Vanilla Gorilla: Animal Art & Poems
Written by: David Harrow
Illustrated by: Judith Krimski
Review by Kaden Robert Buchan, age 10
Vanilla Gorilla is good for people who like art, animals, poetry, or all three of those things. The author wanted you to learn and also have a joke. You also get a cool factoid for each animal that you may not have known. This was my favorite part. An example is the Portuguese man o’ war is really separate animals that form one entity. Even my parents didn’t know that!
The artwork is almost 3D-like. I really enjoyed looking at the aye-aye’s epic tail and its bushiness. Overall, this is a good book to read. I’d say best right before bedtime — on a tree if possible.
Captain No Beard: An Imaginary Tale of a Pirate’s Life
Written by: Carole P. Roman
Review by Evan G. Buchan, age 8
Captain No Beard is about a captain who sails with Linus the Lion, Fribbit the Frog, Mongo the Monkey and Hallie (his first mate and cousin too!). They are all on a ship called the Flying Dragon which is different since boats don’t fly. You learn a lot about pirate talk in this book.
You also learn that Captain No Beard has a great imagination and likes eating cookies from mermaids. I liked it and all the characters.
About the authorsBook lover Kaden R. Buchan lives with his dad, mom and brothers (ages 8 and 1) and hopes with all his might to get a pet one day. Unfortunately, his parents keep saying that is what the zoo is for!
Evan G. Buchan loves school, video games and playing tennis with his family. He would prefer a chocolate chip cookie over going on a pirate ship.
