A Net in Time

Curriculum and book reviews, faith, homeschooling and more!

Raincoast

:01 First Second

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:01 First Second is a rather odd book to me. I am actually not quite sure what to make of this tome to be honest, and I’m not sure if this is something I was supposed to review or not.

first second

BUT if you are into comics, this book might actually appeal.

What you get is a write up on the book and then a sample of what that comic book is about.

The write up

first second write up

The sample

first second samples

I have to admit, I’m rather intrigued by Kitten Construction Company and the variety of Science Comic books peak my interest indeed.  And if I could review full copies of those books I’d be delighted.  🙂

There is a lot of variety in the drawings, some are simple lines, others are filled with complex colours and images. Some of the stories are light, others have a darker element to them.  Most are right in the middle of that.

I think you’d call this a sampler, just enough to whet your appetite and give you a book to keep an eye out for.

The books:

  • Tiger vs Nightmare
  • Kitten Construction Company
  • Secret coders … I’ve reviewed this in the past here and here.
  • The Zita Trilogy
  • The creepy case files
  • Cucumber quest
  • Science comics
  • The nameless city
  • Walker Bean and the Knights of the waxing moon
  • Castle in the stars (book one here)
  • Last pick
  • On a sunbeam
  • Check, please
  • Deogratias
  • Monk!

And there you have it. 🙂

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Snared

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Snared, the story of Wily, a lad without his folks, living underground protecting a vast treasure.  His job?   Make traps!  Rebuild traps!   Keep the treasure safe, stay  underground always.  BUT…the unexpected comes along.   Oh, this review book took me about four hours maybe… (I had other stuff I needed to do at the same time so my timing is a bit flexible eh?)   to read through.   As soon as I was done I said “Lad, I think you’ll like this book”.  🙂

snared, my review image

Snared is written by novelist Adam Jay Epstein.  He co-authored middle school books such as The Familiars (I thought I recognized his style) and Starbounders.   Living in Los Angeles with his family, he has written for various film and television projects as well. 

It’s hard for me to write about this book without giving away the story.  I just want to tell you EVERYTHING about it but … I can’t.  That’s not what a book review is eh?  I love a good fantasy.  Anyways, Mr. Epstein takes his time at the start of the book to tell us everything he can about the world Wily is living in.  We learn of the life he lived, how he’s never met his folks, the creatures he spends his time with, and how he views himself….a misbegotten hobgoblin.   We are introduced to two villains, The Infernal King and Stalag.   His life is safe underground but then…. his life is literally turned upside down.

And the story gets interesting…the adventures, the learning, the possibilities… it was all just rather intriguing indeed.   Good character development, back stories were added in well, horror described without being graphic, just enough adventure mixed with daily living to keep the book moving forward.  Not so incredibly fast paced that you feel like everything is a rush, yet not so bogged down by details you get bored.  Well balanced.

My thoughts:

A well-written story that most middle schoolers (and perhaps their parents) will enjoy.   I would happily read another in this series (if it turns into one).  It will be going into my “read this book pile” that I have on the go with my lad.  🙂 snared, book cover

Snared: Escape to the Above
Adam Jay Epstein
Imprint Reads
320 pages, softcover, middle school
Fantasy, chapter book, adventure
Reviewed for Raincoast Books.


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Survivor Diaries: Lost!

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Do you recall I reviewed Survivor Diaries: Overboard last year I think?   How I thought it was an interesting, well-written book?  Today I have a chance to review another in the series called Lost!  Isn’t that great?   These books are not only intriguing but they offer good advice to individuals caught in these situations.   Good stuff eh?  In my experience these are books 7-10 year old devour and then ask for more!  🙂

survivor diaries Lost

What would you do if you were lost?   That’s the question behind this story.  Carter and Emma are consumed with curiousity about the monkey witch legend. Could licking the statue make them strong? and then…monkeys happened….

From there we are walked through a story with black and white images scattered throughout the book, following the adventures of Carter and Emma as they deal with being lost in a jungle.  We get to learn important survivor skills.  Keeping a calm head, thinking through what you need to do and so forth.   There is even a section at the close of the book giving great advice about what to do when lost in the jungle and some links to follow. 

survivor diaries Lost

My Thoughts:

I found it an intriguing take on being lost.  I expected the standard stay where you are, find a way to make yourself visible type of thing.  But that’s not what it was!  It was finding a way to help yourself survive in a hostile environment.  Realizing the size is meaningless when it comes to what can kill you.  Figuring out how to keep moving forward without panicking and so forth.  It’s good to be surprised eh?  🙂   It’s all about finding a way to survive, and the key is to remain calm and be smart about what you are doing.   Good book, recommend it.

survivor diaries Lost , book cover

 

 

Survivor Diaries: Lost!
Terry Lynn Johnson
Jani Orban (illustrator)
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books
softcover, ages 7-10,
Series: Survivor Diaries
Elementary, Mystery, Adventure, Survivor

Reviewed for Raincoast Books.

