Native Mascots, Myths, and Misrepresentations, by Cayla Bellanger Degroat

     I picked up this short non-fiction book at my local public library because the title caught my attention. This particular title is one in what will eventually be an 8-book series, all focusing on some aspect of Indigenous culture. In your parent's younger days, Indigenous people in the United States were often referred to as "Indians", but slowly, over time, we are learning that past words for these native people were inaccurate, sometimes hurtful, and wrong. Native Mascots, Myths, and Misrepresentations is a newer book hoping to correct those past mistakes and to educate all of us on the truths of these important and varied people and cultures.

    This particular book describes the use of native words and images in school and professional sport teams. Only a few years ago the professional baseball team called the Cleveland Indians changed their name to something less hurtful, the Cleveland Guardians. Closer to home, the professional football team in Washington, DC changed their name from the Redskins to the Commanders. But not all team names have changed, and books like these are important for all of us to understand why many people - native and non-native alike - insist that these hurtful names are removed from our everyday usage.

    This series is written for elementary students, probably upper elementary grades, according to the publisher. I think they'd be best when read alongside an adult who can help explain some of the words used and ideas being written about. But I don't think anyone is too young to begin to understand the messages in these books and to help be the change in our communities to correct past errors. An important topic and series that everyone should read! 4 paws!

Juniper's Christmas, by Eoin Colfer

     It has been a very hot summer, don't you think? And I know when it's hot outside, we all do things to stay cool, like go swimming, or go to a movie theater, or...read about Christmas! I admit it's an odd time to pick up a book called Juniper's Christmas, in the throes of a hot summer, but why not, right? And when it's written by the wonderful Irish author Eoin Colfer, even better. Colfer is the author of many books, and of one of the only series I have read in its entirity, Artemis Fowl. And I loved loved Artemis Fowl - a 12-year-old bent on taking over the world. But it was Colfer's use of fairies and trolls and other underground characters that made the Fowl series so fun. And he does it again with Juniper's Christmas!

    Juniper is a young girl whose mom has suddenly and mysteriously disappeared, and Juniper is focused on finding her. Along the way she meets Nico, who has his own mysterious past, and sure does seem a lot like Santa Claus. In fact, it's been ten years since Santa has worked his holiday magic on the world - he found kids just weren't interested anymore in toys and gifts - so he quit! He quit being the Santa you and I know, and was helping people in other ways instead. But if ten years pass without a Santa, the magic that is part of Christmas will disappear forever. Can Juniper find her mom and at the same time save Christmas?

    Juniper is a wonderful, strong main character, and her supporting cast in this book is equally as good. The best way to describe this book is joyful - Colfer writes such clever plot twists and characters that you can't help but smile and keep turning pages! Finishing this made me want to go back and re-read the Artemis Fowl books again! 

    Even though it's August, go ahead and jump ahead to the holidays with this fun story - you'll be happy you did! 5 paws!

Bear and Bird, by Jarvis

     Another new author-illustrator for me, Jarvis is the creator of characters Bear and Bird - perhaps you know them already, but I did not, and I enjoyed this first look at their adventures! I usually try to review the first book in a series, but Bear and Bird: The Stick and Other Stories appears to be the fourth book for these two main characters. This particular book has four very short stories in it, all involving Bear and Bird, of course, but my favorite story was the first one - The Leaf. Bear arrives at Bird's house with a leaf stuck to his face - but he doesn't know it! Bird cannot decide whether to tell him, which Bird thinks might embarrass him, or to try to get the leaf to drop off, without telling Bear what she knows. I won't give away the solution -  you'll have to find out for yourself! But I think you'll be happy with how things work out.

    I am new to Jarvis's work, both writing and illustrating, and perhaps he is already better known in children's books than he is known to me. But I can see Bear and Bird becoming - or being - classic characters that kids look for again and again, much like Mo Willem's characters, for example (Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus). Written for younger readers, early to mid-elementary, but a book I think readers of all ages could appreciate and enjoy! 4 paws!

Silence Sounds Simple, by Gary Golio & Andrea D'Aquino

     The full title of this picture book is Silence Sounds Simple: A Day in the Life of John Cage. Before reading this wonderful book I didn't know who John Cage was, and if you are in that same category, before you read this book for yourself, check out this video of John creating a symphony of "music" using many different objects (google "John Cage: Water Walk").

    In essence, John Cage was fascinated by noise - and also by silence. On the opening page of the book, he is quoted saying, "There is no such thing as an empty space or an empty time. There is always something to see, something to hear." Cage spent his life being curious - about sound (including what most of us would call music) and silence...as well as mushrooms! He was a very curious, quirky character, indeed!

