Bonnie Ferrante's Blog, page 84

Bellefontaine, Kim. Canada 123, Illustrated by Per-Henrik Gurth. Book Review.

This is a counting book. Each page features a vivid double spread of a Canadian theme representing the featured number. The book goes from 1 to 10. The first page shows a moose, a beaver, and a bear playing in the fallen autumn leaves. The text reads, “one maple leaf blowing in the wind.” as […]

Bradley, Kimberly Brubaker. The War that Saved my Life. Book Review.

Although the protagonist in this book is only ten-years-old, young adults and adults alike will love it. Ada was born with a club foot to a cruel and abusive mother. To make matters worse, she often puts herself in harm’s way to protect her little brother, Jamie. Ada’s mother calls her a monster and refuses […]

Moroni, Lisa. Watch Out for the Crocodile. Illustrated by Eva Eriksson. Book Review.

Tora is excited to be going camping with her father, however she is disappointed that they go shopping for food instead of living off the land and have to drive so far to get to the forest. She thinks her father is terribly boring. What she most wants to do is see wild animals. Her […]

Gomi, Taro. Mommy! Mommy! Book Review.

It isn’t very often that my one and a half-year-old granddaughter latches onto a book as strongly as she did this one. I suspect she instantly identified with the two little chicks who were looking for their mommy. Whenever mommy goes away, chicks and toddlers are concerned. The story is simple but suspenseful. The first […]

Maier, Ali. Mom Made Us Write This in the Summer. Book Review.

Ten-year-old twins, Maggie and Max, are enjoying their summer holidays until they get into one too many noisy arguments. Mom, who works at home, has had enough. In order to encourage understanding and respect towards each other, she tells them they must keep a joint journal of twelve entries. Each child must initiate six topics […]

Foster, Angeline. A day In the Jungle. Illustrated by Richie Williams. Edited by Piotr Obminski. Book review.

This is a strange book. There are only two full-page illustrations that look as though they were drawn by a ten-year-old. The pages are filled with text. I can’t imagine a child sitting and listening to this for very long. The descriptions of the jungle are flat and uninformative. The child will learn nothing new. […]

Holiday Gifts of Quality

Books That Entertain and Inspire If you are looking for gift books for young people that are engaging, fun, and also encourage good values, please check these out. Rayne Shines for ages 3-7. Rayne is bored with life until a new family moves in next door. An attitude of gratitude brings happiness. Too Quiet, Too […]

Murphy, Mary. Slow Snail. Book Review.

This is a delightful board book that would make a wonderful addition to any toddler’s collection. Each page features a cute little snail sliding s-l-o-w-l-y over, under, through, along, in, and out of simple items found in the yard. The entire book is a single sentence. It begins “snail slide s-l-o-w-l-y down her flower…” and […]

Asim, Jabari. Illustrated by LeUyen Pham. Whose Toes Are Those? Book Review.

This is a toddler board book that is sure to appeal to any parent and child. The text rhymes well and has a flowing rhythm that could actually be sung. The author poses the question, “whose toes are those?”. The toddler’s toes appear in various poses. The reader catches the occasional glimpse of the child […]

Rohmann, Eric. My Friend Rabbit. Book Review.

This is a humorous, charming board book for children aged 1 to 5. Several of the pages are wordless. The animals’ expressions convey quite clearly how they feel about what is happening. Even toddlers will delight in the funny illustrations. Rabbit puts his friend, the mouse, who is also the narrator, into a small plane […]