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The Extraordinary Colors of Auden Dare

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The Extraordinary Colors of Auden Dare is such an interesting book.  The concept behind it was so fascinating to me.  Auden Dare a child who cannot see color in a world with no rain.  Just think about that concept for a while.  Isn’t it an intriguing one?  I am SO GLAD that Raincoast Books sent me this book to review.

The extraordinary colors of Auden Dare, my review

I finished reading this book last night and told my lad this morning “you will like this book if you do not get hung up on the details”.   He snorted!  He’s heard me talking about this book a few times, mentioning how much I’ve been enjoying it but lack of details about some aspects of the world, made the world seem a bit unbelievable.  I had to make a conscious decision to not let my question make me frustrated with the story. I explained to my lad that sometimes when you are reading a story, you have to make a choice to read for the story and not for the setting details.  It’s a hard one for him eh?  He’s very detail focused so if the facts don’t compute he can get lost in those details. I am hopeful he can read for the story as I really think he’ll enjoy it.

Letting the intrigue of not being able to see colour and what that would mean to a child who doesn’t know of anyone else so inflicted. That thought just grabbed hold of me eh? Can you imagine how lonely that might make a person feel?  How different and isolating it could be?  And then how important it would be then to have a friend?  These factors play a vital role in how the story of Auden Dare unfolds. 

Now imagine living in a world with no rain, imagine what that might possibly look like?  Imagine what the global response might be.  What might be good about living in a desert or living on an island? What would happen with the price of water or the items that require water for growth?  Some of the details here are a touch sketchy, or not explained as well as I would like. BUT the person results of not having water at the ready where well defined and helped add good colour to the story line. 

The story itself revolves around Middle Schoolers Auden and Vivi along with a robot named Paragon.   I’m loathe to give away any spoilers, but I will tell you that Paragon is a rather unique robot and the middle schoolers have a number of interesting adventures with him.  The sarcasm in this book will make my lad grin (I’m sure of it).  🙂  There is a mystery to be solved, can they solve it?   (read the book to find out). 

The extraordinary colors of Auden Dare, book cover

The Extraordinary Colors of Auden Dare
Zillah Bethell
Feiwel and Friends
Soft cover, 352 pages, 9-12 years
Fiction, Sci-Fiction, water, disability, Special needs
Reviewed for Raincoast books
Find it

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Something Rotten

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Imagine, you are driving down the road, and like any other day you see a piece of roadkill lying there.  But today is different than any other day, today you think.. oh.. I wonder, I wonder why that animal died, I wonder just how a snakes fangs work, so you pull off the road, pick up that dead snake and take it home with you. And thus a love of roadkill and all it can teach you is born. Learn of this fascination in Something Rotten, my latest review from Raincoast books.  

Something Rotten, my review

Heather Montgomery walks us through the intriguing world that is roadkill, taking us through learning about parasites released Burmese pythons are giving to the native snake population (not a good thing), we learned about how red wolves might not actually be wolves but be a combination of coyote and wolf genetics, and how the Tasmanian devil is helping people.

Roadkill has never entered my radar of being a fascinating study until I read this book and then it was a like a whole new world opened up for me.  The things to learn, the use that scientists can put them, and how they benefit the living, not only of their own species but in the lives of other living beings as well.   It is simply amazing.Something Rotten

When you add up the amount of animals killed on the road it’s a staggering amount, then think of all the people involved in those kills and how some of them will be injured or lose their lives.  Roadkill becomes a serious matter.  It’s no small wonder that more and more animals bridges and underpasses are being built.

So what do you get?

Eleven chapters, 176 pages, text written with the middle schooler in mind, black and white images, and a fascinating look into the world of dead animals and scientists from around the world.   She includes a section on steps people can take to save lives as well, which includes projects that people of all ages can take part in. 

Something Rotten

What did I think?

When I got the book I thought I would be bored out of my mind.  🙂   Like seriously ROAD KILL?????  What in the world could be remotely interesting about roadkill? Then something good happened, I got hooked.  Somewhere between learning how snakes fangs fold and coyotes I got hooked.   I wanted to know what new and amazing thing she would discover next. Every time she turned a new corner I wanted to know more. Something Rotten

I was occasionally surprised like learning that throwing food out the window is a REALLY bad idea.  It teaches animals to come to the road for food and while there, what do you think happens?   Death to the animal and potential injury to other people.  Do you want to be responsible for that?  I don’t.   I’ll save that apple core to toss at home eh?  Won’t you?    Another surprise was learning about a contagious cancer!   Who would have thought!?!?!?!   Totally surprised me.

