Oct 23 2020
This is like The Secret Garden but with mermaids and pirates instead, and with characters that I, at least, liked from start to finish (as a pragmatic child, I found it hard to care for any of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s insipid and annoying creations.) Billed as a sequel to The Little Mermaid, Of Salt And …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2020/10/23/of-salt-and-shore-by-annet-schaap/
Oct 13 2020
The Fallen Hero continues the epic drama of The Dragon Warrior series as Faryn tries to find her place with the New Order based out of Manhattan’s Chinatown, only to discover that the gods aren’t done with her yet. Still reeling from her younger brother’s decision from the end of her last quest for the …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2020/10/13/the-fallen-hero-the-dragon-warrior-2-by-katie-zhao/
Oct 09 2020
Oh, wow, a book that updates Chinese mythology for young Western readers! You know, I’ll admit that I don’t know much about Chinese deities beyond Kwan Yin, aspects of Buddha and what I remember from absorbing various tales of the Monkey God via TV and comics (as well as the usual prominent holiday-related mythologies) so …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2020/10/09/the-dragon-warrior-the-dragon-warrior-1-by-katie-zhao/
Oct 05 2020
Times I wish I had a daughter included while reading this sweet children’s book written by Isabelle Bridges-Boesch and illustrated by her father Jeff Bridges (yes, The Dude.) Little Belle wakes up one day and has a great idea that she rushes to share with her beloved dad. She announces that it’s Daddy Daughter Day, …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2020/10/05/daddy-daughter-day-by-isabelle-bridges-boesch-jeff-bridges/
Sep 30 2020
This powerful picture book is a wordless recreation via metaphor of the author’s family’s journey from Vietnam to Canada at the end of the Vietnam War. Only two at the time, Thao Lam remembers little of the events themselves, but has taken her mother’s story and crafted it beautifully for this children’s book. Working in …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2020/09/30/the-paper-boat-a-refugee-story-by-thao-lam/
Sep 29 2020
I absolutely panicked when I read somewhere that the Netflix movie Enola Holmes is based on more than the first novel in the book series, The Case Of The Missing Marquess, so borrowed this to squeeze in between the eleventy billion deadlines I’m facing (I was wrong, btw: the movie is based on only that …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2020/09/29/the-case-of-the-left-handed-lady-enola-holmes-2-by-nancy-springer/
Sep 17 2020
Decided to devote a full work-week’s coverage to kid’s books, since it looks like I’m on an unintentional roll! My mother-in-law lives in the Virginia mountains, and is a longstanding frequenter/supporter of her local library. She also loves their library book sales, and brings bundles up to us in Maryland, primarily of books for the …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2020/09/17/department-store-by-gail-gibbons/
Sep 15 2020
This very cute graphic novel tackles a very serious subject in a truly accessible way. The Geeky Fab 5 are students at Earhart Elementary, four of whom have just begun their fourth grade class curriculum on nutrition. They’re also participating in a fundraising bake sale by putting together a rainbow volcano cake, and prepping for …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2020/09/15/geeky-fab-5-vol-4-food-fight-for-fiona-by-lucy-liz-lareau-and-ryan-jampole/
Sep 14 2020
Since my kids started remote learning, I’ve been spending my days as their teachers’ assistant, making sure they are paying attention in class, have all the supplies they need for each lesson and are turning in their assignments. Despite my background in corporate training, my new job as paraeducator is exhausting. People frequently underestimate the …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2020/09/14/we-dont-eat-our-classmates-penelope-1-by-ryan-t-higgins/
Sep 11 2020
“Mom,” my eldest child asked me the other night. “Were things better in the good old days?” I looked up from my typing. Given my severe allergy to nostalgia-induced rose-colored glasses, I wanted to be sure to answer this carefully. “What do you mean “good old days”?” I asked. “Well,” said Jms. “When you were …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2020/09/11/diary-of-a-wimpy-kid-old-school-diary-of-a-wimpy-kid-10-by-jeff-kinney/
Al Singh
Doug Merrill
Doreen Sheridan
John Pitzel
Lars N. Goldschlager
Laura Eilers
Professor X
Robert Maedgen
Sylvere Ap Leanan
The Shire