BookBunnies

Caramel reviews Poppy’s Return by Avi

Caramel has enjoyed reading the adventures of animals living in and around Dimwood Forest. And he has already reviewed Ragweed, Poppy, Poppy and Rye, and Ereth’s Birthday for the book bunnies blog. Today he reviews Poppy’s Return, the next book in this series by Avi. As usual, Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Caramel reviews Poppy's Return, written by Avi and illustrated by Brian Floca. — Caramel reviews *Poppy’s Return*, written by Avi and illustrated by Brian Floca.

Sprinkles: Caramel, you just finished another Poppy book!

Caramel: Yes!

S: So what will you tell us about it?

C: This book is about Poppy who is going back to her childhood home, the Gray House. When she gets there, she sees there is trouble there.

S: Oh, that sounds serious.

C: Oh yes, it is. Poppy’s dad is sick and there is an ominous bulldozer outside, waiting to destroy the Gray House.

S: That is pretty scary. The mice who live in the Gray House are not used to living anywhere else, so they must be very worried, right?

C: Yes. Ereth the porcupine creates more problems though. He starts the bulldozer!

S: That is terrible! Okay, so there are many scary and dangerous things happening or about to happen.

C: Yes, but it is also very funny. Ereth says many funny things, some of the words are made-up I think. He is my favorite character.

S: I know you enjoyed reading Ereth’s Birthday, and it was partially because you like Ereth so much. Is he still as grumpy as before?

C: Yes he is. And maybe even more because Poppy left him behind. She did not want him to come with her. But he did follow her anyway.

Caramel is reading Poppy's Return by Avi. — Caramel is reading *Poppy’s Return* by Avi.

S: Okay, we told our readers a lot already about the storyline. Let us talk about the book more generally. So what three words would you use to describe this book?

C: Adventurous, funny, and interesting.

S: Those are good words Caramel. So did you like the book?

C: Yes.

S: I have not yet read this one. Do you think I should?

C: Yes. I think all bunnies should read it. If you liked the other Poppy books you will like this too.

S: I did enjoy all the other books, so okay, I will read this then. Thank you for the recommendation. Now there is one more book in the Dimwood Forest series. It is called Poppy and Ereth. I have a feeling you will want to read that one too.

C: I think so. I want to know what more adventures Poppy and Ereth will have together.

S: And the title tells us that they will definitely both be in the book.

C: So you should take this book now and start reading. I will get started with the other one.

S: That makes sense to me Caramel. So let us wrap up this review. What do you want to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunnies reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading Poppy's Return by Avi and is looking forward to reading the nest and last book in the series soon. — Caramel enjoyed reading *Poppy’s Return* by Avi and is looking forward to reading the nest and last book in the series soon.

Marshmallow reviews The Music of Dolphins by Karen Hesse

Both Marshmallow and Caramel love dolphins. Today Marshmallow reviews a book by Karen Hesse about a girl raised by dolphins: The Music of Dolphins. The book raises questions about what it means to be human and what it means to belong.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you like books that are about friendship, family, or nature, then this might be the book for you.

Marshmallow’s Summary (with Spoilers): Mila was raised by dolphins since the age of four. At the beginning of the book she is found on an unpopulated island, and she is brought to a research facility. At the facility, Doctor Beck and Sandy teach her how to be more human. They teach her to talk and give her a recorder. Mila starts playing it and discovers music. Doctor Beck and Sandy are like a new family for her. At this facility, Mila meets another girl named Shay, who is another feral child and becomes like a little sister to her.

Mila eventually discovers that she was on her way from Cuba to the United States with her mother and her brother when something went wrong and her mother and brother drowned. She learns who her father is and that her birth given name is Olivia. From this she can piece together her story: After her mother and brother died, she was rescued by dolphins and adopted by her dolphin mother, who had recently lost her own child and upon finding Mila/Olivia, raised her as her own. But Mila/Olivia feels like she was raised by the dolphins, meaning that they are the first family she knows of, and though she likes being human, she still wants to return to the sea. She makes music that reminds her of her dolphin family.

