Category: book review

December 23, 2020

The Story Orchestra: Carnival of the Animals

Discover the world of Carnival of the Animals in this musical reimagining of this celebrated suite for children – push the button in each scene to hear the sounds of an orchestra playing from Camille Saint-Saëns’ score.

About The Story Orchestra: Carnival of the Animals

One day, two brothers discover a magical animal kingdom behind their bookcase. They are greeted by the royal lion with his shaggy mane; ask for directions from an old lonely tortoise; take a ride on some lumbering elephants; topple a skeleton of dinosaur bones; and swim among a school of shimmering fish. If only they could take them all home!

The book includes extracts from ‘The Swan’, ‘Aquarium’, ‘Fossils’, and ‘Finale’ (From Disney’s Fantasia) along with a new story to link the pieces together.

As you journey through the magical scenes, you will press the buttons to hear 10 excerpts from the suite’s music. At the back of the book, find a short biography of the composer, Camille Saint-Saëns, with details about his composition of Carnival of the Animals. You can replay the musical excerpts and read a discussion of the instruments, rhythms and musical techniques that make them so powerful. A glossary defines the musical terms.

The Story Orchestra series brings classical music to life for children through illustrated retellings of classic ballet and program music stories paired with 10-second sound clips of orchestras.

Our Thoughts

When you first glance at this book, you have a strong suspicion it is going to be a treasured keepsake, a special journey for you and your child. Carnival of the Animals does not disappoint.

It has been a long time since I have read a book with my child that has accompanying sounds and music. I forgot how important this sense is when it comes to bringing to life a story. Each sound clip that is associated with a two page spread is a perfect representation of the story – from the Swan (the two pianos sounding like the swans feet paddling along) to the Aviary (with the flute that brings to life a little bird). The back of the book explains each sound that we are hearing in each part of the story.

The story itself is an amazing journey that two brothers take – one that you can easily imagine a child coming up with. They explore the wonders of the animal kingdom – meeting lions, tortoises, elephants, coral reef inhabitants, birds and so much more. The illustrations are rich and colourful, complimenting the story perfectly.

This is a spectacular book that will easily become a family treasure. It is visually stunning (you can’t help but run your hands over the illustrations and cover), the sound clips are a great introduction to classical music and the story will entertain.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon.

About the Author

Jessica Courtney Tickle is an illustrator who graduated from Kingston University in July 2014. Her absolute favorite thing to draw or paint is nature, finding a focus on foliage of any kind as well as children’s stories about adventure and exploration. She also has a penchant for drawing theater from music makers to dancers and even singing animals. Jessica is most influenced by vintage picture books, travel posters, and folk art as well as numerous painters and printmakers.

Katy Flint is an author, editor, and musician, based in London. She studied violin at the University of Southampton, before moving into children’s books. She is the author of the best-selling sound book The Story Orchestra: The Nutcracker, and has worked on many other non-fiction titles—from human bodies to dinosaurs.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

December 23, 2020

Illumisaurus Book Review

Journey back in time to the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods with Illumisaurus, come face-to-face with prehistory’s most spectacular dinosaurs, plants and animals. Bring this lost world to life with your magic three-color viewing lens.

About Illumisaurus

Journey back in time to the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods with Illumisaurus, come face-to-face with the most spectacular dinosaurs, plants and animals. Bring this lost world to kaleidoscopic life with your magic three-color viewing lens.

With your lens in hand, discover amazing places and the creatures that roamed them.

Your green lens reveals a location, spanning 9 land masses across millions of years. Learn how these places transformed to become the habitats on Earth.
Your red lens brings to life the dinosaurs. Meet a T. Rex, run with packs of velociraptors and marvel at the gigantic brachiosaurus as you discover how these animals came to rule the Earth.
Your blue lens uncovers the wildlife that lived alongside and after the dinosaurs, including dragonflies, woolly mammoths and fungi taller than trees.
Fact pages fill in the details and guide you through a world bursting with life and color.

The latest in the bestselling Illumi series, Illumisaurus is a hidden-world adventure with a scientific angle, and the perfect gift for dinosaur enthusiasts. Innovative illustrations from award-winning design duo Carnovsky make this a book like no other, with hundreds of places, plants and creatures to discover on three layers of detailed artwork.

How many dinosaurs will you find on your prehistoric journey?

Our Thoughts

Wow – this was the first thought that went through my head when we opened this book (my son – this is so cool!). The book is dedicated to dinosaurs but told in such an unique manner – using three lens that explore and reveal dinosaurs, the place and the plant life all on the same page.

