Rosh's Reviews

AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Peter H. Reynolds SERIES: Word Collector #2 GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: October 7, 2025 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A lovely picture book about the beauty and power of words. Set around Christmas season but applicable throughout the year. Adorable lead character, wonderful message and stunning illustrations. Much recommended. Plot Preview: Young Jerome loves collecting words. Every now and then, he takes his little notebook and walks through town looking for new words with his rescue dog Ekka for company. But this holiday season, he cannot find any words that "warm his heart" even though he looks everywhere. Then an idea strikes him. If he cannot find the words he likes, what if he shares the good words that he already has with the world? I've been on a reading binge of whatever picture books I can find written by Peter H. Reynolds. His heartwarming writing and beautiful illustrations are just what I need when the ...

AUTHOR: Matthew A. Cherry ILLUSTRATOR: Vashti Harrison GENRE: Children's Picture Book. PUBLICATION DATE: May 14, 2019 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: An adorable picture book about a little girl and her father indulging in some genuine hair love. Great characters, sweet story, fabulous illustrations. One part of the story could be interpreted in multiple ways, so there's flexibility. Much recommended. Plot Preview: Zuri has "hair with a mind of its own". Every day, her Daddy helps her style it whatever way she wants, and she always loves his efforts. But today is an important day, and she wants her hair to look extra-special. Nothing Daddy creates looks outstanding. Will the duo be able to figure out a creative hairstyle before a special someone comes home? The story comes to us in Zuri's first-person perspective. Note: This review contains plot spoilers, but it's just a picture book, so I hope you'll pardon the reveals. I had first heard of this story ...

AUTHOR: Haley Cohen Gilliland NARRATOR: Alejandra Reynoso GENRE: Historical Nonfiction PUBLICATION DATE: July 15, 2025 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A historical nonfiction account about the Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo, a group of braveheart grandmothers in Argentina seeking their lost family members. Covers multiple decades. Good use of flashbacks and present narratives, combining historical and biographical facts to build a complete picture. Disturbing and informative. Recommended. In the late 1970s, many dissidents of the Argentinian dictatorship were rounded up by the soldiers of the military junta and “disappeared”. These citizens might then be imprisoned, tortured, raped, drugged, murdered – sometimes all. Their families rarely heard the details of their fate, and in many cases, had no news even after the dictatorship was overthrown for a democratic government in 1983. Sadly, some of the “disappeared” were pregnant women. When these women gave birth in captivity, their newborn ...

AUTHOR: Maria Gianferrari ILLUSTRATOR: Ishaa Lobo GENRE: Children's Picture Book. PUBLICATION DATE: December 5, 2023 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A picture book containing a love letter addressed to our four-legged best friends who go beyond being pets. Beautiful doggies, beautiful thoughts, beautiful illustrations. Could have done better on a couple of things, but overall, a lovely option for all dog lovers. Who can resist a dog book, right? I certainly can't, especially not when it's in picture book form. I know such books always give me warm fuzzies – much needed during the crazy times we are currently living through. As the tagline indicates, this picture book is a love letter to the dogs that help us. It is thus written in epistolary style, with the text containing a thank-you letter addressed to dogs. The book is not just about pet dogs but also about dogs in service. We see dogs who provide comfort during difficult times, dogs who provide healing therapy to the...

AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Dav Pilkey SERIES: The Dragon Tales GENRE: Children's Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: January 1, 1991. RATING: 4.2 stars. In a Nutshell: A collection of three cute chapter books featuring a dragon with a big heart and a bumbling mind. Quite entertaining. Lovely illustrations as well. Recommended! I knew Dav Pilkey as the creator of some of the silliest and funniest children’s book series with hilarious characters such as Captain Underpants, Dog Man and Cat Kid. My younger daughter is a big fan of his stories. So when my GR friend Darla added this book to her shelf, I knew I had to read it too. And what a fun experience it has been! Each of Pilkey’s Dragon stories is a chapter book featuring a loveable blue dragon named… well… Dragon. We can see right away that he has a large heart that longs for company, but after a few pages, it also becomes clear that his common sense is inversely proportional to his heart. 😅 It is funny to see him goofing along, and also he...

