Category: Humor

Posted in Fantasy, Horror, Humor, Science Fiction, Young Adult/New Adult

The Frankenstein tale gets a new jolt in Heartless

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

heartlessHeartless, by Leah Rhyne (May 2016, Polis Books), $18.95, ISBN: 9781940610870

Recommended for ages 13+

After an argument with her boyfriend, college co-ed Jolene Hall storms out of his apartment and wakes up on a table in a creepy room, naked and covered in jagged wounds and stapled flesh. She tears herself loose and manages to get back to her dorm room, but she and her roommate, Lucy, notice pretty quickly that something is very, very wrong: Jolene is dead. Sort of. She has no heartbeat, and despite being able to walk and talk, she needs to be charged up in order to continue operating at a normal level. And she stinks. No offense. Jolene is determined to find out who did this to her, and what exactly she is now. The fact that college co-eds are disappearing right and left makes her pretty sure that what happened to her is part of a much bigger operation – but is her investigation going to put Lucy in danger?

This rejuvenated take on Frankenstein appealed to me, because I like the whole flipped fairy tale genre that’s emerged over the last few years. While Heartless certainly has its moments, overall, I wanted a little more. Jolene ends up being fairly skin deep (no pun intended) for a good portion of the book, and Eli, her boyfriend, is a complete jerk. There’s next to nothing likable about him, and Lucy is a little too happy-go-lucky, we’re-going-on-an-adventure about this whole situation. The villain(s) were a little too easy to spot, making the reveal somewhat anticlimactic. I would have loved more of Jolene’s introspective moments; those captured me and kept me moving through the story. The idea of a person embracing their fate and making his or her peace with it, while trying to save others from a similar fate, is a fascinating idea. Having to witness how other people process this fate, whether it’s a parent or a loved one, can be brutal and Ms. Rhyne captures some intense and deep feelings in those moments.

The book’s ending lets readers know there’s more of this tale to be told. I don’t do spoilers, so let’s just say that I’m interested in seeing where this goes, because I’ll be darned if I’ll let the story continue without me.

The book will work for readers who like a little drama in their horror; a little star-crossed romance in their chiller. iZombie and Warm Bodies fans will jump on this book, so make sure to booktalk it to those audiences if you’ve got them.

Leah Rhyne’s author website has more information about Heartless and her zombie series, Undead America.

Posted in Early Reader, Fiction, Humor, Preschool Reads

Can you really have Too Many Moose?

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

too many mooseToo Many Moose!, by Lisa Bakos/Illustrated by Mark Chambers, (Jul. 2016, Sourcebooks Jabberwocky), $16.99, ISBN: 9781492609353

Recommended for ages 4-8

Martha decides to get a pet, and does a lot of thinking about what pet she should get. When she decides on a moose, she’s delighted – and decides that if one moose is marvelous, more must be magnificent! But what happens when Margaret finds herself with too many moose?

Too Many Moose is an adorable story of a a little girl who finds herself in way over her head when she accumulates too many moose. It’s a counting book that wonderfully uses rhyme and alliteration, drawing readers and listeners in and inviting them to laugh along at all the hijinks the moose get themselves into. The cartoony illustrations and bold, black text are eye-catching and adorable. I’ve read this with at my family storytime, and it went over huge (and I realized that wow, there are a lot of moose storybooks for kids). We counted the moose, and we imagined what other sorts of trouble the moose could get into when Margaret wasn’t looking.

Add this one to your read-aloud collection, and your picture book collections for sure. This is going to be a storytime standard for a long time.

You can visit Sourcebooks’ Virtual Moose Mart and choose your own moose – show him (or her) off on social media and hashtag it #toomanymoose to share in the fun! Here’s mine.

toomanymoose

An activity kit and educator resources are forthcoming at the Virtual Moose Mart – keep checking in!

Posted in Fiction, Fiction, Humor, Intermediate, Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction

Pippa Morgan returns in Love and Chicken Nuggets

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

pippaPippa Morgan’s Diary: Love and Chicken Nuggets, by Annie Kelsey (June 2016, Sourcebooks Jabberwocky), $12.99, ISBN: 9781492631415

Recommended for ages 8-12

Pippa’s back, and she’s still BFFs with Catie, despite The Voice Factor debacle from her first book! This time around, Pippa’s got two missions: to find her newly single mom a boyfriend, and to get Catie to discover the joy of chicken nuggets. Oh, and she has a school project about “love” – gross.

