The Vulgar Eclectic

Tag: kids books

  • Alone by Megan E. Freeman

    I just finished reading Alone (2021) by Megan E. Freeman, a young adult novel in free verse. It is narrated by a young girl, 12 years old in the beginning, who finds herself in a very serious survival situation after waking to find herself completely cut off from human contact. It is an extremely compelling…

  • Galactic Warlord by Douglas Hill

    I finished reading Galactic Warlord (1979) by Douglas Hill. I’ve read it once before; this time I read it aloud to my daughter. She very much enjoyed it and wants to start the second one in the series right away.  It’s a young adult science fiction novel that unfolds at a rapid pace with a…

  • Enola Holmes: The Graphic Novels, Book 1 by Serena Blasco

    I just finished reading Enola Holmes: The Graphic Novels, Book 1 (2022) by Serena Blasco, translated by Tanya Gold. It’s based on novels written by Nancy Springer. It contains three stories: The Case of the Missing Marquess, The Case of the Left-Handed Lady, and The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets. The stories are meant to…

  • The Spoken Word

    For awhile I’ve been enjoying listening to old Transformers books-on-tape while lying down. I recently decided to look at a list of titles with publication dates, so that I could try listening to them in order (not that it really matters much…they’re stand-alone stories with little to no continuity between books). Anyway, I’m really having…

  • Jean-Leon Huens

    I was curious about the cover art for the Prydain books I mentioned in the previous post. I have loved these pictures ever since I first saw them as a child. The art is evocative and beautiful. I wondered who the artist was, so I looked around online. The artist’s name is Jean-Leon Huens. I…

  • The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander

    When I was in elementary school, I read the novel The High King by Lloyd Alexander. I loved it! I remember making a board game based on the story on a big sheet of posterboard. I really hadn’t read anything like it before. It was epic and exciting, with memorable characters and important insights into…

  • The Boxcar Children

    I happened to walk past a little thrift store earlier today. I was in an area I’ve never visited before and noticed this store tucked away in a little strip mall. I decided to stop in and take a look around. I wasn’t finding much in the way of books I was interested in, but…

  • Arthur

    My mom gave me one of her childhood books when I was a kid. It’s one of my favorite books I had while growing up. And I love that it has her name written on the first page in her handwriting! I can remember marveling at the strangeness of some of it, and the beauty…

  • Bus Station Mystery (The Boxcar Children #18) by Gertrude Chandler Warner

    Here is an old book jot from September 2021: I finished reading Bus Station Mystery (1974), the 18th book in the Boxcar Children series by Gertrude Chandler Warner. In this story, the four Alden siblings are once again involved in an unanticipated adventure. This time, a bus station, a river, and a paint factory are…

  • The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks

    Here’s a book jot from September 2021: I finished reading The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks (1980). It’s a children’s novel that takes place in contemporary Britain. The story revolves around an old medicine cabinet and antique key. When used together, they impart a magic that turns small plastic toys into living…