Review #106: Fablehaven

From time to time we'll break from our regular group review format and check in with the kiddos One-on-One to see what they've been reading on their own.  Today we hear from Isaac!

Dad:  What have you been reading dude?
Isaac (age 12):  The Fablehaven series.  By Brandon Mull.
Dad:  You are flying through them.
Isaac:  I usually get through each book in a day or two.
Dad:  You've been wanting to read these forever.  How are you liking them?
Isaac:  They are great.  I like the action and the adventure.
Dad: Do tell...
Isaac:  These kids named Seth and Kendra go to their grandpa's house.  At first they are bored.  But then they find out that their grandpa works on a preserve for magical creatures.
Dad:  Are they new made-up creatures, or are they creatures from mythology?
Isaac:  Mostly creatures from mythology, but there are a few new things.  Like nipsies.  Those are kind of like brownies, but they are the size of flies.  There are goblins and hobgoblins - which are very different from each other.  There are giants that are 30 feet high and eat yaks.  There are centaurs which are really cool, but they are kind of stuck-up.  There are a lot of dryads - water dryads, tree dryads, everything dryads.  There's a dragon that is really awesome.
Dad:  It sounds like a lot of the same creatures as in the Spiderwick books.
Isaac:  It's a lot like Spiderwick.  You even need special abilities to see the creatures.
Dad:  Really?
Isaac:  The creatures are always invisible to people, which is what helps them stay preserved.  They are invisible unless you have this special milk from a giant 30 foot cow.
Dad:  Yikes.  Milk?
Isaac:  Or if you have walrus butter.
Dad:  Walrus?  Butter?
Isaac:  Yeah.
Dad:  Does it feel like the series copies Spiderwick?
Isaac:  No.  It has a different storyline.  The "invisible" part is the only thing that's really the same.
Dad:  So, why do you like books with fantasy creatures so much?
Isaac:  It's good inspiration for stuff I make.  I love the creatures.  I like the designs.  It gives me ideas for stories and pictures and for building little creatures.
Dad:  Could Brandon Mull tell the same kind of stories using all zoo animals instead?
Isaac:  It wouldn't be as good.  Stories with zoo animals would have to be more realistic.  But with made up creatures, anything can happen.  A dragon can breathe fire.
Dad:  You could get away with featuring a talking polar bear, but it probably wouldn't breathe fire.  With real creatures, to some degree you're stuck with things that make sense according to science.
Isaac:  But you can do anything with fantasy creatures.
Dad:  No limitations.
Isaac:  Like, there are these balls that live in caves.  Little yellow fluffy pompom things that float around in caves, hundreds of them.  They explode into gasses and disintegrate people.
Dad:  Now, are these things a mix of good creatures and bad creatures?  Or are they all neutral like animals?
Isaac:  There technically aren't good creatures and bad creatures.  But they might seem that way to people.  Like... a bear or a man-eating lion or a killer bee.  A bear would attack you if you got to close to its cubs.  People don't like some animals because they will attack you or bother you, but they are not "evil."
Dad:  But there are some bad guys in the books, right?
Isaac:  Some characters are pure evil.  But the books don't make them too freaky... not like wet-your-pants-freaky.
Dad:  What kind of creatures are those?
Isaac:  Werewolves and vampires and a genie who is evil.  Under the house they have a jail for all the bad creatures - creatures that have been transformed purposefully for the point of evil.  There are these goblins who run the jail.  And they made this stuff called glop that they feed everyone.  Glop is a mixture of any junk they can find.
Dad:  Now, you haven't finished the series yet.  You are taking a little break?
Isaac:  Yeah, I'm on book 4.  But there are a couple other books I want to read, so I'm taking a break.
Dad:  What are you reading now?
Isaac:  "This Present Darkness."  Our youth pastor told us about it.
Dad:  I read that when I was right around your age.  I was probably a year or two older.
Isaac:  Did you like it?
Dad:  Oh yeah.  Quite a lot.  But, back to Fablehaven...  I'm wondering, would girls like these books as much as boys?
Isaac:  Girls would like them too.  Especially the first book.  Because there are fairies, and the main character is a girl.
Dad:  How about me?
Isaac:  Oh yeah, you would really like them.  You would love Fablehaven.

goblin jailer serving glop, by Isaac

Author: Brandon Mull
Published 2006-2010: Shadow Mountain
Like them?  Here they are

