Short and cute - Lily and the Christmas Wish by Keris Stainton

Series: N/A, Standalone

Publication date: November 5, 2015

Publisher: Piccadilly Press

Genres: Childrens literature, 

Format: Paperback, review copy

Source: The publisher in exchange for an honest review

Pages: 165
Rating: ★★★★★/5

Goodreads ⎜Amazon ⎜Book Depository

Can one little girl and her dog make a town's Christmas wishes come true? 

Christmas is fast approaching, and the town of Pinewood has decided to do something really special to celebrate. Each person will write down a secret wish and tie it to the town's Christmas tree!

Nine-year-old Lily isn't quite  convinced. She's not sure that she believes in wishes coming true - although she really wants to.

But then a strange storm blows in, scattering all the wishes. . . and Lily wakes up the next morning to find that her adorable pug puppy, Bug, can talk! It's a wish come true. . . only it isn't Lily's wish.

It seems the stor has sent the Christmas magic awry, and now it's down to Lily, her younger brother James and Bug to sort out the mixed-up wishes. But can they fix things before Christmas Eve? 

Last month I reviewed another book by Keris Stainton; Counting Stars. You can read my review here. 

I absolutely love Christmas, it's my favorite time of year so when I came across this book I knew I had to grab it! I'm definitely glad I did! It's one of the cutest Christmas reads I've ever read.
I've already talked my sister into reading it and she loved it too! It's definitely going to be cute a used copy!

In Lily and the Christmas Wish we meet Lily, a 9-year-old girl. We also meet her little brother Jimmy, or James, and her divorced parents. Lastly, we meet Esme, Lily's very best friend. Even though we don't really get to know anyone on a deeper level I quite liked what we got to know about all the characters. For this short a book I think it's amazing how well I actually know each character!

The story is about Christmas wishes; everyone in Pinewood has to write their wish on a gift tag and tie it to the town's Christmas tree. Something happens and the wishes start to come true - but for someone else than the person who actually made the wish. Lily therefore tries to sort out all these wishes.

I had expected to enjoy this book but I didn't expect to love it as much as I do, since it is for a younger audience. But I read it in a single sitting and I didn't want it to end. I love the values this book teaches and I love how important family is in the story!
I also love Lily as a character, she's just wonderful and I just admire that she don't know what to wish for - she want the wish to be an important one, so no toys and no childish wishes. I also love how sweet she is and how she cares for her younger brother. She's definitely mature but she's still quite believable and I wish more kids were like her!

I'd hoped to get some illustrations, but there's only a bit in the chapter headings. I still love the story and it can definitely stand on it's own!

If I should summarize this book in 3 words it would be; family, diversity and, of course, Christmas.

The ACB of Honora Lee by Kate De Goldi

With illustrations by Gregory O'Brien
Series: N/A, Standalone 

Publication date: October 1, 2015
Publisher: Hot Key Books 
Genres: Middle grade, Picture books 
Format: Physical review copy
Source: The publisher in exchange for an honest review
Pages: 128
Rating: ★★★★/5

Goodreads ⎜Amazon ⎜Book Depository

A touching, playful story about family, forgetfulness and friendship.

Every Saturday Perry visits her grandmother, Honora Lee, at the Santa Lucia retirement home. Honora is sharp, outspoken and full of surprises. Perry adores her, but Gran's memory is failing.

As Perry compiles an ABC of life at Santa Lucia for a school project, it seems to her that Gran is loosing words just as quickly as she is collecting them. Together the pair provide a unique lens on life, language and growing old. 

I requested The ACB of Honora Lee on a whim because I usually don't read middle grade or children's book but something made me need it - probably the cover to be honest. The synopsis sold the book to me though, I love when family is a big aspect in literature for the younger audience. Somehow the ACB or ABC of the life of Perry's grandmother is a beautiful idea and the execution is marvelous!

First I think we should tackle the gorgeousness that is this book! First of all - the cover! It's full of bees yet somehow really cute and the colours make it POP. When you open the book.. Well, you should probably see for yourself;

I think we've gushed enough for now! Let's look at the actual story! 

