Mother Bruce

Mother Bruce

by Ryan T. Higgins

Genre: Picture Book

Synopsis:  Bruce the bear likes to keep to himself. That, and eat eggs. But when his hard-boiled goose eggs turn out to be real, live goslings, he starts to lose his appetite. And even worse, the goslings are convinced he's their mother. Bruce tries to get the geese to go south, but he can't seem to rid himself of his new companions. What's a bear to do?

from GoodReads

Review:  I don't get to read picture books very often any more and I'm so glad that I asked my kids if I could read them a picture book last night instead of a chapter book.  This book was quite funny and had me giggling at the grumpy bear and his trials.  The humor in this book pokes fun at some things (locally sourced food, organic, etc) and is very clever.  I probably laughed more than my kids.  I love the expressions on Bruce's face throughout the book.  Definitely a fun read!

Rating: 5 stars

A Bean, a Stalk, and a Boy Named Jack

A Bean, a Stalk, and a Boy Named Jack

by William Joyce

Illustrated by Kenny Callicutt

Genre: Picture book, Fractured Fairy Tale

Synopsis: Here's Jack, a smallish boy.

Here's a smallish bean, last one outta the pod.

Here's a smallish giant kit with a great big problem.

But with a smallish wave of a wand and a lotta courage, maybe this pair can make a GIANT difference...Let's give it a go!

from the book jacket

Review:  It's hard to call this book based on Jack and the Beanstalk because nothing in the story is the same except for the fact that there is a boy named Jack and he plants a bean that makes a giant beanstalk.  That's about it in similarity.  They do introduce Jack to Jill at the end of the book and it turned into the nursery rhyme.  This was just a fun, quirky book full of humorous language.  I love that the author made up some words like math-ing, used the word soooo, used phrases such as "no great shakes" and that the illustrator added some fun language to his pictures too.  It's really hard to describe but it's fun and cute!  This book was written to be read aloud.  Now the one thing I didn't particularly like was the use of non standard words like atcha, lotta, outta, etc.  Since those aren't real words, I have a hard time with them being used in print.  Overall, this was a really fun read that my kids enjoyed.

Rating: 4 stars

Interstellar Cinderella

Interstellar Cinderella

by Deborah Underwood

Illustrated by Meg Hunt

Genre: Picture Book, Fractured Fairy Tale

Synopsis: Once upon a planetoid, amid her tools and sprockets, a girl named Cinderella dreamed of fixing fancy rockets.

With a little help from her fairy godrobot, Cinderella is going to the ball-but when the price's ship has mechanical trouble, someone will have to zoom to the rescue!  Readers will thank their lucky stars for this irrepressible fairy tale retelling, its independent heroine, and its stellar happy ending.

Review:  With having a kid in the house who is obsessed with space and both kids loving fractured fairy tales, I knew I needed to check out this book the minute I saw it.  I love the Cinderella is portrayed as doing something not typically done by her gender-being a mechanic.  I also love the fact that she has a great time at the ball talking with the prince but does not fall head over heels for him.  I won't give away the ending but it is definitely not the traditional happily ever after story that we get from most fairy tales.  The rhyme scheme keeps the story flowing.  The space setting is a fun twist to the story.  My kids definitely enjoyed this book!

Rating: 4 stars

11 Experiments That Failed

11 Experiments That Failed

by Jenny Offill

Illustrations by Nancy Carpenter

Genre: Picture Book

Synopsis: Question: Can a kid make it through the winter eating only snow and ketchup?

Hypothesis: Ketchup and snow are the only food groups a kid needs.

What happened: Read this book and find out the results of this and ten other hilarious experiments!

Review:  This book is just so silly!  My husband was reading it to my kids and I had to stop and listen because it was funny and quirky.  I'm a sucker for quirky picture books!  I like how the author structured the book with a question, hypothesis, materials, steps and results. It was fun to see what the results were.  Hopefully it doesn't give anyone ideas!

Rating: 4 stars 

Weasels

Weasels

by Elys Dolan

Genre: Picture book

Synopsis:  Weasels.  What do you think they do all day?

Plot world domination-that's what!

