Caramel’s reviews – Page 56

Caramel reviews How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell

The little members of the book bunnies household have been fascinated by the How to Train Your Dragon series in all its manifestations, including the movies and the serials. Marshmallow even reviewed one of the books, How to Steal A Dragon’s Sword, for the blog about two years ago. This year Caramel finally got his paws to the actual books themselves, and today he wanted to review the first book. As usual, Sprinkles is taking notes and asking followup questions.

Caramel reviews How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Crowell, the book that started it all. — Caramel reviews *How to Train Your Dragon* by Cressida Crowell, the book that started it all.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, why don’t you start by telling me what this book is about? Assume that I have never heard of How to Train Your Dragon.

Caramel: This is the first How to Train Your Dragon book I read!

S: Okay, so what is it about?

C: It’s about Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third. Hiccup is the son of Stoick the Vast who is the chief of the Hairy Hooligans tribe. They are Vikings. Stoick the Vast is really fat and Hiccup is really skinny.

S: So Hiccup is not like his father, but not only in size, right?

C: Yes. Exactly. Hiccup is not much into fighting but his father wants him to be a real Viking, a real warrior.

S: So how do the dragons come in?

C: Dragons and humans are friends. This is different in the movies because in the movies they are enemies at the beginning. In the book, they all get to have a dragon and train it.

S: That is interesting.

C: Yes. In the book they also say that only chiefs and sons of chiefs can have a special dragon, a monstrous nightmare. But instead of Hiccup, another boy named Snotlout gets the monstrous nightmare. Hiccup doesn’t even try actually.

S: Hmm, so this is in line with his not being chief material, according to his dad, right?

C: Exactly.

Caramel is reading How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Crowell. — Caramel is reading *How to Train Your Dragon* by Cressida Crowell.

S: So how different is the book from the movie? I know you love the movies. Do you like the book version, too?

C: Yes! You should read the book! It is different from the movie but it is good!

S: Tell me more.

C: Toothless in the book is tiny. In the movies he is big enough to fly and carry Hiccup on his back when flying.

S: That’s very interesting. But Toothless is still Hiccup’s friend in the book, too, right, like in the movies?

C: Yes. And apparently dragons can talk to Hiccup. He is the only person who can speak Dragonese, the native language of the dragons. This does not happen in the movies.

S: So do you learn how to train a dragon in the book?

C: Not really.

S: Why do you think the author named these books that?

C: I don’t know. You do learn a lot about dragons though. There is a page where there are some sentences in Dragonese, and then the English versions.

S: Well, you mean dragons who live in the world of this particular series… Okay, looking at how eager you are to move on to the second book, I am guessing you really liked this one. So before we wrap up, tell us your three words for the book.

C: Funny, adventurous, interesting, especially because it is so different from the movies, but I still really liked it.

S: That sounds good Caramel. Then let us end this. What do you say to our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel has very much enjoyed finally reading How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Crowell and is all ready to dive into the second book. — Caramel has very much enjoyed finally reading *How to Train Your Dragon* by Cressida Crowell and is all ready to dive into the second book.

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.

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.

Caramel reviews The Science of Poop and Farts: The Smelly Truth About Digestion by Alex Woolf

Caramel loves reading books about facts. A short while ago he got his paws on a series of four books about the human body, and he has already reviewed The Science of Snot and Phlegm: The Slimy Truth about Breathing by Fiona MacDonald and The Science of Scabs and Pus: The Sticky Truth About Blood by Ian Graham for the book bunnies blog. Today he reviews the third book he read from this series: The Science of Poop and Fart: The Smelly Truth About Digestion, written by Alex Woolf. As usual, Sprinkles is asking questions and taking notes.

Sprinkles: So Caramel, tell me about this book with the funny title. Is it really about pooping and farting?

Caramel: It is!

S: As soon as I saw the title, I knew you would be curious about it. You love jokes about poop and fart. So it worked, right? It made you want to read the book?

C: Yes. It did. And I learned a lot of new things about digestion. Did you know that some ancient Romans rinsed their mouths with pee? To get whiter teeth?

S: Ugh, that sounds pretty disgusting. Does it work?

C: I don’t know. But it is pretty disgusting. I also learned that hippos spin their tail to launch their poop under water.

Caramel is reading The Science of Poop and Farts: The Smelly Truth About Digestion by Alex Woolf. — Caramel is reading *The Science of Poop and Farts: The Smelly Truth About Digestion* by Alex Woolf.

S: Hmm, so the book is full of weird facts about pee, poop, and, obvious from the title, farts. Does it also tell you about the digestive system more generally?

C: Not quite. It is full of stuff about poop though. Here are some chapter titles: “How do we produce poop?”, “What is pee?”, “What are farts?”, “What are burps?”, “What is saliva?”, “What are diarrhea and vomiting?”, “What is constipation?”, “Digestive problems”, “A healthy diet”, “Can poop be useful?”, “What happens to poop?”

S: Okay, these all sound quite fascinating. I think you learned a lot about the general stuff on the digestive system from Survive! Inside the Human Body: The Digestive System by Hyun-Dong Han already, and this book gives you a lot more weird but true facts about digestion in bite-size., digestible chunks.

C: Yes! Did you know that the tropical pitcher plant has tube-shaped leaves that are used as toilets by some animals? The poop provides the plant with lots of nutrition.

S: I seem to remember seeing that in a documentary. I guess the poop is full of food waste, so there are nutrients in it that the plant can use. What an interesting way to recycle!

C: Oh, and if you eat beans, your fart smells.

S: Yes, I knew that. Also red cabbage.

C: I also learned that some dogs, if they cannot burp, they can die. So to treat the condition, they insert a flexible rubber tube down their throat.

S: Oh that sounds kind of painful, but it is better than dying.

C: Yes.

S: Okay, I can see you want to read the book again and go over these very interesting facts all over again. So let us try and wrap up.

C: Yes, but did you know that if a llama feels threatened, it will spit, and it can spit about three meters away?

S: I knew llamas could spit, but that is a long way to spit! Do you remember the llama we met way back in Big Bear Lake?

C: Yes, he did not spit on us though, thankfully. And he really seemed to know when we were taking his picture.

S: Yes, I remember. He was almost posing for us. Okay, then. Give me your three words for this book.

C: Interesting, colorful, and informative.

S: Those work! I agree. I too learned a lot reading it. So what do you want to say to our readers?

C: Stay tuned for more book bunny reviews!

Caramel enjoyed reading The Science of Poop and Farts: The Smelly Truth About Digestion by Alex Woolf, and recommends it to other little bunnies who want to learn more about poop and fart and other funny (and yet very useful) things our digestive systems do. — Caramel enjoyed reading *The Science of Poop and Farts: The Smelly Truth About Digestion* by Alex Woolf, and recommends it to other little bunnies who want to learn more about poop and fart and other funny (and yet very useful) things our digestive systems do.