Now this book is not for the faint of heart.  If you are easily grossed out or can’t handle anatomical descriptions, it’s not the book for you.  But if you have an inquiring mind and are fascinated by all things animal and don’t mind a bit of messiness (which by the by isn’t over the top but it is factual) this is an extremely interesting book.   I’ll be adding it to the pile of books my lad will be reading, and guessing it won’t take him long to go through. 

Something Rotten

 

Something Rotten: A Fresh Look at Roadkill
Heather L. Montgomery
Kevin O’Malley (illustrator)
Bloomsbury Kids
176 pages, 10-14 years old, softcover, non-fiction
Roadkill, science, scientists, research, biology
Reviewed for Raincoast books.
Where to find Amazon

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If Polar Bears Disappeared

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If Polar Bears Disappeared is a full coloured, picture book that is guaranteed to delight your children as they learn about the world’s biggest bear and what might happen if they disappeared.  Join me as I review this great publication from Roaring Brook Press. 

if polar bears disappeared

Geared for children 4-8 years old, this book will be a great introduction to the topics of global warming, endangered animals, life in the north and the food chain.  Lily Williams asks this important question: What would happen if polar bears disappeared?   Have you ever thought through what might the end result be of such a horrible loss? 

Imagine the beauty and power gone from the earth!

The beautifully illustrated pictures bring to life the wonders of the Artic, a place where polar bears, seals, caribou, lichen, and more live.  We are drawn through a world where if too much ice melts in the Artic, even life in the desert will be affected.

if polar bears disappeared

So if we learn how to save the polar bears… perhaps we can learn how to save the whole earth?

if polar bears disappeared

My thoughts:

Even though I am not an advocate for global warming or old-earth teaching, there is much in If Polar Bears Disappeared that I simple adore.   I love how author Lily Williams pulls in all the different aspects of life on earth that could be affected if Polar Bears Disappeared.

I urge you to get this book if you are learning about endangered animals, the food cycle or just trying to teach your students the importance of all the varied life on earth.

if polar bears disappeared

If polar bears disappeared, book cover

 

If Polar Bears Disappeared
Lily Williams
Roaring Brook Press
40 pages, 4-8 years, softcover, picture book
biology, global warming, life cycle, science
Reviewed for Raincoast Books


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Hawk Rising

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Maria Gianferrari has given us a book teaching us about hawks called Hawk Rising.  In this picture book, Brian Floca, brings to life the story of Father Hawk and the young lady watching him. hawks Rising, my review
The images in this book, I liked them.  Really.  Brian Floca did an excellent job bringing the text to life. He showed us the world from two vantage points, one of the hawk, the other of a young girl watching him.  Crashing through tree tops, or watching a hawk sitting up high searching. hawk rising, sample page
 Maria Gianferrari writes out a story bringing to life one day in a life of a Father Hawk going about his business of providing for his family.   Running into troubles along the way, but sticking with his objective throughout the day, feeding and caring for his family.

As he does this, he’s observed by a young gal and her mom.  The back and forth between the two works. 

hawk rising, sample page

Aesthetically the print is easy to read, a large nice font that if you wanted to read it to a group of children you could do so easily.   It would be a good book to start off a study on hawks, or the food chain, or on how we can observe closely the world around us to learn much. 

hawk rising, text

My thoughts:

I have to admit, I’m not sure what to think about this book.   On the surface it seems okay, but by the time I was done reading my thought was “I would not want to read this to a young child”.   It was a rather odd feeling so I asked a homeschool mom to read it as well and her reaction was “it’s a bit of a strange book, I wouldn’t want to read to a young child”.

There is much in this book that I do like.. the persistence in father hawk in caring for his young, the persistence of the young gal watching him.  The care and determination displayed.  So that lingering thing… I don’t really understand it.  Ergo it’s a bit of a tough call.  There’s nothing that says DON’T read this book.  Nothing that hollers at me as being wrong or of false beliefs or anything, just this lingering lack of ease about it.   I don’t know.  

hawk rising, book cover

 

Hawk Rising
Maria Gianerrari
Brian Floca
Roaring Brook Press
40 pages, 4-8 years, softcover
Hawks, Science, picture book, Biology
Reviewed for Raincoast Books.
Where to Find Amazon.

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