I’m not quite sure what to say about this book. I feel weird judging someone’s experiences so I won’t be doing that. Instead my rating and review will be based on the way the book made me feel. I’ve read a lot of books, including memoirs, with the experience of and recovery from sexual assault as an overriding theme but unfortunately this book wasn’t a good fit for me.
Bouncing between journal entries, poetry, stories told in third person where the author refers to himself as ‘he’ or ‘the boy’, letters from teachers and comments about the author from his friends, the reading experience felt disjointed to me. I had this strange sense of feeling guilty for reading the journal entries. The scattered input from teachers and friends had the feel of testimonials or letters of recommendation and seemed to come out of nowhere.
The graphic descriptions of sexual assaults and Grindr hookups were prevalent for a lot of the first half of the book. The Grindr hookups were ultimately explained as part of trauma induced sex addiction and while I understand trauma impacts I couldn’t stop myself from internally screaming for the author to please don’t go into the home of the stranger he just met. I’m not victim blaming here; I just wanted the author to know at the time that they deserved better.
I applaud the author’s transparency and expect his story will be helpful for men in the LGBTQIA community, particularly those who have been sexually assaulted by men. However, because so much of this book is highly triggering and the first half in particular feels like one traumatic experience after another without any respite or hope (that comes later), I worry that the people who would potentially benefit the most from this book may not make it past the flashbacks and descriptions of traumatic events.
Personally I felt so drained and depressed by the trauma of the first half (maybe even as much as the first 60% or so) that my brain wasn’t as receptive to the message of healing. Had there been some sort of integration of the traumatic and recovery sections this may have helped. I think ultimately the style of writing didn’t make me want to keep reading and the trauma content felt so constant that I struggled to finish it.
So far all of the reviews on Amazon have been 5 stars but the majority appear (I could be wrong) to be friends of the author and have mostly only reviewed one or two books. One reviewer in particular had the same first name as one of the friends quoted in the book which raised my suspicions, although I admit I could be wrong about that too.
I don’t want to turn you off reading this book but if you have experienced sexual assault, please hear me when I tell you that there’s a high likelihood this book will trigger you. Please be safe while reading it.
Thank you to NetGalley and BookBuzz.net for the opportunity to read this book. I’m sorry but after high hopes, this one just wasn’t for me.
⭐⭐
Rating: 2 out of 5.
Once Upon a Blurb
In his debut book, Austin tells his story of emerging into young adulthood while surviving sexual violence and living with mental illness. His story is narrated through journal entries, poetry, and short stories.
My brain got stuck on WOW! mode as I made my way through this book. Ruth Symons’ words were lovely, with easy to understand explanations of what’s happening in the flora and fauna worlds throughout the seasons, but were outshone by the pictures. I don’t think it would have mattered what words were used. They were never going to be the main event here.
My mind could not wrap itself around the creativity and genius of this artist and I kept telling myself that there was no way she could be this talented – but she is! There is not a splash of paint nor line of drawing in the entire book. Helen Ahpornsiri uses flowers and leaves to create the most stunning masterpieces of flowers, plants and animals! The heron and butterfly you see on the front cover are just a couple of examples of the jaw dropping images you will discover in these pages.
I can’t find a big enough or pretty enough word to describe just how breathtaking the animals in particular are. Helen’s attention to detail is extraordinary and how she can give each animal individual characters and expressions is beyond me. With the amount of work that must go into each creation you could forgive her for using the same image of a butterfly each time one was needed, yet each butterfly is an individual. There’s a row of ducklings following their mother and every single duckling is unique.
You’ll see bats, frogs, dragonflies, deer, squirrels, foxes, field mice, a hare and various insects. There are a group of mushrooms that are so beautiful.
I thought that this book couldn’t get any better but then I found the couple of pages where the background was black instead of the white that is behind most of the images. I have no words for the portrait of the owl with the black background. I would love to do a cross stitch of this design so I can hang it on my wall and marvel at it for the rest of my life.
You have to check out the time lapse videos of the creation of some of the animals on YouTube. Fair warning though, your brain may get stuck on a WOW! loop.
