Haphaven by Norm Harper

Wednesday, March 27, 2019

Haphaven cover Alex walks through a lephracaun town her bat Zane over her sholder but casting a Jinx shaped shadow

Title: Haphaven
Author: Norm Harper
Illustrator: Louie Joyce
Genre: Graphic Novel, YA
Publisher: Lion Forge
Date: March 19, 2019
Length: 160 pages

Review copy from NetGalley

Ever-superstitious Alex Mills will do anything to avoid a jinx. Picking up pennies, knocking on wood, collecting rabbit's feet . . . you name it. That is until she steps on a crack and it actually does break her mother's back. To save her mom, Alex must follow Hubbub Caskside, a trusty leprechaun, on a journey through the end of a rainbow to Haphaven, the world where all of Earth's superstitions draw their power.
All she needs is a rabbit's foot to save her mom, but she soon discovers the lucky article won't be so easy to retrieve. Not only is the rabbit's foot guarded by Haphaven's most formidable creature, the Jinx, there's also a forest full of trees that knock back if you don't knock on wood, people named Penny who do not like to be picked up, and a particularly vindictive black cat who will not be crossed.
As Alex finds herself desperately searching for a way to save her mom, she learns of a mysterious connection between her family's fate and the rulers of Haphaven. With her mother's life on the line and her own fate at stake, Alex must find the strength within herself to unlock the mystery and take back control of the superstitions that have controlled her life, even if it means crossing the Black Cat once and for all.

Description from NetGalley

Haphaven's cover caught my eye and I immediately clicked on it. This confident girl striding through the world ready for trouble and being shadowed by a monster was someone I wanted to read about. Turns out that she wasn't confident at all in the beginning, and I had totally missed that she was walking through a four leaf clover farm and towering over leprechauns. The plot couldn't really keep up with the pace of the story, but I laughed out loud a few times and my 9 year old was really into it.

Leave a Comment 4.0, Children's Books, Graphic Novel, Middle Grades books

Ida and the Whale by Rebecca Gugger

Tuesday, March 26, 2019

Title: Ida and the Whale
Author: Rebecca Gugger
Illustrator: Simon Röthlisberger
Genre: Children's Books, Picture Books
Publisher: North South Books
Date: March 26, 2019
Length: 32 pages

NetGalley review copy

What lies behind the sun, the moon, and the stars?
Ida can’t stop thinking about these and other very important questions. Then one night, a flying whale wakes her and takes her on an amazing journey—where some of her questions are answered and even more created.
This gentle, philosophical tale is a visual treat sure to fill curious little listeners with wonder.

Description from NetGalley

Oooh, I'm a sucker for watercolor illustrations, so this book definitely had my attention. I have always enjoyed reading stories to classes that got the kids thinking, discussing, and building off each other's ideas. I was hoping this book might be one that got those types of discussions started... and it kinda was.

Leave a Comment 3.0, Children's Books, Picture Book

The Cave by Rob Hodgson

Tuesday, March 19, 2019

Title: The Cave
Author & Illustrator: Rob Hodgson
Genre: Children's Book, Picture Book
Publisher: Frances Lincoln
Date: December 11. 2018
Length: 32 pages

Review copy from NetGalley

There is a cave. A cave that is home to a little creature. A little creature that never leaves its cave…because of a wolf. The wolf tries everything to get the creature to leave the cave, to no avail. But what will happen when he's finally successful? This is a laugh-out-loud story with a BIG surprise!
The big twist at the end and the bright, bold illustrations filled with fun details and visual jokes will make this a firm favorite with both adults and children.

Description from NetGalley

Hi, Rob! You don't know me, but you've written the type of book that makes me miss being an elementary school librarian. It's colorful, funny, and there's the threat of someone being eaten! I made my kids sit with me while I read it to them (yes, even the 9 year old) and we had a lot of fun.

Leave a Comment 5.0, Children's Books, Picture Book, Read Aloud, Rob Hodgson

Cover vs. Cover: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Wednesday, March 13, 2019

This month's matchup features Angie Thomas's The Hate U Give. Debra Cartwright's cover art is simple but very eye-catching and instantly recognizable. The Hate U Give has been translated into multiple languages and there is some variety in the covers, but I picked the ones that stood out as having a more individual style.

Original US cover

US Paperback Movie Tie-in

Indonesian Cover

Slovakian Cover

Walker Books Cover

Serbian Cover

Wish by Chris Saunders

Tuesday, March 12, 2019

Title: Wish
Author & Illustrator: Chris Saunders
Genre: Children's Book, Picture Book
Publisher: words & pictures
Date: March 12, 2019
Length: 32 pages

Review copy from NetGalley

Rabbit has never had a wish before; but one day he gets not just one, but three! Wish is a touching story about the power of kindness and the magic of friendship, with beautiful and emotive illustrations from Chris Saunders.

Once every year wishes take flight, filled with hope and twinkling light. They dance in the air, with a swirl and a swish, you have to be lucky to be chosen by a wish.
Rabbit cannot decide what to wish for, so he asks his friends Mouse, Fox, and Bear what they would do if they had a wish. Being selfless and kind, Rabbit grants all three wishes to his friends. They are so grateful for his kindness and generosity, they share their wishes with him.

