Caramel’s reviews – BookBunnies

Caramel reviews Guapo’s Great Rescue: Clay Finds a Forever Home by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins

Last week Caramel reviewed Guapo’s Giant Heart: The True Story of The Calf Who Kept Growing, a picture book written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, and illustrated by Lara Calleja. Today he is talking about a second book about Guapo and his friends: Guapo’s Great Rescue: Clay Finds a Forever Home, written and illustrated by the same team and published originally in 2023. As usual, Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

The book bunnies were sent a review copy of the book.

Caramel reviews Guapo’s Great Rescue: Clay Finds a Forever Home, written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, and illustrated by Lara Calleja. — Caramel reviews *Guapo’s Great Rescue: Clay Finds a Forever Home*, written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, and illustrated by Lara Calleja.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, we have a second Guapo story today.

Caramel: Yes we do. This is about a new animal joining the farm: a horse named Clay.

S: Let’s step back a bit. This book is about Guapo, a big steer in a rescue farm. We read and talked about the first book about his arrival to the farm.

C: Yes. In this book Guapo is all settled in but this time there is this new animal, Clay, who is joining them. But he is kind of distant and doesn’t want to play with the other animals. Guapo seems to understand that he is feeling lonely and scared, just like he did when he first arrived. So, eventually they make Clay realize they are friends, and the horse joins them.

S: That is nice, isn’t it?

C: Yep. Kind of like Clay is rescued twice. And kind of like “and they lived happily ever after!”

S: Yes. But did you know that the real-life Guapo has moved to Wyoming? At least this article that is a couple years old is saying that they were planning to move him and his friends at the farm to a new ranch in Wyoming, because California is kind of hot for him.

C: No, I didn’t know that! It is true that California can get warm sometimes.

S: Then again there used to be all those neat cheese commercials about great cheese coming from happy cows and happy cows coming from California!

C: Yeah, I love those! They are really funny! Especially the one which says “Ooh, foot massage!”

Caramel is reading Guapo’s Great Rescue: Clay Finds a Forever Home, written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, and illustrated by Lara Calleja. — Caramel is reading *Guapo’s Great Rescue: Clay Finds a Forever Home*, written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, and illustrated by Lara Calleja.

S: Okay, let us look at the book a bit more. So this one was written and illustrated by the same people from the first book. Did you notice that?

C: Yes! Guapo and his friends look exactly like they did in the first book.

S: What did you think about the pictures?

C: As before they are colorful and realistic. And there are a lot of children in this book, they come and play with the animals at the farm. They also have a chicken, a rooster, a few other horses, a pig and so on.

S: True. There are a lot of different animals on this farm!

C: And there is a bunny in this story too!

S: Yes, you are right!

C: So there is this bunny who jumps out of a bush and scares Clay. As we all know, bunnies can be fierce!

S: Really? Do you think so?

C: Of course! So this is a much better book than the first one!

S: Alright! We do like bunnies of course.

C: I mean, steers and chickens and goats are fine too. But of course, dragons are better. Then again, we have some time till we can review another book about dragons.

S: I think that is correct, Caramel. Maybe this is a good time to wrap up this review?

C: Why not?

S: So what do you want to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading Guapo’s Great Rescue: Clay Finds a Forever Home, written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, and illustrated by Lara Calleja, and recommends it to all young bunnies who enjoy stories about other animals. — Caramel enjoyed reading *Guapo’s Great Rescue: Clay Finds a Forever Home*, written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, and illustrated by Lara Calleja, and recommends it to all young bunnies who enjoy stories about other animals.

Caramel reviews Guapo’s Giant Heart: The True Story of The Calf Who Kept Growing by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins

Today Caramel is talking to Sprinkles about Guapo’s Giant Heart: The True Story of The Calf Who Kept Growing, a picture book written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, illustrated by Lara Calleja, and published in 2022. As usual, Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

The book bunnies were sent a review copy of the book.

Caramel reviews Guapo’s Giant Heart: The True Story of The Calf Who Kept Growing, written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, and illustrated by Lara Calleja. — Caramel reviews *Guapo’s Giant Heart: The True Story of The Calf Who Kept Growing*, written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, and illustrated by Lara Calleja.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, today we have a story about rescue animals.

Caramel: Yes, we do, it is about a calf who starts out on a farm, but then a woman named Lynn comes and takes him from his mommy and siblings to her own farm. She names him Guapo.

S: Yes, it seems like the calf and his siblings would be given away or sold, and Lynn took one for her farm because she had room for only one calf. A lot of animals are separated from their parents early in their lives.

C: Yeah, but it is kind of unfair. I like living with my book bunnies family. And it would be sad to have to grow up without you all.

S: Yeah, I am also glad you are growing up with all of us Caramel! But maybe the calf was born into a situation where they could not take care of him. We are lucky that we have enough resources to live as a family and feed ourselves.

C: Yes, that is a very good thing.

