[We were hoping to go through these books in order, but Caramel happened to first read a three-book sampler which was made up of the first, fourth, and the fifth books! So the numbering of these posts basically is mostly about the order Caramel is reading them in. Big Bad Ironclad, reviewed in today’s post, is the second ever book in the series, originally published in 2012. Readers can see the publication order of these books at this page created by Fulton County Library System.]
Caramel reviews Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #4: Big Bad Ironclad by Nathan Hale.
Sprinkles: So Caramel, here we are again, and you chose to start off your 2025 reviews with yet another Nathan Hale book.
Caramel: Yes I have, and, what a book!
S: Hmm, I am guessing that means it is a good book?
C: yes, it certainly was.
S: So what is this one about? What time period are we in?
C: we are in the civil war, and it is about the ironclads, the first metal warships.
S: Oh yes, maybe we should remind our readers that these books are graphic novels that explore various time periods in the history of the United States. So this one is about the U.S. Civil War. Then we must be in the 1860s.
C: Yes, that is important to do, and it is the 1860s.
S: Okay, so tell me more about the ironclads.
C: They are older steam-powered warships that heavy iron plating is put over, like a jacket, allowing them to withstand cannons, and other guns of the time.
S: So kind of like an armor a warrior might put on. Underneath the iron are they made of wood then?
C: Yes, they are, in fact, made of wood under the iron.
S: Hmm, I guess it makes sense to try and armor the ships. But wouldn’t that make them too heavy? Wouldn’t they sink?
C: Well, yes and no. The iron is placed on the exact right places as to not make it too heavy, yet still provide ample protection from attack.
Caramel is reading Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #4: Big Bad Ironclad by Nathan Hale.
S: Okay, so that looks like a story you would be interested in, you like warships and such, but it is after all a graphic novel. Are there any human characters in the book? And what is the human story told?
C: It is about the stories of the ironclads and those who fought against them and how they defeated the big, bad ironclad.
S: Oh, so the ironclads are kind of like the new scary weapons and the story is about how they could be defeated. Do we also learn about the people who designed and built the ironclads?
C: Yes, I suppose, but the story of how they are defeated is more central.
S: Do both sides have ironclads or only one side?
C: Well, both sides have ironclads, but the story is told mainly from the view of the Union, the North, so we learn about how they build their ironclad and defeat the ironclad from the South.
S: I see. So did you learn some new things while reading this book?
C: Yes, I did learn some new things; these books have so many facts! For example I learned that the Union built their own ironclad from the same inventor who made the peacemaker, a huge cannon which blew up and killed the president’s cabinet. They must have been desperate.
S: That is interesting! I had not heard about the peacemaker. Wikipedia has an article about the ship that it was installed on. So these books are factual but also fictional. Can you tell what is fact and what is fiction?
C: Yes, it is rather obvious as the narrator, Nathan Hale, says the real things that happen, like he says things like, ”this is not an accurate representation of this person,” or something like that.
S: I see. That is cool. So you learn stuff about the history of the United States and also enjoy reading a fun graphic novel. I am assuming of course that you have enjoyed reading this book?
C: Yes, it was great!
S: I am assuming we will hear about a lot more Nathan Hale books in the near future.
C: Yes, you will.
S: Can’t wait!
C: Well, you have to. At least till next week!
S: Okay, okay, yes, till next week. So as we wrap up this review, what do you want to tell our readers?
C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!
Caramel loved reading Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales #4: Big Bad Ironclad by Nathan Hale and can’t wait to read the next book!
For the last couple years, at the end of the year, we have been doing a New-Year-ish thing of talking about all the books we have read through that year. (You can find our recap of 2022 here, and here is our recap of 2023.) This year, we continue this new tradition and take a look at our reviews for 2024.
[2024 saw the bunnies read and review many books, both new and classic. You can find a full list here.]
The book bunnies review the books of 2024.
Sprinkles: So maybe this year, we can start with Marshmallow.
Marshmallow: Sure. I have reviewed many, many books this year. I liked all of them, but there are a couple that I really, really, really liked. But maybe we can begin with the series I read and enjoyed.
