Review: Rougarou Magic

By Rachel M. Marsh

New York: Greenwillow Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, 2024. Fiction. 263 pages.

Newly transplanted from the bayous of Louisiana to Boston, Feliciana is desperate to fit in. At her last school, she was bullied because of her accent, called "mud-bug," and even her teachers couldn't pronounce her last name correctly (it's pronounced Fruge like blue-jay, not like fudge). So at her new school, Feliciana is trying to speak as little as possible and hopefully make friends this year. But fitting in becomes hard when Feliciana's grandma sends her a rougarou, a large canine-like magical creature from Cajun folklore. She tries to balance hiding Roux the rougarou from her mom, completing her art piece for a school competition, and dealing with her step-father's blander than bland food, but ultimately she won't be able to keep secrets from everyone.

Rougarou Magic feels a lot like realistic fiction for a book titled after a creature from folklore, in a good way! I love how the magic and fantastical elements help drive the story, but aren't as important as Feliciana's character development. Kids will see real life problems handled in this book as Feliciana learns how to deal with a realistic bully--one whose jabs are peppered with niceness, and as she learns to bond with her new stepfather. Overall, this book portrays the bitter-sweetness of moving, where you learn that it's okay to miss your old home and still find love for a new place.

Comments

Dude, That's Rude! (Get Some Manners) by Pamela Espeland & Elizabeth Verdick

If there's one book today's kids need to read, it is Dude, That's Rude! (Get Some Manners) . The authors provide a fun format for teaching etiquette to children. They discuss proper behavior at home, at school, at other people's homes and in public places. The information is completely up-to-date with cellphone manners and netiquette included. Fun, cartoony illustrations are on practically every page giving the book great visual appeal. This book is perfect for boys and girls in the fourth grade or older. WARNING: Bodily functions are discussed.

Faces of the Moon by Bob Crelin

Faces of the Moon by Bob Crelin Illustrated by Leslie Evans Charlesburg; 2009; unpaged Faces of the Moon is a short nonfiction book that describes the different phases of the moon and why the moon appears like it does on certain nights. This book is short and sweet so even the youngest of moon lovers will enjoy it. The layout is simplistic and easy to follow. I don’t know much about the moon so I found it very interesting.

Review: The Factory

The Factory By Catherine Egan New York, NY : Scholastic Inc., 2025. Fiction. 306 pages. Thirteen-year-old Asher Doyle has been invited to join the Factory, a secretive research facility in the desert which ostensibly extracts renewable energy from the electromagnetic fields of its young recruits. But Asher soon realizes something sinister is going on. Kids are getting sick. The adults who run the Factory seem to be keeping secrets. And the extraction process is not only painful and exhausting, but existentially troubling. Asher makes a handful of new friends who help him with an investigation that turns into a resistance, which turns into...a cliffhanger! The Factory is a page-turning sci-fi with multidimensional characters, an intriguing plot, and refreshingly straight-forward writing. Egan weaves in detail about climate crises and social unrest, making the story's dystopian setting feel rich and plausible. With its sophisticated themes and accessible storytelling, I would recomm...

Provo Library Children's Book Blog

Search This Blog