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Category: Ages 11 and Under

Review: The Twelve Dancing Princesses and Goldilocks by Ruth Sanderson

[ 2 ] May 15, 2012

Reviewed by Alyssa Katanic

I was given the treat of reviewing two gorgeous fairytales retold and illustrated by Ruth Sanderson.

The first is The Twelve Dancing Princesses, which is the story of a king who promises the choice of one of his daughters to the prince who can discover why it is that the princesses’ new shoes are worn through every morning. In the end, it is a commoner who not only discovers the secret, but also wins the affection of one of the princesses and inspires them all to confess to their father themselves. Now that I have spoiled the ending for you you don’t want to miss the journey there! Sanderson’s princesses are absolutely lovely, and the enchanted woods are beyond fantastic with their oil paint illustrations.

Goldilocks is just as beautiful and artfully done. I do have to admit that this particular fairytale has never been a favorite of mine. I do not like the selfish, thoughtless girl who breaks into the Bear Family’s house and leaves it a mess. Sanderson, however, gives the story a little twist that shows Goldilocks helping to clean up the messes she has made and replacing the breakfast she has eaten up by sharing the berries that she picked along the way. Sanderson’s Goldilocks ends with a recipe for Papa Bear’s Blueberry Muffins, and an ending that is (finally) truly “happily ever after.”

Don’t miss the amazing artwork in these fairytale retellings. These are definitely books to treasure.

Rating: ★★★★★ 

Alyssa is a wife and stay at home, homeschooling mother of five, with two boxers, two cats, a soft shelled turtle named after Bob the Builder, and 7 frogs (admittedly a homeschooling project gone froggy). In all her spare time, she loves to read and believes that there is no such thing as having too many books!

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Ruth Sanderson. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: God Helps Me Bible by Juliet David

[ 2 ] May 5, 2012

Reviewed by Alyssa Katanic

Juliet David’s God Helps Me Bible is a sweet devotional Bible for parents to share with their young children. God Helps Me Bible contains many of the Bible stories that most children’s picture story Bibles contain (Noah’s Ark, David and Goliath, Jesus feeding the multitudes), but it adds a little spot at the end of each section that tells the child how God helped the person in the story and encourages parents to talk to their children about how God has helped their family – this is precious! Often we read Bible stories to our children but neglect to teach them how to apply those true stories to their own little lives. God Helps Me Bible is a great reminder that the “life application” aspect of reading our Bibles is not for adults, alone, but for us to teach the younger generations as well.

God Helps Me Bible is also formatted as a covered spiral binding with very sturdy, though not quite “board book”, glossy pages. The spiral binding allows it to lay flat open on the table so that those with multiple children (or Sunday School teachers) can lay it down and let everyone crowd around without worrying about losing their place in the book.

God Helps Me Bible is such nice edition of a children’s Bible that it would make a great gift for a child, family, or for a Sunday School classroom (Preschool/Kindergarten).

Rating: ★★★★★ 

Alyssa is a wife and stay at home, homeschooling mother of five, with two boxers, two cats, a soft shelled turtle named after Bob the Builder, and 7 frogs (admittedly a homeschooling project gone froggy). In all her spare time, she loves to read and believes that there is no such thing as having too many books!

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Kregel Publications. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: Cinderella: An Islamic Tale by Fawzia Gilani

[ 10 ] March 20, 2012

Reviewed by Leigh Adamkiewicz

As anyone who was forced to watch Barney can tell you, it’s tricky to keep a child-friendly story from becoming mind-numbing. This is especially true of any tale that has been as told to death… or has an something to teach. But those who are looking for a classic story in a different setting might be pleasantly surprised with Fawzia Gilani’s Cinderella: An Islamic Tale. Not only does this lovely picture book rise to the Attention Span Challenge, it tells its story in a very refreshing way.

In modern retellings Cinderella’s story is often co-opted to showcase materialism as proof of the heroine’s birthright. Of course Cinderella’s a good person. She’s just been given a Fendi bag. And a pink Valentino ballgown! And the shoes! Dear God, I think they’re Jimmy Choos!

