Book Bunnies

Marshmallow reviews The Wrath of the Triple Goddess (Book 2 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Senior Year Adventures) by Rick Riordan

The book bunnies have read and reviewed many books by Rick Riordan through the years. Today Marshmallow reviews a relatively new one: The Wrath of the Triple Goddess was published in September 2024 as the second book of Riordan’s new series: Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Senior Year Adventures.

(Marshmallow had already reviewed the first book in the series, The Chalice of the Gods back in September 2023.)

Marshmallow reviews The Wrath of the Triple Goddess (Book 2 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Senior Year Adventures) by Rick Riordan. — Marshmallow reviews *The Wrath of the Triple Goddess* (Book 2 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Senior Year Adventures) by Rick Riordan.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you liked Rick Riordan’s previous books, enjoy books based on Greek history and mythology, or just like reading fun books about family and friendship, then this is the book for you!

Marshmallow’s Summary (with Spoilers): Percy Jackson has had enough to worry about. As the son of Poseidon, his world is one of danger and death. Sure, he has an amazing family, awesome friends, and heroic adventures, but his senioritis is starting to get to him. As he approaches his graduation for New York City’s Alternative High School, Percy wants to apply to New Rome University, located in Camp Jupiter (the protective home of the Roman demigods, which was first introduced in The Lost Hero). Specifically, he wants to go to New Rome to be with his girlfriend Annabeth (a fellow demigod and the daughter of Athena) with whom he has shared many trials and tribulations. But in order to get into New Rome University, he has to get three letters of recommendation from three different Greek gods for completing quests for them.

In the first book of The Senior Year Adventures series, Percy got one from Ganymede, the cupbearer of the gods for retrieving the titular Chalice of the Gods. Now, he has been tasked with another quest, this time by Hecate the goddess of magic: he has to babysit her pet polecat Gale and hellhound Hecuba during the week of Halloween. Simple, right?

Percy accepts the assignment for two reasons. First, he’d probably end up as some unsavory type of animal if he didn’t, and, secondly, he needs that letter. So Percy, Annabeth, and Grover (Percy’s best friend who happens to be a satyr) stay over at Hecate’s house to complete this quest. But magical pets cause magical problems that need to be fixed … especially when Grover accidentally sets them loose in New York City. Can Percy and his friends find them before Hecate turns them all into candy corn?

Marshmallow is reading The Wrath of the Triple Goddess (Book 2 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Senior Year Adventures) by Rick Riordan. — Marshmallow is reading *The Wrath of the Triple Goddess* (Book 2 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Senior Year Adventures) by Rick Riordan.

Marshmallow’s Review: I really enjoyed reading this book! It gave me nostalgia for the original Percy Jackson series while simultaneously getting me hooked on this new one. I don’t always like add-on series for franchises—for example, I love the Harry Potter series, including many of the supplements like The Unofficial Ultimate Harry Potter Spellbook and The Unofficial Harry Potter Bestiary, but in retrospect, I didn’t like The Cursed Child quite as much. But—perhaps because the time jump is not as jarring—this book makes an excellent addition to the Percy Jackson world of Greek mythology and magical adventure. Rick Riordan clearly hasn’t lost his touch and his authentic writing voice that makes his books so amazing to read! I love the way The Wrath of the Triple Goddess jumps right back into his world, starting to further develop the characters and their lives.

Overall, there wasn’t a single part of the plot that made me sad or disappointed in this book. I can’t speak for all Rick Riordan book fans, but I found The Wrath of the Triple Goddess to be a really fun addition to the franchise and I didn’t find any flaws.

I should also note that while this book was really fun, it was also surprisingly nuanced. This is something I think Riordan excels at. He composes text that is extremely exciting and entertaining to read, but he also makes the reader think. I think Riordan is very sensitive and finds a way to make all of his characters have many dimensions. Even in the original series, all the heroes and—most admirably—villains are fully developed characters who have stories and backgrounds that have shaped them to be the way they are in the story. In this book, in particular, I thought that Riordan did a great job for Gale (the polecat), Hecuba (the hellhound), and Hecate (the goddess of magic). For example, Riordan introduces Gale as a comedic, farting pet but eventually peels back the layers to reveal the deep injustice of her past, her astounding strength, and her raw talent. Hecuba, who is set up as a dog who is hard to walk, is transformed into a tragic hero. And Hecate’s history is uncovered by Riordan, step by step. Riordan, I have noticed, has a remarkable ability to paint these Greek gods as powerful, immortal, incomprehensible beings, yet also simultaneously and unmistakably human. This level of nuance and depth is not as recognized as it should be, given the fact that Riordan accomplishes this in a children’s book while writing the funniest lines known to bunnykind.

