Shark Vs. Train

Shark Vs. Train. Chris Barton. Illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld. 2010. April 2010. Little, Brown. 40 pages.

Two boys are playing together. One has a toy shark. One has a toy train. Both boys are competitive. Both boys are spirited and imaginative. In scenario after scenario after scenario, the two battle it out for supremacy. Trains do better at giving rides at carnivals. But do horribly at diving off the high dive. I liked that it (eventually) showed the two had some things in common. There were situations where neither did better, neither won. Both made too much noise at the library. Both failed at performing in a piano recital. Shark Vs. Train is unique and very silly.

It's not really my type of book. (I'm not the target audience for the book.) But I can appreciate the humor. I can see why kids would like this one. Why it would be appealing...



© Becky Laney of Young Readers

Hot Rod Hamster

Hot Rod Hamster. Cynthia Lord. Illustrated by Derek Anderson. 2010. February 2010. Scholastic. 40 pages.

Great day, grin day, build a car to win day,
Cheer day, chase day, gonna have a race day!

"I need a hot rod!"
"A hot rod for a hamster? You'll need something very small."
"And fast!"

This hamster has big, big dreams! He wants to build a racing car! And he may have come to the right place. He gets to build his dream car. Choose for himself just what he needs, what he wants!

For example,

Old car, new car, shiny painted blue car,
Rust car, clean car, itty-bitty green car.

Which would you choose?

Readers get asked to "choose" on each spread. They can then turn the page to see what the hamster decided.

What did I like about this one? I liked the rhythm of it. The steady-beat-of it. I also thought it was a funny book. Now I'm not one to automatically think a book about racing hamsters is cute or funny. But this one somewhere along the way won me over.

I think the bold illustrations are a plus as well!


© Becky Laney of Young Readers

100% Pure Fake

Thomas, Lyn. 2009. 100% Pure Fake: Gross Out Your Friends and Family With 25 Great Special Effects. Kids Can Press. Available in August 2009.

This book--in a way--is the literary equivalent to a noisy, obnoxious toy. The kind of toy that kids love to play with--at least until they get tired of it--but is prone to driving parents crazy. This book has boy written all over it. (Not that it would be impossible for girls to want to make fake poop, but more likely this one will appeal to boys over girls.) Included in this craft book (yes, it's a craft book) are instructions for making 'fake' vomit, blood, poop, scars, snot, moles, road kill, etc. It's illustrated with photographs and cartoon-like illustrations.

Your basic blood:
This basic blood is thin and drippy, like blood from a finger cut or scratch. Pour a small amount on your hand or arm and watch it dribble down. Moan a bit and ask for a Band-Aid.

Stuff you'll need
125 mL (1/2 c.) corn syrup
5 mL (1 tsp) red food coloring
3 to 4 drops of blue food coloring.

Pour the corn syrup into a bowl. Add the food coloring. Mix well. Ta-da! Fake blood.

© Becky Laney of Young Readers