Provides a sweet animal story, an enjoyable entrée to cooking, and a fun family activity.
A wise owl suggests two lonely creatures open a forest restaurant.
In this illustrated children’s book, a little red fox named Liska is feeling sad because it’s time to leave her adoptive parent, Grandmother owl Sova. She took Liska in when her parents died after eating bad mushrooms. But the fox is now almost grown up, and she needs to dig her own burrow, with Grandma’s advice. Liska makes a cozy burrow, but because the nocturnal owl requires sleep during the day, the fox will need to find a daytime friend. She meets Volk, a wolf rejected by his pack for being a vegetarian. (Of course, wolves are carnivores.) Volk and Liska both love cooking and know many recipes, so Grandma gives them a great idea: “I think you should get together and open a pine tree restaurant for all the birds and beasts of the forest.” Etu the lark spreads the news, and many forest animals help to build the restaurant, where they enjoy a feast prepared by Liska and Volk. The restaurant is a huge success, and the two friends are lonely no more. Seven recipes of forest favorites are included in this first offering from the Get Together Books series. Usikova (Boris Wants a Dog, 2017, etc.) writes a charming little story, with small details that deliver an enchanted-forest atmosphere: “Beaver made a porch in the clearing. Moose beat down a path. Raccoons arranged the tables and chairs.” The author’s childlike illustrations in felt-tipped watercolor pens add naive appeal. Harvey (Boris Wants a Dog, 2017, etc.) translated the tale from the Russian. His recipes (for example, “Bunnies’ Cabbage & Carrot Pot Pies” and “Hedgehog’s Root & Nut Salad”) are clearly written, spelling out servings, prep and cooking time, equipment, and ingredients as well as step-by-step instructions. The difficulty level ranges from easy to moderate, and a note explains: “The recipes should be made with the company and supervision of an adult.” A vocabulary list is included, but no definitions (“use a dictionary, the internet or ask an adult”).
Provides a sweet animal story, an enjoyable entrée to cooking, and a fun family activity.Pub Date: July 21, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-329-19352-9
Page Count: 36
Publisher: Lulu.com
Review Posted Online: Aug. 7, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.
A fifth-grade New Orleans girl discovers a mysterious chrysalis containing an unexpected creature in this middle-grade novel.
Jacquelyn Marie Johnson, called Jackie, is a 10-year-old African-American girl, the second oldest and the only girl of six siblings. She’s responsible, smart, and enjoys being in charge; she likes “paper dolls and long division and imagining things she had never seen.” Normally, Jackie has no trouble obeying her strict but loving parents. But when her potted snapdragon acquires a peculiar egg or maybe a chrysalis (she dubs it a chrysalegg), Jackie’s strong desire to protect it runs up against her mother’s rule against plants in the house. Jackie doesn’t exactly mean to lie, but she tells her mother she needs to keep the snapdragon in her room for a science project and gets permission. Jackie draws the chrysalegg daily, waiting for something to happen as it gets larger. When the amazing creature inside breaks free, Jackie is more determined than ever to protect it, but this leads her further into secrets and lies. The results when her parents find out are painful, and resolving the problem will take courage, honesty, and trust. Dumas (Jaden Toussaint, the Greatest: Episode 5, 2017, etc.) presents a very likable character in Jackie. At 10, she’s young enough to enjoy playing with paper dolls but has a maturity that even older kids can lack. She’s resourceful, as when she wants to measure a red spot on the chrysalegg; lacking calipers, she fashions one from her hairpin. Jackie’s inward struggle about what to obey—her dearest wishes or the parents she loves—is one many readers will understand. The book complicates this question by making Jackie’s parents, especially her mother, strict (as one might expect to keep order in a large family) but undeniably loving and protective as well—it’s not just a question of outwitting clueless adults. Jackie’s feelings about the creature (tender and responsible but also more than a little obsessive) are similarly shaded rather than black-and-white. The ending suggests that an intriguing sequel is to come.
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943169-32-0
Page Count: 212
Publisher: Plum Street Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2018
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.
In the ninth book in the Bluford young-adult series, a young Latino man walks away from violence—but at great personal cost.
In a large Southern California city, 16-year-old Martin Luna hangs out on the fringes of gang life. He’s disaffected, fatherless and increasingly drawn into the orbit of the older, rougher Frankie. When a stray bullet kills Martin’s adored 8-year-old brother, Huero, Martin seems to be heading into a life of crime. But Martin’s mother, determined not to lose another son, moves him to another neighborhood—the fictional town of Bluford, where he attends the racially diverse Bluford High. At his new school, the still-grieving Martin quickly makes enemies and gets into trouble. But he also makes friends with a kind English teacher and catches the eye of Vicky, a smart, pretty and outgoing Bluford student. Martin’s first-person narration supplies much of the book’s power. His dialogue is plain, but realistic and believable, and the authors wisely avoid the temptation to lard his speech with dated and potentially embarrassing slang. The author draws a vivid and affecting picture of Martin’s pain and confusion, bringing a tight-lipped teenager to life. In fact, Martin’s character is so well drawn that when he realizes the truth about his friend Frankie, readers won’t feel as if they are watching an after-school special, but as though they are observing the natural progression of Martin’s personal growth. This short novel appears to be aimed at urban teens who don’t often see their neighborhoods portrayed in young-adult fiction, but its sophisticated characters and affecting story will likely have much wider appeal.
A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2004
ISBN: 978-1591940173
Page Count: 152
Publisher: Townsend Press
Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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