Caramel’s reviews – Page 4

Caramel reviews The Wild Robot on the Island by Peter Brown

Caramel has read and loved all three Wild Robot books by Peter Brown. He has also appreciated the Wild Robot movie when it came out last year. Today he is talking to Sprinkles about the most recent Wild Robot book, The Wild Robot on the Island: An Illustrated Picture Book Adaptation of The Wild Robot, written and illustrated by Peter Brown and published this past summer (June 2025).

Readers should also check out Caramel’s reviews of The Wild Robot, The Wild Robot Escapes, and The Wild Robot Protects.

Caramel reviews The Wild Robot on the Island: An Illustrated Picture Book Adaptation of The Wild Robot, written and illustrated by Peter Brown. — Caramel reviews *The Wild Robot on the Island: An Illustrated Picture Book Adaptation of The Wild Robot*, written and illustrated by Peter Brown.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, we are finally talking about the picture book version of The Wild Robot; are you excited?

Caramel: Yep, because it is a very good book, the original and this version.

S: When I first heard about this, I thought it would be a new story, but it seems this is basically the original story, right?

C: Yes it is the same story, but more simplified. So there is a robot named Roz that gets lost in the ocean after a boat loses all of what it is carrying. And the robot finds itself on an island. And then it goes around looking for and making friends. It is really a sweet story!

S: Yes, I remember the book and the movie.

C: I am guessing this one is for younger bunnies. Because the original book was for bunnies who could read a big book. This is a picture book.

S: Yes, that makes sense to me. Younger bunnies could not read the original book really. It was over two hundred pages. This one is a nice standard-sized picture book.

C: And there are very few words on each page in this version. The other one had a lot more words of course.

Caramel is reading The Wild Robot on the Island: An Illustrated Picture Book Adaptation of The Wild Robot, written and illustrated by Peter Brown. — Caramel is reading *The Wild Robot on the Island: An Illustrated Picture Book Adaptation of The Wild Robot*, written and illustrated by Peter Brown.

S: I think the book is illustrated by the author, right?

C: Yeah, from what I can tell.

S: Are they similar to the illustrations in the original? There were some pictures in those too, no?

C: Yeah, the style is very similar to the original book.

S: Maybe the author wanted readers to have the same mental images he has for the characters and the locations and such. The movie was also very pretty, but it was kind of different visually.

C: Yeah, maybe. The movie was beautiful, and I loved it. But the illustrations in the original book and now in this new picture book are all slightly different. And they are also very beautiful. Speaking of the movie, can we add a link to the trailer? You just reminded me of how good the movie was…

S: Sure. Here it is.

C: Thank you! Maybe we will watch it again some day.

S: Maybe; I could like that too. But now let us get back to the book. Do you think that maybe the author thought the picture book was a good idea now that so many younger bunnies have actually seen the movie?

C: Maybe, I don’t know, but it was a fast read for me.

S: Well, you are a very good reader, Caramel.

C: I do read a lot, true. Maybe this book could get some bunnies into the bigger books. After all, there are two more books after the original one!

S: And I know you actually would love it if there were a fourth book…

C: Yes, I really want a fourth book. That would be very very very good.

S: Okay, maybe we publish this post and who knows, maybe it will eventually get to the author’s ears…

C: Yes, dear reader, if you are Peter Brown, the creator of The Wild Robot, then please write a fourth book! I really would love to read more of Roz’s adventures.

S: Okay, maybe we can wrap this up then. You have made your opinions quite clear. So what would you like to tell the rest of our readers then?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel loved reading The Wild Robot on the Island: An Illustrated Picture Book Adaptation of The Wild Robot, written and illustrated by Peter Brown, and is hoping that soon there will also be new adventures for Roz and friends. — Caramel loved reading *The Wild Robot on the Island: An Illustrated Picture Book Adaptation of The Wild Robot*, written and illustrated by Peter Brown, and is hoping that soon there will also be new adventures for Roz and friends.

Caramel reviews The Day The Crayons Made Friends by Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers

Today Caramel reviews a brand new picture book, The Day The Crayons Made Friends, written by Drew Daywalt, illustrated by Oliver Jeffers, and published in 2025. As usual Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, what are we talking about today?

Caramel: We are talking about another Crayon book! Remember we reviewed The Crayons’ Christmas, one of the earlier books all the way back in 2020? This is a brand new book about the Crayons, so I had to read and review it!