On a final note, the plot is fantastic! I am really excited for the third book of The Senior Year Adventures to come out. Riordan Wiki and Reddit claim the next book will be out some time in 2025 or 2026. I can’t wait to read it!

Marshmallow’s Rating: 100%.

Marshmallow rates The Wrath of the Triple Goddess (Book 2 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Senior Year Adventures) by Rick Riordan 100%. — Marshmallow rates *The Wrath of the Triple Goddess* (Book 2 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Senior Year Adventures) by Rick Riordan 100%.

Caramel reviews Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #6: Alamo All-Stars by Nathan Hale

Today Caramel is talking to Sprinkles about Alamo All-Stars by Nathan Hale, published first in 2016. This is the sixth book in Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales series, and thankfully the sixth book Caramel happened to read from the series. (So finally these numberings match!)

For Caramel’s reviews of the five earlier books, please check out: One Dead Spy, Treaties, Trenches, Mud, and Blood, The Underground Abductor, Big Bad Ironclad, and Donner Dinner Party.

Caramel reviews Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #6: Alamo All-Stars by Nathan Hale.

Sprinkles: So here we are, talking about yet another Nathan Hale book.

Caramel: Yes! And this one is also a great book!

S: Oh, yes? So you have enjoyed reading about the Alamo? Isn’t that supposed to be a story of a big defeat?

C: Yes, but a very heroic one! And at the end of the book, the author ties things up by telling us how the U.S. in the end did win over Texas. So they lost Alamo first, but eventually they won it back. Kind of like losing the battle and winning the war.

S: I see. But it was also probably a heroic win for the other side, at least the stand at Alamo.

C: I suppose. You are right. All wars have at least two sides. When one side wins and celebrates, the other side is losing and facing great difficulties. So I like reading about wars and history, but it would be best if there were no wars. I think we can say that we have had enough wars. Maybe we do not need any more.

S: Such wise words from a little bunny…

Caramel is reading Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #6: Alamo All-Stars by Nathan Hale.

S: Okay, so this book is all yellow!

C: Yes, you said last time that each book has one thematic color, so maybe you were right. This is the yellow book. There are other colors in the book too, of course but yellow is a lot more visible in this book than the others.

S: Is there any humor in the book? I mean it is about war and death again, but …

C: Yes. At least there are some light-hearted moments. And it does not feel as heavy as Donner Dinner Party.

S: I see. That is good. So it seems from this page created by Fulton County Library System that there are at least six more books in this series.

C: Yup. I want to read all of them!

S: I think that can be arranged. But maybe we can take a short break for a bit.

C: What are you trying to tell me Sprinkles?

S: Me? Nothing. Maybe there are other books you could read for the next week or two.

C: Maybe. Or maybe not. I do like these books!

S: I know. But maybe we can try a few other books for a bit.

C: I see what you are doing. And I guess we will see what you find for me to read for next week.

S: I mean, I won’t force you.

C: Hmm.

S: Okay, maybe this is a good time to stop talking about this book and wrap this review up. What would you like to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #6: Alamo All-Stars by Nathan Hale and looks forward to reading many more historical graphic novels in the near future.

Sprinkles reviews Sleeping With Dogs: A Poetic Memoir by Barbara Barth

Today Sprinkles reviews a brand new chapbook, Sleeping With Dogs: A Poetic Memoir by Barbara Barth, published on January 24, 2025.

The book bunnies are delighted to be reviewing this book as part of a Blog Tour for Sleeping With Dogs: A Poetic Memoir organized by WOW! Women On Writing.

Sprinkles reviews *Sleeping With Dogs: A Poetic Memoir* by Barbara Barth, as part of a blog tour hosted by Women on Writing.

