Caramel’s reviews – Page 20

Caramel reviews Blink and Glow by Raven Howell and Ann Pilicer

Today Caramel reviews Blink and Glow, a brand new picture book written by Raven Howell and illustrated by Ann Pilicer. As usual Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

The book bunnies are delighted to be reviewing this book as part of a Blog Tour for Blink and Glow organized by WOW! Women On Writing.

Caramel reviews Blink and Glow, written by Raven Howell and illustrated by Ann Pilicer. — Caramel reviews *Blink and Glow*, written by Raven Howell and illustrated by Ann Pilicer.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, tell me about this book.

Caramel: It’s about a boy named Leo and a girl named Lily. They like animals.

S: That sounds good.

C: Yes, but they like animals, and so they catch a firefly and a salamander, and they want to take them to school the next day for show-and-tell.

S: Hmm.

C: Then they show the animals they caught to their grandma and their grandma helps them realize that they both need to be free. So then they release them.

S: I see. So they learn that the firefly and the salamander need to be free and that they can enjoy and appreciate them better from a distance.

C: Yep. I mean, I’d like to play with a salamander just as much as any other little bunny–

S: I’d say maybe more…

C: Maybe, but so yes, I’d like to play with one too, but if I touch it and put it into a jar like Lily does, the salamander could get hurt. And nobody likes to be put in a jar. I would not like to be put in a jar.

S: Yep. But many young bunnies do not know that immediately. Right? Many young ones like to catch butterflies, capture birds, pull the tails of kitties, and so on.

C: I guess. Oh, do you think maybe that is why the author wrote this book?

S: I think you are on to something Caramel!

C: But I do not know of anyone who would pull the tail of a kitty, Sprinkles. And as a little bunny, I’d think the kitty could hurt me back easily.

S: You are right of course. But there are children who do such things, without thinking of how it might be cruel to the animal. And even those who do try to be nice and love the animals could hurt them unintentionally.

C: Yes, I can see how if you tried to catch a butterfly, for example, you could really hurt it because you have really small paws.

S: Yes, though yours are even smaller!

C: Maybe, but maybe not for long! I am growing, you know!

Caramel is reading Blink and Glow, written by Raven Howell and illustrated by Ann Pilicer. — Caramel is reading *Blink and Glow*, written by Raven Howell and illustrated by Ann Pilicer.

S: Okay, let us get back to the book. Tell me a bit about the pictures.

C: The pictures are really colorful! And you know what I noticed?

S: Tell me.

C: The children are always smiling! On each page! Okay, there is one page where Lily is not totally smiling, but everywhere else she is!

S: Well, overall the book is a happy book, don’t you think?

C: Yes, that’s true. Hmm, maybe that is why they are smiling! They love animals, and they are excited about them. And then they learn how not to hurt them so they are happy that they won’t hurt them. And at the end, their grandma teaches them how to make salamander and fireflies out of craft stuff. So they have fun with that too.

S: Oh yes, we should probably tell our readers that at the very back of the book, there are two pages of instructions on how to make a firefly suncatcher.

C: Yes! And the way to make the salamander seems very easy too. The book tells us how to make them out of craft sticks.

S: Cool!

C: Yes, definitely.

S: Alright Caramel, so it seems like you enjoyed reading this book.

C: Of course. I like all books about animals, and the children learned something important, about not hurting animals. So that is also good.

S: I agree. So maybe it is time to wrap up our review then.

C: Why not?

S: Okay, what would you like to tell our readers then?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel loved reading Blink and Glow, written by Raven Howell and illustrated by Ann Pilicer, and recommends it to all little bunnies who love colorful books and fun stories about animals. — Caramel loved reading *Blink and Glow*, written by Raven Howell and illustrated by Ann Pilicer, and recommends it to all little bunnies who love colorful books and fun stories about animals.

Caramel reviews I Lived Inside a Whale by Xin Li

For his first review for the new season, Caramel chose a beautiful picture book, I Lived Inside A Whale by Xin Li, first published in 2024 and promptly awarded the Barnes & Noble Children’s & YA Book Award. As always, Sprinkles is asking questions and taking notes.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, we are back! You found a neat book to talk about today. Tell us a bit about I Lived Inside a Whale.

Caramel: It is about a girl; we don’t know her name. But she finds the world too noisy. And so she makes a boat and goes into the ocean and finds a great blue whale and starts to live inside it.

S: Wait, so she wants to be alone and so she gets herself swallowed up by a whale?

C: Yes, kind of. But it is not a violent swallowing. She learns that the heart of a whale is huge so the inside of the whale must be large enough for her to live on her own. So she goes into one.

