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GRIMSTONES

Name: GRIMSTONES
Author: Asphyxia

by Asphyxia & illustrated by Jenine Davidson & developed by Two Bulls & The Grimstones ‧ RELEASE DATE: Dec. 1, 2013

A pleasantly gothic pleaser for fans of Unfortunate Events.

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In nine chatty letters, young Martha Grimstone introduces her peculiar family, describes the creation and hatching of three-legged little brother Crumpet, and fervently urges readers to write back.

This epistolary narrative has been spun off from a puppet performance and comes with inset photos of Tim Burton–style papier-mâché puppets in elaborately crafted antique settings and animations that range from a circling ring of quail to words that drop to the bottom of the page with a crash. There are also several full-screen interludes in which Martha—moving and gesturing like a marionette—beckons eerily to viewers, dumps potion ingredients into a pot or has a tap-activated exchange with her alchemist grandfather Elcho. She chattily shares hopes and dreams (“You never know, one day I could be the Lady of the Strongest Intestines in the Whole World”) as well as a string of domestic disasters or oddball incidents. In doing so, she repeatedly invites her readers to respond. Responses might in fact be mandatory; in one setting, each letter after the first is locked until the day after an answering letter is composed on a preformatted "Write Back" page. This can be toggled so that Martha writes regardless of readers' correspondence habits. There is no audio narration, but the app is supplied with sound effects and an optional background piano track.

A pleasantly gothic pleaser for fans of Unfortunate Events. (series website) (iPad storybook app. 8-11)

Pub Date: Dec. 1, 2013

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: X Asphyxia

Review Posted Online: Feb. 11, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2014

- BOOK REVIEW
THE WORDS IN MY HANDS
by Asphyxia ; illustrated by Asphyxia

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RACE FOR THE RUBY TURTLE

by Stephen Bramucci ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 3, 2023

A wild romp that champions making space for vulnerable creatures and each other.

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A boy with ADHD explores nature and himself.

Eleven-year-old Jake Rizzi just wants to be seen as “normal”; he blames his brain for leading him into trouble and making him do things that annoy his peers and even his own parents. Case in point: He’s stuck spending a week in rural Oregon with an aunt he barely knows while his parents go on vacation. Jake’s reluctance changes as he learns about the town’s annual festival, during which locals search for a fabled turtle. But news of this possibly undiscovered species has spread. Although Aunt Hettle insists to Jake that it’s only folklore, the fame-hungry convene, sure that the Ruby-Backed Turtle is indeed real—just as Jake discovers is the case. Keeping its existence secret is critical to protecting the rare creature from a poacher and others with ill intentions. Readers will keep turning pages to find out how Jake and new friend Mia will foil the caricatured villains. Along the way, Bramucci packs in teachable moments around digital literacy, mindfulness, and ecological interdependence, along with the message that “the only way to protect the natural world is to love it.” Jake’s inner monologue elucidates the challenges and benefits of ADHD as well as practical coping strategies. Whether or not readers share Jake’s diagnosis, they’ll empathize with his insecurities. Jake and his family present white; Mia is Black, and names of secondary characters indicate some ethnic diversity.

A wild romp that champions making space for vulnerable creatures and each other. (Adventure. 8-11)

Pub Date: Oct. 3, 2023

ISBN: 9781547607020

Page Count: 336

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Review Posted Online: Aug. 11, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2023

Categories:

CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S ACTION & ADVENTURE FICTION | CHILDREN'S MYSTERY & THRILLER | CHILDREN'S SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

- BOOK REVIEW
THE DANGER GANG AND THE PIRATES OF BORNEO!
by Stephen Bramucci ; illustrated by Arree Chung

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THE FIRST CAT IN SPACE ATE PIZZA

From the First Cat in Space series , Vol. 1

by Mac Barnett ; illustrated by Shawn Harris ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 10, 2022

Epic lunacy.

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Will extragalactic rats eat the moon?

Can a cybernetic toenail clipper find a worthy purpose in the vast universe? Will the first feline astronaut ever get a slice of pizza? Read on. Reworked from the Live Cartoon series of homespun video shorts released on Instagram in 2020 but retaining that “we’re making this up as we go” quality, the episodic tale begins with the electrifying discovery that our moon is being nibbled away. Off blast one strong, silent, furry hero—“Meow”—and a stowaway robot to our nearest celestial neighbor to hook up with the imperious Queen of the Moon and head toward the dark side, past challenges from pirates on the Sea of Tranquility and a sphinx with a riddle (“It weighs a ton, but floats on air. / It’s bald but has a lot of hair.” The answer? “Meow”). They endure multiple close but frustratingly glancing encounters with pizza and finally deliver the malign, multiheaded Rat King and its toothy armies to a suitable fate. Cue the massive pizza party! Aside from one pirate captain and a general back on Earth, the human and humanoid cast in Harris’ loosely drawn cartoon panels, from the appropriately moon-faced queen on, is light skinned. Merch, music, and the original episodes are available on an associated website.

Epic lunacy. (Graphic science fiction. 8-11)