Book Review: The Breakfast Club Adventures: The Ghoul in the School by Marcus Rashford

 The Breakfast Club Adventures

THE GHOUL IN THE SCHOOL

by

Marcus Rashford with Alex Falase-Koye

illustrated by Marta Kissi

Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia

Publication date: 26th April 2023

Genre: Middle Grade / Illustrated

Pages: 280

RRP: $16.99AU (paperback) 

Source: Courtesy of the publisher 

 

Review: The Ghoul in the School

Book two in The Breakfast Club Adventures is every bit as suspenseful as book one. The Breakfast Club Investigators (BCI) are back in this exciting mystery The Ghoul in the School.

 

The BCI haven't been doing so well in solving mysteries lately and Marcus is concerned the club will close and he will lose his friends. When Gbenga, the captain of the school's basketball team, asks for their help Marcus thinks this mystery will get them back on their feet. The school's basketball team has been losing all their games. They think they are cursed and a ghoul is haunting the courts.

This is a great story about friendship, working together and not being afraid to ask for help when needed. It has themes of learning from your mistakes and trying again. I love that Marcus and his friends all have different personalities and each brings a different skill to the club. The club is a mix of boys and girls and they all work together to solve the mystery, there is no defined leader and everyone's opinion is listened to.

The Ghoul in the School is a fun story, easy to read and filled with page turning suspense.

I love that Marcus includes a welcome note to his readers in the front of each book.

 

"I hope that through this book you can broaden your horizons, you can dream bigger, you can champion and celebrate the differences in one another, and realize that difference isn't a negative, it's a strength.' - MR

Recommended age: 8 - 11 years

My rating 5 /5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

About the authors

 

Marcus Rashford MBE is Manchester United's iconic number 10 and an England International Footballer. in October 2020, he was appointed MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours. Marcus has committed himself to combating child poverty in the UK.

 

Alex Falase-Koya is a London native. He was a winner of Spread the Word's 2019 London Writers Awards for YA/children's. he now lives in Walthamstow with his girlfriend and two cats.

 

About the Illustrator

 

Marta Kissi studied BA Illustration & Animation at Kingston University and MA Visual Communication at the Royal College of Art. her favourite part of being an illustrator is bringing stories to life by designing charming characters and the wonderful worlds they live in. She shares a studio with her husband James.

Book Review: Friendly Bee and friends by Sean E Avery

 Friendly Bee and Friends

by

Sean E Avery

Publisher: Walker Books Australia

Publication date: 5th April 2023

Genre: Graphic Novel 

Pages: 160

RRP: $15.99AU (Paperback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

Dot's review of Friendly Bee and Friends

This story is about a bee and wasp and how they became friends. My favourite character was the bee because he was so funny.

I would recommend my friends to read this book because it is about friendship and being kind to everyone even if they are boring or not pretty. I liked that Friendly Bee never gave up on trying to be friends with Angry Wasp.

My favourite parts of the story were when the slightly peckish caterpillar turned into a beautiful butterfly and when the enormous hairy spider gave Bee and Wasp a new hairdo.
The fact pages on bees, wasps, caterpillars and spiders were interesting. The ending was a big surprise and I liked that Bee’s and Wasp’s problem was solved and everyone became friends.   

 

Dot's rating 5 / 5   🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝

My thoughts

Angry Wasp doesn’t want to be friends with Friendly Bee but Bee will not give up, he wants to be friends with everyone. Wasp is trying his best to ignore him but when he sees Bee in a sticky and dangerous situation he can’t turn away. 

 

Angry Wasp is starting to think that Friendly Bee is really quite annoying when he finds himself in a very sticky and dangerous situation of his own and he only has Bee to save him.

 

Friendly Bee is a humorous and cheeky graphic novel starring the funny, hyperactive and overly dramatic friendly Bee and the dour and unfriendly Angry Wasp.

 

A laugh-out-loud story of friendship with fun facts on caterpillars, spiders, bees and wasps.

 

Recommended age 5+

 

 

About the author

 

Sean E Avery is a teacher, writer-illustrator, sculptor and designer born in South Africa; living in Perth, Western Australia. Locally, he’s best known as the writer-illustrator of best-selling children’s picture book, All Monkeys Love Bananas, published by Fremantle Press. His last picture book, Happy as a Hog Out of Mud, won the 2022 WAYRBA Picture Book of the Year Award and his latest book, Frank’s Red Hat, is shortlisted for the 2023 Indie Book of the Year Award and already a hit with kids in Australia, Korea, France and Denmark. Internationally, he’s best known as a sculptor who uses CDs and DVDs to create breathtaking works of art that reside in galleries and private collections all around the world. He is curious, enthusiastic and ready to work hard for the things he believes in.

