[ARC REVIEW] The Day that A Ran Away by B.C.R. Fegan (@TaleBlade)

Title:  The Day that A Ran Away

Author:  B.C.R. Fegan

Artist:  Lenny Wen

Genre:  Children's / Humor / Alphabet

Year Published: 2018

Year Read:  2018

Publisher:  TaleBlade

Source:  eARC (Publisher)

Content Rating:  Ages 4+ (Nothing Objectionable)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository 

I would like to thank the publisher TaleBlade for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I had previously read a book that was written by B.C. R. Fegan called “Henry and the Hidden Treasure” and after I read that book, I wanted to read more books by B.C.R. Fegan!  So, imagine my surprise and delight when I was offered the chance to read B.C.R. Fegan’s newest children’s book called “The Day that A Ran Away” and man, was it a blast to read through!

The book starts off with a young boy named Master Jet who was being asked by his teacher about why he has not written the alphabet for his assignment.  Master Jet then goes on and explains about how each letter from the alphabet had suddenly ran away from him, such as “D” being scared of going to school and went into hiding, “F” getting lost in the forest, “H” being upset that the letters were leaving and “K” being annoyed by the whole thing.

Will the teacher buy Master Jet’s story?

Read this book to find out!

B.C.R. Fegan has once again done a fantastic job at writing this book as the story is both fun and hilarious to read through!  I loved the many different ways that each letter of the alphabet had disappeared, such as “A” running away and “L” being kidnapped and I found all the different ways that each letter had vanished from the story to be highly entertaining and hilarious!  Lenny Wen’s artwork is both hilarious and cute to look at as all the characters in the story have large eyes that look so adorable, especially of the images of the cute little kitten that occasionally shows up on each page.  I especially love the artwork of the letters themselves as each of them have unique designs that are based on their personalities, such as the letter “P” looking like a peacock and the letter “R” having curls in its hair and roses on its legs to indicate its prissy nature.

Overall, “The Day that A Ran Away” is a truly cute and hilarious book that children who want to learn about the alphabet will definitely get into!  I would recommend this book to children ages four and up since there is nothing inappropriate in this book.

 You might also like:

• My Little Sister Ate One Hare by Bill Grossman

• A Ferret Named Phil by William Reimer
• Henry and the Hidden Treasure by B.C.R. Fegan

[BOOK REVIEW] The Dangerous Alphabet by Neil Gaiman

Title:  The Dangerous Alphabet

Author:  Neil Gaiman

Artist:  Gris Grimly

Genre:  Horror / Adventure / Fantasy / Alternate World

Year Published: 2008

Year Read:  2016

Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 7+ (Some Scary Imagery and Perilous Situations)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository

Now, I have read many of Neil Gaiman’s books and I usually loved his adult and young adult fantasy novels since they are so full of excitement!  So it is rare that I read any of Neil Gaiman’s children’s books and I just happened to stumble upon his children’s book “The Dangerous Alphabet” along with illustrations by Gris Grimly!

 

The story starts out with two children and their cute pet gazelle sneaking past their father and going to a world that is located beneath the surface.  It was here that the two children ended up meeting a group of monsters and pirates, who then ended up kidnapping the girl and taking her to their lair where they plan to eat her.

Can the boy and their pet gazelle save the girl from the pirates and monsters?

Read this book to find out!

What I always loved about Neil Gaiman’s books is that they are so imaginative and you actually feel like you are living in the worlds that he has woven for the readers.  “The Dangerous Alphabet” is no exception as this is clearly the most imaginative children’s book about the alphabet that I had ever read!  I loved the fact that Neil Gaiman presented the alphabet in a more narrative tone rather than just stating some random objects that happened to start with whatever letters they are representing.  It made the story more creative and interesting to read and I was literally sitting on the edge of my seat trying to see if the boy and the gazelle would rescue the girl in time.  Gris Grimly’s artwork is delightfully creepy and fits well with the horrific and intense tone of this story.  I loved seeing the creepy creatures that pop up in the background such as seeing a dead rat floating in the river and some other children getting kidnapped as it gives the situation an intense and chaotic feel.  I also liked the fact that Gris Grimly drew the children’s pet gazelle as being adorably cute as the gazelle contrasts strongly with the grim artwork of the book.

Parents should know that Gris Grimly’s artwork might be a bit creepy for some children as there are images of monsters and pirates terrorizing the two children and their pet gazelle throughout the whole story.  Some of the creepy images that might stand out for some children are the images of the dead rat floating in the moat and of the children being chained up by the pirates and monsters.  These images might be unsettling for not only children, but also for parents who do not want to see children chained up.

Overall, “The Dangerous Alphabet” is a fantastic book that is full of dark moments and imagery that any child who enjoys a good horror story would easily enjoy!  I would recommend this book to children ages seven and up since the disturbing imagery and intense storyline might be scary for some children.

