Pint-sized picks

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 25/08/2023 (957 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The second instalment of this year’s Free Press Summer Reading Challenge for Kids is here, and once again the kids have plenty to say about the three lists created and curated by McNally Robinson Booksellers.

Back in June, participants were tasked with reading books from the three age categories (7 to 9 years, 10 to 12 years and 13 to 15 years) and weighing in on what they thought of the chosen titles, giving them a rating out of five stars. The first round of reviews, which ran in late July, again proved how astute and insightful young readers can be.

This second batch of reviews only reinforces that notion — thanks again to all our particpants for once again helping make the Free Press Summer Reading Challenge for Kids a resounding success!

The U-nique Lou Fox
By Jodi Carmichael
Pajama Press, 240 pages, $24

The U-nique Lou Fox is a story about a girl named Louisa who has ADHD and dyslexia. When she goes to school she often gets in trouble for daydreaming. She has two friends, Lexi and Nakessa, and the three of them call themselves “The Bendables” because they are all very flexible. They like to write plays.

The book has a lot of changes for Louisa, some good and many bad, and when she wishes that things are better for her, she feels like she has put a curse on people. I liked this book a lot and found it very interesting. I really liked that it was about her life. I felt bad for her sometimes because people were a little mean. I really recommend you read this book!

★★★★★ out of 5 stars

— Isadora Bolton, age 7

The U-Nique Lou Fox is a five-star story. It is about Louisa Elizabeth Fitzhenry-O’Shaughnessy, who prefers to be called Lou Fox. She has dyslexia which makes reading and writing hard for her, and she makes a lot of mistakes, but she doesn’t let that stop her. In the book I like how she says there are $5 words, $100 words and $1000 words. A $5 word is a word that means a lot of things in one word. They’re “fancy” words. That would be a fun thing to do at home. This story teaches you about kindness and how other people feel. I recommend it for kids 10 years old and up because it’s long and harder to read.

★★★★★ out of 5 stars

— Stephanie Boon, age 8

 

The Stars of Mount Quixx: The Brindlewatch Quintet, Book One
By S.M. Beiko
ECW Press, 312 pages, $23

I really liked this book because every page, one question gets answered which leads to more and more questions. One thing I didn’t like about this book was that some of the character traits were silly. This book was very well written. I would definitely read it again. My favourite part of this book was when all the information that was a mystery before clicked into place. I would recommend this book to people who like mysteries and science fiction books. Over all I would give this book a four star rating out of five.

★★★★ out of 5 stars

— Sophie Lyons, age 11

 

Apartment 713
By Kevin Sylvester
HarperCollins, 240 pages, $22

I enjoyed reading Apartment 713 by Kevin Sylvester. The book is about a special old apartment building, the people who live there now and the people who lived there in the past.

Some things I appreciated about the book were the little mysteries inside the building such as all the keys and what they unlocked as well as the descriptions of the architecture and engineering of the building including the lighting rod, carvings and garbage chute. I could easily imagine how it looks.

I also liked the plot twist at the end which connected the people from the past to the present.

On the other hand, I disliked the beginning of the novel as it was not unique. If you pick up a fantasy or sci-fi book for this age group, it will more often than not start with the main character moving to a new home and having family problems. Then there are some kind of secrets in the home and neighbourhood, and/or there are secretive characters in the new environment. This is not original and does not always hook me into reading a novel like this. The characters in this novel are not that original either, but the secrets and mystery of the plot kept me reading.

Even with these flaws, Apartment 713 is an intriguing summer read.

★★★1/2 out of 5 stars

— Jerrett Roshan, age 12

I love the book Apartment 713 by Kevin Sylvester. It was very cool because the details are crisp. The author designed the building to look fancy. I liked how he used the animals as secret trap doors. I also like the way the building was made and how there’s so many statues that you can explore while reading. Yet again I like how it feels like you’re travelling back in time and meeting people and seeing what it was like back then, instead of staying in the present and learning stuff you already know. It felt magical, learning about the mystery within it.

