Monster Needs a Party (A Monster & Me™ book) by Paul Czajak – illustrations by Wendy Grieb

ISBN: 978-1-938063-55-8
Hardcover - $16.95

About the book:  A Monster & Me Book – That time of year is finally here: Monster’s birthday has arrived!  With pirates, prizes, and playful rhyme, this story is sure to surprise readers until the very last page.

Review: This is a really, really fun book and the second one I have read in the Monster & Me series.  I will not hesitate to read any future editions.  The rhyming pattern to the story is so easy to read and the illustrations are wonderful

It’s Monster’s birthday and he wants to have a pirate party with all his friends, but it seems that no one can attend.  Monster is very sad, so his friend offers to take him to Pirateland in hopes this will make him glad.  Monster says,”Okay, I’ll go” but doesn’t really expect to have much fun, you know.  But he was greatly surprised at all the fun games and rides!  When it was time to go home, Monster was no longer glum and walked into a birthday surprise.  All his friends did come to his birthday party and Monster had the best birthday ever.

Paul Czajak never disappoints with his illustrations and rhyming story. Fun, cheerful, and appealing in a monstrously delightful way.

If you have a chance to read this book, you’ll have fun too! (reviewed by P.Howard)

DISCLOSURE: A complimentary copy was provided by the publisher to facilitate this review. Opinions are those of the reviewer. No compensation was received for this review.

Seaver the Weaver by Paul Czajak, pictures by The Brothers Hilts

ISBN13: 9781938063572

About the book: Seaver is an orb spider with a sky full of inspiration. His siblings prefer tradition and aren’t afraid to let him know. But Seaver doesn’t mind! He loves his new shapes and isn’t afraid to stand out. Told with quiet charm, this picture book tangles readers in a web of delight.


Review:  Seaver the Weaver is a delightful story about an orb spider who has a unique outlook on weaving his own path.  Seaver has many brothers and sisters who tell him that they are orb spiders and they weave round webs and that if he wants to be an orb weaver, “then your web needs to look like ours.”  Seaver wants to do like his brothers and sisters tell him, but he can’t resist the beautiful shapes he sees in the night sky and takes great pride in weaving those shapes.  Each time his family reminds him that he is an orb weaver and must weaver round webs, he looks at their webs all round, perfect, and empty and says that he’ll try to do better next time, but he "must now tend to his guest."

This is a good book about how sometimes it can be a good thing to not always do the normal. I felt that the author and illustrator were insightful in having Seaver make a correlation between the night sky constellations and the varied shapes he wove. The artistry of triangles, octagons, and other shapes different from the traditional round orb's woven by Orb Spiders.

Seaver the Weaver is written by the same author of the “Monster & Me" books, and he has woven a wonderful web of words.  The illustrations are simple, childlike and beautiful.  This is a fun book! (reviewed by P.Howard)

DISCLOSURE: A complimentary copy was provided by the publisher to facilitate this review. Opinions are solely those of reviewer. No compensation was received for this review.

Monster needs His Sleep (A Monster & Me™ Book) by Paul Czajak, illustrations by Wendy Grieb

About the book: A Monster & Me™ book

It's time for bed, and Monster needs to go to sleep. But he just keeps finding more things to stay awake for! It isn't until Monster admits he is afraid of the dark that he finds a glowing solution to his nightmare problem.

In this playful, rhyming story, Monster shows young readers that with a little help from a friend, the dark isn't that scary after all.

Review: “Monster Needs His Sleep” is the second book in the Monster series by Paul Czajak and it is an absolutely wonderful bed time book.  In fact, it is an “any time” fun book to read.  The story is in a rhyming-type format and the pictures are so colorful.  What also makes the book fun is that it’s the kid who is trying to get the monster to go to sleep, instead of Mom & Dad ( a great role reversal).  The Monster makes all kinds of excuses for not going to sleep and these same excuses will probably sound very familiar to any child reading the book with their parents.

The author Paul Czajak, who once got an “F” on his college writing paper, has done an excellent job in making a story about bed time such fun, and illustrator Wendy Grieb’s pictures are very appealing and even energetic.    Although the target age is preschool through kindergarten, this is a great book for all kids.  I eagerly look forward to the other “monster” books in this series! (reviewed by P.Howard)

DISCLOSURE: A complimentary copy was provided by the publisher, Scarletta Press, in exchange for our review. Opinions expressed are solely those of the reviewer. No compensation was received for this review.

If An Armadillo Went to a Restaurant by Ellen Fischer, illustrated by Laura Wood

ISBN:978-1-938063-39-8

About the book: Slurp, munch, crunch! Little hands will be turning the page to find out the real meals of animals! Would an armadillo order spaghetti with meatballs if she went to a restaurant? No way! Through a series of humorous questions and answers, young readers learn about animals, where they live, and what they eat.

Review: Picture books are super good for kids and when they explore a world unknown to the kids and teach them in a friendly, enjoyable manner facts that they were not knowledgeable of, then a picture book has achieved a very high goal, indeed.

Author, Ellen Fischer has teamed with illustrator, Laura Wood and captured some critters that might not be on the "best known" list of kids - Armadillo, Sea Turtle, Rattlesnake, Butterfly, Wallaby, Hedgehog, Ostrich, Giraffe, and Octopus. As each critter is said to wander into a restaurant the question is posed,What would they order?". An absurd menu item is the chance answer and then after a resounding, "NO WAY!" begins to lay out what that critter would really want to eat.

The illustrations are cute, animated, and simple in nature but surely attention grabbing and fit the mood of the story. I love the change in color scheme this book has. Veering away from the basic color wheel of primary colors, there are olives, burnt orange, teal, and browns.

This is a fun book and a welcome addition to our school's library.

DISCLOSURE: A complimentary copy was provided by the publisher Scarletta Kids in exchange for our honest review. Opinions are those of the reviewer. No compensation was received for this review.