#Review By Lou of Miss Cat By Jean-Luc Fromental and Joelle Jolivet @thamesandhudson #GraphicNovel #MissCat #MiddleGrade #ReadingForPleasure #BlogTour @RandomTTours

Miss Cat (Graphic Novel)
By Jean-Luc Fromental and Joelle Jolivet

Graphic Novels have been on a rise and rise for years, with certain series now being firm favourites of children and teens alike. They, especially encourage reading for those who don’t think that’s for them and are termed “reluctant readers” and show a different type of book to add to the pile of the more exuberant, proficient readers.
Miss Cat is a great mystery for the young middle-grade readers.
Discover the blurb and my review of the first in a brand new series in this genre below.
Thanks to the publisher and authors, I also have a couple of pages and the cover to show you. You’ll see them as you go down this blog post.

Synopsis

The first book in an irresistible new graphic novel series for young readers, featuring a cool detective dressed in her cat-ear hoodie.
Meet Miss Cat, a private eye with ears on her hat and a nose for mystery!
Mr Titula, a sad old man, comes to see Miss Cat at the old dairy shop she uses as an
office. Someone has kidnapped his canary, Harry, his pride and joy! He begs the young detective to find him.
So, Miss Cat sets on the trail of Harry and a strange couple, the sultry Doris and the aggressive Jean-Pøl, a talking dog.
What could they be trying to hide? And could the senile Titula and the dashing Titus the Magnificent, a magician with extraordinary powers, be the same person?
Miss Cat, who thinks she’s a cat and hides underneath a large hoodie with cat ears, is a perfect new heroine to encourage children to read. With a Scandi-noir mood, Joëlle Jolivet’s dynamic illustrations and Jean-Luc Fromental’s thrilling plot and irresistible dialogues whisk young readers through Miss Cat’s crime-solving adventures!

Review

Miss Cat is quite the private eye, all clad in her cat-like hoodie. It’s a story that entertains and is quite the magical page-turner, with short chapters for 7-10 year olds, with its intriguing characters. There’s Miss Cat, a human who has set-up a detective agency and wears a cat-like outfit. She has dealings with Olaf the talking octopus, a member of the Octopus 6, Wolfgang who’s a talking dog and Maximus and Doris who are humans.

The book is entertaining with its mystery of a talking canary being bird-napped, magic and humour. You get a really good feel for the captivating characters in what’s great story-telling. What do the digits mean? Why are they so important to some of the characters? There’s goodies and baddies and a whole lot of fun for readers.

All is well-illustrated in a fun way, original way, that builds a good amount of atmosphere in what becomes a good page-turner.
It will leave children wanting more…

It would sit well with anyone’s collection of graphic novels, from schools to libraries to personal collections.
This is certainly one for children to look out for.
I’d certainly review more, given the opportunity.
The second will be ‘The Gnome’s Nightmare’.

#Review By Lou of Miss Cat By Jean-Luc Fromental and Joelle Jolivet @thamesandhudson #GraphicNovel #MissCat #MiddleGrade #ReadingForPleasure #BlogTour @RandomTTours

Miss Cat (Graphic Novel)
By Jean-Luc Fromental and Joelle Jolivet

Synopsis

Review

All is well-illustrated in a fun way, original way, that builds a good amount of atmosphere in what becomes a good page-turner.
It will leave children wanting more…

#BookReview By Lou of The Duck With No Luck #GemmaMerino @MacmillanKidsUK #ChildrensBook #PictureBook #TheDuckWithNoLuck

The Duck With No Luck
By Gemma Merino

Children love having fun with the book – The Crocodile Who Didn’t Like Water, which I’ve had the pleasure to read to many children, so it’s with pleasure that I review the picture book – The Duck With No Luck. It’s suitable for pre-schoolers and the early years of primary school.

Blurb

What’s a fed-up duck who feels all out of luck supposed to do? Go and ask a wise owl for help, of course! But watch out for the hungry Fox . . .

From the award-winning Gemma Merino, author of the The Crocodile Who Didn’t Like Water, The Duck With No Luck is a funny, uplifting and reassuring tale about how to tackle the ups and downs of life, take a more positive look at things and appreciate all you have.

After a particularly unlucky moment, Duck has had enough! Heading off to ask Wise Owl why he’s so unlucky, he comes across a lonely Swan, a hungry Fox and a bare tree, all looking for answers of their own. Will Wise Owl’s advice help Duck to find his luck after all? And has he just been looking in the wrong place all along?

Review

It’s half-term holidays for many people and books can be just the “ticket” to entertain and spend cosy times together.