S: Glad we agree! Okay, so let us get back to the book. Guapo grows up in Lynn’s farm, right?

C: Yes, until Lynn’s farm runs out of space. Then he is moved, again, to a new farm.

S: Yeah, he grows big, right? But he also makes friends on Lynn’s farm.

C: Yep. He is basically a little calf growing up with a lot of other animal friends. It actually sounds like it could be fun growing up with a whole lot of different animal friends. Putting aside the part that he does not have his family with him anymore.

S: Yes. I think we have to put that aside.

C: Okay.

Caramel is reading Guapo’s Giant Heart: The True Story of The Calf Who Kept Growing, written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, and illustrated by Lara Calleja. — Caramel is reading *Guapo’s Giant Heart: The True Story of The Calf Who Kept Growing*, written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, and illustrated by Lara Calleja.

S: So what happens next?

C: Then he moves to the new farm, but then he is all lonely again, because the animals in that farm don’t know him. All they see is a big bull. And so they are probably scared of him.

S: Yeah, that is sad too. He is very different from them. But eventually he makes friends again, right?

C: Yes! He is friendly, and at some point Lynn brings a little pot bellied pig that was Guapo’s friend from earlier, so the other animals in the new farm see that Guapo is kind and friendly and they eventually come around to being friendly with him too.

S: So at the end of the book we learn that this story is inspired by a real rescue calf named Guapo who then became a big bull. Were you surprised to learn that?

C: Yeah, I did not know that there were farms where different kinds of animals lived together like that. Like I thought there could be a couple horses and a couple cows and seven chickens and so on. But in this farm that Guapo ends up in, almost all animals are one of a kind. I guess they are all rescue animals. Somehow they could not continue to live where they had been living, so this place and other places like it collect them and give them a home.

S: Yeah, it is interesting, right?

C: Yup. And cool. Because all animals deserve a home.

S: I agree, Caramel. What did you think about the illustrations?

C: It is a nice picture book, and the animals look very real. So I liked them.

S: Yeah, and it is not quite fiction, apparently, and we both learned some things about rescue farms. So that is also good, no?

C: Yep!

S: So maybe this is a good time to wrap this up?

C: Sure!

S: What do you want to tell our readers then?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading Guapo’s Giant Heart: The True Story of The Calf Who Kept Growing, written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, and illustrated by Lara Calleja, and recommends it to all young bunnies who are curious about the life of real rescue animals. — Caramel enjoyed reading *Guapo’s Giant Heart: The True Story of The Calf Who Kept Growing*, written by Janet Zappala and Wendy Perkins, and illustrated by Lara Calleja, and recommends it to all young bunnies who are curious about the life of real rescue animals.

Caramel reviews Carl’s Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman

Caramel loves role playing games and enjoys science fiction so it was natural that he would appreciate Matt Dinniman’s Dungeon Crawler Carl series. He read and reviewed the first book Dungeon Crawler Carl a while back. Today he is talking to Sprinkles about the second book in the series: Carl’s Doomsday Scenario, originally published in 2021. As usual Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, you have already told us a bit about the dungeon crawler Carl, a while back. Today we are talking about his new adventures.

Caramel: Yes, this is book two. Remember Carl is in a dungeon, which is basically a reality TV show for the galaxy. The Earth has been overrun by an alien civilization and they killed most of the living beings on the planet. The rest are living terribly difficult lives. And a few get selected or nominate themselves to be in a dungeon and the rest of the galaxy watches them as entertainment. In the first book Carl and his teammate Princess Donut got through the first two levels of the dungeon. This book is about Level Three.

S: Alright! Remind me again, how many levels are there supposed to be?

C: I think there are eighteen levels or so and nobody has ever passed the thirteenth one. But if anyone can finish the last level, they will be saved! Whatever that means for the aliens running the show. And who knows if they will even keep their promises?

S: I agree, it is not clear that one can trust these aliens. But anyways, Carl does not seem to have a choice, so he will continue on.

C: Right. Yeah, and he’s very, very good at throwing hands.

S: What does that mean?

C: Punching. Unarmed combat. Though he still has no pants!

S: Wait, what?

C: Yeah, when the world sort of ended, it was like 3 am, so he was in his underwear, and was outside because of the cat named Princess Donut, now sentient and intelligent. So he didn’t have time to go get dressed.

S: I am sensing here a tribute to readers who love Captain Underpants!

C: I don’t know that series too well, so I cannot really judge that comment.

S: Okay, forget it. So in this book, do Carl and Princess Donut make new allies?

C: Yes, and no. They sort of make one, and they make another one, but then that one dies, in a bad way. I don’t want to say more and spoil things.

Caramel is reading Carl's Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman. — Caramel is reading *Carl’s Doomsday Scenario* by Matt Dinniman.

S: So Caramel, this was a really long book. But you managed to read it all!

C: Yep. It is 371 pages! And that is three hundred and seventy one pages of absolute awesomeness! So of course I read it!

