Marshmallow’s reviews – Page 60

Marshmallow reviews The Unofficial Ultimate Harry Potter Spellbook by Media Lab Books

Marshmallow began this blog with a review of Harry Potter and The Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling. So it was only natural that eventually she would come back to one of her favorite fictional worlds: the magical world of Harry Potter. This week she tells us about a fun book she has been carrying around with her for a while now: The Unofficial Ultimate Harry Potter Spellbook: A Complete Guide to Every Spell in the Wizarding World by Media Lab Books.

Marshmallow reviews The Unofficial Ultimate Harry Potter Spellbook: A Complete Guide to Every Spell in the Wizarding World, by Media Lab Books. — Marshmallow reviews *The Unofficial Ultimate Harry Potter Spellbook: A Complete Guide to Every Spell in the Wizarding Worl*d, by Media Lab Books.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you liked the Harry Potter series, or more generally if you like books about magic, then this might be the book for you.

Marshmallow’s Summary: This is not really a typical book. It is an amazing guide to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Every single spell that you heard in the movies or read about in the books, even the ones that are barely mentioned, are included in this book. It also lists where the spell or charm was used or mentioned, whether in the books, the movies, the video games, or somewhere else. Each entry describes the gestures you need to perform the spell and how to pronounce the incantation. On top of that, it also has the different wand cores and woods. Also it tells you which wand types the main characters had. It also informs the reader about Enchanted Objects like the Goblet of Fire and Candy.

The Unofficial Ultimate Harry Potter Spellbook is great for bunnies who want to learn the spells that are used by the wizards and witches in the Harry Potter world. It also teaches the reader more about the World of Harry Potter. My favorite spell in the book is “Dragonifors”.

Dragonifors
Type: Transfiguration
Use: Turns small objects into dragons
Etymology: In Latin, draco means “dragon” and forma means “shape”
Magic Moment: Minerva McGonagall teaches this spell in third-year Transfiguration class
Note: This spell is only seen in the Prisoner of Azkaban video game.
Produces much smaller, less powerful creatures than true dragons.

Marshmallow is reading her favorite spells in The Unofficial Ultimate Harry Potter Spellbook: A Complete Guide to Every Spell in the Wizarding World, by Media Lab Books. — Marshmallow is reading her favorite spells in *The Unofficial Ultimate Harry Potter Spellbook: A Complete Guide to Every Spell in the Wizarding World*, by Media Lab Books.

Marshmallow’s Review: This is a very good book that is meant for Harry Potter fans. The comments in the book like “Swish and Flick” remind you of the movies. It has every spell and is very interesting to read. The comments on the back are also very interesting.

Who needs The Standard Book of Spells when you have this?
–Horace Belby, former Hogwarts student

The book does not tell us a new story from the Harry Potter world, but it is a book you would expect to see at Hogwarts, similar to the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander (which was of course actually written by J.K. Rowling). This book also contains incantations from that story.

Readers of this blog might recall that my very first review was of Harry Potter and The Cursed Child. So obviously I am a Harry Potter fan. Years ago, I began trying to write a notebook on the Wizarding World. I wrote down a lot of things, but I got stuck on the spells. This book was exactly what I needed!

Marshmallow’s rating: 100%.

Marshmallow rates The Unofficial Ultimate Harry Potter Spellbook: A Complete Guide to Every Spell in the Wizarding World, by Media Lab Books, 100%. — Marshmallow rates *The Unofficial Ultimate Harry Potter Spellbook: A Complete Guide to Every Spell in the Wizarding World*, by Media Lab Books, 100%.

Marshmallow reviews Panda-monium by Stuart Gibbs

Marshmallow has already reviewed a book in Stuart Gibbs’ Teddy Fitzroy / FunJungle series: see her review of Belly Up, the first book of the series. Today she reviews the fourth book: Panda-monium.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you liked Belly Up or any of the other books by Stuart Gibbs (or if you just enjoy a good mystery), then this might be the book for you.

