Geo Librarian

ELVES ARE THE WORST! by Alex Willan Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2023 ISBN: 978-1-6659-2179-4 Ages 4-8 Picture book humor/holiday All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover & author interview provided by publisher. ABOUT THE AUTHOR If it was ALEX WILLAN, and not Gilbert the Goblin, who was in charge of writing the stories, he’d make a book called Anchovies are the Worst!. Alex is the author-illustrator of Unicorns are the Worst!, Dragons are the Worst!, Yetis are the Worst!, and the Jasper & Ollie series, as well as the illustrator of Got Your Nose, written by Alan Katz. Alex lives in Chicago with his dog, Harley, who is the absolute best. Visit him online at AlexWillan.com . REVIEW In this fourth book in the ...Are the Worst series by Alex Willan, Gilbert is once again complaining about another creature. This time it's 'hardworking and so perfect' elves. Gilbert sets out to prove that he works just as hard and just as perfectly as elves d...

  NONI THE PONY COUNTS TO A MILLION by Alison Lester Beach Lane Books, 2023 ISBN: 9781665922289 Source: publisher for review Ages 4-8 All opinions expressed are solely my own. Book cover provided by the publisher through Goodreads.com. REVIEW This Australian import follows Noni, a pony, as she counts from 1 to 10, then dozens, hundreds, thousands, and a million.  She begins by standing under one tree watching two friends dance by the sea.  She gathers companions as she moves from one activity to another, ending up sleeping under millions of stars.  The rhyming text flows smoothly from spread to spread as Noni meets other animals on her journey. Not only is this a cute book about counting, but it's an adorable introduction to a variety of animals.  Noni, with her big eyes, and her friends are appealing companions on this journey of numbers. THIS BOOK IS MY BEST FRIEND by Robin Robinson Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2023 ISBN: 9781665906814 Source:...

RED ROVER Curiosity on Mars by Richard Ho, illustrated by Katherine Roy Roaring Brook Press, 2019 ISBN: 978-1-250-19833-4 Ages 5-10 Source: purchased All opinions expressed are solely my own. ABOUT THE BOOK On a planet far, far away, one pioneer explores a vast frontier. Many others have come before it seeking an answer to Mars’s many secrets, and the little rover is no different. It plays games. It looks for water. And it waits… …for the next one to come to Mars to explore. Join Curiosity on its journey across the red planet in this innovative and dynamic nonfiction picture book by journalist Richard Ho, illustrated by Sibert Honor winner Katherine Roy. REVIEW This gorgeously illustrated book tells the story of the NASA rover Curiosity and it's work on Mars.  This book could have been kind of boring, I mean, the rover just moves slowly over the planet.  But Ho and Roy have done an incredible job showing the remarkable things the rover has seen and ...

A CIRCLE OF ELEPHANTS by Eric Dinerstein Disney-Hyperion, 2019 ISBN: 978-136801658-2 Source: purchased Ages 9-12 Middle grade historical/global fiction All opinions expressed are solely my own. ABOUT THE BOOK From the author of What Elephants Know , a 2017 ALA Notable Children's Book and winner of the 2017 South Asia Book Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature, comes this stunning companion novel about the complex relationship between people and nature coexisting in the Borderlands of 1970s Nepal. Thirteen-year-old Nandu lives in the newly established Royal Elephant Breeding Center on the edge of the jungle. Here, the King's elephants are to be raised under the protective watch of the stable. Nandu-along with his adoptive father Subba-sahib , his mentors, friends, and the rest of the elephant drivers-is tested by man and nature as earthquakes, drought, wild herds, and rumors of poachers threaten the Center. When Nandu's world is t...

BONNIE AND CLYDE The Making of a Legend by Karen Blumenthal Viking Children's Books, 2018 ISBN: 978-0-451-47122-2 Source: purchased Ages 14 and up All opinions expressed are solely my own. ABOUT THE BOOK Bonnie and Clyde may be the most notorious--and celebrated--outlaw couple America has ever known. This is the true story of how they got that way. Bonnie and Clyde: we've been on a first name basis with them for almost a hundred years. Immortalized in movies, songs, and pop culture references, they are remembered mostly for their storied romance and tragic deaths. But what was life really like for Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker in the early 1930s? How did two dirt-poor teens from west Texas morph from vicious outlaws to legendary couple? And why? REVIEW I found this book to be a compelling tale of two people who made some really bad decisions that lead eventually to their deaths.  I'd heard of Bonnie and Clyde before, who hasn't? But I kn...

THE FAITHFUL SPY A True Story! Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Plot to Kill Hitler by John Hendrix Amulet Books, 2018 ISBN: 978-1-4197-2838-9 Source: purchased Ages 12 and up YA Graphic Nonfiction All opinions expressed are solely my own. ABOUT THE BOOK   Interweaving handwritten text and art, John Hendrix tells the story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and his fight against the oppression of the German people during World War II. Bonhoeffer was a German Lutheran pastor and theologian who was shocked to watch the German church embrace Hitler's agenda of hatred. He spoke out against the Nazi party and led a breakaway church that rebelled against racist and nationalist beliefs of the Third Reich. Struggling with how his faith interacted with his ethics, Bonhoeffer eventually became convinced that Hitler and the Nazi Party needed to be stopped--and he was willing to sacrifice anything and everything to do so. REVIEW Wow! Hendrix has really out done himself with ...

