A Gaggle of Book Reviews

This is a book I received from the publisher, Dundurn Press.

The Ruby Kingdom – Passage to Mythrin is a Young Adult novel and/or tween novel by Patricia Bow. I chose to read The Ruby Kingdom to myself for the first reading, as I wasn’t sure how much violence, suspense, and other Young Adult material there was. I prefer to know a book before I read it to my kids – even my 9 year old, who is somewhat sensitive about violence. After reading it to myself, I started reading it to my daughters.

The Ruby Kingdom starts when a girl named Ammy has arrived to live with her grandmother and cousin for six months when her parents are in South America. Simon and Amelia are both in eighth grade, but otherwise they are quite different. Simon has grown up with his grandmother, Celeste, in the small town of Dunstone. He remembers Ammy from two years before, and how much fun they had together.

After being re-introduced to his now-quiet cousin who arrives dressed in all black and with neon red hair tipped with “ballpark mustard yellow”, Simon wants to walk away. However, his grandmother gives him the mission of making Ammy feel at home, so he takes her out with his best friend Ike to show her around.

Ammy, or Amelia as she now wants to be known, wants to see something cool, and for a kid who lived in Vancouver, a small town two hours from Toronto isn’t cool. The boys brave the frigid temperatures to take her to the gorge, and “upside down mountain” with caves. When they are standing, overlooking the gorge, they see a bright blue flash of light, and then they see something coming out of the cave with the blue light – but what is it, and what is the ring that they discover in the cave?

Patricia Bow packs a lot of action and interest into The Ruby Kingdom from the first chapter. My kids were quickly sucked in, and were annoyed when I wouldn’t read a second chapter. They were still talking about what had happened the next day, and waiting to see what would come next. This is especially great because a lot of fantasy as well as a lot of tween/YA/read-aloud books start slow. They end up great, but you have to push through the first chapter or two. In The Ruby Kingdom, you are drawn in right away.

By using the third person, Bow is able to switch perspectives without confusing her readers. Simon is a reserved, somewhat geeky kid, and he will clearly do anything for his grandmother, including accepting the challenge of making Amelia feel at home. Meanwhile, Amelia is disgruntled at being left by her parents, and wants to do anything exciting. She is the one taking the risks, and pulling him along with her as they begin their adventure. As a mother of young girls, any book that starts with the girl leading the boys into adventures is one that has my vote from the start! Most fantasy involves main characters who are orphaned boys, and while Simon is an orphaned boy, Amelia is the one who leads. The difference between what Amelia is thinking and what Simon is thinking is profound, and the story is wonderfully told by looking into both of their heads.

The cousins and Ike learn that the blue flash is a type of gate that allows passage between a cave in Dunstone and the magical world of Mythrin. There is unrest in Mythrin, and the three teens need to figure out what is wrong, as well as what they need to do. Like normal teens, they quarrel about what they should do with what they have discovered – I especially enjoyed this because there are too many novels where the kids are instantly in accord with each other because of their new circumstances. In real kids, stress can bring about a lot of bickering, and The Ruby Kingdom actually dares to show that side of the three young teens.

As the story continues and they learn about the mysterious strangers who appear in Dunstone, the “people” of Mythrin, and the politics involved, the differences between Amelia and Simon become even clearer. Simon is hesitant, and slow to become involved. Amelia is brash, and leaps into things with both feet. Even as they are taking different approaches to the mysteries that surround them, they are pulled together. The cousins were put together by circumstance at first, but then they feel a bond between them.

Each of the characters in the book is really brought to life in The Ruby Kingdom- I can picture my older daughter exploring along with Simon, Ike, and Amelia. When they discover the first mysterious stranger, Mara, you can visualize her as she appears to them. You can understand why Amelia is drawn Mara’s uniqueness, and why Simon is distrustful. The next stranger is unsettling, and Patricia Bow describes his eyes as he watches the teens in such a way that it is haunting. Even the grandmother, Celeste, is brought to life – she could easily be a caricature, but you see her love for her grandchildren as well as her own personality.

The Ruby Kingdom gets high marks from me, and while we haven’t finished it as a read-aloud book, it has gotten the attention of all 3 listeners (9, 7, 4). It completely enchanted me, and kept me wondering what would happen next in the magical and perilous worlds – ours and Mythrin. Each chapter unlocks the world a bit, and I am really looking forward to reading as Patricia Bow continues the Mythrin series! I would recommend this for kids about 8-16, as well as adults who enjoy reading about fantasy – a great book for those who enjoyed Harry Potter, and it’s less violent. This is a book that is vividly brought to life, and my only complaint is that the sequel is not yet available!

Addendum: When we finished the series, the girls thought that Book 2 becoming available in May for BG’s birthday was perfect. They also said that it was the best book I had read to them – even better than Harry Potter! They now want to become shape-shifters when they grow up…

I have my first post on Reading Moms about the difference between reading bedtime books as an adult, and when I was the listening child. Here’s an excerpt:

The chapter book we finished most recently was Matilda, by Roald Dahl. I loved this book as a child, and we read my childhood copy of the book – complete with cover that has been taped on a few times! The sweet, quirky illustrations are the same, and the story is still wonderful.

