A Review of "Better Nate Than Ever"

I am back from my summer vacation with a whole bunch of new books to review. Here is one of them!

Better Nate Than Ever is a delightful book about a thirteen year old with BIG dreams. Nate Foster's dream is and always has been to star in a Broadway show, but how can he? He is, as bullies constantly remind him, is in Jankburg, Pennsylvania, "(unofficial motto, 48.5 miles from Pittsburgh and a thousand miles from fun'"). The only person who believes in him and his theater career (he played the broccoli in a junior high pageant) is his friend Libby. Together they have studied Broadway musicals through illegal clips on YouTube, and Libby's soundtracks. It all starts when Libby goes on Facebook and finds that Jordan Rylance has posted that he will be auditioning for, "E.T. The Musical", ON BROADWAY. Nate and Libby devise a plan the bare outline: Nate will travel by bus to New York City while his parents are on a vacation and his brother is at a football meet. He will audition, and then get out of there. Although Nate makes it to the audition, will he make it back in time? In this thrilling and unspeakably funny adventure, Nate Foster proves that just because you are from a small town, you can accomplish big things. One of the things I enjoy about this book is how accurate the references are. For instance, there really was a musical flop called Moose Murders which ran for one show. The author, Tim Federle is himself a former Broadway dancer, and among other things was on the choreography team for Billy Elliot! He has the sequel to Better Nate Than Ever coming out in January this year. Make sure you read it!

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A Review of Jean Merrill's "The Pushcart War"

The Pushcart War begins when a certain truck driver by the name of Mack smashes his truck into Morris the Florist’s flower cart and hurls Morris into a nearby pickle jar. The reason for this “accident” was that the three major truck companies had decided to take over the city streets, (a feat in which they were already close to achieving) starting with the pushcarts. This plan of theirs was to smash all of the pushcarts and then get the automobiles. As the trucks begin to become more and more aggressive, the pushcart peddlers decide to have a meeting at Maxie Hammerman’s (The pushcart “King”) shop. At his shop, the peddlers decide that the trucks are provoking a war, and they at once begin to prepare for it. They elect Maxie as the head of the army and Old Anna is now General Anna. Once they have decided to wage a war, they now realize that this is more complicated than they thought at the time. It was Carlos (Cartons Flattened and Removed) who had the idea to shoot the trucks tires with pea-shooters. Carlos explains that it was his son who gave him the idea, as his little boy has a very clever pea-shooter that not only shoots peas, but also pins stuck in peas, Carlos explains that the pushcart peddlers would be able to “kill” the trucks with these pea-shooters, and so The Pea-Shooter Campaign (Phase 1) begins. Everything goes as planned, that is, until Frank the Flower is captured and is interrogated, until he admits that he shot all the trucks, (which of course he didn’t). Who will win, the menacing trucks, or the innocent pushcarts, find out in this amazing saga, (which I have now read twice). Also check out The Toothpaste Millionaire, also by Jean Merrill

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(Illustrations by Ronni Solbert)

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A review of "The Invention of Hugo Cabret" by Brian Selznick

The Invention of Hugo Cabret is a story told in words and pictures. The story describes the story of a orphan boy named, yes, Hugo Cabret who lives in the clockworks of the train station Paris Gare Montparnasse. In the time Hugo has between evading the Station Inspector and winding the clocks, he repairs an automaton that his father had been working on before he was tragically killed in a fire at a museum. He continues to acquire clockworks for the automation by stealing pieces from a little toy shop.




Then one day his life is changed forever when the old man who runs the shop catches Hugo stealing the parts to a clockwork mouse toy. The old man takes away his notebook, where all his plans for the automation reside. The old man threatens to burn the notebook. Hugo is furious, and is extremely sad at the loss of his notebook. Then, he meets a girl, the girl that he has seen many times at the old toy shop. She informs him that the notebook is NOT burned and Hugo is very relieved. However, Hugo is prepared to bet the next day that the girl is lying, because the old man calls him over to the shop to give him his notebook. It is in ashes. The girl once again tells him that the notebook is NOT burned. How can this be you ask, find out in this entrancing book by Brian Selznick. The pictures in the book are simply wonderful, with their grey, detailed style. This is a wonderful invention, this book is. I highly suggest that you read it.

(PS. Next week, stories by the author of this blog!) 

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A review of Gregory Maguire's "Wicked"

Divided into five stunning sections Wicked, by Gregory Maguire, is the life of Elphaba, or as she is better known as, The Wicked Witch of The West. When Dorothy stumbles into Oz she assumes that Oz is a magical place where everyone is happy, but as The Witch has grown up in Oz she develops a fuller view of how the Wizard is taking away Animal rights, (Capital A’s mean that that Animal has spirit and can talk and think, opposed to an animal.) and banning Animals from public transportation. In the book, Doctor Dillamond (a Goat) discovers more of this, and The Wizard sends a tiktok machine to murder him.