A chapbook is a small book, typically a collection of poems, typically within twenty to forty pages, sometimes organized around a theme, sometimes not. Even though chapbooks have a long and storied past, here at the book bunnies blog, we have not had the occasion to review any till now. And Sleeping With Dogs: A Poetic Memoir is just right for a blog hosted by bunnies!

This is indeed a little book of forty pages, with a cute pink cover; on the cover is a stylized image of a woman in a patch of a bed, sleeping surrounded by six little dogs, some curled up, some fully awake and curiously staring at the observer / reader. The patch of bed is covered with little pink hearts. So already you might imagine, this book is not only about dogs (as you probably had already figured out from the title) but it is also very much about love. And indeed love is the overwhelming theme of the book.

Barbara Barth’s writing journey began when she lost her husband in 2008. She began writing but also she began adopting dogs. Words and dogs became her lifelines. This chapbook collects her free verse poetry about her dogs and herself growing into the woman she is today with her dogs. Barth tells us the stories of Foxy-Lady, who knew her husband before he passed away, Bray, the first adoptee after, and many many others, via simple but evocative sentence fragments, which somehow come together into fluid free verse.

Sprinkles is reading Sleeping With Dogs: A Poetic Memoir by Barbara Barth, as part of a blog tour hosted by Women on Writing. — Sprinkles is reading *Sleeping With Dogs: A Poetic Memoir* by Barbara Barth, as part of a blog tour hosted by Women on Writing.

Out of the twenty-three poems in the chapbook, ten are written as odes to specific dogs: “Foxy-Lady” (2), “Bray” (5), “Annabelle” (6), “Queen Chloe” (7), “Odette” (10), “A Dog Named Studly” (11), “The Last of the Big Dogs” (12), “The Christmas Gift” (13), “Carmella” (17), “PS. Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds” (23). Each of these ten poems introduces its subject, a dog with their own personal back story, and tells the story of how they came to join Barth and her life. Most of the dogs are rescues, so often the back stories are sad or uncertain at times, but most of these poems end with joy, joy of a once-sad dog having found a new home that welcomes them. (Carmella shows up again in “Morning” (19) as the mischievous main character, crafty and still lovable.)

Then there are two poems, about two dogs each, that tell stories of new members joining a big happy family and making it happier. “One Week Two Dogs” (8) tells the story of how Barth first met Rascal and April on the same day, but took them home on two separate days. April immediately becomes Miss April in Paris, and they both find themselves full members of the growing new family Barth has been building around her. “Dumb and Dumber” (14) tells the story of how father-and-son duo Moe and Happy Dog, join the family. The Dumb and Dumber become loving nicknames to them and celebrate their natural silliness as they like to fool around.

The rest of the poems are not focused on individual dogs. Rather they tell the story of Barth’s life today, full with dogs and dog love. The very first poem in the chapbook, “”Why I Write” (1) introduces Barth to us a bit more. After having read the brief prose introduction to the collection, this poem eases us into the poetic form. “Sleeping With Dogs” (3) and “Six-Pack” (4) set the tone early towards the beginning of the chapbook, telling us how the dogs came to Barth’s life and made it whole. “Chihuahua Love” (9) tells us of her transformation from a “dog lady with big dogs” to a “dog lady with chihuahuas”. “Storm” (15) and “After the Rain” (16) tell us what happens in her household during and after a rainstorm. “Night Moves” (18), “Morning” (19), “Patio View” (20), and “Four Seasons” (21) offer more snapshots of her life with her dogs: a full life filled with love and joy and many other intense emotions lived in the moment. Finally “Paint Party” (22) tells us what Barth might just be doing today in her home: painting, with her four-legged friends surrounding her, content.

Being a household of four bunnies we do not have any dogs living with us. We are typically very timid near four-legged creatures who are bigger than ourselves. But Barth makes the best case for inviting dogs into your life. She does not preach or explain. She just tells her own story, in which she happens to find love over and over and over again. (Of course one imagines she is giving a lot of love back. It is impossible for this much love to flow only in one direction.)

