"Gold Medal Books" Olympics Library Display

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Wonder Woman at Super Hero High

Wonder Woman at Super Hero High
(DC Super Hero Girls)
Lisa Yee

My rating: ★★½

ISBN: 978-1101940594
Publisher: Random House
Date of publication: March 1, 2016
Age: Grades 4 - 7
Genre: Science Fiction
Format: library book

Themes: DC Superheroes, friendship, school, competition,

Wonder Woman has only ever known life on Paradise Island, but she wants fulfill her full potential as a superhero. Despite her mother's misgivings, Wonder Woman enrolls at the elite Super Hero High and eagerly studies hard to ace classes, embraces new friends, and juggles a variety of clubs and training. What she doesn't anticipate is a roommate documenting her every move on social media, anonymous threatening notes telling her to leave, and the ever never-before-seen boys. High school might be harder than she thought.

Kick-butt female superheroes and villains kicking back in high school? Sounds like an awesome idea! And...then I read the book. While it's a book that fills a void in the male-heavy superhero world, it could've been executed so much better. The story line was very repetitive and dragged quite a bit. The characters, while beloved, were pretty ditsy. Wonder Woman is, indeed, insatiably optimistic, slightly ignorant (life on a secluded island with only women might do that to you), and dedicated to justice—but in this book, that all came together to make her seem like an airhead. Especially when she earned the nickname "Wondy." Oh, Wondy...

I did enjoy some aspects, like the antics of Harley Quinn and Wondy's reaction to the dorky-but-cute Steve Trevor. Also, the research that went into it is impressive—every single character comes from the DC universe. So while I may not have loved the story, I still appreciate its helping girls to delve into the nerd culture.

Readalikes would include books like Goddess Girls or Grimmtastic Girls.

Find it at your library or on Amazon

The Mixed-Up Truck

The Mixed-Up Truck
Written and illustrated by Stephen Savage

My rating: ★★★★½

ISBN: 978-1626721531
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Date of publication: July 5, 2016
Age: 2 - 6 years
Format: library book

Themes: construction vehicles, cement mixer, mistakes, fixes

When the cement mixer shows up for his first day on the job, he's eager to help. What should he do? The other trucks—busy digging, dumping, and lifting—tell him to get a load of powdery white cement to mix with water. But what the truck actually mixes up is not quite what anybody was expecting! Wanting to fix his mistake, the cement mixer tries and tries again, eventually discovering that some mistakes aren't always a bad thing.

This book is a companion to Savage's first truck book, Supertruck, which I briefly reviewed back here. That one was good, yes, but this one? This one is even better! First off, the word play in the title just starts it off right. The story? This little truck's mistakes make quite the fun surprises that will have any child thrilled. I was smiling throughout the whole thing, myself—it's just so awesome. The simple text, repetitious storyline, and bold illustrations make this perfect for the youngest of readers and an excellent storytime choice. Plus it involves elements that kids love, e.g. construction vehicles and (gah, I don't want to spoil it for you, just read it!).

Overall, definitely recommended. Kids will love it. Also, its a great segway into fun extension activities (get ready for lots of mixing and, hopefully, not too much of a mess, haha).

Find it at your library or on Amazon

The School is Alive!

The School is Alive!
(Eerie Elementary #1)
Written by Jack Chabert, illustrated by Sam Ricks

My rating: ★★★

ISBN: 978-0545623926
Publisher: Scholastic
Date of publication: June 24, 2014
Age: Grades 1 - 4
Genre: Horror
Format: library book

Themes: elementary school, responsibility, monsters/haunting, friendship

Sam Graves is Eerie Elementary's newest hall moniter. And besides having to wear a horrible bright orange sash, he soon finds the role will earn him some enemies—the first and foremost being the school itself! Barely surviving the playground quicksand and the tentacle-like fire hose, Sam's not sure he can take on this monster of a school—especially when it seems no one else notices what's going on. Yet, with the help of the wise old caretaker and Sam's friends, Sam trains for the day the school will make its most dangerous attack. Will he be ready to fight?

I've been seeing books in this series pop up more and more and decided it was about time I gave it a try. And wow, this was creepier and more exciting than I expected! The high-action plot, bold onomatopoeia, and plentiful illustrations is sure to keep young readers engaged and excited. I really enjoyed some of the scares and thought the illustrations did a good job of balancing the scary with some cartoonish fun. The story, in the end however, was not my favorite. Such a high action plot leaves a lot to be desired in the characters. Sam has some key moments of bravery and humor, but that's about it. His two friends, Antonio and Lucy, are especially flat. I'm hoping the later books in the series do them more justice.

Overall, the complaint about the characters is my own preference. Really, kids are going to enjoy this. And parents will appreciate the good vocabulary and page count. It's a great precursor to Goosebumps and other such horrors.

Find it at your library or on Amazon