This is rollicking madcap weasel adventure is packed full of mischief and mayhem, featuring hilarious weasel antics rendered in Elys Dolan's exuberant style.  Will the weasels succeed in taking over the world?

from the book jacket

Review:  We are big fans of unexpected humor and sarcasm in our house and when we find those in books, we jump all over reading those books.  This book is reminiscent of the Scaredy Squirrel books by Melanie Watt.  Sometimes some of the humor goes over my kids' heads but it makes me enjoy reading the book.  I like when picture book authors and illustrators add in humor for parents and this book certainly does that.  My kids very much enjoyed listening to this story because the weasels did such funny, goofy things.  One of the weasels has a pet mouse and it is on every page in different places so the kids can search for the mouse.  The lead weasel and it is strikingly similar to one of the bad guys from one of the James Bond movies-Blofeld (again, humor that goes over the kids' heads but something that I love).  Each weasel had their own personality and there were so many to look at on the pages.  This book was a tad difficult to read as there were speech bubbles all over but overall this was a great book!

Rating: 4 stars

How Martha Saved Her Parents from Green Beans

How Martha Saved Her Parents from Green Beans

by David LaRochelle

Illustrated by Mark Fearing

Genre: Picture Book

Synopsis:  They're mean.  They're green.  They're the baddest beans around.

"Green beans are good for you.  Green beans will make you big and strong."  Martha doesn't believe what her parents tell her.  And nothing will ever-EVER-make her eat them.

But when some bead-eyed, boot stomping beans bust into town and start causing trouble, Martha knows she has to take action against this gang of outlaws, cutthroats, and desperadoes.  She can think of only one way to stop the villainous veggies, and it's not pretty...or tasty.

Even the pickiest of eaters will be unable to resist this deliciously ridiculous tale of how Martha saved her parents-and the world-from green beans.
from the book jacket

Review: I loved the unique story line in this book with the green beans being the bad guys.  I think we all have kids who think that one particular food is horrible and would love to have a reprieve from eating it.  I really enjoyed how the green beans were portrayed as being the enemy and being the bad guys.  The pictures of them throughout the book are hilarious and just what we would imagine them to be as the bad guys in the story.  The story is humorous and will make kids giggle while listening to the story.  Spoiler alert: Martha ends up saving her parents from the green beans by eating all the green beans and then from then on out Martha never has to eat green beans.  I didn't like the message that you're never going to be served the food that you don't like again.  I think it would have been nice if Martha learned to like green beans or at least she learned that they are tolerable.

Rating: 4 stars

Those Darn Squirrels!

Those Darn Squirrels!

by Adam Rubin

Illustrated by David Salmieri

Genre: Picture Book

Synopsis:  Old Man Fookwire is a grump.  The only thing he really likes is painting picture of the birds that visit his little old house near the forest.  When the time comes for the birds to fly south for the winter, Old Man Fookwire hatches a plan to keep them close by: He builds birdfeeders and fills them with yummy seeds and berries in the hopes that his beautiful birds will stick around.

But there are other hungry creatures in the nearby forest, and they have plans too.  This is a story of what happens when a grumpy old man and some mischievous squirrels match wits-with hilarious results.

From the back of the book

Review:  I just love this book because it reminds me of how much my dad hates squirrels-they scare away the birds from the birdfeeders.  The story and the illustrations are hilarious!  And I also love just how clever those squirrels are!  My kids really enjoyed the story as well and would giggle at the antics of the squirrels.  The squirrels definitely showed a lot of ingenuity in this story.  I look forward to reading the sequels to this picture book.

Rating: 5 stars

Snoring Beauty

Snoring Beauty

by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen

Illustrated by Jane Manning

Genre: Picture Book, Fractured Fairy Tale

Synopsis: Snoring Beauty is a sweetly hilarious spin on the classic fairy tale "Sleeping Beauty." Written in bouncy rhymed verse perfect for reading aloud, this whimsical reimagining from Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen is sure to appeal to children and parents alike.

Tucked in his little bed inside the castle walls, Mouse is eager to get a good night's sleep before his wedding tomorrow. But just as he begins to drift off, he's awoken by a tremendous roar. SNOOOOGA-SNOOOOOM! KER-SCHUPPP! Sleeping Beauty is snoring . . . again! When the handsome Prince Max arrives, Mouse thinks he's found the perfect scheme: He'll convince the prince to kiss Beauty and wake her up! But when Prince Max learns that Beauty is the one making such monstrous noises, will he still want to kiss her . . . or will he run away from the noisy princess, leaving her snoring for another hundred years?

Review:  Another fun fractured fairy tale narrated by the mouse who shares Sleeping Beauty's castle.  The rhyme scheme and meter are catchy, but I got irritated by the unusual snoring sound effects that were required to keep the reading going.  Who ever heard of a snore like Snooga Snoom?  I read it entertainingly the first time, but on subsequent re-readings, I've been irritated by having to make the snoring noises so loud and crazy. Megan especially loves this book, probably because of the snoring noises and the little funny bit at the end.

