The Kid Who Became President Review

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(More customer reviews)Let me put it out on the table right now, right up front--this book is not to be taken seriously. Dan Gutman wrote the wildest, most implausible, fun book he could think of. Why? How have adult presidents done in office? Great? Really good? Horrible? Just to stir the waters a bit, Gutman published his book in time for the campaign season. Through the story he asks hard questions about presidential campaigns and candidates. Who do we elect as our President?
Gutman goes into the story with the proposition that even a kid could do as well as an adult in presiding over a country. Here are two give-aways that Gutman was spoofing: (These are obvious--I just wanted to have fun writing them)
1. What adult with even half a brain would vote for a 12-year-old kid, especially if that adult has a child that age or near it. Kids would put pressure on their parents to vote for Judson Moon? Parents would given in? Ya think?
2. Another wildly improbable idea is legally changing the age for president. It takes about nine months in the book. Congress is going to do this? No way. That's how you know that Gutman is pulling your leg.
That out of the way, we can examine the novel. I'm an old folk, a librarian to be sure, but still an old folk, and I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was fun to watch (in my mind's eye) a mere child--no less President of the United States-- who still has parents tell him to clean up his room in the White House. As Judson tells voters during the campaign, he doesn't know anything.
What do you think one of the first acts of a 12-year-old kid would be? Did you guess that he flies in all his friends from his home in Wisconsin over for the weekend in the White House? Can you imagine 30 unsupervised 12-year-olds roving all over the White House?
Because he does "not know anything," several local and international events occur, with one of utmost importance, involving a nasty, despicable South American dictator. Another of great discouragement is that Judson's Chief of Staff resigns and goes back home to a normal school life in Wisconsin.
His First Babe, uh, First Lady is beautiful (at 12?) Chelsea Daniels, who does know her etiquette, and style, and flair. Judson's style is light-hearted even though it makes him enemies (that South American dictator). One of my favorite scenes involves Chelsea morphing from a social butterfly into a worker bee--drab in sweatpants, ponytail, but devoted to helping hurricane victims--sincerely so.
Underneath the fun and work of being President, Judson, too, learns the seriousness (he ran as a lark), dedication (he did want to do good), passion (has it, does get to use it), and experience (a dead end). Gutman laces the story with civics and government mini-lessons, but only enough to clue in a reader who might not know this information yet. It's well-done and certainly not offensive.
How it ends is left for the reader to discover. Trust me, everyone is satisfied and even happy. A truly fun reading experience. Not to be missed. As an older woman friend would say, "A hoot!" As my fifth-grade niece would say, "Snap!"
As Judson Moon said in his inauguration: "Let's Rummmmbbblllee!!"


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Just in time for election season, Dan Gutman's hugely popular sequal to THE KID WHO RAN FOR PRESIDENT is back. Humor, adventure, and excitement will draw kids into the world of white house politics.
Judson Moon has done a big flip-flop. Immediately after being elected President of the United States, he resigned. Now, after a heart-to-heart with his running mate (and ex-babysitter) June Syers, Judd has decided to take office after all: He wants to make a difference.
Being President is anything but easy. Between dealing with a crazed South American dictator and people who are trying to kill him, Judson starts to wonder if it wouldn't be better just to go back to being a kid in Madison, Wisconsin. But with a lot of help from his friends, Judson might just figure everything out.

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The Wright Brothers: How They Invented the Airplane Review

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(More customer reviews)When I began working on a documentary about the WRight Brothers, this book was recommended to me by a descendant of the Wright Family as the best short version of the Wright Brothers story. I heartily agree. Great pictures accompany a text that manages to tell the whole story without ever getting bogged down. Good for kids and adults who are curious to know the whole story.