The Duck With No Luck has great rhythm throughout the humorous plot. Join the journey as you follow Duck who is on a quest to find his luck. Will he be able to find it? Along the way you come across Wise Owl, Swan and Fox who Duck hopes can help. Books where different animals are met brings adventure, no matter how long or short and this one has a good pace to it.

The moral is to appreciate what is around you more and see this as being lucky, which in turn helps with emotional and resilience building. It is great that that there is humour and illustrations throughout, which makes it fun for children.

It’s a great book to read independently or with adults at home, in a nursery/ELC/school, Bookbug and rhyme time sessions.

#Review By Lou of Santa’s Early Christmas By Lily Lawson Illustrated By Gustyawan @RandomTTours #LilyLawson #SantasEarlyChristmas #Christmas #PictureBook #Kidslit #ChildrensBook

Santa’s Early Christmas
By Lily Lawson
Illustrated By Gustyawan

Feeling festive or wanting a charming and fun Christmas book about Santa for a present for young child? Check out Santa’s Early Christmas. See the blurb and then my review below.

Blurb

For children aged 3 to 8

Last year Santa was hungry and thirsty by the time he delivered all the presents. But when he came home there was no food and drink left! This year Santa decides things are going to be different.

Review

Cosy up together for some caregiver/child time this Christmas with this entertaining picture book for children aged between 3 and 8 years old.

Santa’s Early Christmas is a picture book, full of charm in its words and some fabulous pictures. Get ready to find out what Santa likes to eat and how he quietens his insatiable appetite at Christmas. Then, discover the sleigh, full of presents. Each page also presented with bright and exciting illustrations.
As if that wasn’t enough, there are some fun rhymes and songs to well-known tunes for children and one for parents too.
It’s a book where adults and children alike can join in the fun of a Christmas story together.

The book can be bought on Amazon

#Review by Lou of Bus Rhymes and Playtime By Sue Wickstead @JayJayBus @rararesources #blogtour #childrensbook #picturebook #songs #rhymes

Bus Rhymes and Playtimes
By Sue Wickstead

Today I have a review of a book that’s perfect for on the bus or for play. Check out the blurb and review below.

Blurb

Bus Rhymes to sing along with.

Have you got your ticket ready?

Where will you go today?

Why not jump onboard the bus –

Come along to sing and play.

So take your seat as off we go.

What could happen along the way?

Review

Hop on a bus! Where will you go today? Go on an adventure through song and rhyme with Bus Rhymes and Play Times. It’s so much fun for young children. There is a great selection of rhymes and songs, some my be more familiar than others, but all just as entertaining and interactive as the next.
Feast your eyes on the illustrations, they’re all there, big, bright and bold for all to see, just to enhance the experience.

The rhymes and songs are easy for children and adults alike to pick up and you can have fun with the illustrations in imaginative play and discussion.

Hop aboard and have fun today!

#Review By Lou of Science Comics: The Periodic Table of Elements By Jon Chad @jon_chad @01FirstSecondBooks #ChildrensNonFiction #GraphicNovel #STEM #Science

Science Comics: The Periodic Table of Elements
By Jon Chad

Science Comics: The Periodic Table of Elements is a combination of story and fact to help teach and engage in STEM – Science. I have the blurb, thanks to the publisher – First Second Books and then onto my review below.

Blurb

Step out of your element with Science Comics: The Periodic Table of Elements, the latest volume of First Second’s nonfiction graphic novel series!

A book of fun chemistry experiments has fallen into the wrong hands. Only Mel can use her knowledge of the periodic table to put an end to a maniacal madman’s evil schemes.

The periodic table helps us quickly understand the 118 elements, those tiny substances that make up everything in the world. By using the periodic table, we can recognize how these building blocks behave, find trends and patterns in the universe, and make predictions about elements that haven’t been discovered yet. Join us in learning about the periodic table, and maybe the next big discovery will be yours!

Review

This could be used as a great resource for science classes and in the home to learn aid learning in a fun way. It makes science a bit more fun, not that this substitutes the usual text books, but is instead a great addition to them. It will be a useful resource in schools and at home. Here’s why:

The book has a story throughout it, but done in a way that also encourages learning of the periodic table and has the necessary facts throughout. It also has a little about exam anxieties and how they can be overcome too. It helps show science in a positive light and would be an asset to classrooms. It could be used as a useful tool to assist learners engage and especially those who struggle in their learning using more traditional methods.

In the home it can be used as an adventurous story that has trepidation in its fun, engaging plot and whilst readers can be enjoying this, they will naturally be soaking up the factual elements too.