Description from NetGaley

My daughter really likes rabbits. And by that I mean she is totally obsessed with them. Her school librarian has pulled out every picture book she can find that has a rabbit in it. So when I saw the magical looking rabbit cover for Wish on NetGalley there was no question that I would request it.

Leave a Comment 2.5, Children's Books, Picture Book

The Raft by S.A. Bodeen

Saturday, March 9, 2019

Add to Goodreads shelf

Title: The Raft
Author: S.A. Bodeen
Genre: Realistic Fiction, Survival Fiction, Action/Adventure
Publisher: Feiwel Friends
Date: August 21, 2012
Length: 231 pages

I ordered this book out for my school library

Robie is an experienced traveler. She's taken the flight from Honolulu to the Midway Atoll, a group of Pacific islands where her parents live, many times. When she has to get to Midway in a hurry after a visit with her aunt in Hawaii, she gets on the next cargo flight at the last minute. She knows the pilot, but on this flight, there's a new co-pilot named Max. All systems are go until a storm hits during the flight. The only passenger, Robie doesn't panic until the engine suddenly cuts out and Max shouts at her to put on a life jacket. They are over miles of Pacific Ocean. She sees Max struggle with a raft.
And then . . . she's in the water. Fighting for her life. Max pulls her onto the raft, and that's when the real terror begins. They have no water. Their only food is a bag of Skittles. There are sharks. There is an island. But there's no sign of help on the way.

Description from Goodreads

The challenge: demand for action adventure stories has increased BUT the stories cannot have any fantasy elements. At. All. Not everybody enjoys fantasy and I have a large group of reluctant readers who enjoy realistic adventure but need something faster paced to keep their interest. Do you know how hard it is to find an action/adventure book for the MG/YA crowd that does not have zombies, gods, or sorcerers? It's hard. The Raft is an older book but has remained a popular library pick since 2012.

Leave a Comment 4.0, Action/Adventure, Middle Grades books, S.A. Bodeen, Young Adult

Wishlist Wednesday: A little wild, a little dark

Wednesday, March 6, 2019

Featuring books that I really want to read but haven't actually made it to my embarrassingly large TBR pile yet.

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I really like Anne Bishop's The Others series. She's created a great world where the Others are so alien in their thinking (compared to humans) but a wild and natural part of the world. They are the things that go bump in the night, the creatures lurking in the woods, they rule the world and begrudgingly allow humans to inhabit it as well. I feel like I've been waiting FOREVER for Wild Country to come out. I haven't had a chance to get my hands on this yet, but it will be coming home soon.

Author: Anne Bishop
Release Date: March 5, 2019

There are ghost towns in the world—places where the humans were annihilated in retaliation for the slaughter of the shape-shifting Others.

One of those places is Bennett, a town at the northern end of the Elder Hills—a town surrounded by the wild country. Now efforts are being made to resettle Bennett as a community where humans and Others live and work together. A young female police officer has been hired as the deputy to a Wolfgard sheriff. A deadly type of Other wants to run a human-style saloon. And a couple with four foster children—one of whom is a blood prophet—hope to find acceptance.

But as they reopen the stores and the professional offices and start to make lives for themselves, the town of Bennett attracts the attention of other humans looking for profit. And the arrival of the Blackstone Clan, outlaws and gamblers all, will uncover secrets…or bury them.

Goodreads Summary

Stuck by Oliver Jeffers

Tuesday, March 5, 2019

Title: Stuck
Author & Illustrator: Oliver Jeffers
Genre: Picture Book, Children's Book, Read Aloud
Publisher: Philomel Books
Date: October 10, 2011
Length: 32 pages

I own this book, I love this book, I have gifted this book many times

From the illustrator of the #1 smash The Day the Crayons Quit comes another bestseller--a giggle-inducing tale of everything tossed, thrown, and hurled in order to free a kite!

When Floyd's kite gets stuck in a tree, he's determined to get it out. But how? Well, by knocking it down with his shoe, of course. But strangely enough, it too gets stuck. And the only logical course of action . . . is to throw his other shoe. Only now it's stuck! Surely there must be something he can use to get his kite unstuck. An orangutan? A boat? His front door? Yes, yes, and yes. And that's only the beginning. Stuck is Oliver Jeffers' most absurdly funny story since The Incredible Book-Eating Boy. Childlike in concept and vibrantly illustrated as only Oliver Jeffers could, here is a picture book worth rescuing from any tree.

Description from Goodreads

I love Oliver Jeffers with a deep and abiding love. I love the whimsy, fun, and thoughtfulness of his stories and illustrations. I love that they are great read alouds for a class, but also lovely books to snuggle with your kids and read to them as they explore the pictures. This was one of my son's favorite books when he was little and I loved reading it to him. The only downside of Stuck was that the first Christmas after discovering the book. He threw everything into the Christmas tree. We even had a few toys that resembled items from the story, so we were fishing out shoes, trucks, and toy animals.