[BOOK REVIEW] Mama Don't Allow by Thacher Hurd

Title:  Mama Don't Allow

Author:  Thacher Hurd


Genre: Animal / Music / Manners


Year Published: 1984


Year Read: 1998

Publisher:  HarperCollins

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 5+ (Some Intense Scenes)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository 

 “Mama Don’t Allow” is a jazzy book from the mind of Thacher Hurd, which is about how Miles and his Swamp band try to outwit a band of alligators that want them for dinner.  “Mama Don’t Allow” is a great book full of good lyrics that children will enjoy for many years.

 Thacher Hurd has done a great job at both illustrating and writing this book.  Thacher Hurd’s illustrations are colorful and beautiful, especially of the image of the swamp band going to the swamp and the alligators’ riverboat, which is extremely beautiful and colorful to look at.  Thacher Hurd’s writing is extremely creative as he explains Miles’ situation with his mother through a song that is extremely jazzy to listen to and the lyrics to the song “Mama Don’t Allow” is creative and bold as Miles states in the song that he will keep on playing his saxophone no matter what his mother says.

 “Mama Don’t Allow” is a great book for children who love to sing to various songs and the song will keep their feet stomping to the beat for as many times as they read this book.  I would recommend this book to children ages five and up due to scenes where the alligators wanted to eat the swamp band, which might worry smaller children.

Song Number:

 “Mama Don’t Allow no music playing around here!
Mama Don’t Allow no music playing around here!
Now, we don’t care what Mama don’t allow,
We’re gonna play that music anyhow!”

[BOOK REVIEW] Mystery on the Docks by Thacher Hurd

Title:  Mystery on the Docks

Author:  Thacher Hurd

Genre:   Mystery / Music / Drama / Suspense / Crime


Year Published: 1983


Year Read: 1996

Publisher:  HarperCollins

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 5+  (Some Intense Scenes)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository 
 

“Mystery on the Docks” is another classic book from Thacher Hurd about how a short order cook named Ralph tries to stop Big Al and his gang of rats from kidnapping a famous opera star.  “Mystery on the Docks” is a great book full of mystery that children will enjoy for the rest of their lives.

Thacher Hurd’s illustrations are colorful and creative just like in his previous book “Mama Don’t Allow,” especially as he contrasts Ralph’s diner, a colorful and peaceful place, from Big Al’s ship which looks dreary, dark and intimidating.  Thacher Hurd’s writing makes the story be full of excitement and drama, especially during the scenes where Ralph tries to make his escape from Big Al’s gang.

“Mystery on the Docks” is a great book full of mystery and drama that many mystery fans will enjoy for many years.  I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since the action scenes might worry smaller children.

[BOOK REVIEW] No Plain Pets! by Marc Ian Barasch

Title:  No Plain Pets!

Author:  Marc Ian Barasch

Artist:  Henrik Drescher


Genre: Animal / Humor / Poetry


Year Published: 1991


Year Read: 2007

Publisher:  HarperCollins Publishers

Source:  Purchased

Content Rating:  Ages 5+ (Some Bizarre Imagery)

Buy or Add on:  Amazon  //  Goodreads




 

When I first read this book, I was just blown away by the surrealistic images in this book! “No Plain Pets!” is a children’s book by Marc Ian Barasch along with surreal illustrations by Henrik Drescher and it is about how a young nameless boy tells his mother that he wants an unusual pet, in other words, “NO PLAIN PETS!” “No Plain Pets!” might be a bit too surreal for some children to handle, but it is a brilliant book that everyone should read!

One night, a young boy tells his mother that he wants a pet and while his mother agrees with him, he goes on to explain to his mother that he wants an unusual pet, not just a plain pet. For instance, the boy wants a big black gorilla that seems to eat buildings and then he goes on to saying that he wants a flying fish and then he wants a camel to ride on. Will the boy find his perfect pet? Read this book to find out!

