Reds Books

When the narrator of "Looking for Atlantis" was a ten-year-old boy his grandfather came home from the sea for the first time. His grandfather had traveled every ocean a hundred times and visited every country of the world from the plains of Patagonia to the distant volcano of Tristan da Cunha. Before he died the boy's grandfather gives him the large wooden chest by his bed, telling him "Everything you could ever want is in that chest if you know where to look for it." He also talks about the boy getting to Atlantis, explaining that you have to learn to look for the mythical land but that it "is right here, all around you."

After the grandfather dies writer and artist Colin Thompson shows us the lifetime of treasures contained within that chest. "Looking for Atlantis" is primarily a picture book. By this I mean two things. First, that the chief attraction here are the pictures, in which Thompson often fills every square inch with literally dozens of details. You can spend an hour just looking over everything that we see when the boy opens up his grandfather's chest for the first time. But those who are familiar with Thompson's other work, such as "The Paperbag Prince" and "How to Live Forever," know that is exactly what to expect from his books. Young readers will have to ask adults for explanations as to the meaning of "Macho Mariner Biscuits with Extra Weevils" and to point out which bird is the Dodo.

Second, "Looking for Atlantis" is a picture book because after the detailed narrative at the beginning the words disappear for the most part. There are six picture spreads in which there is only a single line to be read. Clearly Thompson knows that once he gets going with his detailed illustrations words are something of a distraction from the main feast. However, there is a point to the story regarding the power of the imagination and the transcendental quality of love, it is just that the art is so visually stunning that you have to remind yourself that there is a narrative thread to the book as well.

There are also references to famous paintings throughout the book, which means that young readers will be able to return to this book as they grow older and find they get more of what is going on in each illustration. Thompson came up with the idea of "Looking For Atlantis" because he wanted to do a book that was a cross-section of a house. Having already used the idea in the 1993 Leeds calendar, Thompson needed a reason for a young boy to go through all the rooms on a house and decided that searching for Atlantis was a much better idea than just looking for a lost book or a cat. Eventually the idea was refined to the point that Thompson clearly had a lesson about how to look for something was more important than knowing where to look for something. Just be forewarned: once you enjoy one of Thompson's picture books you are going to want to track down the rest of them as well.

I just spent a week at the beach with my two grandsons, ages 4 and 5. We read this book over and over and over and over again. Searching for objects and moving through tiny doors to each new magical page, their interest never waned. I recommend it very highly!

I am giving this book 5 stars for the benefit of my two sons, ages 10 and 6. Both of them have enjoyed this book so much, it can't be rated any less than 5 stars. The pictures are mesmorizing and add to the magic of the storyline which teaches children to use their imagination. It also teaches them that, with their imagination, anything is possible!

i loved this book the instant i read it. it's perfect for children who are afraid of monsters. maggie is a brave little girl who takes matters into her own hands and helps a little monster find her mother. tomie de paola's illustrations are simple and fun. it's a great preschool book--- not a lot of text, not too long, easy to read, with a satisfying end. my kids love it, too.

This book, hands down, has been all three of my childrens favorite! It tremendously helped calm the inevitable fear of monsters in the bedroom. Maggie showed no fear in telling that monster to get out of her room, yet had no trouble rolling over and going to sleep when it refused to leave. She handled the problem on her own,with reassurance from her mother. This book was the best help I could have had when each of my kids reached the stage when they needed to learn that they had the power!(It also inspired me to name my third child Maggie!!)

I am really shocked. I have tried book after book to help my 4 year old daughter get over the fear of monsters in her room. I decided to give Maggie and the Monster a try. It looked cute and sounded helpful. This book is an unbelievable tool. I can't believe it. We have had the book a week and my daughter hasn't not cried or complained that their are monsters in her room since. She loves the story and says it is her favorite book. She carries it with her everywhere. What a delightful story that shows the child with a little encouragement from mom, she can solve her own problems and feel good about it in the end. Very empowering for children. I am so thankful for this story. I still can't get over the confidence it helped my daughter gain. I HIGHLY recommend this book for anyone but especially for children with nightime fears. My seven year old son even thought the story was funny and entertaining. He wants to borrow it to share with his class.

Betty reminded me of my mother... and women similar to my mother. Ms. Foy is a great storyteller and enables you to feel as if she's actually talking to you. I felt as if I was "in on it" and "guilty", but justified. I can't wait to read her next offering.

