Rosh's Reviews

AUTHOR: Rob Albanese GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: January 25, 2022 RATING: 3.25 stars. A funny little book about an old man and a young boy who lives across the street from him. The man is an avid birdwatcher and is trying to locate an elusive snowy owl. But the little fellow, who is bored of staying at home, manages to get in his way and turns his attempts topsy-turvy. The book has many hilarious situations. The little boy is really funny and smart at the same time. The bond between the old man and him develops as the story progresses and they realise that they both can help each other and learn from each other. So I liked the ending much more than the beginning of the book. The story seeks to create an interest in bird-watching. There’s a page on bird-watching tips and snowy owls at the end of the book. The illustrations are quite cute. Nothing extraordinary though. The language is quite simple and will work fine for beginner readers. Somehow, it feels like t...

AUTHOR: Poornima Manco GENRE: Short Story Anthology. SERIES: Around the World, #2 RATING: 4.25 stars. The title and the tagline of this book tell you precisely what this book has: eight fantasy stories from around the world. But is that ever enough in a review? Aren’t you always curious to know more? Read on to see if the book does justice to every part of its name. “Eight”: The number of the stories in this little anthology was just right for me. Not too many, not too few. I read a story a day, but each tale is so different from each other than even if you read it in a go, you won’t find it repetitive. “Fantastical”: Often assumed to be only the adjective form of ‘fantasy”, “fantastical” actually contains a broader meaning: strange, bizarre, outworldly. Every story in this book fits most of these adjectives as each has some content from out of this world, literally. Don’t take this to be your typical fairies and dragons kind of fantasy. Each tale has a specific magical element and in...

AUTHOR: Anthony C. Delauney ILLUSTRATOR: Chiara Civati GENRE: Children's Picture Book. PUBLICATION DATE: December 7, 2021 RATING: 4.25 stars. This book is an interesting and a fun-filled way for children to learn many valuable life lessons. Dash and Nikki are siblings who find a new game prepared for them by their mother. The reward involves jellybeans, and the task seems quite simple at first. However they both soon realise that the game is not as easy as it sounds. The content is broadly based on the Stanford marshmallow experiment on delayed gratification, which proved that those who wait patiently reap greater success in future. This complicated concept is put forth in a straightforward and easy-to-understand story that children will definitely enjoy. The tale is written in simple rhythmic verse. While I’m not a fan of forced rhymes in children’s books (I prefer prose-based content), this book doesn’t go overboard in fitting in rhyming words compulsively. The meter has a very r...

AUTHOR: Christina Dankert ILLUSTRATOR: Chad Dankert GENRE: Children's Picture Book. PUBLICATION DATE: March 22, 2022 RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A cute story with a simple yet powerful message. Story: Mr. Wilson is a second grade teacher who is known for his imaginative inventions. One day, he walks into his class with something huge draped with a sheet. On uncovering it, the surprise is revealed to be a “kindness machine.” ( Not a spoiler; the title should tell you what was underneath the sheet! 😉) Mr. Wilson uses this machine to explain to the children how to implement kindness in their daily routine and make it their superpower. While the idea of such a big machine to explain some simple ideas sounds grandiose, the impact it will have on little kids is undeniable. Each suggestion is so straightforward and practical that any child (and adult) can incorporate these suggestions easily. What I especially loved was that one of the points spoke about being kind to yourself. Tha...

AUTHOR: Ruth F. Stevens GENRE: Contemporary Drama PUBLICATION DATE: October 26, 2021 RATING: 3.5 stars. In a Nutshell: Strong mixed feelings. Loved some parts. Disliked some other parts. Story: Barbara, a single mom to teenaged Sally, has dedicated her life taking care of home and family. She is underconfident about her strengths but is a whiz with organising and planning. Their mother Dolly has recently been admitted in a nursing home as she is in an advanced stage of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). Here, Barbara meets Jack, an older man whose wife Helen is at an even later stage of AD. Soon a bond develops between Barbara and Jack. But will their circumstances allow them to take their relationship ahead? The story comes to us from the first person perspective of Barbara, and third person narratives from the points of view of Jack, Sally and Jack’s grandson Scott. Where the story clicked for me: 💖 The portrayal of AD and dementia, and the devastation they cause on a person was traumatic an...

