What My Kid is Reading- Spy School

Spy School
Written by Stuart Gibbs
Age range: 8-12
Released: 2012

What's this book about?
It's about a kid named Ben who gets enrolled in a school focused on training kids to be spies for the U.S.

Does he know what he's getting himself into?
Yes, however there's more to the school than he thinks and he starts to figure it out throughout the book.

Is the story told by Ben?
It's told in the first person from Ben's perspective.

Who are the main characters besides Ben?
Throughout the story, Ben finds many accomplices, friends and enemies. Most characters you meet become main or strong supporting characters.

Who was your favorite?
It's tough to decide who was my favorite, but one of them was Zoe. The writer (Stuart Gibbs) developed her personality very well. Also, she has a tendency to give nicknames to every students in spy school, based on their first appearance, skills or anything about them.

Why did you enjoy this book so much?
It was brilliantly written. A lot of the plot twists were completely unexpected and went really well with the story. The characters were well developed and there was always something new added to the story.

I also really loved how at the start of every chapter you would find the chapter title, Ben's location, the date, and the time (army style). It made it feel like I was reading a top secret file.

Are there any illustrations in the book?
There are no illustrations but everything is described so well that the pictures pop up in your brain as if you (the reader) was in the book yourself. The book really makes you lose track of reality!

Why did you decide to read this book?
It was recommended by my friend, Owen. As I started reading it, I got sucked into it for days, it was so good.

Is this a funny book?
It's incredibly funny, with some slightly immature humor.

Who would you recommend this book to?
Anybody. The grammar isn't that complex, but when it's on the trickier side, Ben will always ask what it means, and one of his friends will always explain.

Is this book part of a series?
Yes. It's made up of 4 books so far and I've read them all! Spy School, Spy Camp, Evil Spy School, and Spy Ski School in that order.

How would you rate this book?
4.8 stars (out of 5)

Thanks Leo!

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What My Kid is Reading- The 13-Story Treehouse

The 13-Story Treehouse
Written by Andy Griffiths
Illustrated by Terry Denton
Age range: 6-10 years
Released April 16, 2013

What's the book about?
It's about 2 kids who live in a really cool 13 story treehouse and they write books together.

What's cool about the treehouse?
There's a lot of stuff kids like in it. Like a marshmallow shooting machine, an underground lab, a banana sizer (it turns bananas bigger so they're better weapons), a bowling alley, swimming pool, a lemonade fountain, a shark tank (any sharks in it? Yep!)... and that's pretty much it.

Where'd they get the treehouse?
That's explained in the second book (which I've already read).

Do they have parents or families?The background info is explained in the second book. How they met, what they're doing in the treehouse...

What happens in the book?
They need to write a book for their publisher, Mr. Big Nose- whose nose is very big- but they keep getting interrupted by things like sea monkeys, watching their favorite show, a drawing competition, a gorilla who tries to get one of their giant bananas, turning cats into canaries etc.

Doesn't school interrupt them too?They don't go to school (also explained in book 2)

What's their book about?
I don't want to ruin the experience of reading this book by telling you.

Are there illustrations?
There are, like, 3 or 4 on each page!

Did you like them? Did they help the story?They really added to the story to make it funnier. I really liked the barking dog show cartoons (shows them to me- very cute!).

What did you think of the book?
It was REALLY good. I really suggest it to anyone who likes funny stuff.

So it seems you've already read book 2. Will you be reading book 3?
Duh.

How did you choose this book?
I was looking through the bookstore and my mom grabbed the book and made me check it out. I ended up really liking it.

(To Leo's mom) How did you choose this book?
I think I chose it because of the cover. Something about the colors and the lettering made me think it would be the type of thing Leo would like.

(Back to Leo) How would you rate this book?
5 stars (out of 5)

Thanks Leo!

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What My Kid is Reading- Numbed! by David Lubar

Numbed!
Written by David Lubar
Age range: unknown (guess: 7-11)
Released August 1, 2014

This book is from your school's Media Center. Why did you choose the book?
It was suggested by the librarian to my class.

What made it sound appealing?
The fact that someone is suddenly unable to use math and numbers. It would be interesting to see what it's like to not be able to tell time, count, everything having to do with numbers.

Tell me more about the book
Two kids get numbers erased from their brain and they have to get them back because they are about to have a math test. If the whole class gets a good average grade they'll get an ice cream party.

What's the time span of the book?
About two days. And you get to see what it's like at home and at school.

How'd you like it?
It wasn't amazing but it was good. I thought it would be more about what it's like without math and numbers but it was more about them getting it back. The author didn't show much about the consequences of no numbers.

But there was something really good about the book- all the chapters, instead of regular numbers, they're math equations.

Was part of the purpose of the book to learn math?
Yes.

Did you learn anything new math-wise?
Yes.

Any illustrations?
No.

Was that okay?
Yup.

Did the cover make you want to read the book?
The cover was definitely odd- it stood out because it was weird.

Would you read another book by the same author?
Maybe. Depends on the book. I wasn't too much of a fan of this book.

How would you rate this book?
3 stars (out of 5)

Thanks Leo!

