Butterfly Butterfly by Petr Horáček

Petr Horáček's illustration style is bright, engaging and full of life and movement. So when you sit down to read a book about colours set in the garden, you know you're in for a treat!


When Lucy finds a butterfly in the garden and chases it around, we are introduced to lots of different colours visually, just by her garden setting. When she returns the following day, she can't find the butterfly, but she does find a pink earthworm, a brown spider, a green beetle and some spotty red ladybirds.


By this point in the story, we have been introduced to some cut outs that add an extra level of enjoyment to the pictures. It continues with other insects, colours and cutouts until the finale which sees the beautiful butterfly springing from the page in a fantastic simple pop-up.

I've heard people say that Petr's illustrations are "like Eric Carle's" but I wouldn't really say that. It's true there is a feeling of collage and a bright use of colour, but other than The Very Hungry Caterpillar his illustrations really haven't done much for me. Petr Horáček, on the other hand, I engage with each of his books immediately. I think you will too. This is a fantastic colours book because there's more to it than just colours.

 

4 Silver Stars

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What's In The Witch's Kitchen by Nick Sharratt

I'll start with this: my nieces love this book. I gave it to them a year or so back and they still laugh each time it is read to them, or when they read it to themselves (because they know it so well).

I move on to this: I love this book.

I know that Nick Sharratt's illustrations aren't for everyone. Some people find them too cartoony and over simplified. But I say, hey! if it works, it works. And Between this and 'The Foggy Foggy Forest' I think his style works pretty well!

"What's in the fridge in the Witch's kitchen?

Open it left or open it right,
Will you like what you see?
Will it give you a fright?"

We then open the fridge (a lift the flap kind of thing) and we see that the fridge has Tasty Cheese in it (much like my own fridge... mmm cheese). Then we see that the flap can open the other way too, and inside we find Bats with Fleas!

And so on it goes, each container in the Witch's Kitchen holding something yummy and something disgusting. You know, the types of things are are sure to illicit giggles from children (and the occasional adult). Things like "Pooh! Lizard's Fart!" and "Nasty! Goblin's Wee!" and "Rabbit Plops!".

Then on the last page, as we try to escape the strange goings-on, there is a scary pop up surprise. Boo! Out jumps the witch herself!

He he he... I'm still chuckling as I write this. 

Do you know what this book is? It's fun!

 

4.5 Silver Stars

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Grandpa's Slippers by Joy Watson and Wendy Hodder

Grandpa's Slippers was one of the books I owned as a kid. I loved it. It was one that I practically new by heart.

I have just now re-read it, and I'm struck by how differently things seem to adult readers. I don't mean this in any sort of derogatory way, but really, Grandma is relentless in her quest to destroy the slippers that Grandpa loves so much. It made me chuckle is all.

But I still see the things I loved about it as a child, and I still quite enjoy them. The passing days, the many different ways Grandma tries to get rid of them, the cumulative complaints Grandma has about them and the smug satisfaction on her face when they finally fall to bits and he is forced wear his new ones which he quite likes.

I think another reason I like this story is that I often hold onto things long after their used-by date. Good thing this book doesn't have a used-by date. It's just as good now as it ever was.

 

3.5 Silver Stars

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JudgeABook: Pretty Monsters - Stories by Kelly Link

Even as I look at this now, I can see why I picked it for a JudgeABook post, but I still fail to see what I'm going to write for the section where I make up a synopsis from the cover alone.

It is a striking cover, hinting at things dark, strange and beautiful. And I would be excited to read get a copy and read it, but it doesn't give away much as far as possible narrative is concerned. Which can actually be rather lovely from time to time. I hate when too much is given away...

Anyhow, I like the look of this cover. What do you think of it?

Let's see how I go writing a blurb for it, knowing so little:

She stood on her balcony looking out towards the distant town. It had been months since the last suitor had come knocking. She smiled at the memory of the taste of him on her lips. 