While the book is visually stunning, it is also full of amazing information about dinosaurs around the world during this time period. We explore Western Europe, Central Asia and Russia, East and Southeast Asia, Middle East and India, Africa, North America, Australia, Antarctica and South America. For each place, we learn about the history (climate, time period, fossils and so much more) while using the green lens to visually bring the place to life. We use the red lens to bring to life the dinosaurs of this region and the blue lens on that page to bring to life the plant life. We turn the page to learn about each of the species, meaning behind their name and how many million years ago it lived. They also include a dinosaur discovery guide (our kids found it amazing that there was a dinosaur discovery close to where we visited family in Zimbabwe!).

Illumisaurus is a stunning, well written book for children (and their parents) to explore and learn about these incredible creatures that roamed our Earth so many years ago. There is so much to learn and explore in this book, your child will spend hours on each page with each lens discovering new dinosaurs and plant life.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon.

About the Author

Milan-based design duo Carnovsky was started by Silvia Quintanilla and Francesco Rugi in 2007. They have gained wide recognition for their RGB project, first displayed in 2010. Their work has been published in magazines around the world, such as Vogue, Wired, Frame, Wallpaper, Elle Decor, and Whitewall. Their wallpaper ‘Jungla’ won the 2012 Wallpaper Magazine Design Award for Best Wallpaper.

Lucy Brownridge is an author and editor of children’s books based in London. She writes books for children about history of art, history, animals, and science. She has an MA in history of art from the Courtauld Institute of Art and a BA in history of art from the University of Bristol.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

December 23, 2020

A Castaway in Cornwall Book Review

In A Castaway in Cornwall, Laura Callaway lives with her uncle and his disapproving wife in North Cornwall. There she feels like a castaway, always viewed as an outsider even as she yearns to belong.

About A Castaway in Cornwall

Set adrift on the tides of fate by the deaths of her parents and left wanting answers, Laura Callaway now lives with her uncle and his disapproving wife in North Cornwall. There she feels like a castaway, always viewed as an outsider even as she yearns to belong.

While wreckers search for valuables along the windswept Cornwall coast–known for its many shipwrecks but few survivors–Laura searches for clues to the lives lost so she can write letters to next of kin and return keepsakes to rightful owners. When a man is washed ashore after a wreck, Laura acts quickly to protect him from a local smuggler determined to destroy him.

As Laura and a neighbor care for the survivor, they discover he has curious wounds and, although he speaks in careful, educated English, his accent seems odd. Other clues wash ashore, and Laura soon realizes he is not who he seems to be. Despite the evidence against him, the mysterious man might provide her only chance to discover the truth about her parents’ fate. With danger pursuing them from every side, and an unexpected attraction growing between them, will Laura ever find the answers she seeks?

My Thoughts

A Castaway in Cornwall is a beautiful story from start to finish, a story of loss, heartbreak, hope, second chances and forgiveness.

I adored Laura’s character. She is a young woman who carries a lot on her shoulders but still shows others compassion and kindness. She lost her parents at a young age and holds regrets tied to the way they parted before their deaths. She was taken in by an Aunt, who also passed away but her Uncle kept her in his life. She is craving something – answers, family, belonging but feels stuck in a town where they don’t really accept her for she is, especially being an outsider. She spends her time gathering items that have come to shore after shipwrecks, attempting to reunite these items from dead sailors to their families. This is how she saves a young man that she soon finds herself connected to.

This young man has a strange accent, doesn’t quite appear to be telling the truth and seems to have his own painful past. But there is something about him that Laura trusts and slowly begins to fall for. They are both just like the castaways that Laura saves and you keep praying for them to find the peace and happiness that they deserve.

The plot is unique – I have never read a story quite like this before. Our characters are strong in their beliefs but they carry a lot of pain in their hearts from their past. They are searching to make their past right but they need each other in order to move forward. They are caught in a complicated time – where both France and England are at war, families and neighbours can turn on each other and where laws can be broken, while others turn a blind eye. I loved the suspense, urgency, the healing and the hope for the future (I would love to see a part two of their story!). I loved every moment of this book and could not put it down.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Julie Klassen loves all things Jane–Jane Eyre and Jane Austen. A graduate of the University of Illinois, Julie worked in publishing for 16 years and now writes full-time. Her novels have sold over a million copies and three of her books, The Silent Governess, The Girl in the Gatehouse, and The Maid of Fairbourne Hall, have won the Christy Award for Historical Romance. The Secret of Pembrooke Park was honored with the Minnesota Book Award for genre fiction. Julie has also won the Midwest Book Award and Christian Retailing’s Best Award, and has been a finalist in the Romance Writers of America’s RITA Awards and ACFW’s Carol Awards. Julie and her husband have two sons and live in a suburb of St. Paul, Minnesota.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

December 23, 2020

Copycat Science Book Review

Step in the shoes of the world’s greatest scientists in Copycat Science.

About Copycat Science

This unique book of simple and safe STEM-related experiments and activities is presented in fun comic strip style. Each experiment or activity follows a cartoon life history of a figure from science, math’s or engineering so that the reader can relate their experiment to science done by actual people.