All in all, I have very much appreciated the opportunity to read and review Sleeping With Dogs: A Poetic Memoir. And I’d recommend it highly to all sorts of folks, young bunnies and old bunnies, and everyone in between. I know that the little bunnies in my own household will love the book just as much as I did. If you like reading poetry, or if you love dogs, it is probably a no-brainer: you should read this book. Otherwise, if you just happen to have only a little space in your day to read a couple short pages at a time, then this little pink book might just be what you need to fill your heart with some joy.

Sprinkles has read Sleeping With Dogs: A Poetic Memoir by Barbara Barth, as part of a blog tour hosted by Women on Writing, and recommends it highly to all bunnies great and small. — Sprinkles has read *Sleeping With Dogs: A Poetic Memoir* by Barbara Barth, as part of a blog tour hosted by Women on Writing, and recommends it highly to all bunnies great and small.

Caramel reviews Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #5: Donner Dinner Party by Nathan Hale

Caramel is on a roll reading books from the Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales series by Nathan Hale. So far he has read and reviewed One Dead Spy, Treaties, Trenches, Mud, and Blood, The Underground Abductor, and Big Bad Ironclad. Today he talks to Sprinkles about the fifth book he read in the series: Donner Dinner Party, which was originally published in 2013 as the third book in the series. (See this page created by Fulton County Library System for the full chronological order of the books.)

Given the morbid nature of the historical events described (involving death and cannibalism), this review might not be appropriate for very young bunnies.

Caramel reviews Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #5: Donner Dinner Party by Nathan Hale. — Caramel reviews *Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #5: Donner Dinner Party* by Nathan Hale.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, it seems like it is once again time to talk about a Nathan Hale book.

Caramel: Yes! It is great that I can read another one of Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales.

S: I know you love these books! So tell me, what is this one about?

C: It is about the people going to California in 1846.

S: Oh, I see, so this is about the Donner party, going west toward California and getting lost?

C:Yes it is.

S: So the dinner party part is kind of poking fun at the rumors that some of them ended up eating others?

C: Yes, but it is not a very funny joke in terms of what it means. And it is not rumors; the Wikipedia article says they actually ate some of those who died because they were weaker, but they apparently also killed two Native American guides and ate them.

S: Caramel, that is awful!

C: Yep, and disturbing.

S: I mean, the other books you read in this series also had people dying, there were many wars and such, but this somehow feels a lot more morbid.

C: Yep, it does. But apparently history can be pretty terrible.

S: I can see that this book is making that quite clear.

C: Yep, it certainly did for me.

Caramel is reading Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #5: Donner Dinner Party by Nathan Hale. — Caramel is reading *Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #5: Donner Dinner Party* by Nathan Hale.

S: So was reading this book a bit more challenging then? The story is pretty disturbing.

C: Yeah, it was a little, but the scary parts are mainly on a couple pages, making them easy to skip.

S: And it seems like an important story, about how humans can get quite vicious and terrible when they are desperate.

C: Yeah humans are sometimes very mean to each other, which is not a good thing.

S: I mean when you read Watership Down, we saw there that bunnies can also be cruel to one another, but at least we would never eat each other. We are vegetarian.

C: And I guess I will have to remind you that Watership Down was fiction, Sprinkles. This book is about a real event!

S: I know I know. I was just trying to lighten up the mood, but it is pretty difficult. So let us talk about the book in general. I suppose you had heard of the Donner party before. Did you learn anything new while reading Donner Dinner Party?

C: Yep, that sometimes the people in the past, and sometimes now, can be very mean to others.

S: So true. And so sad… Okay, I will now shift gears because this is getting a bit too sad. It seems these books are in color but always only a couple colors show up on each two-page spread. Is that correct?

C: yep, this one had around 8 different colors total.

S: But only a couple of the colors showing up on one page, right?

C: Yep, at most maybe 2-3 colors on one page.

S: But it still seems to work well, right?

C: Yes, it feels colorful at least.

S: After this I think there are still a few more books in this series. Are you interested?

C: Yeah, I can’t imagine there will be too many more cannibal stories in there.

S: I agree. Okay, so let us wrap this up then. What would you like to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel appreciated reading Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #5: Donner Dinner Party by Nathan Hale and is ready for another adventure. — Caramel appreciated reading *Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #5: Donner Dinner Party* by Nathan Hale and is ready for another adventure.