Book Review: Queenie in Seven Moves by Zanni Louise

 Queenie in Seven Moves

by

Zanni Louise

Publisher: Walker Books

Publication date: 1st February 2023

Genre: Middle Grade (8 -12) 

Pages: 240

RRP: $16.99AU (paperback) 

Source: Own purchase

 

My review of Queenie in Seven Moves

 Queenie in Seven Moves is a delightful story about 12 year-old Queenie and her mum's search for a new home.

Queenie loves her home but when the house is sold her and her mum are forced to move. Relying on the kindness of friends Queenie and Clare, over the course of the summer school break, move seven times. With each move Queenie learns a little more about herself. Her belief in herself slowly grows as she makes new friends, takes new challenges, and takes the time to renew an old friendship.

Queenie in Seven Moves is such a gorgeous story and twelve-year-old Queenie is a treat with her moods and possessiveness of her mother. It's all so relatable!

It was lovely to follow Queenie's journey as she gains the confidence to step outside her comfort zone and be her best self.

Queenie learns that change won't kill you, it makes you stronger.

Queenie in Seven Moves is a delightful story about growing up, moving forward and realising your dreams.

Content: When Queenie checks her Christmas stocking she states that the contents are from her mother. As this book is targeted to ages 8+, parents will need to decide what they think their child will read into that.

* I have just checked publisher's website this book is recommended for ages 10 - 13 years

My rating 4.5 / 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐½

About the author

Zanni Louise has published several picture books with award-winning illustrators, including Archie and the Bear and Errol! She has a 6-book series called Tiggy and the Magic Paintbrush.

Zanni tours the country, inspiring kids and adults to write their own stories. She travels with the Byron Writers Festival StoryBoard bus, and teaches Writing Picture Books with Australian Writers Centre. Zanni also mentors individuals to achieve their writing dreams.

 

Book Review: The Bowerbird by Julia Donaldson

 The Bowerbird

by

Julia Donaldson

illustrated by Catherine Rayner

Publisher: Pan Macmillan

Imprint: Macmillan Children's Books

Publication date: 28th March 2023

Genre: Picture Book

Pages: 32

RRP: $26.99AU (Hardback)

Source: Courtesy of the publisher

 

My review of The Bowerbird

We are big fans of Julia Donaldson's books here at Little Squirrel's Bookshelf and we especially love her nature themed stories.

 

The Bowerbird features Bert, an irresistible little bird with a very big heart. Bert is a bowerbird and he is looking for love. He builds an impressive bower and decorates it with items he finds but he never has enough to attract the bird he has his eye on, the haughty Nanette.

 

 

I love that Julia and Catherine are bringing out books to teach children about nature and the way birds interact with each other. We fell in love with the Go-away bird who was a bit aloof and didn't interact with the other birds only to find that friends can be fun and there for you when you need help. Now we have fallen in love with Bert! He is so sweet and just wants to find a mate. We also learnt a lot about bowerbirds and how they collect things to make their bower pretty. We also meet the cunning Claude who likes to steal items from other bowers.

 

Will Bert find love?

 

Catherine Rayner’s delightful, full spread, watercolour illustrations add an extra visual dimension to this enchanting tale of finding your perfect match.

 

The Bowerbird is an enchanting rhyming story that's a delight to read and engaged the children. It is a wonderful introduction to bowerbirds and nature in general which can be expanded on with some more fact-finding. I was surprised how many different species there are!   

Our rating 5 / 5 🐦🐦🐦🐦🐦

We decided to leave some blue objects out to see if we had any bowerbirds in our area.

About the author

Julia Donaldson has written some of the world's best-loved children's books, including modern classics The Gruffalo and The Gruffalo's Child, which have sold over 25 million copies worldwide and have been translated into over one hundred languages. Her other books include Room on the Broom, Stick man and Zog, illustrated by Axel Scheffler, The Hospital Dog, illustrated by Sara Ogilvie and the hugely successful What the Ladybird Heard adventures, illustrated by Lydia Monks.

About the illustrator

Catherine Rayner studied illustration at Edingurgh College of Art and has been short-listed for the prestigious Kate Greenway Medal four times, and won in 2009 for Harris Finds his Feet. In addition to illustrating for other authors such as Michael Bond, Holly Webb and Michael Morpurgo, she has also written her own picture books, including Ernest, Solomon Crocodile, Solomon and Mortimer and Smelly Louie, which won the Peter's Book of the Year award in 2015.