AUTHOR: Neil Gaiman GENRE: Short Story PUBLICATION DATE: October 25, 2012 RATING: 4.25 stars. Who better than Neil Gaiman to make writing suspenseful? His mastery is so visible in this tale. It's creepy and it's fantastic. And it offers a valuable lesson: don't make assumptions!  This little story is hardly a few pages long but trust me, you will read it twice! The first time, in an offhand manner, and the second time, to locate all the clues you missed out on! Loved it a lot. Wish it were longer. I want to know what happened next! The story is available online on many sites, but if you want to hear it from the MAN himself, check out this link. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imLja6Emezo

AUTHOR: Claire Keegan GENRE: LiteraryFiction, Christmas PUBLICATION DATE: November 5, 2021 RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A brilliant novella that throws a powerful punch at some misguided members of the Catholic religious. Plot Preview: 1985. A small Irish town grappling with the cold weather and the dead economy. Bill Furlong, a coal and timber dealer, is facing a busy season with the dip in temperature. While on his coal delivery rounds to various locals, his past comes back to confront him and he is faced with a dilemma: should he allow his faith or his feelings to dictate his decision? The entire story centres around the character of Bill, and there couldn’t have been a better hero for such a story. A loving husband, an involved father who wants to provide the best education to his five daughters, a practical businessman who is hands-on about his work, and most of all, a human being who doesn’t allow religious loyalties to blind him from their abuse of power. If you need only o...

AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Susie Oh GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: January 1, 2021 RATING: 4.5 stars. Such a simple and adorable story, this one! Little Soomi has received a beautiful green sweater as a gift from her mom. The sweater is too large for her but Soomi insists in wearing it right away. Mom adjusts the garment with a few folds and tucks and Soomi walks proudly to school in her new outfit. Unfortunately, the rough school day creates a rip in Soomi’s sweater and she is heartbroken. All her friends pitch in to help, but the problem becomes worse. Thankfully, Soomi’s mom knows just what to do. I really enjoyed the story. It goes straight to the heart with its cuteness. I loved how the children get together in helping Soomi fix the gaping hole in her sweater arm with bandaid, sticky tape and glue! 😂 The narrative is very straightforward, and at first glance, it seems like it is just a regular story without any morals. But if you dig deeper under the simplist...

AUTHOR: Emma Ward GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: November 2, 2021 RATING: 3.75 stars. This is an amusing story meant for little ones who have just familiarised themselves with the alphabet and want to have some fun with the letters. Doris is a gharial who lives in a modest home on the banks of a river. She has 26 hatchlings, and are they naughty or what!!! Each of the 26 baby gharials is named for a letter of the alphabet, and thus, their antics are revealed letter by letter. By the time Z arrives, Mamma Gharial is tired and she calls on Daddy for some swimming time for the kids. The alliterative title gives you a clue about what role letters play in this alphabet story. Each baby gharial’s mischief is also alliterative, either through the action/verb (such as “Bella bit mom”, “Dawson destroyed the toaster”) or through a quality/adjective (“Samuel was sassy “). This works as a simple and entertaining refresher through the 26 letters as well as provides some nice ...

AUTHOR: Ellen DeLange ILLUSTRATOR: Agnes Ofner GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: October 19, 2021 RATING: 3.5 stars. Fox gets chased out of his home by some dogs and he finds himself in a new forest where the animals are not so welcoming. They seem to judge him by his reputation rather than giving him a chance. However, when a wild boar attacks, it is thanks to Fox’s cunning and resourcefulness that the rest of the animals are saved. And this is how they accept him into their circle and make a new home for him in this forest. Considering only this plot, the story is good enough, though it is never explained why Fox never attempts to find his way back home though he wants to. Still, the prose is nicely structured and the language is pretty manageable. So judging the story simply by virtue of what it presents, it becomes a nice tale of friendship and acceptance, and warns against the perils of judging others based on appearances or reputation without trying to know the...

