Thursday, March 1, 2012

Book Review: Zero To Hero, Ghost Buddy Series by Henry Winkler & Lin Oliver


By: Henry Winkler & Lin Oliver
Published by: Scholastic
Released on: January 1st, 2012
Source: book from publisher at ALA
Ages: 8 & up
4 stars: I Really Enjoyed It
Purchase from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Series: Bk #1 in the Ghost Buddy Series

A hilarious new series from Henry Winkler & Lin Oliver, authors of the bestselling HANK ZIPZER books!

Billy Broccoli is new to the neighborhood, and wants cool friends and a spot on the baseball team more than anything. But the one thing he never wanted is his own personal ghost. So imagine his surprise when he ends up sharing a room with Hoover Porterhouse, a funny ghost with a whole lot of attitude.

When an obnoxious school bully sets out to demolish Billy, the Hoove comes up with a plan for revenge. It’s all in the Hoove’s Rule Number Forty-Two: Stay cool. And like it or not, Billy and the Hoove have to stick together if Billy ever wants to get in style, get even, and conquer the school -quoted from Goodreads

Eleven year old Billy Broccoli not only had to move to a new house with his mom and new stepdad, he has to start a new school, make new friends and deal with new bully who also happens to be his next door neighbor. Luckily for Billy, his new room comes with it's own teenage ghost who's been stuck there for over one hundred years. Sounds cool right? Who wouldn't want to have a young friendly ghost for a friend. This ghost is named, "The Hoove", and he's out to help Billy over come mean bullies and find the confidence he needs to make this year the best yet.

Billy is one of those characters you can't help but love. He's klutzy, he's funny, nice and he's trying to figure out how to navigate through his current stage in life. The Hoove is an adventurous, fun loving, loyal ghost who will do all that he can to help Billy, especially when Rod, aka the Bully bullies Billy. Out to make Rod realize he's not this big macho he thinks he is, The Hoove does a little scary of his own with Rod and helps Billy stand up for himself. Zero to Hero is such an enjoyable, fast paced read with a great message in it for young readers. There's plenty of laugh out loud moments, fun twists, and moments that young readers will easily identify with. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in this series.

Mundie Kids Middle Grade March Madness

It's Middle Grade Madness on Mundie Kids this month. What does that mean? Through out the entire month of March I'm going to be featuring a variety of Middle Grade reviews, author interviews, giveaways and more. While I enjoy reading YA, I love reading Middle Grade. There's something exciting about reading these books, or maybe it just reminds me of my first adventures I took when reading books like these growing up. I'm looking forward to this month's feature!

Book Review: Hooray for St. Patrick's Day by Joan Holub


Written by: Joan Holub
Illustrated by: Paul Meisel
Publisher: Penguin Group
Publish Date: September 15, 2010
Source: Purchased
Ages: 4 - 8 years

Synopsis: It's Saint Patrick's Day, and time to join in the celebration. Children can lift the flaps for interactive fun as they see the children in this book make holiday crafts, taste traditional Irish food, perform a play about Saint Patrick, and even march in a Saint Patrick's Day parade. As an added bonus, they can search for the hidden leprechaun on each spread. A great way for young readers to learn about and enjoy the holiday.

While a group of children celebrates Saint Patrick's Day, the reader is invited to lift paper flaps and search for a hidden leprechaun.

My kids love interactive books and searching for a leprechaun while each page is read makes reading time more fun. While, our heritage doesn't include a drop of Irish blood, we readily celebrate St. Patrick's Day by wearing green and eating Irish stew.

I loved that it explains the holiday in a concise, rhyming way. The best part of the book is a small glossary of terms on the last page. Using it, I could be sure that I pronounced shillelagh correctly (and also understand what it was). This story is a great addition to your spring themed books.

If the author sounds familiar to middle grade readers, she wrote The Goddess Girls series as well. I know that my youngest enjoyed reading an author that her big sister reads, too.
I would be most content if my children grew up to be the kind of people who think decorating consists mostly of building enough bookshelves. ~ Anna Quindlen

Good children's literature appeals not only to
the child in the adult, but to the adult in the child.
~ Anonymous ~