A fun read with stunning artwork for Pre K and early readers

Simon the Sloth by Molly Arbuthnott offers pages of stunning art depicting the story of Simon, a sloth who loves to play the bagpipes. He’s very good at playing the right notes, but he has a problem. He plays so slowly that his music sounds like yowling cats and screeching foxes. If you’ve never heard that fox noise just Google it. Their cries sound like a woman’s high-pitched scream, so the description was perfect for getting the point across that no one wanted to listen to Simon play. 

Book Review: Simon the Sloth

The story follows Simon’s journey around the world as he seeks an answer to this problem, but no matter where he played, he was just too slow. I won’t say more because I don’t do spoilers. This story is a fun read, though I wished it were a little more developed. The artwork is stunning and colorful. Kids will love it because it includes all kinds of details not mentioned in the story which a parent can point out in a teaching moment. I recommend Simon the Sloth as a Pre-K read-aloud story and for early readers. It’s a gentle, sweet story that provides a practical lesson in perseverance and reaching goals on a toddler’s level. I think those who enjoyed The Bear and the Piano by David Litchfield, or The Lion Inside by Rachel Bright will love this book. I give it a strong 4 stars.

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I received a free review copy of this book from Book Tasters and have not been compensated for reviewing or recommending it. Some links in this post are affiliate links. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to amazon.com and affiliate sites.

 

About Author Molly Arbuthnott

Molly is a teacher, author, editor, and academic from Scotland, UK. She's passionate about the promotion of children’s literature. With a solid understanding of literature and the ability to read, she believes you can take on the world. She has completed an M.A. in Art History and an M.Ed in children's literature. She has gone on to write nine award-winning picture books.

She uses experiences from life as inspiration for her writing. Teaming up with four fantastic illustrators has helped breathe life into the stories. Each story is loosely based on family or friends who have been important in her life whilst also trying to tell stories honestly and gently, singing praise to things we have to celebrate in our world. Teaching children to look out for others, work as a team, and not be afraid of doing the right thing is important. Such lessons might then filter through and be reflected in the way we live in the magical world around us.

 

Unpredictable, suspense-filled, magical fairy tale for young and old

The Magic of Last Resort: Book 6 of The Western Lands and All That Really Matters series by Andrew Einspruch, delivers a satisfactory conclusion to the epic tale of Queen Eloise Gumball III's life from a young adult princess to a crown plonked queen soon to be officially crowned sovereign. 

 

As book six opens, Queen Eloise Gumball III faces the threat of war on her Eastern border, depleted coffers, and an ill-prepared military. On top of that, she and her twin sister are at odds. With all this going on, she considers tapping into the magic of the Star of Whatever, if she can figure out how it works but in the meantime, tries diplomacy. This effort calls together all the former leaders met in the previous books and makes for some interesting negotiations. Especially, since many still consider her young, naïve, and inexperienced.

 

@donnasundblad Magic of Last Resort #bookreview #bookreviewer #bookrecommendations #bookhookup #booktok #books #bookreaders #bookreads ♬ original sound - Donna Sundblad

Book Review: The Magic of Last Resort

Einspruch’s gift to tackle serious situations with elements of humor woven throughout is masterful. He seamlessly unfolds a sequence of cause and effects across the beginning, middle, and end of this fairytale-like story. The worldbuilding of this unique land with talking animals, becomes believable as you get lost in the story with beloved characters both human and not. 

I’ve read all the books in this series, and absolutely loved them. The one exception, for me, is that I was not thrilled with the end of the series. I felt it a little rushed and was disappointed that it didn’t deliver what I’d been hoping for throughout the series. A resolution of Eloise’s relationship with Lorch. At the end, when Eloise goes out to get a breath of fresh air, I thought, this is it! They will finally talk about how they feel toward one another. Even if it is impossible, they can admit it. And in my thinking, if Eloise can find her way out of the Whacking Great Hole, she can find a way to overcome protocol and convince Lorch Lacksneck to become her King. BUT that wasn’t meant to be. The end took another direction that did bring this book to a satisfying conclusion.

I give this whole series 5 stars, including this book. I devoured it in two days but then stopped at 90 percent read. I wanted to savor the end. Saying goodbye to characters I’ve grown to care about is always hard. A type of withdrawal. Even though the end wasn’t what I was hoping for, the book is deliciously unpredictable, well written, and delightfully entertaining. I highly recommend this action-packed, suspense-filled, magical fairy tale for young and old. The Einspruch musical puns made a curtain call at the end which did help ease my self-inflicted disappointment. The entire series is worth picking up. Two thumbs up!

 

Other Western Lands and All That Really Matters books

• The Purple Haze: A Humorous Fantasy Novel (The Western Lands and All That Really Matters Book 1)
• The Star of Whatever: A Humorous Fantasy Novel (The Western Lands and All That Really Matters Book 2)
• The Light Bearer: A Humorous Fantasy Novel (The Western Lands and All That Really Matters Book 3)
  
• The Crown Plonked Queen: A Humorous Fantasy Novel (The Western Lands and All That Really Matters Book 4)
• The Eastie Threat: A Humorous Fantasy Novel (The Western Lands and All That Really Matters Book 5)

I received a free review copy of this book and have not been compensated for reviewing or recommending it. Some links in this post are affiliate links. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to amazon.com and affiliate sites.

 

 

 

Four Square Miles where family survival meets organized crime

Four Square Miles the prequel by Keith Michael Preston unfolds through an omniscient third-person narrator looking in on a gritty inner four-square mile section of early 90s New York City. It centers on the Gento family where Mrs. Gento struggles as a windowed mother of two to not only make ends meet but to keep her children safe. Her oldest, Nuccio, has dropped out of school to support his family and worries about his attractive teenage sister, Maria, who is hanging out with the wrong people and placing herself in danger. 

The Westerns, a rough group of gun pushers that come in and take over small corrupt towns and cities like Four Square, enter the picture, and clash with the local thugs plans' of controlling things.

For Square Miles the prequel moves along quickly as family life fiction is infiltrated by organized crime. The protagonist, Nuccio Gento, is a loyal son and friend, and protective brother who navigates hard times, young love with a girl with a disapproving father, and faces difficult decisions when he comes up against organized crime. 

Book Review: Four Square Miles the prequel

In For Square Miles the prequel, family survival meets organized crime head on. It is tale of love, drama, sacrifice, corruption, and redemption with consequences. The characters feel real. No one is perfect, but many have good qualities. I hoped for the best for Nuccio as the pages turned. Could he come through it all on the right side of things? I recommend this book to readers who enjoy organized crime thrillers, family sagas, and coming of age in the 90s. While this book is a prequel, the story does stand on its own, but certainly whets the appetite to reach for Four Square Miles the layoff (Four Square Miles series), book 1 of 4. I give it a strong 4 stars.

As BookHookup, I am a longtime book reviewer. I received a free review copy of this book from BookTasters and have not received compensation for reviewing or recommending it. Some links in this post are affiliate links. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to amazon.com and affiliate sites.

 About Author Keith Michael Preston

Keith started writing as a screenwriter of numerous topics and genres. Although he still writes screenplays, he ventured into novel writing to share his work with the public. Keith's dream is to have one of his stories on a network station or the big screen. Keith is married with two sons and lives in New York. www.KeithMichaelPreston.com