Marshmallow is reading The Music of Dolphins by Karen Hesse. — Marshmallow is reading *The Music of Dolphins* by Karen Hesse.

Marshmallow’s Review: I think that the author did a very good job of writing through Mila/Olivia’s perspective. The Music of Dolphins is a work of fiction, but the author does an excellent job creating the inner world of a feral child, which is a real phenomenon that I did not know much about before. When you read the book, you think you are reading the words that Mila wrote. The writing also displays where Mila is in her journey. The font size and the sentence complexity change as Mila becomes more fluent in human language.

Mila is a very relatable character and so are most of the other characters. You can feel Mila’s joy and curiosity and sadness, and you can understand the feelings of the other people, too, though you see those through Mila’s eyes. I think it is really sad that Mila didn’t get to know her human parents and family, but it is good that a pod of dolphins basically adopted her. You can sense how much she loves them and how much joy there was in her life with them.

The Music of Dolphins is also easy to read and understand. The chapters are really short, most are about a couple pages long. The plot is not complicated, so you can’t really get confused about the story. Mila and her family’s voyage to the United States reminded me of Isabel in Refugee by Alan Gratz. The plot reminded me of yet another book, Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell, not because the title has dolphins in it, but because the main character in both books is a girl who grows up mostly without human contact.

I think the way The Music of Dolphins ends works really well because the reader is unsure what is going to happen. The ending is both happy and sad. I won’t spoil it by saying more. All in all, I think that The Music of Dolphins is a very good book and I would recommend it to everyone.

Marshmallow’s Rating: 100%.

Marshmallow rates The Music of Dolphins by Karen Hesse 100%. — Marshmallow rates *The Music of Dolphins* by Karen Hesse 100%.

Caramel reviews The Science of Acne and Warts: The Itchy Truth About Skin by Alex Woolf

Caramel has recently been reviewing a series of books about the human body for the book bunnies blog. So far he has reviewed The Science of Snot and Phlegm: The Slimy Truth about Breathing by Fiona MacDonald, The Science of Scabs and Pus: The Sticky Truth About Blood by Ian Graham, and The Science of Poop and Farts: The Smelly Truth About Digestion by Alex Woolf. Today he is talking about the fourth and last book in the series: The Science of Acne and Warts: The Itchy Truth About Skin, written by Alex Woolf. As usual, Sprinkles is asking questions and taking notes.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, tell us about this book.

Caramel: This is a book about human skin. You can learn everything about skin by reading it.

S: So tell me something you learned then.

C: I learned that the layers of skin are the epidermis, the dermis, and the very bottom one is subcutis. I also learned how the body creates blood clots.

S: Wait, blood clots were in The Science of Scabs and Pus: The Sticky Truth About Blood by Ian Graham, too, right?

C: Yes.

S: So why do they show up here too?

C: Because when your skin is wounded, and it is trying to repair itself, you make a blood clot.

S: Hmm, so it is about blood but also about the skin, I see. So what else is there in this book?

C: There are pages about fungal infections, warts, acne, skin rashes, …

S: Hmm, those all sound quite irritating at the very least. Nobody likes them.

C: True, but they are also very interesting.

S: I guess that means the author is doing a good job keeping things engaging.

C: Yeah.

Caramel is reading The Science of Acne and Warts: The Itchy Truth About Skin by Alex Woolf. — Caramel is reading *The Science of Acne and Warts: The Itchy Truth About Skin* by Alex Woolf.

S: What is the most interesting thing you learned from the book?

C: Let me see. There are a lot of interesting things in here. Here is one: Did you know that some of the dust at home is dead skin cells? People lose up to 30,000-40,000 dead skin cells every day. That adds up to 9 pounds of skin every year.

S: Wow! That is amazing!

C: Here is another interesting fact: There is a skin condition, a hive called dermographism, where you write on your own skin with your finger. It stays there as a rash for fifteen minutes.