My library catalogue has this book listed under junior nonfiction although adults are probably going to love this even more than their kidlets. I could easily see this book making its way onto my coffee table so it’s always close by when I need to admire it.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
Once Upon a Blurb
An intricately crafted journey through four seasons of flora and fauna
Helen Ahpornsiri’s intricate artwork transforms leaves, petals, and seeds into bounding hares, swooping swallows, and blossoming trees. Using nothing but pressed plants, this journey through the seasons captures the wonder and magic of the natural world between the pages of a book. This standout title with beautiful nonfiction text will take readers through an extraordinary year in the wild.
I think it goes without saying that a book about mental health is going to wind up with one of my famous (or is that infamous!) trigger warnings but as someone whose brain can get fairly trigger happy I didn’t have any problems while reading this one myself. However, having said that, I’m not you so please be aware and keep yourself safe if you are triggered while reading.
This is one of the best books about mental health that I’ve read, and I’ve read plenty. What sets it apart is its author, Natasha Devon, who I’ll admit I’d never heard of prior to reading this book but now feels like someone I could be friends with. Natasha is upfront about her own experiences, writes in a down to earth conversational tone and is somehow able to simplify and explain difficult topics without dumbing them down. Natasha’s aim is to present “a comprehensive yet easy-to-understand overview” and she nails it!
While I’ve been there done that on the mental health merry-go-round personally and even picked up my own psychology degree from a Cornflakes box along the way I gained new insights, knowledge and understanding while reading this book. I often find books explaining mental health to be quite dry and one of my main whinges at university was the uncanny ability of some authors to transform fascinating topics into insomnia cures. I enjoyed reading this book so much though that I wanted to start reading it again as soon as I finished it, partly because I like ‘listening’ to Natasha talk about mental health and partly because I wanted to revisit all of my aha! moments.
I particularly admired Natasha’s ability to weave her own experiences and those of people she’s met along the way with facts (including references to make people like me happy) and insights gained through her work advocating for young people. It’s a balancing act that can result in some spectacular falls when authors incorporate their personal experiences in a book about mental health. Too often I’ve read books where it becomes either a dramatic sob story that takes your attention away from the helpful information that’s hidden somewhere amongst the tissues or a holier than thou ‘I have all the answers and although I’m better than you, I will impart some of my wisdom to you. Wow, don’t you resemble an ant as I look down my nose at you from the heights of my ivory tower’ attitude. Natasha did not fall off the tightrope once.
She was able to give enough information to let you know that she gets it, show empathy so you know that not only does she get it but she also gives a damn and does this amazing thing where she can talk to you about topics that are beyond difficult to live with but she leaves you with a feeling of hope. She speaks to, not at or down to, the reader and while she is direct and leaves no room for questions marks over her point of view (I intend those as compliments, not criticisms), she’s also sensitive, empathetic and funny. She comes across as someone that I would have been able to confide in as a young person and as an old(er) person I feel like she’s someone I’d want to chat with over a cuppa.
Oh, and before you get your politically correct knickers in a twist about the book’s title you should probably know that Natasha does explain the ‘mental’ thing but better than I could so here it is in her words …
“The most important thing to acknowledge before we begin is this: I am mental. I am mental according to the most common understanding of the term, in that I have a mental illness. I am also mental in the sense that I am an intellectual and emotional being, in possession of a brain. To have a mind is to be ‘mental’. And that, reader, means that you are mental, too.”
You should probably also know that the subjects aren’t always found under the letter of the alphabet that you’d expect. For example, self-harm lives in the J chapter, as in Just Attention Seeking, but trust me, your pitchforks are not required. This makes complete sense when you read the chapter. Take it from someone who has self-harmed; if pitchforks were required here I’d be handing them out personally but Natasha deals with this topic with the same amount of sensitivity, insight and wisdom as she does with the rest of the alphabet.
I want to ask where Natasha was when I was in high school, knowing I would have benefited greatly from anything she had to say but as I’m close to her in age and across the world that’s kind of a moot point. However I am greatly encouraged that there are Natashas in the world speaking to, and on behalf of, young people about mental health.