    I'm not sure if someone like John Cage will appeal to all of you, readers, but this book is full of color, and shapes, and words that try to describe John and his life. Author Gary Golio writes in a way that I think John Cage tried to make people think - in unique ways. Andrea D'Aquino's added artwork really brings the book to life in boldly and colorfully. As a book I found this to be very artistic, just like I think John Cage was an artist - creating and imagining and thinking about everyday things in different ways. If you have ever thought of something in a new or different way, I think you'd appreciate learning about John and reading this book very much! 4 paws!

Spy Sisters versus Snake Ten-Fangs, by Alan Markham

     From the front cover through the first 50 or so pages, Spy Sisters #1 by Alan Markham felt like a book version of something from the Cartoon Network, or like a Powerpuff Girls episode, which I loved! Like reading a cartoon about three sisters with different powers and abilities whose job it is to save the world, over and over again! It's a very different kind of book than what I normally read, but I had fun allowing my brain to embrace the comic book adventure of it all!

    However, after the first 50 pages or so, somehow I wasn't having as much fun with the story...my imagination wanted - needed - something a little deeper to be happening, but it didn't. Maybe it happens even further into the story? But for a book written for an elementary or early middle grade audience I felt like that deepening needed to happen a little sooner than what I had read. Maybe it does and I didn't get that far? I admit I don't usually stop a book before finishing it, but I just didn't have the kibble to finish this one. I do admit to going and watching a few Powerpuff Girls episodes online instead, which made my tail wag! So maybe you read this book, and finish it, unlike me? I just wasn't able to give this book more of a chance...there are too many 5 paw books in the world, and I need to keep reading them! 3 paws.

The Magic of Someday Soon, by Michelle Lee

     The second kid's release by author Michelle Lee, The Magic of Someday Soon is the story of Teddy and Zoe, two girls who seem so very different from each other, but who become close friends when they both lie to get something they really want. The lies they tell are told with the best of intentions, and no one is hurt because of them. But both girls long for something that will bring their past forward into the present, and help them both feel more complete.

    Told in alternating points of view, you will quickly come to root for both Teddy and Zoe, and feel for them as they try to connect to their very unique families, living and not. Author Lee does a nice job of getting you right into the hearts and minds of both of these main characters, and you can't help but want their wishes to come true. 

    I have not yet read Lee's first book, but I enjoyed this one quite a bit. In the author's biography at the back of the book, I learned that Lee earned a PhD in literature and taught English in college for many years prior to writing this book. I will say that she seems to understand what makes a good story, but on occasion I felt like she was following some sort of script or pattern for storytelling. I can't put my paw on it exactly, but that is why I give this book a 4 paw rating, and not higher. I'd love for you to read it and tell me if you agree!

Where Only Storms Grow, by Alyssa Colman

     The 1930s in the middle of the United States was not a good place to live, as detailed in this wonderful historical fiction book by author Alyssa Colman. A huge swath of the Midwest was suffering from severe drought (lack of rain for a long period of time - in this instance, several years), and the farms in this region were really struggling to grow crops. As the soil dried up, it became dirt, sand, and dust. When the wind blew, this dirt blew for miles, sometimes hundreds of miles, creating drifts like snow drifts, only in sand and dirt. Many people lost their farms and/or moved west to try to survive. Others, like Joanna's family, stayed and hoped for better days. Where Only Storms Grow is the story of the Dust Bowl as told through the fictional accounts of Joanna and her twin brother Howe. 

    In 1997 author Karen Hesse won the prestigious Newbery Award for her book, written in verse, called Out of the Dust. That book was equally as well written and powerful, covering the same time period and events of our country's history. Where Only Storms Grow made me think of that book and how much I loved it. I'm no Newbery Committee dog, but I think Colman's book is very deserving of this year's award! I was a little surprised to see it listed as an elementary or middle school book - I thought it was written at a solid middle grade level. But if you like historical fiction, or if this period in our history interests you, I recommend this with an enthusiastic 5 paws! This is a really well-written book that I think you might love, too!

Strays, by Gia Gordon

     The second, and newest, book from author Gia Gordon. Strays already starts high on my "like" list, because it has a dog on the cover, and it's called Strays, which is the equivalent of "rescue", of which I am one - a rescue dog, I mean! So, a book about rescuing a cute little creature like me is already a story I want to read, although it still has to be a good story...   

