The Traveling Restaurant: Jasper's Voyage in Three Parts

The Traveling Restaurant: Jasper's Voyage in Three Parts
by Barbara Else
Gecko, 2012. 295 pgs. Fantasy

Jasper Ludlow is an unremarkable young man, smallish, mousy brown hair, described by others as being ten years old and "apparently not very bright." Actually, Jasper is quite bright and is actually twelve years old, though his mother insists he is ten--has been for two years, in fact. When Lady Gall, the provisional monarch of Fontania decides to crown herself the true queen, things go terribly wrong for Jasper's family. For starters, Lady Gall tries to poison Jasper's little sister Sibilla. Then when the family flees the scene, Jasper accidentally gets left behind. Luckily he manages to get aboard The Traveling Restaurant, captained by Dr. Rocket and a younger woman in green boots named Polly. Jasper's adventures trying to find Sibilla and his parents, and to save everyone from the wicked potential queen are charming, original, and filled (as much as is possible) with forbidden magic. Jasper is one of the finest young men you will ever meet in the pages of a book, though he doesn't think much of himself, one of his many charms. Delightful reading for the 4-6 grade crowd.

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Painting for Peace in Ferguson

Painting for Peace in Ferguson By Carol Swartout Klein Treehouse Publishing Group, 2015. Nonfiction. When the city of Ferguson was overrun with so much hate and despair that homes and businesses had to be boarded up to protect property, citizens of the community decided to bring a message of hope by painting the boarded windows. Klein’s rhyming text supports the photographs of the hundreds of artists and volunteers and their artwork as they bring the messages of peace, hope, love, and that by being united they can make a difference. A great book to show children how a community rallied to make a positive change and that even a small gesture can make a huge difference. A great discussion opener on how we should treat each other.

Dragon Run

Dragon Run by Patrick Matthews Scholastic, 2013. 336 pgs. Fantasy Al Pilgrommor is excited for Testing Day, when he will receive his rank, a tattooed number on the back of his neck, and a path forward to his future occupation and life. He feels confident because his parents were fours on a scale of seven, but he is worried for his friend Wisp who doesn't have much of a chance of scoring above a two at best. But when Al is scored a zero, he not only has no prospects, he may lose his life as the dreaded Cullers are unleashed to kill him and his family to purify the land's bloodlines. Al's world is ruled by dragons--the lords and supposed creators of humankind--so he thinks that even if he survives, he will have to make his living as a beggar or thief. But when Al sticks up for his Earther friend in front of Magister Ludi, he is drawn into the struggle of a secret organization hoping to destroy the Cullers, and perhaps the dragons them...

Review: We're All Gonna Die-Nosaur!

We’re All Gonna Die-nosaur! By Kon Tan New York: Disney Hyperion, 2025. Intermediate. 157 pages. Pterry (the “p” is silent) pterodactyl is a worry wart. Pterry is worried about flying (he doesn’t how to fly yet), dinosaurs going extinct (he had a scary dream), and how to protect his family (he has a little brother who hasn’t fully hatched from an egg yet). Even though there is a lot of feels for Pterry, this is actually quite a funny book. Pterry tries to learn how to fly with kites as his “training wheels” and his brother who is inside an egg is quite the adventurer. This is a funny, heart-felt comic-like intermediate fiction book that will be great for many readers. If kids love dinosaurs, this book is for them. If kids like funny graphic novels, this book is for them. If kids want to read something about facing fears and doing things even though they don’t always want to, this book is for them. Plus, even though Pterry does a lot of things on his own, he still has s...

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