Dicey's Song

Dicey's Song by Cynthia Voigt

Dicey does not have a good life. Her mother has abandoned her and her siblings. She lives with her grandmother who has adopted her. Her grandmother is poor and must get aid to support the kids. She is going through puberty and has to get a bra with grandma. Eventually, she flies on an airplane and goes to see her mother in the hospital. Her mother dies and they don't even have the money to bury her. Eventually they find a solution and make it back home. She thinks her grandmother was very knowledgeable about traveling, but then discovers that this is her first time to leave home. The book is a bit sappy and slow moving, but well written.

Pocahontas: A Little Mischief

Pocahontas: A Little Mischief by Rebecca L. Schmidt, illustrated by Disney Storybook Art Team

A necklace has gone missing. There is also some food missing. Pocahontas traces down the food thief - a raccoon. She befriends it and the raccoon helps get the necklace back from the crow that stole it. It goes on a bit too long - even though it is only a 5 minute story.

Penny (Breyer Stablemates)

Penny (Breyer Stablemates) by Jane E. Gerver (Author), Lisa Papp (Illustrator)

This horse book has a princess and her pony. She is set by her fairy godmother to go on a quest to find gems. She treats the horse and others kindly, and thus finds the gems and gets her full crown. Only worth reading if you are really into horses and princesses. Even then, it is not a great story.

When You Wish Upon a Well (Disney Junior: Sofia the First)

When You Wish Upon a Well (Disney Junior: Sofia the First) (Little Golden Book) adapted by Lauren Forte from Michael G. Stern, illustrated by Disney Storybook Art Team

A stray cat appears, letting us know the king is allergic to cats. Little sister wants to have dad's attention, so he wishes dad were allergic to Sofia. However, the wish is granted by turning her into a purple cat. She tries to return it by wishing her to not be a purple cat, but that just turns her into a pink cat. Finally, she tells Dad who wishes her back to be a person and the girls learn to live how they should. It is a very Disney story.

A Kiss for Little Bear (An I Can Read Book)

A Kiss for Little Bear (An I Can Read Book) by Else Holmelund Minarik (Author), Maurice Sendak (Illustrator)

Little Bear draws a picture for Little Bear. He sends it back to him by way of an animal "chian". It starts to progress well from animal to animal until it gets to a skunk. However, a skunk kisses another skunk who kisses back until they fall in love. Hen has to grab the kiss back to get it back to Little Bear. The skunks end up getting married and inviting Little Bear to be best man. It is a nice , cute story.

I Wish You More

I Wish You More by Amy Krouse Rosenthal (Author), Tom Lichtenheld (Illustrator)

I wish for a bunch of random things rather than a bunch of other random things. It is short, but there is not much too it.

This Great Hemisphere: A Novel

This Great Hemisphere: A Novel by Mateo Askaripour

In the future, the world is divided into hemispheres. In the northwest hemispheres there are "invisibles" which have a see through skin and are a lower class. This is a nice double meaning as it ties to racism. The world is somewhat of a reverse steam-punk future. There are new technologies, but also many traditional technologies. Some things like cell phones are looked at as old tech. The drama centers around the death of a leader. The leader is respected in a somewhat religious way. The people try to hunt down the killer and use that as an excuse to attack invisibles. There are all sorts of things that go on, with people acting a lot like they would today, despite a far futuristic setting. The book goes on for much longer than is needed.

I Love My Daddy

I Love My Daddy [board book] by Giles Andreae (Author), Emma Dodd (Illustrator)

A little kid loves doing fun things with their dad. Many of the key activities are identified in a short book. It leads to "acting out" some of the fun things.

Friends Together

Friends Together: Reading Adventures Sofia the First Level Pre-1 Boxed Set by The Feldmann, illustrated by Character Building Studio and Disney Storybook Art Team

Friends X together. Repeat a few times. This is a very simple super easy reader. It is part of a Sofia the first box set collection. Kids could learn the pattern to repeat. Only for kids that like Sofia the First.

There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Desk

There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Desk by Lucille Colandro, illustrated by Jared Lee

She swallowed a bunch of parts for a school desk. Then she shouted and the desk was all set up. I'm amazed they have come up with a series for so minimal content.

Clifford Makes a Splash

Clifford Makes a Splash by Quinlan B. Lee, illustrated by Steve Haefele, based on books by Norman Bridwell

Clifford wants to cool off. However, attempts at the pool or beach don't work because he is so big. He ends up having fun with a hose. The story is very simple and short

Pig at Work

Pig at Work (Planet Reader, Level 1) by Jon Buller (Author), Susan Schade (Author)

A pig bikes to his construction job (at Wolf construction company). He drives a backhoe at work, while some alligators use excavators. They complete the construction of a pond, then get to dive in and enjoy it. The words are simple but entertaining in this well-loved easy reader.