I do have a few comments about my personal experience in Australia versus what’s described in this book about the UK. I was gobsmacked that patients only get an average of 6 minutes for a GP appointment. It made me feel so lucky that my GP has 15 minute appointments as standard and 30 minute ones available if you have a list of a bazillion things to discuss or one tricky topic. I also feel even more appreciative that I have two of the most wonderful GP’s on the planet who understand mental health conditions and who consistently go way above and beyond when it comes to looking out for my best interests.
I was absolutely appalled to read about the usual waiting times for people in the UK to be able to access mental health services. Again, my appreciation level for my equally above and beyond awesome psychologist who I may sometimes refer to as Sunshine [insert their first name here] has skyrocketed, even though I didn’t think that was possible.
Okay, so maybe this isn’t as much a traditional book review as it is me telling you the feeling I get from the author but I wonder in this instance if that’s just as important. You can say all of the right things but no one is going to want to listen to you if you’re obnoxious or you have the facts right but can’t back it up with experience or at least some compassion.
What was refreshing in Natasha’s approach was her humour. I find, probably like most people, that a good dose of humour can make even the most difficult topics easier to deal with and this book was no exception. I particularly loved the cute little illustrations by Ruby Elliott that accompanied some of the chapters and only wish there were more of them.
I am struggling to tell you who I’d recommend this book for because ‘everyone’ seems like a cop out so I’ll just tell you some groups of people that came to mind as I was reading: young people, parents, teachers, anyone with a mental illness, anyone supporting anyone with a mental illness, anyone who works in a professional capacity with young people and/or those with mental illnesses, anyone who wants to be a better friend, government and/or political types who make decisions about how money for mental health is allocated, anyone who has influence in any form of media, and anyone who wants to be a better person in general. So, yeah, everyone!
While the chapters can be read in any order I’d highly recommend you read it straight through first. I highlighted so many passages but I am having trouble picking out a favourite because they’re all so damn good. Instead I’ll tell you my favourite word of the book: cheesed-off-ness. I came across it a week ago and it is still making me smile each time I think of it. I’m also quite partial to any book that includes any of the following: shysters, wodge, almighty s**t-show, f**kwittery, bogus, skew-whiff, raison d’être.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Bluebird, an imprint of Pan Macmillan, for the opportunity to discover this awesomeness. Natasha is definitely one of the good boxes. I know I’m going to get more out of it when the inevitable reread happens. I’m going to be recommending this book to my doctors and psychologist, along with random people who cross my path. I leave this book (temporarily – I know I’ll be back soon!) wanting to be a better person, advocate, listener and support person, and feeling hopeful and inspired.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
Once Upon a Blurb
‘Am I normal?’
‘What’s an anxiety disorder?’
‘Does therapy work?’
These are just a few of the questions Natasha Devon is asked as she travels the UK campaigning for better mental health awareness and provision. Here, Natasha calls upon experts in the fields of psychology, neuroscience and anthropology to debunk and demystify the full spectrum of mental health. From A (Anxiety) to Z (Zero F**ks Given – or the art of having high self-esteem) via everything from body image and gender to differentiating ‘sadness’ from ‘depression’.
Statistically, one in three of us will experience symptoms of a mental illness during our lifetimes. Yet all of us have a brain, and so we ALL have mental health – regardless of age, sexuality, race or background. The past few years have seen an explosion in awareness, yet it seems there is still widespread confusion. A Beginner’s Guide to Being Mental is for anyone who wants to have this essential conversation, written as only Natasha – with her combination of expertise, personal experience and humour – knows how.
So, I decided to read a love story to coincide with the royal wedding and naturally chose a picture book. The Fright Club members are all practising their scares, from the ghost’s Boo! to the butterfly’s Blah!, but Fran K. Stein is doing something weird with pink paper, scissors and glue.
Several of the Club members try to guess what Fran is making (the ghost’s paper butt guess is the best one) before Bunny explains what Fran is really up to. It turns out that it’s Valentine’s Day and Fran has made a pink paper heart, which leads Sandy the witch to wonder the scariest thing of all…
“Do you think Fran … gulp … is in LOVE?”