S: Well, I am glad you are enjoying it because there are a lot more books in the series and you can read them one by one.

C: Yay! That is exactly what I want to do. So the first book was about the first two levels but this one is about only one level. So if there are eighteen levels, then there would be a lot more books to go if they cover one level a book. So maybe I can expect at least fifteen more books!

S: Yes, your math is correct. And it does seem like that one level a book rule holds till book eight, which is the last one out so far. But the author claims there will only be ten books. So those last couple books will probably cover a lot of ground.

C: But they are not written yet? That is interesting. But I bet at least one of them will get written by the time I get that far. Or maybe I can challenge myself and see if I can read faster than that.

S: Hmm, we will see. You do have the third book in line, and you are waiting to get started, right?

C: Yep. So maybe we can wrap this up so I can get started already?

S: Sounds good to me! Okay, what do you want to tell our readers then?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading Carl's Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman and is already itching to get started with Book Three! — Caramel enjoyed reading *Carl’s Doomsday Scenario* by Matt Dinniman and is already itching to get started with Book Three!

Caramel reviews The Neverfear by Katherine Rundell

Caramel has already read and reviewed Impossible Creatures and The Poisoned King, the first two books in Katherine Rundell’s Impossible Creatures trilogy. Today he reviews The Neverfear, the third book in the series, just published earlier this month. As usual Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, today we are talking about the third book in this Impossible Creatures trilogy. You were really excited about it; did the book satisfy your curiosity?

Caramel: Yes, it did, it gave the series a good ending, but can’t say how. But there is a kidnapping in the beginning and that gets resolved. .

S: And the whole trilogy wraps up nicely too?

C: Yes, there’s a happy ending, too, so that’s always appreciated.

S: Cool! Okay but maybe we should go back and start at the beginning. You were wondering what Neverfear meant.

C: Oh, yeah, it’s apparently the name of Nighthand’s boat.

S: Wait, who is Nighthand?

C: He is the “berserker” guy that showed up in the second book, and helped Christopher and Anya to get back the kingdom.

S: So he helps them in this book too?

C: Well, not quite, because if they told him, the kidnapped person would be killed, so they couldn’t tell him. So they sort of had to steal his ship. But it all ends up nicely in the end.

S: Alright then, I suppose. So there are new problems in this book to be resolved. There was also a cliffhanger in the second book. I am assuming that got resolved too.

C: yeah, that got resolved in, I believe, the first or second chapter.

S: Oh good. So that must have been good.

C: Yep. But the new challenges started immediately, too, so you had to keep reading.

Caramel is reading The Neverfear by Katherine Rundell. — Caramel is reading *The Neverfear* by Katherine Rundell.

S: It seems like this book too has some neat illustrations. They are done by the same person, Ashley Mackenzie.

C: Yeah, I like this artist’s work a lot. Definitely she is great for a regular book with all words. Now for graphic novels, Mike Holmes is the best! If only they came out with more graphic novels…

S: Now, I know Holmes did the Wings of Fire graphic novels. So I am guessing this is your roundabout way to request more Wings of Fire graphic novels?

C: Not very roundabout. I think I’m being pretty transparent… There are at least seven more books to go!

S: I think you are right. Anyway, back to the book we were talking about. Being the third in a trilogy I would assume one has to read the first two books to get much out of this one, right?

C: Yes, it is much more understandable with prior knowledge of the world and such.

S: Totally makes sense of course. Okay so did you like this world this story is taking place in?

C: Yeah, I like this artist’s work a lot. Definitely she is great for a regular book with all words. Now for graphic novels, Mike Holmes is the best! If only they came out with more graphic novels…

S: Now, I know Holmes did the Wings of Fire graphic novels. So I am guessing this is your roundabout way to request more Wings of Fire graphic novels?

C: Not very roundabout. I think I’m being pretty transparent… There are at least seven more books to go!

S: I think you are right. Anyway, back to the book we were talking about. Being the third in a trilogy I would assume one has to read the first two books to get much out of this one, right?

C: Yes, it is much more understandable with prior knowledge of the world and such.

S: Totally makes sense of course. Okay so did you like the world this story is taking place in?

C: Yes, it is very interesting, and apparently Hercules bred Cerberus!

S: Wait, Hercules and Cerberus from Greek mythology? They are also in this world?

C: Yes, but there are multiple Cerberuses, and not all characters of Greek mythology exist. So maybe they’re called Cerberi?

S: Interesting hypothesis Caramel! I really do not know. But I did not know this world was kind of a mixed bag like that. It is interesting!

C: Yes, it was really fun to read.

S: Sounds wonderful Caramel. I think this might be a good place to wrap up this review.

C: After all it is again a school night.

S: Yep. So let us do this. What do you want to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading The Neverfear by Katherine Rundell and appreciates a trilogy with a happy ending. — Caramel enjoyed reading *The Neverfear* by Katherine Rundell and appreciates a trilogy with a happy ending.