AUTHOR: Katarína Macurová GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: July 16, 2019 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A picture book about one animal trying to help his friend to fly. Probably among the funniest picture books I have read! Love the story, the message, the ending, and the illustrations. A couple of the jokes might be understood better by adults, but plenty of learning opportunities here. Recommended. Plot Preview: Arthur the bear is concerned that his friend Eddie, a “bird”, doesn’t ever fly but walks everywhere. When he asks Eddie about it, Eddie responds that no one taught him how to fly. So Arthur decides that he will teach his friend to fly. Thus begins a series of lectures and practical sessions on flying from the bear to the “bird”. But as adult readers can guess, teaching this “bird” to fly ain’t gonna be an easy task! After a long series of debacles, Arthur decides to ask other birds for help. Do you think Arthur will succeed? Don’t you just love it whe...

EDITOR: Alice Hoffman GENRE: Essay Collection PUBLICATION DATE: March 10, 2026 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A collection of essays by various authors about some best dogs in the world. Given the reputation of the contributing authors, it’s not surprising that this is one well-written collection. A love letter to dogs and a must-read for all dog owners and dog lovers. At times, the cover of a book is such that you are tempted to grab it without doing any other due diligence. Look at the cover art of this book! Just see that unbridled bliss on that beautiful dog’s visage! Add to this, that amazing title! How is one to resist?! Thankfully, the book delivers exactly as the cover and the title promise, not making me regret my impulsive decision for even a second. I don’t often read essay collections, but if the theme of the essays is close to my heart, then I am willing to try the book. This book contains fourteen essays celebrating the joys and challenges of their canine companions. ...

AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Paula Bowles GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: March 3, 2026 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A picture book that delivers on content, message, language, and illustrations. Covers an important topic in a fun way. Definitely recommended. Plot Preview: After a long journey, Toco the toucan has finally found the right tree for his dream home. He starts drawing plans for his treehouse, thinking of a warm and cosy place that will be perfect for him and hoping that the neighbours will also be friendly. Well, they are, overly so. The other toucans show up one by one to help, which makes Toco quite happy at first., But he soon realises that they are building the treehouse they want, not the one he wants. Toco tries to make peace with their version, but he soon feels overwhelmed. Will he be able to tell them what he really wants? In a world that is increasingly loud and aggressive, quieter children (and adults) often resort to the habit of staying...

AUTHOR: Nikki Erlick NARRATORS: Marin Ireland; Dan Bittner; Stacey Glemboski; Graham Halstead; Mia Barron; Callie Dalton; Janina Edwards; Shawn K. Jain; Christian Barillas; Jason Culp. GENRE: Speculative Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: June 17, 2025 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A speculative fiction novel about an innovative treatment facility and the individuals whose life it affects. An imaginative plot with some solid unforeseen reveals. Literary in style. Character-driven. Slow but steady pacing. A bit sad though there are moments of joy. Quite introspective. Recommended. I am an outlier… on the positive side! 🥳 Go in with the right expectations to enjoy this better. Plot Preview: In a secluded stretch of the California desert, a new establishment is making waves. ‘The Poppy Fields’ is an experimental treatment centre, claiming to offer relief to those burdened by grief through their revolutionary yet free therapy that involves extended sleep. Only those vetted by their elaborate...

AUTHOR: Donna Everhart GENRE: Historical Fiction. PUBLICATION DATE: RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A historical fiction based on true events. Excellent character and plot development. Fabulous atmosphere and research. Graphic abuse, though it’s never sensationalised. Compelling but also highly disturbing. Definitely recommended, but only when you are in a strong headspace. Plot Preview: 1941. Twenty-four-year-old Ruth Foster and fifteen-year-old Stella Temple find themselves enrolled at The State Industrial Farm Colony for Women in Kinston, North Carolina. Stella views it as a kind of escape while Ruth considers it a prison. Stella believes she did something wrong and hence needs to be redeemed during her stay at the Farm; Ruth is clear that she doesn’t deserve to be in the institution and wants to get out asap. Superintendent Dorothy Baker, convinced that she is transforming degenerates and ”mental defectives” into morally worthy citizens, oversees all the training and treatment ...

