Revenge of Queen Rose

 

When I decided to read this book and review it, I did so with very high expectations. After reading the first book in this series ‘The Lucky Diamond’, which I reviewed last February, I was eager to get to know what happened to the five siblings, and how life was treating the diamonds. My expectations were met. I was very well entertained by this book. Within minutes of starting to read it, I was highly immersed in it. It was so gripping that I did not want to put the book down!

The story starts with the twins and with a description of the calm scenery, which gives one the sensation that everything is going well for the children. It could not have been further from the truth, as the following pages quickly immerse us into the different adventures that the five children go through. One must here mention Lucky the Diamond princess who was one of the protagonists in the first volume and her father, the Diamond King. Besides the children, there are other characters involved too. These all play a part in making the plot interesting.

 All the different sub plots merge to a point together, where the bad characters are quashed and evil, in the form of Queen Rose  is banished from the face of the Earth. The book ends with a feeling of well-being, of success and happiness. It teaches the reader to be courageous and resilient. One must never give up, but persist in reaching their aim. The book is enjoyable to read and is suitable for children and older persons alike. The reader is afforded the pleasure of being immersed into an absorbing story, where one will surely have fun trying to guess what is going to happen next. I am looking forward to the third volume.

Katy on Broadway

 

Katy on Broadway is a young children’s book written and illustrated by Ella English. I really enjoyed looking at the pictures, which add colour to the book. This story is ideal for parent and child bonding time, as the illustrations can be used in the form of question and answer, so that the child is encouraged to describe what they are seeing. The story is also ideal for the older child who is just beginning to read as they can read it by themselves.

 

The aim behind this story is that one must not give up. They must always do whatever they feel that is good for them. Katy was targeted by Gerry the squirrel and by the two birds who told her that she could not sing. Despite their claim and that of her owner, Lilian, who told her that she was making a  noise which was giving her a headache, Katy did not give up. This shows that one must be resilient in the face of adversity, and not to be afraid to wade against other people’s opinions.

 

In fact, Katy did just so. She escaped from her home, and even though she was afraid of the noise, traffic and all those people, she still did not give up. She meets Weasel who encourages her to follow her dreams. The story ends with Katy singing on Broadway. At last, her dream of singing to the public was fulfilled!

 

This is a captivating story which, through Katy the cat, seeks to encourage and instil in young children the realization that it is fine to believe in yourself, to walk alone and to never give up. All these positive messages are uplifting and once all the book is read, one feels satisfied that Katy has reached her aim. Each individual should seek to carve out a life for himself, regardless of other people’s opinions.

Dayana, Dax and the Dancing Dragon

 

 

Fantasy is rife in this book published by the Once Upon a Dance company. Its illustrations are fantastic, and eye-catching to both children and adults alike.

This story revolves around Dayana, her baby brother Dax and a dancing Dragon, Kadeena. Together, Dayana and Kadeena explore the different dance movements. These dance movements are emphasized in the same page by Ballerina Konora, who through words and photos of the different poses, shows step by step how these dance moves are done.

I found this book very interesting. It was the first time that I read something like this. Besides the beautiful illustrations where the children and Kadeena seem to pop out of the pages, the book teaches the readers, various ballet moves. The story aims to inspire the young dancers to imagine, fantasise and create. In fact in the opening pages, ballerina Konora tells the reader that there is no need to be a dragon like Kadeena to be able to do the dance moves.

Besides the dance moves pictured in every page, this book teaches us something else. This is that we should not judge on appearance. Dayana judged her baby brother as being useless. Likewise, she thought that Kadeena  was not good at dancing. This was a wrong judgement as in fact Kadeena had been to many places and knew a lot of different dances.

I found this book very inspiring as it aims to  instill in our children the values of treating others with respect and not judging others. The book also encourages children to take up dancing as a form of fitness activity.

'The Maker-Man of Merryville' by Pete Mesling

 

The Maker-Man of Merryville is written by Pete Mesling. This is a very absorbing book which I enjoyed reading. It has a very good intriguing plot which leaves you very curious as to how the events are going to unfold. It is like a jigsaw puzzle which at the end,  fits together.  Through the twists and turns of the story, the characters experience a lot of adventures, with some of them being very heart-stopping!