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The Bully from the Black Lagoon Review

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(More customer reviews)It's a good book. It's actually very short.
It's about the class and everyone is talking about the new kid that Hubie is getting in his class. They think the new kid knocked people's heads off, crashes into people on purpose, kicks people, and gives them wedgies. On Thursday, when Hubie walks around the corner, he bumps into the new kid. Hubie apologizes and the new kid is actually very nice. They make a deal that they will never bump into each other again.
You can't judge a book by its cover. You can't believe that someone is really mean unless you know them. If you don't know them. You don't know if they are mean, nice, curious, shy, or anything -- you don't know unless you know them. So you can't judge a book by its cover.
This book would probably be good for 8 or 9 yar olds that are usually in thrid or fourth grade.
Tryndon
Age 7

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A new title in the bestselling Black Lagoon series!
Hubie has heard there's a new kid in school. His name is Butch Pounder, and he is rumored to be a mean bully! Did Butch really beat up the football team and eat the teacher's pet at his last school?
Hubie thinks he'll end up in the nurse's office, when he finally runs into Butch. But, of course, Hubie's imagination has run away from him again! All Butch wants is a new friend to show him around school, and Hubie is just who he needed!

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The Seven Chinese Brothers (Blue Ribbon Book) Review

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(More customer reviews)Researchers constantly find that reading to children is valuable in a variety of ways, not least of which are instilling a love of reading and improved reading skills. With better parent-child bonding from reading, your child will also be more emotionally secure and able to relate better to others. Intellectual performance will expand as well. Spending time together watching television fails as a substitute.
To help other parents apply this advice, as a parent of four I consulted an expert, our youngest child, and asked her to share with me her favorite books that were read to her as a young child. The Seven Chinese Brothers was one of her picks.
The Seven Chinese Brothers is for children who are past the time when they are easily frightened because they take everthing very literally, because the brothers face death at the hands of the Chinese emperor in this story.
The seven brothers are precursors to the modern comic book super heroes that are so popular. Each has an unusual skill. The first has remarkable hearing. The second can see over vast distances. The third has unusual strength. The fourth has bones of iron. The fifth has legs that can grow as long and thick as tree trunks. The sixth brother can never be too hot. The seventh brother can cry such large tears that they can drown an entire village. Much effort goes into keeping him happy. The key to the story is that they look alike.
The brothers discern that the emperor is mistreating his workers at the Great Wall of China. The strong brother goes to help out, and the emperor becomes afraid. Through great imagination in employing their remarkable talents, teamwork, and an indomitable spirit, the brothers survive the wrath of the emperor.
This book is good for encouraging children to realize that obstacles, even those that seem insurmountable at first, can be overcome. It is also a wonderful story for encouraging families to stick together. The family of Chinese brothers can accomplish much, much more than any brother alone. Also, your child may be a little frightened by the emperor's attempts to execute the brothers, so it is good to be able to explain the protections in your own society that would prevent this from happening to you or your child.
The story is told in a simple, delightful way. The illustrations are based on water colors, which gives the book a quality feel that will endear it to many children.
Although my daughter is often upset by violence, she loved this story, so don't assume it is only for boys!
Overcome your misconceptions that only mild stories are appropriate for young children when you read to them. Just to be on the safe side, you may want to read this one in the morning for the first time. That will reduce the chance of nightmares!

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Follow My Leader Review

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(More customer reviews)I'm James Garfield's granddaughter. He dedicated the book to my mother, Carolyn Lazarus, who is now 81 years old. My granddad lived to be 102 years old, living half of his life blind. He had a seeing eye dog, Coral, a golden retriever who was the sweetest animal I've ever met and she was so very attentive to him. He would have been very flattered to read these reviews so I thank all of you who have taken the time to write about Follow My Leader.

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After Jimmy is blinded in an accident with a firecracker, he has to relearn all the things he used to know. With the help of a determined therapist, he learns to read Braille and to use a cane. Then he's given the chance to have a guide dog. Learning to work with Leader is not easy, but Jimmy tries harder than he ever has before.

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Mars Needs Moms Review

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(More customer reviews)Breathed's art typically makes one, well, breathless. Here, with Mars Needs Moms, one becomes weightless with wonder at his drawing abilities. He's in as good of form as ever -- or better -- with this wonderful mix of humans and extra-extra terrestrials. While the art and story are literally out this world, the storyline is very earth-bound: families are so easily taken for granted, but nothing matters more in this or any other world. Breathed suggests it take a Martian's eye-view to keep us properly grounded. Nice to think about, but the real treat here is for the eyes. My son and I still periodically go back to Fudwapper and Wish for Wings that work; this surely is another opus for Breathed.