S: That is so interesting. I had never heard of it before. Here is the Wikipedia article about it if our readers want to learn more.

C: Here is another strange fact. There is a mouse in Africa, the African spiny mouse, and it loses its skin when a predator catches it. Its skin just peels off and the mouse can run away. And it can regenerate new skin and is safe from the predator.

S: That is a very interesting defense mechanism Caramel. Okay, let us wrap this up so you can go on ahead and reread the book if you want to. But before we do that, tell me your three words to describe this book.

C: Interesting, helpful, and colorful.

S: Those work! Okay and as your last words to wrap things up?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading The Science of Acne and Warts: The Itchy Truth About Skin by Alex Woolf, and learned a lot. — Caramel enjoyed reading *The Science of Acne and Warts: The Itchy Truth About Skin* by Alex Woolf, and learned a lot.

Marshmallow reviews The Dark Is Rising by Susan Cooper

A few weeks ago Marshmallow reviewed Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper. Today she is talking with Sprinkles about The Dark Is Rising, Susan Cooper’s next book in The Dark Is Rising series, the book that gave the series its name and received a Newberry honor in 1974.

Sprinkles: Marshmallow let us start with you telling us what this book is about.

Marshmallow: This book is about a boy named Will. On his eleventh birthday, he discovers that he is one of the Old Ones. That means he has some special kind of magic powers.

S: Hmm, that reminds me of another eleven-year old boy who discovers he has magic powers…

M: Yes, Harry Potter also learns about his magic powers when he turns eleven.

S: Why do you think these two authors took this age to be the time for these boys to discover their hidden powers?

M: Probably because that is the average age of the readers they are targeting.

S: That is a very good reason Marshmallow. Can you think of any others?

M: I guess that is when children go to a new school, like finishing primary school?

S: I think that might be related. Eleven is also the age when many children start going through puberty. So it is naturally a time of change and discovery.

M: I guess that makes sense.

S: So now tell me what these Old Ones are about.

M: They are godlike, powerful beings, with magical powers. I think they might be immortal. They are on the side of the Light, which is always fighting the Dark.

S: Hmm, tell me more. What is the Light? Is the Dark the dark that is rising in the title of the book?

M: The Light stands for good and the Dark is evil.

S: So if the Light is represented or protected by immortal beings, are the protectors and defenders of the Dark also immortal?

M: Not sure. I think so. The Dark seems to find helpers at any era though, and the story of the book is about the twentieth century when a new battle is being fought.

S: Is this related to any of the wars of the twentieth century?

M: I think they might be related, but the fight between the Light and the Dark Will is pulled into involves him finding the Six Signs.

S: Hmm, what are the Six Signs?

M: They are six symbols made of wood, bronze, iron, water, fire, and stone. The fire and water ones are not really made of fire or water of course. But they represent them.

S: So Will is supposed to find these objects to help the Light, right?

M: Yes.

Marshmallow is reading The Dark Is Rising by Susan Cooper. — Marshmallow is reading *The Dark Is Rising* by Susan Cooper.

S: So this book is supposed to be in a five-book series that started with Over Sea, Under Stone. How are the two books related? Will was not in that first book, nor have we heard about the signs in that one.

M: True. Will was not in that book. And this book seems pretty unrelated to that book. But there is a character in this one that we know from the first book: Merriman Lyon in this book is Uncle Merry from the first book. And the events of the first book are mentioned in passing in this one.

S: That is interesting. And it seems from the description of the third book in the series that Barney, Simon and Jane, the three children from that first book, will meet Will eventually.

M: Oh, that’s intriguing!

S: We are going to have to read that third book soon then, I suppose.

M: Yes, I guess so.

S: Then did you enjoy reading this one?

M: Yes, I liked it! I rate it 1o0%.

S: Cool! Let us wrap up this review then. You always want to end our chats the way Caramel ends his reviews. Right? So go ahead!

M: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Marshmallow rates The Dark Is Rising by Susan Cooper 100%. — Marshmallow rates *The Dark Is Rising* by Susan Cooper 100%.