A dragon and kid raised as a thief are partners. They survived a spaceship crash. They pretend to be magicians and put on a show - earning a lot of money doing "legitimately" what the kid has done illicitly before. There is more plot and story, but I didn't really catch it.
Magic Tree House books 25-29 by Mary Pope Osborne
They go to Elizabethan England and find people going to a performance. A man hears Jack read and asks him to substitute in the play. The man ends up being Will Shakespeare and the kids perform in Midsummer Night's Dream (with Annie pretending to be a boy dressed as a girl.) They also rescue a bear that was going to be used in a bear fight. This was my favorite of this group of books.
#26 Good Morning, Gorillas
They go to Africa and see gorillas. This was not a very good book.
They see the pilgrims on Thanksgiving, but don't fit in well.
#28 High Tide in Hawaii
They go to Hawaii and go surfing. They also need to go to high land when a tidal wave comes.
#29 Christmas in Camelot
They go to the imaginary time and find King Arthur and the gang. This was later to become Merlin Missions #1 and another book became magic treehouse 29.
Dinosaurs are like humans in the way they learn to read - at least according to this book. It doesn't have much to do with dinosaurs, but it does provide some fun pictures. It seems this series has gone a bit too far.
How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell
This book spawned multiple successful movies. It is set as a translation of old Norse. People train dragons. Some kids brefriend, but also run into trouble. Things work out well in the end.
The girls are ending their time on Rainspell island. They see a fairy trapped in a painting, but they are in the middle of a carnival. Luckily people are lured away by clowns. They rescue her and bring her to the pot at the end of the rainbow. It seems they are all together and ready to be brought back to fairy land. Alas, Jack Frost is not going to make it easy. They trap him in a bubble, but then realize they need him to have winter, so they trap him in a snow globe to bring him back with them to fairy land. The fairies make it back home, and the girls end their vacation on the island. This is a bit different than the standard rainbow magic tale as it a wraps things up.
Fern is a rainbow fairy stuck in a tree (not a fern), The girls find her and help the fairies against jack frost.
Rachel and Kirsty find Sky frozen as a victim of Jack Frost. They help bring her back and restore her to health. How did this series last for so long?
Ruby the Red Fairy: Rainbow Magic Rainbow Fairies Book #1 by Daisy Meadows
This is the first Rainbow Magic book. Two friends stumble across a fairy. They are then enlisted to help the fairy to bring color to fairyland. It is the same plot that will be repeated a few hundred more times.
I wanted to like this book. The story was appealing, but the writing was not as engaging as I would have liked. The author was embedded with the Colorado cross country team. They were good. They were good. They always finished among the top teams, but never quite won it all. (Since then, the team has won multiple championships.) The training was very demanding. The coach had athletes set goals and held them too them. There was also tragedy in the season, with one runner dying while riding his bicycle. The book explores the backstory of some runners along with recruiting challenges. It is a good insight into collegiate cross country, but could be much better.
This book covers number or American symbols, such as the flag, Statue of Liberty and Uncle Sam. Each is covered in a page or two with interesting trivia as well as details. It debunks some myths and is interesting, though younger kids may find it a bit long.
Clifford all of a sudden races off to see dad. Dad tries to teach him standard dig things, but Clifford has big dog issues. It repeats the Clifford formula.
The book continues to be a fun book for kids, even years after they have been potty trained. There are many little "easter eggs" included, such as the toy bus with a pigeon driving. Even the words are shown in a fun way. It is also a short, fun read.
I Knew You Could! A Book for All the Stops in Your Life by Craig Dorfman illustrated by Cristina Ong
The book tries to encourage you to be yourself and work hard to achieve your goes. It is a "modern rendition" of the Little Engine That Could, but not as good as the original.
This book has a rhythmic text that describes the way that a kid likes pumpkins. The pictures add a humorous touch to what is for the most part a fairly straight-laced story. There are also a few "activities" at the end that kids enjoy.
As the bus driver walks away, he asks the reader to watch things and "don't let the pigeon drive the bus". The pigeon appears and pleads with the reader for a chance to drive the bus. He doesn't get his way. The bus driver returns. In the end, the pigeon gets the idea of driving something else.
The book can be heavily interactive if desired. There is a "no response" for each of the Pigeon's intreaties. I can't help but include a few sound effects as I am reading it. Mo Willems came from a TV background, and this could easily be a visual short.
Animals talk about everything they will do to the baby. In the end, mama duck kisses the baby. The illustrations are mostly in black and white with a bit of yellow to brighten up the baby.
This is an easy to read story that does not hold much interest. The fox has a box. He does things with it. Some of the pages fold out for no particular reason.