S: Yeah, I was excited too, to see this new one. Both you and Marshmallow have read and loved the first couple of Crayon books about Duncan’s crayons: The Day the Crayons Quit and The Day The Crayons Came Home. Those were written in 2013 and 2015 and both of you were so tiny! Then apparently there were several other Crayon books about Halloween, Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, and so on. And you reviewed the one for Christmas. But this one seems like a really new adventure, just published this year!

C:Yes, and I am all ready to talk about it.

S: Great! So tell us a bit about this one. What is up with Duncan’s crayons this time?

C: They found friends, and they are writing back to Duncan about their experiences away.

S: Wait, so they are no longer in Duncan’s house?

C: No, they are just not together in their box anymore. They are in different parts of the house exploring.

S: That sounds cool! And they are again writing letters, like they did in the earlier books, right?

C: Yeah, it’s kinda cool that they are writing to him. I wish my crayons and pens and toys wrote to me…

S: I know, right?

C: Yeah, it would be really cool! But then again, I’d feel bad using them.

S: I see what you mean. If they prefer to travel around the house and write about their adventures, maybe when you use them, they would wear out. But maybe not. Maybe they also would like you, like the Crayons like Duncan, and they would like to occasionally play with you and help you create fun pictures and colorful drawings and such.

C: True, that is a good way of thinking about it.

Caramel is reading The Day The Crayons Made Friends by Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers. — Caramel is reading *The Day The Crayons Made Friends* by Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers.

S: So tell me a bit about the kinds of adventures they are having. The title seems to say that they are meeting new beings and making friends with them.

C: Yep, all of the notes are from the crayons saying how they met their friends, and how they’re doing. For example, here is what the Beige Crayon wrote:

My dearest Duncan,

I have discovered my calling … under your fridge! I found a flock of dog biscuits that were lost and afraid. I built a small cottage and now tend to them. It’s a simple, quiet life. But fulfilling, nonetheless. And Leslie here is expecting! I look forward to showing you her pups.

Your humble shepherd,

Beige Crayon

S: That is pretty cool! So these Crayons have been gone for quite some time. Maybe it is like when you lose your pens or pencils or crayons and end up getting new ones, but you know the old ones are out there somewhere. Maybe they are having adventures of their own and that is why we never find them!

C: Yeah, maybe they don’t want to be found!

S: I bet this happens to random single socks too! There are so many unpaired socks in my sock drawer — their partners must be out there adventuring!

C: Same here!

S: Oh, so that is why you always wear mismatching socks! I just stop wearing them, hoping one day their partners will show up. But maybe I should give up.

C: You never know. Maybe one day they will come back, ready to settle down.

S: Or maybe at some point, I, too, will start receiving letters … from missing socks!

C: I think that could be fun. I would also like to receive a letter from my missing pencil I lost in third grade. I really liked it and was very sad when it disappeared. But if it is still out there and is just having too much fun to write to me, maybe that is alright.

S: Yes, maybe we can let go and just be happy they are enjoying their lives, right?

C: Yeah, I hope they are. But a letter would be nice. Just saying. Maybe, “I’m in your closet, please get me.” Or something. Anything.

S: I hear you. Maybe they will, too. Anyways, it definitely seems like you really enjoyed reading a new Crayon book.

C: Yep! It is just as fun as the other Crayon books. The pictures are just as pretty, and they fit the book really well; they look like they were drawn using crayons!

S: Yeah, I like the way these books look, too. Okay, maybe it is time to wrap up this review then. What would you like to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunnies reviews!

Caramel loved reading The Day The Crayons Made Friends by Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers, meeting old friends and their new friends. — Caramel loved reading *The Day The Crayons Made Friends* by Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers, meeting old friends and their new friends.

Caramel reviews Vietnamese Children’s Favorite Stories by Tran Thi Minh Phuoc

The book bunnies love various retellings of the classic fairy tales of the Western tradition, and through the years, they have reviewed many books that offered different takes on them. They also have explored, these past few months, several books that collect together fairy tales from geographies from around the world. Therefore they were delighted to learn that they made it to the list of 30 Best Fairy Tale Blogs and Websites in 2025, curated by Feedspot, a blog aggregation site.

To celebrate, today Caramel is reviewing yet another book of fairy tales: Vietnamese Children’s Favorite Stories, retold by Tran Thi Minh Phuoc and illustrated by Nguyen Thi Hop and Nguyen Dong, published originally in 2015. As usual Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Caramel reviews Vietnamese Children's Favorite Stories, retold by Tran Thi Minh Phuoc and illustrated by Nguyen Thi Hop and Nguyen Dong. — Caramel reviews *Vietnamese Children’s Favorite Stories*, retold by Tran Thi Minh Phuoc and illustrated by Nguyen Thi Hop and Nguyen Dong.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, what are we talking about today?

