Daphne's Bees: Guest review

This review was written by Grade 9 student Bronte L.

 

Written by Catherine Dempsey

Illustrated by Veselina Tomova

Running the Goat, Books & Broadsides

978-1-927917503

48 pp.

Ages 7-11

2022

 

Daphne’s grandmother keeps honeybees, and she often lets Daphne inspect the hives. But on the morning of her 10th birthday, Daphne is treated with her very own hive, bee suit, and equipment. With the help of her dad and grandmother, Daphne builds her hive, and starts a new colony. She has drone bees, worker bees, and most importantly, a queen bee! Grandma teaches her all about their different jobs, how to maintain the hives, and their life cycles.

Daphne was so excited. Now she knew for sure that her queen had hatched, and was laying eggs. She also knew the bees were gathering pollen and nectar. The bits of pollen were the little bright colours and the nectar was the juice from the flowers that would become honey.

From Daphne's Bees by Catherine Dempsey, illus. by Veselina Tomova

Daphne soon discovers that keeping bees isn’t all flowers and honey. Bees are protective of their queen, and, if they think they’re under attack, they aren’t afraid to sting the intruder and die in the process. There are also wasps to worry about. Wasps are like pirates, flying around in search of new or vulnerable hives, looking to steal their honey. However, Daphne is protective of her hive, just like the worker bees, and makes sure that nothing is going to happen to it on her watch.

From Daphne's Bees by Catherine Dempsey, illus. by Veselina Tomova

Daphne’s Bees by Newfoundland author Catherine Dempsey and illustrator Veselina Tomova tells the story of Daphne, her hive, and everything she learns along the way to becoming a beekeeper. The book has loads of information, especially for a picture book, and could be enjoyed by kids from kindergarten to Grade 6. The book includes a glossary, background information, and plenty of puns. It’s a great book to build kids’ appreciation for honeybees.

Daphne’s Bees is an essential book for students learning about nature and the importance of pollinators. It’s informative and fun, and includes a lighthearted story with painted illustrations. The little bees and flowers look realistic, and you can tell that the illustrations are actual paintings, with their pencil outlines, canvas texture, and thick paint strokes.

From Daphne's Bees by Catherine Dempsey, illus. by Veselina Tomova

My grandfather used to keep bees, and I know that if I had read this book several years ago I would’ve immediately wanted to help him take care of his hives!

~ Bronte L., Grade 9

A Box of Bones: Guest blog post

Today's review has been submitted by Grade 6 student Bronte L.

Written by Marina Cohen
Roaring Brook Press
978-1-250-17221-1
288 pp.
Ages 8-12
May 2019

In Marina Cohen’s book A Box of Bones, the main character, Kallie, is very logical and intelligent for her age, yet she lacks imagination. When her beloved grandfather takes her to the Festival of Fools, she doesn’t enjoy it as much as the other visitors do. During the Festival, a faceless man in a fedora gives Kallie a wooden box. Later, she figures out that the box is a puzzle. Against her father's advice, she starts solving the puzzle, and uncovering secrets. Finally she finds the right combination and unleashes something that seems like magic.

While Kallie tries to figure out what’s happening to her world, Liah, a young bone carver, goes on a long journey with her master to sell bone carvings to the empress.  On the journey, she ends up accidentally wrecking a valuable cup that her master made.  She tries to hide this fact from her master along the way.  Although Kallie and Liah's worlds are far apart in time and place, their stories connect in many ways. 

A Box of Bones by Marina Cohen is great for readers in Grades 4-8 seeking a book full of adventure and suspense. It's a book on developing friendships and uncovering family secrets. The large font, short chapters and 281 pages makes it great for a light read. The cliff hangers will make you stay up past your bedtime. The emotional description is fantastic.

Out of ten, I would give A Box of Bones an 8. I loved how the two worlds intertwined. Trying to put together all of the clues and secrets made me feel like a sleuth. All of the characters are original and interesting, their back stories are emotional and deep. Both worlds had their share of drama and suspense. This book gives the reader many chances to draw connections and imagine a new and exciting world.  Once you read this book, you will be drawn into the magic of it all.

~ Bronte L.

Innocent Heroes: Stories of Animals in the First World War: Guest blog post

Today's review has been submitted by Grade 5 student Bronte L.

Written by Sigmund Brouwer

Tundra

 978-1-101-91846-3

208 pp.

Ages 9-12

2017

Innocent Heroes by Sigmund Brouwer follows fictional Canadian animal war heroes to see how they contributed in World War I. Every short story is followed by the historical record behind it, and how that animal helped in the war.

There are many animal heroes in Innocent Heroes including Little Abigail, the pigeon, who was trained to carry messages to headquarters. She travelled long distances while the war continued on around her. Tomato the Airedale Terrier was also trained to deliver messages between trenches. When a surprise gas attack comes from the enemy, it's up to Tomato to try to warn the soldiers. Mercy dogs relayed messages in their own way. Biscotte, for example, was one of the many French mercy dogs who went out into enemy trenches to find injured soldiers. If a soldier was found alive, the dog would rip a piece of their uniform, deliver it back to his fellow soldiers and a rescue planned.