... definitely an emotional roller coaster ride for the reader. Fast-paced, and an easy read that was anything BUT easy to put down. I found myself wanting to shout, "No, don't do it!" to Betty, the book's main character, as I knew she was about to make a terrible mistake. This is an excellent, thought-provoking, plot by a new author, who also seems to know her way around Las Vegas, where the story is set. Worth taking a ride in this red truck.

The Man in the Red Truck conveys the story of a widowed woman who deeply grieves the sudden death of her husband who was her true love. As time passes she thinks she has found someone to fill the void within her soul but this only at the sight of him and in her fantasies. At last her eventual encounter with him gradually leads to great mental and physical pain. She never again will know the feel of the fulfillment that she knew with her departed love. This book is a very deep feeling story and it kept me interested and eager to learn the outcome. It has an ending I did not expect.This book as titled is indeed about the Indiscretions of an Older Woman.

Six months after September 11, 2001, 12-year-old Kevin Sanders is no longer sure he wants to go on a sightseeing bus tour with his grandmother. But his beloved grandma, still mourning the loss of her husband, has her heart set on this trip. Kevin, an aspiring mystery writer, also hopes that the trip might provide some good ideas for the novel he would like to write.

Sure enough, a mystery almost literally falls into Kevin's lap. One of the other passengers on Star Tours' bus trip through the American West is Charles Stavros, a swarthy, dark-haired stranger traveling alone. He says he's Greek, but Kevin is suspicious. Could he be Saudi or Iraqi instead? When one of the other sightseers becomes convinced that she has seen Stavros's picture in the paper as a suspect in the 9/11 attacks, Kevin knows he needs to keep an eye on him.

And then there's his bag. Stavros carries a red bag with him everywhere, refusing to leave it on the bus even to go river rafting. Stavros keeps the heavy bag locked and even seems to be talking to it sometimes, saying, "Before long it will all be over." When Kevin sees what looks like a bomb inside the bag, he and his new friend Geneva hatch a plot to stop another terrorist attack at one of our country's national landmarks. But could it be possible that, amidst all the post-9/11 conspiracy theories and paranoia, Kevin is fooling himself into seeing danger where none really exists?

Clearly inspired by the mysteries of writers such as Joan Lowery Nixon, THE MAN WITH THE RED BAG will involve kids in a genuinely suspenseful mystery plot, with plenty of twists, turns and red herrings. The book also has elements of the classic road trip novel, as Kevin's tour takes him through several of the country's most famous national parks and monuments.

These standard genre elements make the story so entertaining that the book's more serious messages will go down painlessly. Even as Kevin learns about Mount Rushmore and Old Faithful, he is also learning important lessons about tolerance, prejudice and jumping to conclusions. After September 11th, Eve Bunting argues, jumping to conclusions can be more than simply foolish --- it can be truly harmful to others. At the end of Kevin's bus tour, he has more than enough fodder for his first mystery novel --- but he also has plenty of food for thought.

--- Reviewed by Norah Piehl

The man with the red bag is a great book for young adult fiction readers. It tells a story about a kid named Kevin who pair up and suspect a man with a bomb because of the way he acts and looks. Turns out that in the end, Kevin and Geneva learn a life lesson about how not to judge people by the way that they look or act. Personally, I think that the ending is sort of disappointing but you have to find that out on your own. I would recommend this book to teachers of 5th grade or 6th grade looking for mystery books that have a life lesson in it.

12 year old Kevin is on a bus trip with his grandmother. A strange, mysterious man boards the bus and Kevin thinks he's up to no good. It's only been 6 months since the 9/11 tragedy. The man reminds Kevin of the faces he's seen on the news that flew the planes in the tragic event. He and a friend join together to investigate. You will be surprised at what they find out is in the precious bag!

The story moved at a fast pace.


It was a good reminder for kids that you can't judge people by the color of their skin. You have to look deeper than that

This book about a Minerva Louise adventure was a first for my five year old son and me, and he has never laughed harder at a story. The illustrations are simple and humorous, and the story about Minerva Louise's creative misperceptions is hilarious. I've ordered a bunch of these for gifts for friends and family!

This book about a Minerva Louise adventure was a first for my five year old son and me, and he has never laughed harder at a story. The illustrations are simple and humorous, and the story about Minerva Louise's creative misperceptions is hilarious. I've ordered a bunch of these for gifts for friends and family!

When I read the original tale of "Minerva Louise" by Janet Stoeke I was charmed. It's rare that an author packs so much great storytelling punch in such a little package. So when I discovered that Minerva Louise, the extraordinarily curious chicken, had further adventures to her name, I immediately located "Minerva Louise and the Red Truck". Just as great as its predecessor, this tale tells the story of a curious member of the poultry family and her attempts to make sense of the world around her.