Review #92: Zita the Spacegirl

Dad:  What did you guys think of Zita the Spacegirl?
Kids: (cheering)  Woohoo!  Oh yeah!
Dad:  Why did she get all these cheers?
Gracie (age 10):  Because it's a cool book!
Dad:  And how about the author?
Gracie:  Ben Hatke, you rock!  Woo!
Dad:  We saw videos of him on his website.
Isaac (age 12):  He can jump through flaming hoops of fire!
Gracie:  And I saw this really detailed, really pretty painting on his website.  It was a sword and a stack of books and a shell.
Dad:  So, tell me about this book.
Isaac:  It's awesome and everyone should read it.
Dad:  What was awesome about it?
Lily (age 8):  Space Monsters.
Elijah (age 5):  All these awesome aliens and monster guys.
Isaac:  I love graphic novels.
Gracie:  The book is all about this girl named Zita.  She and her friend Joseph find a meteoroid with a button in it.  Zita pushes the button, and her friend gets sucked into an alien world.
Elijah:  He went to the space-guy world where there is all kinds of alien things and monsters and things like that.  Then Zita had to go in there to save him.
Lily:  She has to save him from the guys with long black arms that capture people.
Isaac:  An asteroid is going to hit the alien planet, so Zita has to find Joseph and get back to earth before that world explodes.
Dad:  So what's most fun about this book?
Isaac:  All the little alien people.
Gracie:  They are so cute!
Isaac:  They are curious little creatures.
Dad:  Tell me about some of the friends Zita makes.
Gracie:  Mouse is a giant mouse that can't talk -- so instead he's got this little machine that pops out these little paper messages, like - chick-ching.
Elijah:  It's the hugest mouse in the whole world.  Zita travels by riding on it.
Dad:  Would that be fun?  Would you like to ride on a giant mouse?
Elijah:  No way!  It might go too fast.
Dad:  Who was your favorite guy Lily?
Lily:  I like Strong-Strong.  He's big.  Really tall.  And strong.
Elijah:  He's a monster.  But not too smart.
Lily:  No, he's not too smart, but I want him for a friend.  I want him to be my friend.
Isaac:  I want to tell you who my favorite guy is.  It is One.  One is this super battle robot.
Elijah:  I think he's a cherry.  Because he is round and red.  He flies.
Dad:  He's a flying cherry robot?
Elijah:  Hee hee, Yeah!
Isaac:  Actually, there are lots of these super battle robots that are like super guards.  There is a One, a Five, and an Eight.  They each have a special power.  Five shoots a tracking beacon, and all these barnacle bombs fly out of him.  Eight's body can open up, and he has all these razor sharp slashers.  And One has a laser.
Elijah:  And there is another robot named Randy.  He squeaks.  He's not a brave robot.  Look on the back cover...  He's a scaredy cat.
Gracie:  Randy is a nervous wreck.
Dad:  My favorites were the little whacker guys.
Gracie:  Those are the cute ones.
Lily:  They are little blue men with giant sticks that whack people.
Dad:  They are hilarious.  I love them.
Gracie:  My favorite guy was Piper.  He's pretty awesome.  He's handsome.  He's very handsome.  If he were real, I would definitely have a crush on him.  He's handsome, and he's got this cool magic flute that makes people dance and get so tired that they fall asleep.
Dad:  Would you say he is a good guy?
Gracie:  Kinda.  He's kind of someone who just wants his ship fueled up so he can leave.  But toward the end he starts being on Zita's side.  Hey - there's a story arc with Piper!
Dad:  Good phrase!  Tell me about it.
Gracie:  At first he only cares about himself... and money... and fuel for his ship... and getting off the planet before it explodes.  But by the end he really, really puts his life on the line for Zita.
Dad:  So there are lots of cool creatures in this book.
Gracie:  It is a collection of rather strange friends.
Isaac:  And exciting adventures.
Dad:  Do you hope there will be more Zita books?
Gracie:  I think there might be more stories coming.  Because it says Book One on the cover, so there's got to be more.  And Zita never got home!  She has to go home still.

Mouse and Zita, by Lily

Piper, by Gracie

cast of characters, by Isaac

Strong-Strong and the whacker guys, by Elijah

Author/Illustrator: Ben Hatke
Watch: the author jump through fire
Published, 2011: First Second
Like it?  Here it is