         The story begins when Elphaba is being expected by her mother Melena and her father Frex. The first chapter is called “The Root of Evil,” which might lead the reader to think that the parents are the making of Evil, this idea is even more encouraged by the author in chapter three, entitled “The Birth of a Witch.”  In this first part of the book the father, Frex has some strange experiences with a traveling show that is called The Clock of the Time Dragon which presumably can tell what the future holds, and makes the past clearer than ever. A Quadling glassblower stays at Melena’s house when she is pregnant with Elphaba and his visit is probably the cause of   Malena’s next child, Nessarose (Witch of the East) and, at the end of this section of the book Elphaba is a little girl and is predicting the arrival of the “Wonderful” Wizard. “Horrors,” she says, “Horrors.”  The next part of the book describes Elphaba time at Shiz, a respectable collage. There she meets Glinda, and other people who become important in the story.  The Third Part, entitled “City of Emeralds” tells of Elphaba’s relationship with her school friend Fiyero and how she begins to become a rebel.  “In The Vinkus” is when Elphaba lays low after a serious injury and the death of Fiyero. All of these events are, of course, leading up to the Murder of The Witch. The famous melting. That part is the same as the original story. “Wicked” is also a wonderful musical which I recently saw at the Segerstrom, and there is also a sequel to Maguire’s novel called “Son of a Witch.”

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A Review of Lois Lowry's "Anastasia Krupnik"

Anastasia Krupnik is a ten year old girl who is trying to decide a lot of things, all at the same time. This story begins when she decides to write a different type of poem than the kind her teacher, Mrs. Westvessel is looking for and gets an F as her grade. She comes home and writes in her green notebook a list of, THINGS I HATE and puts her teacher's name under it. Later at dinner she tells her parents about the poem and her father, who as it happens is a poet, tells her she needs some extra letters after that F in fact the letters A-B-U-L-O-U-S and Anastasia is astounded that she wrote such a good poem. In this short novel she has many little adventures such as this one, including whether she is in love with an obnoxious 6th grade boy named Washburn Cummings, and whether she wants to become a Christian. However all through her adventures the story's main plot is that her parents are having a baby, without telling Anastasia!!! Anastasia is furious, and to calm her down her father tells her that she will be allowed to name the baby anything she wants. Another story I must mention is her grandmother coming over at Thanksgiving. Anastasia doesn’t like her much because she is so old and can’t remember anything. A brief conversation with her is all it takes to make Anastasia feel very sad and loving to her grandmother. At the closing of the story Anastasia’s grandmother dies in her 90’s and the baby is born. Anastasia, who planned to name the baby a terrible name, decides to name the baby Sam, after her grandmother’s husband. This is a great book and there are other books about Anastasia and her little brother Sam. A wonderful book.


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Review of the Jeff Kinney series "Diary of a Wimpy Kid"

The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series is a thrilling Tale of minor crises in the life of a kid in middle school, Greg Heffley. Greg is not popular, or cool, or handsome, or particularly smart. Greg has a friend named Rowley who fits this description even more than Greg. In the first book is their first year of middle school. Greg has plans to be popular and cool, he imagines that this will be a good time for him, but every time he tries to fulfill his plan, whether it is trying out for the school play, or becoming a safety officer, Rowley blunders in and ruins it. Greg knows that Rowley is not that smart and he is always trying to take advantage of it. For example, in the latest book Greg wants Rowley to sign up for student council so Greg can tell Rowley what to do, since Greg can’t run. This is a great and exciting series which I have read over and over again. It is written by Jeff Kinney, who has a wonderful imagination.  I highly suggest these books. 

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A review of "Peter Nimble and his Fantastic Eyes"

Peter Nimble and his Fantastic Eyes is Jonathan Auxier’s first book and a very good one too. The story begins by introducing the main character, Peter Nimble, a blind boy who is forced into a life of crime by a cruel beggar-monger by the name of Mr. Seamus. Peter is, although he may not know it, is the very best of thieves Mr. Seamus does know that though and he takes advantage of this. One rainy afternoon Mr. Seamus sends Peter out with his burgal-sack to steal from honest citizens, as usual. Peter does not expect a successful day because of the rain but is quickly drawn in by a hat seller whose carriage, he senses, is completely covered in locks! Accepting this as a personal challenge, Peter unlocks every single lock on the carriage. In doing so he unlocks the door to a wild adventure involving a cat/horse/man (Sir Tode), talking crows, and a giant dogfish named Fredrick. In my opinion Auxier’s first book is a great success. In fact, I almost read I over again but then started on a new one. The illustrations are also fantastic, even if they are only at the beginning of the chapters they help the story come alive. The characters of Old Scabbs, and Mr. Pound, Mrs. Molasses, you will remember long after you are done. This book educates you a lot - about thievery. Soon you will be wanting your own burgal-sack.