There was a scratching at her chamber door that distracted her from her thoughts. She sighed and went to open it for the beast. She may have been sent here by her cowardly father, trying to escape his death, but a moon had barely waxed and waned before he had this creature on a leash. A sniveling, mangy pet. 

The Castle was hers. 

Tales of her beauty and dominion spread. The suitors came.

It had been months since her last meal.

 

4.5 Silver Stars

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Cinderella by Barbara McClintock

What is it?

Cinderella

Who wrote it?

 Barbara McClintock

Where can it be found?

 It's a Picture Book edition

Adaptation?

Retold from the Charles Perrault version and illustrated by...

My thoughts in exactly 10 words:

The traditional story, just as insipid as usual, nicely illustrated.

JudgeABook: Of Poseidon by Anna Banks

I've been seeing this book's cover on the blog circuit for a while now. I can't say I've stopped to read any of the reviews, but I have noticed how engaging the image and title are. I love the simplicity of it. I love the fact that it's called Of Poseidon, not just Poseidon or something else.

I'm a little worried that mermaids are the new vampires. Which doesn't mean there won't be any good books out there, but too much of anything isn't particularly wonderful.

I'm not really sure what I'm going to write about this one (I keep doing this! picking book jackets for JudgeABook that are really sparse. They make great jackets, but then leave me with nothing to make up the story from). Let me see how I go.

She had heard enough. 

Being her father's daughter was difficult. Sure, in some ways she was spoiled, but too often she was burdened with expectations and limitations for fear of what rivals might do. The trouble was, she knew her father was crooked, and the way her mother was happy being a trophy wife, swanning around like some sort of underworld queen. 

She swam away. Fear, anger, hatred spilling from her eyes and mixing immediately with the water. 

She's heard him. That nasty one, Frank, was that his name? He's said he had to take a hit out on Toby. She knew their relationship would find it's way back to her father.

"The Don wants that Toby kid taken care of..."

 

4 Silver Stars

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JudgeABook: Cinder by Marissa Meyer

I really like the look of this book. I know it's been floating around for a while now, but I'm just now getting to writing about it. I haven't read it, but it's sitting on my shelf waiting to be read. Now, I love me some fairy tale adaptations, and even though I'm not a huge fan of the Cinderella story itself, how could I not be drawn to Cinderella-as-a-Cyborg? Admittedly, I know more than I should for a JudgeABook post, as the cover doesn't really say anything about cyborgs, only suggests a metal bone structure. But, let's go with it. It's a striking cover nonetheless.

Cinder slipped her foot into the ruby shoe. It was the perfect addition to her outfit. She smiled, thinking that the fragility of the glass pump belied her next-to-indestructible nature.

Standing, she looked at herself in the mirror. Thank goodness for the titanium reinforcement in the sole, imperceptible when she was standing. While her manufacturers had made her figure to perfection, they didn't really get her weight to what a girl would call acceptable. But, with a steel skeleton, there's only so much she could expect. She smoothed her dress. 

She was dressed to kill.

 

4.5 Silver Stars

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Broken by Elizabeth Pulford

When I heard about Broken, I got excited. I thoroughly enjoyed Tussock and so Elizabeth Pulford’s writing was more than enough to make me want to read it. But then I heard that it is narrated by a girl who is in a coma and my interest spiked. Further, the cover is beautiful!

Zara is broken, the back cover tells us, she’s in a coma, trapped in the world of her subconscious. We learn at the very beginning that she was on the back of her brother’s motorcycle when there was an accident. Jem, tragically, died immediately. Zara is in a coma, unaware of his death, unaware of her own vegetative state. All she knows is the broken pieces of her life, over-lapping, intersecting and scrolling through her mind without much rhyme or reason.

She hears snippets of conversation from the hospital room, she remembers things from the past, she knows Jem is missing and she needs to find him. He is her secret keeper. He is the only one she told the whole story to after she was kidnapped as a seven year old and kept in a cupboard for six weeks. She desperately needs to find him. Has he disappeared into one of his comics that he was so obsessed with? Armed with a pencil and an eraser she draws her way in after him to find out.