AUTHOR: Joanna Rowland ILLUSTRATOR: Thea Baker GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: September 26, 2017 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A beautiful picture book to help kids cope with grief. Simple narration that’s perfect for the age group. Nice illustrations as well. Recommended. Grief on losing a loved one is an experience we would not want any child to go through, but it is an unavoidable part of life, and some children sadly face this sadness sooner than anticipated. This book can be one source of comfort to them in such times. The text comes from the first-person point of view of a young girl, so it sounds like a personal narration. When children read it, the first-person POV will surely help them connect better with the feelings of grief and sadness. To be clear, this book is not about understanding death. It is focussed only on the emotions felt after facing such a loss. The titular memory box is one method the narrator uses to cope with her feelings. It is a ...

AUTHOR: Don Winslow GENRE: Short Novels Collection PUBLICATION DATE: January 27, 2026 RATING: 4.33 stars. In a Nutshell: A collection of six short novels, each a character-oriented story of moral conflicts and misdemeanours. Excellent in variety, plot development, writing, pacing, and endings. Much recommended! Don’t read the GR blurb. The blurb calls author Don Winslow "America's King of Crime Fiction" and “America’s greatest living crime writer”. But I had never even heard of him! 🤭 ( Put this down to my relative abstinence from the thriller genre in recent years. ) Those two labels were impossible to resist, so with the assurance of this having ‘six short novels’ instead of one full-length novel, I decided to give this collection a go. Now that I read it, I am wondering why I haven’t ever read him before! It’s important to remember that the book promises six short novels, not short stories. With the total page count being about 300 pages, each entry gets more than eno...

AUTHOR: Lisa Papp SERIES: Madeline Finn, #4 GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: September 12, 2023 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: The fourth and final book of the Madeline Finn series. The content and the tone are different this time, as can be guessed from the title. Not directly faith-oriented, but it does include the ritual of the blessing of animals. The story and the message are still lovely though, as are the illustrations. Recommended. Plot Preview: It’s a special day. Madeline and her mom are taking Star and Bonnie to the annual Blessing of the Animals. The reverend at the park offers a special blessing to all the animals turn by turn, which leaves Madeline feeling awed. Madeline knows that there are more animals who deserve the blessing, but they are all at the animal shelter. With a long line of animals still at the park awaiting their turn, the reverend cannot leave. So she passes on to Madeline a special gift and message, and Madeline is happy to pass i...

AUTHOR: Megha Majumdar NARRATOR: Soneela Nankani GENRE: Dystopian Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: October 14, 2025 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A near-future literary dystopian novel set in India. Character-oriented, steady-paced (but not fast). True to present reality despite being set in an unknown future time. Excellent exploration of human behaviour. Much recommended. Not for those looking for light, relaxing stories. Plot Preview: Near-future Kolkata, India. Ma, her two-year-old daughter Mishti and Ma’s elderly father Dadu have to stay just a few days more in their climate-battered city with its heat and food shortage. They have finally procured their climate-approved visas, and a week later, they will join Ma’s husband in Michigan USA. To their horror, the next morning, Ma’s purse is stolen, and with it have gone their visa-stamped passports. Can Ma somehow find those valuable documents before their flight? The story is set over the course of one week, and comes to us in parallel...

AUTHOR: Veronika Dapunt GENRE: Dark Comedy-Mystery. PUBLICATION DATE: January 6, 2026 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A speculative, darkly comic mystery with Death as the narrator. Funny at the start, mysterious in between, somewhat deeper and philosophical towards the end. Creative throughout. Enjoyed the characters, the humour and the flow. Unexpected religious angle, but it was highly interesting. Didn’t like one particular aspect of the plotting, but otherwise, this offered an entertaining ride, as long as you read it in the right spirit of going with the flow without asking too many questions. An excellent debut that overly conservative Christians better avoid. Plot Preview: Death is tired of humans picturing her as a skeleton with a black ‘potato sack’ and a scythe. No matter how well she does her job, she still doesn’t get welcomed with joy or treated with respect. So when she learns from a newly departed soul that there’s something called a work sabbatical, Death immediatel...