Tag Archives: children's books

Library Book Review – Mog’s Birthday by Judith Kerr

Genre: Children’s Books

Number of Pages: 24

📖PLOT SUMMARY FROM GOODREADS📖

Share in fifty years of a really remarkable cat… A special birthday story to celebrate fifty years of MOG, everyone’s favourite family cat! It’s Mog’s Birthday and everyone is excited to celebrate! Everyone except Mog. Mog doesn’t like birthdays or parties, and she especially doesn’t like them both together. But will she change her mind when it’s her own special day? HarperCollins created this special birthday story in collaboration with Judith Kerr, using a selection of pictures from across fifty years of illustrating Mog to bring this delightful story to life. Join us and celebrate fifty years of a really remarkable cat! The classic picture book story, Mog the Forgetful Cat , has never been out of print since it was first published fifty years ago, and Mog has been delighting children all over the world ever since with her funny and warm-hearted escapades. Her stories are the perfect gifts for boys, girls and families everywhere. ‘Since her debut in 1970, Mog has become… a national hero.’ Junior Magazine ‘A firm favourite on children’s bookshelves’ The Telegraph ‘Mog is a star, she really is. I can’t recommend her highly enough. Someone should give that cat a medal, or an egg for breakfast.’ The Bookbag.

💭THOUGHTS💭

I wanted to read a children’s book in honour of Children’s Book Week, plus one that was birthday related (due to it being my birthday today!) and this fitted the bill. I have only read a couple of Mog books in my time, but I do enjoy them so will ensure that my son’s get the pleasure of reading them!

The writing had a range of words so could cater for a wide age range and reading ability. There were only a few sentences on each page so the reader didn’t get bogged down and could easily read through the book.

The text was a clear, simple font and black on a white background. To add interest the sentences were in different places on each page, but it was always clear as to what you were supposed to read next.

The pictures were lovely. They were the traditional hand drawn “Mog” illustrations which was a nice touch. They were entertaining and brought the story to life.

Overall a lovely story with an important message that children will enjoy.

⭐ Rated 5/5⭐

📝 FOR SHORTER REVIEWS SEE 📝

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“book”, “read”, “book blog”, “new”, “don’t miss out”, “fiction”, “reading slump”, “entertaining”, “what should I read next”, “book recommendations”, “book review”, “what books do you recommend”

What I Have Been Reading This Month – April 2024 Reading List

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Wicked World! By Benjamin Zephaniah

⭐ Rated 3.5/5⭐

Hunted by James Patterson

⭐ Rated 5/5 ⭐

An Offer From A Gentleman by Julia Quinn

⭐Rated 5/5 ⭐

Never-my-Name and Isn’t-my-Name by Colin Stern

⭐ Rated 3/5 ⭐

Romancing Mr Bridgerton by Julia Quinn

⭐Rated 5/5⭐

The Night In Question by Susan Fletcher

⭐Rated 5/5 ⭐

Love, Julie by Jamie Anderson

⭐ Rated 5/5 ⭐

I have had another successful reading month with lots of 5 star reads! I also don’t think that 7 books is too bad a number either!

I have high hopes for next month as I hope to read some of my TBR books that I have been looking forward to for a while. Fingers crossed I don’t get too distracted!

To keep up to date with my Book Reviews, Book Memes, Author Q and As and my Monthly Genre Goal Follow My Blog!

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Mini Library Book Review – Wicked World by Benjamin Zephaniah

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Genre: Children’s Poetry

Number of Pages: 96

📖PLOT SUMMARY FROM GOODREADS📖

A brand new brilliant collection from the ground-breaking poet, Benjamin Zephaniah.His verse explores people and places, cultures, nationalities and tribes. Includes poems about Inuits, Celts, the history of Britain, Maories, the Dalai Lama, the North and South Poles, and much more – a real tour of the world.

💭THOUGHTS💭

I wanted to read some poetry for World Poetry Day. I decided on this book. I read some of the poems on World Poetry Day then finished the rest off later.

The poems were short and varied in style. Some rhymed and others didn’t. They were all different lengths, but the longest was only a couple of pages long.

The words were simple allowing for a wide age range to read them.

There were illustrations throughout, which added life to the poems.

Each poem focused on a nation or culture. I enjoyed being taken around the world and learning new things.

Overall an interesting collection of poems.