I was just so blown away by this book beyond all reason! I never would have imagined seeing a more surreal look at a child’s desires at having an unusual pet in this format! Marc Ian Barasch has certainly done an excellent job at writing this book as his poetic writing is silly and creative as the boy imagines that his pets could do surreal things such as having his bullfrog jump through a ring of fire or having a fish that flies through the air. Also, I loved the way that Marc Ian Barasch makes the story in rhyming proses as it reminds me of a somewhat wild version of Dr. Seuss’ works. Henrik Drescher’s illustrations are at their best here as each character looks surreal such as the young boy being dressed in purple overalls with wild and many creatures popping out of other creatures’ mouths (weird is it not?), which is Henrik Drescher’s signature characters. I also loved the constant smiles that the boy displays on each page as he shows his enthusiasm at being with every different pet he conjures up.

For parents and children who do not like surreal images, this book is full of surreal images. Some of the images in this book that might cause a bit of concern for small children might be the image of the boy lying on the tongue of a huge lizard as the boy is seen inside the mouth of a huge lizard and the image of the imaginary creature having six feet sticking out of its head. I think the right word for these types of images might be “morbid,” but this book is told in a hilarious way that maybe some small children might still enjoy this book for its wackiness.

All in all, “No Plain Pets!” is one truly unique and creative book that both children and adults who love reading about pets can easily enjoy for many years! I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since some of the images in this book might scare younger children.

[BOOK REVIEW] The Beast of Monsieur Racine by Tomi Ungerer

Title:  The Beast of Monsieur Racine

Author:  Tomi Ungerer


Genre: Monsters / Friendship / Contest


Year Published: 1971


Year Read: 1993

Publisher:  Farrar Straus Giroux

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 7+ (Some Violent Imagery)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository 

I have actually first heard of this book on a children’s video series called Weston Woods and I enjoyed it back then and I enjoy it now! “The Beast of Monsieur Racine” is a children’s book by Tomi Ungerer, which is about how a retired tax collector named Monsieur Racine meets up with a strange beast near his pear tree and becomes instant friends with the beast. “The Beast of Monsieur Racine” may have some gruesome images that might scare smaller children, but it is still a fun book to read!

Monsieur Racine was a retired tax collector who owns a magnificent pear tree that grows the most delicious pears in all of Paris. Every time millionaires came by to offer money to Monsieur Racine for his pear tree, Monsieur Racine would always turn them down claiming that the pear tree belongs to him and him alone. One morning, however, Monsieur Racine wakes up to find all the pears on his tree disappear and Monsieur Racine decided to stay up during the night to find the thief. Finally during the night, Monsieur Racine spots a beast eating his pears and Monsieur Racine was so interested in the beast that he became fast friends with the beast. Then one day, Monsieur Racine decided to show the beast off to the Academy of Sciences in Paris!

Words cannot describe about how I felt about this book as this book is both surreal and lovable at the same time! Tomi Ungerer’s writing is hilarious and touching at the same time as it details the unlikely friendship between a beast and a man and I loved the way that Monsieur Racine just openly accepted the beast without a hint of fear, which help proved the book’s point about how true friendships is never based on how a person looks. I also loved the way that Tomi Ungerer made this story seem so out of the ordinary as there are many twists and turns in the plot where you least expect it to happened, especially at the end of the book, which I will not tell since I do not want to spoil the book for anyone. Tomi Ungerer’s illustrations are surreal and hilarious as there are various images in this book that have people doing random things at the corners of the pages and one of the most surreal images in this book was the image of the beast itself as it has a long pink snout, long droopy ears, baggy knees and feet that look like stumps. I also loved the image of Monsieur Racine himself as he looks very distinguished with his small pot belly, friendly looking eyes slightly hidden behind some spectacles and a pointy mustache.

Now the only problem with this book was that there were some gruesome images, which is something you would not expect in most of Tomi Ungerer’s books. Here are some examples of some gruesome images in this book:

A picture of a fox carrying a dead rabbit in its mouth

A picture of a man carrying a severed foot in a bag

A couple of photos where people lose pieces of their heads.

