3 for the 3-to-5 is where I give brief reviews of three books that I found in the 3-to-5 age range on Amazon. These books are theoretically in the science fiction and horror genres for little kids. (Although obviously for little readers ‘horror’ basically just means including ghosts and ghoulies.)
3 for 3-to-5 #2
Blast Off to the Moon: Dr. Wonderful loves asking big questions…and using science to answer them. She and her dog, Newton, want to know why the moon changes shape in the sky every night. But how can they study the moon when it’s so far away? By blasting off into space, of course! On their amazing journey, this detective duo gathers clues to solve their lunar mystery using the powers of science, curiosity, and teamwork.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Review: The illustrations in the book are cute and simple, with a colored pencil appearance. There is some unnecessary dialogue tagging, but overall the dialogue is fine for the intended age range. Blast Off to the Moon is the perfect length, as well. I liked the set up for the book, and how the clues were laid out in a way that encouraged young readers to try to figure out the answer for themselves. The Lunar Fun Facts list at the end was a good inclusion.
The Lake of Jimmy Jake: A creepy tale set on a dark and starless night. A young boy has to take a long and terrifying journey, a journey that takes him down a haunted lane and past a spooky lake, apparently haunted by a ghoul by the name of Jimmy Jake…
Rating: 3 out of 5
Review: If it wasn’t for the multiple errors that would have been caught had someone proofread the book, I would have given this a 4 star review. It’s even got a typo in the title listing on Amazon and Goodreads. Normally, I would have passed this by, but the cover made me decide to take a peek.
Errors aside, The Lake of Jimmy Jake has some simple but effective illustrations, and the story is told in a nice prose which roles easily off the tongue. It’s a clear, easy-to-understand story that little readers could easily get engrossed in. Definitely might be a fun one to tell around a campfire this summer.
Robots of the Alphabet Planet: Created from the imaginative mind of the young scholar Xander Ngwala, ABC: Robots of the Alphabet Planet teaches children ages 05 the letters of the alphabet. This book takes young readers to a place on a fantasy planet where each robot gives the name of who they are and the letter they represent. Each page of this children’s book showcases colorful illustrations of a robot associated with a different letter of the alphabet from A to Z. This first ABC book teaches correct uppercase letter and lowercase letter formation and letter recognition from A to Z. If your child loves robots and learning their ABC’s, then this is the book for them!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Review: I was happy to find a book for very beginning readers with robots in it. There is no story in ABC: Robots of the Alphabet Planet. It really is just a list of robots with letters of the alphabet attached. However, it does what it sets out to do very well. The robots are well drawn (and each one looks different!), the font chosen was a good choice, and the colors are pleasing to the eye.
Science fiction loving parents should put this one on their list to teach their little ones the alphabet.
Out of the 3 for 3-to-5 this week, I think ABC: Robots of the Alphabet Planet was my favorite.
All the pictures lead to the Goodreads pages for the books.