It was refreshing to see a good soul as Cinderella’s best reward rather than a bespangled ball gown. She’s given lovely clothes to wear to the ball, but they are not the be-all and end all of her personality. The prince’s eye may be caught by her beauty but his heart is captured by her faith. The king and queen don’t send out the shoe because they think Cinderella will look good on their son’s arm, but because they know a devout, clear-eyed mind is a prize in and of itself.

For those whose knowledge of Islam is non-existent, the book provides a glossary to the vocabulary words sprinkled throughout the story. While the placement of one or two of these vocabulary words might be awkward, the journey back to the glossary is never an unwelcome one.

The colors in Shireen Adams’ illustrations are exactly what they should be: lush, sweet and lovely. The rainbow of greens and blue gives a sense of the world beyond pulling Cinderella from the dry brown walls of her small, cruel world. And the little hits of foil on the ubiquitous shoes are a light, delightful touch. The pencils themselves are a bit sophomoric, the work of a person with enough study to be an excellent student, but not a master yet. But these occasional technical issues never distract enough to interrupt the soothing flow of this quiet tale.

It’s easy to feel a sense of peace after completing Fawzia Gilani’s Cinderella. This humble version of the classic fairy tale is a gentle reminder that victory comes as much from a peaceful soul as a beautiful dress and a dramatic confrontation.

Rating: ★★★★★ 

Leigh is a fearless writer who never met a genre, subject, or format she didn’t like. She has written professionally for the past six years and enjoys biking, exploring odd corners of Northeast Ohio, and discovering those good books she hasn’t read yet.

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by The Islamic Foundation. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: There’s Just Something About a Boy by Jenny Lee Sulpizio

[ 2 ] March 8, 2012

Reviewed by Alyssa Katanic

There’s Just Something About a Boy, by Jenny Lee Sulpizio, is a sweet look about that special mother/son relationship: the excitement of finding out that he is on his way, all the stuff he gets into (!), the hopes and dreams mom and dad have for him, and all the times mom stands up as his biggest cheer leader.

The beautiful illustrations by Peg Lozier capture both the humorous and touching moments of life with boys. I especially love the picture that shows him being caught drawing on the walls – though I’ve only caught my daughter in that trick. My son drew on the dinning room chair instead!

The rhyming in the book is a bit sing-songy, but the images the rhymes evoke are precious.

There’s Just Something About a Boy will make a beautiful shower gift for a momma expecting her first son.

Rating: ★★★½☆ 

Also by Jenny Lee Sulpizio: Mommy Whispers

Alyssa is a wife and stay at home, homeschooling mother of five, with two boxers, two cats, a soft shelled turtle named after Bob the Builder, and 7 frogs (admittedly a homeschooling project gone froggy). In all her spare time, she loves to read and believes that there is no such thing as having too many books!

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Jenny Lee Sulpizio. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: Winterberries and Apple Blossoms by Nan Forler

[ 2 ] February 25, 2012

Reviewed by Alyssa Katanic

Winterberries and Apple Blossoms is a sweet picture book that showcases a life in the year of a young Mennonite girl, Naomi, in verse, month by month. The verses are accompanied by beautiful paintings by Peter Etril Snyder. Together the verse and illustrations show the beautiful, quaint, and rhythmic life of an Old Order Mennonite family.

With all of our plasma televisions, iPods/Pads/phones, e-readers, and other electronics, it is hard for us to imagine what life would be like without all of the distractions we relish in. Yet, the simple life has its beauty and great enjoyment as shown in January’s quilting bees, June’s homemade ice cream, and September’s fresh cider and apple pies. Winterberries and Apple Blossoms is a great way to show these beauties to the little ones in your life.

One of my favorite parts of Winterberries and Apple Blossoms are the recipes that follow the verses. There is a recipe for each month, and each recipe is rated for a child’s ability to work the recipe with little or increasing adult assistance. My husband kept looking over my shoulder saying, “Oh! We definitely need to try that one!” I must have heard that about twelve times! (Did I mention that there is one recipe for each month?)

Rating: ★★★½☆ 

Alyssa is a wife and stay at home, homeschooling mother of five, with two boxers, two cats, a soft shelled turtle named after Bob the Builder, and 7 frogs (admittedly a homeschooling project gone froggy). In all her spare time, she loves to read and believes that there is no such thing as having too many books!

