Filigree's Midnight Ride - a mini book review

Publisher's Synopsis: "Join Filigree, a five-pound Pomeranian, as he stows away on Paul Revere’s midnight ride in this first book of the At the Heels of History series, inspired by important events and told through the eyes, ears, and noses of dogs.

Filigree may be a small puff of a Pomeranian but he has a big, brave heart. As the Revere family dog, he’s ready to do his part to help the American colonists stand up to the British soldiers. But the other dogs, like Jove, Sam Adams’s Newfoundland, and even the Revere cat, Anvil, think Filigree is a joke. The Reveres’ daughter Frances is the only one who believes in him.

When Frances’s father, Paul Revere, leaves home on a secret mission, Filigree and Frances know they have to help, no matter how dangerous it might be. Will a pint-sized pup just be in the way, or can Filigree prove that even a very small dog can fight for freedom?"

My Two Cents: Filigree's Midnight Ride is the first book of the At the Heels of History series, a fun premise where dogs tell historical tales (kinda' like the Wishbone Adventures series). Aside from that great angle,

Fergus and Zeke at the Science Fair by Kate Messner and illustrated by Heather Ross

Publisher’s Synopsis: "Fergus and Zeke love being the class pets in Miss Maxwell’s classroom, and they do everything the students do — listening at storytime, painting masterpieces during art class, and keeping their own special journals. But when it’s time for the school science fair, the mice aren’t sure just how to get involved. Lucy wants to time them as they run through a maze, but they want to do an experiment, not be an experiment. Then Zeke comes up with a great idea: since Lucy is training animals for her experiment, maybe he and Fergus can do the same thing! Unfortunately, the only animals available are the students themselves. Can Fergus and Zeke turn the tables and train Lucy in time for the science fair?"

My Two Cents: Fergus and Zeke at the Science Fair is a cute second in series book about two anthropomorphized classroom mice with lots of personality. I did not read the first in the series, Fergus and Zeke, but Kate Messner books are always a treat so I can imagine why there is sequel.

Fox & Chick: The Party and other stories by Sergio Ruzzier

My two cents: At the root of Fox & Chick: The Party and Other Stories lies the story of friendship & acceptance. The main characters couldn't be more different. Fox is calm and rational; Chick is a bit of a wild bird. I don't know if it's the soft watercolors or the unlikely friendship, but I found myself comparing Fox & Chick: The Party and Other Stories to the classic Frog and Toad are Friends Series by Arnold Lobel (a rather large complement, but deserved in my humble opinion).   

Murray the Race Horse (Fables from the Stables Series) by Gavin Puckett

My two cents:
Murray the Race Horse: Fables from the Stables begins a great little series about horses, a topic many kids love. The Fables from the Stables series is aimed at children ready to leave picture books behind and wade into easy chapter books. All of the stories in the series are told in quick rhyme (similar to a limerick pattern) which adds to the humor and interest of the tale. Although I investigated the other titles in the series, I only fully read Murray the Race Horse, which contains many subject-specific vocabulary words as well as a nice blend of age specific vocabulary. I suspect this is probably true of the entire series. The story was fun, quick, and engaging. I think it would be a strong choice for reluctant readers in 3rd or 4th grade also. Definitely a good addition to an underrepresented section of children's literature (early reader chapter books). Recommended for grades 1-3 classrooms and elementary library purchase.

The Last Dragon: Dragon Speaker by Cheryl Rainfield (a hi-lo book) - Book Review

I’m going to say straight out that I am not a fan of hi-lo books. As a reading specialist, I GET the need for them, understand the struggling reader – Shoot, I live and breathe the struggling reader, but I’m a book lover and a firm believer in students rising to a challenge.

I’ve read many, many hi-lo books and most are didactic and overly simple in plot and character development. I’ve never recommended a hi-lo book for the aforementioned reasons. However, I am going to tell you about one of the best hi-lo books that I’ve gotten my hands on and teachers of middle school struggling readers (or even elementary teachers looking for easy chapter books) will want to take a look at The Last Dragon: Dragon Speaker.

