Adventures in Reading with Evalina and Philip

Book of Three

2012-02-06T21:03:00.000-05:00

When I was a child, I had seen The Black Cauldron in my brother's bookshelf. I thought I had read it. I don't think I ever did. I definitely wanted to read it with Evalina, and when I decided to find it, I realized it was a series! I am a bad geek, because I didn't know that. Oops. So - first things first, this is the first book in the series, and it's (somewhat ironically) called The Book of Three.

The Story: Taran is an assistant pig keeper, caring for a prophetic pig, Hen Wen. When Hen Wen escapes, and Taran goes after her, a whole new adventure enters his life in ways that he didn't expect. He meets Gwydion, a fabled hero, who doesn't quite live up to his expectations on first meeting. Evil forces, led by the menacing Horned King, are gathering to overtake the neighboring kingdom, and from there the entire kingdom. When he and Gwydion are captured, Taran meets a strange young girl named Eilonwy, a curious creature named Gurgi, and a host of others, who join on the quest to save the realm.

The Good: Taran is a realistically flawed hero. He doesn't set out to be a savior. He wants a little more excitement than he gets in his normal pig-keeper life, but he certainly doesn't plan on the kind of adventure he gets. He is a kind and true friend. Evalina's favorite part of the whole book was Gurgi. Though he starts out as less than admirable, he grows wonderfully throughout the story, and he has a different way of speaking, which Evalina loved. The characters in the book are really appealing and I can't wait to find out more about them with Evalina.

The Bad: Some of the names are ridiculously hard to pronounce, seemingly for no reason except to make them hard to pronounce. Tripping over my tongue is not fun when reading aloud. There are some moments of real suspense, and The Horned King is really terrifying, along with the Cauldron Born warriors. This just makes for good story telling, for the most part, though. The names are the only thing I can think of that are really bad about this book.

The Verdict: This would not be really easy for Evalina to read by herself, though Amazon lists it for 8 and up. She really loved it, and I can't wait to read the rest of the series with her! I can absolutely recommend it.

Ramona's World

2012-01-05T11:10:00.000-05:00

Evalina got Ramona's World for Christmas, because it was the only book in the series we hadn't yet read. It is always a delight to read a "new" book in a favorite series.

The Story: Ramona is entering the fourth grade. She has a new baby sister, Roberta, and she is back to sharing a room with Beezus (so that the baby can have her old room). She has a new best friend, Daisy, and calluses from swinging and playing on monkey bars and rings that any active fourth grader would be envious of. She also has her challenges, like any other fourth grader - trying to prove that she is worthy of more responsibility, dealing with spelling, embarrassing moments, and a bad school picture. In other words, this is a realistic story about a girl who is, in many ways, very much like Evalina.

The Good: As always, I love how realistic and timeless the Ramona stories are. They are quick reads, and funny. Evalina had several laugh out loud moments. The characters come alive on the page and you can picture any slightly quirky, exuberant 9 year old in Ramona's place... including when she becomes what she calls a teenager on her "zero-teenth" birthday. Since my own girl has been planning her own 9th birthday party for months (and it is not until March...), I can relate (and so can she).

The Bad: The only bad thing I can think of is that now we have read all the books in the Ramona series... sometimes Ramona does things that are not the best choices, but what 9 year old doesn't?

The Verdict: Absolutely read. It was the perfect reading level for Evalina, though she could have read it last year even without difficulty. I cannot say enough about this series. Quick and funny, I'm sure she'll revisit them in the future.

Heidi

2012-01-01T15:41:00.000-05:00

Evalina and I finished reading Heidi last week, and what a lovely book it was!

The Story: This classic story is about Heidi, a little girl with a wonderful spunk and spirit, who brings joy to the lives of many around her. She lives in a cottage on the Alm, in Switzerland, with her grandfather. She spends time with goats (and the young goatherd), among the wildflowers and the majestic mountains. When she is brought to live with an invalid girl in Germany, she learns just how much the Alm means to her. Though she misses her home terribly (in fact, getting literally homesick, unable to eat because she longs for her mountain home so...), she makes friends with the young girl of the household, Klara, and when she has returned to the mountain hut, Klara and her family visits and learns to understand Heidi so much more.

The Good: I would love to be friends with Heidi. She is truly caring, always looking out for Peter the Goatherd's grandmother, and her friend, Klara, and her grandfather ... she has a wonderful light that just shines. She helped to turn her grandfather from (what some saw as) a crotchety old man to be frightened of into a pillar of the community. She helps Klara see herself as more than a poor girl, stuck in a wheelchair for the rest of her life. She makes sure that the Grandmother has soft rolls and cakes and a soft bed to keep her comfortable in her house - and helps to motivate her Grandfather to fix up the Grandmother's drafty house. She brings happiness into the life of the kind doctor, who lost his own daughter. She is also clever as a whip, and loves the beauty around her in the Swiss mountains.

The Bad: I found the religious aspects of the book to be a bit heavy handed sometimes (but, I am not religious). Klara's grandmother teaches Heidi to read, and basically converts her to Christianity. Thereafter, every time something wonderful happens, it is all very religiously leaning... which, again, is not something I generally enjoy. Interestingly, and this is not bad, just interesting... Heidi is not the "Heidi" you might think of from the old movie. She has short black, curly hair, not long blonde hair done up in a braided crown. Just funny, that's all. Thank you, Shirley Temple!

The Verdict: This is a true classic and I cannot believe that I never read it as a child... it's one of those books that you think you've read until you start reading it. Absolutely recommended. If you are not religious, you might have to have some conversations about the religious aspects of this book (which Evalina and I have already had, while reading the Little House series in particular). I totally loved this book. It had humor and heart and wonderful descriptions. I want to go to Switzerland now. I can't find recommended reading level on Amazon for it, but I don't know that Evalina would have read it all on her own ... particularly, some of the names are more difficult for the non-German speaking reader. Still, she truly enjoyed it.

The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma

2011-11-22T10:02:00.000-05:00

The third (and final, at least for now) book in The Mysterious Benedict Society series, we finished The Prisoner's Dilemma a couple weeks ago. I'm just getting a chance to write it up now.

The Story: After the end of The Perilous Journey, the four kids in the Mysterious Benedict Society were all sequestered in Mr. Benedict's house. Everyone is worried about Mr. Curtain, who escaped at the end of the last book. Mr. Benedict has the Whisperer in the house, though government officials are trying to gain control of it. Through nefarious means, Mr. Curtain manages to steal the Whisperer, and the group has to find a way to get it back, getting taken prisoner in the process. To defeat Mr. Curtain, they have to find a way to escape and get the Whisperer back... which is no easy task. But, for outstanding kids like Reynie, Kate, Sticky, and Constance, anything is possible.

The Good: The characters we've come to love in the past couple of books are back, and wonderful. Even better, they are maturing as you would expect growing children. Constance is gaining in her telepathic powers, which is neat. The others are learning more about their own unique abilities and strengths, and also learning how to deal with whatever weaknesses they might have. The story is exciting.

The Bad: Sometimes, this book seemed to drag a little. It wasn't my favorite of the three. Constance spends a great deal of the book feeling sick from using her telepathy, and I miss her move vociferous presence. Still a good read, and I wouldn't skip it, but it isn't as thrilling as the others to me.

The Verdict: Amazon recommends this for 5-8th grade, and Evalina is in 3rd grade... it would have been too much for her to read on her own, I think, and get a lot out of it. She did like it, though, and always wanted me to read more. So, I think it makes a good ending to the trilogy and I would recommend it to fans of the other books, for sure.

The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey

2011-09-25T09:17:00.000-04:00

We finished reading The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey a while ago, but I didn't have the chance to blog it until now. We are halfway through the third book in the series now... hopefully I will be more prompt about blogging that one!

The Story: The members of the Mysterious Benedict Society reunite for what was supposed to be a wonderful adventure set up by Mr. Benedict, but instead turns into a rescue mission to save their benefactor and Number Two, who have been kidnapped by his nefarious twin brother, Mr. Curtain. The intrepid children have to avoid capture by Mr. Curtain's henchmen, the Ten Men, and travel around the globe on their search.

The Good: The characters are as good as ever... and the adventure is exciting. The search for Mr. Benedict brings them through different countries, following clues left for them on what was supposed to be a kind of scavenger hunt. They are very engaging as characters. Evalina particularly likes Constance, the precocious toddler in the group.

The Bad: There are times when it's scary... it's unclear if the children will prevail, and they end up in some tight spots. But, in my mind, that just makes for a good story. Adults are often portrayed as untrustworthy, and that could be a problem for some. The children also do not usually listen to the instructions of the adults in their life. This could also be seen as a problem.

The Verdict: I actually think I liked this story better than the first one. The adventure was more targeted, if you will. Also, one person mentioned that the first book was basically Mr. Benedict throwing the children into a dangerous situation and hoping that it all worked out for the best... this one is the children taking the initiative to save their friends. Amazon lists this book as for ages 9-12, and I would agree with that for children reading independently. Evalina is 8 1/2 and it probably would have been a bit much for her to read on her own.

The Mysterious Benedict Society

2011-07-21T19:48:00.000-04:00

My sister got the series of The Mysterious Benedict Society for Evalina for her birthday, and we just finished the first one. So good! Can't wait to start the next one!

The Story: Reynie Muldoon is an extraordinary boy. He is in an orphanage, and is tutored by the kind Miss Perumal, but otherwise, things aren't looking very bright for him. That is, until he comes across an advertisement looking for extraordinary children to take a test, and qualify for wonderful opportunities. Thus begins his adventures. He meets Mr. Benedict, and his life changes forever. With fellow extraordinary children Kate Weatherall, Sticky Washington, and Constance Contraire, the group of children form the Mysterious Benedict Society, and infiltrate a special institute that is not what it appears to be. Can they save the world before it's too late?

The Good: Super exciting! The children are wonderfully engaging characters (and the adults are, too, but they are really secondary to the plot). They are brave, but believably so. They face dangers with creativity and zeal, and their troubles, while exciting, are never really too scary for the reader. You have a sense that it will all work out in the end, though you aren't sure how. The chapters were a manageable length to read about one per night (though sometimes we couldn't stop at just one!) and the story was really engaging.

The Bad: There were some cliffhangers that were a little much for Evalina to handle, and required reading a little more to settle her. Some things were a little scary, and the "Waiting Room" in particular was really gross to read about (a terrible stench, yucky mud...) The plot involves a frightening mind control machine, and it's the kids' mission to defeat it. Mysterious indeed!

The Verdict: Wonderful. Can't wait to read more. In the end, everyone found a way to be happy, and the mystery was satisfactorily resolved. Love all the characters, really. The book was long - over 400 pages, and we read it in just about a month. Super exciting. Evalina totally loved it and found it funny, exciting, and engaging. Amazon recommends it for grades 5-9, and I can see that for solo reading, but as far as reading with your child, it was just fine for her age range. So much fun.

King of the Wind

2011-06-14T08:04:00.000-04:00

My mother got King of the Wind (and a couple other books) for Evalina for her birthday. I had never read it. I'm glad that I got a chance to!

The Story: Agba is a mute horse-boy from the court of the Sultan in Morocco. When the Sultan decides to send a company of his best horses to France as a state gift, Agba goes along with his beloved horse, Sham. Unfortunately, Sham and the other horses are ill-treated on the journey, and don't arrive in France looking like the grand and royal Arabian horses that they are, but like malnourished nags. Sham and Agba are separated from the other horses, and they go through many owners and jobs, but are never truly appreciated. Then, finally, years later, and after many abuses, they come to the home of the Earl of Godolphin in England. While at first, Sham's pedigree is not realized, he soon makes his mark on the world of horses and goes on to father a new and glorious line.

The Good: It's historical fiction, which is fun. The fact that Agba cannot speak is not even brought up in the narrative until a few chapters into the book. The relationship between Agba and Sham is beautiful. Even when the horse is ill-treated and separated from Agba, he always remembers the boy when they find each other again. Agba is always thinking of the horse, and always wishes he could let the horse's grand origins be known. He is sworn to be with Sham until he dies, and they do stay together until the end of the horse's days. Some of Sham's owners are kind to both boy and horse, and it is heartening to see. Mostly, it's wonderful to see Sham live up to his potential greatness at the end.

The Bad: Some of the treatment of Sham (and Agba) is really reprehensible. It's enough to make a horse lover cringe. The horse is often ill fed, ill taken care of, and under appreciated. At one point, Agba ends up in prison, and at another time, the two of them end up in a lonely exile. Might be a bit much to take for younger kids.

The Verdict: This is a wonderful story about the origins of the Thoroughbred horse, and about the love of a boy for a horse, and of a horse for a boy. Amazon recommends this book for ages 9-12, and I would agree. Evalina is 8 and did well with me reading it to her, but some of the language and themes would have been difficult without me there to help her out a bit. I would recommend this one, and so would Evalina. There were many nights when she was not satisfied with one chapter, because of how exciting the story was. If you like horses, you will likely enjoy this book.

Misty of Chincoteague

2011-06-14T07:34:00.000-04:00

Misty of Chincoteague was one of my favorites as a child, and I knew Evalina would love it. She has been on a horse loving kick lately, so this was a perfect pick.

The Story: Young Paul and Maureen Beebe live on Chincoteague island, and dream of having their own wild pony from Assateague Island off the coast of Virginia. They have their heart set on Phantom, the most elusive and wild mare of them all. When Paul finally gets a chance to be part his first Pony Penning Day (where the people from Chincoteague gather many of the wild ponies to keep them from getting overpopulated), he manages to capture the Phantom. Along with her comes a surprise - a tiny foal! Paul names her Misty, and hopes that he and Maureen might be able to buy the Phantom and her foal at the pony auction. They worked very hard and saved a lot of money by doing odd chores for people, and soon, the two ponies were theirs! Paul and Maureen worked hard to gentle the wild Phantom, and got her ready for the pony races, while Misty grew up, happy as could be, on Chincoteague. But, while she was somewhat gentled, and ran like the wind itself in the race, Phantom longed for her island home of Assateague.

The Good: For anyone who loves horses, this is a wonderful choice. Paul and Maureen show a wonderful work ethic, doing anything they could to make some money to reach their goal. The descriptions of the horses are wonderful. The story is engaging, and made me want to go to visit Chincoteague (where they still have Pony Penning Day). This is based on a true story, which is really neat. Evalina just loved the story.

The Bad: There are a couple tense spots - like a terrible storm in which Paul is stuck in a horse trailer with the Phantom and Misty, along with times when it wasn't certain that the kids would reach their goal. Some kids might be sensitive about the whole idea of Pony Penning Day, but in my mind, it's a good talking point about why it is something important to do.

The Verdict: Wonderful. Simply wonderful. It really stands up to the test of time. It is recommended for ages 9-12, and I would say that's about right for the independent reader. Evalina is 8 and had no problems with me reading it with her, but she might have had a few problems if reading it alone. Read it. I want to get the sequels for her. Overall, a total win.

Justin Morgan Had a Horse

2011-05-04T12:14:00.000-04:00

Evalina has recently become quite enamored of horses. Doesn't every little girl go through that at about 8? For her birthday, my mother got her some books involving horses.

Living in Vermont, where the Morgan horse is our state animal, I thought a good start to the horse books would be Justin Morgan Had a Horse, about the first Morgan Horse (of course slightly fictionalized...)

The Story: School teacher and song master, Justin Morgan travels from his home in Vermont to Springfield, Massachusetts, in order to collect a debt owed to him from a farmer. The farmer did not have money to give him, but instead gave him a stout young foal, Ebinezer. A small runt of a foal named Little Bub followed along, and the farmer decided to throw him into the bargain. Young Joel Goss, who was traveling with Morgan, fell instantly in love with the little foal. He took it upon himself to gentle him, continuing in this endeavor even after they got back to Vermont and Joel was taken in as an apprentice at the mill. He worked to gentle Little Bub after his night school lessons, and they formed a wonderful rapport. When the foal was grown, the school teacher rented him out as a work horse. It turned out that, although smaller than other work horses, he had a strength and speed that could not be matched. He won a race against some fancy Thoroughbreds, and became famous throughout Vermont. After Justin Morgan's death, Little Bub, who became known as the Justin Morgan horse, was traded all over Vermont and Joel lost track of him. Finally, after he was a grown man, and after he had worked in the army as a horse caretaker, he found Little Bub again and was able to make him his own. When President Monroe came to Vermont, the Justin Morgan horse caught even his eye. Little Bub became the father of the Morgan horse breed.

