Book Bunnies

Caramel reviews The Bad Guys in Mission Unpluckable by Aaron Blabey (Bad Guys #2)

Caramel continues to be very taken by the Bad Guys series of Aaron Blabey. Last week he reviewed the first book: Bad Guys. And today he is reviewing the second book in the series: The Bad Guys in Mission Unpluckable. Sprinkles is taking notes and asking followup questions, as usual.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, how do you want to start this review today?

Caramel: If you like funny books, and if you like books with evil guinea pigs who are mad scientist billionaires, this might be the book for you!

S: Wow, Caramel, let us not give away so much all at once! Yes, this is a funny book. It follows the adventures of the same four “bad guys” from the first book, right?

C: Yep. There is one more new character though. Actually there are two new characters.

S: Tell me about the one who joins the team.

C: He is a tarantula named Legs. People think he is evil.

S: Just like the other four friends, right?

C: Yep, pretty much.

S: So then there is a wolf, a piranha, a snake, and a shark. and now a spider, and they all want to convince people that they are actually good.

C: Yes. They try to save the world.

S: Wait, that is not yet in this book!

C: Sorry, yes, in this book they try to save chickens. And they succeed.

S: What do you mean by “save chickens”?

C: They save them from an evil chicken farm. A very high-tech place. And that is why they need Legs.

Caramel is reading The Bad Guys in Mission Unpluckable by Aaron Blabey. — Caramel is reading *The Bad Guys in Mission Unpluckable* by Aaron Blabey.

S: So that sums up the story line. Let us talk a bit more about the book in general. So do you think this one is as funny as the first book?

C: Yes, it is even funnier in fact. I love these guys! They are so funny! In the next book …

S: We’re not going there yet Caramel! We can talk about the third book next time if you want. But for now, let us focus on this one…

C: Awww. That’s hard! And very unfortunate. I want to talk about all the books at the same time!

S: Well, this is your review of the second book. Can you tell us a bit more about why you like this book?

C: The book ends with something like a cliffhanger. There is a mysterious ninja, and a very evil guinea pig, and you want to know what will happen next.

S: You already read the next book, right?

C: Yes. Did you read the next book Sprinkles?

S: No, not yet. But I am curious.

C: The next book is awesome too! It’s even better than this one.

S: Ok, then, I guess I just have to read it, right?

C: Yes. And we just might need to review it too!

S: That sounds great!

C: Can I rate this book, like Marshmallow does all the time?

S: Sure.

C: Yay! I rate this book 99%!

S: Hmm, why is it not 100%?

C: Because the next book is even better!

S: I see! Ok, let us wrap things up.

C: Yes. Stay tuned for more book bunnies adventures!

Caramel rates The Bad Guys in Mission Unpluckable by Aaron Blabey 99%. — Caramel rates *The Bad Guys in Mission Unpluckable* by Aaron Blabey 99%.

Marshmallow reviews Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier

Marshmallow enjoys reading graphic novels now and then, and she has reviewed some of them for the book bunnies blog. See, for example, her reviews of Lucy and Andy Neanderthal and Lucy and Andy Neanderthal: Stone Cold Age by Jeffrey Brown, and her review of They Called Us Enemy by George Takei. This week she reviews one of her recent favorites: Ghosts, by Raina Telgemeier.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you like graphic novels or if you enjoyed Raina Telgemeier’s other books, then this might be the book for you.

Marshmallow’s Summary (with spoilers): Cat’s sister, Maya, has cystic fibrosis, a genetic disease that makes it hard to breathe. Cat and her family move to a place called Bahiá de la Luna. Their parents think that Bahiá de la Luna will benefit Maya from the salty air, but unfortunately, Cat doesn’t like their new home. Still, since she wants her sister to get better, she tries to adapt.

One day their neighbor tells them that there are ghosts in the area. Cat doesn’t believe him but she soon learns that the neighbor was telling the truth. Maya is determined to meet a ghost and find out what dying is like.

“As the time of year when ghosts reunite with their loved ones approaches, Cat must figure out how to put aside her fears for her sister’s sake – and her own.”

Marshmallow is reading Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier. — Marshmallow is reading *Ghosts* by Raina Telgemeier.

Marshmallow’s Review: This is an interesting book. The author, Raina Telgemeier, creates intriguing characters like Maya. Maya sometimes makes you think that she is not aware that she can die but then you realize that she realizes more than you think she does. Not only are the characters interesting, but the characters are also very relatable. Cat is someone you can relate to. Cat is infuriated when someone accidentally hurts Maya, and the drawings show her emotions very well. More generally the author does a great job drawing images that show the emotions of each character very clearly.

Cat is very protective of Maya. She is probably always very stressed because she keeps worrying that her sister Maya might die if she does something that she is not supposed to do.

My favorite character in Ghosts is Maya because she is so cheerful and she tries not to let her disease bring her down.

The setting, Bahiá de la Luna, is sort of creepy. As it says in the book, it has a “laid-back Halloween vibe”.

This book displays a very different style of writing than Raina Telgemeier’s usual style. Her other books do not often deal with supernatural events.

This graphic novel is probably best for readers of ages eight to fifteen.

“Raina Telgemeier has masterfully created a moving and insightful story about the power of family and friendship, and how it gives the courage to do what we never thought possible.”

This quote on the back of the book describes the book in a nutshell. In this book you learn about Mexican traditions like an ofrenda, an altar for the dead, or The Day of the Dead (Dia De Los Muertos).

(Ghosts is dedicated to Sabrina Castello Collado, Raina’s cousin who died at age thirteen.)

Marshmallow’s Rating: 95%.