Piece by piece Zara must sift through her past to unlock secrets she has kept deep inside her.

I really liked this book. The fragmented text types, the disjointed narration, the blurring of reality and fantasy within the comic book; they all build to make a believable picture of a girl in a coma. At no point did I feel it was gimmicky or forced. Even as great idea “narrated by a girl in a coma” is, it is a great premise that could have easily fell flat by a less skilled author. Once I had finished I didn’t think the story in Broken could have been told in any other way. It all works.

This is a YA read that is different other things out there.

 

4.5 Silver Stars

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The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

What is it?

The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats

Who wrote it?

Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

Where can it be found?

in The Annotated Brothers Grimm
Edited by Maria Tatar

Adaptation?

Recorded by the Grimms

My thoughts in exactly 10 words:

The Wolf slept as deep as general anaesthetic – I wish!

The Catwings Series by Ursula K Le Guin and S.D. Schindler

   

Ursula K Le Guin is one of the authors I consider one of my favourites. Her Earthsea series is absolutely amazing and I particularly love her lesser known series ‘The Annals from the Western Shore’. Something about those sweeping fantasies moves me incredibly.

But this review isn’t about those books. This is about a little series called Catwings that I discovered in my bookshop days. I bought them on the spot (well three of the four – all that was in available at the time) and sat them proudly next to her young adult books on my shelf. At that time, while I wanted to own these little chapter books, I didn’t read that sort of thing very much, so they have sat, untouched, for 6 or 7 years now. These days, I know the joy a well written chapter book can bring, so one night when I finished reading a more substantial sci-fi, I got out of bed and went and got them and read all three in a row.

What are they about? Cats with wings. Couldn’t you tell?

Why do they have wings?

“Mrs Jane Tabby could not explain why all four of her children had wings.” - The first sentence of the first book. But, it is unimportant. We grow with the kittens, learning to use their wings, trying to survive in the city. Then Jane sends her children away to find a safer place to live. That’s when the adventures begin.

These are gentle fantasy chapter books for imaginative children, especially if they like cats.

In each book we meet a new friend and come up against a new challenge.

I must admit I wasn’t as profoundly moved by them as I have been by her other writings, but I believe she achieved her goal with these books. They really are charming.

3.5 Silver Stars

Find them on Goodreads:

Catwings

Catwings Return

Wonderful Alexander and the Catwings

Jane On Her Own

 9, 10, 11/40

Goldilocks on CCTV by John Agard and Satoshi Kitamura

What is it?

Goldilocks On CCTV

Who wrote it?

John Agard

Illustrated by Satoshi Kitamura

Where can it be found?

In ‘Goldilocks On CCTV’

Adaptation?

Yes, a different spin on this story, focusing more on the aftermath.

My thoughts in exactly 10 words:

Breaking and entering, theft, vandalism: Bears were prepared with CCTV

Extended thoughts:

When I was reading this collection of contemporary takes on fairy tale characters, I was trying to decide which poem to write about. In the end I picked the title poem because I think it’s rather funny. It talks about how the news reported of the girl who was caught sleeping at the scene of the crime and how the Bears decided to drop the charges.

Like other poems in the book, it adds an element to the stories we know that I think high school age kids will appreciate. Drawing on the more mature concepts behind some of the stories, they poke fun at both classic conventions engrained in fairy tales as well as having a little giggle at contemporary life.

Favourite Quote:

“There she was, tucking in
to a bowl of their muesli.
Every move on CCTV.

How she vandalised a chair
in the nursery
then tried out their Jacuzzi”

Moral of the story in my own words:

Crime doesn’t pay. Especially when security cameras are around.

3 Silver Stars

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Girl, Stolen by April Henry

A fairly straight-forward premise leads to a great read, one of those ones that you find yourself needing to know what’s going to happen.

