Rosh's Reviews

AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Ashley Spires SERIES: Most Magnificent Thing, #3 GENRE: Children's Picture Book. PUBLICATION DATE: September 5, 2023. RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: The third picture book of the ‘Most Magnificent’ series. Unlike the earlier two, this one has no plot but is a guide book aimed at creative thinkers. Quite interesting and imaginative with much helpful advice, but will have limited appeal compared to the rest of the series. Though the third book of the Most Magnificent series, this book stands apart in its approach. This first two books had a clear plot, where a little girl struggled with making her invention and thinking of an idea respectively. This third book is more of a nonfiction, with the title indicating exactly what the book contains: a A-Z guide for little makers. From Brainstorming to Fixing to Rethinking and a lot more, every single letter of the English alphabet gets a page or two of dedicated focus. The content doesn’t stop just at saying th...

SERIES: Disney Fairies Graphic Novel #1 GENRE: Children's Graphic Novel. PUBLICATION DATE: April 13, 2010. RATING: 2.25 stars. ꧁ First graphic novel of the Disney Fairies series ꧂ ❁ Contains four stories focussing on Prilla, a fairy with a rare talent that is only mentioned but not explored in this book. Tinkerbell is also present in every story, though not always in the main role. ❁ Has several book-only characters who were not a part of the Tinkerbell movies. Tinkerbell, Terence, and Vidia are the only main movie characters also present in these stories. ( I miss the other movie characters! ) ❁ The first three stories are decent, none too memorable. Utterly disappointed by the last story as it teaches children something quite stupid. ❁ Simple text, easy to read for the target age group. ❁ Mixed feelings about the graphics. The colours and background nature sketches are great but the characters are a hit-or-miss. Why give Terence such a 'cool stud' kind of look? It doesn...

AUTHOR: You Yeong-Gwang TRANSLATOR: Slin Jung GENRE: Korean Fantasy. PUBLICATION DATE: November 28, 2024. RATING: 2.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A cozy fantasy about a girl who ends up in a world within our world and discovers the secret of happiness. Overly simplistic writing, a mostly episodic plot, flat characters. I have a strong feeling that something went wrong in the translation as well. Might work better for YA readers, as it was promoted as a YA novel when released in Korea. Plot Preview: Outside the city where Serin stays, there’s a rundown abandoned house in a place called Rainbow Town. Rumour has it that if you send a letter about your misfortunes to this house, you might receive a mysterious ticket. If you bring this ticket to the house on the first day of the rainy season, you are permitted to enter the magical Rainfall Market, where you can choose to change your life to the one you want. Serin never thought that she would actually be lucky when she penned her woes and post...

AUTHOR: Angela McAllister ILLUSTRATOR: Sally Agar GENRE: Folktale Collection. PUBLICATION DATE: RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A beautiful illustrated collection of folk tales and legends from around the world, with every story being connected to a water body. Amazing stories, great diversity, excellent illustrations. Angela McAllister delivers again! Much recommended to little story lovers. I have been a fan of Angela McAllister’s folktale collections ever since I read ‘A Bedtime Full of Stories’ in 2021. Her books always feature appealing magical tales, legends and lore from across the world. And when I say ‘across’, I mean ‘across’ in every sense of the world. Unlike many story collections that claim to have global stories but end up with a majority of the stories being from USA and some parts of Europe, McAllister’s collections span every continent, and even contains stories from indigenous tribes. I have come to see her children’s compilations books as a reliable source of g...

AUTHOR: Molly Olguín GENRE: Short Story Collection. PUBLICATION DATE: April 29, 2025 RATING: 3.2 stars. In a Nutshell: A short story collection interspersing fantasy and horror into a mesmerising combo. Precise writing, intriguing characters, compelling plots. Had all the endings worked for me, this would have ended up as one of my favourites of the year. Regardless, the imaginative and distinct storylines still make this book a good option for short fiction lovers. This collection of twelve stories doesn’t have any author’s note to introduce the binding theme to us. However, the blurb has this interesting one-liner to offer: ‘a collection of stories sprinkled into the soil of fairy tale, left to take root and grow wild there.’ How poetic is that! The dominant genre is fantasy-horror, but many stories also feel literary. Each of the tales has a fresh storyline, generating no feelings of déjà vu or familiarity. The narratives are distinct in plot, characters as well as emotions. The ch...

AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Ashley Spires SERIES: Most Magnificent Thing, #2 GENRE: Children's Picture Book. PUBLICATION DATE: September 6, 2022. RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: The second picture book of the ‘Most Magnificent’ series and just as adorable. Great idea, great characters, great life lesson. Much recommended. Can be read as a standalone. Plot Preview: The unnamed little girl and her pet-dog-cum-creative-assistant are back. She still loves tinkering and has a new idea every day for a new project. But one day, she hits that dreaded wall that so many creative people fear: her mind draws a blank. No idea! What will she do? What can she make? With her beloved assistant in tow, she tries her best to think of a new idea, but nothing seems to work. Is this the end of her tinkering days? Yet again a simple concept but a relatable one. Even the most creative people have days when no idea comes to mind or comes to fruition. This might lead to sadness, annoyance, or frustratio...

AUTHOR: Laura van den Berg NARRATOR: Megan Tusing. GENRE: Literary Fiction. PUBLICATION DATE: July 9, 2024. RATING: 2.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A literary fiction that goes much beyond what the blurb indicates. Almost stream-of-consciousness in its plotting and too wild in its twists. Individual elements great, but didn't come together cohesively. Concentrating on the audio version was a chore. No personal ‘Plot Preview’ this time. I truly don’t know where to begin and what to include or exclude! Please read the GR blurb to know what the book is about. On paper, this novel has many enticing elements: a dystopian feel with some strange technology, climate crises in Florida, extreme weather, missing persons mystery, dysfunctional family, ghostwriting and its perks and perils, covid pandemic, bizarre cults, asylum troubles, alternate dimensions, and absurd obsessions (thanks to the weird fascination that the protagonist has with her belly button and how deeply cavernous it has beco...

AUTHOR: Cortney Cino ILLUSTRATOR: Tadgh Bentley GENRE: Children's Picture Book. PUBLICATION DATE: June 3, 2025. RATING: 3.75 stars. In a Nutshell: An epistolary picture book with a wackily creative concept. Unusual and humorous. Makes you think from the other perspective. Cute illustrations as well. Might have a negative side effect though. 😉 Plot Preview: Antonia has been quite happy ever since she and her friends moved into Jay’s house. He’s always kind to them, making sure they have enough delicious food to eat. However, his parents aren’t so happy and they are turning increasingly dangerous. As such, Antonia is forced to take a drastic decision, and she conveys her gratitude as well as her changed plans to Jay through a letter written with the help of her pals. Here’s the twist to the tale: Antonia is an ant. ( ‘Ant’onia the ‘ant’: I love it! ) This picture book is innovative in so many ways! It’s epistolary, not something applicable to most picture books. It’s from a non-...

AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Ashley Spires SERIES: Most Magnificent Thing, #1 GENRE: Children's Picture Book. PUBLICATION DATE: April 1, 2014. RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A lovely picture book about the frustrations that accompany perfectionism. Adorable characters, great storyline, nice message, cute illustrations. Much recommended! Plot Preview: A little girl and her best friend, her pet pug, love to do everything together. She enjoys making things, so one day, she decides to create the most magnificent thing that she has already imagined and planned out in her head. She employs her dog as her assistant and starts her work. But is it always easy to get what’s in our mind out in reality? I happened to have the ARC of a picture book by this author, and on opening it, I noticed that it was the fourth book of a running series. Luckily, my library had the first book, so I sang just as Julie Andrews did: “Let’s start at the very beginning…” 😉 The dedication itself makes clear that ...

AUTHOR: Amy S. Kaufman GENRE: Historical Fiction. PUBLICATION DATE: April 29, 2025. RATING: 1.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A historical fiction retelling the story of Robinhood from the perspective of one of his female group members. Loved the intent, especially the idea of presenting the original picture of Robinhood from medieval ballads. However, the execution didn’t work for me. This felt more like YA fiction (except that it isn’t YA-friendly). Bland narrator, minimal character development, and a lot of needless focus on physical attraction (with an equally unnecessary romantic triangle.) It might work better for those who don’t read much historical fiction but are interested in a Robinhood retelling. Plot Preview: Jane is an ordinary peasant girl with an uncaring mother more interested in her own dalliances and elder brothers who don’t have much time for their only sister. So when her beau Bran suggests that she work for the infamous Lord of the Greenwood, Jane is taken aback but wil...

AUTHOR: Marc González Rossell GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: May 6, 2025. RATING: 2.8 stars. In a Nutshell: A picture book about the magic of seeing clearly. I liked the idea and even the atypical implementation. But a couple of content inclusions seemed odd for the target age group. I’d have liked the overall feel to be lighter and more positive. The artwork was also not in my favourite style. This picture book was originally published in Spanish under the title ‘Octavio y sus gafas’ in 2024. This English version, translated by Susan Ouriou, is to be published in May 2025. I like the concept of the book. Octavio’s world is quite blurry But once he gets new glasses, his eyesight improves to such an extent that he can see things from far, far away as well as very, very near. He sees monsters and cheaters and liars and lovers. Just as you wonder what’s happening, the twist is revealed ( and honestly, as a book lover, I should have seen it coming beforehand ): Octa...

AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Stan Stanley Series: The Hazards of Love, #2 GENRE: Graphic Novel, Urban Fantasy. PUBLICATION DATE: April 22, 2025. RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: An inclusive urban fantasy in graphic novel format. Continues Amparo’s story from Volume 1. As mesmerising as the first book in every way. But a cliffhanger ending yet again – Aargh! No plot preview this time, as any reveal about the story will be a major spoiler. Just know that this begins right where Volume 1: Bright World ends, so it is not to be read as a standalone. This book is the print version of the online webcomic ‘The Hazards of Love’ . The first graphic novel collected the first twelve episodes (from 0 to 11). This new book, which is coming out 4.5 years after the first volume ( What a lengthy wait! ), brings to us episodes 12 to 24. Book One: Bright World delivered in plot development, creativity, inclusivity, writing smarts and twisty thrills. It merged fantasy, horror and (Mexican) mythology in ...

AUTHOR: Rachel Huffmire NARRATOR: Rachel White SERIES: Mirror Chronicles, #1 GENRE: Fairy Tale Retelling + Science Fiction. PUBLICATION DATE: September 18, 2021 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: An amazingly creative retelling of ‘Snow-White and the Seven Dwarves’. Combines fairy-tale, historical fiction, fantasy, and futuristic science fiction into a mind-blowing package. Complex plot, layered characters, twisty storytelling, no frivolous romance. The first of a series. No cliffhanger ending. Had a couple of minor issues, but overall, a commendable debut. Much recommended! Plot Preview: 2069, Scotland ➙ Keltson: A hacker who considers himself a vigilante. Helps clients travel through time with the help of mirrors to “rescue unfortunate souls from the past.” 2069, Russia ➙ Lilia: A Russian engineer working at a junkyard but longing to escape her dreary life. What she wants most is an opportunity to work with the mysterious renegade known simply as ‘The Mirror’ as that’s her only c...

AUTHOR: Tanya Guerrero GENRE: Contemporary Fiction. PUBLICATION DATE: April 1, 2025. RATING: 4 stars. In a Nutshell: A heartwarming contemporary UpLit novel about a group of strangers united by a black cat. Found-family trope used well. Touching without turning cheesy (for the most part.) Multiple characters with diverse backgrounds and layered arcs. Perfect for the times you want something relaxing. Read this with your heart and not your head to enjoy it better. Plot Preview: Cat lives an independent life on the streets of New York. As he strolls the streets, he crosses paths with five strangers: Omar, a happy-go-lucky mailman; Núria, a barista whose two passions are cats and coffee, in that order; Collin, an erstwhile bestselling novelist looking for inspiration for his next writing attempt; Bong, a bodega owner mourning the loss of his beloved wife; and Lily, a young Georgia native who has moved to New York directly after high school on a secret personal mission. As Cat purrs his ...

AUTHOR: Kari Allen ILLUSTRATOR: Tatjana Mai-Wyss SERIES: Maddie and Mabel, #6 GENRE: Children's Fiction, Chapter Book. PUBLICATION DATE: May 6, 2025. RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A picture book celebrating the beautiful bond of sisterhood. As awesome as the earlier books in this series. Can be read as a standalone. This is the sixth book in the Maddie and Mabel series, and I doubt I have any original words of praise left for it. I've read five books of the series and each of them has been a winner. ( I still feel sad that the third book wasn't available on NetGalley .) Just as in the earlier books, the content is divided across five chapters, each with an episodic kind of narration that's somewhat interconnected. I like how the first chapter in every book begins with an introduction of the two sisters, thereby eliminating the need to read the series in order. As the title suggests, we have a new character making an appearance in this book. But is it easy to make...

AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Stan Stanley Series: The Hazards of Love, #1 GENRE: Graphic Novel, Urban Fantasy. PUBLICATION DATE: March 30, 2021. RATING: 4.5 stars. In a Nutshell: An urban fantasy-horror in graphic novel format. Complex storyline, amazing characters, intelligent writing, great inclusivity. Much recommended, as long as you don’t mind a cliffhanger ending. Plot Preview: Amparo, a nonbinary Latinx teen from Queens, grabs the opportunity of making a deal with a talking cat: a drop of blood in exchange for being a better person. They hope to make their mother happy and also to be deserving of a date with their clever classmate Iolanthe. Unfortunately for Amparo, not every magical deal is as seen in the movies. The cat ends up stealing their name as well as their physical body, and Amparo’s spirit ends up imprisoned in a terrifying land filled with cannibalistic monsters. “Bright World” is not at all like its name, at least for the humans who end up there. Can Amparo use thei...