The Good: The descriptions of the horse are wonderful. The chapters are short and contain some exciting moments. Joel's love and devotion for Little Bub is palpable. You root for the little horse, and for his reunion with his old friend. The descriptions of Vermont at that time, and of the Battle of Plattsburg in particular, are really well done.

The Bad: I can't think of much that is bad, except perhaps that it is "based on a true story," and not completely factual about the origins of the Morgan horse breed. But, that's minor. It's a really good story.

The Verdict: I can recommend this to any young horse lover. Amazon's age recommendation is 9-12. Evalina, at 8, had no troubles with it. It is not very long (less than 200 pages) and is a pretty quick read. Anyone who reads it will probably end up wanting to know more about the Morgan horse. (I anticipate we'll make a trip to the Morgan Horse Museum this summer..

Peter Pan and Wendy

2011-04-20T08:54:00.000-04:00

It's been a while since I've blogged here, but Evalina and I have been busily reading. We just finished another one of the Ramona books (we only have one left), and we also read a true classic - Peter Pan. The version we read was called Peter Pan and Wendy, and we read it in e-book form.

Evalina got a Nook for Christmas.

The Story: Who doesn't know the story of Peter Pan? Most of us at least know the Disney-fied version. Peter Pan, a boy who doesn't want to grow up, comes to the window of the Darling house, and flies away with the Darling children - Wendy, John, and Michael. They fly to Neverland, a place all children see in their dreams. There, they have many adventures with The Lost Boys (Peter's crew of boys), fighting the nefarious Captain Hook.

The Good: The story is exciting, and the characters are well developed. You get a different sense of them from this than from the Disney version. They are more complex. Tinkerbell is not a sweet little thing. She's kind of ornery. Peter is flawed and you can feel the conflict in him. Hook is scary and fun to read. Mr. and Mrs. Darling (and Nana) are flawed, but loving. Evalina really loved listening to this book.

The Bad: The language is sometimes a bit old fashioned, and if she had been reading it on her own, it might have been more difficult to wade through. Since I was reading it aloud, we were able to work through things in context for the most part. Tinkerbell routinely calls Peter a "silly ass." Evalina was able to just take those outbursts in stride, and she knows not to repeat language like that. But it might be an issue with other readers. Some of the parts with the pirates are a little scary, and the children do kill the pirates. This might also be an issue with some readers. Some parts are a little intense, as the children are in The Neverland for so long that they begin to forget their parents. If your child is totally in love with the Disney version of Peter Pan, this book might come as a shock on some levels.

The Verdict: Overall, a really good read. A total classic. It's not the Peter Pan the Disney audience is used to. I think it's a great read-together book, because the language is sometimes more challenging for the young modern reader. Evalina really got into the imagery and loves talking about how she sees The Neverland when she closes her eyes at night. It's great to share such a classic. Amazon recommends it for ages 9-12, but I think the younger part of that range might need some help getting through it. I would recommend it, though.

The Ramona Series

2011-01-23T10:30:00.000-05:00

We are whizzing our way through the Ramona Quimby books by Bevery Cleary, though unfortunately, we are not really reading them in order... so, I'm just blogging the whole set of books instead of each book separately.

The Story: These books focus on Ramona Quimby, from the time she is 5-8 (I think). She is a spunky, imaginative, sometimes mischievous little girl. In other words, a lot like Evalina. She has an older sister, Beatrice, also known as Beezus, and very loving parents. She goes through trials and tribulations of being a kid who is trying very hard to grow up.

The Good: The wonderful thing about Ramona is that she doesn't pull any punches. She lets you know just how it is to be a kid, worrying about the world around her sometimes. She doesn't always love school. She worries that people don't like her. She sometimes gives in to her naughtier instincts. In other words, she's a typical kid. I think it's great to have a series of books that really try to tell things from a kid's point of view, without condescending to the child reading it. Ramona is a delightful character to read, and her family goes through real family problems that are relevant today. Amazingly, I just read that the first Ramona book was published in the mid-50's! I would have thought they were in the 70's or 80's (though I read some as a child in the 80's and they were already classics then, so...) Ramona's parents go through job loss, financial difficulties, going back to school, childcare issues, and other absolutely familiar things to people today. And, one thing I like is that the books explore what these things mean to Ramona. She notices. But they don't just deal with her issues with the adult problems, they also delve into her own mind. What if her teacher doesn't like her? What if people think she's a pest? What if she has to be nice to a friend's annoying kid sister?

The Bad: Sometimes, Ramona does naughty things. She gets so mad that she squirts out an entire tube of toothpaste, just because. She cracks eggs on her head (and, unfortunately, not always hard boiled eggs...) She crushes school projects instead of talking to her teacher when another student copies her work. She goes a different way to school and gets a shoe stolen by a dog. Still, all of these are good teaching moments, and none of them are implausible situations. Sometimes, it is obvious that Ramona was written in a different time, when kids were given more freedom (walking to school alone in first grade, for instance..) Not that it's a bad thing (I personally think that we don't give our kids enough trust nowadays... but that's a discussion for a different time), but it's something to be aware of.

The Verdict: I think that the Ramona series is utterly enjoyable. I also think that it's empowering for kids to have a character they can relate to so much. The writing style is not too difficult, and they are relatively quick reads, I'd say on par with most Roald Dahl books. Absolutely recommended. Also, though it would be nice to read them in order, it's not really a necessity, so we are reading them as they become free at the library (and Evalina did get a couple of them for Christmas). I think they would be great books to own, because they would be good to re-read over and over. Amazon has the reading level from ages 9-12, but I think that's ridiculous. I'd say more 6-10 (and I am enjoying them as a grown up, too!)

The King's Stilts

2011-01-02T14:22:00.000-05:00

For Christmas, I got the kids several Dr. Seuss books. One of them was The King's Stilts. We have read it several times now, and it's a really great one!

The Story: The King of Binn works very very hard. He is up at 5 in the morning, working. He works all day, to keep the kingdom safe from the threat of the horrible Nizzard birds that peck at the Dike trees that protect the kingdom from being flooded. But when his work is done for the day, the King loves to roam about on his beloved stilts. All of the people in the kingdom find the King's stilting hobby endearing and love him all the more for it. All of the people, of course, except for the sour Lord Droon. He thinks that the stilts are far too much fun, and might cause troublesome smiling. So, he decides to steal the stilts and orders the King's paige boy, Eric, to bury them. Eric doesn't want to do it, because he knows how much the king loves his stilts, but he is forced to obey. Without his stilts, the King becomes despondent. He can't bring himself to do his work with the same enthusiasm as he had before, without his stilts to look forward to. The Kingdom is in terrible trouble, without the King working to fend off the Nizzards, and Eric decides to defy Droon and return the stilts to the King. With his stilts back, the King regains his vigor, the Kingdom is saved, and Droon is duly punished.

The Good: It's a prose-style Seuss, which I like quite a lot. The message is clear - All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, and King Birtram a poor king. The illustrations are, of course, wonderful. Eric is akin to Bartholomew in his rank and determination to save the kingdom he loves. The kids have asked me to read this book three nights in a row.

The Bad: I can't think of much bad about it, unless you don't like prose-style Seuss...

The Verdict: A wonderful addition to any Dr. Seuss library. It's not a very well known one, but it's worth owning. I've already gotten the kids to do their chores with a little less argument, reminding them that they can play when they are done working. That's always a good thing.

A Necklace of Fallen Stars

2010-12-08T20:13:00.000-05:00

I found A Necklace of Fallen Stars in the library when I was a child, and it stuck with me. I know you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover, but the cover on this one is highly memorable. It's beautiful. Unfortunately, it's out of print... I found it at another local library a couple of years ago and re-read it for myself, but still couldn't find it for less than $60 on ebay...

Then, last year, I found it on Amazon, used, and not to spendy, either. Hurrah! I ordered it immediately for Evalina and decided that it was a good departure from the Little House books, so it was a good time to read it.

The Story: Kaela is not your typical princess. She doesn't like the pomp and circumstance of Court, and she likes to spend time with the commoners and tells them stories. Her father didn't appreciate her free spirit, and in an effort to quash it, he arranges her marriage to an unbearable man, Duke Gavrin. Unable to face the thought of it, Kaela runs away. On her travels, she meets a young minstrel named Kippen, and together they flee from Stafgrym, the evil wizard in the employ of Gavrin and her father. He plays tunes and she tells tales to pay their way across the land, and they become very close to each other in the process. Meanwhile, Stafgyrm convinces her father to charge her with high treason, and also convinces him to throw her kind sister Melina, and her sometimes unreasonable sister Tamara into the dungeon as well. Can Kaela somehow manage to get out of marrying Gavrin, escape Stafgrym, and can her sisters be saved?

The Good: Kaela is strong and spunky and likable. Kippen is similar, and loyal. The evil characters, particularly Stafgrym, and really despicable. Melina would be a good big sister for anyone. The journey is exciting, and all the while, Kaela tells simply wonderful stories. And there is a really fabulously described winged horse that Evalina really enjoyed.

The Bad: The story is sometimes disjointed, and Evalina was disappointed in the rather abrupt ending. The king's behavior is at times reprehensible, and really difficult to understand. He is prideful to a fault. And Stafgrym is rather scary and sinister.

The Verdict: Evalina didn't love this as much as I did when I was a child, but I believe that parts of it will definitely stick with her. I hope that she revisits it in the years to come. It was probably more of a nostalgic love of mine than anything else. Still, I do think it's a good story, and if you can find a copy, give it a try. I wish that the ending was better, though. I can use my imagination and think of what might have happened, but Evalina wanted something more concrete. I still have a deep seated love for the book, though I wonder if the idea is better than the book itself.

These Happy Golden Years

2010-11-21T20:19:00.000-05:00

We have finished all of the books (*that we are going to read - see note at the end of the post for explanation) in the Little House Series. What a joy! These Happy Golden Years is a lovely ending.

The Story: Laura passed her teacher's examination at the end of the last book, and at the beginning of this one, she is leaving for her first teaching job. It's her first time away from home, and it is hard. The family she is boarding with is not warm and inviting - at times, the wife seems close to a psychotic break, the students she is teaching are sometimes difficult, and she misses home terribly. Though she never asked him to, and quite by surprise at first, Almanzo Wilder comes to get her every Friday in his sleigh so that she can spend the weekends at home. He comes every week, even one Friday when they risked their lives to drive home - it was so cold that the thermometers froze, and Laura nearly got hypothermia on the drive. Almanzo had to stop several times to break ice off the poor horses' noses. But still, he came. After her teaching term ended, he still came for drives on Sundays, though Laura denied he was courting her. She rode with him when he was breaking (sometimes dangerous) new colts, and she drove with him on Sundays when Mary was home for the summer. They went to a singing school (really, Friday night community music lessons) together/ And still she denied they were courting. He went away for the winter to spend some time with his family, and she didn't realize how much she missed him until he showed up, unexpectedly, during a snow storm on Christmas eve! Though this book involves many other things, including her continued schooling, and teaching several terms at different schools, and getting some fine new clothes, in the end it really revolves around the fact that Almanzo was, in fact, courting Laura, and it ends with their marriage and moving into their own sweet little grey house.

The Good: The courting is portrayed in an innocent way, so there is nothing scandalous that would be inappropriate for younger children. Laura deals with her trials during her teaching well, and ends up being a really good teacher (though she didn't intend on teaching any more after she got married). The descriptions of life in that era continue to be enthralling. One of our favorite parts was when Pa bought Ma her very own sewing machine. Another was when they used some of Laura's teaching money to buy an organ for their home, to surprise Mary. The tone of the book is lovely, and it ended the series beautifully for us. (*Again, see note at the end of the post)

The Bad: The part where the wife in the house Laura was boarding at seemed to nearly have a psychotic break was kind of scary! She was standing over her husband's bed with a knife, begging to go back east. We felt so badly for Laura, because she had no other choice than to stay there, but she didn't sleep well for the rest of her teaching term. Who can blame her? I can't think of anything else really negative about the book. Perhaps some of the descriptions of the clothing that Laura was buying or sewing got a little long-winded, but Evalina never complained. There are a lot of songs written into the chapters that I don't know, but we just made up our own tunes and no one cared so much.

The Verdict: We loved it. Evalina really enjoyed the rides with Almanzo and loved the spirit of the new colts. She liked to read about how Laura became a more proficient teacher, and how wonderful it was when Mary came home for visits. Overall, a really really nice book.

*Now, the note, and why we are choosing not to read The First Four Years. I read some reviews, and that "final" book was published after Laura's death, and from what I read, the tone is much different. It focuses on some really tough times that Laura and Almanzo had when they first got married, between illness, the death of a newborn son, and a fire that destroyed their home, among other things. It also includes the birth of their daughter, Rose, which was happy, but I didn't want to spoil the glow and warmth of These Happy Golden Years. I spoke to Evalina about it, and told her that she could read it later by her own if she wanted to, but I let her know that I thought we should end on a happy note. She agreed. So, we are done with the Little House Series and on to our next book!

Little Town on the Prairie

2010-11-04T22:20:00.000-04:00

After the rough time the Ingalls family had in The Long Winter, it was nice to read Little Town on the Prairie, about a calmer time in their lives.

The Story: After surviving the horrible, blizzard filled winter, life resumes for the Ingalls family in De Smet, Dakota Territory. In spring, Laura got her first job, and she was able to earn some money to help send Mary to the special college for the blind at long last. They got the homestead a little more settled, and they got some crops from it (though they had to battle blackbirds and gophers...) Pa managed to get a hold of a kitten (which were hard to come by out west) to help with their pest problem, after a mouse crawled into bed in the middle of the night and chewed off a hunk of Pa's hair to use in it's nest! For the winter, they moved back into town, and Carrie and Laura went back to school. Laura worked towards studying as hard as she could, in order to earn her teacher's certificate once she turned 16, but there were distractions to her studies. Through the mild winter (welcome after the terrible previous one), the town set up Literaries - meetings where they had entertainments and competitions, to help beat the doldrums. And all the time, Laura had to work towards her ultimate goal of earning her certificate so that she could earn money and help keep Mary in college.

The Good: It was a breath of fresh air after the tough times of the previous winter. Laura and the family were settling in nicely to life in their new town. The descriptions of everyday life were compelling and thorough. When Pa went after the blackbirds that had been eating their corn, it was something else! I can't even imagine that many blackbirds. Laura is growing up and getting more responsibilities. She has good friends at school (and her old rival, Nellie Oleson, has moved to De Smet. That's always fun reading). It's amazing reading about things that they learned in school - makes you feel humbled at the thought. Almanzo Wilder started taking an interest in Laura by the end of the book... and we all know how that turned out...

The Bad: The thread of the story wasn't as strong as in previous books. It seemed a much longer read than the others, though it was about the same length or shorter. It was a little sad to know that Laura is going to have to teach school, even though it wasn't really what she wants to do with her life. But, that's just how it was.

The Verdict: A lovely book exploring the everyday life of the time, without the strife of the long, terrible winter. It connected with Evalina, and she began to want to play Laura and Carrie every day when we walked to school. I am continually amazed by her comprehension. It makes me happy to know that she understands, and it verifies that she is the perfect age to be reading these books with. I cannot wait to read the next book in the series!

The Long Winter

2010-10-07T22:16:00.000-04:00

Next in the Little House Series was The Long Winter, and it was a really good one. Kind of a tough read, emotionally, but worth it to show how lucky we are to live with modern conveniences, that's for sure!

The Story: After moving to the shore of Silver Lake to set up their homestead claim, the Ingalls family faces a difficult decision. In order to survive what is predicted (by an old Indian who visits the town) to be a very long and hard winter, they move from their claim shanty into the building that Pa built in town. In town, they will be close to the stores, near the incoming trains, and near other settlers, instead of in a poorly built shanty not made to withstand the harsh weather. When the winter comes, it is harder than any of them could have imagined. The blizzards come right on top of one another. The trains can not get through. No one has any food. The stores run out of groceries. There's no kerosene, and no coal for heat, and no trees anywhere in the big wide prairie to burn for heat. The Ingalls family, and all the other settlers in the town, must do everything they can just to survive until the trains can finally get through again. The blizzards last from October until April with nary a break, so that is no small task.

The Good: If nothing else, this book sure makes you appreciate how much comfort we have in modern times. The Ingalls family works together amazingly to do everything they need to in order to survive. Laura helps Pa twist hay into sticks to use for heat when the coal runs out. She then teaches Mary to twist the hay, even though Mary cannot see, she does everything she can. They all take turns grinding seed wheat in a coffee grinder so that Ma can make bread. They sing and tell stories to pass the long, cold days and nights. It goes to show that we shouldn't take anything for granted.