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Night of the Veggie Monster Review

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(More customer reviews)I just borrowed this from the Library today and my 2 and 4 year old sons loved it! My 4 year old had me read it to him several times and he was cracking up through the whole book. We'll definitely be purchasing a copy for ourselves!

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When just a single pea touches the lips of this determined vegetable hater, an enormous battle of war and peas begins. But our hero doesn't just cry, whine, or refuse to swallow. He turns into a VEGGIE MONSTER! That is until—gulp!—he accidentally swallows the pea, and realizes that maybe vegetables aren't so bad after all. At least until broccoli night comes around. With inventive mixed-media illustrations and a short, snappy text that combines a child's dinner-time drama with a hilarious parents'-eye-view, George McClements has created a wry and funny story that just might inspire a few veggie monsters out there to give peas a chance.

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Return of the Dapper Men Review

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(More customer reviews)The art in this book is breathtakingly gorgeous! There are so many pages I wish I could frame and hang on my wall. The book is slightly larger than most graphic novels, which showcases the art nicely.
The story is great as well. I'm a fan of Jim McCann's work at Marvel, but I didn't know what to expect from an all ages book. This work is a bit of a steampunk fairytale. I loved the characters and the world. I will definitely be rereading this.

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How Droofus the Dragon Lost His Head (Sandpiper Books) Review

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(More customer reviews)I just picked up this book secondhand and it is my first introduction to Bill Peet and I am sure to get more of his books! It reminds me of an old fashioned fairy tale with kings, dragons and knights and is a fun way to introduce my 3 year old to these "magic" concepts. It is a nice story with charming pictures - Droofus gets separated from the other dragons and becomes a kind, grass eating dragon. The king wants his head as a trophy and puts out a big reward. Droofus gets discovered by a young boy who decides Droofus must be a good dragon since he did not hurt the lamb and so the boy does not betray Droofus. Later Droofus gets a chance to repay the boy by helping on the farm. Eventually he does get discovered by the king and the knights, but the boy comes up with a way for the king to have Droofus's head without chopping it off! A sweet tale with lots of little lessons about kindness tucked in.

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Droofus the kindly dragon has a price on his head, but the small boy who befriends him refuses to sell him to the king.

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Year of Impossible Goodbyes Review

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(More customer reviews)Taking you back into the time when the Japanese ruled Korea, the book Year of Impossible Goodbyes written by Sook Nyul Choi leads you on to an adventurous story. The author describes events in such a detail that the book seems so realistic that it is confused to be a nonfiction book, when it is fiction. This story takes place in 1945, when the Japanese ruled Korea. The story is set on this one particular family of a ten-year-old girl named Sookan, and the rest of her family members. The situation that this family is in clearly shows the harsh life of the Koreans. Sookan¡¯s father was working secretly for freedom while her brothers and sisters were away, forced to serve the Heavenly Emperor. Her mother was ordered to take care of the sock factory where the ¡°sock girls¡± worked to produce socks for the soldiers while Captain Narita tried to destroy everything of the family. Then finally, the war ended, but the family was faced by another challenge. The Russians, who had been attempting to gain power over the Koreans came and the same life of when the Japanese were there, reoccurred. Not being able to stand the everyday routine of the cruel Russians, the family decided to go down to South Korea, where Americans were. From this point, not knowing what they were about to face, the family risks their life on a journey to the other side of the country. Told in the view of first person, the author describes the events so well that sometimes it makes the reader feel like it is happening around them. Also, the author uses some Korean words written out in English so it helps the reader to be familiar with the words and to feel like they know more about the Korean culture. There are so many conflicts occurring within the story that it is even hard to remember them all. One of the main conflicts is the person verses person between Sookan¡¯s family and captain Narita. Captain Narita tries his best to ruin the family¡¯s life by sending the ¡°sock girls¡± to the soldiers to give ¡°pleasure¡±, taking away the most precious things in the family, cutting down the tree that the family loved, and finally taking part in killing Sookan¡¯s grandfather. Another example of conflict in this book is the person verses herself. Sookan has to fight herself to take care of her brother without her mother while they are trying to go to South Korea. She faces many challenges and thinks of giving up, but she keeps on reminding herself that she is an older sister so she should care for her brother. Person verses society between the people of Korea and their environment is another example of conflicts in the story. Being controlled by the Japanese, people suffer by being taken away from their families and giving up their lives for the people of Japan. Then they are abused by the Russians right after the Japanese leave. All these examples of conflicts add more flavors to the plot of the story. I consider this book as one of my favorite book. One of the reasons might be that the story, in many ways, relate to my family background and the life I have. I could truly understand the situation that the family was in while reading the book and felt so comfortable reading the book because it contained many familiar Korean words. I also enjoyed very much of the author¡¯s writing style of her vivid description of every single event and her magical power of putting the pieces of the story together like how you sew a quilt together with different pieces. The story flowed as I read and glued me on to the book that I couldn¡¯t stop reading. There were some vocabularies that I didn¡¯t know, but overall, the level of the vocabulary and story seemed to be perfect for me. This book was similar to a book I read, also written by a Korean author. Because the main characters were Korean in both books and the style of the two authors were similar, I was able to relate the two books in many ways. The challenge that the two main characters were facing because of racism was the most similar thing out of all the others. I enjoyed both books very much and the two books made me want to read another book written by a Korean author. If I were to give a rating from 1 through 10 of this book, I would give it a 9. Although almost every part of the book was enjoyable, there were some parts that I wanted to fix like how I feel towards all the other books I have read. Personally, I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in Korean history and it¡¯s background and would guarantee that this book will be considered as one of their favorite books like how it was for me.