Review #84: Chalk

Dad:  Today we bring you "Chalk" by Bill Thomson.
Gracie (age 10):  The book is called "Chalk" because it is about chalk.
Lily (age 7):  Magic chalk.
Gracie:  It's about these three kids -- two girls and one naughty boy.
Elijah (age 5):  No, he's a good boy.
Gracie:  The three kids go to the park on a rainy day.  Their names should be... Ninka, Dinka, and Stinka.  Stinka is the naughty boy.
Elijah:  No!  Good boy!  Good boy!
Isaac (age 12):  At the park they see this dinosaur toy...
Lily:  It is a bouncy one.  A bouncy ride-on dinosaur.
Gracie:  Oh yeah, I love bouncies!  Those toys are the coolest things ever.  Even though we are way too old for them.
Lily:  On the bouncy dinosaur they find a chalk bag.
Isaac:  They think "Ooo - some chalk.  Let's draw some pictures."  The first girl draws a sun, and it turned real in the sky.  And they thought "Awesome!"
Gracie:  The drawing pops up and goes up into the sky and makes a sunny day.
Dad:  So what does that mean?  Are there two suns in the world now?  I suppose it's not supposed to be logical... just fun.
Gracie:  Dad!!!  We are talking about magic chalk!  And you are looking for logical things?
Dad:  Ha ha ha...
Isaac:  Then the second girl picks up some chalk and draws a million butterflies.
Gracie:  Hundreds and millions of butterflies.
Lily:  And the butterflies go up into the sky.  Then the boy - he is sneaky and bad - he is a naughty, naughty boy - he draws a dinosaur.
Gracie:  It comes to life.  And the kids all run away screaming.
Dad:  Do you think the boy knew it would turn dangerous?  Maybe he was just excited to see a dinosaur and didn't think about the repercussions.
Gracie:  But look at his face!
Isaac:  Yeah, he knew what was going to happen... he is a stinker.
Elijah:  No, he's good!  He's good because he saves everyone by drawing water!
Lily:  The boy has an idea.  He is hiding in the tube slide, and he draws a rain cloud.
Gracie:  It's the one smart thing he's ever done.
Lily:  And then it starts raining.  And when you see this part, it's sort of gross... the dinosaur starts melting.
Dad:  Because he's chalk.
Lily:  It's gross.  It reminds me of Wizard of Oz.  Bad guys always get melted because they are terrible and bad.
Gracie:  Bad guys end up as little green pools when they get hit with water.
Dad:  Green guys and water don't mix.  So here's the obvious first question for you: What would you guys draw if you had magic chalk?
Lily:  Puppies!  And dog food.
Elijah:  I would draw a baby.  Then we could have two newborn babies!
Dad:  Wow - you like babies so much that you already want another one?
Elijah:  Yes!  And this one would be a boy.
Isaac:  I would draw a roomful of magic chalk.  I would draw a giant underground room with more magic chalk in it.
Gracie:  I would draw a million dollars!
Dad:  So you would be a counterfeiter, Gracie?
Isaac: (singing)  Gracie's breaking the la-aw, Gracie's breaking the la-aw.
Gracie:  What's a counterfeiter?
Dad:  Someone that makes his own money.
Isaac:  And it's illegal.
Gracie:  Okay then.  I would draw seventy-seven thousand pandas.  Because right now there are not many pandas left in the world.
Dad:  Ah, reversing extinction is a much nobler pursuit than counterfeiting.
Mom: (chiming in)  I would draw a buffet table.  Chinese buffet.  With crab rangoon and cream cheese wontons.
Gracie:  I would draw a chocolate fondue fountain!
Isaac:  NO.  I would draw a giant pig.
Gracie:  What?
Isaac:  It would be the world's biggest pig.
Gracie:  What would you do with the world's biggest pig?
Isaac:  Give it to poor people.  And they can all eat pig and they'd never run out of food.
Dad:  How would you describe the pictures in this book?
Gracie:  Realistic!
Isaac:  They look like photographs.
Gracie:  They almost look like reality.
Dad:  The word for that is "Photorealism."  That's when a painting is so real it looks like a photograph.
Lily:  It helps it make the dinosaur look more scary.  Really really scary.
Isaac:  What are the pictures made with?  It doesn't even look like he used an art utensil.
Dad:  Acrylic paint and colored pencils.  Just like materials we have.
Isaac:  How long do you think it took for him to make this book?
Gracie:  I bet each page took three weeks.
Isaac:  I'd bet a page a month.
Dad:  What else is unique about this book?
Gracie:  There aren't any words, so you get to make up the words.  And that means you get more involved in the story.
Isaac:  He's got to make a sequel.
Lily:  Make a series please.  Then we'll know what's happening with the chalk.  Like if someone else comes over to use the chalk.
Dad:  Right -- at the end of the book the kids leave the chalk behind.
Lily:  That makes me wonder if someone else finds it.
Isaac:  Every kid who reads this book is going to go looking for that chalk.

holding a butterfly, by Lily

dinosaur, by Elijah

chalk dinosaur, by Isaac

dinosaur coming to life, by Gracie

Author/Illustrator: Bill Thomson
Published, 2010: Marshall Cavendish
Like it?  Here it is