This graphic, comic style book puts an emphasis on fun, and encourages readers to try it out at home, while the diverse range of scientists included will inspire all readers to become hands on.

Our Thoughts

I love the sciences and feel strongly that it is so important for children to be exposed to the topics at a young age. Science should be fun (because it is!) and age appropriate, find what engages your child and go with it.

Copycat Science is a fun, engaging book for youth that connects with them in a way they can appreciate – a comic/cartoon style. It is written in a fun and easy style that makes it easy for young readers to follow along with (and parents too!) but still provides key concepts and figures. Each two page spread features a scientist on the first page and an experiment on the second page. Visually the illustrations are excellent and typical of a comic strip.

Some of the scientists you may know, but others will be new to you – I never knew about Laura Bassi ‘the First Lady of Physics’ or Ibn Al-Haytham, the ‘Arabian Visionary’ (so not only were we learning about science but also about history). The experiments were easy to re-create and for the most part, you can complete them with items found around your home. I loved this aspect, because there is nothing worse than coming home with a book of experiments to have to go back out to get supplies.

Copycat Science is a fun, engaging new way to get your child interested in the sciences and getting hands on at home.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon.

About the Author

Mike Barfield is a writer, poet, performer, songwriter, ukulele player, and cartoonist. He has written extensively for TV and radio – with credits as diverse as Spitting Image, The Dennis the Menace and Gnasher Show and five years on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. His cartoon feature Apparently has appeared in the pages of Private Eye for over 20 years, and his drawings have been on display in the Cartoon Museum, the V & A, the Museum of London, and Nigella Lawson’s downstairs loo.

His Destroy This Book series (published by Buster Books) has been sold around the world, starting with the Destroy This Book In The Name of Science! The Element in the Room (Lawrence King, 2018) which was shortlisted for the Blue Peter Book Awards 2019.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

December 22, 2020

A Natural History of Fairies

This enchanting natural history of fairies, compiled in the 1920s by the botanist Professor Elsie Arbour for her niece, is now unveiled for readers of today in A Natural History of Fairies.

About A Natural History of Fairies

Featuring a gold foil–embossed cloth cover, a ribbon marker, and sprayed gold edges, this book is full of colorful sketches and precise notes detailing the secret life of fairies and their important role in the natural world.

Inside, you will discover the wide and wonderful array of different species of fairies around the globe and explore where and how they live. Delight in this world as you learn all about:

The anatomy of a fairy (Land-based fairies have individual, separated toes, just as humans do. However, many species of water fairies have webbed feet.)
The life cycle of a fairy (When walking in the heather, be careful of the tiny flutterpillar of the Wicklow Fairy, decked out in greens and purples.)
Clever fairy camouflage (Reed fairies living in wetlands usually wear striped clothes to hide among the tall reeds.)
Fairies around the world (Meet the Lily Hopper of sub-Saharan Africa, the Queen Fairy of New Guinea, the Penguin Fairy of the Antarctic, and many more.)
Fairy habitats (Fairies make their homes in all types of places: woodlands, jungles, deserts, the Poles, and even human homes.)

Concluding with a reminder that we must protect the endangered habitats of fairies, and all other creatures too, this is a book to be treasured for a lifetime.

My Thoughts

I love learning about folklore and the beliefs of others when it comes to mythical creatures, like fairies. How can you not want to believe that these beautiful creatures are real? I love the authors approach to fairies – so many times in history, science has thought something has not been real but later proven to be real (platypus and the giant squid as mentioned in this book!).

First, I have to say how stunning this book is – the cover of the book is just incredible and hard to put in to words. It is gold foil-embossed and you will find yourself running your hand over each line. The beautiful fairy in the middle of the cover, is just a preview of what is to come. The illustrations are stunning and bring the fairies to life page after page in their gentle, earthy tones.

I loved learning all fairies – from their anatomy, to their life cycle, fairies of the world, their connection with animals and plants, language and so much more. It is approached in such a wonderful way that reminds us that sometimes we have to believe (and how can you not believe in such wonderful, magical creatures).

A Natural History of Fairies is a stunning, incredible gift for young readers – they will fall in love with the knowledge sharing and the stunning illustrations. It is a special gift that will be treasured for years to come.

You can purchase a copy of this book on Amazon.

About the Author

Emily Hawkins is a writer and editor of children’s books for all ages. She wrote the New York Times bestseller Oceanology, as well as several other titles in the Ology series, which has sold over 16 million copies worldwide. She holds a first-class English degree from Nottingham University, and now lives in Winchester with her young family.

Jessica Roux is a Nashville-based illustrator and plant and animal enthusiast. She loves exploring in her own backyard and being surrounded by an abundance of nature. Using subdued colors and rhythmic shapes, she renders flora, fauna, food, and many other things with intricate detail reminiscent of old world beauty. Her first book with Frances Lincoln is A Natural History of Fairies (September 2020).

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.