The Bad: Some parts are really distressing, when blizzard after blizzard hits, and they are going hungry, and when Pa can't play the fiddle anymore because his fingers are too cramped and sore. The monotony got to Laura after a while, and the reader can feel that. There are some tense moments when Almanzo Wilder and another young man from the town are out in search of wheat (at the home of a settler who wintered in his claim shanty, with seed wheat in hand) and they get caught in a blizzard on their way home. The blizzards play the role of an ominous evil character. The more sensitive reader could be really bothered by the hardships they endure. I have definitely been thinking about it, as we look ahead at winter...

The Verdict: An amazing book in an amazing series. Although it was not an easy read, it was an exceptionally educational and inspirational one. Amazon recommends this for ages 4-8, and I think that's a bit on the young side for the hard issues dealt with. Evalina didn't have a hard time with it, but it absolutely got her thinking. I'm hoping the next one brings more happy moments, though. That's for sure.

By the Shores of Silver Lake

2010-09-19T21:09:00.000-04:00

We were waiting to start the next Little House book, By the Shores of Silver Lake, until school started, because we could get it out of the library there. Since then, we've been reading it. And tonight, we had a marathon reading session to finish it - reading about 80 pages in one sitting! It was worth it.

The Story: This one starts with a bit of tragedy, I'm warning you. Illness has visited the Ingalls. They all had Scarlett Fever. Most of them came out of it ok, but weakened. But Mary was struck blind. Those of us who had seen the television series knew this was coming, but it was still sad. And then, to top it all off, the faithful dog, Jack, who had been with them all the way from the Big Woods, died. Amidst all of this, the Ingalls decided to move again. After the grasshoppers ravaged their place near Plum Creek, they just couldn't recover well enough. And, there were homesteads to be claimed further west, and good work preparing for the railroad to come through. So, off they went - this time by train! There is no shortage of adventure and historical learning to be had in their journey and their adventure in setting up their new homestead in the brand new town of Desmet in the Dakota Territory.

The Good: There was lots of great moments to explain some historical facts to the girl while I read - homestead claims, claim jumpers, the process of preparing to build a railroad, and generally how people survived in that time. The fact of Mary's blindness is not dwelled upon. It's just another part of life, and one that they learned to deal with. Laura is growing up, and is still spunky, but is showing growth and maturity.

The Bad: The part explaining the railroad grading and preparation got kind of tedious and long (for me to read), but the girl didn't complain about it. The part where Jack died was terribly sad. We both cried together about it.

The Verdict: Another chapter in the story of Laura and her family, this one is another winner, even with the sad bits. Amazon recommends the book for ages 9-12, and I think that if she were reading it on her own, that might be more appropriate, but she liked it all the same at age 7 1/2, and got a lot out of it. It turns out that her first unit in school this year is on early American history, so it's a great time to be reading this series! We absolutely are looking forward to reading the next one.

On the Banks of Plum Creek

2010-08-25T09:10:00.000-04:00

We are really loving the Little House series, and On the Banks of Plum Creek was no exception!

The Story: After Laura and her family had to leave their house in Kansas, they made their way North, to Minnesota. There, they first moved into a dugout house, and eventually built a wonderful new house on the Minnesota prairie. Laura and Mary began going to school, and they were finally close enough to a town to go to church and Sunday school. They face hardships (like grasshopper swarms and seemingly endless blizzards), but it's all part of getting used to their new home.

The Good: As with all of the other books, this book teaches some fantastic history in a fun way. We really got some basis in what life was like for the settlers, and how different it was - Laura and Mary walked 2 1/2 miles by themselves to school, following only wagon ruts. They are something like 8 and 10 years old (maybe younger) at the end of the book, and are left at home for a day to take care of Carrie. The amount of responsibility they have is astounding and somber. I used it as a learning experience more than once. We did a lot of talking about the history and the way they lived. We visited a couple historical places in our area to see some more about it. This book (and the series) just makes learning about history effortless. The people are easy to relate to, and it was exciting and fun to read.

Evalina and a friend at a one-room schoolhouse at a local museum.

The Bad: There are some slightly scary parts. There's a plague of grasshoppers which moves in and destroys everything. The winter brings blizzard after blizzard after blizzard. Then, of course, there's Nellie Olson. She's such a bully, she serves a good example of how not to behave, that's for sure. Not much bad, in my opinion. Just good life lessons.

The Verdict: This book brings the reader to the place we know from the television series. The way that it brings early American history into focus is wonderful, because it doesn't lecture or beat anything into the reader. It just makes it a great story that you want to know more about. We highly recommend it.

Little House on the Prairie

2010-07-25T20:04:00.001-04:00

We just read Little House on the Prairie, the third book in the Little House Series. We got it out of the library, and I am trying to bust through them to get the series read before school starts again.. we'll see if we make that goal, but this one only took about a week! Super fun.

The Story: Laura's family decided to leave their little house in the big woods, and set out across the countryside in their covered wagon, to settle in the prairie in Kansas. Pa built a new log cabin for them there, and they set up their new home. There were challenges, not the least of which was the fact that their new home was in the middle of Indian territory..

The Good: Wonderful historic detail! The ins and outs of building a log cabin, complete with chimney and fireplace, forging a homestead in the middle of the wild prairie, traveling cross-country by covered wagon, American Indian-settler relations... there was a lot to learn here, and it was learned in wonderful ways. As a character, Laura is very easy for Evalina to relate to. I asked her what her favorite part of the book was, and she said "Laura!" There were a lot of teaching moments - especially about American Indians. She hasn't really learned much about native Americans in school yet, so it was good to learn a bit here. The story is compelling and very well written.

The Bad: Right in the beginning, there was a near tragedy, and the outlook didn't look so good for a bit (I will not spoil it here), and there were tears. There are some tense moments - a prairie fire, a bout of malaria, scary moments with the Indians... but, nothing enough to make me not want to read these books to her!

The Verdict: Love it. Evalina loved it. We learned a lot (yes, I learned some, too!) and can't wait to read more of the books. We plan to make some trips to local places this summer to reinforce some of the learning - I think there is a working farm in the area where she can learn about milking cows and such. And there's a log cabin in the area as well that we want to go check out. Totally classics, that I think would be fun for a boy or a girl. It might be better for a slightly older child, with a little more historical background, but it wasn't too far over her head. I can't wait until we are all done reading the books, and then I want to get the television series for the kids to watch. I cannot believe I never read these books myself. That's one great thing about reading to your kids - you get to read some of the books you always meant to read as a child but never got around to! The fun is never ending!

Farmer Boy

2010-07-14T23:02:00.001-04:00

It took us a while to get through Farmer Boy, the second book in the Little House Series. It was long, and dense, and Evalina was reading other books at the same time, sometimes with her father (they are re-reading Narnia together. He's never read them).

That doesn't mean we didn't love it!

The Story: This is the story of Almanzo Wilder's childhood, in upstate New York, near Malone, when he was 9-10 years old. It went into a lot of detail about what life on the farm was like. Almanzo is the youngest of four children, and his family runs a very successful farm. His father is a very smart and capable farmer, and wants to raise Almanzo to be a good farmer, too. Almanzo wants the same thing. He learns all of the tricks of the trade, and works very very hard. It's a very educational book in that regard.

The Good: There was lots of information about what it was like to grow up on a farm in the 19th century. Almanzo as a character was really likable, and he felt very real (I know, based on a true story, so...) The level of detail was amazing. We have an illustrated version, so there were some pictures to show Evalina what certain things were. She really enjoyed the story.

The Bad: I have never read these books before, but it felt out of flow with the story of Laura and her family. I enjoyed reading about Almanzo's childhood, but I missed the people from the first book. I had to do some explaining about the "children not speaking until they are spoken to," and some other bits.. for instance, when Almanzo's parents left them for a week in charge of themselves and the farm and they did a lot of making ice cream and toffee and not a lot of anything else until it was right before their parents came home... I suppose that was the Risky Business of the era. Of course some of the parenting skills since then have changed, and there were some tanning of hides, etc, that I had to explain. Still, I think it is good for her to know about.

The Verdict: Good book, with a lot of historical background and some good characters that I know we will read about later on in the series. Almanzo's growth throughout the book was palpable. He matured a lot in the year or so that the book covered, and it was very interesting to see. I kind of wanted to get back to the "main" story, though, with Laura's family and the story I am more familiar with because of the tv show. As part of the series, a good part. Somehow, I don't think it will be my favorite of the series.

Karlson on the Roof

2010-05-22T01:10:00.000-04:00

One of our good friends brought over her childhood copy of Astrid Lindgren's Karlson on the Roof, and spent many months reading a chapter every time she came over, until finally it was done. What a delightful story! Of course, it would have been better if we had been able to read it all at once, but as it was, it was a special time with Evalina and our friend.

The Story: Midge (it seems like in later versions, his name is translated to Smidge... or maybe our friend's copy was just the British version... I will use Midge, because that was his name in our book) is alone in his bedroom, when he is astounded and delighted to see a little man hovering outside of the window! This is his introduction to Karlson on the Roof, the world's best trickster, the world's best babysitter, the world's best dog owner, the world's best crook chaser, and the world's most interesting friend. Karlson has a propeller and can fly, and he lives (you guessed it) on the roof. He leads Midge on some wonderful adventures, some downright naughty, and they have a wonderful time. The trouble is, no one else in Midge's family believes that Karlson exists, because he always flies away at the moment before they are going to meet him. But Karlson isn't just an imaginary friend, he's real. By the end of the story, he makes sure that everyone knows he's there.

The Good: It's Astrid Lindgren, and she is always a winner. Her writing is clever and witty and funny. Karlson left us all giggling at his antics many times. Midge is a sweet kid, and all he wants is a dog of his own, and of course, to have fun with Karlson. The minor characters are funny, too. Evalina remembered a lot of details from early in the book that I was sure she might have forgotten, since it took so long for our friend to read it with her. I always like that.

The Bad: Karlson is really really naughty and he eggs Midge on to do naughty things, as well. I think it is written in such a way that it is obvious to children that Karlson is not someone to be emulated.

The Verdict: I thoroughly enjoyed the book, and Evalina did, too. It is 176 pages long, so it isn't a behemoth. That's nice. I would say that it's not as clever or fun as Pippi, but it was enjoyable. A great read for any Astrid Lindgren fan.

Little House in the Big Woods

2010-05-22T00:47:00.001-04:00

Some of Evalina's good friends got her the first two books in the Little House series for her birthday. We just finished the first one - Little House in the Big Woods. I watched the Little House on the Prairie show as a child, but never got around to reading the books, so I'm enjoying this quite a lot as well!

The Story: Laura Ingalls is the young daughter of a pioneer family. She lives with her parents, her older sister Mary, and her baby sister Carrie, in a (you guessed it) little house in the big woods in Wisconsin. She had never been to a town. She has no concept of neighbors like we do. The story of this book lays some great historical basis about what everyday family life was like, how they worked to make and catch their food, and more.

The Good: The detail is fantastic. I want to make butter and cheese and Johnycakes and tap trees and make maple syrup and maple sugar. Laura and her family are written vibrantly (not surprising, since they were real people), and I think it got Evalina more interested in history. Really thinking about what it was like before there were cars and electricity and 24-hour grocery stores was a very positive thing. We take so much for granted.

The Bad: Some of the things portrayed are a little raw for a sensitive modern kid. Still, it's good for her to know about them. She was alarmed by all the hunting (even though her daddy hunts), and some other things led us to some very frank discussions. The fact that Pa smoked a pipe was a problem for her, but I explained that they had no idea that tobacco was bad for you, so many people smoked. Good history lessons all around, so these things are not really "bad."

The Verdict: Wonderful, and we can't wait to read the next one! I truly enjoyed it, and want to try some of the "pioneer" recipes and crafts. When we get to the Little House on the Prairie, I'm looking forward to sharing the television series with Evalina. The book is 238 pages long and recommended for ages 8-12, and I would agree with that. Evalina's 7, but a very advanced reader, so it was no trouble for her. (We did read it together - she read a couple paragraphs per page) I would recommend this series to anyone. As you can see with our reading history, most of what we have read is fantastical, and I am thrilled to be reading something more historical, to get some enthusiasm for that into her. Next!

The Cricket in Times Square

2010-04-24T12:52:00.000-04:00

I loved The Cricket in Times Square when I was a child, and I was therefore very excited to read it to Evalina. It was just as charming as I remembered it to be!

The Story: Chester is a cricket, who was carried in a pile of newspaper from his pastoral home in Connecticut. He ended up in Times Square, and was taken in by a boy who's family runs a struggling newsstand. Chester befriends Tucker the Mouse and Harry the Cat, and learns that he has a unique and wonderful musical ability. He can chirp the tune to any number of songs, perfectly. His talent does not go unnoticed by the humans in Times Square, and soon, Chester becomes a celebrity, putting on two concerts daily. But, is he really happy?

The Good: There are some wonderful friendships in this story! Harry and Tucker, Cat and Mouse, are best of friends, even though they ought to be enemies. Chester is accepted by them without a blink of an eye. The boy, Mario, loves Chester with his whole being. There are lots of details about crickets that are written about with joy. There is joy in the music, and might get kids interested in learning more about it.

The Bad: There is a fire at one point in the book, which scared Evalina. Might take some explaining to kids that most crickets, in fact, only chirp their own songs. I really can't think of anything else.

The Verdict: Read this book! It's sweet and fun. There are sequels, too, I believe. Amazon has the recommended ages as 9-12, but Evalina had no troubles with it, at 7. She could easily have read it mostly on her own. It was fun to read a book that we were done with in a week or so, after the ridiculously long Inkheart and Inkspell!

Inkspell

2010-04-11T21:11:00.000-04:00

Well, that was a really long book!

It took 2 1/2 months, but we finally finished Inkspell, the second book in the Inkworld Trilogy. While it was really good, we will be taking a break before reading the last book!

The Story: After the story of Inkheart left off, Meggie and her parents went to live with Elinor, and Darius, Capricorn's failed Reader, went to live with them, too. They were living a wonderful life, happy and content... except that Meggie couldn't get her mind off of Inkworld. To her father's great duress, she begged her mother to tell her (in writing and sign language, since she had lost her voice in the magical journey from Inkworld, through Darius' slightly botched Reading...) all about the Inkworld, all the details she could remember. Her father, having lost Resa to Inkworld for so many years, was none too happy about his daughter's obsession. Fenoglio, the author of Inkheart (in the book) had disappeared into the story when the Shadow was read out.
At the same time, on their own, Dustfinger and Farid have been traveling on their own, desperately searching for other Readers, someone who might read Dustfinger back home.
Dustfinger meets Orpheus, who claims to be the best reader of all time, and he succeeds in reading Dustfinger in, but leaves Farid behind. With no where else to go, Farid went to Ellinor's and convinced Meggie to try to read him into Inkworld, to watch after Dustfinger. She gives it a shot, and manages to read not only him, but herself into the story!
Meanwhile, Orpheus has plans. With Basta and Mortola at his side, he also finds Ellinor's house. He reads Mo, Resa, Mortola, and Basta into the Inkworld, and takes up residence in Ellinor's library, using her and Darius as servants and mistreating her books terribly.
And what happens in the Inkworld? Mortola has a score to settle with Mo, because of his part in her son's death. She shoots him and leaves him for dead. Resa, who's voice has come back to her upon her return to Inkworld, works very hard to save her husband.
Dustfinger has reunited with his wife (who knew he was married?) after his 10 year absence, and Farid and Meggie went in search of him. They find him, and Fenoglio, who is none to pleased of the turns his story has taken of it's own accord. One of his most beloved characters has died, without his writing of it, and his father, the Laughing Prince, once great ruler of Ombra, is now nothing but The Prince of Sighs, and his health is fading. The evil Adderhead is gaining ground, and executing strolling players left and right. Even Fenoglios stories of the Bluejay, a Robin Hood-like character he based on Mo, couldn't make things better. Fenoglio enlists Meggie's help to set his story right, with his writing and her reading.
If only things had been that easy... the story has a mind of its own, and isn't as easily shaped as Fenoglio might have hoped...

The Good: I found the characters even more compelling than in Inkheart. The Inkworld was beautifully written and detailed, and I can understand why Meggie longed to be read into it. Even the minor characters were incredibly well done. It was an engaging story, again, I think even more than Inkheart, and I couldn't wait to see how it ended. Evalina also really loved it. She was picking up little details that I thought she might miss, and that impressed me.