Review #75: Oh No

Isaac (age 11):  "Oh No" is illustrated by Dan Santat.
Gracie (age 9):  Dan Sanitizer.
Isaac:  And it is written by...
Gracie:  Chuck Duckerman!
Isaac:  Written by Chuck Duckerman?
Gracie:  HA hee hee heehee!  No - That's what I think the robot's name should be.  Chuck Duckerman.
Dad:  "Oh No" is written by Mac Barnett.
Gracie:  Macaroni Barnett!
Dad:  Great.
Gracie:  Dan Sanitizer and Macaroni Barnett.
Lily (age 7):  This is a weird and wacko book.  But the people that made this book are smartypants, because they could build this story.
Isaac:  They have crazy imaginations.
Gracie:  They are crazy... in a good way.
Isaac:  "Oh No" is about this girl who builds a super hi-tech robot.
Gracie:  Chuck Duckerman.
Isaac:  Robot.  She makes the robot for a science fair.  It wasn't that hard for her to win first place because this is what she was up against -- "Cup of Dirt."  "Just Hamsters."  And a little teeny volcano.  Those were the other entries, so she creamed them.
Gracie:  If I entered a Science Fair, I'd probably do something about aerodynamics.
Dad:  Do you even know what aerodynamics is?
Gracie:  Flying.
Dad:  Wow - you know a big word.  Where'd you learn that big word?
Gracie:  I made it up.
Dad:  You didn't make it up.
Gracie:  Well, then where did I hear it?
Dad:  I don't know - that's what I asked you.
Gracie:  I would make a replica of a model of a plane.
Dad:  So you wouldn't just make a model plane?  You'd make a replica OF a model of a plane?
Isaac:  Ha ha!
Gracie:  Or I could just do a project on cows.
Dad:  Aerodynamics... or cows.
Gracie:  I could teach people how to dissect cows.
Dad:  Wow.  This has nothing to do with the book.  Let's get back on track...
Gracie:  Has Macaroni Barnett ever dissected a cow?
Dad:  What happens to the robot?
Isaac:  It escapes.  It was a science project catastrophe.
Gracie:  The robot has a laser eye and super claw.  The robot's name is Chuck Duckerman.  And Chuck Duckerman starts destroying the world.
Lily:  If kids are afraid of lasers, they shouldn't read this book.
Isaac:  The robot also has hypnotizing-dog-power.  The robot made dogs think they were robots destroying the world -- little teeny chihuahuas dressed up with hats.  If I could control a dog's mind, I would make it Riverdance.
Lily:  So then the girl made a giant frog to defeat the robot, and the giant frog saved the world.
Isaac:  She turned a little frog into a giant monster frog with a machine.  With a Froginizer.  A Grow-inator-inator.  The Biginator.
Gracie:  The giant frog destroys Chuck Duckerman.
Isaac:  But now she has to make another thing to stop the frog.  I don't know what's going to stop it... but I'm going to make it.
Dad:  So, that's the storyline.  What did you think of the illustrations?
Isaac:  The pictures remind me of a movie.  An old scary movie.  It looks like Godzilla!  I bet they were trying to make it resemble an old Godzilla movie.
Dad:  Have you ever seen an old Godzilla movie?
Isaac:  I'm just guessing.
Dad:  How do you even know who Godzilla is?  I suppose it's just part of our cultural make-up.  Everyone knows Godzilla.
Lily:  Yes.  He's a giant monkey.
Dad:  That's King Kong.
Lily:  Oh.

hypnotized puppies dressed as robots, by Lily

a new giant robot to defeat the giant frog, by Isaac

Gracie had a different idea of how to attack the frog:

make a fly grow giant with the Biginator machine...

but...  that might not work...

Author: Mac Barnett
Illustrator: Dan Santat
Published, 2010: Hyperion
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Review #69: Percy Jackson & the Olympians

A special treat this week!  For a year and a half we've reviewed books that we read together as a family.  But the kids are all voracious readers on their own as well.  So I thought I'd chat with them one-on-one to find out about the books they are reading for their own pleasure.  These are books I personally know nothing about, so I'm learning too!  We invite you to check back later this week as well to hear from each of the kids.  Here's the schedule:

Today: Isaac with the "Percy Jackson" series
Tomorrow: Gracie with the "Just Grace" series
Wednesday: Lily with the "Cobble Street Cousins" series

And now, heeeeeeere's Isaac!


