Reading: LEARN TO DRAW DISNEY/PIXAR ONWARD - Walter Foster Jr. Creative Team

The coronavirus may have relegated Disney-Pixar's latest to streaming services over a theatrical release, but the Walter Foster Jr. Creative Team has scored another winner for fans of Pixar's newest animated classic with this full-color, fully-illustrated and thoroughly fleshed-out, step-by-step guidebook for creative kids. Even the youngest artists, here, should be able to flesh out a reasonable likeness of Ian, Barley, Blazy, the Manticore - all their favorite characters from New Mushroomtown featured in their favorite new movie, Onward. Starting with a list of easy-to-get tools and art supplies the kids can put together with a grown-up, each child can then easily flip to their favorite and, starting with a few simple lines, bring that character to life on paper. Walter Foster how-to arts and craft books have been around a lot of years; it's nice to see, once again, that the "junior team's" current crop of books for young artists are just as inspiring and creative as the classics; this one should keep its readers busy, and creative, for hours.  4/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Reading: TINY TRAVELER'S INDIA TREASURE QUEST - Steven Wolfe Pereira & Susie Jaramillo (writers), Melyee Tan & Abigail Gross (illustrators)

Starting in New Delhi, this brilliant, colorful, and highly educational board book for young children could equally aid adults as an illustrated primer to one of the most vibrant, diverse countries of the world. Through detailed illustrations featuring a search-and-find element on each page for little ones to discover a hidden treasure, readers young and old - for such a compact volume - are given an amazingly in-depth look at India, from the Bollywood film industry in Mumbai ... to a safari in Ranthambore ... via a Holi festival, a game of cricket, even chutney as just one element of the vast array of dishes and cuisines India has to offer ... readers are even treated to an Indian wedding and the art of henna as the new bride's hands are decorated for the ceremony. But it doesn't stop there; India is huge, after all, so Tiny Traveler readers also get to climb the Himalayas, ride on a shikara (houseboat) on Dal Lake in Kashmir, and visit the Taj Mahal - again, all while collecting a new treasure at each site. The words accompanying the lush and lively illustrations - in verse, no less - convey a tremendous amount of information while keep descriptions super-brief (as, really, the images speak for themselves), yet also perfectly serve as signposts spotlighting the historical and cultural importance of India as a nation. Amazing, especially for a small board book, and though this is my first visit with a volume from the Tiny Traveler's Treasure Quest series, if this is any indication of the justice each volume does to the country it's focused on, corny as it sounds I'd say the entire collection deserves a place of honor in any child's library; certainly for their first-class educational value, but also because they are simply that entertaining to look through, even on repeated readings. (Available 5/26)  5/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review. 

Reading: MY BEST FRIEND - Rob Hodgson

The most hilarious kid's picture book I've ever read - with a terrific level of snark to it that any adult would appreciate wholeheartedly - is a simple tale of friendship narrated by Mouse, a white rodent who's recently met his new best friend, Giant Owl, when the big bird picked him out (up, actually) from anyone else to be friends with. In bold, funny illustrations we watch Mouse and Giant Owl playing chasing games, as well as the generous owl bringing his new buddy sugar-enriched treats even though they tend to fatten up Mouse - err, that is, make him put on weight. In fact, Giant Owl is such a good friend, he evens gets Mouse his own little home, complete with shiny white bars. But what happens when Mouse suddenly wakes up in an enclosed, moist, dark place with his new best friend nowhere to be found might just be a revelation Mouse isn't ready for. With its wonderfully wicked, sarcastic sense of humor chronicling the friendship between one clueless little mouse and his big, hungry feathered friend, this picture book is a winner for both young and old alike that - no worries - plays out to a satisfying but kid-friendly/G-rated conclusion, the reader enjoying a few laugh-out-loud moments along the way. (Available May 19)  5/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Reading DEATH OF AN AMERICAN BEAUTY - Mariah Fredericks

(BLOG TOUR SPOTLIGHT)
Book three in the Jane Prescott mystery series, set in Gilded Age New York City, was my introduction to Mariah Fredericks's plucky (and I mean that in the nicest way) ladies'maid heroine, who this go-round has her vacation interrupted when murder strikes too close to her former home. Abandoned by her father at the age of three, Jane arrived in New York to live with her uncle in a former brothel he now runs as a refuge for women trying to start a new and better life. Even with her rather stern uncle, Jane's memories of her childhood home are good ones - though in recent times the refuge finds itself under siege by a band of pious "Christians" determined to shut down the place; so determined, in fact, they allude to Jane's uncle having more than a Christian interest in the women he boards there for free. Things go from bad to worse, however, when one of the more rambunctious of the lady residents is found murdered in an alley not too far from the refuge, her face butchered nearly beyond recognition, and - while also trying to help her employer work on costumes for a huge festival coming up at one of New York's largest/most renowned department stores for women - Jane finds herself playing detective to track down the killer when suspicion falls squarely on her uncle for the crime. My recent experience with mysteries has been more along the "cozy" lines, and that's definitely not what this is; Death of an American Beauty is a pure-blood historical mystery that fares a bit bloodier and randier in subject matter than any cozy. 