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Pierre: A Cautionary Tale in Five Chapters and a Prologue Review

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(More customer reviews)In my family, there is a sin for which there is no name. If someone asks you to state an opinion one way or another, whether you're asked if you'd like a slice of cake or how you would like your hamburger cooked, you give an answer. If you chose to say, "I don't care", however, you are to be subjected to unending torments. For two minutes. The classic Sendakian classic, "Pierre", understands the horrendous nature of this sin. Taking a sort of "Mrs. Piggle Wiggle" type of extremist cure (in this case, getting eaten by a lion) the book examines Pierre's sin of noncommittalness and treats him accordingly.
Pierre is a well dressed lad. Sporting a jaunty blue suit and no shoes or socks whatsoever, he lives with his respectable mama and pop. In the first chapter, Pierre's mother attempts to elicit some sort of a decision from her son aside from, "I don't care!". Failing to do so, chapter two follows Pierre's father, who attempts the same thing. In chapter three a lion appears and the oblivious Pierre is eaten, after much dialogue with the aforementioned feline. By chapter four the parents have discovered the sickly lion (Pierre didn't go down so well, I suppose) and swiftly take the lion to the hospital. Happy ending, chapter five, the doctor merely shakes the lion and out pops Pierre. From then on, Pierre cares.
The book has much in common with the classic Little Red Riding Hood tale. Fortunately, rather than cutting Pierre out, the doctor (looking like nothing so much as a slightly modified Mr. Magoo) removes Pierre by upending the lion. The lion has seemingly learned his lesson as well, and serves as a mode of transportation for the transformed Pierre and his loving, well dressed parents. The story is small, simple, and easy to read. It's also one of the odder morals out there. But then again, maybe it's a lesson that we all should have learned long ago. It is better to care than to remain indifferent. A difficult thing to teach, but by no means impossible. In my opinion, one of Sendak's best books ever.

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Pierre's ‘I don't care!' intrigues a hungry lion. ‘A story with a moral air about Pierre, who learned to care.'

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The Last Mission (Laurel-Leaf Historical Fiction) Review

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(More customer reviews)I am a high school history teacher. This book is an excellent teaching tool for freshmen or sophomore history classes (some of the older kids thought that the reading level was too easy). The majority of my students liked the book as it brought a wealth of additional color and background to the classroom lecture notes. The fact that the protagonist is 16 and there is a "love story" subplot makes it even better.
As far as the swearing, it is not at all excessive and actually adds to the book as it shows the culture shock that 16 year old Jack underwent when he joined the Army Air Force. Also...from a historical standpoint..people did swear back then! Trust me...it is nothing worse than I as a teacher (quite unfortunately) hear in the hallways on a daily basis.