THE LAW OF FINDERS KEEPERS Mo & Dale Mystery #4 by Sheila Turnage Kathy Dawson Books, 2018 ISBN: 978-0-8037-3962-8 Source: purchased Ages 9-12 Middle grade mystery/contemporary All opinions expressed are solely my own. ABOUT THE BOOK Pirates, family, and the truth about Mo's Upstream Mother collide in the conclusion to the Newbery Honor and New York Times bestselling Three Times Lucky. When the Colonel and Miss Lana share the clues about Mo's watery origins that they've been saving, it seems the time is finally right for the Desperado Detectives (aka Mo, Dale, and Harm) to tackle the mystery of Mo's Upstream Mother. It's the scariest case Mo's had by far. But before they can get started, Mayor Little's mean mother hires them to hunt in her attic for clues to Blackbeard's treasure, which could be buried right in Tupelo Landing. Turns out, the Desperados aren't the only ones looking. A prof...

DUDE! word by Aaron Reynolds, Art by Dan Santat Roaring Brook Press, 2018 ISBN: 978-1-62672-603-1 Source: purchased Ages 4 and up All opinions expressed are solely my own. ABOUT THE BOOK Aaron Reynolds, the author of Nerdy Berdy and Creepy Carrots! teams up with Dan Santat, the Caldecott–winning illustrator behind The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend to create the hilarious, gnarly summer adventure picture book, Dude! Dude! You have to read this book. It's totally about this platypus and this beaver who are friends. They want to go surfing but dude, there's this shark who's in the ocean, too. But don't worry. This shark approaches and you'll never guess what happens. REVIEW This is one of my new favorite books.  After reading it to several groups of kindergartners I can safely say that this is a winning book.  Aaron Reynolds and Dan Santat make for a thoroughly marvelous team.  While the book only uses one word throughout (Dud...

DRAGONS BEWARE! Chronicles of Claudette #2 by Rafael Rosado and Jorge Aguirre with John Novak as colorist and Mark Siegel as editor First Second, 2015 ISBN: 978-1-59643-878-1 Source: purchased Ages 9-12 Middle grade fantasy/speculative All opinions expressed are solely my own. ABOUT THE BOOK Scrappy Claudette sets out once again with her pal Marie and her little brother Gaston to right wrongs and fight evil. And this time, it's personal. Claudette is out to get the dragon who ate her father's legs...and his legendary sword. But as usual, nothing is as simple as it seems, and Claudette is going to need Marie and Gaston's help more than ever. REVIEW After thoroughly enjoying Giants Beware! it was a pleasure to move on to book two.  Once again Claudette and her friends set out to save their town, but this time they are following her father into a dragon's den.  Claudette's fieriness makes for an entertaining read, but what I love most about ...

I AM FAMOUS by Tara Luebbe and Becky Cattie, pictures by Joanne Lew-Vriethoff Albert Whitman & Company, 2018 ISBN: 978-0-8075-3440-3 Ages 3-6 Source: Blue Slip Media All opinions expressed are solely my own. ABOUT THE BOOK Kiely knows she is famous! The paparazzi (her parents) follow her every move, documenting with cameras. It’s exhausting being famous, but someone has to do it! She even gets to perform a big song at her grandfather’s birthday. When she messes it up, she’s worried she’s lost her audience forever, but it turns out that no one is as loyal as her fans who love her. ABOUT THE AUTHORS and ILLUSTRATOR Tara Luebbe and Becky Cattie are sisters. Tara previously owned a kids’ toy and book store in Atlanta. She lives in South Carolina with her husband and three sons. Becky was a casting producer for reality TV shows, including NBC’s America’s Got Talent, ABC’s Extreme Makeover, and E!’s The Simple Life in Los Angeles. She now lives in Chicago. To learn ...

BABY MONKEY, PRIVATE EYE by Brian Selznick & David Serlin, illustrated by Brian Selznick Scholastic Press, 2018 ISBN: 9781338180619 Source: purchased Ages 5-9 Primary humor/fantasy All opinions expressed are solely my own. ABOUT THE BOOK   Who is Baby Monkey? He is a baby. He is a monkey. He has a job. He is Baby Monkey, Private Eye! Lost jewels? Missing pizza? Stolen spaceship? Baby Monkey can help... if he can put on his pants! Baby Monkey's adventures come to life in a blend of picture book, beginning reader, and graphic novel. REVIEW Brian Selznick's done it again.  But this time, he's revolutionized the early chapter book genre.  While the book has 192 pages making it seem like a full length chapter book.  The text is actually pretty sparse.  This makes the illustrations the star of the show, which is awesome when the illustrator is as fabulous as Selznick.  Our main character here is a baby monkey who solves crimes....

MIGUEL'S BRAVE KNIGHT Young Cervantes and His Dream of Don Quixote Poems by Margarita Engle, illustrated by Raul Colon Peachtree Publishing, 2017 ISBN: 978-1-56145-856-1 Ages 4-8 Source: publisher for review All opinions expressed are solely my own. ABOUT THE BOOK Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra finds refuge from his difficult childhood by imagining the adventures of a brave but clumsy knight. This fictionalized first-person biography in verse of Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra follows the early years of the child who grows up to pen Don Quixote, the first modern novel. The son of a gambling, vagabond barber-surgeon, Miguel looks to his own imagination for an escape from his familys troubles and finds comfort in his colorful daydreams. At a time when access to books is limited and imaginative books are considered evil, Miguel is inspired by storytellers and wandering actors who perform during festivals. He longs to tell stories of his own. When Miguel is ni...