Marshmallow’s reviews – Page 54

Marshmallow reviews When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

This week Marshmallow reviews When You Reach Me, a 2009 novel by Rebecca Stead, which won the Newberry Medal in 2010.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you like mystery or science fiction, or if you enjoyed reading other books written by Rebecca Stead, then this might be the book for you.

Marshmallow’s Summary (with spoilers): Twelve-year old Miranda, a sixth grader in New York City in the late 1970s, has just started to receive notes that tell her that someone is coming to save her friend’s life and their own. Here is the first note:

“M,
This is hard. Harder than I expected, even with your help. But I have been practicing, and my preparations go well. I am coming to save your friend’s life, and my own.
I ask two favors.
First, you must write me a letter.
Second, please remember to mention the location of your house key.
The trip is a difficult one. I will not be myself when I reach you.”

After this first note, Miranda starts to receive more notes. These notes say that she must not share them with anybody and that she must believe the notes. Then the person starts to send proof of what they’re saying is true. For example, the note says “Tesser well” and then her mother’s boyfriend gives her a copy of A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle signed by Madeleine L’Engle that says “Tesser well”.

In the middle of this, Miranda is also having school trouble. Her mom is preparing to go on a game show with the hopes of winning a large sum of money. Miranda is also having some problems with her best friend Sal.

There is in short a lot going on in Miranda’s life, and though some of it is normal kid stuff, the secret notes make things all quite mysterious. (And if you want to know more, you have to read the book!)

Marshmallow is reading When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead. — Marshmallow is reading *When You Reach Me* by Rebecca Stead.

Marshmallow’s Review: This is a great book. It has a very interesting but also a very complex plot, and the reader may have a hard time finding who wrote the notes.

I think that this is also a very good book because the author, Rebecca Stead, is great at creating characters. My favorite character is probably Julie or Miranda. Miranda is really realistic, and she does things that make her unique, like tying and untying knots.

This book might be a little hard to understand for kits (baby bunnies) because of its complex plot, and it is also not a particularly easy book to read. I think therefore that it would probably be best for bunnies aged eight and up.

I think the best part of this book is that the author is an expert at making the reader want to finish the book soon. The mystery is great because the reader wouldn’t be able to guess who the writer of the notes is because they are concealed by the author wonderfully. I think that this is a great book that is an excellent mix of mystery and science fiction and many other genres.

Marshmallow’s Rating: 100%.

Marshmallow rates When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead 100%. — Marshmallow rates *When You Reach Me* by Rebecca Stead 100%.

Marshmallow reviews Tyrannosaurus Wrecks by Stuart Gibbs

Marshmallow has already reviewed the first five books from Stuart Gibbs’ FunJungle series: you can check out her review of the first book, Belly Up, here, while her review of the second book, Poached, is here. Her review of the third book Big Game is here, her review of the fourth book, Panda-monium, is available here, and her review of the fifth book in the series, Lion Down, is here. Today she shares with us her thoughts on the sixth and most recent book on the adventures of Teddy Fitzroy: Tyrannosaurus Wrecks.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you like animals or if you have enjoyed some of Stuart Gibbs’s other books, then this might be the book for you.

Marshmallow’s Summary (with spoilers): Teddy Fitzroy lives in FunJungle, a mix of a zoo and a theme park. He has just apprehended the Zebra Spanker when his friend, Sage Bonotto, asks him to investigate the disappearance of his tyrannosaurus rex. Apparently, while the skeleton of a T-rex was being excavated on his family’s ranch, someone stole her skull.

The case seems impossible. The skull of Minerva (which is what they named the T-rex) was five hundred pounds and the burglary happened in the middle of a really bad storm. The thieves should have left some trace but it seems like they haven’t. Even worse, the local police thinks that it’s a hoax. So Sage asks Teddy to investigate. (Teddy solved some other cases before.)