The Bad: Holy cats, was it long! It took us 2 1/2 months to read this beast. Phew. Parts of it were really sad, and parts of it were really scary. There was some minor cursing, which I showed Evalina on the page, but told her that I would be censoring while reading aloud. I just don't need to be saying damn and son of a bitch (which I think was only used a couple times) because I don't want them introduced into her vocabulary. But, she saw them and knew that they are not nice words for a 7 year old. There was also quite a bit of romance with Farid and Meggie, which I thought was a little heavy, considering Meggie is only 13 or so. There was quite a lot of violence and killing. I found sometimes, we had to read extra pages a night, because the ends of some chapters was just too scary or sad.

The Verdict: Though super long, it was really really good. The next one is the same length, and I intend on waiting a while before reading that one. Amazon has the recommended ages for this as 9-12. I'd say that's about right. This was a bit much for my 7 year old, story-wise. That's one reason I'm planning on waiting on the last one. All in all, though, I would highly recommend this, but for an older child. It is engaging and well written, but oh so long, and with more grown up themes than we usually read. Give it a try, but for an older child, in my opinion.

Dr. Seuss: Hooray for Diffendoofer Day!

2010-02-28T13:39:00.000-05:00

The nice woman working in the children's section of the bookstore recommended Hooray for Diffendoofer Day! and I decided to give it a try, since I haven't met a Seuss I don't like.

The Story: The school in Dinkerville is different. The teachers teach things like poodle identification and painting pictures while hanging upside down. The students are happy and enthusiastic, until one day, the principal comes and tells them that they have to take a test. If they fail this test, their school will be closed and they'll be forced to go to the dreary, boring Flobbertown School. The students are scared, the principal is nervous, but the teacher is sure of the children - because they have been taught, among other things, how to think. She is sure that they will pass any test, because they have been well-armed. She was right, and the children get the highest score on the test, saving their fabulous school. The principal declares it Diffendoofer Day, and everyone rejoices.

The Good: This book emphasizes how important it is to learn to think for yourself, instead of just memorizing facts. If you are well armed to use your brain, you can do anything. The book was finished after Dr. Seuss' death (from some of his notes) and the illustrations are not typical Seuss, but they are fun and colorful. It's a really fun book.

The Bad: I can't think of anything, other than the fact that it might make you grumpy about the state of so many schools today, where memorization of rote facts seems to be the norm. The purist Dr. Seuss fan may have issues with the non-Seussical illustrations.

The Verdict: I want to share this book with everyone I know. It's not that long, and it's got a great message. Learn to use your fabulous brain, and anything is possible! Thank you, Book Store Lady!

Dr. Seuss: New Books!

2010-02-28T13:29:00.000-05:00

We went to the bookstore today and picked up some new Dr. Seuss Books in honor of his birthday (on March 2).

I'll review them as we go through them.

Dr. Seuss Fun: Making Oobleck!

2010-02-28T13:15:00.000-05:00

This afternoon, we made Oobleck using this great tutorial. I made a half recipe, and let the girl have some fun playing with it.

Put water in a bowl, add food coloring

Add in cornstarch

Mix well

Keep Mixing

Play with it

Goopy!

Keep playing!

Then, wash off!

It's that time Again: Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss! (on March 2)

2010-02-26T11:40:00.000-05:00

We are still busily chugging along on Inkspell, and it's going to take us a while (though we are nearly halfway through!). So, I interrupt your regularly scheduled blog to remind you that Dr. Seuss' birthday is coming up on March 2!

Last year, I told you about some of our favorite Dr. Seuss books in honor of his birthday. This year, I thought I'd share some other ideas to celebrate the day.

I know it's not until next Tuesday, but this will give you some heads up to plan.

I found this great site, where you can download your own Seuss Reading Passport. Yes, I've printed a copy for each of my kids (not all the books are on there, but most of the real classics. Maybe I'll add some pages for the rest of them....)
I'll be making a themed lunch for my daughter on Tuesday. Check it out on my lunch blog when the day comes.
I think we'll make some Oobleck. Here's a great looking tutorial.
You better believe we'll be having Green Eggs & Ham for breakfast.
There are some cool game ideas at Seussville.com, too.
We have one of the Dr. Seuss board games (Cat in the Hat - I Can Do That!) and I think it'll be obligatory to play a couple rounds.
Of course, read one of your favorite Seuss books. Or two. Or three. Or, pick up a new one to expand your horizons - and stamp your Seuss Passport!

Happy (early) Birthday, Dr. Seuss!

The Witches

2010-02-01T21:26:00.000-05:00

I had never read The Witches, but had once seen the movie (though it was long ago), so all I remembered going into this is that it had to do with witches and mice... since we've been on a Roald Dahl mission, we had to read it.

The Story: The books starts out unceremoniously with the death of the narrator's parents in a car crash. This tragedy puts him in the care of his Norwegian grandmother, who tries to lighten his somber mood by telling him stories of witches. When they have to move back to his home in England, and end up taking a holiday at a fancy hotel, they come face to face with a whole slew of witches, who have a devious plan to turn all the children in England into mice! Unfortunately for the boy, they start with him. However, he finds that he rather likes being a mouse, and maybe by being a mouse, he has a unique advantage in trying to stop the witches...

The Good: The boy's grandmother is wonderfully written. She's compassionate and kind and accepting. The boy's own acceptance (and even happiness) of becoming a mouse makes the whole metamorphosis a little less disturbing. As always, Dahl captures joy and humor in unexpected places.

The Bad: Those witches are scary! Anyone could be a witch, as they are masters of disguise. If your child is the nervous kind, this could upset them. The boy's grandmother smokes a cigar, and while it is always described as "stinking" and "foul," it might take explaining. The way that his parents are killed off and then never spoken of again except in passing is a little disturbing, too. It is typical of Dahl, though.

The Verdict: Very good, and funny, though not my favorite Dahl. It is recommended for ages 7-12 on Amazon, and I'd say that's about right. It was a good read, and Evalina liked it, but as I said... not my favorite. Still, definitely worth the read.

The Twits

2010-01-24T20:20:00.000-05:00

During our (probably brief) break from the Inkheart series, we are reading the Roald Dahl books that Evalina got for Christmas. First up was The Twits, which I have never read. We finished it in one night.

The Story: Mr. Twit and Mrs. Twit were dreadful human beings. They were horrible to each other, and pretty horrible to people around them, too. They were not kind to animals or children. They had four monkeys (because they used to be monkey trainers) which they treated terribly and were made to stand on their heads all the time. Mr. Twit really liked to eat Bird Pie, so he smeared a tree outside their house with super sticky glue, to catch the birds... until the monkeys got together with a visiting bird to turn the Twits world upside-down..

The Good: It's hilarious (what else would you expect from Roald Dahl) and a super quick read. The Twits are painted as truly ghastly, and you don't feel bad for them when they get their due. The illustrations by Quentin Blake match the story wonderfully. Evalina loved it and couldn't (wouldn't) put it down until it was done.

The Bad: The Twits are really awful people. They do really mean things to each other. However, I wouldn't say that's bad, just that you should be aware, you are not going to be reading about nice characters here...

The Verdict: Get it! I was laughing out loud. It's only about 75 pages long, and filled with wonderful illustrations, so it's really quick. It's fun to see what the animals do to get back at the Twits, and it is definitely worth a read. Amazon lists it as appropriate for ages 7-11, and I think a little younger would be fine, too. (Evalina is not quite 7, and I think she would have appreciated this story even a year ago or more..) I just don't think you can go wrong with Roald Dahl.

Inkheart

2010-01-23T21:38:00.000-05:00

I got Inkheart for Evalina last year, and it has sat upon the shelf, looking large and intimidating ever since. It's a whopper of a book, at 535 pages. But that's not all - it has two sequels: Inkspell (656 pages) and Inkdeath (also 656 pages). So, reading it was a commitment of near epic proportions.

Evalina insisted, though, and I'm glad she did. It's taken us a long time (over a month and a half!) to get through Inkheart alone, but it's a really great book, and she has loved it, as have I.

The Story: Meggie (age 12) lives a content life, alone with her father, Mo, and their books. He is a bookbinder, and has instilled in her a love of books that is undeniable. Still, he has never, in her memory, read aloud to her. A mysterious stranger, Dustfinger, appears in the middle of the night, and tells Mo that Capricorn is after The Book. Without explaining anything to Meggie yet, Mo packs up their things and heads out of town, to her great aunt Ellinor's house, which is also filled top to bottom with her precious books. They are there to protect and hide The Book, a book that Meggie has never seen before, but Mo treats like a treasure. Still not understanding what is going on, Meggie is alarmed when agents of this unknown villain, Capricorn, arrive at Ellinor's house and kidnap her father. In an attempt to get him back, they set off for Capricorn's village, with The Book in tow. It is there that Meggie finds out the truth - her father has an amazing ability. When he reads aloud, sometimes characters from the book emerge from the pages, and come into our world. That's where Dustfinger, Capricorn, and his men came from. The only problem is, when someone comes out, someone else goes in. Meggie had always thought that her mother left them when she was a baby, but it turns out that Mo read her into The Book - Inkheart. Try as he might, he was never able to read her back out, and vowed to never read aloud again. That is, until Capricorn forced him to...

The Good: The story is really engaging, and I love Cornelia Funke's writing style. She seems to write spunky girls well. My own spunky girl appreciated that. The love of books that is evident in the story is nice to see, and the relationship Meggie has with her father is wonderful. Though the book was long, it never seemed to drag. All of the characters, good and evil, are well flushed out and believable.

The Bad: Wow, is it ever long. And then, facing the two longer sequels, I am more daunted than Evalina I think. The evil characters are really dark, and there is some violence that is unsettling, and some definite scary parts. Also, there is the thing with fire. Dustfinger is a fire-eater and jester, who mainly deals with fire. I had to spend quite a lot of time talking to Evalina about how she is never ever ever ever to play with fire like he does. She nodded and smiled at me about it, but I am not about to leave her near any open flames any time soon. That part made me nervous.

The Verdict: It's recommended for grades 5-9, and I think if you are not reading with your child, that holds true. For reading together, although it takes a long time to get through, Evalina was able to follow and enjoy the story. It's a really great story, and though they are long, I'm looking forward to reading the sequels. I've heard that the movie took a lot of liberties, though, and while it is decent, it's not at all like the book. That's a shame, but I can understand. It is hard to make a faithful movie based on a book that is over 500 pages long. Overall, though, super good and really really worth reading... although it might be something that you want to let your child read by themselves. Reading it aloud certainly was a commitment... and now I'm in for the sequels! I've convinced her that we should read a couple shorter books before hopping into them, though, and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens next, but I'm glad for a break.

Danny the Champion of the World

2009-12-03T10:28:00.000-05:00

Still on our Roald Dahl kick, I picked up Danny the Champion of the World. I'd never even heard of it, but thought it couldn't hurt to give it a try!

The Story: Danny lives alone with his dad in a caravan behind the gas station an auto repair shop his father owns. His mother died when he was a baby. Danny's father takes him under his wing and teaches him everything he knows about auto repair, and eventually about his other love - pheasant poaching. Together, they plan the biggest poaching expedition ever, and have some wonderful bonding moments along the way.

The Good: The relationship between Danny and his dad is amazing. It's real and touching. Though they are poaching, they are poaching from a really vile man. Danny is a likable character. He isn't as insanely over-the-top as other Dahl children, like Matilda, but instead, he seems like a real boy. It's kind of nice.

The Bad: Well, they are poaching. This prompted discussions with Evalina about how poaching is stealing, and stealing is never ok, and she seemed to understand that. There was one moment when one of Danny's teachers was really mean to him for no real reason (he caned Danny's palm) and Evalina declared that she was near tears because she was so sad and mad at the same time - and coined the term "smad" to describe her feelings. It is always upsetting when a teacher is cruel. I don't know if that's particularly bad, but it is something to be aware of. Danny (at I think 9 years old) drives a car to rescue his father in the middle of the night, when he hasn't returned from a poaching expedition. It turns out that his father fell in a pit and broke his ankle, and Danny has to help him out and drive back home again. This also prompted a discussion with Evalina about how she isn't allowed to drive until she is at least 15. Evalina also announced "Maybe I can be a poacher when I'm older!" and I had to shoot down that idea, once and for all....

The Verdict: It's a pretty good book, but more dense than other Dahls. It's over 200 pages long, and they are not quick pages, like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The story is also written in first person, from Danny's point of view, and that is different from the narrative style of the other Dahls we've read so far. Amazon recommends this book for ages 9-12, and I'd say that's fair. While Evalina does understand what's going on in the book, it might be one that she would get significantly more out of in a couple of years. I really love how close Danny and his father are, but it sure would be nice if they were bonding over something a little less illegal.

Christmas Wish List: 1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up

2009-11-14T09:00:00.000-05:00

I saw this book and think it is something every parent should have - 1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up. I wonder how many I could cross off the list?

It's new, so I don't know what books are listed in it, but it would be a great idea for a Christmas present for a new parent, don't you think?

Heard on NPR: Roald Dahl

2009-11-13T09:41:00.000-05:00

I heard this story on NPR this morning, about how the Dahl family keeps tight control over what screenplays get made into adaptations of his movies. It was a good story, worth listening to, and made me more excited than ever to read Fantastic Mr. Fox and then see the movie, which also got a really positive review.

So far, I've been pretty pleased with the adaptations. What are your favorites?

George's Marvelous Medicine

2009-11-12T10:38:00.000-05:00

One more in our Roald Dahl run, George's Marvelous Medicine is our latest read.

The Story: George is left at home with his dreadful, grumpy grandmother. She needs to have her medicine, and he is supposed to give it to her. Instead of giving her the medicine she always takes, George decides to mix up his own batch of "medicine" to teach her a lesson, and maybe make her nicer along the way.

The Good: It's funny, and Evalina liked it. The grandmother really has no redeeming qualities, so you can't feel very badly for her. The writing is, in Dahl's style, humorous to the highest degree.

The Bad: How many times did I say "Now, you know this is pretend, right? You must never ever do anything like this, because what George is mixing together would at the very least make a person very sick, and it would probably kill them. This is all pretend. Do you understand?" I mean, he was mixing anti-freeze, shoe polish, sheep dip, toothpaste, paint, and all sorts of other crazy things. So, I'd say this book definitely needs a warning from the parent, unless you want to have poison control on speed dial. Also, his grandmother doesn't really ever get nicer, and in fact, because she is greedy, ends up disappearing into nothing! George's parents don't seem to really care, either. It's a little disturbing, honestly.

The Verdict: While Evalina really liked it, I can't say that this is a must read. Not that I think every children's book should have a redeeming moral lesson behind it, but this barely had any story at all. George's grandmother was awful, so he mixed up some medicine to try to make her better. It didn't make her better, it just made her hugely tall. He gave some to a chicken and it made the chicken huge. His father got excited and fed some to a lot of the farm animals, to try to gain something from it (like football sized eggs). His father insists that George try to mix up more, but he gets it wrong three additional times, and the final potion shrinks Granny into nothing. Life goes on, seemingly as before, minus the Granny. Yeah. Not so exciting, either. Amazon says it is good for grades 2-4, and I think that it was good, age-wise, for Evalina (grade 1), but there are many other better books out there, I just don't know that I can recommend this one.

The Minpins

2009-11-09T07:45:00.000-05:00

Still on our Roald Dahl kick, we picked up The Minpins. It is a shorter picture book, but it took us two nights to read, because it is thick on the prose.

The Story: Little Billy longed to explore the woods near his house, but his mother told him all sorts of creatures lurk in the forest just waiting to gobble him up. One day, when his mother wasn't looking, he snuck off into the forest... and discovered that his mother was right! He fled from an evil fire-snorting beast, and ended up high in a tree, where he met the most interesting creatures of all - tiny people called the Minpins. With heads no bigger than peas, they inhabit the trees of the forest and are transported on birds. They are also kept from the forest floor by the evil fire-snorting beast, which devours them by the thousands. Little Billy hatches a plan, though, to allow him to return home, and will allow the Minpins to travel the forest freely. It is a brave plan - but will it work?

The Good: Little Billy is brave, and the minpins are kind and open. The prose is beautiful, and the illustrations are stunning. The book makes kids want to pay attention to nature - because who knows? They might just see a minpin riding on a passing robin. Very sweet. It was short enough that it didn't take long to read. Evalina loved it.

The Bad: The Gruncher (the evil beast) is truly terrifying. It's an unseen cloud of snorting, fire-breathing horror. Though Little Billy defeats it in the end, there are some scary parts. The whole story stems from Little Billy disobeying his mother's explicit wishes, and I don't know that I like that part of it, since I have kids that don't always listen so well...