    ...and Strays is! A good story, I mean. In the book, antagonist (main character) Campbell sees someone open their car door on the side of the road and put a dog out onto the street...and drive away. She is appalled (which most anyone would be, right?), and she sets out to make sure this dog gets cared for. The stray is not the only abandoned character in the story, however, as you will discover when you read this book. It seems that several of the humans are also trying to find their home, their center, their safe place. 

    I have not read Gordon's first book, My So-Called Family, although in an interesting twist, I have it sitting next to my round dog bed (my favorite reading spot at night), and I didn't even know I had both of her books in my possession! But Strays is really good and reminds me a lot of a book I read a few years ago, where some kids decide to help find homes for some shelter animals as part of a school community service project...I cannot remember the title at the moment, but when it comes to be I'll come back and add it here. Do you know the book I'm thinking of? Please tell me if you know! 

    As for Strays...my 5 paws seal of approval!

Lily Tripp: Diary of an Accidental Time Traveler, by Amelia Tait

     The first book by British author Amelia Tait, Lily Tripp is a cute story about a young girl who is facing some challenging life situations - a bully, a crush, a bestie (or is she...?), an annoying boy who keeps annoying her, and...oh, every New Year's she wakes up in a different year! Not just a slightly different year, but a completely different century! Lily describes her time in places like Ancient Rome, but throughout the story she actually finds herself in 1621 and 1972 - two very different times in history. Everyone she knows travels with her, but only Lily realizes she is time traveling. Her friends and family exist in each new place, but they don't realize they truly belong in the present.

    The book is written from Lily's perspective (first person), in the form of her writing in her diary. Some of the entries are quite short, but it's tough to find time to write when you've been cleaning the chamber pots all day (there is no indoor plumbing in 1621...ewww!). Author Tait does a nice job writing in Lily's voice, so overall the book flows very nicely from start to finish. 

    However, the entire story centers on a few characters (mentioned above); a bully (named Georgia), a bestie (named Poppy), a crush (named Ollie), and an annoying boy (who never seems very annoying to me...named Joey). All of this is fine, but then there is the time traveling part of the story...and I'm not sure why. It doesn't really add anything to the story overall, or to any of the characters, in my canine opinion. Tait manages the different times and places pretty well, with one or two facts about a place kind of forced into the story unnaturally. But really this is a decent story about a soon-to-be-13-year-old who is trying to figure out her life. This is the setting of a lot of books for young readers like you, and some authors can turn that into reading gold, right? 

    Lily Tripp is funny and likeable, and there are a couple of laugh-out-loud moments in the book. It isn't a bad book, but not a must-read, either. I liked it, but a few times wanted to finish so I could start my next favorite read. Probably best for middle grade readers, but a late elementary reader could manage it, too. Warning: You may find yourself wanting to re-read your Dork Diaries books again! 

3 paws and a wag!

Mind vs. Machine, by Steve Sheinkin & Maurice Ashley w/artwork by Thien Pham

     I have read some newly released books in my dog days, but this may be the first time I am reviewing a book that isn't released yet (it comes out in September)! Pretty cool right? My copy of the graphic novel Mind vs. Machine is an Advanced Reader's Copy, or ARC, which means a book that is close to what the real book will look like, but not entirely, and sent to avid readers (like me!) who get to read and review it before everyone else...I feel so special!

    Regular readers of this blog know that Steve Sheinkin is one of my all-time favorite writers, and that he creates amazing stories in non-fiction that read like some of the best fiction I've ever read. Mind vs Machine is no exception! Maurice Ashley is a 3-time National Chess Champion, as well as an author. Thien Pham is an award-winning graphic novelist and educator. What a dream team to create a book about the year when the best chess player (Garry Kasparov) known in the world at that time (1979) played a 6-game tournament against a computer. Man vs. Machine!

    I can't tell you who wins, but I can tell you that the story is very "Steve Sheinkin", so be prepared to finish it in one or two sittings! It's a very cool story, even if you aren't an avid chess player (like me...I prefer corn hole, but hey, I'm a dog - corn (yum!) and holes (fun!)). Ashley adds a lot of background info that helps the story make more sense, and the artwork is solid. One disclaimer; since this is an ARC, the artwork isn't completely finished, and even some of the panels are off center. But when this book is released those flaws will have been corrected, and all you'll have is a very cool, interesting graphic novel to enjoy! If you are already a Sheinkin fan, read this! If you enjoy graphic novels and/or non-fiction stories, also read this! I read it one day - I couldn't put it down! I think you'll love it, too! 4 paws (this may change to 5 paws once I see the finished book)!