While Teddy is at the scene of the crime, the twin school bullies Tim and Jim Barksdale call him. Jim asks Teddy whether he can use the Heimlich maneuver on a snake that has eaten a cat. It turns out that Tim and Jim illegally purchased an anaconda that ate their cat Griselda. As he investigates, Teddy finds that the twins bought it from Snakes Alive, a new zoo that is nearby and is trying to take business from FunJungle. (Their signs say stuff like “MORE FUN THAN FUNJUNGLE—AND A WHOLE LOT CHEAPER!”)

As Teddy learns more about the two cases, things get more and more complicated. You will just have to read the book to find out more!

Marshmallow is reading Tyrannosaurus Wrecks by Stuart Gibbs, the sixth book in Gibbs's FunJungle series.. — Marshmallow is reading *Tyrannosaurus Wrecks* by Stuart Gibbs, the sixth book in Gibbs’s FunJungle series..

Marshmallow’s Review: This is a really good book for people who like to read about animals and mysteries. The characters are very well written. The plot involves a very interesting mystery. There are a lot of people that you could suspect, and the thief is someone I would not have suspected. Without all of the evidence, it would be impossible to solve the case.

At the end of the book, the author, Stuart Gibbs, has some notes about one of the main topics in the book: animal trafficking. This is something Gibbs does in all the FunJungle books, and helps the reader connect the book to real life.

Tyrannosaurus Wrecks is probably best for ages nine and up. This is because the plot is very intricate and it could be very confusing if the reader doesn’t catch all of the evidence. Also it could be scary for readers who do not like snakes. Another reason is because its “language is not very delicate” (as Roald Dahl wrote about Matilda‘s father). But all that aside, this is a very entertaining book.

Marshmallow’s Review: 95%.

Marshmallow rates Tyrannosaurus Wrecks by Stuart Gibbs, the sixth book in Gibbs's FunJungle series, 95%.. — Marshmallow rates *Tyrannosaurus Wrecks* by Stuart Gibbs, the sixth book in Gibbs’s FunJungle series, 95%..

Marshmallow reviews Matilda by Roald Dahl

A while back, as her second review, Marshmallow reviewed BFG by Roald Dahl. Today she wanted to write about the very first Dahl book she had read: Matilda. For this review she went back and reread it a couple times. Below is her review; enjoy!

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you liked some of Roald Dahl’s other books or if you like books about young people with supernatural powers, then this might the book for you.

Marshmallow’s Summary (with spoilers): Matilda Wormwood is an extremely amazing child with extremely dumb parents. She began to speak perfectly at age one and a half. She taught herself to read at age three, but her parents told her that she should stop talking because “small girls should be seen and not heard.” When her parents left home in the afternoon, she would walk to the library and read. Then she started school.

Matilda has a great teacher and she knows everything already, so school should have been easy for her, except that the principal, Miss Trunchbull, is a nightmare. Miss Trunchbull used to throw hammers in the Olympics and now throws little children instead to keep her right arm in practice. For example, there was a boy who was eating candy in class and Miss Trunchbull tossed him out of the window. After she threw him, she said that she had done a good job even though she hadn’t been practicing. (You’re probably wondering why the children wouldn’t just go home and tell their parents, but Miss Trunchbull makes sure that the stuff that she does is so ridiculous that no one would believe the children.)

Then one day, Miss Trunchbull comes into Matilda’s class in order to test them on what they have learned. But someone put a newt into Miss Trunchbull’s jug of water. Miss Trunchbull blames Matilda for the incident which makes Matilda mad. Matilda sits down but then something happens: she is able to magically push the glass that has the newt inside over on to Miss Trunchbull. Apparently Matilda somehow has the ability of telekinesis!

A lot more funny and strange things happen in the rest of the book. You will just have to read to find out how Matilda finally gets back on all the difficult and annoying people in her life.

Marshmallow is reading Matilda by Roald Dahl and enjoying the funny illustrations by Quentin Blake. — Marshmallow is reading *Matilda* by Roald Dahl and enjoying the funny illustrations by Quentin Blake.