Minerva Louise (who is prone to loving things) loves her farm's red truck. A playful foul, she likes to dress up in the abandoned bandanas she finds in the back and create tea parties out of tools and flowerpots. One day, while playing, the truck jerks to life and Minerva finds herself driving about. While out she translates the things she sees into farm-based items. A backyard swimming pool is a lake. Golfers are farmers hard at work in their fields. Best of all, a church (to a chicken's eye) is nothing more than a, "silly barn wearing a hat!". In a nice section of the book Minerva spies a construction site and decides that it must be a farm for other trucks. Hither and yon are baby trucks and big strong ones as well. By the end of the day she's happy with what she has seen, but she's glad that the red truck has returned back to her home. That is, until she sees a bright and shiny fire engine!

Minerva is the Amelia Bedelia of the farm world. It's sweet to see how everything fits into her perceptions and misconceptions. Kids reading her books can recognize where she's wrong and feel superior that they know more than this adventurous chicklet. For my own part, I was happy that the illustrations of the little heroine show her joy and contentment so clearly. She's just so darn perky and pleased with everything she sees that it's a joy to watch her. This particular book combines farm life with construction sites. For those kids who are really into trucks and trailers, this might be an ideal storytime reading selection. It's difficult not to love the plucky (ha ha!) Minerva Louise so definitely take the time to check her out. If you've never seen a chicken beam with contentment, this should be the book for you.

Luke awakens from a near fatal bout with meningitis to find that his senses are profoundly altered. Mondays are red to him, music has smells, and he sees wasps in his sister's hair. It's a condition called synesthesia, thoroughly explained at the end.

Luke is also followed in his mind by the character Dreeg, an evil force that wants him to do things he finds very hard to resist in his weakened state. Dreeg wants him to play increasingly dangerous tricks on his sister Laura, but Luke fights against it. He also begins to see the ethereal Seraphina, who is like a good witch and who appears when he is at his lowest point. Suddenly, he is able to sense that Laura is in real danger and that no else can help her except him.

Nicola Morgan's first novel is an intricate psychological suspense story. Readers will be drawn into the sensory world Luke lives in through powerful language and imagery. They will be drawn in so thoroughly that it is at times difficult to determine who other characters are, real or imagined, and what is actually happening.

Definitely a mind trip, MONDAYS ARE RED is a great book for discussion.

--- Reviewed by Amy Alessio

Morgan combines elements of horror and poetry in this tale of one boy's strange experience with synesthesia. After waking up in a hospital and learning that he has suffered a bout of meningitis, Luke Patterson quickly discovers that his life has taken a dramatic and confusing turn. With the help of a newfound imaginary friend named Dreeg whose form changes depending on Luke's feelings toward him, Luke learns that all of his senses are strangely blended. ("The fact that I tasted cinnamon when I looked at her and that every now and then butterflies flittered from her eyes was something I had come to expect by now from my muddled senses.") With this new realization comes the power to change situations by thinking about them, and with that power, a new sense of freedom. Luke now adds a new talent to his long-time passion for running and athletics training-the talent to write astonishingly beautiful and eerie poems and stories. Luke learns the dangers of his new powers just in time to prevent catastrophe in this hallucinogenic tale that is sure to please lovers of language and ignite new ways of thinking about ordinary sensations.

The Book I am doing a review on is, "Mondays Are Red", by Nicola Morgan. This is a story about a fourteen-year-old boy named Luke. Luke wakes up in the hospital with Synthesia (shifting of the senses). He finds out that he almost died from Meningitis. With Synthesia Luke now experiences a world he's never known. When he thinks of days of the weeks, he associates them with color, music with taste, feelings have smells and words have texture. The setting for the book takes place in modern day California. This book follows Luke as he realizes he has power and is faced with a decision to change the world. I absolutely loved this book, and highly recommend it. The author has a gift for bringing out the emotion of his characters.

This is one of the best series that I have ever read. It is a must see but beware, once you pick it up you will not want to put it down.

The best part of this story moves along faster in this book than the first 2 in this series, but not so fast that you're left wondering what happened. Thorliff continues to work for Elizabeth's father at the newspaper as Elizabeth goes to medical school, and when tragedy strikes Blessing, Thorliff goes home to help and eventually convinces Elizabeth to come when a doctor is needed desparately.

I noticed a couple of earlier reviews disliked the idea of Elizabeth and Thorliff being a couple, but it wasn't unexpected - the story in Book 1 allows readers to get to know Elizabeth pretty well before she ever lays eyes on Thorliff, so it's obvious she was introduced to us for a reason. I'm sorry things didn't go well with Anji, but at least Thorliff was spared from being in a "love triangle" with both women.

