Owen and Mzee: The True Story of a Remarkable Friendship

Hatkoff, Isabella. Owen & Mzee: The True Story of a Remarkable Friendship. New York: Scholastic Press, 2006. ISBN: 0-439-82973-9.


The book called Owen and Mzee: The True Story of a Remarkable Friendship is about a baby hippo making friends with an old tortoise. When a tsunami strands a baby hippo, locals make an effort to rescue the helpless creature. Even though it was a struggle, the rescuers rescue the hippo and take him to an animal sanctuary where the hippo met an unlikely friend, an old tortoise named Mzee. This book is about how this friendship cam to be and was told by 6 year old Isabella Hatkoff. I thought this book was very touching and amazing. I never would have thought that a dangerous hippo could become best friends a 120 year old tortoise. I thought it was astonishing that the hippo, named Owen, had to be rescued by so many people and that he could be so dangerous. I recommend this book for ages six and up.


Reviewed by K.M. 6th Grade, Van Buren Middle School

A Mama for Owen

Bauer, Marion Dane. A Mama for Owen. Illustrated by: John Butler. Simon and Schuster: 2007. ISBN: 978-0-689-85787-4.

Owen is a hippo who lived with his mother until rain fell and the river ran fast, and Owen got washed away from his mother. After getting washed away onto a different shore Owen has to find a way to survive. Can Owen find a different mother to take care of him? A Mama for Owen is a fantastic book, I liked how they tell the real story. I recommend this book to grades first through third. I like how they make the pictures look so realistic with water colors.

Reviewed by: J.B., Grade 5, Arcadia Elementary.

Wolf! Wolf!

Rocco, John. Wolf! Wolf!. Hyperion: 2007. ISBN: 978-1-4231-0012-6.

Wolf! Wolf! is a retelling of an old story of the boy who cried wolf. In the beginning an old wolf hears a voice. Later he found the voice was a boy playing tricks on the villagers. The wolf tells the boy to take a goat and tie it to a fence post in his garden. Wolf! Wolf! was a spectacular book. I would recommend this book for kindergarten through fourth grades. The illustrations were also spectacular for kids, but the pictures could use a little more detail. It was a fabulous book to read.

Reviewed by: R.P., Grade 5, Arcadia Elementary.

Dream Bedroom

Craig, Rebecca. Dream Bedroom. KingFisher: 2007. ISBN: 978-0-7534-5966-9.

The book Dream Bedroom will give you exciting ideas for your bedroom and facts about recycling. This book can teach you about making fun crafts and recycling at the same time. It makes you think about the environment and how you can recycled at your own house by making seats into door hangers and making many other fun crafts. I think the book Dream Bedroom is an awesome book. The reason I like this book is because it will get kids off the couches watching television and start using there crafty brains. The photographs are very exciting and make you want to make a craft as soon as you see it. I would recommend this book for grades third through seventh, who are very crafty.

Reviewed by: A.D., Grade 5, Arcadia Elementary.

Labrador Retrievers

MacAulay, Kelly and Bobbie Kalman. Labrador Retrievers. Crabtree: 2007. ISBN: 978-0-7787-1762-1.

Labrador Retrievers is a book about how to, if you're up to the challenge, take care of a Labrador Retriever. Labrador Retrievers are big, strong dogs who need lots of room to roam and run. labs need to be groomed everyday and they love to swim, but they might be scared at first. There are also some labs who help people who are physically challenged. are you and your family ready to care for a Labrador Retriever? I liked the book Labrador Retrievers because it is very informative, plus it gives loads of details about Labs. If you had never heard of Labs you'd have learned a lot because it is so informative. I'd recommend this book for grades third through sixth. If your getting a Lab you should probably read this book.

Reviewed by:S.H., Grade 5, Arcadia Elementary.

Wired

Suen, Anastasia. Wired. Illustrated by: Paul Carrick. Charlesbridge: 2007. ISBN: 978-1-57091-599-4.

Wired is a story about how electricity is made and goes to your house. Electricity is made at a dam when water spins a turbine. The electricity goes to a step-up transformer and makes 345,000 volts! The electricity then goes to a step-down transformer to make 13,000 volts which goes to your house. The electricity goes to a service panel and then into switched and outlets all over your house. I think the book Wired is an informational book about electricity, because if explains how its made and how it gets to your house. I think this book would be good for third graders and anyone who likes electrical science.

Reviewed by: K.I., Grade 5, Arcadia Elementary.

Two Sticks

Protopopescu, Orel. Two Sticks. Illustrated by: Anne Wilsdorf. Farrar, Straus, Giroux: 2007. ISBN:13-978-0-374-38022-9.