I read The ACB of Honora Lee one morning on the train and it was so cute! I read it in a single sitting and I've thought about rereading it a couple of times already. I loved getting to know Perry, Honora and all the other residents at Santa Lucia. I loved looking at the illustrations and I loved how happy this book made me! 

It's such a cute and short story but somehow you get so attached to all the characters! I was a bit sad near the end but we knew it was coming! 

One thing that definitely made me laugh was when they recited the alphabet; it's not a,b,c,d etc. It's Eh Bee See Dee Ee Eff Gee Aitch etc. I laughed so hard and it actually took me a while to understand what they were trying to do (I laughed once I realized it was the ABC they were reciting)

I also loved how Honora, Perry's grandmother, didn't want to do the alphabet book in the correct order. She was all over the place and near the end Perry's father asks Perry whether she even remembers how to say the alphabet in the correct order and Perry's answer is; Probably,... but who wants to?. I've thought about this particular moment a lot since then. It's quite profound actually, we're so focused on doing things in the correct order but who actually wants to? I've tried to do more things like I want to ever since! 

I don't often read children's literature or middle grade books but I couldn't say no to this one. It's gorgeous and the story is wonderful as well. 

Fun fact; I only just realized that it's called the ACB and not the ABC.. Yes, it's quite bad. 

Quite a short review, but in my defense, the book is quite short as well! 

The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place by Julie Berry

Series: N/A, Standalone

Publication date: January 1, 2015

Publisher: Piccadilly

Genres: Middle Grade, Mystery

Format: Paperback

Source: Provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Pages: 326

Goodreads ⎜Amazon ⎜Book Depository

An outrageous plot of villainy starring seven brilliant young girls.

At Prickwillow Place, Disgraceful Mary Jane, Smooth Kitty and their fellow students are keeping a deadly secret.

When the headmistress of St Etheldreda's School for Young Ladies drops dead at Sunday dinner, her seven pupils agree on a clever scheme: to bury their teacher in the vegetable garden, dress up Stout Alice in her place, and educate themselves. This is tricky enough in a small Victorian community, but when the girls deduce that their teacher was poisoned - (it was the veal!) - they realise there is also a murderer on the prowl . . .

Middle grade is not usually my thing and I definitely don't request books in that genre since I'm disappointed in the majority of them. That said I could not not say yes to this book since I fell in love with the cover and the synopsis. Someone, on goodreads, said that it was like cluedo or clue - and even though I've never played the game it made me want to read it.
I'd really hoped that there'd be more illustrations inside the book but there's only a directory where you see who is who of the girls and the chapter headings.

We have 7 protagonists; all featured on the cover - which I like. In the beginning I had a hard time following 7 characters but Julie Berry has done a remarkable job of creating a different personality for each of the girls. Every single one of those girls had quirks and I found that I really liked all of them because of said quirks. I really enjoyed the close relationship between the girls, how they see themselves as a 'sisterhood' - which is why they keep the murders secret, so they can stay together.

The storyline didn't really grab me though, I couldn't keep my focus and I put it down a couple of times because I found it boring. I really wanted the storyline to surprise me but I wasn't really that impressed. Something that genuinely surprised me was who the murderer was - I had no idea who it was! So that's quite clever thinking Julie Berry!
I probably enjoyed the last 70-50 pages more than the rest of the book. Everything came together and I had no intentions of putting it down - I wanted to see how every little piece fit together. It's also near the end that there's a bit of romance. I wish there was more romance through out the book, it doesn't have to be overpowering but it would have been nice.
The ending satisfied me though, and it probably notched it up a star.

Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Series: N/A, Standalone

Publication date: March 1, 2012 (first published: January 1, 2012)

Publisher: Random House 

Genres: Middle Grade, Contemporary

Format: Hardcover

Source: Library

Pages: 310

Book Depository | Amazon | Goodreads | R.J. Palacio's Website

WONDER is the funny, sweet and incredibly moving story of Auggie Pullman. Born with a terrible facial abnormality, this shy, bright ten-year-old has been home-schooled by his parents for his whole life, in an attempt to protect him from the stares and cruelty of the outside world. Now, for the first time, Auggie is being sent to a real school - and he's dreading it. The thing is, Auggie's just an ordinary kid, with an extraordinary face. But can he convince his new classmates that he's just like them, underneath it all?




