Book Review Blog — Children's Book

A delightful new mashup of old familiar fairy tale characters and themes, with loads of originality and memorable characters. (I particularly adore the cranky Snow with all her axes and armour! And the secret boy witch Hansel with his unfathomable powers.) The characters have depth and can certainly sustain a series of adventures. Themes deftly and humorously tackled head on in this book: gender stereotypes, racism (underlined as species-ism), authoritarian governments, political asylum, to name a few. There is an abundance of juicy ideas to relate to real life and discuss with young readers delightfully delivered. Definitely looking forward to...

Rumblestar By Abi ElphinstonePub Date: 30 May 2019Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK Children’s Children's Fiction, Middle GradePGBB Reviewed on NetGalley 15 May 2019 ⭐5/5 Simply splendid start to finish! I didn’t think I could adore another new pair of protagonists following my mini-love-fair with Smudge and Bartholomew in Everdark, but Utterly and Casper are another unique and fabulous duo. Casper hates risks and is allergic to adventure. Utterly hates rules and is allergic to behaving. Their odd combination of personal strengths and challenges chime with delightful counterpoint and provide every reader with traits to identify with. But for all their faults...

Benice Written by Metin Karayaka, Illustrated by Rohan Daniel EasonPub Date: 01 Nov 2018Publisher: YunkaChildren's Fiction, Middle GradePGBB Reviewed on NetGalley 9 May 2019 ⭐4/5  A wonderful fishing story turn pirate tale with beautiful illustrations both reminiscent of great classics.  I hope this book will come to be a classic in time too! Perfect for families to read together. There are twists and resolutions throughout but one mystery remains at the end... and I am dearly hoping for a sequel / continuation of the tale as I am far too attached to the characters to say goodbye.

Amazing Expeditions: Journeys That Changed The World by Anita GaneriPub Date: 09 Apr 2019Publisher: Ivy KidsChildren's NonfictionPGBB Reviewed on NetGalley 28 April 2019 ⭐5/5 Terrific history book covering a wide range of both male and female explorers from all over (not just the West) through the ages from ancient history to present day. Delightful simple illustrations, pages not too crammed with visual detail and succinct chunks of information on each journey laid out for the reader to 'navigate' by number and arrows. And excellent little maps tracing the explorer's journeys.  Highly recommend for primary schools and could be paired with author visits to schools for...