Caramel: Well, this is a book about the fairytales and stories that Vietnamese children would be told as they grew up.

S: So just like Japanese Myths, Legends, and Folktales, Tamamo the Fox Maiden and Other Asian Stories, and Chinese Myths and Legends: The Monkey King and Other Adventures, which you reviewed before for our blog, this is one of those books you read for that course you took on Asian myths and legends, right?

C: Yeah, and just like those other books, this is a good book, too. I liked it a lot.

S: That sounds great! Tell us about it then.

C: This book contains fifteen stories that the author remembers from their own childhood. They were told these stories as they were growing up. Each story is around nine pages or so. The stories all contain some sort of moral, like most children’s stories do.

S: Yes, that is true; most fairy tales have some morals. The author Tran Thi Minh Phuoc writes in the introduction that all of the stories “paint a picture of a world that values the five great virtues: Nhan (compassion), Le (Rituals), Nghia (Righteousness), Tri (Wisdom), and Tin (Trust)”. What kinds of morals come up in these stories?

C: Don’t be greedy, be kind to others, and don’t be selfish.

S: Those seem like very standard morals, good values to pass on to young bunnies. Did you come across any that felt different?

C: No, not really. But there is a story called “Why Ducks Sleep on One Leg”, which, as you might guess, is about why ducks sleep on one leg.

S: Wait, does that one have a moral? What would it be?

C: I think it’s more of an explanation of why they sleep that way.

S: That is interesting. So not all have morals then. But all across different cultures, there are many traditional stories about how things are and they give explanations, sometimes humorous but always creative, about why things are the way they are.

C: Yes. Some of the stories do not have obvious morals, but they still contain at least an explanation of something interesting, like a duck’s behavior. There is another story, “Why The Sea Is Salty”, about why the sea is salty. And there is a story about a tradition and why it exists: “Why One Shouldn’t Sweep the House on Tet Nguyen Dan“.

Caramel is reading Vietnamese Children's Favorite Stories, retold by Tran Thi Minh Phuoc and illustrated by Nguyen Thi Hop and Nguyen Dong. — Caramel is reading *Vietnamese Children’s Favorite Stories*, retold by Tran Thi Minh Phuoc and illustrated by Nguyen Thi Hop and Nguyen Dong.

S: I seem to recall a story about how the tiger got its stripes. The internet tells me it is also a Vietnamese story. Apparently such stories are called “pourquoi” stories, stories that purport to explain why some natural thing is the way it is. Anyways, does the story of the tiger stripes come up in this book?

C: I don’t believe so. But there is the origin story of the jade rabbit. The jade rabbit lives in the forest with his friends and his companion, the goddess Chang’e, and he makes immortality elixirs.

S: Wait, the jade rabbit is not a natural being. It is a mythical creature, isn’t it? And didn’t we read about it in another story before? And the goddess Chang’e?

C; Yeah, the moon goddess Chang’e appeared in one of the stories we talked about before from Chinese Myths and Legends: The Monkey King and Other Adventures. And I remember the jade rabbit from the movie Over The Moon, which we talked about when we discussed that book. Anyways, according to the story “The Jade Rabbit” in this book, the jade rabbit used to be a normal rabbit, who sacrificed himself to help someone who happened to be the jade emperor in disguise. The rabbit did not know this though. Then the emperor carried him to the moon, and the goddess Chang’e turned him into the jade rabbit, an immortal being who makes immortality elixirs.

S: That is neat Caramel! According to Wikipedia, the character of the jade rabbit shows up in many East Asian traditions. And how wonderful that we now know one of its origin stories!

C: Yeah, it’s cool. I told you this is a good book!

S: So you did. Okay now, please tell me a bit about the illustrations. I see that this is really a beautiful book.

C: Yes! The pictures are very interesting! They are made in the sort of painting type. I mean, the individual pictures look like they were made with water color and acrylic paint. Very pretty. Sometimes people look like they are floating and there is a lot of color.

S: Cool! Alright, so it seems like you approve of this book and would recommend it to other young bunnies?

C: Yeah, the stories were kind of made for younger bunnies. At least the book is very much meant for us.

S: Then maybe young bunnies like you can read the book on their own, and even younger ones can maybe get an adult bunny to read it to them.

C: Yeah that would be a good idea! They should do that!

