Tackylocks And The Three Bears by Helen Lester - 4 Stars

Tacky and his friends are a waddle of penguins, and they are going to put on a play for Mrs. Beakly’s school. They will be preforming Goldilocks (Tackylocks) And The Three Bears. When it’s time for the play to start the penguins are rambunctious and cannot settle down. Will Tacky’s unusual portrayal of Goldilocks keep the audience entertained. It’s a cute book but first get one of these books in the series from the library to see if it will captivate your child.       

Published In: 2002

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin

Age Level: 4-7 years

AR Level: 3.3

Pages: 32                                                   

Stars: 4

Series: 10 Books

The High-Skies Adventures of Blue Jay The Pirate by Scott Nash -3 Stars

Wish I had read the reviews about this book before purchasing. It is not my cup of tea. First, I am not a fan of animals taking on human attributes. The birds in this book are pirates, farmers, villagers, and guards. Food is running low for the sparrows (non-pirate) and they have to protect their supplies from the marauding Blue Jay pirate.  Second, I hate birds, I have had a fear of birds since childhood. This was not the book for me, I only got through 4 chapters. Maybe other readers will find the adventures of Blue Jay more entertaining.

Published In: 2012
Publisher: Candlewick Press
AR Level:5.5
Age Level: 7-11 years
Pages: 212                                            
Stars: 3
 

Princess Posey and the First Grade Parade by Stephanie Greene - 4 Stars

Posey is not ready for the first grade. Two things scare her, first she must enter the school by herself. Everybody knows there is a monster in the “Blue Hall” which is the hall all first graders have to go down to get to their classrooms and monsters frighten her. Second, her mother will not let her wear her favorite tutu. The tutu makes her feel special and she can do anything when she is wearing it. How will Posey survive the first day of school?

My 8-year-old granddaughter is in second grade but the reading level for this chapter book is 2.9, so I decided to see if it would appeal to her. Surprise, surprise she liked it. Not a great read but enough humor and “how does Posey get out of this fix?” to keep my granddaughter interested. A 4 out of 5 stars from this grandmother.

Published In: 2010
Publisher: Putnam
Age Level: 6-8 years
AR Level: 2.9
Pages: 82
Stars: 4
Series: 12 Books

It Could Always Be Worse by Margot Zemach - 5 Stars

 

A “poor unfortunate man” lives in a one-room hut with his family, a wife, six kids and his mother. The hut is very crowded, there is a lot of fighting, crying and noise. The poor man has had enough, he goes to the Rabbi for advice.  The Rabbi tells him to slowly bring all his farm animals into the hut. Things just get worse. Finanly when he could stand it no longer, he goes back to the Rabbi who tells him to put all the animals back outside. Then all of sudden the poor man’s life did not seem so bad. The moral, be thankful for what you have, it could always be worse. The story has a very serious message, but the silly illustrations give the book much needed humor. I liked the book more than my 8-year-old granddaughter, but I thought the point of the story so important that the book gets a 5-star review.

Published In: 1976
Publisher: Farr, Straus, Giroux
Age Level: 3-8 years
AR Level: 3.7
Pages: 26                                                   
Stars: 5
Awards: 1978 Caldecott Honor

Swimmy by Leo Lionni - 5 Stars

 

Swimmy, a fish gets separated from his school. They are eaten by a larger fish but Swimmy is faster than all his friends and he gets away. He is now on his own and he starts to travel throughout the ocean. He discovers amazing sights such as, “sea anemones, who look like pink palm tress swaying in the wind”. He eventually finds another school of fish like him, and he wants to share the fantastic sights with them. The school is too scared to leave their hiding place, can Swimmy figure out a way for them to travel without being eaten by a bigger fish?

“Swimmy” is an older book than I thought, it was first published in 1963. It’s over sixty years old. This book is one that has stood up to the test of time. Both my 4-year-old and 8-year-old granddaughters loved the book. Rarely do they both like the same book so it’s a win, win for my family.

Published In: 1963
Publisher: Knopf
Age Level: 2-8 years
AR Level: 2.9
Pages: 28
Stars: 5
Awards: 1964 Caldecott Honor

Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed by Mo Willems - 5 Stars

Wilbur is different than all the other mole rats, he does not go about his day naked like his friends. He likes to wear clothes. All kinds of clothes fancy, funny and cool. The other mole rats do not understand his love of clothes. When the Grand-pah of the mole rats makes a proclamation will it be for or against clothes?

“Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed” is a classic children’s book. It is one of those books that needs to be in every child’s home library. There will be lots of giggles when read and the book has an important message, it’s ok to be different. A favorite of the grandkids.

Published In: 2009
Publisher: Hyperion Books
Age Level: 2-9 years
AR Level: 2.8
Pages: 536
Stars: 5

Green Wilma by Tedd Arnold -4 Stars

 

When Wilma wakes up, she has turned green and wants to eat flies. She has turned into frog. Her parents don’t know what to do and before they can figure something out, she has taken off for school. At school she engages in very funny antics which all preschoolers will enjoy. When she starts munching on flies the principle chases her out the doors. Wilma ends up in a pond asleep on a log. When she woke up, she had been dreaming about being chased by a fish. Was Wilma a little girl dreaming about being a frog or a frog dreaming about being a little girl? I got mixed reviews from my grandchildren on this picture book the 7-year-old was not impressed and did not like the ending. The 4-year-old giggled throughout the story. So, in the end it gets a 4-star review.

Published In: 1993
Publisher: Dial/Delacorte
Age Level: 2-7 years
AR Level: 2.8
Pages: 28
Stars: 4