Dad:  Hello Isaac.
Isaac (age 11):  Hi.
Dad:  What books are we going to discuss?
Isaac:  Percy Jackson and the Olympians.
Dad:  By Rick Riordan.  Did you like them?
Isaac:  Yes.  Tons.  I loved the action and adventure of them.  They are based on all the Greek myths.  Like, Zeus and the Big Three, and the 12 other gods...
Dad:  Who are "the Big Three"?
Isaac:  The Big Three are the greatest ones -- Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades.
Dad:  Are they good guys, or bad guys, or a mix?
Isaac:  Zeus is the highest of the three, so he has the most authority.  He is really solemn.  Poseidon is really kind.  And Hades just really doesn't care that much.  He's angry at all the other gods.
Dad:  And who is Percy Jackson.
Isaac:  He's the main character through the whole series.  He's the son of Poseidon.
Dad:  I gather from the covers that he's got some special powers?
Isaac:  All the people who are half-gods have powers.  He can use water.  I guess you could call him a water-bender.  He can make huge tidal waves.  He can breathe underwater.  And if he wants, he can make himself never get wet.
Dad:  Go, go, gadget umbrella!
Isaac:  No, he does not have a giant robotic umbrella arm come out of his head.
Dad:  Is there one storyline that goes through the series, or is each a self-contained story?
Isaac:  Kind of both.  There are different adventures, but they tie into each other.  Especially the last two books.  They definitely go together.
Dad:  What storyline ties them together?
Isaac:  Kronos is trying to come back and take over.
Dad:  Kronos is the father of the Big Three if I remember my Greek mythology right...
Isaac:  Yeah, he is the Titan.  Percy has to stop the monsters because Kronos is trying to take over.  In myths, the gods have to send people to fight for them.  Not just in these books, but in real myths.  So Percy and his friends have to fight, because the gods can't do it by themselves.  But the gods would never admit that.
Dad:  Did you have a favorite book in the series?
Isaac:  The last book was really good.  It had a ton of action in it.  But I was really mad that one person died.  I was so mad.  And then you find something out that made me even madder -- the thing he died for was just a decoy, so he didn't die for any purpose.  It made me really mad.
Dad:  You really got into these books.  Now, why did you love them so much?
Isaac:  I'm not sure.  The first one was hard to get through...
Dad:  Yeah, you started it before you were a big reader.  It was a daunting task to finish that whole big book.
Isaac:  I almost stopped three times.
Dad:  But what happened when you finished it?
Isaac:  It was just so good I wanted to read the next one.
Dad:  And then you started reading them day and night!  Every time you finished one, you couldn't wait to get the next.
Isaac:  These are the books that got me into reading.  Now I read tons of 300 page books.
Dad:  You are a reading machine.  But tell us -- what happened when you finished the final Percy Jackson book.  Was life wonderful and cheery?
Isaac:  Uh, not really.  They are such good books -- so awesome.  But there were no other books like them.  No other books that good.
Dad:  As long as there are additional books in a favorite series, it's a safe bet you'll like them.  But when you're done, every other book you try is a roll of the dice...
Isaac:  You have to go searching, but you could never find another one just like them.
Dad:  You were such a good reader after finishing the series, I thought -- Yea! We have a house full of books! Go at 'em!  I gave you book after book after book.  But you always said, "It's not the same...  It's never going to be the same...  I'll never find a book as good as these..."  For a few weeks, you were such a sad little puppy.
Isaac:  I tried though.
Dad:  You tried a lot.  You began book after book.  And finally you found one that stuck.  And now you are a voracious reader again.  What was the book that finally broke the spell and set you back on the reading path?
Isaac:  "Leepike Ridge" was the book I finally found.  N.D. Wilson wrote it.  That was really good as well.  It had lots of adventure.
Dad:  And now you devour books like crazy again.  And I'm amazed.  But I'm actually kind of sad.  You are reading all these books that I've always wanted to read.  Up until recently, we've always read books together.  And now you are having all these adventures without me!  I'm jealous.  But you are a reader.  I guess that's how it's supposed to be...
Isaac:  Yeah.
Dad:  Now, I want to ask you about "The Shadow Thieves" from the Cronus series.  I specifically hunted that book down for you because I knew it was supposed to be similar to Percy.  I think the first books in both series came out right around the same time.
Isaac:  It's pretty much the exact same thing as Percy Jackson.
Dad:  I knew they were both based on mythology but set in modern times.  Did you like it?
Isaac:  At first it was extremely hard to get into.  The first half was really hard to get through.  It didn't really have any action.  It was just talking.  The book goes slower.
Dad:  But you finished it.  And it was a huge book.
Isaac:  Yeah, I did finish it finally.
Dad:  There are more books in that series.  Would you read those?
Isaac:  Someday.  I liked the first one.  At the end.
Dad:  Aww... so it took until the very end before you liked it!
Isaac:  Yeah.
Dad:  Do you ever think you'll read through the Percy Jackson books a second time?
Isaac:  I'd like to read through them again.  But I already have so many other books I want to read now.  It may take a while.
Dad:  And what are you reading at the moment?
Isaac:  100 Cupboards.  That is also really good.  Also by N.D. Wilson.
Dad:  Well this has been fun!  I've enjoyed talking with you one-on-one for Bookie Woogie!
Isaac:  Yeah!  It's really nice.
Dad:  We'll have to do it more often.  You don't have to divvy up time with other kids.
Isaac:  Yeah, I get to talk as much as I want.
Dad:  Thanks for sharing your favorite books with us, Isaac!
Isaac:  You are welcome.