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A review of "The Last Olympian" by Rick Riordan

This is the last book in the Percy Jackson series and it is the most exciting one in the series, in my opinion. Will Percy and his friends prevail over the newly restored titan Kronos? The story begins with Percy sharing an afternoon with his friend Rachel Dare when Percy’s Pegasus, Blackjack, lands on the car Percy is driving and tells him that his powers are needed elsewhere. So Percy, hoping to return soon, zooms off to help his friends. After coming back sad from a loss of a friend and  a completed mission, Percy and Blackjack return to Camp Half-Blood, a camp that trains Greek Demigods, they meet up with Percy’s friends Annabeth and the satyr Grover. They gather together the camp and they ride to Manhattan and to the Empire State building, on top of which is Olympus, palace of the gods. The camp is soon joined by the Hunters of Artemis and together they set up defenses. Of course they are out numbered one to ten and none of the gods can help them because they’re all busy fighting the monster Typhon. This book which I highly recommend and which I have read many times reminds people of old mythology and if you enjoy this book, Rick Riordan has written many others.


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A review of “Artemis Fowl” by Eoin Colfer

One of my favorite parts of this story happens to be the prologue, from which I will quote:

                          The story began several years ago, at the dawn of the twenty-first century.   Artemis Fowl had devised a plan to restore his family’s fortune. A plan that could topple civilizations and plunge the planet into a cross-species war.
                          He was twelve years old at the time.

      As you can see, the author shows wit and humor as he captures his readers in an engrossing battle of humans against Fairies. Artemis and his manservant, Butler acquire a copy of the fairy bible and use it to capture one Holly Short, a captain in the agency LEPrecon because a fairy can not leave a human settlement without permission from the owner. Holly is trapped Artemis is not going to let his prey leave. The entire population of fairies is amazed that there secrecy is being threatened by three people, a twelve-year-old boy, a giant manservant, and a teenage girl obsessed with wrestling. As Artemis’s brain is challenged trying to think up new ways to survive, Butler and Holly briefly work together to battle a troll. This is truly one of the best books I have ever read and I also strongly suggest one of his other books, Half Moon Investigations. Artemis Fowl is part of a series which I am not sure involves fairies in general but I am sure we will see Holly Short again. I am sure Eoin Colfer’s other books are just as wonderful as this one was.


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A review of Frank Beddor's "The Looking Glass Wars"

The Looking Glass Wars reminds readers vaguely of Alice In Wonderland but it does not mean to. The way Frank Beddor explains how the fake story called Alice in Wonderland came to be. Apparently there is a land called Wonderland, but it is an entirely different from Lewis Carroll’s version. When princess Alyss Heart retreats from Wonderland with bodyguard Hatter Madigan into our world after an attack from her evil Aunt Redd. Alyss slowly loses her imagination, (kind of like magic) and is taken into an orphanage and soon adopted by the Littles, a family in want of another little girl. Alyss tries to tell the Littles her story, but they insist that her name is spelled A-L-I-C-E and that Wonderland simply existed in her head. Hatter Madigan has been looking for Alyss since they were separated. Alyss meets a young author named Lewis Caroll who is interested to hear Alyss's story. Carroll promises to write her story and to turn it into a book.  But he distorts the story and turns it into the story we know today. Hatter Madigan becomes The Mad Hatter, Bibwit Harte, a tutor, becomes the White Rabbit, Generals Doppelganger, (he can split into Generals Doppel and Ganger) and he makes many other changes in Alyss’s story. This is just too much for Alyss and she decides too try to forget Wonderland and her name. The next morning she comes downstairs as Alice Little, but what has been happening in Wonderland? Do her friends need her help? You will see if you read the Frank Beddor trilogy and find out what is real and what is not.

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A Review of "Freddy and the Bean Home News" by Walter R. Brooks

A Review of Freddy and the Bean Home News by Walter R. Brooks, with illustrations by Kurt Wiese

