Cobble – Mom Read It

Unlikely Friends (Diary of a Dinoghost #1), by Monica Arnaldo, (Aug. 2026, Scholastic), $7.99, ISBN: 9798225021221

Ages 6-8

Cobble is a dinosaur ghost–a Dinoghost–who has started a diary. He’s very set in his routine, which includes riding the bus to visit a haunted lighthouse and a 7-year-old boy named Kevin, who has an affinity for ketchup. When Kevin pours ketchup into the goldfish bowl that was a birthday gift, he creates a goldfish ghost named Bonny, who can see and speak with Cobble. Demanding Cobble bring her to the ocean, the good-natured dinosaur sets out on an adventure he never planned for. The first in a new easy reader series, Unlikely Friends is a fun buddy story with black and white illustrations and speech bubbles to break up longer blocks of text. Written in a diary format, the story appears to be written on line paper – also handy for emerging readers. Newly confident readers ready to take on more challenging text will enjoy discovering Bonny and Cobble. Back matter includes some questions and activities. The second book is due out later this year.

I recently read and reviewed the Image book, Hinges, Book One: Clockwork City for WhatchaReading, and had to crosslink here. This book is a gorgeously illustrated fantasy that kids, tweens, and teens will love.

Image is blowing my mind with the books they’re coming out with for all-ages. I love a good rated “T” or “M” book as much as the next comic book fan, but when there’s an intelligent, beautiful-looking book available for kids, I am all over it. We all started reading comics when we were kids, and we need to keep finding books that elevate the dialogue and bring them more into the fold. Hinges, Book 1: Clockwork City is one of those books.

A doll named Orio arrives in the city of Cobble. She has to choose a familiar, called an Odd, and it looks like one of the Odds has its eye on her. Bauble, who kinds of reminds me of Stitch from Disney’s Lilo & Stitch, makes sure he ends up with Orio – to the displeasure of a few of the people she encounters.

Check out the rest of my review on WhatchaReading!

Tag: Cobble

Diary of a Dinoghost – hilarious new easy reader series

Hinges, Book One: Clockwork City : a steampunk, fantasy fairy tale for all ages.