⭐ Rated 3.5/5 ⭐

📝FOR SHORTER REVIEWS SEE 📝

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Library Book Review – The Adventures of Paddington The Great Balloon Chase

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Genre: Children

Number of Pages: 34

📖PLOT SUMMARY FROM GOODREADS📖

A fantastic new picture book based on the Emmy-award winning preschool series The Adventures of Paddington!

When Paddington lets go of Jonathan’s amazing new helium dinosaur balloon, he goes on an epic adventure to try and retrieve it, drifting over London’s most famous landmarks on his way. Will Paddington be able to catch the runaway balloon before it is lost forever?

💭 THOUGHTS 💭

I love Paddington and thought that this looked like a cute book. I had high hopes for it as I have read a couple of the other books in the series and enjoyed them! I wasn’t disappointed.

The writing was fairly clear and simple with a few sentences on each page. There were the occasional larger words to indicate sounds and expression which was interesting. The ‘sound’ words were near the picture of the object that was making the sound.

The text was clear and easy to follow despite being in different places on each individual page and in different shaped blocks. The different places and shapes of the text added interest.

The pictures were bright, bold and fairly detailed. Some of the text was incorporated into the picture so the colour behind the text was different on some pages.

The story itself was full of love and friendship and was a joy to read. I recommend.

⭐ Rated 5/5⭐

📝 FOR SHORTER REVIEWS SEE 📝

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Waterstones

To keep up to date with my Book Reviews, Book Memes, Author Q and As and my Monthly Genre Goal Follow My Blog!

Library Book Review – The Adventures of Paddington The Ice Disco

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Genre: Children

Number of Pages: 32

📖PLOT SUMMARY FROM GOODREADS📖

The perfect Christmas gift for fans of the award-winning TV series, The Adventures of Paddington!

When Paddington discovers a new ice rink in the park, he can’t wait to learn how to skate. Trouble is, where do you find bear-sized skates? And will the young cub be able to learn in time for the Windsor Gardens Ice Disco?

Find out in this gorgeous new Paddington picture book!

💭THOUGHTS💭

I chose this book because I love Paddington. My eldest son is also a fan. I love both the original and new stories, the new TV series and the films.

This story was sweet with a bit of emotion in it. There was a fair amount of text on each page, with slightly longer words so it could cater to a wide age range of children. There was a good flow to it, with enough happening to keep the readers interest.

The font was clear and on a white background which made it easy to read. The occasional word was slightly bigger than the rest which added interest and expression.

The pictures were bright, bold and colourful but away from the text. This meant that you could focus on the text before looking and enjoying the pictures.

Overall a cute story.

⭐Rated 5/5⭐

📝FOR SHORTER REVIEWS SEE 📝

Amazon

Waterstones

To keep up to date with my Book Reviews, Book Memes, Author Q and As and my Monthly Genre Goal Follow My Blog!

Author Request Book Review – Aboard the Timeline by Bastian Gregory

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Genre: Fantasy/Children aged 8-12

Number of Pages: 162

Publisher: Pegasus Publishers (click for link to the book)

📖PLOT SUMMARY📖

It’s the story of a bored boy, Pete who doesn’t find anything interesting at school. One day he becomes so bored, and time stands still and he escapes to Outermind. Here he befriends various living beings in different worlds, and along the way becomes aware of a constant conflict going on in these different lands. Ultimately, Pete is asked to make a difference, and the question is whether he is up to the task?

Anyone who has a passion for words and wordplay will enjoy reading “Aboard the Timeline” In this wonderful children’s book , Bastian takes us on an adventure with his main character Pete, a young boy who at first seems to be lost (in many more ways than one!) but who ultimately finds his way together with the help of his companions, the lovely dinosaur Reginald and the ancient Greek thinker, Philosophocles. Bastian manages to keep the reader engaged page after page, with clever puns and witty plays on words, which makes his story even more entertaining.

💭THOUGHTS💭

I was asked if I would like to read this book and of course I said yes. It sounded like an interesting book and it was something a bit different to what I would usually read. I enjoyed the imaginative world that the author created and the adventures that the main character went on. I also enjoyed the thought provoking moments that were spread throughout the book.

The writing was light with different levels of word difficulty, meaning that a wide range of ages could read and enjoy the story. There was always something going on, yet it was well balanced for the length of the book.

The chapters were a mix of different lengths so you got a good chunk of each mini adventure before moving on, yet at the same time you didn’t linger on anything for too long. It was this that gave the story a good pace and balance.