Rating:  4 stars

Little Roja Riding Hood

Little Roja Riding Hood

by Susan Middleton Elya

Illustrated by Susan Guevara

Genre: Picture Book, Fractured Fairy Tale

Synopsis: While Roja picks flowers on the way to her grandma's, a mean wolf sneaks away with her cape to surprise Abuelita. But Grandma's no fool and Roja's no ordinary chica. They send that hungry lobo packing with a caliente surprise!
 
This sassy retelling of Little Red Riding Hood has accessible Spanish rhymes and fresh illustrations, with hip cultural details throughout.

Review:  This was a fun book to read because it introduces Spanish words while the majority of the book is in English.  The rhyme scheme works well, for the most part, making this an easy book to read - as long as you can pronounce the Spanish words!  After reading this book to Megan last week, Aunt Julie approved.  I liked that Little Roja solved the problem of the wolf creatively on her own.  Fun illustrations, too.

Rating:  4 stars

Pssst!

Pssst!

by Adam Rex

Genre: Picture book

Synopsis:  What happens when a bunch of animals have been cooped up for too long?  Pssst!  You're about to find out.

from the book jacket

Review:  My kids LOVE this book!  They giggle and giggle and giggle when reading this book.  They actually started to recite it in the car the other day because we had read it so much and they enjoyed it that much!  As an adult, I also enjoyed this book.  There is humor that kids won't get but yet adults will find funny and punny.  The humor is mostly in the illustrations and there are very few words-most are dialogue between the girl who goes to the zoo and the animals that talk to her.  The author/illustrator includes so many small details in the pictures and you need to look at all of them because they are funny!  Definitely an enjoyable book for all ages!

Rating: 5 stars

Biblioburro

Biblioburro

by Jeanette Winter

Genre: Picture Book

Synopsis:  Join Luis and his trusty burros, Alfa and Beto, as they travel far and wide to bring treasured books to eager children in the remote villages of rural Colombia.

Based on the inspiring life of a real man and his devoted burro team, here is a book to remind us of the immense power stories have to connect us all.

From the book jacket

Review:  I checked out this book because I had told N2 about a book I had read with my stories about Luis Soriana and how he used his donkeys to take books to children who didn't have access to any books or libraries.  They wanted to read a book about this man so this is the book my library had.  The illustrations are very fun and colorful and reminded me of folk art from South America.  The author writes very simply about what Luis does and tells how Luis got his idea, some troubles he had when traveling to remote villages and what happens when he gets to the village.  I think there could have been more meat to this story, it may have been a little too simplified.  Maybe I felt this way because I had read a more in depth story with my students at school.  The last page does contain more information about Luis Soriana and his Biblioburro.  My kids did enjoy reading about this and had some questions about the book.

Rating: 3 1/2 stars

Serious Farm

Serious Farm

by Tim Egan

Genre: Picture Book

Synopsis:  Farmer Fred never smiled much.  "Farmin' is a serious business," he'd say.  "Nothin' funny about corn."  And so life on his farm was pretty serious.  None of the animals laughed or even smiled.

But everyone has to laugh sometime, and finally the animals decide to leave Serious Farm in search of a more cheerful place to chuckle and graze. Will the animals find a livelier home, and will Farmer Fred ever lighten up?  Tim Egan's seriously silly Serious Farm is a story for all who need a little more laughter in their lives.
from the book jacket

Review: This was a really cute story about animals on a farm who decide that the farm is too serious so they come up with a plan to make the farm a funnier place.  My kids really enjoyed this book and reading all the antics that the animals tried to make Farmer Fred laugh or smile.  They really liked the sheep wearing sunglasses with mustaches on!  I liked the quirky humor in this book and all the illustrations of the farm animals doing silly things.  I think I am going to have to check out other books by this author!

Rating: 5 stars

The Great Fairy Tale Disaster

The Great Fairy Tale Disaster

Author: David Conway
Illustrator: Melanie Williamson

Genre: Picture Book, Fractured Fairy Tale

Summary (from Goodreads):  The Big Bad Wolf is fed up with blowing down the Three Little Pigs' houses. So off he goes in search of a new fairy tale to be in! Wearing the ball gown in Cinderella didn't work because "wolves don't wear dresses!," climbing up the beanstalk and seeing the giant's huge feet scared the wolf, and "yuck" getting kissed by the prince in Sleeping Beauty is not for the wolf at all! As the wolf runs from page to page the whole book of fairy tales becomes a great mixed-up mess! Children will enjoy spotting all of their favorite characters in this hilarious twisted-fairy tale adventure!