The Verdict: A delightful read. Amazon recommends it from ages 3-8, and I'd say that's about right. I didn't read it to Philip when I was reading it to Evalina (he was off reading with Daddy), but I bet he would have liked it. It is different from other Roald Dahl books we've read so far, but that is not a bad thing. The humor that is so evident in the longer books is replaced by pure fantasy in The Minpins. It made me want to take a closer look at passing birds.

Matilda

2009-11-05T20:41:00.001-05:00

We are on a Roald Dahl kick, and decided to read Matilda next. I don't know how I missed it as a child - it is really spectacular!

The Story: Matilda is a genius. She began reading all on her own at about 3, read all of the children's books in the library by about age 4 1/2, and then graduated to reading Dickens and the like, with great enjoyment. She is a whiz at math, and seems to have nothing that is really beyond her. The only problem is, her parents are completely unable to see how special she is. Her father is a scheming used car salesman, and her mother is a bingo addict, and they never want to do anything other than watch television and eat their tv dinners. They ignore her more often than not, and when they do notice her, they label her as trouble from the get go. When Matilda starts school, she finally gets noticed for the special little girl that she is, and her life changes forever.

The Good: Matilda is amazingly smart, but never conceited about it. She is clever and a good person. She doesn't let her situation get her down. Her parents are terrible and mean, but she gets even with them in creative ways. Her relationship with her teacher, Miss Honey, is lovely. Miss Honey is the first person (besides the stunned librarian) who really sees the potential in Matilda. There are some fun, unexpected, near magical things about Matilda as well. She makes you want to be just a little like her.

The Bad: Matilda does get some good revenge, and it isn't always nice. (Not that they didn't deserve it). Miss Trunchbull, the horrific headmistress, is really really awful in so many ways, and is scary. The grown ups, for the most part, are non-receptive to Matilda. Her parents are also really unpleasant. Her brother is mentioned but never really plays much of a part in the book at all. Near the end (spoiler alert), Matilda's family decides to up and move to Spain, and that had Evalina in full-blown tears, while I urged her to keep reading because I was sure it would all work out in the end. Matilda also makes even the smartest person look a bit dull.

The Verdict: Amazingly written, funny, and sweet, Matilda is a book I would recommend to anyone. Evalina adored it. Amazon recommends it for ages 9-12, but I think earlier readers would appreciate it just as much (Evalina is now 6 1/2). The Trunchbull is evil, but almost humorously so. There is always a sense of humor about everything. That's why we are enjoying Roald Dahl so much. I really want to watch the movie and see how it compares. I've heard it's good. Anyone have any opinions? I can't wait to read more Roald Dahl. I don't think you can go wrong.

Edited to add: We watched the movie this morning, and it was fabulous! It differed from the book somewhat, but in good ways. We both enjoyed it a lot.

James and the Giant Peach

2009-10-27T22:34:00.000-04:00

We've been on a Roald Dahl kick recently, and I hadn't read James and the Giant Peach since I was a kid, so I thought it would be a great one. What a treat!

The Story: James Henry Trotter lived with his unpleasant aunts, Spiker and Sponge, and was miserable. They were cruel and he never got to play with other children. He was forced to spend all of his time in his miserable house and his miserable yard, with his miserable aunts. Then, one day, a mysterious stranger gave him a bag of magical pellets, which would give him wonderful things, but only if he was the first thing they touched. It would have been wonderful... except he tripped and the pellets sunk into the soil by the roots of the old defunct peach tree in the garden. He thought all was lost, until the amazing thing that happened to the peach tree started to effect him. An enormous peach grew on the tree, and in the end, it freed him from his horrid aunts, and brought him on a wonderful and exciting adventure, with new friends.

The Good: James is a wonderful boy. Though he hated his aunts, he was not mean about it, and he came from a sad place (his parents had died), but he always looks for the positive things. The bug friends in the peach are funny and love James immediately. James always comes up with clever solutions to problems. The adventure is exciting without being too scary. There is a good amount of humor throughout. We caught a reference to the Vermicious Knids from Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator! In the end, James gets everything he could want, even though he dropped the magic pellets. It all works out in the end. And isn't that nice?

The Bad: James' Aunts get run over by the peach, and squashed, and there is nary a word said about it. Squish, and the story moved on. That might be a bit much for some kids. Evalina didn't seem bothered by it. There are some scary parts when the peach is attacked by sharks and ominous Cloud Men, which also might be scary for some kids. The word "ass" is used in several places. That's all the bad I can think of.

The Verdict: Just wonderful! I can't wait to watch the recent movie with Evalina. Does anyone know how it compares? Amazon recommends this book for ages 9-12, but my 6 1/2 year old loved it. This is a classic that you shouldn't miss. Roald Dahl is delightful.

The BFG

2009-10-19T20:55:00.000-04:00

When I was a child, the school librarian read The BFG to us. I still had a great fondness for it, even though I didn't remember much about it, and I was super excited to share it with Evalina and re-read it myself. What a treat!

The Story: At the orphanage, Sophie is all alone and none too happy. She can't sleep, and happens to be awake in the middle of the night and sees something strange out of her window. She sees a giant. The giant sees her. He reaches into her window and snatches her right out of her bed. Luckily for Sophie, this giant is not the child-eating kind, but a Big Friendly Giant (BFG for short). He brings her back to Giant Country, where he shows her (carefully, so they don't see her) the nine other giants - who are much larger than he is, and enjoy eating up humans by the dozen. In his cave, he shows her his collection of dreams. The BFG travels to the misty dream country with Sophie and shows her how he captures dreams. At night, he travels to the human countries and blows dreams into children's bedrooms (which was what he was doing when Sophie saw him). Can he and Sophie put a stop to the other terrible giant's human consumption? Can the BFG get something to eat other than the horrid snozzcumbers that he is forced to live off of in leu of humans?

The Good: The BFG is funny, and Sophie is very warm and open with him. He is protective of her, and he is honorable. This book offers lots of practice in sounding out words, because the BFG has poor grasp of language sometimes. Roald Dahl has a way of making scary things funny. The fearsome giants are undoubtedly evil, and scary, but they never seem ominous. Sophie is safe with the BFG.

The Bad: As mentioned, the other giants are terrible. They snatch children from their beds at night and gobble them up like popcorn. They beat up the BFG and are cruel to him because he is smaller than they are (he is only 24 feet tall, and they are all at least 50 feet tall). There are jokes about farting, so if you don't like that sort of thing, you might not like that bit. Sophie is an orphan, and that might take some explaining.

The Verdict: Good prevails (sorry for the spoiler), and even the Queen of England is won over by the BFG. According to Amazon, the book is for ages 9-12, but Evalina was certainly old enough for it (at 6 1/2). Obviously it made a big impression on me, since I had good memories of it to this day. It is a great book, and I can recommend it to anyone, no matter the size.

Shakespeare's Secret

2009-10-08T23:18:00.001-04:00

I got Shakespeare's Secret for Evalina last year, when the author came to visit her school. It is a signed copy, which I think is pretty cool.

The Story: Hero is in 6th grade, and she and her family have just moved to a new town. Her father is a Shakespeare scholar, which explains her name, and her sister Beatrice's as well. Where Beatrice makes friends easily and fits in well, Hero doesn't do so well. Her first day at school, a girl in her class brings up the fact that she has a dog named Hero, and the teasing begins. Things start to get marginally better for her when her mother sends her on an errand to bring something to their neighbor, the elderly Mrs. Roth. Mrs. Roth has a story to tell, about a diamond that went missing in Hero's new house, and she thinks it is hidden there. Mrs. Roth also has a young friend, named Danny Cordova, who is the most popular boy in Beatrice's school. He befriends Hero, and together they search for the diamond, which holds secrets of it's own.

The Good: The friendship between the two kids and Mrs. Roth is really heartwarming. Hero is a likeable character who I, personally, could relate to. The mystery was really engaging. There were bits of Shakespearean lore and history throughout the book, and I think it is never too early to start a kid on at least knowing who Shakespeare is. The characters were all very well developed and well written. I got Evalina to come to bed on more than one occasion by reminding her that the diamond wasn't found yet. The relationship between Hero and Beatrice is very realistic.

The Bad: I think Evalina was a little young for some of the themes in the book - lots of middle school drama, which I hope she never experiences (though she probably will), and since she had never really heard about Shakespeare before, I don't know that a book involving conspiracy theories about whether William Shakespeare actually wrote the plays was the best place to start. Knowing Evalina, she'll be spouting out that theory all over the place. There was also a part about Danny's mom taking off when he was a kid, and that made her really sad. In some parts, Hero lies to her parents and sister. Not the best role model all the time (but who is).

The Verdict: Overall, a super good book. It is recommended for grade 4-7, and though, as noted, some of the themes were a bit too old for her, she did well on the actual story and the reading. She was very engaged in the story (as was I). I think it would probably be a better one to wait a while for, simply so that there is more historical background for your child, but it is definitely recommended.

The Wizard in the Tree

2009-09-16T22:19:00.001-04:00

Evalina got The Wizard in the Tree, by Lloyd Alexander, free from the library for doing such a great job with her summer reading. I'd never heard of it before, but thought we'd give it a chance.

The Story: Mallory is a kitchen maid with a love of fairy tales. When walking through the woods, she discovers her favorite oak tree was cut down to make way for a road - and is astonished to discover a wizard inside the tree! Arbican had been trapped there years and years before, and missed his kind's exodus to the land of Vale Innus. He's not at all what Mallory expected from a wizard, being grumpy and unwilling to grant her wishes. Still, he lost some of his powers in the time he spent stuck in the tree, and needs Mallory's help getting them back. Meanwhile, the unscrupulous Squire Scrupnor is trying to turn Mallory's beloved village into a coal mining town, and plans on taking all of the profits for himself, while blaming Arbican for the murder of his predecessor. Can Mallory help Arbican escape to Vale Innus, and stop Scrupnor?

The Good: It's an engaging story, and Mallory is a strong female protagonist. Arbican is an interesting wizard, not cliche and predictable. Scrupnor is a thoroughly dispicable bad guy, slimy and no good. The story is exciting in parts and Evalina seemed to enjoy it.

The Bad: Some language is quite strong. Mallory is repeatedly referred to as a slut and a wench (though in the original and not contemporary uses of the words), and I actually skipped over the words if I was reading the sentences they were in (slut more than wench). I just don't need Evalina repeating those words on the playground. Some of the plot was kind of talky - an entire chapter was pretty much grown ups talking about grown up politics, and I think it got a bit boring for Evalina in that part. It was right after Arbican was introduced, too, and I know she just wanted to see more about him! (So did I). Though it was only 144 pages long, it seemed much longer in parts, and ended well, but kind of abruptly.

The Verdict: It was a good book, overall, but I wouldn't say it's something I would go out of my way to read. Amazon says it's best for ages 9-12, and I would agree with that. Evalina liked it well enough, but I do think that some of it went over her head. Not bad, but don't rush out and buy it for your 6 year old. Older, maybe...

Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator

2009-09-07T10:22:00.001-04:00

It took us about a week to read Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, which is pretty good, considering school started and all. We liked it quite a lot, and look forward to reading more Roald Dahl soon!

The Story: This books starts off right where Charlie and the Chocolate Factory left off, with Willy Wonka telling Charlie that he was going to inherit the chocolate factory, and his whole family was invited to come and live at the factory (instead of in their tiny little house) and help run it. Before they can settle into their new life of fun and luxury and chocolate filled days, the whole family (including the three grandparents in their big bed, Charlie's parents, Mr. Wonka, Charlie, and Grandpa Joe) went for a ride in the Great Glass Elevator. And where should that Great Glass Elevator take them, but into space? They went to explore the brand-new, and as yet unoccupied by humans, Space Hotel U.S.A, only to find themselves face to face with Vermicious Knids, horrible gobbling globs of aliens (and of course, Mr. Wonka knows all about them). They have a great adventure escaping the Knids, and rescue a bunch of astronauts and workers heading for the hotel in the process, before getting back to the factory.
Call that the end of Part 1. On to Part 2.
Once back on solid ground and in the factory, Mr. Wonka devises a plan to get the old grandparents out of the bed they haven't left in many years. He gives them the wonderful creation Wonka-Vite, which will strip 20 years off a person for each pill they take. This would have been all well and good, if it hadn't been for Grandma Georgina's greed with them, and the fact that no one seems to listen to directions. They end up as two babies and a minus (that'd be Grandma Georgina, who took too many pills and is -2 years old). Charlie and Mr. Wonka set off to save Grandma Georgina from Minus-land (far below the chocolate factory, also accessed by The Great Glass Elevator), and to set things right with her and the now baby grandparents. Of course, it's an adventure in and of itself.

The Good: Roald Dahl's writing style is just a lot of fun. He makes even the most fantastical journey seem matter-of-fact. Of course they would go into space in the elevator. Why not? And what should they find there but giant evil slug creatures like the Knids? And of course the elevator would be immune to knid attack. Of course Mr. Wonka has invented a wonderful pill to make you younger, and an opposite potion to make you older. He's like a magician, enrobed in chocolate. Charlie is ever-sensible, and Grandpa Joe is a joy. The chapters are a bit longer, on average, than Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but still pretty short. Evalina was laughing out loud at parts, and really enjoyed it. Though the recommended reading age is 9-12, it was no problem for Evalina, and I bet she could read it by herself if she wanted to.

The Bad: Some grownups (including the President of the United States) are portrayed as utter fools. The story is more out there (and I mean out there - outer space) than the first book, and I didn't have a problem with that, but some people might. The Knids are really really terrible and frightening, and some chapters end with cliffhangers. The more sensitive readers might not like that (though Evalina had no troubles). There isn't anything else I can think of really. Perhaps another bad thing is that there are no more adventures with Charlie to read about?

The Verdict: The story is a bit more disjointed than Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, but it was still super fun. Evalina loved it, and so did I. It was fun to read. It wrapped up Charlie's story quite nicely. The end of the first book was rather abrupt, and I think this one is good to read, if only to find out what happened. Recommended!

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

2009-08-29T21:12:00.001-04:00

We read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in 4 nights of reading, and started on Charlie and the Glass Elevator right away... already a couple of chapters in. Super fun.

The Story: Charlie Bucket lives in a tiny house with his mother and father and both sets of grandparents. They are very poor - so poor that all four grandparents share one bed, and Charlie and his parents sleep on a mattress on the floor. They never get enough to eat, and save all year for Charlie's birthday present, which is one solitary chocolate bar that he savors and nibbles on for weeks.

They live in the same town as the Willy Wonka Chocolate Factory, a place that makes the most fantastic chocolate and candy confections in the world. Ten years earlier, Mr. Wonka fired all of the workers after some severe corporate and candy espionage, and then mysteriously started production again, without ever unchaining the gates. No one ever leaves the factory anymore, and Mr. Wonka is never seen. It's tantalizingly secretive. Charlie dreams of having more chocolate, and walks past the factory every day on his way to school in order to smell the chocolate on the air.

One day, there is an announcement that five golden tickets are hidden in Wonka Candy bars throughout the world, and the children who find those golden tickets will get exclusive access to the factory, for one day only, and a lifetime supply of chocolate thereafter.

Of course, Charlie dreams of finding a Golden Ticket. When his birthday chocolate doesn't have one, he loses hope. Four of the Golden Tickets are found by other children (all of whom seem to be rather despicable in one way or another). Through a series of seeming miracles, Charlie finds the final Golden Ticket for himself the day before the factory visit is scheduled.

The factory, and the man behind the factory, Willy Wonka, are even more astounding than Charlie had ever dreamed. He and the other children (and their grown-up companions, including Charlie's 96 year-old Grandpa Joe, who was revitalized by the thought of the Chocolate Factory tour) have the adventure of their lives.

The Good: Wow. What a good read. The chapters are short, sometimes only a couple of pages, and the prose is not that challenging, so Evalina was able to read a couple of paragraphs per page with no difficulty (she could have read more, easily). We read up until Charlie found the Golden Ticket in one night, and then read about the adventures in the factory for the final three nights. The other children certainly are illustrations of wretched behavior, and I hope that Evalina learned something from reading about them. The oompa-loompas are funny in the book (though still somewhat creepy). Charlie and his family were truly deserving of the wonderful things that await them with Willy Wonka. Grandpa Joe is so spunky, I just love him. He never got out of bed until the thought of going with Charlie to the factory came into his head, and then he never showed his considerable age again. The illustrations were really fun, too. Just so recommended. Great book.