I really loved the illustrations throughout the book. They were fun and matched what was going on in the story well.

The characters were great. I loved the friendships that blossomed and how everyone worked together to help each other out. What I particularly liked was the relatability of the main character. I think that we can all relate to him at some point in our lives.

Lastly the settings. I loved the world that we were taken to and enjoyed following the main character round through the different times and places.

Overall an entertaining book that I enjoyed reading.

💬QUOTE FROM A TEACHER ON AMAZON💬

“My 10 year old son and I read this together and we both really enjoyed it. Redolent of Salman Rushdie’s Haroun and the Sea of Stories/Luka and the Fire of Life plus Walter Moers’ Captain Bluebear series, it’s a consistently chuckleworthy, highly imaginative, multi-layered yarn that carried us wackily along its narrative tracks from start to finish. There’s a great cast of characters – from a doddery old dinosaur to an ebullient Ancient Greek philosopher (“Philosophocles”) to some suitably dastardly demons – and the illustrations, which perfectly complement the text, are great fun too. Highly recommended”

📝INTERVIEW ARTICLE BY THE AUTHOR’S MOTHER📝

Interview Article Here

✨Book, Links and Quote sent to me by the Author’s mother. The review is my own✨

To keep up to date with my Book Reviews, Book Memes, Author Q and As and my Monthly Genre Goal Follow My Blog!

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Sunday Post

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Welcome to my Sunday Post hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer. This week has been particularly busy, largely due to the end of the month posts. End of the month is always a busy time consolidating my month’s posts, but it should make the end of the year post easier to do!

Here is what I have been up to this month:

Random Things Tours – Book Review – The Weatherman by Royston Reeves

Goodreads Monday (add your links in the comments section for all to see!) – The Beast and the Bookseller by Eva Devon

Top Ten Tuesday – Books Set In… London

Book Mail! Be More Lucy by Suzanne Lissaman

WWW Wednesday – Currently Reading, Finished Reading, Reading Next

Goodreads Top 5 Wednesday – Female Authors

Time Travel Thursday

What I Have Been Reading This Month – November 2023 Reading List

Book of the Month – My Favourite Book Of November 2023

Places My Books Have Taken Me This Month – November 2023 – plus a one word review for each!

Random Things Tours – Book Review – Bright Stars of Black British History by JT Williams

November Monthly Wrap Up

5 Star Autumn Reads Part 2 (October to November) 2023

Stacking The Shelves

Book Review – Letters From Father Christmas by JRR Tolkien

New Month New Genre Goal! Reading Goal For December 2023

I hope that you all had a good week! Here’s to December!

To keep up to date with my Book Reviews, Book Memes, Author Q and As and my Monthly Genre Goal Follow My Blog!

Stacking The Shelves

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Welcome to my Stacking The Shelves post hosted by Reading Reality! This week I have signed up for one Blog Tour, had one book through the post and had one Netgalley approval!

Netgalley Approval

Holmes, Margaret and Poe by James Patterson

Book Description From Goodreads:

“Brendan Holmes, Margaret Marple and Auguste Poe run the most in-demand private investigation agency in New York City.The three detectives make a formidable team, solving a series of seemingly impossible crimes which expose the dark underbelly of the city – from a priceless art theft, high-stakes kidnapping and a decades-old unsolved murder, to a gruesome subterranean prison and corruption and bribery at the highest levels of power.But it’s not long before their headline-grabbing breakthroughs, unconventional methods – and untraceable pasts – attract the attention of the NYPD and the FBI.After all, it’s no surprise that there’s a mystery or two to unravel in the city that never sleeps . . . not least, who really are Holmes, Margaret and Poe?”

Book Mail

Bright Stars of Black British History by J T Williams

Book Description From Goodreads:

“Presents the extraordinary life stories of fourteen Black British people and their contributions to the worlds of literature, theater, journalism, politics, medicine, sport, and music. Carefully researched and eloquently written by children’s author J.T. Williams, Bright Stars of Black British History brings to life historical figures from Tudor England to the present day. Written in both an educational and entertaining style, the book uses individual stories of important historical figures to lift the voices of enslaved and marginalized people. It makes clear the important influence that Black British people have had in shaping culture, shifting public opinion, and changing British history. It also features sensitive portraits and contextual paintings by award-winning illustrator Angela Vives and is presented in a highly giftable and accessible format, functioning as both a narrative-led story collection and a resource for schools. Illustrated in colour throughout.”