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In 1944, as World War II is raging across Europe, fifteen-year-old Jack Raab dreams of being a hero. Leaving New York City, his family, and his boyhood behind, Jack uses a false I.D. and lies his way into the U.S. Air Force.From their base in England, he and his crew fly twenty-four treacherous bombing missions over occupied Europe. The war is almost over and Hitler near defeat when they fly their last mission -- a mission destined for disaster. Shot down far behind enemy lines, Jack is taken prisoner and sent to a German POW camp, where his experiences are more terrifying than anything he'd ever imagined.

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George Washington's Socks Review

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(More customer reviews)A great family read aloud! I read this book aloud to my three children each night after supper. They got so involved in the story, one night they forgot to watch their favorite TV show. This book makes an excellent read-aloud and is the kind of literature I want my children to be reading.It's exciting, full of humor and imagination. A great way to learn about history. But what I loved most about the book was that it was so full of heart and though the kids laughed alot in the funny parts the also grew very, very quiet suring the sad parts. The story opened up a lot of discussion about war and what happens when men choose to fight for their beliefs. My children and I are looking forward to sharing other books by this author.

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The War with Grandpa (Yearling) Review

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(More customer reviews)The War with Grandpa Book Review
Have you ever been in a situation where someone took something you love? In the story The War with Grandpa, Peter the main character losses his room to his grandpa.
In the book Peter writes a story for school when grandpa comes to live with them. When grandpa comes he gets Peter's room. Peter never felt worse before. He couldn't believe his own parents would give his room to his grandpa. So Peter started a war with him.
During the war Peter and his grandpa played some mean tricks on each other. On time Peter took Grandpa's false teeth. With out his teeth grandpa sounded really funny. Something else was Grandpa took and hid Peter's school supplies. Then Peter had to go around the house looking for his supplies and was late for school.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes to cry and laugh. This book gets a 4 and half stars. Robert Kimmle Smith explains the book very well. He also tells the struggle Peter had to go through. Now I could tell why they call it The War with Grandpa.

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Be a Perfect Person in Just Three Days Review

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(More customer reviews)Who says that nobody's perfect? Certainly not Dr. K Pinkerton Silverfish, the clown-nosed, messy-hotdog-eating author of the book "Be a Perfect Person In Just Three Days!" that mysteriously falls on our hero's head!
Meet Milo. He's your average kid, flawed like the rest of us, and just trying to find a good book on scary monsters at the library when "Be a Perfect Person...!!" flies from the shelf and beans him a good one. The author, Dr. S, is a very strange looking character in his author photo, dressed in a half-tie and Hawaiian shirt with that messy hotdog, but something about his eyes and what may be a smirk on his lips makes Milo want to check the book out. After all, who WOULDN'T want to be perfect?
He takes it home to read and immediately finds out that the road to being perfect is paved with strange tasks. Wearing a stalk of broccoli around your neck for one day and night, and not eating anything, for example. It's enough to make people wonder if you've lost your marbles. Still, if broccoli-wearing brings Milo perfection (kinda' like fasting brings inner awareness), then so be it! Bring on the green stuff!
B.A.P.P.I.J.T.D. is a quick, fast-paced read that will entertain and draw in even the most reluctant readers. It's short, weighing in at under 100 pages, so the length won't intimidate beginning readers. It is funny, ridiculous and clips along at a pace where you can't help but keep reading to find out what could possibly happen next. The language is easy to read but not condescending to young audiences. I teach reading to a group of normally reluctant, low-level readers, and within the first page everyone was hooked! Many of my students even asked if they could read THE WHOLE THING by the next day's class. Lo and behold, most of them *DID*!! This was not my doing; this was the ease and engagement of the book itself. Don't just take MY word for it, take it from the students who normally hate reading: this is a fine, fun book!

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Milo, tired of problems with his sister, parents, and classmates, finds a book in the library which promises to make him perfect in just three days.