Marshmallow’s Review: This is a great book for people who like to read about fantastic things. Matilda is now a classic and has been enjoyed by many people. Roald Dahl entertains the reader well and the plot comes together nicely. The way Matilda gets rid of Miss Trunchbull is a way that most people wouldn’t think of, a way only Matilda would. And I wouldn’t have suspected what happened at the end.

Dahl also makes the characters hated by the reader or pitied by the reader. Matilda’s parents Mr. and Mrs. Wormwood are really annoying and Miss. Trunchbull is really mean. My favorite character is Matilda because she is smart and takes matters into her own hands when they get to be too much. I also like her because we read the story from her perspective so it is easy to be on her side.

I think this book is good for all ages. I think that most readers will like it.

Matilda is also very funny. My two favorite chapters are The Ghost and The Platinum-Blond Man. The things Matilda does to the mean adults around her are not things that people should do though it is really fun to read.

Marshmallow’s Rating: 95%

Marshmallow rates Matilda by Roald Dahl 95%. — Marshmallow rates *Matilda* by Roald Dahl 95%.

Marshmallow reviews Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes by Rick Riordan

Last week Marshmallow described Rick Riordan’s introductory book on Greek gods: Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods. This week she wanted to talk about a related book, again by Rick Riordan: Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes. Sprinkles decided to join her and will be asking questions.

Sprinkles: So this week we will be talking about Rick Riordan’s book about Greek heroes. This is another 500-page book and you have been reading it over and over again.

Marshmallow: Yes, I think it is a pretty good book.

S: So what is this book about really?

M: It’s about Greek heroes like Hercules and Perseus and Theseus. And Perseus is apparently who Percy Jackson was named after.

S: I think we had learned that in one of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians books. It was at least in one of the movies.

M: Oh yes, I remember that scene.

S: So just like in his Greek gods book, in this one, too Percy Jackson is narrating and telling us stories about these famous heroes of ancient Greek mythology.

M: Yes.

Marshmallow is reading Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes by Rick Riordan. — Marshmallow is reading *Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes* by Rick Riordan.

S: I know you knew about some of the Greek gods before. But did you know about any of the heroes in this book before reading it?

M: Yes, I knew a little bit about Theseus and Perseus, and Atalanta, and Orpheus, and Hercules.

S: Oh, I didn’t know you knew that much about all these characters. Then did you learn anything new when reading this book?

M: Yes. I didn’t know about Otrera who started the Amazons. It is kind of a sad story really. And most of them are kind of sad stories anyways. But the chapter names are really funny.

S: Tell me some of your favorites then.

M: There is one called “Phaethon Fails Driver’s Ed”. And there is “Otrera Invents the Amazons (with Free Two-Day Shipping!)”. I also like “Atalanta vs. Three Pieces of Fruit: The Ultimate Death Match”.

S: I get the point. It seems like Rick Riordan always finds amusing chapter titles.

M: Yes, in his other books, the chapter titles are funny, too.

Marshmallow is looking at the colorful insert in Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes by Rick Riordan. The first page displays artwork by John Rocco of Perseus defeating a monster. — Marshmallow is looking at the colorful insert in *Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes* by Rick Riordan. The first page displays artwork by John Rocco of Perseus defeating a monster.

S: There is once again an artwork insert in this book, right?

M: Yes. There are eight full-page illustrations by John Rocco in full color, in the middle of the book.

S: Is there a picture for each chapter?

M: No, there are more than eight chapters. Okay, let me count them. Twelve chapters.

S: I’m guessing folks who enjoyed other Percy Jackson books will like this book, too, right?

M: Yes. But maybe it might be better for older readers (9 and up). There are some words that some parents might not approve. But actually Percy Jackson always uses that kind of language. He does not always use bad words, but sometimes a few less savory words slip in.

S: Then again maybe this is almost always the case for middle-grade books. You told me before that the FunJungle books also have somewhat similar language.

M: That may be true.

S: Okay Marshmallow, I am guessing this is a good time to wrap up this review. Do you want to rate this book?

M: Yes! I rate it 95%.

Marshmallow rates Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes by Rick Riordan 95%. — Marshmallow rates *Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes* by Rick Riordan 95%.