Picture Book Saturday

All of today’s picture books are current nominees for the Texas Bluebonnet Award.

 

Balloons Over Broadway by Melissa Sweet

Recipient of the Robert F. Sibert Medal

This fascinating book is about the life of Tony Sarg. Tony was the original creator and puppeteer for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. The book discusses how Tony created the giant floating balloons from the idea of his marionettes which he loved. Tony’s life from childhood is an intriguing story about a genius man. Balloons Over Broadway is such a fun read because of the lovely illustrations by Melissa Sweet. The art consists of watercolors and mixed media collages. I recommend this book for children 3rd grade and up.

 

Coral Reefs by Jason Chin

Coral Reefs is a non-fiction book that discusses different aspects of coral reefs. Some of the topics covered in this book are how coral reefs grow, the many species that live among the coral reefs, the food chain of coral reef animals, plus many, many more interesting facts about coral reefs. This book does contain a lot of good information, but unless your child is an ocean/ aquatic life enthusiast they may find it a bit slow going. I recommend this book to 4th grade readers and above unless your reader is just an avid reader of  all things ocean.

 

Ten Rules You Absolutely Must Not Break if You Want to Survive the School Bus by John Grandits

It is Kyle’s first day to ride the school bus and his big brother, James, gave him 10 rules to follow in order to survive. But the rules are a lot harder to follow than Kyle had imagined. Will he survive the bus ride, fall victim to the bus, or learn that maybe things on the bus are not so bad after all? This hilarious picture book is one to keep readers laughing, especially, if they are familiar with life on a school bus.  Follow Kyle and his list of rules on their first bus ride together for a good laugh and an enjoyable read. I recommend this book for 2nd grade readers and up.

Legend by Marie Lu

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Again, I want to apologize for not writing more frequently. I have really been slacking in the blogging part of my life. I think I am getting the hang of this mommy thing and I hopefully will be able to squeeze blogging time in regularly. I have read so many books in the past month or so that I really do have a lot to write about. So here we go…

Legend by Marie Lu

What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic’s wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic’s highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country’s most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.

From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths – until the day June’s brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family’s survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias’s death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.

Full of nonstop action, suspense, and romance, this novel is sure to move readers as much as it thrills. (from http://www.amazon.com/)

I read a lot of dystopian books and truthfully I enjoy most of them, but I felt that this one was just a step above most and that is saying a lot. I had heard so much about that book that I was hesitant that it could really be that good, but in my honest opinion it really did live up to it’s own hype. Lu’s dystopian world has an intriguing political side that makes this book hard to put down. The characters (especially the main two- Day and June) are awesome! What I really enjoyed about them is that though they are on opposite sides you find yourself loving both of them. And then when the plot twist comes at the end you find yourself just as torn as the characters themselves. I also enjoyed how the story was told back and forth between Day’s point of view and June’s. Their stories begin so differently and how they view the world is so different that it makes the story unique in the way that one just picks up telling the story where the other left off. I have so many good things to say about this book and some are specifics, but I don’t want to give too much away. But I do highly recommend that you go read this book now!

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