Santa, Please Bring Me a Gnome by An Swerts

by Carol6 Comments
Santa, Please Bring Me a Gnome is a sweet little Christmas story. I love how Tess' grandparents play along, building furniture and making a blanket for the gnome that Santa will surely bring. Of course, Santa doesn't bring a gnome, but he does bring a darling little hamster who needs a home. And the becomes her best friend of course. The illustrations are sweet and gentle, like the cover. It would be a nice read to book to share with kids. But I'm not a big fan of animals as Christmas presents. It made for a heart-warming ending here, but animals, even hamsters, are a big commitment not something to buy on impulse because your daughter is expecting a gnome on Christmas. But kids won't look at it that way, they'll just enjoy the story and maybe ask for a gnome or hamster of their own....
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The Dream Dragon by Kathryn England

by Carol2 Comments
I should maybe quit reading kids books. I picked up The Dream Dragon because it looked cute and I try to keep an eye out for books my nieces/nephews would enjoy. And it was a fine book, I just felt a little sad for the dragon. The dream dragon protects the boy's dreams. He scares away the bad dreams, but he also pushes the good dreams to the edge, because he wants to be the dream the boy remembers. Then, a t-rex comes along and defeats the dragon. It is the new protector, but then comes along a superhero, then a pirate, and each, in turn, stars in the boy's dreams. I like how the book first shows than not all monsters are scary. It also connects what we read about or learn about in real life to our dreams, which I think can be helpful for kids. At least it was when Amber was little. Knowing why she dreamed about something...
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Thursday’s Tale: Brave Red, Smart Frog

by Carol1 Comment
I truly enjoyed these lovingly retold fairy tales. Jenkins has taken some favorite, familiar tales and while not adding anything new, has made them into charming tales. We have Snow White, Hansel and Gretel, Little Red Riding Hood, the Frog Prince, and Diamonds and Toads among others. While she keeps the traditional plots and characters. she gives some extra depth, like why the Frog Prince loved the princes or how Hansel and Gretel's father could have let them be left in the woods. She asks why the step-mother was so cruel and how Red could have been tricked by the wolf. I also love how the cold, frosty wood figures into the tales. The tales have touches of humor and amusing dialogue, especially in Three Wishes and the Frog Prince. I appreciate how the tales are connected in ways that make the book fit together well, rather than just a random collection. For example, the same huntsman who doesn't kill...
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Thursday’s Tale: The Little Red Hen

by Carol5 Comments
Amber's 17 now, so I don't really have much need to look at little kids books except for Christmas and my nieces' and nephews' birthdays, and then I always buy physical books. I just learned today that a bunch of the Little Golden Books I remember as a kid are available for Kindle, with the same illustrations and everything. In the tale, the little red hen finds a grain of wheat and asks for help from the the duck, the goose, the cat, and the pig to plant it, but they all decline. They each are doing something fun, as the pictures show. At each later stage (reaping, carrying the wheat to the mill, making the flour into dough, and baking the loaf), the hen again asks for help from the other animals, but each time no one wants to help her. Finally, the bread is ready and the hen asks who will help her eat the bread. This time, everyone volunteers, but...
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Thursday’s Tale: Cinderella and the Furry Slippers by Davide Cali

by Carol2 Comments
This is a modern twist on the classic Cinderella fairy tale. Cinderella, per usual, spends her days cleaning and doing her stepmother's and sisters' hair. She sees the prince in a magazine and dreams coming to save her. When she finds out he's having a ball, she calls up a fairy godmother and makes an appointment. That's when it all starts to go awry. The godmother is not what she expects - and neither are the clothes. Even the ball is disappointing, and the prince - well, let's just say he was more attractive in the magazine. So she makes her own happy ending. I like the girl-power feel of this one, and the illustrations are bright and funny. I think this would make a good book to read aloud to any little girl, reinforcing that a girl can be whatever she wants to. And that pictures in magazines aren't always realistic. Thursday's Tales is a weekly event here at Carol's Notebook....
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Argyle Fox by Marie Letourneau

by Carol3 Comments
We woke up this morning to more snow and cold temperatures. Ohio's weather has been crazy lately. I swear it was almost 60 yesterday. I needed some spring and Argyle Fox provides just that. It's a windy spring day and Argyle Fox wants to play outside, but the wind ruins everything he tries to do, until he comes up with a solution. It's a fun cute book. I like the ingenuity it encourages. On the other hand, I don't think wind should really ruin playing pirate or knight and I don't think it was nice for the other woodland creatures to discourage his imaginative play. You don't need a cardboard castle to pretend to fight a dragon. Or a paper hat to be a pirate. And I'm pretty sure building a tower of cards outside is never a good idea. But, if the wind hadn't made him grumpy during his other games, he wouldn't have been able to figure out the perfect...
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