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What My Kid is Reading- Diary of a Wimpy Kid Old School

Leo read the new Diary of a Wimpy Kid in record time! I asked him to review it below.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Old School
Written and illustrated by Jeff Kinney
Ages 8-12

Book #10 in the series
Released November 3, 2015

What was this book about?
Greg Heffley (the main character in all the books) gets into a lot of trouble as usual. Plus his mom has banned all electronics for a week after creating a petition. Also, Greg goes to summer camp. Eventually you start to feel badly for Greg because he's always either getting into trouble or trouble is getting him.

Were all the usual characters in the book?
Yep. But some weren't mentioned much. Manny was barely mentioned except for the no pants after dinner rule which was really funny.

Who was your favorite character in the book?
I'm not able to answer that question. The only point of view was from Greg.

So did you like Greg as usual?
Yeah, he was his normal frowning, slouching self.

What else happens?
They trained their pet pig to walk on his hind legs. And he wears shorts. He's nothing like Oink It's Olive (my cousin's pig). Also their grandpa moves in and takes Greg's room.

Where does Greg end up?
So Greg has to sleep next to Manny which is the worst thing for him because the bedtime stories he has to listen to are ridiculous.

Are there illustrations in the book?
Lots of them. There is at least one on each page. Sometimes more.

Do they help tell the story?
Yes. And sometimes they show Greg's thoughts which can sometimes be a little ugly.

Do you like the art style?
Yes! Everyone is in a slouched position unless they're happy (rarely) or lying down.

Would you recommend this book?Yes. It's been a very long series so you'd better catch up on the series.

Do you have to read the other books or can you jump right into book 10?
It's not mandatory to read the other books.

Who would like this book?
Anyone. Including grownups because there are adult parts too.

Will there be a book 11?
Yes! But we don't know what it will be yet. It doesn't say anything about a next book at the end but just like the book(s) before, it doesn't say anything about the next book.

How would you rate this book?
5 stars (out of 5)

Thanks Leo! Glad you enjoyed the book!

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What My Kid is Reading- Quest for Justice: The Elementia Chronicles

My 10 year old just finished reading:

The Elementia Chronicles
Quest for Justice- An Unofficial Minecraft Fan Fiction Adventure
Written by Sean Fry Wolfe
Age range: 8-12
Released July 28, 2015

What was this book about?
It was about a new Minecraft player named Stan who wants to overthrow a king who created a server (a world that anyone can join). The king is ruthless and mean.

Do you have to be a Minecraft player to enjoy this book?
You don't need to know a single bit about Minecraft.

If you had never played Minecraft before, would this book make you want to play?
When I was done reading the book I felt like I wanted to be in the Minecraft world. Of course you can't so the next best thing is to play the game.

Would you recommend this book? 
YES! Anyone who plays Minecraft or is planning to play should read this- because you recognize what's happening in the book from when you've played the game.

Any illustrations in the book?
No.

Was that okay?
Yes- it was easy to figure things out because it had amazing descriptions.

Is there a book two?
Yes.

Do you want to read it?
YES! Because there was a perfect cliffhanger at the end of book one.

How would you rate this book?
5 stars (out of 5)

Thanks Leo!

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HELVETICA

I saw the HELVETICA movie this week. Yes, it's a movie about a font, but it has a rich and interesting history and the movie is interspersed with a variety of designers (a few big names and then a few smaller ones) who either extoll the font's virtues or rip it to shreds.

It was nice to see how excited some designers were when they described HELVETICA while others were quite funny in their criticism (either of the font or those who use it).

I walked away uncertain whether or not I wanted to use the font ever again- and that's what this drawing is about.

What we read this week

In honor of Children's Book Week, here is a collage of most of the books my wife and I read with our 3 1/2 year old son this past week. By Leo's decree, some books must be read every night (until he gets a new favorite) while others make the occasional appearance, cycling in and out.

The Fish Who Cried Wolf is a favorite book, beautifully illustrated and very engagingly written, but with what is easily the worst name. The original story (The Boy Who Cried Wolf) behind the name doesn't even strictly connect to this story and makes the book seem like just another carbon copy, but it is actually very originally written.

My Truck is Stuck is also nicely written with rhymes you can't get out of your head. Leo is now able to 'read' this book by himself because it flows so cleanly. Lots to see in the artwork.

Free Comic Book Day this year got my son stuck on Pixar's Cars and The Incredibles (which was a back-up feature to Cars). Cars was good and somewhat easy to follow (although he didn't get any of the irony which was a bit too subtle) but The Incredibles (written by the VERY talented Mark Waid) was a little too dense for Leo's age. When we read this one, we basically have to paraphrase the character development pages to keep him interested until the action starts again. Once there's jumping and running again (not much hitting), he loves it!

The last one I want to mention (among all of these great books) is Robert Munsch's Purple, Green and Yellow. Last night was my first time reading this book and I loved it! Although the drawing style is a little dated, the use of color was very appealing and nice to look at. And the story! Munsch has a way of packing so much into one story without overwhelming the reader. This short story could be turned into a movie adaptation making use of the interesting twists/occurrences in the book.

Now, I have to get back to drawing my own children's books!