The setting of the book starts in Merryville, then it moves on to Skaate Dowe and lastly on to Dablos, which is the land of the moon. The main protagonists are Gilbert and his classmate Sarah. They are twelve years old and are not happy with the current sad situation in their town, where the people over there do not not smile or laugh. The arrival of the Maker-Man in their town, proves to be something of a highlight for these children who are being brought up in this dreary town.

 When the Maker-Man sells Gilbert some Away Putty and Sarah a monkey soft toy, the children are set on a marvellous exciting course. At the beginning of the story, they are class-mates. At the end, they are best friends, with a hint that the friendship might develop in the future into something more intense. Other protagonists include also Lester Morsoe, the children’s teacher, who had also fleetingly entered Skaate Dowe, as a child.  There are others, with the main one being the Maker-Man of Merryville, Belch the water-monkey who comes alive, and also Snarl the demi-ghoul. These characters have to battle against  Queen Mixie, Skinner and the pirate, Skrimshaw, who are on the bad side.

This books is a very good read for readers of all ages. Besides having a fascinating plot, the book teaches readers about good values, like being kind and that by working in teams, one has more chances of succeeding.  It teaches us that in life you have to be courageous and to take risks also. The future is in our hands to mould it as we like.

 

Breaking News

 

 

This story, written by Frank Morelli is a mystery and the reader is immediately immersed in the plot from the first few pages. This is because the starts with action almost immediately. One thousand dollars are stolen from the students gallery. This money was meant to be donated to children in Africa so that they would have enough drinking water for six weeks. The story is narrated through the eyes of two investigative journalists, Tony Morello and Liberty, aka Libby. Tony writes for the Roar while Libby, a previous member of the Roar, started her own newspaper, entitled the Rebel Yell.The mystery of who stole the one thousand dollars unravels in the last few pages of the book, and we also get to know the part that Libby and Tony played so that the money was stolen.

 

This book teaches us about teamwork and cooperation, because the mystery was solves when libby and tony joined efforts, and stopped writing against each other. The role of truth in journalism and how one must be true to oneself when writing for a newspaper and feeding the masses information. It teaches the reader to be ethical, and that one is true to oneself, so that the common good is reached. The book gives us a glimpse on the world of teenagers and how, sometimes it is very hard for them. In fact, Tony is a very hands-on brother to his seven year old twin siblings. There is a never a mention of the father in his household. Likewise, Libby only lives with her father. The latter had described her mum as a ‘lost cause’.

 

 

Through this mystery story Morelli has manages to give us an insight of today’s school life and the machinations to go on within a school. Besides, the values mentioned above, the story is also very interesting, and so I highly recommend this book.

Davy's Dragon Castle

 

This is a short story which is suitable for very young children, written by Mary and Michael Schmidt. It is an interesting book which can be used by parents or educators to introduce the topics of inclusion and equality.  The book introduces us to Davy the Dragon who lives in a castle in Dragon Town. Davy is very kind and inclusive. These two themes are found throughout all this book by using simple examples from Davy the Dragon and the way how he treats all those around him without any distinction of their skin (or fur) colour and even if they have a special need.

 

The story has a Christmas setting. The plot involves Davy and his wife Lily, and there are fairies, and squees. The story also introduces us to Tim, a squee who was born with half a leg and who uses a prosthetic one. There is also the Bub Bun Rabbit family who were at first refused entry into the castle by one of the fairies.

 

This story brings to the fore the values that should be instilled into our young generation – those of equality and inclusivity; saying no to bullying and racism. I enjoyed reading this book as, besides the inclusive message, the illustrations on each page are brilliant and very engaging! After reading each page, I stopped to look at the drawings in detail, to see Tim the Squee and his prosthetic leg, to check that Davy had eyes. I felt like a small child again!! Even though I work with 14 to 16 year olds, I could still relate to this story and to how important the values of equality and inclusivity are, whatever the age. We live in a world which is all the time changing and which, unfortunately, is becoming more and more intolerant. Such books as Davy’s Dragon Castle are one way how this intolerance can be countered.

