A great choice for fans of the Magic Treehouse series, who will be looking forward to Ranger’s next adventure.
Time-traveling golden retriever Ranger is back, this time saving the day in ancient Rome.
Marcus Cassius is an 11-year-old who’s been a slave at the Ludus Magnus gladiator school in Rome since his parents died in a fire. Marcus dreams of becoming a gladiator and winning his freedom, but he can’t begin training until he’s 16. When new recruit Quintus becomes his bunkmate, Marcus gives him pointers he’s learned from watching gladiators for the past five years. Words and definitions for elements of gladiator and ancient Roman life are woven into the story naturally (though a glossary is provided for extra support) and help create a vibrant setting. Meanwhile, Ranger is enjoying life with his modern-day family when the magic first-aid box from Rescue on the Oregon Trail (2015) begins humming. Ranger knows this means someone needs his help and slips it on, transporting himself to the amphitheater Marcus is showing Quintus. The rest of the book is a series of well-paced adventures (interspersed with full-page illustrations) that end with Ranger helping both boys gain their freedom. The quality of the research behind these stories shines through: the setting is vivid, the characters are well-drawn, and the writing flows.
A great choice for fans of the Magic Treehouse series, who will be looking forward to Ranger’s next adventure. (Adventure. 5-9)Pub Date: June 30, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-545-63918-7
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: March 2, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
These reindeer games are a bit tired but, given the series’ popularity, should have a large, ready-made audience.
The How to Catch A… crew try for Comet.
Having already failed to nab a Halloween witch, the Easter Bunny, a turkey, a leprechaun, the Tooth Fairy, and over a dozen other iconic trophies in previous episodes of this bestselling series, one would think the racially diverse gaggle of children in Elkerton’s moonlit, wintry scenes would be flagging…but no, here they lay out snares ranging from a loop of garland to an igloo baited with reindeer moss to an enticing candy cane maze, all in hopes of snagging one of Santa’s reindeer while he’s busy delivering presents. Infused with pop culture–based Christmas cheer (“Now I’ve already seen the shelf with the elf”), Comet prances past the traps until it’s time to gather up the kids, most of whom look terrified, for a group snapshot with the other reindeer and then climb back into harness: “This was a great stop but a few million to go / Christmas Eve must continue with style!” Though festive, the verse feels trite and unlikely to entice youngsters. A sprinkling of “True Facts About Reindeer” (“They live in the tundra, where they have friends like the arctic bunny”) wrap up this celebration of the predatory spirit. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
These reindeer games are a bit tired but, given the series’ popularity, should have a large, ready-made audience. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2022
ISBN: 9781728276137
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A brisk if bland offering for series fans, but cleverer metafictive romps abound.
The titular cookie runs off the page at a bookstore storytime, pursued by young listeners and literary characters.
Following on 13 previous How To Catch… escapades, Wallace supplies sometimes-tortured doggerel and Elkerton, a set of helter-skelter cartoon scenes. Here the insouciant narrator scampers through aisles, avoiding a series of elaborate snares set by the racially diverse young storytime audience with help from some classic figures: “Alice and her mad-hat friends, / as a gift for my unbirthday, / helped guide me through the walls of shelves— / now I’m bound to find my way.” The literary helpers don’t look like their conventional or Disney counterparts in the illustrations, but all are clearly identified by at least a broad hint or visual cue, like the unnamed “wizard” who swoops in on a broom to knock over a tower labeled “Frogwarts.” Along with playing a bit fast and loose with details (“Perhaps the boy with the magic beans / saved me with his cow…”) the author discards his original’s lip-smacking climax to have the errant snack circling back at last to his book for a comfier sort of happily-ever-after.
A brisk if bland offering for series fans, but cleverer metafictive romps abound. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Aug. 3, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-7282-0935-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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