Book Review: Lesser Spotted Animals: The Coolest Creatures You've Never Heard Of by Martin Brown

Lesser Spotted Animals: The Coolest Creatures You’ve Never Heard Of
by Martin Brown (j590 Bro)

I recently read this book with my animal-loving second grader, and I would say I enjoyed it as much as he did. The premise, as explained in the introduction, is to skip the familiar wild animals that we all know well (tigers, pandas, sharks, etc.) and introduce the reader to a batch of equally fascinating but nearly unknown creatures. Each two-page spread features an animal with a couple of paragraphs about it, plus a pullout box with size, what they eat, where they live, endangered status, and another random/interesting fact.

 

The tone of the book is playful, lighthearted and even occasionally snarky. At one point as we read my son laughed out loud — not something that usually happens when reading animal nonfiction. The creature illustrations are perfectly matched to the style of the book — detailed and in realistic color tones, but also a little cartoonish; the creatures often sport wry expressions and goofy speech bubbles.

 

We’ve read a lot of nonfiction books about animals and this one is exceptionally memorable and enjoyable, both for the fascinating creatures it describes and for its humor and style.

 

( official Martin Brown Illustrator web site )

 

Recommended by Laura N.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service

 

Have you read or listened to this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide Blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

Book Review: Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal (as an E-book)

Kitchens of the Great Midwest
by J. Ryan Stradal (E-book)

The main character is Eva Thorvald, daughter of foodie parents. A few chapters feature her directly, and the rest are from the perspective of others who know her. Each chapter describes characters, formative events (and foods) in her life, starting when she was a baby and following her into adulthood. The structure is unique and keeps the reader trying to make connections between characters and events. The characters themselves make it great. These are ordinary, yet often quirky people described in an entertaining way. Each character was developed well enough in a chapter that sometimes when it was time for a new narrator, I wanted more of the previous story. The overall feel of the book was lighthearted, although loss, difficulty, and sadness were mixed in throughout the characters lives in a way that felt real.

I loved this book, not just because of the good writing but because several of its themes were close to my heart: it was for foodies, with discussions of types of heirloom tomatoes, popup restaurants, hot peppers, and it even included some recipes (prize-winning peanut butter bars … I might have to actually make them). It also featured places and people of the Midwest in an ordinary and (mostly) un-caricatured way.

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try The Lager Queen of Minnesota, also by J. Ryan Stradal.]

[ official Kitchens of the Great Midwest page on the official J. Ryan Stradal web site ]

Recommended by Laura N.
Bennett Martin Public Library – Public Service

Have you read or listened to this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide Blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

Book Review: Fruit of the Drunken Tree (as audiobook)

Fruit of the Drunken Tree
by Ingrid Rojas Contreras (downloadable audio)

This story is told through the eyes of Chula, a seven-year-old girl growing up in Bogota, Colombia. Her youth and the gated community where she lives partly shield her from the political unrest of the time. However, when her mother hires Petrona, a young maid from an impoverished area of town, her life expands and intertwines with Petrona’s. Petrona and Chula take turns narrating their worlds, which begin a steady spiral into uncertainty, fueled by violence and the gangs and poverty that reign in Petrona’s home and neighborhood.

The combination of a young narrator plus a female-dominated cast of characters gives the reader a sympathetic, intimate look into how innocent people live in times of upheaval. At many points the book read like a subtle thriller — throughout the entire story the author conveyed a sense of foreboding that floated above the heads of the younger characters; a paper-thin line that separated them from disaster. I listened to the audio version of this book (which was well done) and it enhanced the realness of each character.

Fruit of the Drunken Tree is notable because it tells about a time and place that many Americans (myself included) know little about. The novel is semi-autobiographical, which lends another layer of realism and credibility. This is the best kind of historical fiction — the reader is invited to empathize deeply with the characters while receiving a personal and detailed account of history that no textbook can provide.

[ official Fruit of the Drunken Tree and Ingrid Rojas Contreras web site ]

Recommended by Laura N.
Bennett Martin Public Library

Have you read or listened to this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!