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Hittite Warrior (Living History Library) Review

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(More customer reviews)The basic idea and plot of this book is really neat. The story is set in the Biblical time of the Judges before Israel had a king. We are introduced to a Hittite youth living in the Mediterranean about the time that Greeks, particularly those from Crete, were gaining ascendancy. The Hittites as a people are conquered and become fugitives. Our protagonist flees first to the Phoenicians and then into the hills of Judea, where he meets Deborah, the prophetess, and Berek, the Israelite general who is to defeat Sisera. He ends up fighting in the battle on the wrong side, but eventually marries a Israelite woman and settles down in the area.
On the way, we are introduced to all kinds of Hittite, Phoenician, Israelite, and Canaanite customs. We learn about their dress, their gods (particularly the dreadful Moloch), their methods of fighting, their habits of enslaving captive peoples, and so on. The book has obviously been carefully researched, and the plot is plausible and interesting.
I give the book three stars because the writing is terrible. The fact that the book is for children does not excuse this. Sentences are frequently awkward in construction, and the book reads like a first draft. For instance, the writer will say something like, "The warrior rushed towards me, and I hit him with a stick that I had picked up several moments ago before he attacked me." That's a paraphrase, but you see what I mean. Why on earth weren't we told about the stick BEFORE the warrior rushed towards him? It's as thought the writer just thought of the weapon, and instead of putting the event in it's proper place, she flings it in as an afterthought. This kind of sloppy editing occurs throughout the text. As imaginative fiction, it's great, but this book is NOT a good example for kids to follow in style, editing, or structure.

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In ca. 1200 B.C., Uriah the Hittite leaves his conquered homeland and, following his father's instruction, seeks refuge with an old family friend, eventually finding himself in a great battle between the Canaanite forces of Sisera and the Hebrew forces of Barak.

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Outside Over There (Caldecott Collection) Review

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(More customer reviews)Sendak's work almost always takes a reader by surprise. His themes are not comfortable ones, particularly for parents. He deals with the internal desires of children, the kinds of things that can be interpreted as unacceptable and frightening. For instance, WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE, which has become a classic in children's literature is about a boy who acts out--who becomes a "wild thing" himself. His transformation back into a boy is a gradual and wonderful part of the picture book, but in no way tries to deny that the "wild thing" aspect exists.
Likewise, OUTSIDE, OVER THERE is a tale of siblings, jealousy and responsibility. The heroine is Ida, a young girl who's father is away and so Ida is left to watch her baby sister, a task she's not too fond of. Ida is much more caught up in her own world. Yet when her sister is kidnapped by goblins, Ida must go off on a magic adventure to rescue her. She's not wholly devoted to the quest at first--and nearly passes her sister right by when she becomes absorbed in the magic of the quest. In the end, she rescues her baby sister, destroys the goblins and returns home--this time firmly responsible for her sister and determined to be so until her father returns home. It is not a comfortable tale, but it is one that highlights feelings that young children may have and discusses them in a format they can identify with.
The language and pictures are beautiful and stunningly poetic, in typical Sendak style. But the story and the way its told can be frightening for some children; themes of kidnapping by goblins, the ice-baby left behind, and Ida's making the goblins dance themselves away, all conjure images that hit on some primal fears and discomforts. The author is not trying to make us comfortable, but that's what makes him such a good author. I suspect people will either love or dislike this book, I'm one who loves it but can equally understand why others might not. So, if you can, take a look at it prior to buying and certainly before you read it to younger children.
On a side note, I believe this story is the basis for the movie Labyrinth. This wonderful movie is a strong tribute to Sendak in so many little ways, but the overall premise of the movie is very similar--a girl's jealous of her new half-brother and wishes the goblins would come and take him away. They do, and she must deal with the goblin king and the challenge he sets before her in order to get her baby brother back. Fabulous movie--if you love the book, I bet you'll love the movie, or vice versa!
Happy reading! ^_^
shanshad

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With Papa off to sea and Mama despondent, Ida must go outside over there to rescue her baby sister from goblins who steal her to be a goblin's bride.

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