Book Review: Coco Chanel - Little People Big Dreams by Isabel Sanchez Veraga

Little People Big Dreams

 Coco Chanel

by

Isabel Sanchez Veraga

Publisher: Frances Lincoln Children's Books 

Publication date: 4th February 2016

Series: Little People, Big Dreams

Genre: Non Fiction / Biography

Pages: 32 Hardcover

Source: own purchase

Dot's review of Coco Chanel

Coco Chanel had a hard life growing up in an orphanage. I understand how she worked hard to become a great designer. 

This is a great inspirational book showing how people can come from humble beginnings and still achieve great things. I definitely think this is a five star read.

Dot's rating 5/ 5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

About the book

In this new series, discover the lives of outstanding people from designers and artists to scientists. All of them went on to achieve incredible things, yet all of them began life as a little child with a dream. The first book follows Coco Chanel, from her early life in an orphanage - where she is a genius with needle and thread - to her time as a cabaret singer, hat maker and, eventually, international fashion designer. This inspiring and informative little biography comes with extra facts about Coco's life at the back.

 

 

 

Book Review: The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

 The Secret Garden

by

Frances Hodgson Burnett

Publisher: Puffin Classics

Publication date: First published 1911 my edition published in 2010

Genre: Children's Middle Grade

Pages: 340

Format: Hardcover

Source: Own

 

My review of The Secret Garden

Many thanks to Tracey @CarpeLibrum for suggesting a buddy read for this book. I had this beautiful hardcover edition published by Puffin Classics sitting on my shelf just waiting to be enjoyed.

This was my first reading of The Secret Garden and I loved it!

I'm sure everyone knows the story; after Mary's parents die from the bubonic plague she is sent to Misselthwaite Manor to live with her uncle. After living the first 10 years of her life with absent parents it's nothing to Mary to now live in the manor with an absent uncle.

I loved that the adults mostly take a back seat in this novel. They are quite often baffled by Mary but mostly leave her to her own devices (and non of them are electronic). Mary learns to run, laugh, play and take an interest in the natural environment around her. As Mary spent time outdoors I could practically see her morph from a stubborn, bitter girl to a lively, happy girl.

There is a lot in this book that will appeal to children; a  wild stubborn girl, a boy that is attuned to nature, a locked door mystery and a neglected garden that the children bring back to life.

 

The Secret Garden is a truly delightful book filled with the healing magic of nature, positive thinking and above all friendship.

Below is a quote from Sophie Dahl's introduction.

" Even the most cynical reader would be hard pressed to remain unmoved by The Secret Garden"

My edition concludes with notes on the author and the characters, plus things to think about, questions to ponder and ideas for your own garden.

 

My rating 5/ 5   ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 

 

recommended age: 6 - 100 

 

Challenges: Mount TBR over on The Burgeoning Bookshelf

 

  

Book Review: Don't Fart in the Pool! by Ben Jackson & Sam Lawrence

Don't Fart in the Pool!

by

Ben Jackson & Sam Lawrence

Publisher: Indie Publishing Group

Publication date: 5th July 2020

Genre: Children's Picture Book

Pages: 28

Format: Softcover

Source: Courtesy of the authors

 

My review of Don't Fart in the Pool!

Don't Fart in the Pool is a story to be read simply for the laugh-out-loud fun of it.

 

I'm not a big fan of 'fart' books but I know they are hugely popular with children and a vast array of titles can be found in any bookstore. 

 

Jay actually thought this story was hilarious, as I'm sure any six-year-old would. 

Stan has a habit of farting in the pool when out swimming - splash around a bit and no-one will notice the bubbles. 

Only this time, after a big night of tacos, Stan was at the local pool and his stomach was gurgling and grumbling and, well, it wasn't a fart that ensued.

This is a lighthearted fun story with bright full spread illustrations and large print to encourage self reading.

There is a fun suspenseful build up to the big embarrassing moment and even when you know what is going to happen next it's still quite funny to turn the page to see the big brown stain spreading across the pool.

Moral of the story: Never trust a fart!

Jay's rating 4/5     ⭐⭐⭐⭐

About the authors

Ben Jackson was born in Tasmania, Australia, and is a successful indie author that has been writing for over four years. Ben is married to Sam Lawrence, and together they specialize in self-publishing children's books.

They have been married for several years and have traveled together between Australia and Canada. Ben is also a freelance writer that specializes in writing website content for businesses and a wide variety of different articles.

They have published a series of children's books called My Little Fart and Hockey Wars, as well as If I Was A Caterpillar and several other non-fiction books.

You can read my review of Hockey Wars at the link below:

https://littlesquirrelsbookshelf.blogspot.com/2022/10/book-review-hockey-wars-by-sam-lawrence.html