Hooray!
More books for you!
Every Friday I recap what I’ve read during the week.
I post the picture of the book
that I took when I finished reading it,
and underneath, my thoughts.
P.S. For some reason last week’s report published with only one review…yikes! An old revision was published. I went back and fixed it. Apologies!
This week was a fun one. I babysat my friend’s child the whole week, so I read A TON of little picture books and board books. Too many to keep up with, but maybe next week I’ll try! In the meantime, I read some longer books too. 
ESCAPE FROM MR. LEMONCELLO’S LIBRARY
by Chris Grabenstein
I FLEW through this book! Kyle Keeley has always been a fan of Luigi Lemoncello’s board games and video games, but he is not much of a reader. He finds out that the rich and famous game maker has also designed the town’s new library, the first library the town has had in 12 years.
Twelve 12-year-olds can win their way into a lock in at the library before it is open, and Kyle works hard to make sure he is one of them. But the tables turn in in the morning when the kids find out that they are indeed locked in; whoever can find their way out of the library first will get some great prizes. They can’t go out the front door or any fire exits; this is a secret exit.
Kyle has to team up with some friends and perhaps previously considered enemies, to figure out the complicated puzzles and find the one escape route.
First of all, the library is state of the art and the interactive exhibits are amazing. Second of all, the mystery will have you turning the pages at lightning speed. I loved all the characters and how much character they have too. I want to be friends with these kids and go to this library! It’s fun to try to figure out the puzzles along the way too.
And, bonus: tons of books are referenced in this one. So if you’re not sure what to read next, you won’t be unsure for long! An awesome mystery! Book lovers will ADORE it!
THE ISLAND OF DR. LIBRIS
By Chris Grabenstein
Billy is summering with his mother in this weird house while she works on her dissertation. The house is owned by Dr. Libris. Billy’s Dad is back in NY; his parents are taking the summer as a break. Too bad there’s no TV in the house, but there are lots of books. And a mysterious island nearby.
Billy finds the hidden key and starts reading one of the books when something strange happens: he starts to hear the characters in the book battling it out on the island. He soon discovers he’s reading things into life, and that things can become complicated fast! With the help of a neighbor, he has to manage what he’s brought to life, deal with bullies, and try to figure out the rules of the game. The whole while we know Dr. Libris is watching; he writes briefs on the “project” that pop up every so often in the book.
I thought the premise was awesome and kept turning the pages to see what would happen next. I can see readers imagining stories for themselves with mashups of their favorite characters. I love that it encourages kids to think of the power of story, and how imaginative and inventive it is.
The characters didn’t feel like they were on the same level. I was flipping to see what happened, but not really because I cared about the characters (sorry, harsh KE coming out!) I wanted more from them. I know the premise was enough to carry it, but the characters sealed it as a non re-read.
It felt a bit fluffy in that regard. Don’t get me wrong, fluffy is not always a bad thing. I love reading light stuff as well, but I expected a little bit more after reading the LEMONCELLO book (same author). I think this is still a fun action packed book, though at points even I couldn’t suspend my disbelief, especially at the end. But hey, I’m a grownup. Perhaps kids are wild for it, who knows.
THE SWEETHEART
By Angelina Mirabella
A rare adult read for me, but the main character is more new adult. Leonie has a pretty hum drum life in the 1950s until she dances on a TV show then draws the attention of a wrestling recruiter for her gymnastic skills and good looks.
She trains and gets a partner, Mimi, and gets her persona: she’s playing a heel, the characters the audience loves to hate. She gets into a relationship with a championship wrestler but can’t shake the feeling of wanting to be loved by the crowd. So one day without telling anyone she shows up in the ring as The Sweetheart, alienating Mimi and her boyfriend in the process. Will life work as The Sweetheart, or will it be too tiring?
I loved this book! It’s coming of age in a scene I’ve never read about: pro wrestling! I found the whole subject fascinating and could not put the book down. The characters are complex, the relationships deep, and the voice is fantastic. It’s told in second person, which is my favorite POV. In fact, I found out about the book after reading an article in Writer’s Digest the author wrote after struggling with voice and coming to terms with the fact that it had to be second person. It works wonderfully here. I thought it was a vet fresh read but also easy to relate to.
Danny and I are reading Harry Potter. Well, I’m reading a chapter aloud to him each night. We finished The Chamber of Secrets this week, and are well into Azkaban at the moment. He’s loving them! After we finish the book we watch the movie to compare. He likes the movies but is disappointed that so much is left out from the books. I love that I’ve won him over to the side of the books first 🙂
KING BIDGOOD’S IN THE BATHTUB
By Audrey Wood and Don Wood
This is a funny book. Sparse on text but hilarious use of page turns and illustrations. King Bidgood’s in the bathtub if you can’t tell my the title, and here’s the thing: he won’t get out! Various members of the court or his family try their best to persuade him by telling him it’s time for this or that.
When it’s time to discuss battle tactics, the King invites the general to a battle in the bathtub. Same for lunch and fishing and dancing. FINALLY the Page figures out how to get him out of there.
It’s goofy and the illustrations are marvelous…it DID win a Caldecott honor! The bath scenes are my favorite; so much intricate detail. And how the people look all waterlogged when they exit the tub is awesome too.
A quick and enjoyable read.
PRINCESS DECOMPOSIA AND COUNT SPATULA
By Andi Watson
What a fun graphic novel! It takes place in the underworld, full of monsters. Princess Decomposia is basically running the kingdom, since her father, the King, is sick in bed with mysterious pains. The story opens with the Princess dealing with all the current affairs of the state, and the cook leaving! The King has very particular and boring tastes, and is somewhat hard to please.
In comes Count Spatula who cooks the boring things for the King but gets very creative creating dinners for the Princess and the delegations she must entertain from other regions. They hit it off and the King gets worried! A princess, falling for a cook? He throws down an ultimatum, Decomposia and Spatula do something unexpected, and then the King shocks everyone!
I loved the black and white illustrations, the fun things Spatula cooks up, and how much the characters change. Cute graphic novel; check it out! 
Have you read any of these?
I’d love to hear what you thought of them!
See you next Friday with more books!
Bye for now,
KE
P.S. Full disclosure: The links above go to Indiebound and are affiliate links. If you buy at Indiebound, I’ll get a little kick back. That would of course be nice, but really I’m happy to be linking to an Indie site 🙂