And so on.

The thing about these gruesome images is that they are not the core focus of the story, so children probably might not notice these images, unless some children like looking at various images closely.

Overall, “The Beast of Monsieur Racine” is a truly wonderful book about true friendship that both children and adults will enjoy! I would recommend this book to children ages seven and up because let us face it, smaller children might be frightened by the various images of people getting their limbs cut off and if I was a parent, I might be a bit hesitant in showing smaller children this book because of those gruesome images, but it does depend on the child if they like the book or not.

[BOOK REVIEW] The Golden Egg: A Comic Adventure by Mimi Brennan

Title:  The Golden Egg:  A Comic Adventure

Author:  Mimi Brennan


Genre: Crime / Drama / Suspense


Year Published: 1990


Year Read: 1993

Publisher:  Holiday House

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 5+ (Scenes of Animal Hunting)

Buy or Add on:  Amazon  //  Goodreads

Yes! After ten years of trying so desperately to find this book, I have finally found it at the library! The book that I am talking about is “The Golden Egg: A Comic Adventure” written and illustrated by Mimi Brennan and it was one of my most favorite books I had ever read as a child!

There once was a friendly town called Duckville where all of the domestic ducks who cannot fly live.  Unfortunately, outside of Duckville, there are wild ducks that are constantly being hunted and the worst of it is that there is a decoy who is leading the wild ducks to their doom.  Martin Mallard, who is a newspaper reporter, is trying to find out who the decoy is, while crossing paths with Alfred Duckmuck, who is a respected figure in Duckville.  Unfortunately, when Martin starts to find out more about the duck hunters, he is framed for stealing Alfred Duckmuck’s golden egg and ends up in jail!

Can Martin clear his name before it is too late?

Alright! Now that I have finally found this book again after over ten years, I am reliving good memories again after reading this book!  Mimi Brennan has done an excellent job at both writing and illustrating this book as the story is filled with mystery and drama!  I loved the way that Mimi Brennan had set up this book in a comic book fashion as it really added creativity and really set up the mystery theme of this story.  I loved all of the characters involved in this book, especially Martin Mallard and Alfred Duckmuck as they set up as the most perfect hero vs. villain scenario in a picture book (Martin Mallard is a news reporter who was framed for a crime he did not commit while Alfred Duckmuck is a well respected duck who is extremely greedy and selfish).  Every time I read this book, I keep thinking of Martin Mallard’s voice sounding like Inspector Gadget or Tennessee Tuxedo, because their voices sound appropriate for a news reporter trying to get the scoop!  I also loved the way that Mimi Brennan wrote out the story line as it was interesting seeing Martin Mallard being put into jail for a crime he did not commit and then trying to clear his name while trying to find out who was the mysterious decoy for the hunters.  Mimi Brennan’s illustrations are truly creative and inventive to look at as the characters (which are mostly ducks) look cartoonish and yet the action sequences with Martin and Alfred Duckmuck are done extremely well.  I loved the way that Martin Mallard has a green head and grey feathers while wearing a reporter hat as it makes him look truly unique. I also loved the way that Alfred Duckmuck has a red head and a camouflage outfit that really makes him look like a suspicious character (especially when he is seen grinning evilly in every panel!)

The only problem in this book is that it explores the theme of duck hunting and that might upset smaller children. Parents might want to discuss about issues regarding hunting before they read this book to their children.

Overall, “The Golden Egg: A Comic Adventure” is a truly brilliant comic book styled picture book that children will love for many years!  I would recommend this book to children ages five and up since the duck hunting scenes might disturb smaller children.