S: That is kind of fantastical.

C: Yes. Like in a fantasy, you mean, right?

S: Yes. I mean it is not really believable.

C: Sprinkles, this is just a story. So weird things happen. But the point is she finds peace and quiet inside the whale. Until a boy comes in.

S: Wait, so the whale swallows another child, whole?

C: Yes. And the boy is not very quiet at first. But he listens to the girl and leaves her be for a bit so when she feels comfortable she can talk to him.

S: I see. This seeking out a quiet place reminds me of a book you reviewed before.

C: Which one are you thinking of?

S: I was thinking of Albert’s Quiet Quest.

C: Oh, yes. It has been a long time since then, but you are right. The boy in that story also wanted to be in a quiet place to read, and his home and his friends were all too loud.

Caramel is reading I Lived Inside a Whale by Xin Li. — Caramel is reading *I Lived Inside a Whale* by Xin Li.

S: So what do you think the main point of this book is?

C: I don’t know, but I think one of the points is about how some bunnies want to be quiet and want space for themselves, and we should give them that space.

S: Yes, I can see how you would get that from how the little boy understands the little girl’s need for quiet and then how the two of them end up getting along so well.

C: Yes. And she tells stories, many many stories. So maybe when she has the space and quiet to think and so on, she can also speak up and say important and interesting things.

S: I can see that. So we should provide space for everyone to have a chance to contribute, for them to tell their stories.

C: Yes.

S: That is so sweet, Caramel! I also loved the color scheme and the drawings in this book. What did you think?

C: I liked it too. There is a lot of color. It is a very colorful book.

S: I think a lot of little bunnies could read this with their big bunnies and they would enjoy it a lot.

C: Yep, I agree. Maybe we can read it together.

S: Would be nice Caramel! So let us wrap this up then. What would you like to tell our readers?

C: The book bunnies are back! Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel loved reading I Lived Inside a Whale by Xin Li and recommends it to all young bunnies who need a bit of quiet sometimes. — Caramel loved reading *I Lived Inside a Whale* by Xin Li and recommends it to all young bunnies who need a bit of quiet sometimes.

Caramel reviews Narwhal’s Sweet Tooth by Ben Clanton

Caramel’s very first review ever for the book bunnies blog was Narwhal: The Unicorn of the Sea!, the first book of Ben Clanton’s Narwhal and Jelly series. Since then, he has reviewed seven more books in the series: Super Narwhal and Jelly Jolt, Peanut Butter and Jelly, Narwhal’s Otter Friend, Happy Narwhalidays, Narwhal’s School of Awesomeness, Narwhalicorn and Jelly and A Super Scary Narwhalloween. Today, as his last review before the book bunnies take off for the month of July, he is reviewing the ninth and most recent book in the series: Narwhal’s Sweet Tooth, which is scheduled to come out in July 2024. As usual, Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

The book bunnies received this book as an advance review copy.

Caramel reviews Narwhal's Sweet Tooth by Ben Clanton. — Caramel reviews *Narwhal’s Sweet Tooth* by Ben Clanton.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, here we are, with a brand new Narwhal and Jelly book!

Caramel: Yes! I am very excited about it!

S: Great! So tell us about the book. What are the goofy duo Narwhal and Jelly up to this time?

C: Well, they are not up to anything. But Narwhal has a problem.

S: Oh no! What is his problem?

C: His tooth nearly breaks off!

S: His special narwhal tooth?

C: Yes. Well, it is actually called a tusk, but yes.

S: Why? How does this happen?

C: His tooth nearly breaks off because he keeps stacking food on it. You can look at the picture in the front of the book. Just like that.

S: I see. That might not be a good way to use the tooth I suppose.

C: Yeah, no, it is not. And he is eating a lot of sweets. The title tells you that. He has a sweet tooth. That means he likes sweets a lot. And everyone knows too much candy is bad for your teeth.

S: That is definitely true. Too much candy, and especially if you do not brush your teeth afterwards…

C: Yeah, Narwhal does not brush his teeth. But he learns to brush it in the end.

S: Caramel, you had reviewed a book about teeth and keeping them clean many many years ago!

C: Oh, I had already forgotten. It has been a while.

S: But you have not forgotten that it is important to keep teeth clean.

C: Of course not! We bunnies need our teeth to be healthy.

Caramel is reading Narwhal's Sweet Tooth by Ben Clanton. — Caramel is reading *Narwhal’s Sweet Tooth* by Ben Clanton.

S: Well, so it has been a while since you last reviewed a new Narwhal and Jelly book. How did it feel to have a new book about these two friends?

C: Very good. I think Narwhal and Jelly are the coolest!