Through the voices of Auggie, his big sister Via, and his new friends Jack and Summer, WONDER follows Auggie's journey through his first year at Beecher Prep. Frank, powerful, warm and often heart-breaking, WONDER is a book you'll read in one sitting, pass on to others, and remember long after the final page.

I really, really liked this book! The characters were realistic, the storyline was great and overall a lovely book!

Lets talk characters first:

I really liked Auggie! He was so funny and sweet and I loved how he still had a sense of humour! He wasn't one of those complaining maincharacters that you sometimes come across. He has days where he is moodier than usual, but that is understandable, and don't we all have those days? 

I felt really sorry for him at times because he gets bullied and all those people looking at him. It can not be hard growing up looking like him, but the fact that he is still quirky and dorky is amazing! 

Summer! She is probably the sweetest girl ever! I love how she just went over to Auggie, sat down and started to talk to him - it was so cute! Especially because she ends up becoming one of his best friends, and to me that is amazing. She is so sweet towards Auggie and she totally gets him. I loved every part of the book she was in because she made Auggie so glad!

Jack Will is also one of Auggie's best friends. I love how he starts standing up for Auggie and chooses him over the "popular" boys. I also really liked that he wasn't rich! I sometimes feel like authors choose to portrait the "hero" or "saviour" as this rich guy that saves the "damsel in distress" which in this case is Auggie. Jack is the perfect friend for Auggie, and I love how Jack is the one copying notes and homework off Auggie.

Via is a great big sister to Auggie, she is just what he needs! 

The different point of views:

I have heard a bunch of different things about this book, but I have never heard that you see the story from different POVs - which I am totally okay with, since it was an important aspect of the book, at least for me, and I LOVED it! 

You get to see it from 6 different POVs. My favorite, besides Auggie, is Summer! It was way too short, but I loved it!

The different povs was amazing, you got to see how everyone else was affected by Auggie instead of just Auggie telling you about how he feels. It gave the story so much more depth, the povs kind of took the story to a whole another level! Especially the part that was seen from Via's point of view, because she is the "neglected child" because her parents had to take care of Auggie. You get to see how she deals with different stuff and how she actually feels about everything. At one point I started to dislike her, but she totally made up for it, because she cares so much about Auggie and I just feel like he couldn't have had a better sister!

What does Auggie actually look like?

He has ears, but they do not look like normal ears. 

When he eats, he chews with the front of his mouth. It kind of look like how a tortoise eats. 

He has had a BUNCH of surgeries, which is really sad! One of which was a jaw surgery where they took a piece of bone from his hip and inserted into his chin to make it look more normal. 

Some of the kids says he looks like one of those shrunken heads.

His eyes are about an inch below where they should be on his face, almost to halfway down his cheeks. They slant downward at an extreme angle, almost like diagonal slits that someone cut into his face, and the left is noticably lower that the right one. His eyes bulges outwards and he doesn't have eyelashes or eyebrows. 

The Auggie Evolution

When Auggie's parents told him that they think he should start going to school, an actual school, he was not that happy about it. He was actually really depressed because of it. 

When he befriends Summer he starts becoming more confident, and then when he and Jack really start hitting it off, he blooms into this wonderful little kid. 

Then in the end, after he has been in school for an entire year, he is normal. Of course not normal normal, but he doesn't think about his face anymore and he really enjoys going to school. He comes to accept who he is and that he is not only defined by his face but for his courage and friendship.

I loved this book to pieces, and I will seriously advice everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, to read this book. It teaches a valuable lesson and I hope that my siblings and middle-graders all over the world gets to read this book. If just to know that there are some people out in the world that doesn't have an easy life. 

I have to give this book 5 hearts since it will forever be one of my favorites, and I will try to make every child read this book.

I shared a couple of teasers of this book for a Teaser Tuesday, click here if you want to read them.

Challenges: Full House: Theme / issue you think is important

Resolutions: Use the library more / Review all the books I read