     

[BOOK REVIEW] Alligators All Around by Maurice Sendak

Title:  Alligators All Around

Author:  Maurice Sendak

Genre: Animals / Comedy / Alphabet

Year Published: 1962

Year Read:  2010

Publisher: HarperCollins

Series: The Nutshell Kids Library

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 4+  (Some Rude Behavior)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository 

“Alligators All Around” is apart of the popular Nutshell Library by Maurice Sendak and it details a family of alligators showing the audience about learning the alphabet through various humorous phrases.  “Alligators All Around” is a brilliant book about teaching the alphabet in a creative way that children will love for many years.

Maurice Sendak had out done himself in this clever book about learning the alphabet through creative phrases.  Maurice Sendak comes up with some creative and hilarious verses to teach children the letters of the alphabet such as “A: Alligators All Around” and “D: Doing Dishes,” as he simply uses two words to describe each letter of the alphabet, making the book easier for smaller children to understand the concept of the letters of the alphabet.  Maurice Sendak’s illustrations may not be as colorful or realistic as his popular books “Outside Over There” or “Where the Wild Things Are,” but they are extremely creative as the characters are a family of three green alligators who are shown doing crazy antics that are representing the letters of the alphabet.  The images that truly stood out in this book were the images of the three alligators themselves as they have tiny black dotted eyes and have humorous expressions on their faces whenever they are doing something crazy in this book.

Parents should know that there is an image of a small alligator pushing a human child when the book approaches the letter “P”, which is “Pushing People” and parents might be a bit uncomfortable with having such an image presented to a young child who can easily imitate anything.  Parents should tell their children that it is not nice to push other children around and therefore, children should not imitate the image of the alligator pushing the children so often.

“Alligators All Around” is a brilliant book about learning the letters of the alphabet in a creative way that will have many children enjoying this book for a long time.  I would recommend this book to children ages four and up since the image of the alligator pushing a child might entice smaller children.  

      

[BOOK REVIEW] The Gashlycrumb Tinies by Edward Gorey

Title:  The Gashlycrumb Tinies

Author:  Edward Gorey


Genre: Horror / Fantasy / Sickness / Death

Year Published:  1963

Year Read:  2012

Series:  The Vinegar Works #1

Publisher:  Bloomsbury

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 7+ (Depictions of Death)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository 

Twenty-six different ways to die!

Now, I am no stranger when it comes to reading dark and morbid books for children since I had read children’s books such as “Halloween ABC” and “The Spider and the Fly” which were just as morbid. But “The Gashlycrumb Tinies” was one of the first children’s books I have read that is about several different ways for kids to die!  “The Gashlycrumb Tinies” is a picture book written and illustrated by Edward Gorey and it is a book that will truly cause every reader’s hairs to stick up at their ends!

This book is basically set up as reciting the alphabet by detailing every child’s name that starts with the letters of the alphabet and how each child dies, such as one poem about a boy named Basil being assaulted by bears.

Now, the moment you see the image of a skeleton dressed in a black overcoat and top hat carrying a black umbrella and looming over several children on the cover of this book, then you will know that this book is no ordinary book for children.  Edward Gorey has certainly created a unique and spooky children’s book that actually details how each child dies, which is a scary concept for young children and is usually not taken likely.  I really enjoyed the simplistic way that Edward Gorey had written this book as there are mostly about eight to ten words per page making it easier for children to get a grasp on the concept of this book.  I also enjoyed the fact that this book is used as a way to introduce the alphabet to children, just like how “Halloween ABC” introduced the alphabet to children in a morbid way.  Edward Gorey had done an excellent job at providing a dark and horrific atmosphere for this book as the majority of this book is focused on different ways a child dies and I may sound a bit morbid myself when I say this, but I really enjoyed seeing all the different ways that the characters were dying in this book.  Some of my favorite sentences in this book included:

“K is for Kate who was struck with an axe.

R is for Rhoda consumed by a fire.

Y is for Yorick whose head was knocked in.”

Edward Gorey’s illustrations are truly spooky and dramatic at the same time as the images are mainly in black and white colorings that truly give off the spooky feel of this book.  I really loved the way that Edward Gorey made the illustrations have an Old Victorian feel as the characters seem like they are drawn into an old-fashioned horror film.

THIS BOOK IS NOT FOR SMALL CHILDREN!

Parents should know that this book is a bit too scary for smaller children since it details the theme of death and it explores different ways that the children in this book die.  Now, the images are not as graphic as the text implies, although there is one image that details a young girl named Kate being struck by an axe and the image shows a little girl being covered in blood with an axe being embedded into her body.  Parents might want to make sure that their children can handle dark imagery and themes in certain books that are considered too dark.

Overall, speaking as an adult who loves morbid and creepy books, “The Gashlycrumb Tinies” is a truly brilliant book that fans of books that are creepy and morbid will greatly enjoy for many years to come! Now speaking as an adult who is trying to figure out the right age set that this book should be aimed at, I would recommend this book to children ages seven and up since the theme of death would be a bit too scary for smaller children and it could easily give them nightmares for a long time.