Bunny then tells the bewildered Fright Club members what love is, terrifying them more and more with each new piece of information. Fran is reminded what love really is when his Valentine appears. Aww! 💕
The illustrations in this book are adorable! With muted colours and expressive characters I loved every picture. My favourites are those that show the horror of the Fright Club members when Bunny is explaining what love is.
This culminates in a two page illustration with the characters’ “EEEEWWW!” expressions. Sandy the witch looks decidedly nauseous and may vomit at any moment. The ghost has its eyes screwed up tightly and its tongue has escaped its mouth, looking to be mid “Blech!” The spider’s eyes are goggled. Vladimir, the werewolf, mummy and butterfly also have priceless expressions.
I’ve read this book three times over the last couple of weeks and I love it each time. In fact, if any of you are desperately searching for a Valentine’s Day present for me 😜 I’d love my own copy of this book. I definitely have to read Ethan Long’s other books, especially this book’s companion, Fright Club.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
Once Upon a Blurb
Something strange is in the air on this dark, cold night.
The members of Fright Club are always ready to scare, but tonight Fran K. Stein has something else on his mind. He’s busy making something, and the other monsters want to know what it is.
Could it be a mask with fangs? A big pink nose? Or maybe a paper butt? No … it’s a Valentine!
That means one thing … EEEEK!!Is Fran in love? What could be scarier than falling in love?!?
After the events in Zita the Spacegirl Zita has gone from Girl Who Pressed the Red Button to Famous Girl Who Pressed the Red Button. Oh, and she did have a part to play in the whole saving Scriptorius from the apocalyptic asteroid thing.
When an Imprint-o-Tron robot imprints on a poster of Zita, it begins its transformation into Zita Imposter Extraordinaire. Eager for some respite from the adoration of the masses, Zita is only too happy to allow robot Zita to take the glory. While robot Zita soaks up the attention, human Zita and Mouse sneak off to enjoy Lady Madrigal’s circus.
Meanwhile, ambassadors from New Lumponia plead their case for (robot) Zita to save their planet from a swarm of star hearts, which are deadlier, less cutesy and with nastier looking teeth than they sound. Before she knows it real Zita finds herself left behind, branded a criminal and unsure who she can trust.
Along the way she meets plenty of new characters including Madrigal, a gigantic cat with glowing eyes called Glissando and my personal favourite, Shippy. We learn some unexpected backstories for Piper (just don’t call him Whistle Man) and Mouse. Piper also reveals a hidden talent along the way which comes in quite handy.
The illustrations are just as good as the first story and even feature a cameo of my mate Jerry from Zita the Spacegirl. I love the aerial units, the spider and the adorable multiplying Doppelganger. There’s one panel that certainly gives new meaning to heart attack as well.
The best thing about robot Zita is that she can read 147 books straight without needing to stop to eat and she has an eidetic memory. I wish!!
The worst thing about this book? There’s a cliffhanger and I don’t have The Return of Zita the Spacegirl on hand. How am I supposed to move on with my life before I find out if Mouse is okay, if Zita ever returns home and if she does, how she can ever say goodbye to all of her new friends across the galaxy?!
I will not sneak a peek at reviews of the next one to find answers.
I will not sneak a peek at reviews of the next one to find answers …
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
Once Upon a Blurb
Fame comes at a price …
Zita must find her way back to earth … but her space adventures have made her a galactic megastar! Who can you trust when your true self is overshadowed by your public image? And to make things worse … Zita’s got a robot double making trouble – while wearing her face!
First, I want to point out that this book currently has a high proportion of 4 and 5 star reviews so please don’t just read my review and decide based on that alone that this book is not for you. I’d encourage you to read positive reviews as well and then decide for yourself if it’s the book for you or not.