S: Makes sense to me.
M: The first series I started this year was the famous Hunger Games series. Here are my reviews of the three main books: The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay. And here is my review of The Hunger Games: The Illustrated Edition. I had never read these books before and quickly learned exactly why they are so revered. I was also shocked by how deep some of the themes were (family and friendship of course, but also lessons about the impacts of war, greed, violence, trauma, and poverty). This is an amazing series (I love it!) I would recommend to all reasonably mature bunnies (maybe like 12 and up?)
S: Yes, I remember how much you were affected by those books.
Marshmallow enjoyed reading the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins as well as Powerless and Reckless by Lauren Roberts.
S: What about the other series you started this year?
M: Another series I began to read this year was the Powerless series. Here is my review of the first book: Powerless. And here is my review of the second one: Reckless. Unfortunately, not all of the books are out yet, so I am looking forward to reading and reviewing the last (?) book of this series next year. This is hands-down my favorite YA fantasy-romance series. I generally find this genre to lean too much into romance, but this series maintains the perfect balance. I would 100% recommend this book to all interested readers (YA probably), especially those who have been wronged by the ridiculous amount of romance infiltrating the YA fantasy section.
S: I still have not gotten around to reading those books, but I know you have really enjoyed them. So maybe they should go on my 2025 reading list.
M: Maybe they should! The third series I have begun this year is the Enola Holmes series. I originally presumed these books to be easy and basic because the cover was not what I would characterize as a serious, intriguing mystery would look like. However, these books really take you to an entirely new time period, and the adventures of Enola Holmes never fail to excite, delight, and inspire.
S: You have only read and reviewed three of the books though, right?
S: Because they put together a few things you like. History, graphic novel format, humor-
C: Yes, what is there not to like? But there are many more books in the series, and I really hope to continue with those in 2025. And of course you know that my all-time favorite series is still Tui T. Sutherland’s Wings of Fire?
S: Yes, that is true. and you loved that one, too!
C: Yep.
This year, Caramel read two more Wings of Fire books by Tui Sutherland, one more Narwhal and Jelly book by Ben Clanton, and three books from the Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales series.
Sprinkles: So Marshmallow, you have read many other books this year. Maybe you can tell us about the highlights. Maybe we can begin with the fiction?
This year Marshmallow’s fiction reads ranged from Maus to One of Us is Lying to A Tale of Two Cities.
Sprinkles: So Caramel how about you? Which books of fiction did you enjoy reading most this year, other than those that belong to the series we talked about already?
Caramel: Well, we forgot to talk about The One and Only Ruby and The One and Only Family, both by Katherine Applegate. Those are good books I read and they belong to a series but maybe we can mention them now?
Caramel also read several fun books this year, including One and Only Ruby by Katherine Applegate, Watership Down by Richard Adams, and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams.
Sprinkles: You have also read many nonfiction books this year, right, Caramel?
The bunnies also read a lot of nonfiction this year. Here they are posing with their favorites: Warhammer 40000 Core Book, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: Core Rulebook, Slow Productivity, Guinness World Records 2024, We Should All Be Feminists, and How to Speak Emoji.
Sprinkles: We also all read many books of, or about poetry. Right?
Sprinkles: I also read and reviewed several children’s books about puberty. There were so many and those were all split between girl books and boy books, that I needed to have two reviews for them.
Marshmallow: We read most of those books, too, but I am glad you were the one who ended up reviewing them.
Caramel: I did peek into some of them, but I agree with Marshmallow, that it was good that you were the one who had to review them.
S: But all in all, we all read quite a lot of good, fun, and informative books this year, right?
M: And thought-provoking!
C: Yep. And I think we will be reading a lot more books next year!
M: But first, we have our month off!
S: Yes, we will take the month of January off.
C: And we are all really happy about that!
S: Well, we will continue to read, and we will get back to reviewing them in a month. And till then we just take a short break.
C: We deserve it!
M: Everyone deserves a break. And we are lucky to get one!
S: True. Okay, so what do you want to tell our readers Marshmallow?