S: And it seems like this book in particular has an important message about teeth, but did it feel like it was trying to teach you something?

C: Yes, a little bit, but I did not mind it. I love Narwhal and Jelly. And they are always so funny and fun! Reading these books makes me happy!

S: That sounds wonderful! Okay, so tell me your favorite quote from the book.

C: Jelly says to Narwhal: “Narwhal it’s hard to frown when you’re around.”

S: That is a nice thing for a friend to say to another friend.

C: Yes. They are good friends.

S: I seem to recall that these books often have a bunch of facts sprinkled here and there, and you love those facts too. Were there any facts in this book too?

C: Yep.

S: Were they all about teeth?

C: Yes! But not all about keeping them clean.

S: Did you learn anything new?

C: Yup. My most favorite new fact from the book is that the purple sea urchin has five teeth! And here is a webpage from the Monterey Bay Aquarium that shows those five teeth!

S: That is really cool! Not a lot of natural things have five-fold symmetry like that!

C: True! But you showed me that apples do!

S: Yep. That is one of my favorite fun facts. Okay, so this all sounds like you really enjoyed reading Narwhal’s Sweet Tooth.

C: Yes!

S: So if someone had not read any of the earlier books, would they still enjoy this one?

C: Yes, Narwhal and Jelly are really cool anyways. But if you want to know them better, you can read some of the earlier books too.

S: So the adventures can be read independently?

C: Yes.

S: That is great, Caramel. So maybe this is a good time to wrap up our review. What would you like to tell our readers?

C: I’m going on a break till July!

S: Yes, Marshmallow has one more review on Saturday, but then we take the month of July off. So–

C: So, yes, enjoy your summer and stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel loved reading Narwhal's Sweet Tooth by Ben Clanton just as much as he loved reading all the other Narwhal adventures, and he is looking forward to more! — Caramel loved reading *Narwhal’s Sweet Tooth* by Ben Clanton just as much as he loved reading all the other Narwhal adventures, and he is looking forward to more!

Caramel reviews Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code by Eoin Colfer

Last week, Caramel reviewed Artemis Fowl: The Arctic Incident by Eoin Colfer, the second book about the evil boy genius Artemis Fowl. Today he reviews Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code, the third book in the series, first published in 2003. As usual Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Sprinkles: So here we are, about to start talking about yet another Artemis Fowl book. So this is number three. Tell us about it.

Caramel: This book starts out with Artemis Fowl building a supercomputer he calls C Cube. He tries to bargain with a business man who steals it from him. And his friend Butler is shot. The supercomputer uses fairy technology that Artemis stole from the fairies, and the fairies detect it when he uses it to show off to the businessman. They come to figure out what is going on, and the fairy officer Holly ends up helping Artemis again.

S: So we have some old characters, and some new ones, too. Right?

C: Yes, the businessman Jon Spiro is new. But for example, Foaly the centaur and Mulch Diggums are not new, and they have very important roles in this book.

S: I see. So is the plot as convoluted and complicated as the one from Book Two?

C: Yes, I think so. That’s why I have been rereading the book, to make sure I got all the details.

Caramel is reading Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code by Eoin Colfer. — Caramel is reading *Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code* by Eoin Colfer.

S: So is Artemis Fowl still evil?

C: Pretty much. Or maybe, not as much. He seems to be planning to go legitimate.

S: How so?

C: Like he knows that the supercomputer he built can be dangerous, and he actually wants it not to be in the hands of bad people.

S: You mean, other bad people? Because he built it after all, and he is probably still kind of bad?

C: He built it because he wanted it for himself, but he was not going to use it to cause any trouble. He was even thinking of making a version of it that could be marketable, like a real product.

S: So he was trying to become a “legitimate businessman” like Fat Tony in The Simpsons always claims to be?

C: No! Fat Tony is not a legitimate businessman. Artemis Fowl was trying to become a real legitimate businessman. He was trying to make a version that would not be dangerous at all and could be useful to a lot of other people.

S: I see. So there is some character development for the main character, then?

C: Yes. I mean he is still arrogant and so on, but I think he is softening up a bit.

S: I see. Do you like that?

C: Yes I do. He is still brilliant and funny.

S: Okay, so now I bet you will want to read the next book?

C: Yes! Especially because this book kind of ends on a cliffhanger.

S: Oh no! Okay then, I guess we will have to locate a copy of the fourth book now.

C: Yes, we have to!

S: Okay Caramel, I am guessing this is a good time to wrap this review up. What would you like to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code by Eoin Colfer and is ready to read Book Four. — Caramel enjoyed reading *Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code* by Eoin Colfer and is ready to read Book Four.