Protagonist Jacob is a disabled boy who can speak to birds, hear their thoughts really, as they hear his. He’s soon thrust into an adventure to right the wrongs of his village. Alongside Jacob is his solidly fantasy genre friend and his future love interest (which will serve well in discussing genre). The plot is quick and Jacob & company are interesting (two of my worries with hi-lo books, remember?). His struggle with self-esteem issues is also a good choice, as this may be an issue for some of the struggling readers who glance its pages. The Last Dragon: Dragon Speaker has magic, villains and dragons, and manages to present the story in a believable way, without the detail-less tone accompanying many hi-lo books.

Written at approximately grade 3 and geared to the middle school interest level, teachers seeking decent, even well written, hi-lo books should check out the The Last Dragon series.

For more information for High Interest - Low Reading Level books, you can check out the publisher’s website where they discuss the science behind these books and how they work.  I love what they say about working the students OUT of hi-lo books being the whole purpose!

Win a copy of Horrid Henry - 3 Winners!

Back in May, Henry had just landed on the Reading Rumpus doorstep, but it was instant love. The Horrid Henry series is aimed toward the early independent reader. However, it's also an excellent resource for struggling readers. Each book contains four tales with a large font style, quick pace and illustrations for excellent contextual support (and also a laugh or two).

From the May review, "Horrid Henry is HUGE. He’s all over Europe with a television series, a play and famous people like Miranda Richardson loving him up. But here, we Yanks have missed out on his mania. Not so anymore! Horrid Henry has jumped the pond and if you have or teach children in the young independent reader age group, you’re going to want to check Henry out.


Make no mistake, Henry is Horrible and author Francesca Simon makes no apologies for him. It’s that unapologetic horribleness that allows the reader to escape into a world of naughty without really being naughty themselves (my favorite sort of escape!). There will be no need for moralistic discussion as kids will cover their mouths, giggle and offer their own ideas as to why Henry’s made some mistakes. Francesca Simon's style certainly leans toward a Roald Dahl slant, and this is further amplified by the Quentin Blake inspired illustrations of Tony Ross. There could be a lot worse comparisons for an author or an illustrator!


I can easily predict that US students are going to love Horrid Henry as much as their European counterparts."

Horrid Henry by Francesca Simon with illustrations by Tony Ross - Book Review

Horrid Henry is HUGE. He’s all over Europe with a television series, a play and famous people like Miranda Richardson loving him up. But here, we Yanks have missed out on his mania. Not so anymore! Horrid Henry has jumped the pond and if you have or teach children in the young independent reader age group, you’re going to want to check Henry out.

Make no mistake, Henry is Horrible and author Francesca Simon makes no apologies for him. It’s that unapologetic horribleness that allows the reader to escape into a world of naughty without really being naughty themselves (my favorite sort of escape!). There will be no need for moralistic discussion as kids will cover their mouths, giggle and offer their own ideas as to why Henry’s made some mistakes. Francesca Simon's style certainly leans toward a Roald Dahl slant, and this is further amplified by the Quentin Blake inspired illustrations of Tony Ross, but there could be a lot worse comparisons for an author or an illustrator!

I can easily predict that US students are going to loveHorrid Henry as much as their European counterparts.

Recommended for classrooms & libraries serving students in grades 1-4 and those students at the early independent short-chapter level.

-------------------- Resources --------------------

Genre: Horribly Realistic Fiction. Age: 4-8 / Early Readers. Pages: 112.







Themes: Making Decisions, Bullying, Humor
Advisory: Some potty humor. Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky Date: April 2009. ISBN-10: 1402217757 / ISBN-13: 978-1402217753


Buy Horrid Henry Here

Here is Henry's very own website!

And a Horrid Henry game site!

A list of all the Horrid Henry titles here!

And here's an opening clip from the television show:



Author Francesca Simon has a degree in Medieval Studies. She won the Children’s Book of the Year in 2008 for the British Book Awards. HORRID HENRY is a big deal and America is slow to notice. It's been published in 24 countries and also has a popular animated series on the tele (that's what the Brits call it, right?)! American born Francesca Simon lives in London with her husband and son. Read more about her on her website.
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© 2007-2009 Cheryl Vanatti for www.ReadingRumpus.com