I requested a review copy of Pendle Fire from NetGalley (thank you very much to NetGalley and Bloodhound Books for the opportunity) and I was looking forward to reading it, mostly because I wanted to know about the Hobbledy Man. I loved the sound of the centuries of urban legend coming to life, the question mark over the possibility of witchcraft and a potential apocalypse in the mix. It sounded really interesting and like my type of book. I was aware from the blurb that there’d be an investigation by a social worker into the alleged gang rape of two teenage girls so I expected my review would include content warnings for sexual assault.
However I feel like the book I read about in the blurb and the book I attempted to read over the past ten days were two different books. The blurb was accurate to a point but had it included any of the following information I would have known straight away this wasn’t the book for me:
The Racist, Sexist, Homophobic and Anti-Muslim Parts – There are so many instances throughout the book but I’m not going to quote any of the remarks. Basically you have one group against another group to the point of riots. The escalating riots are actually a large part of the book. I know this is real life and I concede that the author did a good job of showing the escalation of the violence but I’m not personally interested in reading about rioting misogynistic, racist, homophobic, anti [insert any religious belief here] idiots, or corrupt cops for that matter.
The Swearing – I can swear with the best of them but there’s swearing and then there’s utter disrespect. I don’t voluntarily spend time with anyone who calls anyone a c***. I don’t want to read about people who speak to people like that either. Maybe you don’t have a problem with that word but I really do and I’m unapologetic about my disgust surrounding its use. Had I not been trying to read this book to review it I would have stopped reading in chapter 2 when it first showed up and I certainly wouldn’t have still been reading for the subsequent seven (so my Kindle tells me) times it was used.
I tried to connect with the characters, especially the social worker, but none of the people in this story made me need to keep reading to find out what happened to them. Even now at 80% I don’t feel like I need to know how the story ends. It took me a lot longer than it probably should have to realise that there were two characters in the book with the same first name. Yesterday when I was explaining my frustration about this book to someone I couldn’t even remember the name the characters shared or which character one of them was in the book, both of which pointed out to me my lack of investment in this story.
Because this isn’t the sort of book that I’d have started had I known what I do now I can’t tell you how it measures up against others with similar themes. I do, however, want to be specific in telling you that I want to separate the behaviour of the characters in the book from its author. Just because I hated all of the racism, sexism, all the other isms and the disgusting actions of the deplorable characters in their book doesn’t mean that I think for a moment that any of these things should be thought of the author.
This book doesn’t make me want to automatically discount this author’s other books but should I come across another one I’ll be looking at more than the blurb before I decide if it’s for me or not.
Once Upon a Blurb
Social worker Johnny Malkin is battling a crippling workload and a hostile local community. That’s on a good day: things are about to get a whole lot worse.
Two fourteen-year-old girls are found wandering Aitken Wood on the slopes of Pendle Hill, claiming to have been raped by a gang of men. With no female social workers available, Johnny is assigned to their case. But what, at first, looks like yet another incident of child exploitation takes a sinister turn when the girls start speaking of a forthcoming apocalypse.
When Johnny interviews one of the girls, Jenna Dunham, her story starts to unravel. His investigation draws him into a tight-knit village community in the shadow of Pendle Hill, where whispers of witchcraft and child abuse go back to the Middle Ages.
One name recurs, The Hobbledy Man. Is he responsible for the outbreaks of violence sweeping across the country?
… and you’re suddenly in a place that only you can imagine.
A book called Book about books! Of course I was going to love this one! Whether you’re introducing a child to the magical portal books open to anywhere you can imagine, you’re suffering from a case of the dreaded reading slump or you just want to feel the spark that ignites when kindred spirits find one another, Book is the book for you.
Book brings to mind the marvellous adventures you’ve taken between pages, the places you’ve travelled in your imagination and the lifelong friends you’ve met there. Focusing on beautiful books that you can hold in your hand, you’re taken on a journey …
Where imagination scrapes the skies of opportunity, the forests of what-could-be stretch beyond the horizon
It felt like I was in an enchanted land while reading this book, mesmerised by the awesomeness that is the written word swirling around in my imagination. Natalie Hoopes’ illustrations were the perfect accompaniment to David Miles’ celebration of books.