However, reading Matilda as an adult was different – I was horrified by the way her parents treated her, and the school she attended was worse than a nightmare. As a child, I had been thrilled with the idea of being left alone every day by my parents to read and go to the library! In today’s world, though, even my kids found the idea rather frightening. The stories of the Headmaster harming children were horrifying to all of us – so far beyond our frame of reference. Even my homeschooled kids wished they could have a sweet teacher like Miss Honey, though! We were joined in our love of Matilda and our astonishment and excitement at her precocious reading and other skills, and then later her ability to move things with her eyes.

This is another twist on the topic of War in Children’s Books – this is the story of Ben Franklin, and his role in the American Revolution. But it’s told from the perspective of a mouse living in Ben’s hat!

Ben and Me: An Astonishing Life of Benjamin Franklin by His Good Mouse Amos is a (probably) fictionalized novel by Robert Lawson. As a youngster, I had loved this story about Ben Franklin, as told by a mouse named Amos who lived in his hat. I had forgotten about the book for a long time, and then a homeschooling friend (who is studying the American Revolution with us) mentioned how much her daughter had enjoyed the book.

Ben and Me begins when Amos (the mouse) leaves his poor, church mice family and ends up in the home and hat of Benjamin Franklin. Ben keeps him in his fur hat as Amos helps him through diplomatic discussions and plans for the Declaration of Independence and the Revolutionary War. They have a falling out over Ben’s experiments with electricity (which is incredibly amusing!), and Amos does not travel with Ben on his first diplomatic trip overseas. This trip does not succeed, so Ben comes home to ingratiate himself with Amos again. Once they have made up, Amos continues to help him, and they go to France in an attempt to get funding for the American Revolution. Since Amos is there to help him, it all goes well, and the story is simply wonderful.

All three of my girls (preschooler through third grade) loved Ben and Me. When my brother was a boy in that age range or a little older, he really enjoyed the book, too – this book seems to be a great read for any child with imagination and an interest in history. Ben Franklin is a fascinating character on so many levels – many adults have read Benjamin Franklin: An American Life, but this book is a much more approachable one. Some of the “facts” included in Ben and Me have been disproved in the time since Robert Lawson wrote the book (ie: electricity discovered by kite flying with a key), but the book serves as a wonderful introduction to the life and legend of Ben Franklin and his impact on American History. If your kids are very interested in the science aspect, we suggest The Ben Franklin Book of Easy and Incredible Experiments: A Franklin Institute Science Museum Book so they can do some of Ben Franklin’s experiments themselves.

Robert Lawson has written many more books about American Historical figures from the point of view of an animal, and we are excited to read about other characters as we continue our study of American history.

This review is part of a MotherTalk blog tour, and I received this book from the publisher to review.

The Dark Dreamweaver (The Remin Chronicles) is a tween/teen fantasy novel by Nick Ruth,with illustrations by Sue Concannon. The book blends imagination, magic, dreams, and monarch butterflies – some of our favorite things!

The beginning of The Dark Dreamweaver is dense, with a lot of information and small print. Our listeners liked the story, but found that the chapters were too long to read all at once (they, um, fell asleep). However, they loved the story itself. The beginning is slow, too – there’s a lot of set-up information that the reader needs, before the “good part” can begin. This can be hard for younger readers/listeners, as many might put down the book, not knowing how good it can get from the beginning!

Remin is a land of imagination, where dreams are created. The wizard of Remin, Houdin, has been forced out of Remin by his arch-enemy, Thane. Thane is creating nightmares and bad dreams for all the people around Earth. Houdin is stuck in the body of a caterpillar on Earth, and asks David (a young boy) to help him return to Remin and fix the situation with the dreams and return him to his original form. To do this, Houdin must manipulate David’s dreams that night so he can return to Remin.

The world within Remin is fascinating – once our little readership group had gotten to that part of The Dark Dreamweaver, it was hard to stop each night! There are wizards, magical creatures, doors that talk, wands, talking animals, and bad guys – all things that excite the imagination and minds of young listeners.

Once we had gotten through the first couple chapters of The Dark Dreamweaver, we really enjoyed it. Our reading group was on the young end of the age spectrum (7 & 9 years old), but it wasn’t too scary for these kids who have listened to Harry Potter books 1-4! I would recommend it for ages 7+ as a read-aloud chapter book, or ages 9+ for read-it-themselves. This is with the understanding that kids aren’t incredibly sensitive to magical violence and suspense (ie: kids who have already enjoyed Harry Potter). Now that there aren’t any more Harry Potter books coming out, my kids are looking forward to more books in the Remin Chronicles – sequels to The Dark Dreamweaver.