captain takes to bed while the puppets begin to talk amongst themselves about their new surroundings. They’re finally out in the world, experiencing the world but they’re not prepared for what lies ahead.

They wanted to tell their story; they each knew they had something within them, but would they be able to tell it.

This is such a fun adventure story. As two young girls become the owners of the wooden chest, the puppets each begin to experience life outside the toy store. With individual personalities and stories, each of them has an adventure that has a lasting effect on them. Everyone dreams and has hope and this book definitely shows us that. 5 stars

See the Cat: Three Stories About a Dog by David LaRochelle

5 stars Children’s

If you love humor, you will enjoy this book. As you read the book, the author narrates the story, so you think that you’ll be seeing and reading a story about a cat. The author begins telling you a story about a cat but by the end of the book, a dog is the main character. You’ll learn what the cat looks like, what they are doing and what is happening to the cat, but the problem is, there’s a dog in the book. There is no cat. The author’s narration is on one side of the page, and on the opposite side of the page, there’s a dog who is responding to what the author is stating. The dog’s comments are written in text bubbles, and he’s upset that the author is confused about what animal is in the book. Soon, the author changes and he starts addressing the dog in the book and what happens with the dog and his surroundings begin to surprise him. It’s comical as the dog tries to tell the author to stop talking, to stop writing as dog doesn’t like what is happening.

We loved how funny this story was. No matter how many times we read this book, we laugh! I enjoy the easy text as this would be a perfect book for learning readers. The stories are simple, but they do have structure and meaning. The illustrations are bright and colorful. What a fun book! David LaRochelle is becoming one of our favorite authors, I hope he continues to write fantastic books.

This book is bound to get laughs and smiles. We’ve checked it out so many times at the library, I think I should just buy my own copy.

See the Dog! Three Stories About a Cat by David LaRochelle

5 stars Children’s

This book is hilarious. As you read the book, the author narrates the story, so you think that you’ll be seeing and reading a story about a dog. Throughout the story, the author tells you that the dog will bark, dig a hole, swim across a lake, etc., but in reality, there’s a cat that is taking the place of the dog in the book. The cat tells her side of the story in text bubbles on the opposite side of the author’s narration.

It’s comical as the cat tries to fill in for the dog and realizes that some of the activities are difficult for a cat. Dogs can dig a hole pretty easy and quickly but yet a cat……not so much as “If I dig a hole, I will get dirt on my fur.” What does cat do?

Well, the author insists that this activity get done so, the cat takes action, and they grab a backhoe and starts digging. Cat is so clever and funny! There are three stories in this book and the fun just does not end.

This book is bound to get laughs and smiles. We’ve checked it out so many times at the library, I think I should just buy my own copy.

Mr. Fox’s Game of No! by David LaRochelle

5 stars Childrens

Another fantastic book by David! Mr. Fox wants you to play his Game of No, are you ready? Is your brain ready for this? Even if you struggle and fail his game, you will be laughing by the time you finish this book.

Playing Mr. Fox’s Game of No requires you to say “NO” even when you would like to say “yes.” It’s a struggle, I tell you. You will definitely hesitate when responding back to Mr. Fox’s questions, as you think about what answer you want to give and what answer you do give to Mr. Fox. If you do end up saying “yes” by mistake, it’s not the end of the world, you just have to start reading this book from the beginning again.

Are you ready? I’m already laughing thinking about my grandson’s reactions to Mr. Fox’s questions and how much he loves reading this book.

You’ll love this book, and your child will want to read it again and again as they’ll love the silliness of Mr. Fox and how he tries to trick them throughout the story. With fantastic illustrations that compliment the story and easy to read text, this story is a definite read! 5 stars!

Wagnificent: The Adventures of Thunder and Sage by Bethanie Murguia

4 stars Children’s Graphic Novel

Sage loves all things enchanted while her dog Thunder doesn’t. Sage doesn’t like the cape and hat that Sage dressed him up in, in fact he believes it’s all wrong. While Sage is diving into her fantasy obsession, Thunder’s inner self materializes.

Thunder knows he’s a dog but who were his past ancestors? Discovering that wolves were his descendants, Thunder is told by his inner self to embrace this new knowledge and to gain strength and power from it. No longer is Thunder the easy-go-lucky dog, he now has his own thoughts and ideas.

Sage’s energy and spirit fill the pages, as she tries to entertain herself and her dog Thunder while Thunder’s inner wolf spirit is pushing back. Thunder needs to find a balance with the person who loves him the most. With cute illustrations that help retell the story, I think this book is geared more towards the younger elementary readers. 4 stars

All the Books by Hayley Rocco

5 stars Children’s Picture

Piper loved books yet she had never stepped foot inside a library. She loved books so much; she took them everywhere she went, every single one of them. Piper carried her collection everywhere she went. It was hard to transport such a big collection, but Piper loved her books.