The cranky little critters with the sharp fangs that represented the viruses books are immune to, the shelter made of books under which the boy (our protagonist) is reading and the lightbulbs with wings were some of my favourite elements. My absolute favourite illustration shows some of the adventures that await you when you look closer at a book. Showing different scenes unfolding within zoomed in letters was such a gorgeous way of getting the point across.
I want my own copy of this book so I can revisit it whenever I want to be reminded of why I’m so passionate about books. I’m so glad I accidentally found this alleged children’s book. While I’m sure kids will enjoy it I think it’s adults who will truly appreciate it.
You can say goodbye without feeling sad, because you know you can come back as often as you wish.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
Once Upon a Blurb
In a world dazzled by the latest gadgets and mesmerised by Internet videos, the humble book seems like the most ordinary thing that could be. And perhaps it is until you learn to look closer … and closer … and closer … and you’re suddenly in a world that only you can imagine.
With soft, warm storytelling and stunning, whimsical illustrations, Book embarks the reader on an imaginative journey through the literary lands of fact and fiction, a world where passwords, viruses, and broken screens can’t stop a young boy’s earnest quest for truth. Join in this celebration of literature, scrape the skies of opportunity, traverse the forests of what-could-be, free the powers of knowledge, and discover once again why the humble book is anything but ordinary.
Okay, Ninja-rella is really fun! As one of the Far Out Fairy Tales graphic novels, the original gets twisted in some imaginative ways. I love that Ninja-rella isn’t hoping to go to the Prince’s ball because she wants her happily ever after, being saved from her circumstances by the Prince and then marrying him. No, this version of Cinderella wants to save herself and the Prince by becoming his “extremely awesome royal ninja bodyguard”.
Having learned to be smart from her mother and strong from her father, Cinderella transforms herself into a kick-ass ninja, now known as Ninja-rella, after her mother’s death. Of course, her father remarries a woman with two daughters and after he too dies, Ninja-rella is relegated to servant by her cliché evil stepmother.
On the evening of the ball the most adorable little fairy godninja rocks up to outfit Ninja-rella in appropriate ninja attire and provides her with her glass katana sword!
There’s no pumpkin or talking animals in this version so Ninja-rella makes her own way to the ball.
Ninja-rella has some brilliant moves and her expressions are priceless. I appreciated that it’s her strength and skills that shine in this story instead of her beauty. I really connected to her and loved her determination and attitude.
The illustrations were fantastic, capturing Ninja-rella’s emotions and moves well. I always enjoy the bonus material at the end of the Far Out Fairy Tales stories: an explanation of the original story, illustrated representation of the main differences between the original and Far Out version, questions to get the reader to think about what they’ve read and a glossary that explains tricky words.
My main nitpick with this story is that I was disappointed Ninja-rella ran from the Prince so he wouldn’t see her rags at midnight. I would’ve thought this Cinderella wouldn’t give a damn about her clothes and what others thought of them. However I concede it’s a necessary evil to move the plot along to the all important search for the owner of the glass katana.
As a side note, I always found it bizarre in the version I grew up with that at midnight all of the fairy godmother magic is undone – except for the slipper the Prince took door to door. Surely the glass slipper should have vanished or transformed back into its pre-magic form like everything else?
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
Once Upon a Blurb
Cinderella’s stepmother and two stepsisters treat her like dirt. Each and every day, they force her to clean their clothes, cook their meals, and only give her rags to wear and crumbs to eat. But each night, in secret and in shadows, Cinderella trains to be a ninja! More than anything, Cinderella yearns to become the Prince’s personal bodyguard. When the opportunity to prove her worth to the Prince finally arrives in the form of an invitation to a royal costume ball, Cinderella’s stepmother won’t let her go! But this time around, Ninja-rella isn’t going to take “no” for an answer …
My library ordered more Far Out Fairy Tales and Red Riding Hood, Superhero is one I’d really been looking forward to getting my big teeth into (sorry but I had to go there!). While it was still a fun twist on the original it was lacking the woohoo! factor of some of the others in the series.