My favourite characters are Beth and Mr. Williams because they are cool and classy in their own way. There’s a big surprise at the end. I recommend this book to people who like mysteries.

★★★★★ out of 5 stars

— Stella Leon, age 10

Apartment 713 has lots of mysterious points. Overall, this book was very interesting. I would recommend it to readers age eight to 14 who like mysteries, fantasy, history, baseball and art.

This book included lots of people who actually existed in the 1920s ­— for example, Albert Einstein, Louis Armstrong, Georgia O’Keeffe, Babe Ruth and many others. I thought the main character Jake was relatable to me because he lives in the present.

The parts that interested me were the drama, the scenes that really packed a lot of information and how the story played with time. I wanted to keep reading when it was over to see what would happen next. They should make a sequel.

★★★★★ stars out of 5

— Samuel Burbano McFee, age 11

 

The Party Diaries: Awesome Orange Birthday
By Mitali Banerjee Ruths, art by Aaliya Jaleel
Scholastic, 80 pages, $8

I mostly like graphic novels like this one, and I did love the illustrations and the way the story was put together with arrows and instructions just as if it was the real diary of Priya (the main character). Her best friend was Melissa and they had lots of fun putting together her aunty Layla’s party. It was also lots of work!

The book gave me lots of ideas about how to organize a birthday party, and I did already know how to do paper chains and the banner was a very good idea. The book also gave me lots of ideas and suggestions about how I could start and run my own business just like Priya. Priya made a to-do list and then marked them off as she completed each task. Priya knew that her aunty Layla liked the colour orange, so everything was orange for the party. Priya also wanted to save the quokkas (a small furry animal in Australia). This meant she had a real purpose for her business rather than just making some spending money.

I read the book to my mom and dad mostly and we all very much enjoyed the story. I gave the book four stars, as it was great fun to read.

★★★★ out of 5 stars

— Rafaela LeGoff, age 8

 

The Grace Of Wild Things
By Heather Fawcett
HarperCollins, 368 pages, $22

I loved this book because it is about magic and how people can go from not liking each other to loving each other like family. This book was so good that it made me sad when bad things happen and happy when good things happen. For example, when the witch died it made me very sad to know that Grace will not have a home anymore and that her friendship with the witch was all gone.

One thing I didn’t like about this book was that the beginning wasn’t that good, so it took a while for me to get into it. I would recommend this book to people who like witchcraft and learning about nature. Overall I would give this book four stars out of five.

★★★★ out of 5 stars

— Sophie Lyons, age 11

 

Skull Cat and the Curious Castle
By Norman Shurtliff
IDW Publishing, 112 pages, $20

Skull Cat and the Curious Castle is about a cat named Scully who gets a job at Le Dark Château as a gardener. When he gets there, he learns about the castle and its mysterious past. Soon after arriving, all his co-workers disappear, and he must find and rescue them! I personally enjoy the art style of this graphic novel a lot because it is not too over-the-top in detail which makes it more fun. Although it is a little confusing at times, it ends on a good message: things that scare you could help you someday. I cannot wait for the next installment of this series!

★★★★★=1/2 stars out of 5

— Atticus Penner, age 10

 

Pluto Rocket: New in Town
By Paul Gilligan
Tundra, 88 pages, $14

Pluto Rocket: New in Town is about two different characters coming from different planets who meet each other and become friends. I like this book because it has different personalities and the whole book is funny. My favourite part is when a lot of characters get together and eat tacos. I am excited that there will be more Pluto Rocket books coming. I would recommend this book to kids who like humour.

★★★★★ stars out of 5

— Jacob Burbano McFee, age 9

 

Double O Stephen and the Ghostly Realm
By Angela Ahn
Tundra Books, 320 pages, $13

The vocabulary was too advanced for younger kids. The descriptions were a little bit too long. I would recommend this book to kids who like ghosts or pirates, but it wasn’t my favourite.

2 stars out of 5

— Jacob Burbano McFee, age 9