A girl is lying on the back seat of her Step-Mother’s car while she’s fulfilling a prescription for the girl’s pneumonia. Then, the car is stolen, girl and all. Oh yeah, and she’s blind.

This is a gripping thriller where we’re really taken along with Cheyenne and experience it as she would, unable to see, but far from helpless either.

I’m not really sure what to say about this book without giving too much away, other than I really enjoyed it and didn’t want to put it down till I was finished. There are some scenes that are very uncomfortable, as some of her kidnappers are mightily unpleasant men, but that only adds to the edge, the compulsiveness of it.

It’s a straight-up great, realistic, suspenseful read.

4 Silver Stars

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Preloved by Shirley Marr

Shirley Marr’s writing style is crisp, fast paced and snappy. I’ve heard very good things about her novel ‘Fury’ but haven’t had a chance to read it yet, so Preloved was my introduction to her.

The book is from the point of view of Amy who feels like she is a minor character in the ‘movie’ of her best friend Rebecca. Her mother is always offering snippets of Chinese mythology and superstition, that she has trouble identifying with, and her father hasn’t made any attempt to be a father since their separation. One day, a locket finds its way to Rebecca who discards it and Amy becomes focused on getting it open. When she manages to open it, it contains the photo of a very attractive boy from the 80’s – whose ghost starts to follow her around. J

Preloved works on a number of levels. Firstly, it is relatable, in that the characters were like ones I went to high school with. It felt Australian, without the slightest hint of Australiana. Despite one of the main aspects of it being about Eastern philosophy, and the main character’s family being Chinese, at no point did I feel ostracised by this. Amy is trying to reconcile her beliefs and those of her mother throughout the story so it is easy for a non-Chinese reader (such as myself) to identify with her.

I felt this was a well done twist on the paranormal romance genre, as it wasn’t anywhere near as other-worldly and soppy as others in this genre. And despite the myriad of 80’s references, it had a very contemporary feel to it. It’s definitely one that I can see teen readers devouring, much like the hungry ghosts the book deals with.

4 Silver Stars

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One Scary Night by Antoine Guilloppe

Looking at my bookshelves, trying to pick a picture book book to review, I spied this one hiding between the spines and knew I'd found the perfect one.

This is a great wordless picture book that really plays with simple storytelling and reader's expectations. It's all illustrated in black and white in a rather effective, graphic style.

A boy is walking through the woods in the snow. He is being stalked by a menacing wolf. The title has told us that something scary is going to happen, and we can see clearly that this wolf will have something to do with it. But in the way that you expect.

I love the simplicity of this book. It's so straight forward in is orientation, complication and resolution, and I love how we can still get a surprise from what we might have been sure we knew by half way through.

I found a little video of the book, but I can't embed it. You can watch it HERE. It's got a child talking in French over the top, but as the book itself is wordless, it doesn't matter if you can't understand it.

4 Silver Stars

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The Princess and The Pea by James Finn Garner

What is it?

The Princess and the Pea

Who wrote it?

James Finn Garner

Where can it be found?

in: Once Upon a More Enlightened Time: More politically Correct Bedtime Stories

Adaptation?

Yes! Of the ‘politically correct’ variety.

My thoughts in exactly 10 words:

‘PC’ to the extreme unearths the flaws in this story.

The Princess And The Pea by Hans Christian Andersen

What is it?

The Princess and the Pea

Who wrote it?

Hans Christian Andersen
(Compiled by Russell Ash and Bernard Highton

Where can it be found?

A Classic Illustrated Edition: Tales From Hans Christian Andersen

  

Adaptation?

I’m not entirely sure. It is certainly shorter than other versions I know, but whether that is in the editing, I don’t know.

My thoughts in exactly 10 words:

This Prince has ridiculous constructs about women. Thin-skinned indeed!