M: I want to say: Happy new year everyone! We wish you a happy hoppy new year in 2025!
S: With lots of good books and many friends, old and new!
C: Yes! And stay tuned for more book bunny reviews, coming to you in February 2025!
The book bunnies, and new friend Moose, wish all bunnies around the world a happy hoppy new year in 2025, with lots of good books and many friends, old and new!
Today Caramel reviews Impossible Creatures, a 2024 book by Katherine Rundell. As usual Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.
Caramel reviews Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell.
Sprinkles: So Caramel, this is your last review for the year!
Caramel: Yep, and I am very happy about that!
S: Hmm, I thought you liked reading books.
C: I do! And I even like talking about them. But when the year is over, we always take a month-long break, and who doesn’t like breaks?
S: Okay, I totally get that! So let us do our review and wrap up the year then.
C: Actually we won’t be done completely, because on Saturday we will do a joint review with Marshmallow and go over all the books we talked about this year.
S: True. But you will be done with talking about new books. So tell us, what is this book about?
C: It is about this one girl named Mal and an archipelago where mythical creatures are real. The girl finds a baby griffin, and then meets a boy named Christopher and asks him to help her save all of the creatures in the archipelago from a great danger.
S: So is the girl a keeper of these magical creatures?
C: Yes and no, the griffin is her friend, not her pet.
S: Okay, so is this like, there is this magical world of magical animals that us mere mortals do not know about, kind of like in The Menagerie?
C: Yeah, kind of.
S: I see. So I am assuming the impossible creatures in the title of the book are these magical creatures?
C: Yep, definitely. However they are not as kind as the ones in The Menagerie.
S: Oh, are they more like wild animals?
C: No, they are more intelligent creatures, but still kind of angry.
S: I read that somehow the magic is running out?
C: Yep, some evil thing is stealing the magic from the source.
S: Oh, and so Mal and Christopher have to figure out what is going on and save the magic?
C: Yep, and they will have to kill the evil one.
S: That sounds like it could be an exciting read!
C: Yep. It was.
S: And does it all end up nice and tidy? I heard there might be a sequel.
C: Yeah, I would like to read it if there is a sequel. This one ended a little sad.
S: Oh no! I don’t want to ask.
C: Okay, don’t ask then.
Caramel is reading Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell.
S: Alright. I will change the topic. Though we could not call this book a graphic novel or a picture book, there are still quite a lot of images here and there, right?
C: Yep. Maybe sixty or more!
S: They were apparently the work of the artist named Ashley MacKenzie. What did you think of them?
C: I liked them! But I felt like the book could have used even more images. I mean, there were some things that I felt could need some images.
S: That is interesting! You do know quite a few different kinds of magical creatures already, so I am guessing this book had some that you had not heard of before?
C: No, but I want to see them just the same. But you know, the map at the beginning, that was pretty cool! It showed the archipelago where the magical creatures live. And then there is an illustrated Bestiary, which was also neat.
S: Hmm, so I think you liked the illustrations, just wanted a lot more, because they were pretty good!
C: Yep, having more would have been really good.
S: Okay, I think it is clear that you enjoyed this book. So we can wrap this up now. What would you like to tell our readers?
C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!
Caramel enjoyed reading Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell and recommends it to other little bunnies who enjoy reading about magical creatures.
Many years ago, over the course of a few days, the book bunnies listened all together as a family to an unabridged version of Watership Down, the 1972 classic by Richard Adams. Recently Caramel got his paws on a new (2023) graphic novel adaptation of the book by James Sturm and Joe Sutphin and read it over the course of a few hours. Today he is talking to Sprinkles about the book.
Caramel reviews Watership Down: The Graphic Novel, written by Richard Adams, adapted by James Sturm, and illustrated by Joe Sutphin.
Sprinkles: I remember how we listened to this whole story when you all were so much younger. So when I saw that there was a graphic novel adaptation, I knew you would want to read it.
Caramel: Yes, I guess you were right! You know me well.
S: I think I do! Okay can you tell us a bit about the story?