Two Sticks is about a girl that has her own two sticks and runs around everywhere. Her mom and dad tell her to stop but she runs to a creek and she is on a big log. She makes big holes in the log with her sticks and then falls into the water. There are a lot of crocodiles, and she plays with them. She is walked home on a crocodile's head and she wants to bring it in her house, but her parents tell her to get it out. Then she finally gets her own drum. I think this story is made with paint. I liked this story because of the details and it rhymes. The story shows a picture for everything, and it doesn't look so scary. I think this story is good for grades Preschool through third.

Reviewed by: T.R., Grade 5, Arcadia Elementary.

Beauty and the Beaks

Auch, Mary Jane. Beauty and the Beaks. Illustrated by: Herm Auch. Holiday House: 2007. ISBN: 978-0-8234-1990-6.

Beauty and the Beaks is about chickens in the chic-hen and the hens Matilda, Lucille, Hattie, and MJ are trying to save a turkey named Lance from being made into Thanksgiving dinner. Read this book and find out what happens. It had drawings, computerized drawings, and puppets all printed together. I think this book is boring because Beauty and the Beaks looks like Big Bird, and I hate Big Bird. I think that this book is appropriate for children ages one to four, because it is a little kid story.

Reviewed by: W.W., Grade 5, Arcadia Elementary

Stealing Home: Jackie Robinson: Against the Odds

Burleigh, Robert. Stealing Home: Jackie Robinson: Against the Odds. Illustrated by: Mike Wimmer. Simon and Schuster: 2007. ISBN: 978-0-689-86276-2.

Stealing Home is about a famous baseball player named Jackie Robinson. It is a biography of Jackie and a story. It has illustrations of Jackie Robinson. Jackie played for the Dodgers for most of his life in baseball. Jackie got married to Rachel Robinson in 1946, Then on a sad day in 1972 Jackie Robinson died. I loved this book Stealing Home because it tells all about Jackie and his career. I extremely recommend this book to anyone who loves baseball. Also, I think that grades third and up would enjoy this book.

Reviewed by: D.C., Grade 5, Arcadia Elementary.

Abracadabra! Magic with Mouse and Mole

Yee, Wong Herbert. Abracadabra! Magic with Mouse and Mole. Houghton Mifflin Company: 2007. ISBN: 9780618759262.

In the book, Abracadabra! Magic with Mouse and Mole, Mole wants to find out about magic, so he and Mouse go to a magic show, and find out that magic is fake. The pictures go with the story sometimes. The book has a table of contents and bold words. I think this book was okay, because the magic is not something that could happen. People who like magic would like this book. I would recommend this book to kids 1st grade through 3rd grade.

A.N., Grade 5, Arcadia Elementary

Tales from the Brothers Grimm

Edens, Cooper. Tales from the Brothers Grimm; A Classic Illustrated Edition. Chronicle Books: 2007. ISBN: 9780811854597.

This book has 15 classic Grimm tales wtih beautiful watercolor illustrations. This books holds some of the world's most well known fairy tales; from Little Red Riding Hood to Sleeping Beauty. It even has foreign tales, such as Rose Red abd Rose White, and the Changeling. This book will make you want to read the classic tales again and again.
This book was very good and had all of the classic tales and some new ones that I have never heard of before. The book had beautiful watercolor pictures. This book is appropriate for 8 year-olds and up. Cooper Edens took the classic tales and retold them in his own way, different from anything else I have ever read.

Reviewed by S.R., Van Buren 7th Grade

How it Happens at the Motorcycle Plant

Shofner, Shawndra. How it Happens at the Motorcycle Plant. Clara House Books: 2007. ISBN: 9781881508991.

This book tells you the facts about how motorcycles are built. The book tells the steps. First, the frame of the bike is welded together. Then, second, it tells you about how the painting job is done. The third thing in the book is the finishing of the paint job. The other parts of the book talk about the assembly line, then about the testing of the motorcycle when it is all done. The last thing is packaging for people to buy and enjoy.

My opinion on this book is that it was a good book to read and it made me want to keep turning the pages. I would recommend this story to kids ages 7 through 13, or grades 4 through 7. The pictures in this book go along with the words the author wrote.

Reviewed by C.D., Van Buren 7th Grade

What's So Bad About Being an Only Child

Best, Cari. What's So Bad About Being an Only Child. Illustrated by Sophie Blackall. Farrar, Strause and Giroux: 2007. ISBN: 9780374399436.

The book What's So Bad About Being an Only Child is about a girl named Rosemary Emma Angela Lynette Isabel Iris Malone. She is an only child and in the beginning of the book and no one knows what to name her. Her grandparents, mother, father, aunts and uncles don't agree on one name so her parents give her all six names. As Rosemary goes into middle school she starts getting bored and starts going to her friends' houses and all of her friends have brothers and sisters. So she things that her life is incomplete. If you would like to learn more about Rosemary, you will have to read the book. I think this is an excellent book about being an only child. Even though I, myself, am not an only child, I truly think that this book is a good book for kids that are an only child. I also recommend this book for kids that are by themselves in their family, and for kids grades 3 though 6.