Percy Jackson, by Isaac

Author: Rick Riordan
Book 1: "The Lightning Thief" published, 2005: Hyperion
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Review #62: The Three Pigs

Lily (age 7):  "The Three Pigs."
Dad:  We all know the story of the Three Little Pigs, don't we?  So... is this going to be a boring review?
Gracie (age 9):  No way!  I've never heard the Three Little Pigs story expressed quite like this.  I've never seen, in my whole lifetime, a book as awesome as this.
Isaac (age 11):  And it has a big golden sticker on it.  So that means it's not going to be boring!
Dad:  Yep, David Wiesner gets lots of Caldecott Awards.  Well deserved ones.
Evangeline (age 2):  Sticker on there... (pick, pick)
Isaac:  Don't pick it off, Evie!
Dad:  So this is not the plain old story of the Three Little Pigs?
Gracie:  Ohh, no!
Isaac:  They escape.
Dad:  Escape from what?
Gracie:  The pigs escape their story.  They jump right out of the picture panel.  And they have an adventure.
Isaac:  The wolf blew them out of the panel and into the real world.
Elijah (age 4):  He's out of the picture!
Evangeline:  Piggy!  Piggy!
Isaac:  Outside of their story, there are all these panels from other stories lined up.  It's a place where all the pictures are -- all the pictures from every story ever created.
Lily:  They must be in the library...
Elijah:  When they got out of the pictures, they made an airplane and flyed all around, and then they crashed!
Lily:  They made a paper airplane out of a panel from their story.
Gracie:  A piece with the wolf in it!
Isaac:  It's a wolf-mobile!
Dad:  Have you ever heard the expression "When Pigs Fly?"
Isaac:  Yes... Once I cleaned my room, and I got it done in a certain amount of time.  I told Mom, and she said, "When pigs fly."  But then she looked, and it was true.  So pigs must have flown.
Dad:  So what happens next in the book?
Gracie:  The pigs walk outside around the stories, and then they go inside the other stories and make lots of new friends.  Like the cat from "Hey Diddle Diddle."
Evangeline:  Cat!  Cat!  Meow!
Gracie:  And they met a dragon from another story.
Isaac:  That's a cool dragon.
Dad:  What happens to the pigs as they pop in and out of stories?
Gracie:  When they are in the stories, they look cartoony, and when they come out they look realistic, because they are in the real world now.
Isaac:  On some pages the pigs are still halfway inside the picture, so they are half-realistic and half-non.
Gracie:  That's awesome.
Isaac:  His snout looks like it's popping out.
Lily:  I like how there are a whole bunch of styles.  In each story, the pigs turned into the style of that story.  In the nursery rhyme it was all kidsy, cartoony.  And when they went into it, they turned into that cartoony style.
Gracie:  That was my favorite style.  They look all cutesy and simple.
Isaac:  They get all nursery-rhymey-colors.
Lily:  And in the dragon story, they turned into black and white lines because that's how that story was drawn.
Dad:  So the pigs know that they are in a story.  Did you know there's a word for that?  When you are reading a book, and the characters know they are in a story, it's called "Metafiction."
Isaac:  That sounds like a superhero name... "Metafiction!"
Dad:  So, what if you guys could pop out of our world?
Isaac:  Where do you think the opening is?  I want to run as hard as I can and slam right into it so I fall out of it and see other worlds!
Dad:  If you could go into one story that we've reviewed on Bookie Woogie, which one would you want to visit?
Isaac:  I want to go into "I Spy."  It would be cool -- there would be life-size toys, and you could build forts and stuff!
Lily:  I think I would go into "Scribble."
Dad:  What would you do in there?
Lily:  Draw pictures that come to life.  And visit Scribble Kitty.
Dad:  That book was kind of like metafiction too, wasn't it.  The pictures were aware of being pictures...  Actually, over our 62 reviews, we've looked at quite a few books with self-aware characters, haven't we.
Gracie:  Like "A Book."
Dad:  Yep.  And "Inkheart."  And "The Book that Eats People."
Gracie:  "Babymouse" is metafiction.
Dad:  Because she has conversations with the narrator?
Gracie: (grabs a nearby Babymouse book and reads)  "You're a winner in my book, Babymouse."  Then Baby mouse says, "Actually it's a graphic novel."  See, she knows she's in a story.
Dad:  So what book would you want to go into Gracie?
Gracie:  I would want to go into "The Book That Eats People..."  Actually - never mind, never mind!  I changed my mind!
Dad:  Yeah, if he ate you, that would be a very different way to go "into" a book!
Gracie:  I do not want to be digested.
Dad:  What other books could we visit?  "A Wrinkle in Time..."
Gracie:  I want to go into "A Wrinkle in Time"!
Dad:  "Anne of Green Gables..."
Gracie:  I want to go into "Anne of Green Gables"!
Dad:  You're just saying every book I say.
Gracie:  No I'm not.
Dad:  "Babymouse..."
Gracie:  Aww!!!  I want to go into "Babymouse!"
Dad:  What about "Crazy Hair"?
Gracie:  Eeeeeeeeeeeeeak!
Dad:  Ha ha!  I guess that's a 'no.'