Pippa’s second outing is just as much fun as her first one. She’s funny, unexpectedly introspective, and I laughed with her more than at her, because she’s so likable. Written in journal format, with black and white illustrations, this fits very nicely on series shelves with Jeff Kinney’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Rachael Renee Russo’s Dork Diaries, and Jim Benton’s Dear Dumb Diary. These books appeal to kids because they’re so relatable: they all have their own family wackiness to deal with, but they win at the end of the day. Pippa’s big imagination is sweet and well-intentioned, if sometimes a bit off radar, and that’s what makes her work so well.

Get this series on your shelves: it won’t be there long.

 

Posted in Fiction, Fiction, Humor, Intermediate, Middle Grade

Diary of a Wimpy Kid 11 Cover Reveal!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

I know I’m late to the party, but the latest Wimpy Kid cover reveal took place last week via webcast with Scholastic Reading and author Jeff Kinney. Double Down will be the eleventh book in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, and hits shelves on November 1.

wimpy

You can pre-order the book and find things to do and read at the Wimpy Kid website, and you can check out the Wimpy Kid islands on Poptropica, Jeff Kinney’s kid-friendly website. Most of the website is free, but members get access to the Wimpy Islands. Enjoy!

 

xx

 

Posted in Early Reader, Fiction, Humor, Preschool Reads

There’s a Sword in the Stove! But who left it there?

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

sword1The Sword in the Stove, by Frank W. Dormer (May 2016, Atheneum Books for Young Readers), $17.99, ISBN: 9781481431675

Recommended for ages 4-8

Harold the Knight runs off to the bathroom as his buddy heads to the kitchen for some dinner. He peeks into the stove, only to find – HOLY HADDOCK! There’s a sword in the stove! Who would put a sword in the stove? The knight and the chef run through questions and scenarios as they uncover more armor hidden in the stove, leading up to an answer that is as hilarious as it is morbid. This lends itself to a wonderfully loud screwball storytime with knights, dragons, and cookery. Bonus points for introducing kids to words like “rapscallion” and phrases like “Holy Haddock!” and “Wobbling Wizards!”

Watercolor cartoony art and a nice large font, with illuminated manuscript-type emphasis on the first letter in each exclamation makes this a fun read-aloud for readers and audiences alike. Make it silly, make it fun!

Frank W. Dormer has an author website where you can take a look at more of his art, check out his Tumblr, and get in touch. Take a look at some more of the art from The Sword in the Stove, below.

 

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Posted in Fiction, Fiction, Graphic Novels, Humor, Intermediate, Middle Grade

Little Knight is back in Ogres Awake!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

ogres_1Ogres Awake!, by James Sturm, Alexis Frederick-Frost, Andrew Arnold (July 2016, First Second), $14.99, ISBN: 9781596436534

Recommended for ages 5-10

Little Knight and her faithful steed, Edward, are back for another installment! This time, the two discover that ogres are sleeping in the castle courtyard! Knight rushes to the castle’s defense, but finds out that there’s already an army assembled, and they’re wielding potato peelers and spoons instead of swords and shields. Knight and the gnome army have a LOT of stew to make before the ogres wake up… HUNGRY.

This is the fourth outing for the Drawn and Quarterly gang; the third Little Knight Adventure. I love this series: it’s a great way to introduce graphic novels to young readers and they’re fun stories that have a little bit of drawing instruction, a la Ed Emberley’s old step by step books, that I used to love when I was a kid.

Little Knight is a kid that kids will recognize: she’s excited, she wants to jump right in and be in the center of the action, and learns a valuable lesson in each outing. This time around, she learns that not every confrontation needs to be handled the rough way. Sometimes, an act of kindness is all you need to avoid things getting ugly. It’s a great message, communicated with fun, bold, cartoony art and witty writing. Add this series to your shelves; your kids will love you for it. I read this with my 3 year-old, who thoroughly enjoyed it; if you’ve got preschoolers in your life, curl up with them and read it! It’s a great opportunity illustrate sequencing and talk about doing nice things for people: even ogres.