Extended thoughts:

More so in this version than in others, I was struck by how unreasonable the prince was in his search for a wife. She had to be a real princess (italics from the book) and every princess he met, the world over, “wasn’t quite right”. It begs to question if he actually wanted to marry at all, or if the whole thing was a charade to appease parents who wanted him to marry. It gets a bit silly. And who says that such a ‘Thin-skinned’ woman maketh a real princess anyway? Dose that imply that real royalty has never done a day’s work and has had no opportunity get thick-skin? Is the queen equally afflicted by these disproportional bruises? Should they see a doctor? And why, oh why, would a real princess appear on the doorstep in the middle of a thunder storm, looking a mess and simply claiming she was a princess? Something smells of a con job…

I do love the Edmond Dulac illustration that accompanies it though. He has a fantastic way with perspective and sweeping angles.

Favourite Quote:

“The pea was placed in the royal museum, where it can still be seen, unless someone has taken it.”

Moral of the story in my own words:

(Mmm, this one is hard).

If you’re too picky in finding a partner, you might end up with a lying, homeless person with a medical condition. 

3 Silver Stars

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Yummy: My Favourite Nursery Stories by Lucy Cousins

What is it?

Red Riding Hood

Who wrote it?

Lucy Cousins

Where can it be found?

in Yummy: My Favourite Nursery Stories by Lucy Cousins

Adaptation?

Not so much adaptation as abbreviation, or brief re-write.

My thoughts in exactly 10 words:

Like Cousins’ illustrations, this version is bright, bold and succinct.

Cinderella, or The Little Glass Slipper by Charles Perrault

What is it?

Cinderella, or The Little Glass Slipper

Who wrote it?

Charles Perrault

Where can it be found?

The Annotated Classic Fairy Tales
Edited by Maria Tatar

Adaptation?

Only in that Perrault wrote down his version of story that he had heard.

My thoughts in exactly 10 words:

Almost painfully lovely, Cinderella repudiates her soot and metaphorical shackles.

JudgeABook Revisited: Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Earlier this year, I talked about the cover of Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver in one of my JudgeABook posts. Basically, I really like the cover and the whole production of these books. (the blue text inside is also a nice touch). But, despite having owned it for a year or two, I had never read it. Well, I used my last trip to Canberra (long road trip for work) as an opportunity to listen to the audio book.So now, I come back and see if the book lived up to it's cover...

I need to be honest from the outset. I know I would have like this book A LOT more if I had just read it for myself. It was the most annoying audio book I've ever listened to. Talking about just the audio part of it for a minute, I think I preferred the one where the narrator didn't pause for breath in the right spots and it kept changing sound quality over this one.

Firstly, it was almost painfully American. I'm talking about the accents. So clearly American listeners wouldn't have the same reaction as I did, but I'm entitled to it. Secondly, the chapters alternate between the main girl character and the main boy character, each being narrated by someone of that gender. In theory, this was a good idea. In reality, getting used to different voiced for the same characters (as each character speaks in both types of narrated chapters) was annoying. Particularly because the male reader doing female voices sounded exactly like a man in drag from a show I watch. Thirdly, both narrators kept putting the most bizarre inflections into the words that seemed like they were very confused or a little slow. All in all, it was the most grating audio book I've ever listened to.

But that aside, what did I think of the book beneath the speakers? It was ok. If you like paranormal romance, then chances are you'll like this one too. I've seen blogs where people list these books as their "all time favourites". I didn't dislike it, and even though I know I would have liked it a lot more if I'd read it myself, I'm not entirely convinced I would have afforded it the time of sitting and reading. Reading time is precious, and I have too much gold sitting round my house un-read to worry too much about everything that comes around. I was drawn to these by their jackets (and their market penetration), but while they're perfect for their market, they're not at all what gets me excited. I'm not paranormal romance's biggest fan.

Where does this leave this revisited post? I congratulate the design team for a brilliant job on books that I know many will love, but I didn't, but didn't had. I'm just right down the middle with them.

2.5 Silver Stars

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8/40