I am on the Blog Tour for this book on 1 December so keep an eye out for my review then!

Blog Tour Sign Up

Murder All Inclusive by Alastair Puddick

Book Description From Random Things Tours:

“When somebody starts murdering authors during a writers’ retreat, can miserable, second-rate novelist Freddie Winters catch the killer before it’s too late?

Curmudgeonly, mediocre crime novelist Freddie Winters unexpectedly finds himself invited to a mysterious writer’s retreat in a fancy hotel in Spain. While he makes the most of the free food and drink – and begrudgingly gives talks and teaches classes – the hotel is thrown into chaos as someone starts murdering the other authors and industry figures.

Finding himself the prime suspect, Freddie decides to use his crime-writing skills to investigate for real, so he can clear his name and find out what’s really going on.Before long the other writers are trying to get in on the action, keen to be the one who solves the case. Everybody wonders why the killer is leaving scrawled-in copies of an old murder mystery at the scene of each killing. Most concerned are the author of that book – legendary crime writer Edward Cross – and his duplicitous agent, who also happen to be at the event, and clearly have a dark secret they’re desperate to protect.”

I am on the Blog Tour for this book on 20 December so keep an eye out for my review then!

I hope that everyone has a good weekend!

For more Book Reviews, Book Memes, Author Q and As and a Monthly Genre Goal follow my Blog!

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5 Star Autumn Reads Part 1 (September to October) 2023

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Every season I like to look back and revisit my 5 star reads. As well as trying to read different genres, I also like to try and match my reading to the season as far as possible (although a lot of Christmas books have already snuck in!).

So here were my 5 star reads for the first half of Autumn (click for my reviews):

Random Things Tours – Book Review – The Blame by Charlotte Langley

Random Things Tours – Book Review – Countdown To Christmas by Jo Thomas

Netgalley Book Review – Nancy Bess Had A Dress by Claire Noland

Random Things Tours – Book Review – That Festive Feeling by Heidi Swain

Random Things Tours – Book Review – Your Rainbow by Lynn How illustrated by Jennifer Jamieson

Netgalley Book Review – The Christmas Book Club by Sarah Morgan

Kindle Book Review – Adventures of A Vegan Vamp by Cate Lawley

Netgalley Book Review- Mothman’s Merry Cryptid Christmas by Andrew Shaffer

What 5 star books have you read this Autumn/Fall?

Netgalley Book Review – Santa’s Lost Elves by Rachel Hilz

7 Replies

Netgalley EARC

Genre: Children’s/Christmas

Number of pages: 40

Publication Date: 10 October 2023

Publisher: BooksGoSocial

📖PLOT SUMMARY FROM GOODREADS📖

Ho-Ho-Hold onto your Santa hats as Santa’s Lost Elves delivers holiday cheer from new heights.

Join Santa’s journey as his sleigh becomes a rescue vehicle. Enjoy the excitement as Santa, Bucky, and the rest of the reindeer take flight on a mission to retrieve the elves from atop a broken ski lift.

Through this snowy storytime adventure, kids will learn that, even when things don’t go according to plan, friends and teamwork can turn any challenge into a frosty, fun-filled adventure. So grab your earmuffs and your sense of humor. Santa’s Lost Elves will have you laughing all the way to the North Pole.

💭THOUGHTS💭

I saw this on Netgalley and thought that it looked like a fun Christmas book. It was a ready to read one so I was able to make a start on it instantly.

The writing was in rhyme and when I got to the end I wanted to keep on going. It had a great flow to it. It certainly felt like it went a lot quicker than some other books, which I took to be a positive sign. There wasn’t a fixed rhyming pattern or set length of text, but this didn’t seem to matter. Nothing felt forced or jarred.

The word difficulty varied, which meant that the book could grow with the child. As there were a lot of words on each page I would say that it was aimed at more confident readers.

The text was in a clear font with a couple of words picked out to be slightly bigger. The text was either black or white depending on the colour of the background. The colour of the background was based upon where the text was on the picture. The text was in a block on each page so you knew where to read (except on one page).

The pictures were great. They were bright and bold with a fair amount of detail, but not too much. They were certainly eye catching and entertaining.

Overall an amusing Christmas story and one that I enjoyed reading.

⭐ Rated 5/5⭐

📝FOR SHORTER REVIEWS SEE📝

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