Make sure to check out Gryphons Aren’t So Great and Sleepless Knight, the other Little Knight books by Sturm, Frederick-Frost, and Arnold, as well as Adventures in Cartooning, where we first meet Little Knight and Edward. Don’t forget to check out Drawn and Quarterly, too! Take a look at a few pages from Ogres Awake right here:

ogres_3 ogres_4

Posted in Animal Fiction, Fiction, Humor, Middle Grade

Go on an adventure with Stick Cat!

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

stick catStick Cat: A Tail of Two Kitties, by Tom Watson (May 2016, HarperCollins), $12.99, ISBN: 9780062411006

Recommended for ages 8-12

A spin-off of the popular Stick Dog series, Stick Cat introduces us to… well, Stick Cat, who lives in an apartment with his human friend, Goose, and hangs out during the day with Edith, the cat next door. The two love to play games and listen to Mr. Music tune pianos at the factory next door, but one day, Mr. Music has an accident! His arms are trapped in the piano when the top of the instrument crashes down, and Stick Cat has to figure out a way to save him.

Introduced by the same middle grade narrator that draws Stick Dog, we learn Stick Cat’s origin: he wants to impress a classmate who suggests that he draw a Stick Cat. We launch into Stick Cat’s adventure, which will grab Wimpy Kid, Dork Diaries, and Big Nate fans right away. It’s a similar format, with line drawings accompanying text, and filled with humor. Stick Cat and Edith banter back and forth during their daily playdate; Edith is a little dense and self-centered, and Stick Cat plays off of that while trying to spare Edith’s feelings and accomplish his rescue mission.

Readers can visit the Stick Dog/Stick Cat website for videos, downloadables, quizzes, and the author’s blog. A Tail of Two Kitties is the first Stick Cat book, with two more in the planning stages. There are currently four Stick Dog books.

Both series are a fun addition to middle grade collections and will likely appeal to reluctant and struggling readers – I know my Big Nate and Wimpy Kid books are always off the shelves, so this may help stem the tide a bit this summer!

Posted in Animal Fiction, Fantasy, Fiction, Humor, Intermediate, Middle Grade

The Nocturnals: The Mysterious Abductions introduces a new bunch of woodland friends

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

nocturnals_1The Nocturnals: The Mysterious Abductions, by Tracey Hecht/Illustrated by Kate Liebman (April 2016, Fabled Films), $15.99, ISBN: 9781944020002

Recommended for ages 7-12

Animal fiction fans, get ready: there’s a new group in town, and they only go on adventures at night. The Nocturnals, or as they refer to themselves, the Brigade, are Dawn, a smart and serious fox; Tobin, a very sweet pangolin, and Bismark, a loud, well-meaning but self-centered sugar glider. (Don’t call him a squirrel or a bat!) Shortly after the three meet, they find themselves investigating a mystery: animals are disappearing! As the Nocturnals search for answers, they meet other animals along the way that will help them – but can they avoid being kidnapped by the mysterious culprit?

The Nocturnals is a fun, packed with humor and a little shot of adventure for intermediate and middle grade readers. Color artwork by Kate Liebman adds interest and kicks off each chapter, and she captures the various personalities created by author Tracey Hecht. Bismark is almost hilariously over the top, slipping into different languages, professing his love for Dawn, the fox, and making sure everyone within earshot knows he’s the star of the show, if only in his imagination. Dawn is observant, often serious, and quick to figure things out (she is a fox, after all), and Tobin is the kind peacemaker who finds his self-esteem on this first outing.  Book 2, The Ominous Eye, is due out in September.

I like the positive messages in the book – teamwork and keeping promises among them – and I like the use of animals we don’t normally discover on adventures: sugar gliders, wombats, and tobins! The book provides a great opportunity to introduce these animals to children’s vocabulary, and indeed, The Nocturnals website has some excellent educator resources available, including printable animal fact cards, book club questions, coloring sheets, and resources for ELA and Science education. I was excited to see a book club script suggestion, so I can get my readers busy acting the parts out (since book discussions don’t work with my kids, this is an interesting and fun project to approach them with). The Nocturnals website also offers to send a free cape for your stuffed animal if you join their Brigade!