Marshmallow’s Summary (with spoilers): Teddy Fitzroy lives in FunJungle, the world’s most elaborate zoo, owned by the billionaire J.J. McCracken. Living in FunJungle is not boring but it is dangerous. First Henry Hippo is murdered (see my review of the first book of the series where this happens), then Kazoo the Koala is koala-napped (in the second book), and then someone tries to kill the park’s rhinos (in the third book). Now, the most expensive animal that the zoo features, the giant panda Li Ping, gets kidnapped.

This is a big deal and the FBI steps in. Since the Chinese government lent Li Ping to J.J. McCracken, when he loses the panda he not only has to deal with the angry Chinese government but also the many people who wanted to see Li Ping. The guard who accompanied Li Ping, Marge O’Malley (who Teddy calls Large Marge because she is determined to send him to juvenile hall), is blamed. To make matters worse her sister who works in the FBI works on the case. Large Marge is determined to solve this case first, and since Teddy has a record of solving crimes (see FunJungle books), she blackmails him into solving the case. As he learns more and more, it becomes clear that not everyone is as innocent as they look.

Marshmallow is reading Panda-monium by Stuart Gibbs, the fourth book in the FunJungle series. — Marshmallow is reading *Panda-monium* by Stuart Gibbs, the fourth book in the *FunJungle* series.

Marshmallow’s Review: This is not your standard mystery book. It is a book that makes you want to find out who committed the crime so much that you will want to skip to the end.

This one is like the other books in the FunJungle series in the way that it is very suspenseful. There are many suspects but you don’t know who the real culprit is.

Though the book has no pictures, Stuart Gibbs puts an image in your mind. When you read his books, it seems like you know the characters. You admire Teddy Fitzroy and Summer McCracken, J.J. McCracken’s daughter, for their incredible detective skills and have a natural suspicion of Large Marge.

Gibbs does a great job of writing these stories that only Fitzroy could solve. In the end, you realize that all of the clues were in front of you the whole time but you never thought of it that way. J.J. McCracken’s character is interesting because he is very sly and sometimes seems to be nice but then sometimes he is not. The plot is very well written.

Panda-monium is as good as the previous books in terms of the suspense and the plot. And it is one of the funniest books in the series.

Marshmallow’s Rating: 100%.

Marshmallow rates Panda-monium by Stuart Gibbs, the fourth book in the FunJungle series, 100%. — Marshmallow rates *Panda-monium* by Stuart Gibbs, the fourth book in the *FunJungle* series, 100%.

Marshmallow reviews Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy: A Graphic Novel by Rey Terciero

Having already reviewed the original (unabridged) Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, Marshmallow recently read a modern retelling of the story: Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy: A Graphic Novel, written by Rey Terciero and illustrated by Bre Indigo. Below she shares her thoughts on this book.

Marshmallow reviews Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy: A Graphic Novel, written by Rey Terciero and illustrated by Bre Indigo. — Marshmallow reviews *Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy: A Graphic Novel*, written by Rey Terciero and illustrated by Bre Indigo.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you like Louisa May Alcott’s classic Little Women and enjoy graphic novels like Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier, then this might be the book for you.

Marshmallow’s Summary (with spoilers): Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy are four siblings who live in Brooklyn, New York. Their father is away in the Middle East fighting in the army. Meg wants to marry rich, Jo wants to write and be left alone, Beth wants to be a songwriter, and finally Amy wants to be an artist. They all have problems in their lives. Amy is bullied in school, Beth has health issues, Jo has trouble dealing with her “secret”, and Meg doesn’t like being poor and wants to have nice things. They are also all very worried that their father will not come back from the war.

Marshmallow’s Review: This modern retelling of the classic Little Women by Louisa May Alcott is a great graphic novel. I think the author Rey Terciero and the illustrator Bre Indigo did a great job of remaking Little Women for today’s readers.

This book shows each of the original characters and their characteristics very well, The pictures are also all very well created. They depict the feelings of the characters very well.

It is interesting how the author made this a modern retelling. Almost all of the events that happen in the original happen in the retelling except that they are modernized. As a result, this is not as old-fashioned as the original book. In the original, the sisters all get married (except for Beth, who dies). In this version nobody gets married because they are all too young (and nobody dies, either).

I think that this version of the story is a lot more relatable since the sisters are all realistic. All of the girls suffer from different problems, and on top of all that, they all worry for their father who is in the Middle East fighting in a war.