written by L.A. Tonkovich

Freddy and the Bean Home News is one of a series of books about a farm owned by Mr. and Mrs. Bean. This book takes place in 1943 in World War Two. On this farm there are some very smart animals who can talk, though in the beginning the humans cannot understand them. The main character is a pig named Freddy, who in the series takes on the careers of a detective, a politician, an explorer and many other things. In Freddy and the Bean Home News, Freddy is an editor and organizes the paper after the Guardian, the Centerboro (the nearest town) paper, is taken over by a man named Garble who immediately kicks out the former editor, Freddy’s friend Mr. Dimesy. He and Freddy create the Home News with a hand press in Mr. Dimesy’s basement. The Home News competes against the Guardian and people in Centerboro read it, not only animals. While this is all going on there is also a scrap drive in the county and the Bean animals are trying hard to win. The election of the sheriff is coming up too and Mr. Garble is running as sheriff. Of course, the real person who is behind all of this is Mrs. Underdunk, Garble’s rich sister. While the election and the two papers grab most people’s attention there is also the scrap drive which ends soon and the Bean farm is very much behind. Will their winning have something to do with the iron deer in Mrs. Underdunk’s yard? As the fight in the papers turns to violence and physical brutality and wanted posters are out for Freddy, the Bean farm is in a real mess. I suggest this book and all 26 books of the Freddy series as good reading material. This is a wonderful series. 

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A Review of Robert McCloskey's "Homer Price"

A review of Homer Price
By L.A. Tonkovich

Homer Price is a collection of stories written by Robert McCloskey in the nineteen forties. The stories' center is a town called Centerburg and the stories' main character is a boy named Homer Price. Centerburg is a cozy little town with a lunchroom owned by Homer's Uncle Ulysses and a library, a barbers shop and many other shops and stores, but now let me describe some of the stories. The first story begins when Homer finds a skunk he names Aroma. Aroma helps Homer find a recently stolen suitcase full of money and Dregs aftershave lotion. Another story is one of my personal favorites it is called, "The Doughnuts." Uncle Ulysses wife, Aunt Agnes is a bit exasperated with Uncle Ulysses and his “Up and coming lunch room,” meaning that she became, “unkindly disposed toward him for days and days,” whenever he bought a new labor saving device. Uncle Ulysses has purchased a doughnut machine and, after trying out a new recipe can’t stop making doughnuts! There are many other stories, including one that determines the “String Saving Champion of the World.” There’s also "Nothing new under the Sun," which has a more modern Pied Piper of Hamlin. This wonderful collection of stories has amazing illustrations that capture the spirit of Centerburg, and Homer Price. There is also a counterpart to this book, it is called Centerburg Tales introducing an exciting new character who tells tales that could be true but nobody can prove they are lies. I strongly suggest these wonderful stories to read.

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The Serpent's Shadow

The Serpent's Shadow is the last book in Rick Riordan’s series The Kane Chronicles. This last book is a conclusion to the two other books. I have read this book four times and think it is a wonderful book. The plot is that two young siblings, Carter and Sadie Kane, discover that they are magicians and that they are related too the pharaohs of ancient times. They battle demons and attempt to subdue the uprising of the giant snake Apophis, the evil lord of chaos. In this last book they must discover the secret of the serpent’s shadow. To do this they must find a ghost, Setne, an ancient ruler of Egypt and persuade him to give the location of the Book of Thoth, their only hope to defeat Apophis and save the world. With Sadie’s friend Walt on the verge of death, and Carter’s girlfriend Zia possessed by a god, the Kane family is in disarray, but somehow they must pull together and prevent the world to sink into the endless sea of chaos. This is probably, I think, his most successful book in his Kane Chronicles. Rick Riordan has written two other series, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, and his series that is not finished yet, The Heros of Olympus, both about Greek and Roman gods and demigods. This is a wonderful series and I suggest reading all of Rick Riordan’s series about demigods and magicians. Rick Riordan has also written a book in The 39 Clues series.

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Review of New Lemony Snicket

Review of New Lemony Snicket
by L.A. Tonkovich

"There was a town, and there was a girl, and there was a theft." That is how Lemony Snicket’s new book, Who Could That Be At This Hour? begins. Although it begins as something a kindergartener would write it soon gives way to a thrilling tale of surprises, (which our hero finds unsurprising), great anxiety, (which our hero does not feel) and action. Accompanied by two mysterious girls, Moxie Mallahan and Ellington Feint, and a hopeless chaperone, Lemony Snicket investigates a stolen item that was never stolen at all. It doesn’t have quite as much sarcasm as A Series of Unfortunate Events and more of the strange, random stuff. For instance, the story takes place In a town called, Stain’d by the Sea a town that, yes, you can guess it, is not by the sea. Although many houses, stores, and apartment houses few people live in Stain'd by the Sea,and the people who do live in the town are very odd. There’s a taxi that is driven by two boys, (one steers and the other controls the pedals) Pip and Squeak. There are the Officers Mitchum who are to weird to explain and their son Stew, who enjoys shooting birds with a slingshot, behind his parents' backs. In this book Lemony Snicket has a mysterious past involving a “unusual” education and a trusted associate and The Hemlock Tearoom and Stationary Shop. This is as a wonderful book as his other books and probably intertwines with his other books.

In this book Lemony Snicket asks all the wrong questions, and so will you when you’ve finished it.

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