My interest in the book stemmed from my love of New York City and wanting to check out the author's "feel" for how it was back in 1913, and I have to admit that I was captivated by the city - as much a character itself - and its denizens as I was by Jane and the supporting cast, in 
what ended up being one of my favorites mystery reads in awhile, as well. Jane fixates quite quickly on who she thinks the killer is, the novel not so much about her detection and chasing down suspects (which may throw some mystery junkies, though it made me love the book that much more) as it is about her working through, by process of elimination, who could fit the bill. Even then, for me at least the ending was a surprise - and quite a suspenseful one; I didn't realize, until almost the end of the final confrontation (so to speak), that I'd been chewing on my bottom lip the whole time I was reading. Suspenseful, very well-written - so that you are put into the time and place of NYC 1913 immediately - and with a wholly likable cast of characters (including Jane's employer, male crime reporter friend, former mentor and hat-making friend from the refuge, and potential piano-playing suitor), though this was my introduction to Jane Prescott and her world, I most certainly can't wait to jump back to read the first two, to be able to catch up in time for book four. Very well-done.  4.5/5 stars

NOTE: I received a free ARC of this title from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review. 

Reading: THE SUN DOWN MOTEL - Simone St. James

Harder and harder as it gets to find a thriller that lives up to its marketing, The Sun Down Motel - though technically not a thriller - is a breath of fresh air that is an engrossing, often creepy mystery that gets under your skin and tries to stay there. Flipping back and forth between two timelines, readers learn upfront that in 1982 a young woman named Viv Delaney, working the overnight shift at the rundown Sun Down Motel in upstate Fell, New York, mysteriously disappeared in the middle of her shift, leaving purse, coat and even keys behind, her body never found. Flash forward to 2017, when college student Carly Kirk arrives in Fell. Carly, who's always had an obsession for true crime stories anyway, is more obsessed than ever with this one because Viv Delaney was her aunt; Carly's mother, who'd been haunted her entire life over the disappearance of her older sister Viv, died without answers and unable to even talk about her sibling. So Carly is in town to find answers, her search leading to the Sun Down Motel, where she finds herself taking on the same overnight shift her aunt worked 35 years ago. Eerily, virtually nothing has changed at the Sun Down in the three-plus decades; not the decor, the old-school multi-line office phone or sign-in guestbook ... not, as Carly sooner learns, even the ghosts. This genuinely creepy novel moves back and forth between 1982 and 2017, detailing what happened to Viv Delaney even as we also watch Carly unknowingly travel down a very similar path in trying to find the truth. A couple of very cool plot twists/surprises make good on the promise of the an awesome premise, and while I would have liked just a bit more punch to the very end of the tale, The Sun Down Motel is still one of the most engaging, "skin-crawliest" supernatural suspense stories I've read in a very long time.  4.5/5 stars

March Wrap-Up: What the Hell Happened??

Wow, the difference one month can make. Looks like I made it back to the Midwest, to reconnect with family, just in time to have to isolate myself from family (well, most of them; temporarily staying with my baby sis, who is awesome personified). I won't really comment on the pandemic because I am assuming that - like me - you're just as sick of hearing about it every day/all day, but suffice to say I hope that whoever reads these words, that you are PLEASE taking the isolation orders seriously - as well as taking care of you and yours until this crisis is over, and the world slips back onto its axis.

Only six books read in March (and no films, which stings like crazy); am seriously sort of beating myself up for just six, as most BookTubers claim to read that in a week (though I think most of us know that most of them skim instead of read, or listen to audiobooks on 2.5 speed and call that "reading"; what a joke). Still, on the extremely positive side there wasn't a single dud in the six, plus the variety was good, so am all for it (click image to enlarge, if you can't see the covers so well). Even better, got most of the reviews for March up already (scroll down to read); in fact, I think I am only missing the review for the last book read for the month, Night of the Living Ted, so will get that posted asap (spoiler alert: loved it!). 

Not much else to report, just trying to stay positive and not go nuts having to stay put. Worrying, also, about my friends, family, and friends-who-are-family, and hoping this all passes faster than the experts are now predicting. I have to say, though, getting lost in the world of books - as always - is an amazing short-term cure, so for you I hope that you will keep reading and keep the faith! MAY, where are you???