Saving Zasha by Randi Barrow

Saving Zasha by Randi Barrow

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


In 1945 Russia, dogs are rare--because of the war, many died from starvation or in battle. This is why 13-year-old Mikhail is shocked to one day find an injured man with a German Shepherd in the woods near his home.

Mikhail's family did all they could for the man, but he dies, leaving behind his dog whose name, they learned, is Zasha. Zasha is such a good dog that they decide to keep her, although it will be dangerous for them because some might view them as traitors for having a German dog (the Russians hated all things German during the war, and, even though the war is over, many people continue to feel that way). They must do all they can to keep Zasha safe from those who might do her harm or try to kidnap her--especially since they find out that she is expecting puppies!

Readers will appreciate Mikhail's love for Zasha--along with the trying times he and his family experience in post-war Russia. Those who enjoyed this book about dogs and World War II might also enjoy Eyes of the Emperor by Graham Salisbury.



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Shark Wars by E.J. Altbacker

Shark Wars by E. J. Altbacker

My rating: 1 of 5 stars


In ancient times, Gray is a young shark who is part of Coral Shiver (a clan).  Because Gray is such a huge shark for his age, he often sneaks off to find more food when he's not supposed to, putting his shiver in danger--and this eventually leads him to be exiled.  Luckily, his best friend Barkley (who's a dogfish) sticks with him, and together they try to find a new shiver to join.



The two of them soon find a small group of sharks and they decide to form their own new shiver--calling themselves Rogue Shiver.  Later, they inadvertently get involved in a conflict between two other evil shivers...and the Rogue Shiver get confused, not knowing who they can really trust anymore.



This story has a lot of action, which readers will be sure to enjoy.  A lot of issues weren't tied up at the end, but it's the first book in a series.  Readers who enjoyed this animal book might also enjoy Ragtag by Karl Wolf-Morgenländer.



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The Pretty, Pretty Bunny by Dave Horowitz

Pretty, Pretty Bunny by Dave Horowitz

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I think this book is very funny; some coworkers don't think so because it doesn't teach a lesson, but I just find it humorous!



The story is about a bunny named Narcissa who thinks she's the prettiest thing around. Not only is she in love with herself, she makes fun of whomever she encounters. For example, when she sees a beaver, she says "Boy, am I glad I don't look like *that* guy...Just look at those silly teeth--and what a goofy tail."



She goes on to make fun of a turtle and a moose before she settles down in front of a pond to gaze at her reflection. When a magic frog shows up and grants her a wish, she doesn't even hear what he says because she is too busy laughing at him. This makes him mad, so he places a spell on her that makes her look ridiculous--with a beaver tail and teeth, moose antlers, and a turtle shell.



Of course, she's devastated, and says to her reflection "How I *wish* I could do it all over again" and poof! the wish the frog granted to her comes true and she's back to normal, gazing at her reflection.



And that's it!



I just think it's funny, but I can see how others might not like this story. I think it would be a great flannel board story, so maybe I'll work on that this summer.



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The Greedy Sparrow retold by Lucine Kasbarian

The Greedy Sparrow: An Armenian Tale by Lucine Kasbarian

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I picked this book up because the drawings and colors reminded me of Medieval pictures. It ended up being an Armenian tale, so it wasn't Medieval in any way, but I still enjoyed it.



The story is about a sparrow who has a thorn in his foot and asks a woman who is baking bread to remove it for him...she does, and then she tosses it into the oven. When the sparrow wants it back, she obviously can't give it back to him, so he demands some bread as compensation. He next asks a shepherd to watch his bread for him while he does something else...however, he's gone so long that the shepherd gets hungry and then eats the bread. When the sparrow returns, the shepherd obviously can't give it back, so the sparrow demands a sheep as compensation...and so the story goes. It ends up coming full circle, as he gets another thorn in his foot at the end.



An author's note explains part of the first line to the story 'Once there was and was not', meaning that "fantastical tales may be real or imagined" (copyright page). It's nice that this bit was included because I questioned that very line.



I liked this story about the greedy sparrow and am glad I picked it up. It's nice to read alone or in pairs, but is too long for a storytime.



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Young Fredle by Cynthia Voigt

Young Fredle by Cynthia Voigt

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


Fredle lives between the walls of the Davis’ kitchen until he is cast out and left to fend for himself. Luckily, when Mister and Missus find him on the kitchen floor, she places him outdoors rather than using a mousetrap. Never having been outside the house in his life, Fredle is both terrified and fascinated.



Fredle has never seen such things as the sky, dirt, or other types of animals (besides cats and dogs). In fact, he has never even heard many of these words until a mischievous field mouse teaches him. Fredle builds a nest under the porch, near where Missus set him down. He learns about the compost pile (he gets delicious food from there!), he meets raccoons (who, luckily, don’t eat him), and much more! When he finally returns home after traveling through the cellar—and meeting the cellar mice—he’s quite a changed mouse, and he can’t wait to tell everyone about his adventures in the place they call “outside.”



The companion book to Angus and Sadie (Voigt), this is a good book full of adventure. Readers will enjoy trying to figure out what Fredle sees for the first time using his descriptions (of a peppermint patty, flowers, grass, etc.). Those who enjoyed this book might also enjoy The Tale of Despereaux (DiCamillo) and The Borrowers books (Norton).





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Little Chimp's Big Day by Lisa Schroeder

Little Chimp's Big Day by Lisa Schroeder




I initially passed on this book on the new book cart because I don't like monkeys that much, but a coworker said that it's really cute, and...she was right!