Review: The idea of the Big Bad Wolf looking for a place in a different fairy tale is certainly a cute one, and the first couple fairy tales he jumps into deliver surprises and laughs.  But then it gets a little disjointed, and the plot doesn't really go anywhere.  As I was reading it out loud, I found myself wanting to add dialogue so that it would make more sense.  The illustrations are busy and fun!

Rating: 3 stars

The Princess and the Peas

The Princess and the Peas

Author: Caryl Hart
Illustrator: Sarah Warburton

 

Genre: Picture Book, Fractured Fairy Tale

Summary (from Goodreads):  Lily-Rose May will not eat her peas. Even when her father turns them into the most fabulous smoothies, shakes, or cupcakes, Lily can always tell they are there and turns her little nose up at them. Luckily, the doctor knows exactly what to do. He diagnoses an incurable case of princess-itus and sends Lily to live at the palace. Unfortunately for Lily-Rose May, the perfect food for a princess is . . . well . . . that would be telling!

Review: My girls and I really enjoyed reading this cute book.  My five-year-old thought it was quite funny that the little girl was allergic to peas, and that she got green spots on her face because of that.  They also have a tendency to like books with pink covers, books about princesses, and books about girls wearing frilly dresses - so they were sure to like this one!

I liked this story because it was fun and easy to read (although a few of the rhymes were a little dicey).  And it sends TWO good messages to little girls.  First, that being a princess is not always fun and games; in fact, it can be tedious and boring!  And second, that being a picky eater can lead to problems.  I have enjoyed reading this book each of the 8 times I have read it.

Rating: 5 stars

Fairly Fairy Tales

Fairly Fairy Tales

Author: Esme Raji Codell
Illustrator: Elisa Chavarri

Genre: Picture Book, Fractured Fairy Tale

Summary (from Goodreads):  Parents and children love to play "question" games: Would you eat spaghetti made with gummy worms? Would you wear your clothes backwards all day? Sometimes the answer is "yes" and sometimes it's "no"--but the fun is in the asking. Gifted writer and educator Esme Raji Codell has writtten a book that incorporates fractured fairy tales with this kind of parent-child interplay to create a pitch-perfect combination of bedtime read-aloud and fairytales that will delight children and parents!

Review: This is a very simple story that takes the well-known components of a traditional fairy tale ("Cow?  Yes.  Beanstalk?  Yes.  Giant?  Yes.") and adds in an unusual and modern twist. ("Spaghetti?  NOOOOO!") There is no real plot to the book or sense of continuity between the tales, and the text is so simple that it is boring for an adult to read.  However, the kids loved to chime in with the "yes" and "no" parts, and they certainly enjoyed seeing how the fairy tale was twisted.  However, quite a few of the twists were beyond my 3 and 5 year old's comprehension, like solar panels, disco balls, and even a beauty parlor.  Having to explain these things took away from reading the story.  The best part of this book was the beautiful and funny pictures; we especially loved the Italian restaurant scene.

Rating: 3 stars

Snoring Beauty

Snoring Beauty

Author: Bruce Hale
Illustrator: Howard Fine

Genre: Picture Book, Fractured Fairy Tale

Summary (from Goodreads):  Everyone knows the story of Sleeping Beauty: A handsome prince rescues a beautiful princess from a wicked fairy's terrible sleeping spell.

This story is just like the original. Except for the sarcastic frog narrator, the garlic-scented fairy, and--oh yeah--the princess in this book not only sleeps and snores . . . she's also been turned into a hot-pink and purple dragon!

Certain to charm and delight fairy tale fans across the land, this raucous retelling is anything but a snoozer.

Review: A lot of the humor in this book was beyond my kids' comprehension; for example, I found the characters' names to be really funny, the word plays creative, and some of the illustrations downright hilarious, but my kids didn't notice that at all.  And the fact that they've never heard of a quince didn't help, either.  But they loved the snoring dragon!  The illustrations are almost like caricatures - very different from typical picture books.  With adult vocabulary and a sense of sarcasm, this picture book seems to be geared more for parents than for kids....

Rating: 3 stars

Good Little Wolf

Good Little Wolf
Nadia Shireen

Genre: Picture Book, Fractured Fairy Tale

Summary (from Goodreads):  Once upon a time there was a wolf called Rolf - a good little wolf who liked baking cakes and was always kind to his friends. But real wolves aren't supposed to be good - they're supposed to be BIG and BAD.