A reflection:There is no covid in Malta during the electoral campaign

 Maltese society thrives on showing different facets to people, depending on who they are and also depending on what is occurring in the country.

Covid cases are on the increase again, especially since mass gatherings have been allowed again due to Malta being in a short electoral campaign. The party leaders and political candidates held mass rallies, and threw parties, dinners and shows, depending on the candidate's pocket. Photos are strewn on social media of people next to each other, crammed in places, with no masks, and touching each other, posing for photos.  An alien from Mars  would surely think that Covid does not exist on this tiny island. However, this is far from the truth. Covid exists here and the cases are going up again.

The only place where Covid remains is in schools. That is the laughable matter in this whole saga. In schools we are forced to wear masked all the time, students have to stick to their bubbles and all the protocols are applied. It is no wonder that students are at the end of their tether and that parents are frustrated. A  parent phoned to ask why her child was punished because she had changed places with her friend. Upon hearing my stock reply that it was covid protocol, she immediately protested, saying that outside, in the weekends, everybody was having fun. How does one convince such a parent that schools are different?

Will Covid be the talk of the town again, now that the election has passed? Only time will tell. It is a sure fact that Covid is here to stay, but all precautions should be everywhere the same, for the sake of fairness- if not for anything else.

KidVenture: Twelve Weeks to Midnight Blue

 
This book is a useful tool to persuade young children to become entrepreneurs. It teaches that everybody is capable and that mistakes can be done. The book teaches the reader about new ventures and to be bold, think and to never give up, even when the going gets hard.

The plot of the story centres around Chance and his family, with the mostly mentioned characters being his dad and his sister Addie, who then becomes Chance’s business partner in the pool cleaning business. The story takes us through the 12 weeks of summer and how their pool cleaning business,  evolves. It guides us through the mistakes, like when Chance had to clean Old Man Lee very dirty pool (as he had not asked about the state of the pool) or when he asked Francine for 30 dollars to clean her pool, and she turned down his offer. There are also the jubilant points in the kids’ venture, like when Chance went to Sir Larry’s home for the first time.  Chance was very happy when he felt the 20 dollar note in his hand. He felt encouraged and satisfied to do this work. Another high point was when the kids  got new customers, thus increasing their revenue.
 
The book also looks at friendships and how such friendships are impacted when business is involved. An example is when Amit started working for Chance, and he turned up late for Luisa’s first cleaning appointment. It also looks into how one can negotiate, and that one must not expect to have his way all the time. There are also examples of how the relationship between Chance and Addie works; the business partnership was built on trust, they had business meetings together and discussed their course of actions.

The books is a gold mine for jargon used in the business world. It introduces the young readers to such words as leverage, marketing, profit and expenses. I strongly urge that students read this book as it is very inspirational.

 

The Lucky Diamond by Valinora Troy

 

The Lucky Diamond is a story which leaves adults and children enthralled. It has a plot which is difficult to leave. Once you start the story, you feel the need to finish it  as soon as possible. The plot is engrossing, there are severe twists to the story and lots of sub plots which makes one very curious about what will happen next.

 

The story takes place in Nirvam and is about five siblings and their adventures with the lucky diamond. The story immediately puts you in the context, it starts five years earlier when the children's Uncle Matt was sentenced for treason against the state of Lowdar. Instead of being executed, Uncle Matt was thrown out into the great forest, where those who are left there, are never seen or heard of again.

 

Five years later, one of the siblings encounters a diamond which can talk. In reality, the diamond is a princess. The five children start their adventures persuaded by lucky the diamond to take her back to her diamond kingdom up Mount Slate. Along the way, the children have all sorts of adventures, they meet various types of monsters, the short people  'Nelkins’, witches and a flying canoe.

 

The five children and lucky the diamond are the main characters of the story. Then there is paul the king of Kyle, who starts off as bossy and arrogant, but who then becomes more humble and down to earth. One can relate a lot to Yvonne, the eldest of the five siblings who acts also as a mother to her younger sisters and brother. She is responsible and caring. It is through these adventures that we learn about the importance of loyalty, being kind and empathic to other people’s feelings.

 

This book is truly an enjoyable book and I highly recommend it