the pigs escape their book, by Isaac

a pig visits Go Diego Go, by Elijah

pigs visit "The Hiccupotamus" and get new colors, by Gracie

pigs fly an airplane, by Lily

Author/Illustrator: David Wiesner
Published, 2001: Clarion Books
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Review #55: Ignis

Gracie (age 9):  Smell my lips, Dad.  I just put lip gloss on.  Smell my lips.
Dad:  I don't want to smell your lips.
Isaac (age 11):  No one wants to smell your lips.
Gracie:  Lily, you smell my lips.
Dad:  Let's not smell lips...  let's review books.  Isaac, you picked today's book.  Why don't you tell everyone what we're reading.
Isaac:  "Ignis" by Gina Wilson, illustrated by P.J. Lynch.
Lily (age 6):  Ignis is a dragon who does not breathe fire.
Dad:  Is he okay with that?
Lily:  No.  He says he's not a real dragon because dragons have to breathe fire.  Wah, wah, wah.
Gracie:  He's the fastest, he's the strongest, he can fly the highest.
Isaac:  But he can't seem to breathe fire.
Lily:  Then he goes off to find fire.  He meets a hippo.  They swim.  Also he meets a parrot.  They fly.  And he meets a little girl.  Cara.  And the girl gives him tea parties!  Hee hee!
Dad:  Hey -- did you know there's a writing principle called "The Rule of Three."  Like: hippo, parrot, girl...  Authors will often do three variations on things in their stories.  So if you write a story about pigs that meet a wolf... you'll have three of them - one for straw, one for sticks, and one for bricks.  Two pigs wouldn't seem like enough.  Four or five pigs would start getting too long and boring.  Three is just long enough to set a pattern in place.  Three is the magic number.
Isaac:  Yeah.  I never knew about that, but it makes sense.
Dad:  Like in "The Hiccupotamus," how many other characters did the hippo meet?
Gracie:  Threeeee!
Dad:  Elephant, centipede, rhinoceros.  That's the Rule of Three.  So when you guys write stories, you can keep that in mind.  A character might try three different solutions to a problem or meet three different people.  What are some other examples of the Rule of Three?  How about Goldilocks?
Isaac:  Three bears.
Dad:  And there's another Rule of Three hiding in that story too: Porridge, Chair, Bed.  What else... 3 Billy Goats Gruff.  And in Jack and the Beanstalk, Jack takes the gold, the goose, and the harp.  Rule of Three, baby.
Gracie:  Do videos count?
Dad:  Sure.
Gracie:  Then I have one.  "Dora the Explorer."
Dad:  Oh yeah... when they check the map, they always have three places to remember... every time.
Gracie:  Always three.  ALWAYS.  No matter what.
Isaac:  Nu-uh!  I saw one with four.  Uh...  Not that I watch it.
Dad:  Alright, we've spent plenty of time on the Rule of Three.
Isaac:  Yeah, it kind of got boring.
Gracie:  We should have given three examples.
Dad:  Where did we leave off?  Ignis meets a little girl named Cara...
Gracie:  She's lucky.
Isaac:  It would be scary to meet a dragon, but it would be cool.
Gracie:  But they have tea parties, of all things.  The girl has a tea party with a dragon!  I wouldn't have tea parties and ice cream.  I would go out flying or something.
Dad:  I guess Ignis wants to do human-y things.
Isaac:  If you think about it, it would be terrifying to meet a dragon.
Gracie:  He would light my campfire.
Isaac:  I would?
Gracie:  No!  My dragon would.
Lily:  My dragon would be a "she."
Dad:  If a dragon just came up to you out of nowhere, you wouldn't get to pick what it was.
Lily:  Well, I would want my dragon to be a "she."  My dragon would do everything with me.
Dad:  If a dragon ever bursts through our door... go get your tea set.
Isaac:  I would grab a knife and throw it at it.
Dad:  Good thing Isaac wasn't in this book.  Ignis would have met a sad end.
Isaac:  Actually, I'd probably just be stunned and then run away.
Gracie:  I would put a muzzle on it, and then I would give it a hug.
Isaac:  What about its tail?
Gracie:  I'd tie its tail to its neck, put gloves on it, and then give it a hug.