Can a good little wolf still be a real wolf?

And will Rolf discover there's something big and bad lurking inside him after all?

Review: This started out as a cute little book about a wolf who chooses to be good, and refuses to be influenced by the big bad wolf who tries to lead him astray.  As I was reading it, I was thinking how it was a nice lesson in being yourself and not giving in to peer pressure.  The pictures are very cute - Mrs. Boggins reminded me of the Grandma from South Park!  But the ending ruined the story for my family.  While many kids would probably find the ending funny, my two sensitive little girls HATED it, and actually told me that we should never read this book again and take it back to the library as soon as possible.

I should add that I thought the ending was funny in a twisted kind of way, and it actually made my husband laugh out loud when he read it.  But I base my picture book reviews primarily on how my kids reacted to it, hence the low rating.

Becky, your kids (and Brian!) might really like this!

Rating: 1 star

Huff & Puff

Huff & Puff
Claudia Rueda

Genre: Picture Book, Fractured Fairy Tale

Summary (from Goodreads):  This interactive retelling of the Three Little Pigs story allows the reader to play the part of the big bad wolf. Three interior die-cut holes invite readers to huff, puff, and blow the pigs’ houses down! This fractured fairy tale ends sweetly when, rather than blowing down the third pig’s brick home, the wolf/reader blows out the candles on a cake baked by the pigs! A satisfying and engaging read for every young Three Little Pigs fan.

Review: The illustrations are cute, although the "interactive" die-cut holes don't add any value, and so we completely ignored them.  The text is extremely simple, which might work well for a very young child, but I think my three-year-old was a little bored by the lack of content, and my five-year-old wondered why the author didn't write in complete sentences.  They both did love huffing and puffing, though!

Rating: 3 stars

Once Upon a Golden Apple

Once Upon a Golden Apple

Authors: Jean Little and Maggie de Vries
Illustrator: Phoebe Gilman

Genre: Picture Book, Fractured Fairy Tale

Summary (from Goodreads):  In this hilarious fractured fairy tale, everything seems to go wrong. Goldilocks lives with the seven dwarfs, a princess kisses a reluctant dragon, and she and her prince rescue the Wicked Witch of the West...until all mischief is sorted out and everyone lives happily ever after. Jean Little and Maggie de Vries' whimsical text and Phoebe Gilman's magical illustrations make this a magnificent feast for anyone who loves a good story — even when it's wrong!

Review: This is the story of a father who makes up a story for his two little kids, and mixes up all the fairy tales, to the kids' delight.  The illustrations are just beautiful, and full of funny little details that my kids love to look at.  They enjoy the story, too, especially because they can help read it by saying "No, No, No!" on every page.  There are a couple fairy tale references that my kids don't understand, and a few that even I don't know - I guess we'll have to start reading more traditional fairy tales!

Rating: 4 stars

Big Bad Wolf is Good

Big Bad Wolf is Good

Author: Simon Puttock
Illustrator: Lynne Chapman

Genre: Picture Book, Fractured Fairy Tale

Summary (from Goodreads):  Poor Wolf—he’s so lonely! Nobody wants to be his friend.
Not the ducklings, not the goslings, not the fuzzy yellow chicks. “Perhaps it’s because
I’m big and scary,” he thinks. “Perhaps it’s because I’m bad, bad, bad.” Then he has a bright idea: What if he changes his ways and becomes good? What if he does a noble deed?
But, none of the animals will listen when Wolf tries to tell them about his new plan.
They just flee in terror, slamming the door right in his face. Then something really awful happens: one of the ducklings disappears and everybody thinks Wolf has eaten him all up. Can the Big Bad Wolf prove he didn’t have duck for dinner—and bring the lost little baby safely home? A charming and delightfully fractured fairy tale about friendship, and a wonderful example for children that a person can change, with sweet and funny illustrations that will delight youngsters over and over again.

Review:  I imagine that I'm overreacting to this book based on the scary experience my kids had yesterday with a creepy guy in a pickup truck following them down the street....

The Big Bad Wolf is trying to change his image to become a good wolf, but the small animals he interacts with are still scared of him.  While this could be a good lesson for small children, to learn not to judge other by their appearance, I felt like a better lesson is that it is perfectly the right thing to do to run inside the house and slam the door if a scary person comes up to your yard and offers to play with you.  So while I felt sorry for the wolf because he genuinely was trying to be a nice guy, I felt like the small animals were doing the right thing.  But I am probably over thinking this book.

The illustrations were cute, and my kids like the story.

Rating: 2 stars