C: Sure. In this book there are bunnies like us, but they are wild and are trying to escape from a great evil that was foretold by one of them named Fiver.
S: Oh, I think I remember Fiver. Isn’t he the dreamer one? Kind of like an oracle?
C: Yeah, kind of. He can see the future and warns the others of the dangers so they can survive.
S: Okay, so here is a group of rabbits living in a warren. That is, my dictionary tells me, a network of interconnecting rabbit burrows. And they are living a normal wild rabbit life. But then some great evil thing happens, is that it?
C: Yes, it is kind of like that. However not everyone believes Fiver, and so not all of them make it.
S: Well, I can see how not everyone would immediately believe some little bunny saying something terrible will happen, without evidence. But his brother believes him, right?
C: Yep, so Hazel, that is Fiver’s brother, gathers everyone who believes Fiver and they run.
S: So they leave their warren and wander away, and try to find a new place to settle down at?
C: Yep. Along the way they find a different warren in which there are some not-so-nice bunnies who try to kill the main character bunnies, but thankfully the good bunnies make it out, and they get two new bunnies from that warren.
S: Cool! Okay, so Fiver is the dreamer, oracle bunny. Hazel is the main leader bunny. Are there other characters that you especially liked or remembered from when we listened to the book those many years ago?
C: Fiver is my favorite, I don’t know why but he is my favorite bunny in the book.
S: He is a gentle soul, as far as I remember. He is sensitive and kind.
C: Yeah, but he can also see the future, and that is cool.
S: Yes, that is really cool, I agree. I do remember another character, Bigwig, I think. He is a fighter, and a good one too.
C: Yeah, he is also really cool, but Fiver is still my favorite character. There is also a big bird who helps the bunnies occasionally, His name is Kehaar.
S: That is cool! I liked that character, too.
Caramel is reading Watership Down: The Graphic Novel, written by Richard Adams, adapted by James Sturm, and illustrated by Joe Sutphin.
S: Okay, so when we listened to this book many years ago, we had no images to attach to the main characters. But a graphic novel of course will have faces attached to each character. Did these work for you? Did you like the illustrations? Is the world of Fiver and Hazel how you had imagined it to be?
C: Yeah, it is a lot like what I thought. The bunnies are all very realistic looking, too, and exactly how I imagined them to be.
S: That sounds great! I was just going to ask you if they were more cartoonish or more realistic. So this was perhaps the longest graphic novel you have ever read, right?
C: Yep, it was 382 pages!
S: That is long for a graphic novel. But the original book is a very long one, too, so that makes sense. Anyways, did you know that the original book was banned in some places because it was too violent and there was a lot of brutality depicted explicitly?
C: Oh no. I did not think it was too violent.
S: Well, then again, you do like the Wings of Fire series and those are also kind of violent. So maybe your generation of bunnies is a bit more used to violence…
C: No, I would hope not.
S: I see what you mean Caramel. Yes you are right, it is not a good thing to get used to violence. Maybe I should have said that you can handle some more violence. I think that especially when they made the animated movie in 1978, the movie started out looking like a typical Disney movie, with cute bunnies who speak and are living in this idyllic natural place, but then things get dark very fast, and terrible things happen, bunnies killing each other, getting killed by humans, and so on. So maybe it shocked people a lot more back then.
C: Maybe.
S: I also read that it was banned in China for a while because it depicted animals and humans as equals or at least somewhat on a similar level, and this was unacceptable.
C: Hmm, they probably would not like Animal Farm either, then. Or us.
S: Yes, you have a point there Caramel. Bunnies talking about books would probably not be okay. Anyways, we are bunnies who love to read and talk about books. So let us get back to the book. So overall, did you enjoy this graphic novel?
C: Yes, greatly. And I recommend it to all young bunnies who like to read about other bunnies being heroic.
S: Cool! Okay let us wrap this up then. What would you like to tell our readers?
C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!
Caramel enjoyed reading Watership Down: The Graphic Novel, written by Richard Adams, adapted by James Sturm, and illustrated by Joe Sutphin, and recommends the book to all young bunnies who like to read about other bunnies being heroic.
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