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Tundra Books. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: Star Wars: A Scanimation Book by Rufus Butler Seder

[ 4 ] February 5, 2012

Reviewed by Caleb Shadis

It took me exactly three minutes to read Star Wars: A Scanimation Book. My understanding is that this book is meant for elementary school kids. Each page has a ‘picture’ behind a grill and as you turn the pages the ‘picture’ slides behind the grill and gives the appearance of movement. Star Wars reminded me of an animated flip book featuring ten famous scenes from the six Star Wars movies.

The author, Rufus Butler Seder, appears to specialize in this medium since he has four other books with the same format, but all of them are obviously oriented to a young audience: Gallop!, Swing!, Waddle!, Kick!. These other books used scanimation to highlight the movements named in the titles.

Star Wars is a cool little book but I am not sure it is worth the price.

Caleb is a software engineer and amature woodworker living in southern Minnesota. He has more hobbies than he has time or money for, and enjoys his quiet time reading.

The review copy of this book was provided free of any obligation by Workman Publishing Group. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: Harness Horses, Bucking Broncos & Pit Ponies by Jeff Crosby and Shelley Ann Jackson

[ 2 ] February 4, 2012

Reviewed by Alyssa Katanic

I asked my soon-to-be-nine-year-old daughter what she wanted for her birthday: “I want a book to read about horses!” And here it is: Harness Horses, Bucking Broncos & Pit Ponies by Jeff Crosby and Shelley Ann Jackson.

This is not just your standard book about horses in general and how to take care of them. Harness Horses, Bucking Broncos & Pit Ponies gives a history of many (43 to be exact) different breeds of horses, how and why they were bred with the different characteristic they have, and the important part they play in human history. The illustrations are beautifully done (no photographs here, but great artistry that places the horses in historical settings), which makes it a fun book for young and old, boys and girls alike (I know my son will be stealing this one to check out the scenes of horses in battle).

Showing the horses in historical settings stirs up historical interests without overwhelming the reader with information. We are given a snip-it on each breed, which whets the appetite for looking further elsewhere (a mark of a great book for kids – encouraging further exploration!). As an added bonus, the reverse of the cover doubles as a great poster to hang up and remind young ones of what they learned, which is great for keeping their excitement alive. It would also make a great visual aid if your child had to do a presentation.

Harness Horses, Bucking Broncos & Pit Ponies is a great book for horse lovers of any age! I highly recommend it!

Rating: ★★★★½ 

Alyssa is a wife and stay at home, homeschooling mother of five, with two boxers, two cats, a soft shelled turtle named after Bob the Builder, and 7 frogs (admittedly a homeschooling project gone froggy). In all her spare time, she loves to read and believes that there is no such thing as having too many books!

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Tundra Books. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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Review: Did You Say Pears? by Arlene Alda

[ 6 ] January 21, 2012

Reviewed by Alyssa Katanic

What book lover doesn’t also love a little play on words? Did You Say Pears? by Arlene Alda is a picture book full of word play. Each page spread shows a set of homonyms or homophones and illustrates the meaning of each with a photograph. The last page of the book lists each example throughout the book, whether it is a homonym or homophone, and gives the definition of both.

I loved the idea of this book as a great way to teach my kiddos all about these fun twists in the English language, but I must say that I was not impressed at all by the included photographs. The cover is beautiful, but there were few other photos between the covers that measured up to it. Being an illustrations lover, this was a major disappointment for me. Hopefully my kids won’t be quite so picky; the words really are clever and it does show the difference between the meanings.

If you have a child who is interested in homophones/homonyms, or who has been getting them confused, this is a great book to add to your collection, but don’t say I didn’t warn you about the bright white press-on (finger) nails opposite the pile of carpenter’s nails.

Rating: ★★½☆☆ 

Alyssa is a wife and stay at home, homeschooling mother of five, with two boxers, two cats, a soft shelled turtle named after Bob the Builder, and 7 frogs (admittedly a homeschooling project gone froggy). In all her spare time, she loves to read and believes that there is no such thing as having too many books!

Review copy was provided free of any obligation by Tundra Books. No monetary or any other form of compensation was received.

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