Ruby Topper first gained her awesome powers of flight, laser-ray vision and extreme strength when she freaked out an alien by hugging it in Area 54. The poor alien mistook the loving squeeze for attack and accidentally left its magical red hood and cloak behind when it took off in its UFO, possibly never to be seen again.
Since acquiring her new favourite outfit, Ruby has saving the Earth and moon from the nefarious plots and schemes of super-villains, unbeknownst to her mother.
This adventure begins with Ruby and her mother on their way to Camp David to celebrate the granny’s (A.K.A, the President’s) birthday. On their way Ruby/Red discovers that familiar foe, Professor Grimm, is up to his old tricks. Determined to achieve world domination, Grimmy has decided to kidnap granny using his latest invention, the Big Bad Wolf-Bot. It’s up to Ruby to save the day, or else President granny won’t be enjoying any birthday cake this year!
As is standard with the Far Out Fairy Tales series, the story has some cool twists on the original (which is described after the twisted version) and there are wonderful illustrations, along with visual story questions, a guide to the main differences between the original and twisted versions of the tale and a glossary for tricky words.
I didn’t connect with the characters in this tale and unlike a lot of the others, I didn’t find this one funny. I liked the twisted changes that were made, especially Red’s transformation from victim to superhero. However, while this was a decent enough story, I don’t feel the need to ramble on about the wonders of this graphic novel.
⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 3 out of 5.
Once Upon a Blurb
While taking a tour of Area 54 with her grandmother, the President of the United States, little Ruby Topper discovers a mysterious little alien carrying a red hood. When Ruby dons the crimson cape and cowl, it grants her AMAZING SUPERPOWERS! But will her newfound abilities be enough to save the White House – and her grandmother – from the rampaging Big Bad Wolf-Bot?
Yes, another unicorn book! Whenever I discover another unicorn book be assured you will hear about it. 😃
Unicorn and horse may share a pen but they do not share a personality. Unicorn is a dancing, prancing, cheery unicorn who eats pink cupcakes for every meal. Horse is not. Horse has the funniest surly, snarky attitude and is secretly jealous of unicorn, with all of his friends and rainbow farts. Yes, this unicorn farts rainbows!!! 💨 🌈
All is normal, with unicorn happy and horse not. Then unicorn is kidnapped by a couple of thieves wearing convict stripes and Zorro masks. Uh oh! Will horse save the day or will he enjoy having the pen to himself?
The illustrations are sweet, colourful and quirky. There aren’t a great deal of words in this book but the illustrations more than make up for it, bringing all of the emotions of the characters to life. Besides our chipper unicorn and cranky horse, we also meet some mice, squirrels, a bird, a fox and a turtle, who are all just gorgeous.
I’m not going to tell you that my favourite illustration is of the unicorn farting rainbows because that would be too obvious. Instead I’ll tell you my favourites of the two main characters. I love horse standing under the dark cloud with rain dripping off him and a soaked flower crown hanging around his neck.
I adore the pink cupcake picnic with unicorn, fox, two squirrels and two mice together on a pink picnic rug, unicorn regally offering a cupcake to horse in one of his hooves. The fox is sitting behind unicorn with a cupcake in paw and its tongue is sticking out. 😍
I probably found this story funnier than I should have but between the rainbow farts and horse’s expressions, this was right up my alley! Ultimately it’s a lovely story about friendship and how isolated envy can make you. At the end of the day there’s always going to be enough rainbow farts and pink cupcakes to go around.
I need to read this book about another hundred times before I return it to my library, at which time I expect I’ll need to buy my own copy.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 5 out of 5.
Once Upon a Blurb
Unicorn is a unicorn. And Horse is, well … not.
Horse is brown. Horse is plain. And Horse can’t stand the unicorn he shares a pen with. Unicorn dances. Tra la la! Horse does not. Blah blah blah. But when robbers kidnap Unicorn for a local circus, what will Horse decide to do?
Packed with forty-eight pages of hilarious illustrations and deadpan wit, Unicorn (and Horse) is a funny yet endearing lesson on envy with one important truth: We are sometimes unicorns. We are sometimes horses. And happiness doesn’t always come from pink cupcakes for breakfast.
Schizanthus Nerd 