My First Touch and Feel Pets (My First Touch and Feel Book)

My First Touch and Feel Pets (My First Touch and Feel Book) by Little Tiger Press

Take some stock photos of cute animals, add some simple dialog and then insert fabric that resembles their fur. That is all there is here. Young kids are interested for a read or two.

Mat (Bob Books Set 1 Book 1)

Mat (Bob Books Set 1 Book 1) by Bobby Lynn Maslen, pictures by John R. Maslen

This early Bob book has simple text about Mat and Sam. Most of the text is similar to "Mat Sat". It is something that early beginning readers could easily pick up. The catch is that they could also guess the text just by looking at the illustrations. Maybe that helps? Or maybe that gets in the way of learning to read.

Olivia

Olivia by Ian Falconer

Olivia is a rambunctious young humanoid pig that is loaded with energy and opinions. She loves trying things (and can get really good and building sand castles.) She spends a long time picking out her clothes. After seeing a Jackson Pollock painting at the museum, she tries to paint a similar one herself - and gets in trouble. The art is fairly sparse, with mostly greys and red, but an occasional photograph of a real painting. Both the art and the story are refreshingly good for both adults and children.

Willy's Wish (Bob Books Set 4, Book 6)

Willy's Wish (Bob Books Set 4, Book 6) by Bobby Lynn Maslen, pictures by John R. Maslen

Willy has a wish. He contemplates many things before he comes to a conclusion. This is a fairly decent story for a phonics book.

SIPPS Beginning Level: The Pet Pig: Part 2

SIPPS Beginning Level: The Pet Pig: Part 2 by John Shefelbine, Illustrated by Eve Aldridge and Center for Collaborative Classroom

This is part of a phonics collection of SIPPS beginning level. The story is a bit random (about a pet pig that smells smoke.) The language also feels a bit verbose for beginning readers. There are better ways to learn to read.

The Biggest Christmas Tree Ever

The Biggest Christmas Tree Ever by Steven Kroll (Author), Jeni Bassett (Illustrator)

A field mouse and a house mouse each want to find a big Christmas tree right after Thanksgiving. They fail to find anything the first time. Then they ask family members and go to the place to find a tree. They find it and get all their family to haul it back and decorate. It is a good, but not great story.

Curious George and the Birthday Surprise

Curious George and the Birthday Surprise by H.A. Ray and Martha Weston

There is a "surprise" at George's house. George does some ruckus decorating and trying to frost the cake. Then he has dogs clean up the mess. He then finds the surprise is a birthday party for him. It feels like an attempt to use the George formula that just doesn't quite cut it.

Happy Birthday Unicorn

Happy Birthday Unicorn by Jacquelyn Reinach, illustrated by Richard Hefter

It's Unicorn's birthday. Everyone thinks they should throw her a banquet with soft food and speeches because that's what they always do. However, nobody likes going to that type of celebration. Unicorn also dreads that type of birthday party and further is afraid that people will give her yarn. Zebra goes by and tells both Unicorn and the others that she should talk to each other. They nervously meet to talk and end up with a party that all enjoy. It is a message about not assuming others will do best.

Who Can Trust You, Kangaroo?

Who Can Trust You, Kangaroo? by Richard Hefter

Kangaroo likes to pull pranks that involve water. He sprays rabbit with a hose. He gets fish to land her motorcycle in a pond. He drops a bucket of water on hippo. The others are annoyed at him. Then they discover him trying to plot a prank with the car wash. They lock him in and he is really scared. They finally let him out and hope they have taught him a lesson. He says he has learned, but he was also given an idea for a great prank.

The frontpiece includes a list of all the characters in the series, while the back includes the back. The kids really love te book, even if it is a little simplistic.

Kittens (Bob books Set 3 book 6)

Kittens (Bob books Set 3 book 6) by Bobby Lynn Maslen

A cat has lost her kittens. They try to find them, and eventually do on a bed. This book is simple, like other Bob books, but a little complex for early readers.

Maisy at the Fair

Maisy at the Fair by Lucy Cousins

Maisy goes to the fair with her friend Tallulah. They have fun, but get separated, but are able to find each other in the end. It has very simple text and drawings and will appeal to young children.

Quest for the Unicorn's Horn (Discover Graphics: Mythical Creatures)

Quest for the Unicorn's Horn (Discover Graphics: Mythical Creatures) by Elizabeth Pagel-Hogan (Author), Román Díaz (Illustrator)

This is an "introductory" graphic novel. It is short, so should appeal to beginning readers. It could even be read to pre-readers. It starts with an introduction on how to read a graphic novel, and includes questions and a recipe at the end. In it, a kid works with a unicorn to find their horn in the land of sweets. They must resist eating the candy. The drawings are very "candy-like" with a simple story.

Pease Porridge Hot

 Pease Porridge Hot

This book came as a collection of mini board books. The parts of the original collection have disappeared, and there is no author information in the individual book.

It is a simple tale of the nursery rhyme. It is a quick little book that works well for little kids.