AUTHOR: Amal Karzai GENRE: Children's Picture Book. PUBLICATION DATE: November 2, 2021 RATING: 2 stars. This didn’t quite work out the way I thought it would. A little girl is having a dull day as she wants to visit the library but her mamma just said “later”. While sitting on the sidewalk complaining about the unfairness of it all to her cat, she suddenly discovers two apparently ordinary objects appear near her: a ball and a key. But these objects are magical and turn her boring day in a day of excitement and adventure by getting her past the locked library door. Sounds good? Yeah, it felt appealing to me too. But this is a case where the theme is good, the implementation isn’t. The idea is that libraries can take you on a wonderful adventure right through the book in your hands. This is a lovely thought and absolutely true. But the way it is written turns this beautiful opinion into a concept so abstract that only the most precocious of children will understand the underlying po...

AUTHOR: Liane Moriarty GENRE: Contemporary Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: December 25, 2014 RATING: 3.75 stars. In a Nutshell: A nice and entertaining read, this one. But it’s more of a social drama than a mystery thriller. Story: Trivia night at a local kindergarten school. Someone is killed. There are multiple witnesses. But no one either knows or wants to reveal who did it. This murder investigation isn’t the prime focus of the story but the underlying thread. The main proceedings focus on three women who are very different from each other but close friends. • Madeline: A funny, outspoken, loyal and passionate fashionista. She’s struggling with the fact that her youngest daughter will be in the same school as her ex-husband’s daughter with his new wife. To add insult to injury, her eldest seems to prefer the company of her stepmom more and more. Will she be able to mend her broken family? • Celeste: A woman with an impeccable life: gorgeous looks, loving husband, twin sons, luxurious ho...

AUTHOR: Wendy James GENRE: Contemporary Mystery PUBLICATION DATE: November 30, 2021 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A slow-paced, engrossing tale of past secrets and lies revealing themselves to a young woman on her return home. Story: Just out of a bad relationship, Jo Sharpe, a journalist, heads back to her hometown to work with the local community newspaper. Her return comes after many years, as she had wanted to escape the memories of her childhood, what with the sudden disappearance of her mother and younger sister from their lives, leaving her father drowning his sorrows in alcohol and Jo all alone. Now an adult, Jo is determined to dig deeper into the mystery, but soon realises that not everything is as it had appeared earlier. The story comes to us from the first person perspective of Jo in 2018, Jo in 1993 and the third person pov of her mother Merry from 1985 onwards. This was quite an interesting story though the pace kept going up and down. The prologue set in 1994 grabb...

AUTHOR: Lucy Strange. ILLUSTRATOR: Pam Smy GENRE: Middle-grade historical fiction. RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: I knew this would be a great book because I had heard of this author’s children’s fiction works. But I wasn’t prepared for it to be so fabulous! Mind you, the story is quite dark. Story: 11 year old Bess has left the London workhouse to work in a rural cotton mill on the promise of good food and shelter. Unfortunately, she finds herself overworked and underfed. She is antagonistic with the other poor orphan labourers who share the same gloomy dorm with no hope of escape. Right outside her dorm window is a pond, but they’ve been warned against entering it as there is supposed to be a monstrous mermaid dwelling in it. The only good thing in Bess’s life is the new entrant Dot, who makes a way into Bess’s reluctant heart. With regular beatings, work struggles reaching intolerable levels and a scary mermaid outside, will Bess be able to escape her situation? And maybe help Do...

AUTHOR: Andrea Coke ILLUSTRATOR: M. Fernanda Orozco GENRE:Children's Picture Book. PUBLICATION DATE: October 4, 2021 RATING: 4.25 stars. A cute story about a little girl who wants a doll that looks just like her. Little Molly's friend Emma has invited her to her birthday party and asked Molly to carry her favourite doll along with her. But all of Molly's dolls look more like Emma than Molly herself. Even a visit to the toy store doesn't help. Now Molly knows what to do: make a doll just like her! Do you think Molly succeeds? This is a nice little tale about inclusivity and a child's wanting to feel more represented, more connected to the world around. Thankfully, there are quite a few dolls nowadays that are representative of various cultures and races, so in today's world, Molly will find a doll that looks like her a bit more easily. The book also teaches children that they can't give up on their dreams if things don't go their way. They can always mak...