As Piper’s bike flipped with all her prized possessions lying scattered around, Piper was now experiencing her worse day ever. Carrying an umbrella, mole comes out to assist Piper as the rain starts to come down. Mole helps Piper gather her things and they head into a building that takes Piper’s breath away. It’s humongous and amazing!

Mole is the librarian, and he has just changed the life of Piper, he has brought Piper inside a library.

I really liked this book. I liked how the story flowed and how Piper’s view on books changed. I loved her reaction to the library. The illustrations in this book are fabulous. Very colorful and the characters are great. 5 stars.

Mouse and His Dog (Dogtown #2) by Katherine Applegate

5 stars Children’s Chapter Book

Yes, this is a series, but you can read this one as a stand alone but why would you? I really believe that I loved this second book in this series more than the first. I was almost going to set this book aside but once I got reading, I couldn’t stop! I absolutely adored the relationship that Mouse had with Buster heck, Mouse is such a caring little creature to everyone.

It was such an enjoyable, entertaining read as Mouse tries to tackle the impossible. Mouse and Buster create a close bond at Dogtown, each of them watching out for one another. Mouse knows that the dog shelter is no place for a mouse, but he enjoys it there amongst his friends. Buster finally gets another break, and he’s adopted. Unfortunately, his freedom from the shelter is short-lived when he is once again returned to the shelter.

Back at the shelter, Mouse overhears talk about The List. Hearing that his friends have made it on this, Mouse is on a mission to find permanent homes for Buster and his friends before it’s too late. It’s an emotional time for Mouse knowing he will lose his friends once they are gone yet he knows the fate his friends face if they remain at The Doghouse.

Such a great combination of friends: Smoke Alarm, Stewie, Buster, and Mouse. I enjoyed this book tremendously . 5 stars.

Blue Sky White Clouds: A Book for Memory-Challenged Adults

5 stars Adult/Children

I liked this book. I loved the variety of pictures and how clear and crisp the pictures were. Each page in this book sports a big photograph and underneath the photograph is a small sentence stating what the picture is. Examples include:

“Seagulls play in the water. ““Pretty pink and white flowers.” “A blue bicycle by the beach.” “Dad swims with his son.”

There are a variety of diverse individuals inside this book. The sentences are short and descriptive. The pages are numbered too. I would like to see more pictures in the future but this is a good start. Overall, a great book and hope there are going to be more of these books in the future. 5 stars

Never Forget Eleanor by Jason June

3.5 stars Children’s

This book was okay. The enthusiasm from Elijah was what made the pages turn for me. Elijah loved his Grandma Eleanor so much and he loved her Saturday story sessions. Elijah loved talking with his grandma and learning new words. Every Saturday, Grandma Eleanor would sit on her porch swing and tell stories to everyone who would gather. There were crowds typically around her porch: Elijah, grandma’s friends and family, they all loved to listen to her recite her stories.

One Saturday, Grandma Eleanor is not there. Elijah panicked at first but then, he had a plan. Elijah’s plan worked and grandma finds her way back home. Grandma Eleanor makes a lasting impression on Elijah as she shares her life with him.

The illustrations in this book were great. I loved the colors and the facial features. The emotions on the faces were nicely done. I really enjoyed the relationship between Grandma Eleanor and Elijah. The Author’s and Artist’s Note at the back of the book were a great bonus. I felt that some of the words used in this book were not words that children would understand. This book addresses Alzheimer’s and dementia without mentioning it at all. I liked the ending, but I was hoping for something more in the middle. 3.5 stars.

Go and Get With Rex by David LaRochelle

5 stars (glowing stars!) Children’s

This is a fun book! This is the second book we have read by David LaRochel and I will be checking out more by this author. My grandson decided to play the game with Rex after we had read this book a few times so that told me he really enjoyed this book.

The story is told to you by a game show host and you read about the game show contestants Jack, Jill and the dog Rex. The text reads as if the host is talking to you, “Howdy, everyone! Who wants to play a game of Go and Get?” It’s so much fun to read this book and the answers that the contestants give are great, especially Rex, the dog. The game show host gives the contestants letters of the alphabet, one at a time, and they must go get items beginning with that letter. When they return, he comments about their items that they returned with, while also using words that begin with that letter A LOT in his comments. An example: letter F – “that was fast! Let’s see what you found.” Now, each of the contestants conceal their items but give one clue so you can guess what they are. Jack brough something in a box that says, “Ribbit! Ribbit!” a Frog! Yes, Frog begins with the letter F!” Rex brought something in a box that says “Quack! A Duck? I’m sorry, Rex, but duck does not begin with the letter F. Oh! This duck is your Friend. You’re right. Friend does begin with the letter F!?

Now, isn’t that cute? What did Jill bring? Well, you’ll need to check out this book to find out this answer and to see what other letters the game show host gave to the contestants.

I loved this book; it was so fun and entertaining! My grandson was running around the house trying to find something to match the letters just like Jack, Jill, and Rex.

Definitely a 5 star book for us!