B.L., Grade 5, Arcadia Elementary

The First Music

Pritchett, Dylan. The First Music. Illustrated by Erin Bennett Banks. August House Publishers Inc.: 2007. ISBN: 9780874837766.

The First Music is about all kinds of different African forest animals who make sounds into music. All of the animals make sounds except the frogs. The frogs sit and watch all of the animals dance and sing for seven days. The first day a new sound came and Monkey went to find out who made the noise. Monkey began playing along with the noisemaker and soon everyone began singing and dancing except for the frogs. The readers will have to read the book to see what the frogs decide to do.

I thought that The First Music was very entertaining and very believable because of the true animal sounds that some animals do. Erin Bennett Banks did a wonderful job on the illustrations and pictures in the book. Dylan Prtichett was very good at describing what the animals did in all the singing and dancing. I recommend this book for 3rd through 6th graders who are interested in music.

M. M., Grade 5, Arcadia Elementary

The Boy Who Was Raised by Librarians

Morris, Carla. The Boy Who Was Raised by Librarians. Illustrated by Brad Sneed. Peachtree Publisher: 2007. ISBN: 9781561453917.

In this fictional story there is a boy named Melvin who was raised by librarians. Everyday after school Melvin goes to the library to meet with Marge, Betty and Leeola. Melvin loved to read books because he wanted to learn a lot. Melvin had always gone to the library ever since he could see over the front desk. I enjoyed the part where Melvin has just returned from a field trip and had gotten a jar of bugs. He ran to the library and then all of the bugs got out. I really like the book The Boy Who Was Raised by Librarians because of all the excellent details about living in a library. I felt like I was inside the book every times I read it. The book was very exhilarating. I recommend this book for kids 3rd to 6th grade.

E.B., Grade 5, Arcadia Elementary

Gorgeous Gifts

Craig, Rebecca. Gorgeous Gifts. King Fisher: 2007. ISBN: 978-0-7534-5967-6.

The book, Gorgeous Gifts, is very interesting. This book is filled with gift ideas from every day household items. you will not find these in stores. There are many ideas from sock puppets to drums, and bracelets to bookmarks, readers will love! I enjoyed this book. It was very interesting and had great ideas for things you would normally throw out. I recommend this book for ages eight to fifteen.

Reviewed by: B.R., Grade 6, Arcadia Elementary.

Snow Day

Laminack, Lester L., Snow Day. Illustrated by: Adam Gustavson. Peach Tree: 2007. ISBN: 978-1-56145-418-1.

Someone hears the weatherman say that they will get snow. He fantasizes school being cancelled and being able to sake a snow fort, watch television, go sledding, and do many other winter activities. Unfortunately, when they wake up the next day, they lookout the window and notice kids walking to school! Will they arrive at school on time? If you want to know you should read this book to find out. I enjoyed this book primarily because of the surprising twist at the end, and the fact that it was about school being cancelled because of snow. The art work was created using oils on paper. The illustrations are creatively drawn. I would recommend this book for first through fifth grades.

Reviewed by: S.K., Grade 6, Arcadia Elementary.

The Pink Refrigerator

Egan, Tim. The Pink Refrigerator. Houghton Mifflin: 2007. ISBN: 978-0-618-63154-4.

Dodsworth's motto is do as little as possible, but one day he went out to his junk yard and saw a pink refrigerator and the refrigerator had big plans for Dodsworth. I believe this book is quite inspiring to do new things. I think this book is very good, and I would recommend it to kindergarten through 3rd grades.

Reviewed by: K.T., Grade 6, Arcadia Elementary.

The Australian Outback Food Chains

Kalman, Bobbie and Hadley Dyer. The Austrailian Outback Food Chains. Crabtree: 2007. ISBN: 10 0-7787-1950-2.

This summary is about the book The Australian Outback Food Chains. The book is about food chains. The book tells you all the animals in the food chain. At the end it tells you how people can stop the populations of the animals from getting out of control. I liked the book, but it tended to get boring. I would recommend this book for ages 10 to 20. I would also recommend this book to people doing reports on Australia or food chains, and to people who enjoy reading about the outback.

Reviewed by: T.R., Grade 6, Arcadia Elementary.

Coming Distractions: Questioning Movies

Baker, Frank W. Coming Distractions: Questioning Movies. Mankato, MN: Capstone Press, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-7368-6766-5.

This book was about the different media that is used in movies like music, advertisements, graphics, and other different things that go into movies to catch your attention. It talks about how movie makers secretly incorporate things into the movie that you might see, but don't recognize why it's there. This book taught how different media was used in movies and I learned new things about why some movies get my attention and others don't. Overall, the book was good and I would recommend the book to kids from the age of eight to twelve years old.

Reviewed by E.H. 7th Grade, Van Buren Middle School