Tag Archives: children’s book

Book Review of Nabila Khashoggi’s Spartan & the Green Egg

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Spartan & the Green EggAuthor, Nabila Khashoggi sent me a copy of her children’s book, Spartan & the Green Egg.

Description from Goodreads:
Spartan, his three friends, and his dog, Grimm, as they travel the Universe. The mission of this talented team is to gain and share knowledge of their amazing discoveries. With the power of their minds, they made contact with a race of alien explorers, who communicate with them via an egg-shaped spaceship that is itself an organic alien being. Their expeditions are made even more exciting through the use of new technology and cool gadgets, provided by their new friend, who goes by the name of Egg. In Book 1, A Trip to the Rainforest, the team’s introduction to the rainforest and all its wonders is made even more fun by the company of two native Amazonian Indians. Their extraordinary visit is not without a few close calls. After an eye-opening experience with a mysterious Shaman, their own troubles seem to pale in comparison to what they learn. The rainforest is in danger of vanishing, and all its creatures and plant life are at risk of extinction. With the help of the Green Egg’s out-of-this-world technology, the team is able to put a big dent into the path of destruction and re-new hope for the survival of the rainforest.

Review:
My six year old and I read this together. She was really enamoured with the maps. In fact, it took us three tries to sit down and actually read the book because she just wanted to look at the maps and find all of the fun little treasures in them. Once we finally made it past the decorations to the actual book itself she loved the full-color comic book styling and I have to agree with her. It gave the book a little something different.

The environmental themes are ones we’ve all heard before, but I particularly appreciated the clarity with which replenishment was addressed. The reader is not only reminded that we (humanity) need to replace every tree we cut down, but that we need to replace them with the same or similar trees. Otherwise we’ll just end up with a planet full of scrub pines. It did fail to address the loss of mature forests and the effect this has on those who live in and around the jungle, but I suppose only so much can be presented in a children’s book.

I found the little bit of education about Amazonian culture to be interesting. I was a tad concerned that the pictures appeared to be fairly pan-indian, even if the text wasn’t. But my daughter didn’t notice.

Of course not all readers with be 6, but I found the book a bit long for a six year-old’s attention span. The mental transcendentalism in the beginning also went way over her head. She kind of glazed over during that part of the book, but came back strong once the Amazon appeared and cheered for the children’s accomplishments at the end. As an adult I found it all a little abrupt, but it obviously worked on a child’s level. She’s also spent hours just looking at the pictures to find new details in the forest scenes. Oh, and I want that tree house!!

All-in-all, the book would make a good addition to most children’s libraries.

Two last random thoughts:

  1. This is apparently going to be a ten book series (I think). At least once I think Egg should smoke something for dinner. 🙂
  2. Is it just me or is the very first sentence in the book’s description a fragment?

Book Review of Joanne McGonagle’s An Ordinary Toad’s Extraordinary Night

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An Ordinary Toad's Extraordinary NightAuthor, Joanne McGonagle, sent me a physical ARC of her children’s book, An Ordinary Toad’s Extraordinary Night.

Description from Goodreads:
An Ordinary Toad’s Extraordinary Night is the story of a young toad named Andrew, pondering whether his life would be more interesting had he been hatched a frog.

Andrew embarks on his first solo hop to ask his grandpa some questions about what it means to be an amphibian. The story is blended with factual information that compares and contrasts the similarities and differences among toads and frogs.

A young reader’s curiosity will be piqued as they consider the unique attributes of the individual creatures that make up a species, perhaps sparking the light of conversation in their hearts and minds.

Review:
I read this with my children (6 & 3) and enjoyed it. The artwork is beautiful and the story is quite educational. However, I’m uncertain of the age range the book is intended for. I found that it was a little long to hold the interest of my two children until the end, but had quite a few words that would likely be too complex for a young reader on their own; as would some of the species break downs, for example the difference between an ordinary and common toad. I can really see this book appealing to a 9 or 10-year-old who is already interested in amphibians.

I respect the book’s goal of informing readers about a less glamours species and trying to spark interest. As the author says, “Frogs and Toads need help too.” It certainly does that. By the end of the book my girls and I had a much better understanding of a toad’s biology. We also appreciated the books theme to love yourself, differences and all. I thought most of the book flowed well, though I could have done with some contractions so that it didn’t feel so formal. There was also some subtle wit, for example the way Andrew’s mother appears to be oblivious to the way his name already marks him as different from his siblings while asking him why he always has to be different. Final call, I’ll have to give it the nod. It’s worth adding to the library shelf.

tears for nanertak

Book Review of Tears for Nanertak

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Author/artist Skip Hofstrand sent me a copy of his juvenile eco-fiction book Tears for Nanertak .

What Happens When Your Home Disappears? For most of us, it’s hard to imagine our home vanishing. But for Nanertak, a polar bear cub, the melting of her Arctic homeland means that she has nowhere to live. She and her mother, Nanuck, are forced to escape. Their exit by iceberg is full of danger – the beginning of an incredible journey of survival. Many tears are shed along the way, but there is unexpected hope for Nanertak’s future…along with a solution to the problem of her disappearing Arctic homeland. Join Nanertak and Nanuck as they search for their new home in this beautiful story that is both educational and inspiring for children and adults alike.

When this book arrived my children got one look at the cover and elicited a promise to read it to them before I even finished opening the mail…with good reason. The artwork is stunning. I’m completely in love with it. I’ve always appreciated water-colours and Mr. Hofstrand has a spectacular talent. Plus, how cool is it that a book written with the intent of highlighting the plight of Arctic animals in the face of global warming has been illustrated with water from the melting Greenland Ice Cap. It forms a satisfying circle. There is an awful lot of blank space in the book though. I’m not sure if it is supposed to be a visual reminder of the white landscapes of the Arctic or just odd formatting.

The message in the book is a simple one, the next generation must be taught now to be responsible wardens of animal habitats. But I fear it might be lost on the primary audience (children). I don’t think it is particularly explicit and would likely need to be explained. However, the book could easily be used as a talking point to broach the subject of climate change with youngsters. Either way, it’s worth reading just for the artwork.