Children's Book Reviews

The Secret by Lindsay Barrett George
Greenwillow Books, February, 2005
Picture Book, 32 pages
ISBN: 0060295988
Ages 4-8
Ordering information:
Amazon.com

The Secret
by Lindsay Barrett George

The Secret is a sweetly charming story about animals who are passing around a secret. The secret is started by Mr. Snail. "Can you keep a secret?" said Mr. Snail to the mouse. "Yes, I can," said the mouse. Unfortunately, the mouse actually could not keep a secret and immediately squeaked Mr. Snail's big secret to the next creature he saw, the beetle. And the beetle pinched it to turtle, who grumbled it to the fish, who swished it to frog, who croaked it to salamander, and so on. Eventually the secret got to Miss Snail, the very snail Mr. Snail was trying to keep the secret from. But when Miss Snail heard the secret she turned to Mr. Snail and said, "I love you, too." So, in this case, sharing the secret ended up being a good thing. The book includes wonderfully vivid pictures of the little animals sharing the secret. Author Lindsay Barrett George used real sticks, bark, moss, silk leaves, flowers, coffee and pebbles to create the realistic 3-D effect in the book. Kids will love The Secret's story and artwork. It is sure to be a story they will want to hear many times.

Tiger's Blood (The Tiger's Apprentice Book 2) by Laurence Yep
HarperCollins, January, 2005
Hardcover, 226 pages
ISBN: 0060010169
Ages 10 and up
Ordering information:
Amazon.com

In The Tiger's Apprentice, Laurence Yep introduced readers to Tom, the boy who is the future Guardian of the phoenix egg which is sought by the vicious Clan of Nine. Tom's mentor, Mr. Hu, is a tiger when he's not human and his tiger nature is slowly transferring itself to Tom. Mr. Hu is weakened from their previous adventures, and assassins are on their trail. With the help of the disgraced dragon Mistral, Hu, Tom, Monkey and the Rat escape to the undersea dragon kingdom to allow Hu to recover his strength. Tom continues his magical studies with a dragon tutor, with humorous results. But all is not well in the undersea kingdom, and soon they find enemies there as well.

Laurence Yep has created a magical world which exists right alongside the mundane San Francisco. Although danger is always around the corner, Tom and his friends have so far been up to the challenges put before them. The died in the wool salesman Rat, the inscrutable Mr. Hu and the stunning descriptions of the dragons' undersea lair make for enchanting reading which will whet readers' appetites for the third adventure.

The Wizard Test by Hilari Bell
Eos, February, 2005
Hardcover, 166 pages
ISBN: 0060599405
Ages 9-12
Ordering information:
Amazon.com

The Wizard Test
by Hilari Bell

In young Dayven's world, wizardry has a terrible reputation. Wizards are necessary as healers, but otherwise the warriors despise them. Dayven is in training to be a Tharn Guardian, but like all boys his age he must take the wizard's test. Much to his chagrin, he passes with flying colors and is assigned to be a wizard's apprentice, instead of a warrior who could eventually be a Guardian. To make things more complex, the military leader wants Dayven to spy on his eccentric wizard master, Reddick. Reddick and Dayven are both themselves sent to spy on the nearby city of Cenzar, which is readying an attack. Years ago, Dayven's people stole the lands of the Cenzar, although that is not widely known among the young. Dayven goes into his new role with a great many preconceived notions, which one by one are shattered. He finds that enemies are not always enemies and friends are not always friends. Hilari Bell packs a wallop of intense emotion in this short coming of age story that will resonate with both youthful and adult readers.

Return to Book Reviews Index

Children's Book Reviews

The Secret by Lindsay Barrett George

Tiger's Blood (The Tiger's Apprentice Book 2) by Laurence Yep

The Wizard Test by Hilari Bell