Animal fiction is great for intermediate and middle graders – The Nocturnals should be a good fit with collections. Booktalk and display this with your Erin Hunter books (Warriors/Seekers/Survivors), the Spirit Animals series, and Kathryn Lasky’s Guardians of Ga’Hoole and Horses of the Dawn series.

Take a look at the book trailer for The Mysterious Abductions.

Posted in Early Reader, Fiction, Fiction, Humor, Intermediate, Realistic Fiction

Is Jasper John Dooley Public Library Enemy #1?

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

jasper john dooleyJasper John Dooley: Public Library Enemy #1, by Caroline Adderson/Illustrated by Mike Shiell (Apr. 2016, Kids Can Press), $15.95, ISBN: 9781771380157

Recommended for ages 7-10

Poor Jasper! He borrowed a book from the library, so he could practice reading. He wanted his skills to be sharp when it was his turn to sit on the big, comfy chair at the library and read to Molly the dog, that’s all! But Jasper accidentally dropped the book in the tub and drowned it, and THEN, his father set it on fire by trying to dry it in the stove. And THEN, he shot it with a fire extinguisher! Now, Jasper and his dad are Book Killers, and he’s terrified that he owes the library $2500 for the book! How can he raise that much money before Wednesday, when it’s his turn to read to Molly?

This is the sixth book in the Jasper John Dooley early chapter book series, and it’s adorable; great for young readers who are ready to advance from Easy Readers to chapter books. Jasper is very likable, and his reasoning will click with readers: his mom reads in the bathtub, so it should be easy, right? He misjudges a decimal point when trying to determine the price of the book he needs to replace, and comes up with $2500 instead of $25. He feels huge responsibility for the library book in his care, which provides opportunities for discussion about responsibility and taking care of others’ belongings, as well as realizing that everyone makes mistakes – even parents – and that, yes, accidents happen.

This is the first Jasper John Dooley book I’ve ever read, but I would like to get these on my library’s shelves, because they’re great reading. Like most series fiction for emerging and newly independent readers, you don’t need to read from book one to pick up the series; they’re independent stories with characters that you’ll get to know right away. Black and white llustrations add to the enjoyment of the story. You can easily have a read-aloud with this book: classes will get a kick out of it! Good role models, sweet humor based on misunderstanding, solid discussion points make this a good addition to your series collections.

Learn more about the Jasper John Dooley series on the Kids Can Press webpage.

Posted in Fiction, Fiction, Humor, Middle Grade, Middle School, Tween Reads

Kick Foot Academy is back in session: Joey and Johnny, the Ninjas: Epic Fail

Posted on by Rosemary Kiladitis

epic failJoey and Johnny, The Ninjas: Epic Fail, by Kevin Serwacki/Illustrated by Chris Pallace, (Apr. 2016, Balzer+Bray), $12.99, ISBN: 9780062299352

Recommended for ages 8-12

Things are finally getting back to what passes for normal at the Kick Foot ninja academy: Joey and Johnny’s shoddy reconstruction of the school is saved by a dragon attack (of sorts), leading to a proper rebuilding, and classes are back underway. Joey and Johnny learn, however, that their friend and fellow student, Peoni, is planning a secret tea ceremony – one of the most dangerous things a ninja can attend, let alone plan – to appease the spirits of ninjas who didn’t survive previous tea ceremonies. Joey and Johnny have found their new mission: help Peoni assemble a flawless ceremony while keeping it a secret from the headmaster – the only survivor of a tea party in recent memory – who has forbidden so much as a mention of the event.

This is the second book in The Ninjas series; the first, Joey & Johnny, The Ninjas: Get Mooned, hit stores last year. The series is great for readers who love a frenetically-paced, humorous story. There’s a lot of storytelling thrown in here: pirates vs. ninjas; sentient forests; a fellow student on his own quest, and the determined messenger bird who keeps following him; and a tea ceremony. There are a lot of subplots to keep in the air, but younger readers who like action-packed stories with lots of laughs will gravitate to this series.  Black and white drawings throughout will keep them interested.

The best part of the book for me was the actual tea ceremony: who doesn’t love a tea ceremony, with ghosts, that’s begging to break out in chaos?

A good additional purchase for summer reading, especially; display this with your Big Nate, Bad Kitty, and Timmy Failure books.