The Bad: The oompa loompas are kind of creepy. They sing songs each time something awful happens to one of the awful children, and those songs are ... creepy. The depictions of Charlie's hunger are heartbreaking. You really feel for him. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing, but something to keep in mind. The horrible children are really horrible, but even so, it could be disturbing to see the horrible things happen to them, without really knowing if they would be ok in the end. Those are the only bad things I can think of really.

The Verdict: Read this book. Amazon recommends it for ages 9-12, but I think it was perfect for the slightly younger set. It is not very long, and such a good read, it's fun for the child and parent alike. There are some teachable moments throughout the book (Don't be a brat like Veruca Salt, children. Don't be a glutton like Augustus Gloop), and some opportunities to put on some fun voices, if you so like (I do). Be warned, though - if your kid is anything like Evalina, they'll want to start reading the next book immediately, and you will, too.

Philip's Pick: The Boy Who Loved Words

2009-08-25T15:27:00.005-04:00

We got The Boy Who Loved Words out from the library a couple of weeks ago, because I saw it and thought, "Hey, is that book about Philip?"

It wasn't about him, but he (and Evalina, and I, and others who read it) sure did enjoy it!

The story is about a boy named Selig who loves words so much that he begins to collect them. He writes any new, fun, interesting, or particularly unique words down on slips of paper and carries them around with him, enjoying them to his heart's content. Sadly, his peculiar hobby gains him no friends at school, only ridicule. He is teased and called Wordsworth and oddball. He goes on a journey, collecting more and more words, until one night, overburdened by his words, he sets them out on the branches of a tree he has made into his bed for the night. Little did he know that the words on the tree would fall into the hands of a poet, bringing him new literary inspiration. Selig found his mission at last - not only collecting words, but spreading them where he goes. He brings happiness to formerly bickering neighbors, new-found success to a bakery where he labels the strudel scrumptious, and others take notice. He also manages to find true love for himself along the way.

The illustrations are lovely, and scattered through them are little slips of paper with some of Selig's favorite words on them. You could spend a lot of time going through the pages just enjoying those words. It was a joy for everyone in our house, and I was sad to return it to the library. I'm hoping to pick up a copy soon for us to keep.

Philip's Pick: The Sleepy Little Alphabet

2009-08-25T15:17:00.005-04:00

As I have mentioned before, Philip loves letters and numbers. When I say this, people often think I'm exaggerating. Then they meet him, and see how he finds letters and numbers in every day objects (like an X in the top of a tent, or a Y in a twig) and how much he genuinely enjoys them, and they see I am just stating the plain, simple truth. Boy has a love affair with numbers and letters.

So, when I saw The Sleepy Little Alphabet, by Judy Sierra, I knew he had to have it.

Boy, was I right. He insists on having it read to him every night (though he knows it by heart), and snuggles it in bed like other kids snuggle teddy bears. It's funny.

The book itself is about the little letters in Alphabet town getting ready for bed. It goes through each letter - such as "M is mopey, N is naughty, oops, O and P upset the potty!" (that's a quote from the book, don't report me for copyright infringement, please!). Each page has a delightful illustration to go along with it, and the little letters are often accompanied by their (sometimes frazzled looking) "parents," the uppercase letters. At the end of the book, all of the letters are tucked into bed (except for that naughty n!) and each of them has something special either in bed with them or on their bedside table. It's fun going through and asking Philip what he sees with each one.

After reading the book through and singing the alphabet to him, Philip cuddles up and gets himself ready for bed.

And sometimes, he's just like that n. But let's pretend he's more like the snoring little z.

The Phantom Tollbooth

2009-08-24T22:20:00.005-04:00

We finished reading The Phantom Tollbooth tonight, and I had never read it before, but had always heard of it. This is part of the fun of reading with your children - you get to read things you love, and learn to love new things, too.

The Story: Milo doesn't enjoy life. Everything seems to be a waste of time, and he never enjoys what he is doing, always thinking about what else he could be doing. When he gets a mysterious gift of a tollbooth, he has no idea how his way of thinking is going to change. He goes on an adventure, starting with a toll paid into the phantom tollbooth. He enters the very literal city of Dictionopolis, travels to the numerical Digitopolis, and seeks to restore the princesses Rhyme and Reason to their rightful place as leaders of the entire Kingdom of Wisdom. He fights his way through Ignorance along the way, makes some very good friends, and learns that maybe there are things in his own life to be enjoyed, just as they are.

The Good: It's a fun read for the parent, I think. There are a lot of puns and plays on words and ironic twists of plot that may go over the average child's head at first glance, but which I found very enjoyable. Evalina thought it was funny, and loved the quest for the princesses. She also got a lot of the jokes and lessons that I didn't expect her to. Milo becomes likeable and learns to be brave and his friends, Tock the Watchdog and the Humbug, are steadfast and true. I think it is equally suited for girls or boys. The lesson that Rhyme and Reason are needed for Wisdom to prevail is a good one, and if she can hold that in her head, it's a win. There are also fun illustrations throughout.

The Bad: As I said, some of the puns go a bit over Evalina's head. Some of the creatures they meet are downright dastardly, and I could see having nightmares about Trivium, the demon who causes you to get caught up in meaningless tasks and never lets you get anything done, or any of the other demons that Milo and his friends encounter in the Mountains of Ignorance. Evalina hasn't complained about anything of the sort, but I can see it as a possibility. Other than that, I can't think of anything to negative.

The Verdict: A really great and fun book! Probably better suited for the recommended ages of 9-12, but it was fine for Evalina. I hope that she re-reads it on her own when she is older, so that she can get some more out of it. I really enjoyed reading it with her, though. I think Milo learned some valuable lessons, and I hope that Evalina takes them to heart. I can recommend this one heartily.

Ronia, The Robber's Daughter

2009-08-02T08:06:00.007-04:00

A lesser known Astrid Lindgren book than Pippi, I think it Ronia, the Robber's Daughter is actually better in many respects. There is a very well done Swedish film of it, which I have seen probably 100 times (this happens when you live with a 4-year old), and I cannot wait to show it to Evalina (even though it is in Swedish, I think she'll understand the most of it, because the movie is very close to the book in detail.)

The Story: On the night Ronia (Ronja in Swedish) was born, there was a huge storm and a lightening bolt which ripped the fortress where her father and his band of robbers live in half. When Ronia was about 10-11, she began to explore the forests around the fort, and discovered that the other half of the fort had been occupied by a rival band of robbers, and their son Birk, who is the same age as Ronia. They began to have wonderful adventures together in the forest, meeting all sorts of trolls and dwarfs and other creatures, until the two rival bands of robbers start fighting even more, and Ronia and Birk decide to move into the forest by themselves.

The Good: It's just delightfully written. The target audience is older than Pippi - more along the lines of Narnia. I enjoyed reading it more than Pippi - not that there is anything wrong with Pippi! It's just I like Ronia more. Evalina joyed in rolling her R's in pronouncing Ronia and Birk and Borka correctly. It was fun. She does a great job with it. As far as the story goes? It's just wonderful. It's akin to Romeo & Juliet, with spunky 10 year olds instead of tragic 16 year olds, and with a non-suicidal ending. The kids are strong and independent, and decide that they do NOT want to follow in their father's footsteps to be robbers when they grow up, because they think it's wrong. The characters, major and minor, human and creature, are colorful and believable. I love this book.

The Bad: There are some really scary bits, with nasty Wild Harpies out to get Ronia and Birk, a harrowing trip down a raging river, and even a very sad death. There is some slightly bad language ("Dirty devils" being a favorite insult). Ronia and Birk have some seriously foolhardy adventures that I wouldn't want a modern 10-year old to emulate. The grown-ups are unapologetically robbers, and do not change their ways. Ronia's father disowns her (for a time) which is very sad. I don't think any of these things are enough to keep you from reading it.

The Verdict: I love Ronia. Her spunk and sense of adventure are admirable. She cares for Birk and doesn't care what her family says. She faces staying in the forest with him during the winter, and possibly dying with him, if her father and his band of robbers don't accept her friendship with him. She is true and brave and kind. Evalina really loved it, too. It's fun to read and I had her read a paragraph per page. She could have read more. Amazon has the reading level as 9-12, which I think would be appropriate for independent reading, but my 6 year old adored the story. I can't wait to share the movie (with its fabulous music) with her!

Pippi in the South Seas

2009-07-13T13:48:00.006-04:00

With Pippi in the South Seas, we have finished reading Pippi. We have to watch the dvds we have in Swedish, and that should be fun. We really enjoyed them.

The Story: Pippi's father wants her to join him on Kurrekurredutt Island, in the South Seas, where he is King. Pippi somehow manages to convince Tommy and Annika's parents that they should come along, and the adventures begin. On the island, Pippi and her friends meet the native children, and have some wonderful fun, including wrestling with sharks, and getting rid of unwanted visitors. In the end, they return to the little town in Sweden, and Villa Villekulla, but the adventure will stay with them forever. And who knows, they may even go back sometime!

The Good: This story is the longer version of the story in a short Swedish-language Pippi picture book I've been reading to the kids for a couple of years now, so it was fun to read it in its entirety. Pippi is as delightful as ever, and the Christmas she arranged for Tommy and Annika upon their return to Villa Villekulla is heartwarming. Evalina was able to read large chunks of it on her own, and really has fun with Pippi. She often wants "Pippi braids" in her own hair, though it is blonde, not red. I am so pleased to have introduced such a vibrant character into her life.

The Bad: Well, Pippi is again naughty and disregards rules and normal standards for safe behavior. It is difficult to explain that Pippi can get away with such things because she is Pippi, but Evalina didn't do too much emulation. Yet. Sometimes, it was a bit hard for me to get into the writing style, as the target audience seems quite a bit younger than some of the other books we have read.

The Verdict: You just can't go wrong with Pippi. She's got a magical quality about her, and I loved reading the books to Evalina. I can't wait to watch the Swedish-language dvds!

Pippi Goes On Board

2009-06-17T20:38:00.005-04:00

What fun we had with Pippi Goes on Board! The kids are sure I wrote the Pippi books, even though I have told them it is some other Astrid. They can keep believing if they want...

The Story: Pippi is back to her adventures living in Villa Villekula. By now, the town is used to her, and they are not as shocked about her antics. She buys pounds of candy for all the kids in town, and does likewise in the toystore. She goes to the fair and causes some trouble. She arranges a shipwreck with Tommy and Annika for fun. Nothing is surprising, particularly, though, until she gets an unexpected visitor - her long lost father! For once, Pippi's tall tales are true. He really did survive falling overboard, and became a king of the Cannibals on Kurrekurredutt Island. Now, he wants Pippi to go with him, to be a Cannibal Princess. Tommy and Annika, are distraught. Will Pippi really leave Villa Villekulla forever?

The Good: Pippi is hilarious. She tells the best tall tales, and that always makes Evalina chuckle. There are some teaching moments - as I mentioned when we read the first Pippi book. "Isn't Pippi funny? DON'T do what Pippi does!" The writing is challenging in places for her, but easy enough for her to read. I read most of it, but she read about 2-3 paragraphs per page (some of them super long). All in all, it was a great great read.

The Bad: Some of it is kind of sad. Evalina didn't quite understand the idea of Pippi moving away forever, though she was excited about the idea of Pippi being a Cannibal Princess. Pippi is pretty naughty and disregards rules with abandon. Since Evalina is at a point when following rules is sometimes.... challenging.... it's hard to teach her that Pippi's hilarious antics are not ok in the real world.

The Verdict: Bad behavior aside, you can't go wrong with Pippi. It's wonderful. Evalina loves it. Philip loves picking out the "Pippi"s on the pages. The stories are fun and delightful. We can't wait to finish the next book, so we can watch the Swedish language movies we have, and then maybe find the Swedish books eventually!

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Last Battle

2009-05-30T20:45:00.007-04:00

Wow! We are finished reading Narnia! It's bittersweet, because we absolutely loved reading the books, but it's going to be fun to move on to something else. We sped through The Last Battle, and finished it in a week!

The Story: It's the end of Narnia. A devious Ape convinces a poor Donkey to dress in a lion's skin and then passes him off as Aslan, convincing people and creatures of Narnia to do terrible things, saying that they are Aslan's will. The current (and final) King of Narnia, Tirian, calls for help from the Real Aslan, because he sees through the ruse, and who should be sent to help but Jill and Eustace? They fight together to try to save Narnia and the Narnian's from the horrible Ape, and in the end, find that their adventure is going to bring them to a much different end than they would ever have thought.

The Good: It's exciting, that's for sure. There are lots of lessons to be learned in this book, and all of the favorite characters from the previous books are revisited. The imagery is fantastic, and the characters are just wonderful. The end was lovely, and I wasn't sure it was going to be.

The Bad: There are some very strong religious references in this one, with Aslan the Jesus Lion, as one of my friends calls him, and the Evil God Tash, the parallel to the Devil. I am not a religious person, so some of it was a bit much for me, but I guess it all boils down to the core morals, and that I don't have a problem with. Good prevails (sorry if I give anything away!) and Evil is quenched. Some of the things in the book are really dark, though. There were cliffhangers at the end of nearly every chapter, and so we ended up reading 2 chapters most nights, so that I wouldn't leave Evalina with anything that would leave her with bad dreams. The evil was SO evil that it was scary even for me. Evalina didn't seem that shaken. And what happened to Susan? Her absence was just kind of weird, and not fully explained.

The Verdict: What a way to end the series! We had a hard time putting it down. Some of the references went over Evalina's head, I'm sure, but I bet that she got more than I thought she did. She really loved the references back to the earlier books, and actually has decided to go back and read the first book by herself. I don't know if she is actually "reading" it, or "skimming" it, but it is wonderful either way. She loved in this book when her favorite characters from the other books showed up, especially Reepicheep. I do think that she ended up being a bit too young to fully appreciate this book, but she still loved it, even if she probably missed a lot of the nuances. It was a great conclusion to our Narnian adventures.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Silver Chair

2009-05-24T20:53:00.007-04:00

I'm sad that we are almost finished with Narnia! We have been enjoying it so much.. We finished The Silver Chair this morning, and Evalina just loved it, and vowed to go to Narnia, if ever she got the chance. She wants to meet Aslan. I don't blame her. Aslan is cool.

The Story: Eustace from The Voyage of the Dawn Treader? He's back. At a "new" kind of school in England, called Experiment House, he and his friend Jill are being bullied horrendously. Eustace and Jill were drawn to Narnia, at their time of need, and to a time when Narnia needs help. Many years have passed since Eustace was last in Narnia - Narnian time, of course. King Caspian has become an old man, and he sets off on a journey in search of his lost son before Eustace has a chance to talk to him again. Eustace and Jill have also been sent in search of the lost Prince Rillian, by Aslan himself, and they have to travel to the Wilds in the North looking for him, following signs given by Aslan. They have help from a curious creature, Puddleglum, a Marsh-Wiggle. Along the way, they encounter a council of owls, a mysterious lady and a silent knight, giants, gnomes, and everything in between. But, will they find the Prince?

The Good: It's an adventure story, which is fun. The characters are, as always, well developed and well rounded. No one is so brave as to be unbelievable. Puddleglum is a fun character, who acts kind of as the Eeyore of the story. It was quick moving, and it was not battle-heavy. There are a few skirmishes here and there, but nothing crazy.

The Bad: "The" Silver Chair in the title doesn't come in until more than halfway through the book, and Evalina kept asking why it was called The Silver Chair. I had to tell her I didn't know, until we got there. The references to Experiment House are a little hard for a modern child to understand, I think, since it talks about how new and different it is, and how "experimental," because it's co-ed and secular, among other things. Hmmm. There were some slightly dark moments in the book, but it wasn't so bad.

The Verdict: Not my favorite of the series, but still good. It was sad to see Caspian so old, after meeting him and "getting to know" him as a young and virile King, but having Eustace, Jill, and Puddleglum as the central characters worked. Evalina missed Lucy, Edmund, Peter, and Susan, but she got over it. As with the other books in the series, it is listed for grades 4-8, but Evalina (nearly done K), loved it. We are looking forward to the next (and final) book in the series.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

2009-05-10T21:14:00.003-04:00

We read The Voyage of the Dawn Treader really quickly - in about 10 nights of reading. Again, it was very very good... I'm kind of sad that we only have two Narnia books left.

The Story: Lucy and Edmund are visiting with their unpleasant cousin, Eustace, when all three find themselves unexpectedly pulled out of our world, onto the deck of The Dawn Treader, set sail from Narnia with (among others) King Caspian and the brave mouse Reepicheep. They are out to explore the seas beyond Narnia, in search of seven lords who had been sent away when Caspian's dastardly uncle Miraz because they had shown support for Caspian when Miraz had been king. It was an amazing journey, with stops at many fantastical islands, in search, not only of the missing lords, but for the mythical country where Aslan comes from. Along the way, Eustace underwent some very good changes in character, due in no small part to a time when he was temporarilly transformed into a dragon. Will they reach the ends of the world? What will they find there, and along the way?