AUTHOR: Michele Amitrani SERIES: Rebels of Olympus, #6 GENRE: Greek Myth Retelling PUBLICATION DATE: November 16, 2021 RATING: 4 stars. I am a huge fan of Michele Amitrani. And when you are a fan of a writer, sometimes you tend to have over-expectations from every single book of his/hers. This can lead to disappointment because no author in the world can hit the bull’s eye all the time. This book is a prime example of how expectations can ruin the experience. “King of Defiance” is by no means a bad book, but greedy me wanted more! Almost everyone knows the story of King Sisyphus and his dreary task of rolling a huge boulder up a hill as an eternal punishment for having cheated death twice. This book tells us the story of this supposed trickster king directly from his perspective. You get to see the creative ways in which Sisyphus uses his brain against the egoistic gods, such as binding Thanatos with his own manacles, tricking Persephone into returning him back to the land of the livin...

AUTHOR: Rebecca Sheir ILLUSTRATOR: Chaaya Prabhat GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: June 28, 2022 RATING: 3.75 stars. A Taste of Honey delivers the right level of sweetness, just as its title suggests. The story is derived from an old Indian folktale. I remember reading the original, and I love the changes that the author has made to that narrative. Kamala is a young woman who keeps beehives and sells the collected honey in the local market. When business is too slow and she is struggling to make do, she approaches the king for assistance. Instead of giving her an outright sum, the king allots to her a plot of land and makes a deal that of whatever she earns from that plot, she can keep half. Kamala decides to make the best of this opportunity, but soon realises that the plot is on the outskirts of the town, the area is known for being a hideout for thieves, and the land itself is a mess of weeds and sticks. How Kamala uses her brains to earn a fair income from this ...

AUTHOR: Lucy Menzies ILLUSTRATOR: Maddy Vian GENRE: Children's Picture Book. PUBLICATION DATE: November 9, 2021 RATING: 4.5 stars. Such a cute book this one turned out to be! You can read it as two separate stories or in a combined narrative. That is the biggest USP of the book, though by no means is it the only good point of this gem. The pages on the left show the story of little Belle, who lives with her parents in the city. She adores her grandpa Jack and misses him terribly. But he can’t come to meet her for some unspecified reason. When he sends her a teddy bear as a gift to remember him by, she carries it around everywhere. But when will they meet? The pages on the right show the story of Grandpa Jack, who lives alone in the mountains. He loves his cute little granddaughter and is waiting patiently for the day when he can meet her again. Will his wish come true soon? I simply loved the dual story setup. I read both the tales simultaneously, and that didn’t hinder my comprehe...

AUTHORS: Eric Fan, Terry Fan & Devin Fan GENRE: Children's Picture Book. PUBLICATION DATE: September 1, 2020 RATING: 2.5 stars. In a Nutshell: I liked the idea behind this book. I didn’t like the book. I found the content too dark for kids and the plot wasn’t structured well. Story: Barnabus is a failed project of a pet store. Half mouse and half elephant, he is kept in a glass jar in the basement storage along with the other hybrid misfits. When a cockroach tells Barnabus of the stars and rivers and other beauties of nature, Barnabus decides to escape. As he keeps saying, “nothing is impossible”. Will all the misfits succeed in escaping the dank basement and find freedom? Will they be allowed a chance at happiness despite their appearance? You need to read and find out. This strange SFF type of story will evoke many emotions in you as Barnabus and his friends attempt to achieve their freedom. There is suspense and sadness and hope and happiness. The positive emotions come main...

AUTHOR: Jenny Lacika ILLUSTRATOR: Teresa Martínez GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: May 3, 2022 RATING: 3.5 stars. Rafael loves his toys and tries his best to keep them safe. But his younger sister Essie always finds the hidden loot and crashes around them. In desperation Rafael decides to build ‘un muro’ – a wall. He finds the perfect location for his new wall, and now has to figure out how to build it. Thus begins a treasure hunt of various cardboard boxes and other things from around the house that could help him. But will this unsteady cardboard wall protect his toys from Essie? This is a nice and cute story. I loved the moral that shows how Rafael got his sister’s intent completely wrong, and that she wasn’t bent on destroying his toys but only wanted to play with him. I would have loved a bit more of Essie. She seems like a perfectly loveable and naughty little imp! The book is promoted as having STEM content, with the way spatial skills are involved in Rafael’...