Some animals helped eased the hardships endured by the soldiers. Cats like Boomer made the Canadian trenches less horrible places for the soldiers by hunting rats. Living in the trenches was dirty, tiring, and not at all like home. The rats made it even worse, biting soldiers while they were trying to get some sleep before the busy day ahead. This is where Boomer the cat was helpful. Boomer would come out at night to hunt for rats, bringing them to Boomer’s owner and the lucky soldiers who would roast and eat them.  Mascots also played an important role. There were hundreds of trenches so the mascots helped to identify them. One such mascot, Leo the lion cub helped comfort soldiers and occasionally even make them laugh.

Other animals were used as work animals. Coal Dust was a horse and the trusty partner of Lance who lead other men on horses on scouting missions into areas full of dangerous craters made by shells. But when the shelling started up again and all the other horses and men scattered, it was up to Coal Dust to come to Lance's rescue. Mules know when danger is coming and think before they act, so mules were very useful in the war. Such was the work of Charlie the mule who sensed danger while walking with soldiers.  Louise the horse was one of the hundreds of horses that carried shells over to cannons to be fired at the enemy. Horses would haul load after load, four shells each, much too heavy for a soldier to carry.

I enjoyed this book because normally when we think of war, we think of human soldiers fighting for peace with guns and cannons. We think of the peace they brought us. But we generally forget the animal heroes that helped win victory. So now, after reading this book when I think of war I remember more than the human soldiers. I also will remember the carrier pigeons and the mercy dogs and the many animals. Without them, I don’t know if we would have been able to win the war.

I would recommend this book to ages 10  and up. Also I'd recommend it to readers interested in history, the war, animal lovers, and everyone else. The fictional but imaginative story line gives you an idea of what each animal would do.  Because it is enjoyable to read, and a great balance of fiction and nonfiction, I would give this book a 10 out of 10. I encourage everyone to read Innocent Heroes!

Written by Bronte L., 11

Tough Call (Lorimer Sports Stories): Guest blog post

Occasionally I invite young readers to review books 
for CanLit for LittleCanadians. 
I'm very pleased to present this review 
by eleven-year-old Bronte L., a Grade 5 student.

Written by Kelsey Blair

Lorimer

978-1-45941-368-9

128 pp.

Ages 10-13

September 2018

In Tough Call by Kelsey Blair, Malia King signs up to be a basketball referee to help her family with the basketball fees for her and her sister, Flo. She is assigned her first basketball game to referee. Malia is excited to find out that she is the referee for Flo’s first game. During the game, she makes a call favouring the rival team, Boundary. Her sister Flo gets furious with her because she feels that it was a close call and it cost them the game. Shouldn’t Malia have made the call in her sister’s favour? After that call she finds out how difficult reffing truly is.

When Malia gets her full reffing schedule, to her disappointment she is one of the referees for Flo’s games during the playoffs. People were still coming up to her in the halls and giving her a hard time about not making calls to help her own school win. How will refereeing more of the games make things for Malia in school? This new schedule is putting pressure on her to choose between favouring her school or making fair calls.

I thought Tough Call was a great book with lots of dialogue and detail. Kelsey Blair did a marvellous job describing the basketball games. Her play by play description of the action made it like I was there watching Malia and Flo! Kelsey Blair created a very believable main character. Her vivid descriptions of Malia’s emotions were so strong, you could feel them yourself.

Tough Call is a great light read for grades 4-8. At only 127 pages, it is easy and enjoyable for students to read. Her plot line is very relatable for students of this age group and the events in the book are family friendly. I encourage all basketball fans to read Tough Call.  True fans of the sport will appreciate the finer details and understand the pressure in these situations. Readers who are not fans of basketball will still enjoy Malia King’s story, as everyone can relate to being under pressure at school. I would give this book an 8 out of 10 as it has a great plot line, an inspiring story, and genuine characters.

Written by Bronte L. (11)

Red River Stallion: Guest Review 2

by Troon Harrison

Bloomsbury

978-1599908458

304 pp.

Ages 10-14

2013

Dear Troon Harrison,

    First of all, I just wanted to say that your book was awesome! I really enjoyed it and couldn’t put it down. It held my attention throughout the whole book, and that’s saying something, because I like novels that are exciting, and your’s fit the bill! I am an extremely soft-hearted person, and I felt so bad for Amelia and her beloved family, especially when the letter from Amelia’s father was hidden, and the family had thought that he had abandoned them.
    Throughout the book, I was able to connect to many of Amelia and Charlotte’s experiences. I can remember as a younger girl being so captivated of a gorgeous horse, and not being able to look away, just like Amelia when she saw Foxfire. I also can remember being so desperate to have a guide that I would look in the rarest spots, just as Amelia looked for her pawaken. By the end of the book, I can infer that Amelia realized that she didn’t need a pawaken, and that she was strong enough to face her own problems.
    Out of ten, I would rate your book a 9 because it was very exciting and I wanted the book to go on and on forever. One slight area that was not as enjoyable for me was how I had to reread some sections over and over before they made sense. Overall though, I loved your book and I beg you to write another one about Amelia and Charlotte’s adventures by the Red River with their beloved father and Foxfire.

Sincerely,

Grace D
Age 12