The Good: Just about everything in this book is good. The imagery is amazing. The islands are all so different and gorgeous, you wish you could go there yourself. The people they meet along the way are interesting and full of life. Evalina always wanted me to read more of the book than one chapter a night, and though I stuck to one chapter for the most part, I was swayed a couple times. There was very little violence in this book, which is nice, considering the battle-heavy scenes in the past couple books. It also got Evalina kind of excited to look at maps.

The Bad: Edmund, Lucy, and Caspian were really kind of background characters. Eustace and Reepicheep got a little more "page time." The real characters were the islands and the people they met along the voyage. This might be a disadvantage if you are really invested in the characters. If you are more into the adventure, there should be no problem for you. The ending was kind of abrupt, but I think that was more a problem for me than for Evalina. Since we jumped right into the next book, there was not too much of a problem.

The Verdict: Loved it! Evalina loved it, too. She was quite concerned for Reepicheep, who had a tough decision at the end (and I am not going to spoil it for you), and kept asking about him through the book. She loved every moment that Aslan came into the story. She wanted to look at the map to try to figure out where they were. It was very cool. I would love to see a movie made of this one, if it could do it justice. The recommended age on Amazon is grade 4-8, but again, my 6 year old adored it. I think this is one of my favorites (and I keep saying that), because I love the voyage, more than I like the battles in the previous books. I think Evalina liked it more, too. It was really just wonderful.

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian

2009-04-25T19:08:00.003-04:00

We really loved reading Prince Caspian, and I wonder if the movie is faithful - thoughts?

The Story: Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy were heading to boarding school when a strange force pulled them from the train station into Narnia! It was not the Narnia they recognized from their time there. Their beloved castle at Cair Paravel has become completely overgrown by apple trees, and has fallen into ruin. The magical talking beasts have mostly been exterminated, and those who remain have gone into hiding. Dwarves and the like are also in hiding, and the naiads and dryads have all but disappeared. Aslan has not been seen in generations, and most people doubt his existance, and think that the legends of the Golden Age of Narnia when Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy ruled are just that - legends. What has drawn the four children back to Narnia (only a year or so has passed in their time, though it has been hundreds of years in Narnia) is the call from Caspian, rightful king of Narnia, and friend to the exiled Talking Beasts and Magical creatures. He has been denied his rightful throne by his Uncle Miraz, who is out to kill him. Can the children help him defeat Miraz, and return Narnia to the splendors of the golden age?

The Good: As expected, the story telling is fantastic. Evalina loved the characters, from the slightly nefarious dwarf Nikabrick to the courageous mouse Rippicheep, to of course Caspian and the four children, and the ever popular Aslan. The story was engaging and quick, and ended happily. Miraz was suitably unpleasant so that you didn't feel too badly when he got his in the end (sorry for spoiling at all). We just love this writing.

The Bad: There is a good deal of violence, and people getting their heads cleaved off, and stabbed in the back, and lots of fighting. Some of the themes went a bit over Evalina's head, and I had to explain some things, but overall, not bad. She did keep asking where Cor (Shasta) from The Horse and His Boy were. They play no part in this story at all.

The Verdict: Overall, quite a wonderful book. I think that Evalina would have gotten some more out of it if she was a little older. She's kind of sensitive at times, and still didn't have much of a problem with the people who were killed, or the amounts of violence. She really liked when the trees came to life and started walking around. We were outside when we read that part, and she kept looking up at the trees in wonder. Though Amazon recommends the book for grades 4-8, my 6 year old loved it and got a lot out of it. I can see her re-reading the whole series when she is older, though, and getting even more out of it.

Evalina's "Book Report": Totally slacking on this lately. She really loved the story, though, so maybe she'll get back into it soon. I'm sure this summer, when school is out, we'll be able to do some fun things with books some more.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Horse and His Boy

2009-04-09T10:27:00.003-04:00

We took a little while longer than normal to read The Horse and His Boy, because life got in the way, but we really enjoyed it.

The Story: In a land to the South of Narnia called Calormen, which seems kind of "arabian" in culture, a young boy named Shasta meets a Talking Horse named Bree, and learns that he, like Bree, is from Narnia, and not Calormene at all. He escapes with Bree from his "home," where he was little better than a slave, and sets out to return to their homeland of Narnia in the North. Along the way, they meet another kidnapped Narnian Horse, Hwin, and her rider, Aravis, who has run away from a forced marriage. They go through much adventure on their way to Narnia, even running across the path of the "children" from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, now Kings and Queens of Narnia. Can Shasta, Bree, Aravis, and Hwin get to the safety of Narnia, and maybe thwart a Calormene invasion of the kingdom neighboring Narnia, Archenland, in the process? And who is Shasta, actually? How did he get to Calormen? It's a mystery waiting to be solved.

The Good: The adventure is very exciting, and Evalina really loved the talking horses. Shasta and Aravis (and Bree, for that matter) have a great deal of character growth througout the book. And of course, Aslan is always a hit when he makes an appearance. Evalina also liked seeing the "kids" from the previous book, in their royal splendor.

The Bad: This book has some dealings with slavery and war, and I don't know if Evalina was really ready for those parts. She knows that slavery is wrong, and didn't seem to understand why the Calormenes took it all in stride. She also didn't understand why people war. Join the club, girl.

The Verdict: I had never read this book before, and I enjoyed it quite a lot. It even had a surprise twist at the end! (Well, kind of a surprise. You could probably figure it out if you were paying attention). The adventure was fun, and Evalina definately enjoyed it. As with the other Narnia books, Amazon list this one for ages 9-12. At age 6, Evalina loved it. I'm sure some of it went over her head, but not too much. This one is a winner, and has an added bonus of giving you stepping stones to discuss some moral questions with your kids.

Evalina's "Book Report": I still haven't uploaded her pictures from the previous book. Oops. She said her favorite parts in this one were when Shasta and Bree met, when Aravis was being chased by a lion, and when they escape from Tashbaan, the city in Calormen. Hopefully, I'll get some pictures up soon.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

2009-03-13T22:20:00.003-04:00

So, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is the one that started it all, but in the "new" order, it's the second one we read.

And it was, of course, fantastic.

The Story: I think most people know this story, which is the most famous of all of the Narnia stories. Four children (Susan, Peter, Edmund, and Lucy) are sent to the country to live in an old country house, and discover a passageway into Narnia completely by accident through the back of a wardrobe. The Narnia they find is much different than the idyllic place that found it's beginning in the previous book - it's always winter, and never Christmas. They meet The Witch (who is the Witch from Charn from The Magician's Nephew), and the Lion (of course, Aslan), and find out that they have a very important part to play in the salvation and the future of Narnia.

The Good: What isn't good about it? The characters are rich and deep, and sometimes conflicted (Edmund!) and the writing is wonderful, as expected. Some definite moral decisions are explored, and it was good to talk to Evalina about the issues. The different children each have different things to offer the reader, so everyone can find someone to connect with. Evalina liked Susan, because she was the older sister. The descriptions of the fantastical creatures were grand.

The Bad: There are some scary bits, and the witch is most assuredly evil. Since I had read this one before, I knew when to warn Evalina that something sad or scary might be coming up. As I mentioned in the write up for The Magician's Nephew, there is a lot of religious imagery (much more in this one! It's pretty blatant), but it didn't bother non-religious me, because the morals are solid and universal, so I don't really count that as bad, just something to be aware of.

The Verdict: Amazon lists this as ages 9+. It was great as a read aloud book for not-quite 6 Evalina. We read two chapters a night, at her insistence. She simply adored it. I loved reading it. We finished it in a little over a week, and again, we were also reading one of the Magic Schoolbus books along with it (one about Volcanos). Since I have not read any of the other books in the series, I cannot wait to see what comes next! This book is an absolute classic, and could be a stand alone book, even if you are not ready to commit to the whole series. There are so many reasons that it's a perennial favorite.

Evalina's "Book Report": Coming soon. Still have to upload the others. They are sitting next to my computer.

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!

2009-03-02T09:29:00.003-05:00

We love Dr. Seuss in our house. I loved his books as a child, and introduced his books to my kids quite early.

Some of our Favorite Seuss Books:

Philip - Dr. Seuss ABC's. This is the perfect book for a boy obsessed with letters. It is fun to read, and as mentioned previously in the blog, he went as this book for Halloween this past year. He will lie in bed and "read" it to himself for a long time.

Evalina - She has many. For almost 6 months when she was maybe 3, she insisted that I read I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew nearly every night. And it isn't a short one. This thing is over 60 pages of prose-style Dr. Seuss. It's one I never read as a child, but oh how I love it now. I have the thing memorized. Seriously.
She also likes to read Would You Rather Be a Bullfrog? which is another one I didn't have as a child, but I like quite well.
Both The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins and Bartholomew and the Oobleck are favorites, though my husband doesn't like reading them much.
She loves to torture us with the tongue twisters in Fox in Socks. I'm getting decent at them.
And of course, Yertle the Turtle, and also Horton Hears a Who.

Here's to many more years of enjoying Dr. Seuss! Happy Birthday to him! Why don't you celebrate by picking up a Seuss you haven't read, from the bookstore or the library, and share it with your kids tonight?

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Magician's Nephew

2009-02-28T09:56:00.004-05:00

I decided to read The Chronicles of Narnia in the "new" order, which is chronologically and not in the order they were published. I know that there are people who would say that this is incorrect, but I think it is going to be just fine.

We started, therefore, with The Magician's Nephew, which was the 6th book published in the series, but the first in order of events as they occur.

The Story: Digory's mother is sick, and so they move in with his Aunt and his very strange and mysterious Uncle in London. He happens to meet the neighbor girl, Polly, and they have lots of fun playing together. One day, they decide to explore the crawlspace between adjascent houses (which are all connected) and end up inadvertently in Digory's uncle's study. As it turns out, Uncle Andrew fancies himself a magician, and tricks the children into acting as guinea pigs in his magical "experiment" - after using actual guinea pigs didn't turn out so well. Much to his surprise, the children are transported magically to a place where they can travel between different worlds. They visit a strange world of Charn, where everything is dead and desolate, until Digory makes a grave error and awakens the evil Empress and Witch, Jadis. Jadis follows them back to their own world and wreaks some havoc there before Digory and Polly manage to get her back to the magical place between worlds, and then they enter what was an empty world. They witness something truly spectacular - the birth of a new world, Narnia. In order to protect this new world from the Evil Witch who hitched a ride with them, Digory, with Polly along with him, is sent on a magical quest before he (and Polly) can return home.

The Good: The writing is fantastic, and the imagery is so full. The characters are multifaceted and the adventure is exciting. Who wouldn't like to read about new worlds, and magical creatures? Even in their ordinary lives in London, Polly and Digory are fun characters. Throw magic in with them and it's just lovely. This book (and the ones to follow) are simply classics.

The Bad: Some things are a bit frightening, and some of it is a bit dated (I had to explain what a hansome cab was), but that's not all bad. Evalina's pretty sensitive at times, and none of the chapter ending cliffhangers really got her too anxious. I can't think of much bad to say about this book, except for that Evalina couldn't probably read it by herself, but she's not quite 6 yet, so what do you expect? It is rife with religious imagery, but even though I am not religious, I see nothing wrong with a Jesus-lion. It's pretty innocuous, in that regard.

The Verdict: Amazon lists this as ages 9+. For a read-aloud book, it was fine for Evalina. She loved it. I loved reading it. It didn't take very long for us to read, and we were also reading one of the Magic Schoolbus books along with it. I cannot wait to see how she likes the next books in the series. I would recommend this to anyone.

Evalina's "Book Report": Coming soon. She drew some great pictures, I just have to get them on the computer.

A Wonderful Bonus

2009-02-25T15:54:00.003-05:00

One fantastic thing about reading to your children is that, some days, they want to read to you.

A couple of nights ago, Evalina read The Runaway Bunny to me. The night before, it was Would You Rather Be a Bullfrog. Last night, we were treated to Yertle the Turtle, with much gusto and feeling (and when she was done with Yertle, she carefully put her bookmark in the place where she left off, since there are two other stories).

I'm bragging a little here, and I hope you will indulge me. Evalina is very concerned about what effects punctuation has on words. If something is italicized, she must read it with the proper emphasis. In parentheses? Same thing. It's really fantastic.

Of course, it doesn't hurt that she's got a bit of dramatic flair. *Ahem* No clue where that came from.

When I was very tired the other night, and we had already read two chapters of The Magician's Nephew, she really wanted to read a chapter in The Magic Schoolbus book we were reading (about electric storms). I told her that I just couldn't keep my eyes open after a few pages. "Ok, mommy," she said, "I'll read the last few pages of the chapter." And she did. I helped her out on a few words, but she read wonderfully.

I don't think there are many moments when my heart swells with more pride.

Igraine the Brave

2009-02-15T10:29:00.003-05:00

I have never read anything by Cornelia Funke before, but I know that Igraine the Brave won't be our last book by her. We read it in just over two weeks, while also reading Magic Schoolbus books alongside.

The Story: Igraine's family is full of magicians, and they live in Pimpernel Castle, and are guardians of the Singing Books of Magic. Igraine has no desire to be a magician. She wants to be a knight. She has just turned 12 years old, and she wants nothing more than a life of chivalry and knightly persuits. She gets her chance to prove herself when her parents have a magical mishap, and she and her (magic practicing) older brother must defend the castle, and the Books, against Osmund the Greedy and his dastardly knight, Rowan the Heartless. Igraine sets of on a quest, and has wonderful adventures with a giant, and an honorable knight, among others.

The Good: How great is it to have kids learning about chivalry? Igraine is a spunky, brave, and smart young girl, who is not afraid to face potentially frightening situations (unless spiders are involved). In this way, she is a very good heroine. The other characters are also very well described, from Igraine's parents, The Fair Melisande and Sir Lamorak the Wiley, to the chivalrous knight who helps her, The Sorrowful Knight of the Mount of Tears, to her clever brother, Albert and his magical mice, to her talking cat, the ever fish-hungry Sisyphus, right to the evil-doers, Osmund the Greedy and Rowan the Heartless.
The chapters are pretty short in general, so it's easily broken down if you are reading it in installments, and though I read this one aloud to Evalina and only had her reading the chapter titles, she was following along quite well. Amazon lists this book as good for ages 9-11, but she had no troubles with the story at 5 (almost 6).

The Bad: Igraine gets herself into trouble sometimes, and doesn't always listen to her parents or other authority figures. She is sometimes rash. Some of the writing may be a bit over the heads of younger kids, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. It didn't seem to limit enjoyment.

The Verdict: We loved this book and looked forward to reading it every night. I can't wait to read more by Cornelia Funke! I wish we had the first in the Inkheart series (I inadvertantly bought the second one instead of the first one... oops). I would recommend this book to anyone who likes fantasy, and Harry Potter fans would probably appreciate it. It is lighter than the Potter books, though, in style and story. More fairytale like.

Evalina's "Book Report": I'm going to start having her do this, as an exercise that will help her out in school eventually. I had her draw five of her favorite things in the story. Here they are (and interestingly, she didn't draw Igraine herself! I thought for sure the castle and Igraine would have made appearances)

This is the horse, Lancelot, enjoying a carrot (no idea why the horse has no mane)

The Sorrowful Knight of the Mount of Tears, who lost the ladies he was protecting.

Igraine's cat, Sisyphus, eating a Knight Fish.

Rowan Heartless, the evil Spiky Knight. (Doesn't he just look evil? That grin! Terror-inducing)

The magical stone lions that (happily, apparently) guard the gates of Pimpernel. Evalina was quick to point out their manes, and said they were roaring.

Pippi Longstocking

2009-01-29T13:21:00.004-05:00

When Evalina was younger, my cousin Agnes visited from Sweden, and brought a plethora of Pippi related items (because it was the 60th Anniversary of Pippi). Among these was a set of Pippi stories on CD (in Swedish), a bunch of Pippi clothing (so cute, and bought in various sizes so that she is still wearing them), and a Pippi storybook (in Swedish - Pippi in the South Seas). Later, we were also given the Swedish TV movies on DVD - which we have not watched yet.

Evalina listened to the cds many many times, not really understanding any of it. She listened to me read the Swedish storybook to her, which I dutifully translated, and the Pippi clothes are among her favorites.