S: Okay, Caramel. Thank you for this review. Do you want to say something to our readers as we wrap up this post?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading Vietnamese Children's Favorite Stories, retold by Tran Thi Minh Phuoc and illustrated by Nguyen Thi Hop and Nguyen Dong, and recommends it to all young bunnies curious to hear more fairy tales from around the world. — Caramel enjoyed reading *Vietnamese Children’s Favorite Stories*, retold by Tran Thi Minh Phuoc and illustrated by Nguyen Thi Hop and Nguyen Dong, and recommends it to all young bunnies curious to hear more fairy tales from around the world.

Caramel reviews Space Case: The Graphic Novel by Stuart Gibbs and Ward Jenkins

Caramel has reviewed many books by Stuart Gibbs before. Today he talks about a recent graphic novel adaptation, Space Case: The Graphic Novel, of a 2015 book written by Gibbs; this version was published in August 2025 and was illustrated by Ward Jenkins. As usual Sprinkles is taking notes and asking questions.

Caramel reviews Space Case: The Graphic Novel, written by Stuart Gibbs and illustrated by Ward Jenkins. — Caramel reviews *Space Case: The Graphic Novel*, written by Stuart Gibbs and illustrated by Ward Jenkins.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, today we are talking about a brand new graphic novel by Stuart Gibbs. And I know you and Marshmallow both love books by this author. So I am guessing this was something you were curious to read?

Caramel: Well, to be honest, I did not know about it before last week, but when I did, then I really did.

S: What does that mean? You just dove into the book and read it and now know everything about it?

C: Kind of, but I will try to explain well.

S: That is good. So please do go ahead. What is this book about?

C: It is about a boy named Dash who is living on the moon.

S: Wait. He is living on the moon. How is that possible?

C: Yeah, he lives with his mom and dad who are scientists, and work there.

S: Okay, I see. Is the story happening in the near future then?

C: I think so, but the specific date is not stated.

S: I see. Would you like to be living on the moon Caramel? I mean, if it were safe and there were a base and other folks living there and so on.

C: Maybe, I don’t know.

S: Okay. I understand. There are just too many possibilities, and I have to say I love seeing the blue skies and the trees and the mountains and so on. On the moon you would not see those. Then again you could see the Earthrise! And that might be worth at least a trip…

C: Yeah, if it’s for a day or a week, maybe it may work, but for a long time, no way.

S: Yeah, we bunnies quite like this planet!

Caramel is reading Space Case: The Graphic Novel, written by Stuart Gibbs and illustrated by Ward Jenkins. — Caramel is reading *Space Case: The Graphic Novel*, written by Stuart Gibbs and illustrated by Ward Jenkins.

S: Okay, let us get back to the book then.

C: So anyways, one day, Dash hears a conversation, and hears the scientific leader of the mission, or at least a leader of something, Then a little bit later, that scientist is found dead.

S: Hmm, sounds mysterious. So this is a murder mystery?

C: Yeah, kinda.

S: Gibbs sure likes to write mysteries! You basically read and reviewed all his Spy School books and Marshmallow read and reviewed all his FunJungle books, and both series are mysteries. Weird things keep happening around the main character and the main character and their friends have to figure things out.

C: Yes, I have read and reviewed all the Spy School books, and they were good. And this is very good too.

S: Apparently it is also a part of a series. Did you know that this is the graphic novel version of a book from 2015 and there are two more books in this series? They are called the Moon Base Alpha series.

C: Really?

S: Yes. But the other books are still only regular books. No graphic novel version yet.

C: Hmm, kind of like the Spy School books. He first writes the books, and then the graphic novel versions come out, one by one, but really slowly…

S: Yes.

C: I might like to read those other books, too, then. I am not sure I can wait till the graphic novels come out.

S: Okay, so does that mean this book was really good, too?

C: Yes, very good. It was a lot of fun but also exciting!

S: So I am understanding that you liked the book a lot and would not mind looking into the other books in the Moon Base Alpha series.

C: Yeah, why not? It was a good book.

S: By the way, a new Spy School book is coming out soon. I am guessing you would like to read that, too?

C: Yes! Of course!

S: I think we understand each other, Caramel. I will start looking into getting those books for you. And you will start looking into going to bed.

C: Yup. I think this is a good place to end this review.

S: Great! So what would you like to tell our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel loved reading Space Case: The Graphic Novel, written by Stuart Gibbs and illustrated by Ward Jenkins, and is looking forward to reading more about Dash and his adventures. — Caramel loved reading *Space Case: The Graphic Novel*, written by Stuart Gibbs and illustrated by Ward Jenkins, and is looking forward to reading more about Dash and his adventures.