Dad:  So you would tie him and glove him and muzzle him...  I bet he's going to love getting a hug from you.
Isaac:  I would run up to my room, get my homemade bullwhip, and run away as fast as I can.  And if it starts chasing me, I'd start whipping it.
Dad:  Man, you guys are all so "kind" to dragons.  This book would have been very different if Cara did all that stuff to Ignis.
Gracie:  She doesn't even have a whip.
Isaac:  I would only do it in self defense.
Gracie:  I changed my mind.  I would just give it a hug.  I'm not scared about the fire.  Unless he burns my head off.  Then I would freak out.
Dad:  Alright, we got really sidetracked...  back to Ignis...
Lily:  Ignis felt fire inside him.  Then he goes to a volcano.
Isaac:  It had blown up 100 years ago, but the last spark comes out, and he accidentally swallows it when he is crying.  Then he starts breathing fire.  Tons and tons and tons of fire.
Lily:  He spit fire and it flew everywhere.  It was a happy, happy ever after.
Dad:  How did he find his fire?
Isaac:  By crying.
Dad:  So the moral of the story is... Crying fixes everything.
Isaac:  Ha ha!  Yeah!
Dad:  Do you think there is a moral?
Isaac:  Don't complain. Things take time.
Dad:  I like the fact that Ignis didn't solve the problem all on his own, but neither did someone else fix it for him.  It was a combination of the two.  He needed what was inside him plus some outside help.
Gracie:  Did a girl write this book?
Dad:  Yep.  Gina Wilson wrote it.
Gracie:  I thought Gina must be a girl's name.  Gina is also my pet webkins giraffe and my next door neighbor.
Dad:  Ah -- Rule of Three!  The three Ginas: neighbor girl, pet giraffe, and author.  Maybe you should write a story about their adventures.
Lily:  Everything is three!
Dad:  What did you think of the illustrations?
Lily:  I like the pictures because they are detailed.  They look like realistic pop-out dragons.
Isaac:  The illustrator makes such cool dragons.
Dad:  He sure does.  P.J. Lynch is my favorite living illustrator.  And out of all his books, I like "Ignis" best.
Lily:  It looks like 3D popping out.
Dad:  How do you think he makes it dimensional?
Isaac:  The backgrounds are kind of blurry, but then the dragon is super detailed, so it pops off.
Dad:  It's also the way he uses light and shadows.  Instead of filling the shapes in flat, he makes things look rounded with light and shadow.
Lily:  That is so amazing.
Dad:  Do you think he had to observe real dragons to draw them so well?
Gracie:  That would be awesome.
Lily:  He made them up.  Because dragons aren't real.
Gracie:  Don't say that or one will burn your head off in the night.
Lily:  Daddy, are dragons real?
Dad:  Now, there are two "flying" images in this book.  One looks like a fast crazy flight and one looks calm and peaceful.  How did he do that?
Lily:  Cool colors and hot colors.
Gracie:  On the one where everything is peaceful and quiet there are cool colors.  Blue and purple.
Dad:  And what makes this one with the parrot exciting?
Gracie:  Bright, hot colors.  Those colors are freakin' bright.
Lily:  They make me feel wild and crazy.
Gracie:  I really like the illustrator.
Isaac:  He does awesome pictures.
Dad:  I love P.J. Lynch.
Gracie:  Who?
Dad:  P.J. Lynch.  He did the pictures.
Gracie:  Peanutbutter and Jelly?
Dad:  Great... P.J.?  Peanutbutter and Jelly Lynch?
Gracie:  Peanutbutter and Jelly LUNCH!  P.J. Lunch!
Dad:  I apologize, Mr...
Gracie:  Mr. Peanutbutter and Jelly!
Dad:  I sincerely apologize, Mr. honorable best living artist in the world, for my goofy little daughter...
Gracie:  Hah ha ha ha...
Dad:  One day some little weirdie kid is going to call you "Grapes."  Amity Grapes instead of Amity Grace.
Gracie:  Awesome!

Ignis breathing fire, by Grapie

Cara and Ignis, by Lily

Ignis flying, by Isaac

Author: Gina Wilson
Illustrator: P.J. Lynch
Watch P.J. Lynch paint a dragon from one of his other books
Published, 2001: Candlewick Press
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