I also recently watched the movie remake of Little Women. Here is the official trailer, which made me really want to see the movie:

The official movie trailer of Little Women (2019).

The movie stuck very close to the original and so it was similar to the book but not precisely. But in the graphic novel, I liked how Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy are all very different. If you read the original or watched the movie, you can tell that the characters in the graphic novel are the same characters, but they encounter many different problems and they are living in today’s world. They also all change a lot from how they were in the beginning, so the story is interesting.

This is a very good book for eight to seventeen year olds. It might be slightly confusing if you haven’t read the original, but you can read it and still get much out of it in any case.

Marshmallow’s Rating: 100%.

Marshmallow rates Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy: A Graphic Novel written by Rey Terciero and illustrated by Bre Indigo 100%. — Marshmallow rates *Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy: A Graphic Novel* written by Rey Terciero and illustrated by Bre Indigo 100%.

Marshmallow reviews Refugee by Alan Gratz

Marshmallow has recently read Alan Gratz’ novel Refugee and below shares her thoughts on this moving fictional account of three refugee children across recent history. As Marshmallow also points out below, the stories are harsh and harrowing. The publisher recommends the book for 8 and up, so does Marshmallow.

Marshmallow’s quick take: If you like realistic and historical fiction, then this might be the book for you. (Warning: This is a very harsh book and should not be read by readers under 9.)

Marshmallow’s summary (with spoilers):

“JOSEF is a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany…”
“ISABEL is a Cuban girl living in 1994…”
“MAHMOUD is a Syrian boy in 2015…”

All of these kids are relatable and normal. Their experiences, on the other hand, are something that nobody should have to face.

Josef’s father is taken away to a concentration camp called Dachau. When he comes back, his family is overjoyed but when they see him they realize that he is mentally disturbed. The family then receive news that they have to leave Germany in fourteen days.

Isabel lives on the streets, and when her father gets involved in a protest, he is told to leave.

Mahmoud is a present-day Syrian boy and he learns that to stay away from bullies you have to be “invisible”. Then his house is bombed and it becomes clear that he has to leave.

Marshmallow is looking up from reading Refugee by Alan Gratz. — Marshmallow is looking up from reading *Refugee* by Alan Gratz.

These three different families set out on the same mission: make it to a safe place. This for Josef is Cuba, for Isabel it is el norte, the US, and for Mahmoud it is Germany. Along the way, all lose someone that they care about, whether physically or mentally.

Josef’s family is breaking up and his father is scared. They board a ship called The St. Louis in order to escape the Nazis, but eventually Josef’s father tries to commit suicide by jumping off the side of the ship.

“Josef’s father was gone. His mother was unconscious. His little sister was all by herself. And they would never let Josef’s family into Cuba now, not after his father had gone mad. Josef and his family would be sent back to Germany. Back to the Nazis.
“Josef’s world was falling apart, and he didn’t see any way to put it back together again.”

Sadly, he never does. Josef never makes it to Cuba and only two members of the Landau family survive.

Isabel tries to escape from Cuba with her family and her friend’s family. They build a boat to escape but soon they face the fury of the ocean.

Mahmoud and his family start the long journey to Germany and lose each other in order to save each other.

“All three kids go on a harrowing journeys. All face unimaginable dangers. But there is always the hope of tomorrow. And although Josef, Isabel, and Mahmoud are separated by continents and decades, shocking connections will tie their stories together in the end.”

The publisher’s video about the book Refugee by Alan Gratz.

Marshmallow’s review: This is a very good book. It might be the most moving book I have ever read, but it should definitely not be read by younger readers. It has stories about the Nazis and other terrible things that children should not learn about until a little bit older. Though Josef’s story is fictional, it is very similar to what happened to a lot of Jewish families. Isabel has terrible losses and she faces many dangers. Mahmoud’s family is eventually drained of joy in the journey to Germany and to safety.

Marshmallow’s rating: 100% (but this is not happy reading…)

Marshmallow rates Refugee by Alan Gratz 100% (though it is definitely not a happy book). — Marshmallow rates *Refugee* by Alan Gratz 100% (though it is definitely not a happy book).