Marshmallow rates Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier 95%. — Marshmallow rates *Ghosts* by Raina Telgemeier 95%.

Caramel reviews Bad Guys by Aaron Blabey

Caramel has recently been obsessed with the Bad Guys series of Aaron Blabey, and wanted his first review of the year to be a review of the first book: Bad Guys. As always Sprinkles is taking notes and asking followup questions.

Sprinkles: Caramel, I’ve seen you really enjoying reading these Bad Guys books lately. Can you tell us a bit what they are about?

Caramel: They are about bad guys, bad animals who want to be good. Actually, only the wolf wants to be good, but the rest are not that interested.

S: So let me see. There is a wolf, and he is always the bad guy in fairy tales and such, and he wants to change his image. And the other animals… who are the other bad guys?

C: There is a shark, there is a piranha, and some people think he is a sardine, even a vampire sardine!

S: Well, the piranha does have sharp teeth!

C: Yeah! And it doesn’t really look like a sardine. Anyways, there is also a snake.

S: Hm, so these four are often seen as villains in stories. and they want to change that, right?

C: Yep. Well, not all of them, only the wolf wants to in the beginning, but then all of them kind of like the idea. Here is a video which explains the story:

Here is a video summary of Bad Guys by Aaron Blabey.

S: I agree that this is an interesting premise for a book. The bad guys want to be good, but the world is not yet quite ready for them.

C: Yes. So they try to save a cat stuck on a tree. They try to tell the cat to jump down and they will catch it. But the cat is scared of them. And so when the wolf tries to catch the cat, the cat scratches him real badly.

Caramel is looking at the page of Bad Guys by Aaron Blabey, where the not-so-bad bad guys are trying to save a kitty. — Caramel is looking at the page of *Bad Guys* by Aaron Blabey, where the not-so-bad bad guys are trying to save a kitty.

S: That is kind of sad though, no? They are trying to do something good but nobody expects good things from them. Everyone is afraid of them. Isn’t that sad?

C: Yes.

S: It is difficult to change people’s opinions once they make their minds up about us. So that could be one message of the book. What could be another?

C: I don’t know.

S: Hmm. I was thinking that there is also a more optimistic message. That even if people think you are a bad guy, you could always try to be good.

C: Yes, I agree. You can always try to be good.

S: But I think these messages are not quite the main reason why you enjoyed this book. Tell me what you liked most.

C: It’s extremely funny! The pictures are funny, and the bad guys get into funny situations.

S: So would you recommend this book to other young bunnies like yourself?

C: Yep! And I want to read all the other books in this series!

S: I see a few more reviews of bad guys in our future…

C: YES! But for now, stay tuned for more book bunny adventures!

Caramel has enjoyed reading Aaron Blabey's Bad Guys so much that he now wants to read all the other books in the series. — Caramel has enjoyed reading Aaron Blabey’s *Bad Guys* so much that he now wants to read all the other books in the series.

Marshmallow reviews Belly Up by Stuart Gibbs

After a one-month break, the book bunnies have a lot of books to write about! Marshmallow starts 2020 off with her thoughts on Belly Up, the first novel in Stuart Gibbs’ Teddy Fitzroy / FunJungle series.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you like mysteries, then this might be the book for you.

Marshmallow’s Summary (with spoilers): Teddy Fitzroy lives in the largest zoo in the world, FunJungle, where you could watch sharks in Shark Odyssey, experience what being on a Safari is like, or see what most of the visitors come for: Henry Hippo, the most celebrated hippo in the world. That is, until he dies.

The vet of FunJungle figures out that Henry was actually murdered. Teddy sneaks into the autopsy and learns that Henry might have died from peritonitis, a disease that makes holes in the stomach, but the vet, Doc, says that there were too many holes for it to be natural. The people who run FunJungle cover it up and say that Henry Hippo died of natural causes. Teddy realizes that no one is doing anything and that he has to solve the mystery himself.

“As Teddy searches through all the clues and asks too many questions, it becomes clear that he too might end up belly up.”

Marshmallow is reading Belly Up by Stuart Gibbs. — Marshmallow is reading *Belly Up* by Stuart Gibbs.

Marshmallow’s Review: This book is a great book! You will not be able to put it down once you start reading.

The story is so mysterious that you cannot figure out who killed Henry even if you are Sherlock Holmes. The book supplies you with so many suspects that you cannot guess who did it. Unlike many mystery books, Belly Up supplies you with many suspicious characters. The real murderer turns out to be someone who you would never suspect even though the clues were all there under your nose (but they were all just things that seemed unimportant).

This is one of the best mystery books that I have read and I expect that I will reread it over and over again.

I have to admit that Belly Up is slightly confusing and requires holding onto clues that add up to the solution, so it is probably great for ages 8-15. it might confuse readers under 7. There are some curse words but not any very serious ones and there are only a few in a 286-page book.

Marshmallow thinks that Belly Up by Stuart Gibbs is one of the best mystery books that she has ever read. — Marshmallow thinks that *Belly Up* by Stuart Gibbs is one of the best mystery books that she has ever read.

Stuart Gibbs creates great characters, and his characters show us what other peoples’ lives are like. For example, Summer McCracken, the daughter of the billionaire J.J. McCracken, lives a luxurious but caged existence.

I think that this is a book that can also be enjoyed by adults, too, (and I am trying to get Sprinkles to read it soon!) but I believe it is better for children. Belly Up has humor, animal facts that Teddy uses to solve the mystery, adventure, and mystery.

Marshmallow’s Rating: 100%.

Marshmallow rates Belly Up by Stuart Gibbs 100%. — Marshmallow rates *Belly Up* by Stuart Gibbs 100%.