My only complaint about this book is that there isn't a 4th in the series - I would love to see Thorliff start a newspaper while Elizabeth sets up a medical practice in Blessing. (Of course one can imagine their own ending but I hate loose ends in a story)

This is a fabulous ending to the triology on Thorliff. Although I might have been rooting for another ending (Anji, why'd you marry that other guy!) this one still won me over. The book made me cry, laugh and share it with all my friends! I can't wait to go back to Blessing later, I have completely fallen in love with all the characters.

The Munched-Up Flower Garden is a humorous story about Liz,a little girl who grows beautiful flowers. She's hoping to win a blue ribbon for the best flower garden, but much to her dismay, another little girl, Sallie, comes by to brag about winning the blue ribbon the last four years. To make matters worse, a goat destroys Liz's garden. A twist to the ending keeping children turning the pages. This book extols the virtues of hard work in a fun-filled adventure that's sure to please. Richly-colored illustrations add to the delicious flavor of the book

What a great book! It's a charming story, well-illustrated, and it's impossible not to fall in love with young Lizzie the aspiring gardener. Her voice is really done well. Nancy Kelly Allen is really onto something with this book. Children will love it. I'm rating it 5 stars.

Thanks for a fun read.
-Jay

A Troublesome Creek Kids Story: The Munched-Up Flower Garden by Nancy Kelly Allen and featuring illustrations by K. Michael Crawford is the lively story of Liz Reilly and her seemingly endless attempts to build up an award winning garden for the Troublesome Creek Picnic. Carrying young readers through the tale of Lizzie and her young friends and rivals, The Munched-Up Flower Garden follows the young girl with her many efforts to maintain her garden despite relentless annoyances from goats, chickens, neighbors, and the evil Sallie Young. Original and entertaining, and available for school and community libraries in a hardcover edition (1933176-040, $16.95), The Munched-Up Flower Garden is very highly recommended as an inspiring example of persistence, bravery, and spirit for all young readers.

This is the first compilation of Paul Dini's MUTANT, TEXAS comic stories. The star is Ida Red, a winsome yet spunky orphaned Texas gal who discovers amazing powers lurking just beneath her supposedly "normal" exterior. J. Bone's artwork has the timeless look of classic cartoons and the amusing supporting cast of talking armadillos, comical Texas politicians and villainous coyotes make this series a winner. I can't wait for more!

The creative genius behind BATMAN THE ANIMATED SERIES, JINGLE BELLE and writer of the current hit ABC series LOST delivers his most imaginative work to date. Set in a marvelous, mystical corner of the southwest, MUTANT, TEXAS chronicles the adventures of Ida Red, a young cowgirl blessed with amazing powers. When her humanlike animal and plant friends are kidnapped and sold as freaks, it's up to Ida to assume the role of Sheriff and track down the villain varmints. Think Buck Rogers meets Roy Rogers with a big helping of Dale Evans thrown in, too. J. Bone's illustrations perfectly match the wit and whimsy in Dini's script. Bone's Ida Red is the consumate cowgirl, brave and strong of course, but playful and prone to the occassional moments of doubt that every young heroine must (and does) overcome. The chapter where Ida faces down an angry jaguar and tames it like a bucking bronco is a tall tales scene that would do old Pecos Bill proud. MUTANT, TEXAS is a delight for all ages. Kids will love Ida and her talking animal friends (Rolly the armadillo in particular is a hoot) and adults will enjoy the sly humor found in Dini and Bone's western wonderland.

I like Ida because she is fun and is a good role model for girls. I am tired of wonder woman. It was good to read about someone who is around my age and could maybe be my friend someday. It makes me also think I am a hero too.

These are classic tales narrated by a talented storyteller who playfully engages her listeners with great vocal character variations whether they are hearing them for the first time or the fifty-first. The stories are well written, wonderfully performed, and reflect important life lessons and values--a wonderful experience to share with your children (and grandchildren) again and again!

A wonderful new approach to old favorite stories we all remember! The velvety soft voice of the narrator artfully mimics numerous characters that are easily reconizable from eachother. These narratives will impart many life lessons to your children while sparking their imaginations.

This wonderful CD brings to life three terrific children's stories. I enjoyed them myself and can see easily how young children will be captivated by the expressive and warm voice of the narrator. Identifying each character was effortless because of the versatility of voice. I'd recommend this engaging CD to anyone with young children.