For Christmas, she was given the first book of the series, Pippi Longstocking, in English. The novelty.

The Story: Pippi lives all alone in Villa Villekulla, with only her monkey, Mr. Nilsson, and her horse to keep her company. Her father was lost at sea (and Pippi is sure he has become the king of a tribe of cannibals), and her mother "is an angel," so there is no one to live with her. This is not to say that she is incapable of caring for herself. She happens to be the strongest girl in the world, and is resourceful and irrepressible as any girl could possibly be. She makes friends with the children next door, Tommy and Annika, and they are sure to never have another dull day. They try to get her to go to school (it doesn't work out), invite her to their mother's coffee party (which was a foolish idea), and have many other adventures with this amazing girl.

The Good: Pippi is joyful and silly, that's for sure. She isn't afraid of anything or anybody. The joy of being Pippi is enough to get her through, along with the big chest full of gold she's got... and her incredibly strong muscles and personality.

The Bad: Pippi lies. Incessantly. And it's really funny when she does, so it doesn't exactly teach that lying is wrong. Pippi also gives pistols to Tommy and Annika as toys. And shoots bullets through her ceiling. And dashes into burning buildings. All in all, we had quite a few "Isn't Pippi funny? Never do what Pippi does," conversations.

The Verdict: The kids got a kick out of the fact that Pippi is written by a Astrid, and mommy's name is Astrid. Evalina loved the book (Philip liked looking at the pages and picking out where he saw the word "Pippi" over and over again). I think, as long as you can explain that Pippi's behavior is not ok for real life children, the book is wonderful fun. I look forward to reading the others in the series, and watching the Swedish movies, and hopefully locating the books in Swedish and reading them in their native language!

The Tale of Despereux

2009-01-29T13:07:00.003-05:00

So, I also snagged The Tale of Despereux at the Scholastic Warehouse Sale. Little did I know that it is the junior novelization (which is basically like reading the screenplay) and not the original book. After reading some reviews for the original book, and going to see the movie, I tend to think that this version is better suited to Evalina's age.

The Story: Despereux is a brave mouse, which makes him an outcast in mouse society. He befriends a human Princess, which gets him banished to the dungeons, where the rats live. Through a misunderstanding, a rat named Roscuro killed the Queen, which got soup and rats banned from the kingdom (read it, it will make sense), but Roscuro becomes the only friend Despereaux has in the rats, all the rest of whom would just as soon eat him. When the Princess is unwilling to see past the fact that Roscuro is a rat, when he tries to apologize for killing the Queen (again, long story), Roscuro turns on his better nature, and goes bad. He encourages a jealous servant girl to kidnap the Princess, and only Despereux can save her.

The Good: Due to the fact it is the junior novelization of the movie, the descriptions are fantastic. The characters are full and lively, and Evalina enjoyed it very much, as did I. There are a few fun dialects to play with, and the message of courage and bravery is a good one. We went to see the movie, and it was a very good one - beautiful animation!

The Bad: Even in the Disneyfied version, there are quite a few scary moments. The servant girl is portrayed as really quite stupid, though if reviews are to be believed, she is worse in the original story. The abrupt death of the Queen caught me off guard.

The Verdict: Loved the movie, and was glad to have read the book first, even if it isn't the original story. It made me want to make a big pot of soup. (Again, read the book or watch the movie, and you'll understand). I will be more careful to look at the cover of a book before I buy it in the future, because I'd rather be getting the authentic story. Still, as mentioned, I think that the Disneyfied version is fine for a child of Evalina's age.

A Christmas Carol

2009-01-29T12:59:00.003-05:00

So, this Christmas, I decided to start a (hopefully yearly) tradition of reading A Christmas Carol to Evalina before Christmas. I had actually never read the book before myself, but I snagged a copy at the Scholastic Warehouse Sale for $2. How could you resist that?

(I don't think I have to recap the story for anyone)

The Good: It's a classic story, and has an important moral. At the same time, it stays pretty secular, which I appreciate, and has some great descriptive prose. Go Dickens!

The Bad: There are some scary bits, and of course, some of the language was far over Evalina's head, but she seemed to get the point. It was hard to explain that the story took place so long in the past. Also, she was very sad about Tiny Tim.

The Verdict: I hope to read this to the kids every Christmas season. This year, when we were done reading it, we watched Mickey's Christmas Carol, the Disney-fied version of the story. Eventually, we can graduate to more traditional and authentic versions of the movie. I enjoyed reading the book, and it is pretty short (though dense). A good introduction to classic literature for the kids.

The Magic Schoolbus Science Chapter Books

2009-01-29T12:44:00.003-05:00

I got two box sets of The Magic School Bus Science Chapter books through the Scholastic Flier from school, and I am very pleased that I did! I had heard of the Magic Schoolbus show, but had never seen it, and I had never read any of the books before. I was betting on a hunch.

What a great hunch.

Each book covers some topic in science, and covers it well. I have learned things from these books. Evalina loves them, and is always spouting off factoids that she has learned from them.

We have gotten through 12 of the 20 so far.

Topics so far include:

bats
bones
whales
outer space
twisters
germs
sharks
penguins
dinosaurs
Australian wildlife
insects
and magnetism

The Story: Each book starts out the same, with an introduction by a member of Ms. Frizzle's class. Ms. Frizzle is a very unique teacher, who loves science more than anything, and loves to bring her class on impromptu field trips, aided by the Magic School Bus. Each book is told from the perspective of the child who "speaks" in the introduction. The topic being covered in the book is introduced in some sort of adventuresome way, and off they go on their Magic School Bus field trip, learning along the way.

The Good: The science is really good! I love that it is not dumbed down for kids, and I love how comprehensive it is. The topics are covered in interesting and exciting ways, and it makes me wish I had Ms. Frizzle as a teacher. The language is not too difficult for kids, and in these books, I have Evalina read a couple of paragraphs a page. She could undoubtably read more than that, but she likes me to read to her. The pictures (one or two a chapter, usually) are cute and Evalina looks forward to them.

The Bad(ish): The kids are not very interesting, in my opinion. The focus is really on the science, and less on character development, so I can understand that.

The Verdict: Absolutely wonderful. A great resource to teach kids science and get them excited about it, and fun to read. Evalina always wants to read them, even if we're working on another book. She wants to read one chapter (the chapters are short) of a Magic School Bus book and then a chapter of the other book. It's wonderful. Plus, she's retaining a lot of the information. She wanted to experiment with magnets on all of my pots and pans while we were reading the magnetism book, for example. I love it, and I will be sad when we are done reading them.

UPDATE: Evalina has spent the summer reading and rereading most of these all on her own. A complete winner of a set! So highly recommended.

Seven Day Magic

2009-01-29T12:31:00.003-05:00

Seven Day Magic is the last in Edward Eager's Tales of Magic series. It focuses on John, Susan, Barnaby, Abbie and Fredericka, who like to spend every Saturday checking out exciting books from the library. One day, Susan finds a strange book, and the adventures begin...

The Story: These children are not at all related to the children from Half Magic, though I believe the town might be the same as in The Well Wishers and Magic or Not?, though at a slightly later date. When Susan finds this strange book, it turns out that the pages are blank, but are filled with stories about the children themselves in adventures they are to have! There are references throughout to different works of literary fiction, including a visit to the world of Half Magic. It's full of fantastic magical journeys.

The Good: I love the references to other fiction, especially referencing Half Magic as one of the children's favorite books! It seems kind of tongue in cheek, and I can appreciate that. I think that the adventures the kids have in these books are grand - there is even a dragon! Another fantastic book.

The Bad(ish): Again, some of the references might be lost on the uninitiated reader, but that's just more reason to go read some classics, right? Can't think of anything else.

The Verdict: A fitting end to a fantastic series, it left me wishing there were more books. The kids are likeable, and fun, and just a little naughty. Another one I can't wait to re-read with the kids.

The Time Garden

2009-01-29T12:00:00.003-05:00

The Time Garden is a sequel to Knight's Castle, and a fun one at that. It follows the same kids (children of a couple of the original children), and includes a mysterious creature called a Natterjack.

The Story: The children are sent to spend the summer at the house of strange old Mrs. Whiton, and in her garden, they meet the Natterjack, who is kind of like a frog. He introduces them to the mysteries of the many different kinds of thyme growing in the garden. Each different type of thyme evokes a different kind of magic, from wild thyme to common thyme, and along the way, they travel in time and meet their parents (in a cross-over from Half Magic. Or maybe Magic by the Lake. I don't remember which one). It's very cool.

The Good: Did I mention it's just really cool? The adventures are lots of fun, and fast paced. I love how it overlaps with the previous stories, and it is just plain good reading. Plus, the Natterjack seems to speak with a cockney accent, and I love any excuse to practice fun accents. The kids don't care if I'm bad.

The Bad(ish): There are a couple tense moments along the way, but even my hyper-sensitive child didn't have too much trouble with them, so it's not too bad.

The Verdict: Love the time traveling, and the puns with the different types of thyme sending them on different adventures in time. A very clever person could make some thyme-infused meals for the kids to tie in with the book. I didn't get that far (this time) but I do make a killer Lemon Chicken with Thyme. Can't wait to reread this one.

Knight's Castle

2009-01-29T11:45:00.002-05:00

Another sequel to Half Magic, the story of Knight's Castle follows the magical adventures of the children of a couple of the original children. I think this might be my favorite (other than Half Magic!)

The Story: Roger and his sister Ann spend the summer with their cousins, Jack and Eliza, and facilitated by a magical toy soldier of Roger's, enter into a magical world at night, full of knights and Robin Hood, King Arthur, and Ivanhoe, among others. It's a little evocative of Narnia, but the story is all his own.

The Good: This story is action packed and exciting, and these kids are just as fun as the original quartet. I much prefer the outright magic to the Magic or Not? style of "magic." I love the adventures they go on.

The Bad(ish): It would be better if I had a better grasp of some of the stories they borrow characters from, like Ivanhoe. It left me wanting to read Ivanhoe (I haven't yet!). There is some mention of Roger and Ann's father having an unnamed illness, which is the reason for their summer visit, so he can get treatment. That might worry more sensitive children.

The Verdict: If this is a take-off of Narnia, I'll take it. I used to dream of having the kind of adventures these kids have, and it's also fun to catch a glimpse into the kind of grown ups the original kids become. I love this book.

The Well Wishers

2009-01-29T11:30:00.002-05:00

The Well Wishers is a sequel to Magic or Not? and follows the same group of children.

The Story: The kids try to evoke the magic (or not?) of the well again to help some people in the town. They set about to start a group of people with "wishing" wells in their town, to band together and all wish together. Along the way, they have some adventures (of course!) and meet some very interesting people.

The Good: As in Magic or Not?, slightly unappealing characters are given a chance to redeem themselves, and the whole vibe is kind of Pay it Forward by the end. Good writing style, and likable characters.

The Bad(ish): There is one storyline about the first black family coming to town, and the kids handle it well, but there is a lot of tension with the grown-ups. It's about as "political" as these books get, so I can handle it. The "magic," again, is not straight-up magic, but it works.

The Verdict: These two are probably my least favorite in the series, but still great reads.

Magic or Not?

2009-01-29T11:20:00.002-05:00

Another book in Edward Eager's Tales of Magic series, Magic or Not? introduces a new set of children, in a different time. If I had to guess, I'd say it is probably in the mid-50's.

The Story: Laura and her brother, James (and of course their parents, and their little sister, ) move into a new house in a new town, and they meet a nice boy, named Kip, and a strange new neighbor, named Lydia. It starts when Laura wonders if the old well in their backyard is a magic wishing well. This book is less overtly magical than the others, because it is never clear if the happenings are due to magic or chance, or if they make their own magic.

The Good: I love the characters, especially Lydia and the strange Miss Isabella King. The kids are again well written characters, and the adventures they go on, even if they are not magical for sure, are lots of fun.

The Bad: I kept waiting for something completely magical to happen, and in that I was a little disappointed. As in the other books, the kids have a lot more free reign than we would let kids have today, but it isn't dreadful.

The Verdict: Not my favorite in the series, but still good. There are a lot of examples in the book about the first impression of a person not necessarily being the most accurate, and that is a good lesson to learn. I guess I prefer the more fantastical magic stories, though.

Magic by the Lake

2009-01-29T11:10:00.004-05:00

Magic by the Lake is the first sequel to Half Magic, and I only wish I had known about it as a child.

The Story: The same four kids as in the first book are back for another magical adventure. They are off to spend several weeks at a lovely little lake house. Little do they know that the lake will bring them more magical adventures, courtesy of a very grumpy magical turtle (because, if you didn't know, all turtles have some magic to them).

They have some more wonderful magical adventures, though they learn to abide by some simple rules set forth by the turtle. Most of their wishes have to be suitably watery in nature, but they don't find that to be too limiting.

The Good: These kids are so much fun. They are just naughty enough to be fun, without being reckless (most of the time), and again, the writing is so much fun. I could read this multiple times happily.

The Bad(ish): Just more of the same, since it was written so long ago, the kids aren't always doing things that we wold deem appropriate. That is all.

The Verdict: I don't think you can go wrong with any books from this series. We started reading this book again, but then Evalina got distracted by some other books (I did, too) so we didn't finish the second reading. Yet. I'm sure we'll come back to it.

Half Magic

2009-01-29T10:54:00.004-05:00

When we were kids, Half Magic was one of our favorite books. All four of us kids read it many many times. I don't know what happened to the original copy, which looked like this:

I knew I wanted to read the book with my kids, and so I went on the magical site that is Amazon and ordered it when Evalina was getting old enough to appreciate it.

To my delighted astonishment, it was part of a series. Neither I nor my siblings had any idea that the other books existed. I ordered them immediately (but I'll get to them later).

The story: Four siblings (Jane, Mark, Katherine, and Martha) find a charm that looks like a nickel, but most definitely isn't a nickel, on a lazy summer day. Through some fantastic adventures - and misadventures - they discover the secret of the charm. It grants wishes.

But only by halves.

That's right. It's tricky.

So, when the kids wish something exciting, like a fire, would happen, a small playhouse burns down. That kind of thing. They get the knack of it soon enough.

The good: It's pure fun and escapism, and fantastic storytelling. I feel like I know each of the children, in their multi-faceted personalities. I could read this again and again and never be bored. When is magic not fun?

The bad(ish): Since the book takes place in the 40's or 50's, there are things that the kids do that you could never imagine kids doing nowadays, so there was some explaining about why it is never ok to hitchhike, and things like that. Nothing major.

The verdict: Evalina asked me to buy another copy of this book, so that she can give it to a friend (as yet undecided which friend) for a birthday present. Though she is too little to read it herself yet (it is probably best suited for ages 8-12, according to Amazon), she loves it and we've actually read it twice. It's an absolute joy and I look forward to many more readings.

Reading with kids

2009-01-29T09:08:00.003-05:00

From a very young age, I've been reading to my kids. Evalina's favorite book for about 6 months was Dr. Seuss' I Had Trouble in Getting to Solla Sollew . I read the 60+ page book nightly for most of that time, and have it memorized to this day. It's a fantastic book, which I never read as a child, amazingly. It's all about how you can't run away from your troubles, and it's better to meet them head on and prepared. I love it, and wish that Philip would get a similar obsession, because I miss reading it.

Philip's favorites have been anything that involves letters and numbers. The boy is obsessed. He's not yet 3, and I don't doubt he'll be reading before he's 4. His favorites are Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Chicka Chicka 1,2,3, and Dr. Seuss' ABC Book .

Evalina began to read (very very well) all of a sudden right before she started kindergarten. Now, we are reading together. I still read to her most of the time, but when we read books like The Magic Schoolbus series (I'll get into this more later), I have her read 1-2 paragraphs a page on her own. I'm constantly amazed at how well she does. She understands hyphens, and is very interested in making sure that she gets the emphasis right on words, depending on punctuation. We are astounded by her reading.

This blog will be my way of keeping track of the books we are reading. I will focus on the chapter books that I read to her, or that she reads with me. When Philip gets to reading more, I'll include his favorite books.

We always read before bed, even if it's really late getting there. Even if it's just a couple of pages. We never take away reading as a punishment if the kids have been less than stellar in their behavior. Sometimes we'll read for over half and hour, sometimes just a couple of minutes. It's one of my favorite times of the day.

Evalina's teacher asked if we had done a lot of teaching her how to read at home. We have done a little, but mostly it's just been absorbed through our reading to and with her.

I am an avid reader, and hope that my children grow up to be the same way. They are certainly off to a good start.

(Here is the bookshelf in the kid's room. Yes, it's insane. I couldn't be happier)