[BOOK REVIEW] Blue-Eyed Devil by Lisa Kleypas

Title:  Blue-Eyed Devil

Author: Lisa Kleypas

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Year Published: 2008

Number of Pages: 336 pages

Date Read: 9/7/2012

Series: Travises #2

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Source:  Library

Content Rating:  Ages 18+  (Domestic Abuse and Sex Scenes)

Buy on:  Amazon  //  Book Depository 

Wow! Can I officially say that “Blue-Eyed Devil” by Lisa Kleypas has now become one of my top contemporary romance novels of all time next to “Kiss An Angel?”  “Blue-Eyed Devil” is the second book in Lisa Kleypas popular “Travises” series and this time, it stars the sister in the family, Haven Travis and the former bad-boy, Hardy Cates!  “Blue-Eyed Devil” is a truly mesmerizing book that has drama, secrets and forbidden love rolled into one novel!

Haven Travis is the only sister in the famous and filthy rich Travis family and she is known to have a mind of her own.  However, when Haven ends up marrying a man named Nick who she believed was her true love only to discover too late about his abusive ways, she believes that she may never find true love ever again.  However years later, Haven meets Hardy Cates, her sister in law Liberty’s former love interest and enemy of her family and she will soon discover that not only does she start developing feelings for him, but she will soon uncover his dark past that will change her world forever.

Oh my goodness! This book really set my heart up in flames!  “Blue-Eyed Devil” is certainly a huge improvement from the first book “Sugar Daddy” as we get to learn more about the characters in this book (especially about Haven Travis!) Lisa Kleypas has done a brilliant job at developing a story that was quite unusual for any romance novel, but was still able to produce enough drama and romance that really made my heart flutter!  What I mean by how this novel was quite unusual for a romance novel is that the story starts off with Haven being abused by her former husband Nick and this was the first romance novel that I had read that dealt with the subject matter of domestic abuse and it really made this story much more relatable to any reader who had also suffered through domestic abuse.  I also loved the fact that Lisa Kleypas provided facts and helpful websites that would help the reader really understand the nature of domestic abuse and how to deal with them, which really helped me understand more about domestic violence.  Now, onto the characters of this book!  Haven Travis was just an amazing heroine throughout this book as she had to go through domestic abuse caused by her former husband and for awhile, she could not trust anyone with her issues and was afraid to get close to any man she had contact with.  I actually found myself sympathizing so much with Haven’s situation as domestic abuse happens so much in real life and I was hoping throughout this story that she would find someone who can truly understand the horror she been through and be able to heal her pain.  I also loved the way that Lisa Kleypas made Haven Travis into a strong and independent woman as she may have suffered through a terrible ordeal, but she still tries to move on with her life.  Now, I am going to start getting all flirty whenever I am talking about Hardy Cates, the hero of the story, since he has become one of my most favorite romance heroes of all time!  Hardy Cates has come a long way from the first book “Sugar Daddy” as he was Liberty’s former love interest and had become an enemy of the Travis family after his stunt in “Sugar Daddy.”  However, Hardy Cates was probably the best character in this book as he may be the dangerous and sexy bad-boy that people would warn you to not get near, but he truly shows how much he cared about Haven and how he tries to help her through the ordeal she went through.  Also, it would not hurt to mention that the fact that Hardy Cates is muscular, large and sexy all around just really makes me feel all giddy inside!

Since this novel discusses about domestic abuse and gives vivid detail about the abuse that Haven has suffered at the hands of her former husband, some readers who do not like reading about such subject matter might feel a bit uncomfortable reading this novel and they might want to see if they can handle such subject matter before reading this book.  Also, this book has many scenes that detail explicit sex and they might want to skim over these sex scenes if they feel uncomfortable about them.

Overall, “Blue-Eyed Devil” is definitely one romance novel that you have to check out and I am definitely looking forward to the next book in the “Travis” series “Smooth Talking Stranger!”   

Rabbit Ears Awards Ceremony!!!

Hey everyone!! I just want to let everyone know that I am planning on making a video for the Rabbit Ears Awards Ceremony and I need many votes to determine the winners for this ceremony!  There are several different categories that you could choose from and feel free to choose one winner and one runner up for each category. The rules are further explained on the Rabbit Ears Productions Forum and Blog website, so anyone interested in voting for their favorite Rabbit Ears stories are free to vote!

The voting polls are shown at the Rabbit Ears Productions Forums and Blog Website.