This story is told in a rhyming format and is about a little chimp who falls to the jungle floor when the branch he's sitting on snaps. He's left to his own devices in the jungle for the first time--he sees a bunch of neat things and sees other jungle animals...but he still misses his mom.



Sure enough, his mother finds him at the end of the story and all is well.



The pictures are really cute! This would make a good storytime book.



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Pick a Pup by Marsha Chall

Pick a Pup by Marsha Chall




This book was on the new book cart and a coworker noticed it and had me read it. It's cute; it's about a boy who is going to adopt a dog but is worried about how he'll pick the right dog for him. His grandma, though, assures him that he'll know the right dog when he sees it.



On the way to the place where they'll adopt a dog, the boy pays close attention to all of the dogs they pass.



Sure enough, when they see of the the dogs up for adoption, a dog chooses the boy--problem solved! A happy ending.



This book would make a cute storycards story--or maybe even a prop story.



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Memoirs of a Goldfish by Devin Scillian

Memoirs of a Goldfish by Devin Scillian

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I came across this on our 'new books' cart and it caught my eye. It's cute! It's about a goldfish who does his thing in a fishbowl (describing his days in a journal/diary format), but then his bowl gets more and more crowded--stuff, other fish, and other creatures are added to it and he isn't happy. But before he knows it, he's taken out of the bowl and put into a tiny bowl.



While there, he realizes that he misses how crowded his bowl was and starts to wonder about how everyone/everything is doing. Luckily, he finds himself scooped up again and placed in a new, big place--with everyone and everything he left behind! A happy ending...and he meets a new girl fish, too!



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Art and Max by David Wiesner

Art & Max by David Wiesner

My rating: 1 of 5 stars


I didn't particularly like this story. The drawings were pretty neat (I like the picture of Max in front of the cactus) but the story was sort of stupid. I felt like the author came up with the picture idea first and then tried to write a story around it.

Art is a big lizard and Max is a small lizard. They're both in the desert, and Art(hur)is painting on a canvas. Max sees this and wants to paint too. Not knowing what to paint, he begins painting Arthur. When Arthur shakes the paint off, he loses all of the paint color--along with his original color, making him nothing more than lines. Then Max tugs on the lines and Arthur collapses into nothing.

Max bends the lines back together to make Arthur, then uses a fan to blow all of the shaken-off paint back on. However, he doesn't look like how he did before; he's all pixelated...but this appears to be the answer, because that's how Arthur remains. And that's the end.

This is the sort of book that's okay to read once...it won't make it onto any of my favorite lists or anything.



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Making the Moose Out of Life by Nicholas Oldland

Making the Moose Out of Life by Nicholas Oldland

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


I admit that the pictures in this book are really cute, but that's where my praise ends.

The story is about a moose who is unfulfilled in life, so he decides to go on a boat trip to see if he can find what he's missing in life. He runs into bad weather and ends up on a deserted island.

However, it's not as deserted as he first thought, as he meets a turtle named Tuesday and they have all sorts of fun adventures together. One day, they spot a cruise ship, so they build a large fire to get its attention and the moose is rescued.

The cruise ship isn't heading home for a few weeks yet, so the moose enjoys all sorts of activities while on board. When he finally gets home, he decides that he's found what was missing in his life and invites his friends to go cliff jumping.

This story seems more geared towards adults stuck in a rut than small children wanting to hear a story. I just wasn't that impressed with it, but, like I said, the pictures are really cute.




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Life-Size Zoo by Teruyuki Komiya

Life-Size Zoo: From Tiny Rodents to Gigantic Elephants, An Actual Size Animal Encyclopedia by Teruyuki Komiya

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This is the first of the _Life-Size_ books; I received the next one, titled _More Life-Size Zoo_, first...but they don't need to be read in order; after all, it's a nonfiction book!



This book is just as neat as the first one I read: the photographs are big and clear and have a handful of facts about the animal on each picture.



My favorite animals in this book include the red panda and the sloth: interesting animals include the aardvark and the anteater; and the animals that grossed me out were the armadillo and the rhinoceros.



I just found out that there is an aquarium version as well, so I put it on hold.



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More Life-Size Zoo by Teruyuki Komiya

More Life-Size Zoo: An All-New Actual-Size Animal Encyclopedia by Teruyuki Komiya

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I found out about this book from one of the journals the library subscribes to. I interlibrary loaned it because the library doesn't own it, and I discovered that I'd really like to add this to the collection!



It is a book of photos of animals one might see at the zoo, which is always cute, but what makes this book special is that all of the pictures are the actual size of the animals! Noteworthy photos include the polar bear and the lion...but my personal favorite is the lion cub and the baby gibbon. (I was kind of grossed out by the hippo and the bison).



Kids will love this book! It's taller than most books, so it'll be a pain to shelve...but hopefully it'll be checked out more than not.



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How to Clean a Hippopotamus: a Look at Unusual Animal Partnerships by Steve Jenkins & Robin Page

How to Clean a Hippopotamus: A Look at Unusual Animal Partnerships by Steve Jenkins

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This is a cute book! Not only are the pictures adorable, but the information provided is interesting.

The information is presented in an almost comic book format, which is different for a nonfiction book. We learn about animal symbiosis--how certain wild animals/insects/fish/etc. work together to eat, get clean, hunt, and more.

Only 32 pages, it is a quick read!

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