Reviews written by Mark Buxton

What worked: The book has an old, small-town feeling despite being set in 2008 Chicago. The author creates a world around Monty’s apartment where most of his neighbors are older, retired men and women. Monty likes to spend much of his time playing in the backyard next to...

What worked: It seems like characters who can change their physical appearances are usually bad guys but Ista breaks that mold. The Tide is the source of magic and all of the characters, except for Nat, have abilities. It’s expected in this society. Ista is at the mercy...

What worked: The setting is unusual for a middle-grade novel as it takes place in 1962 Vietnam. It’s seven years into the Vietnam War and the threat of a Viet Cong attack is always in the background. It’s normal to see armed soldiers patrolling the streets. The author...

What worked: This book is a spin-off of the original Explorer Academy series but this time it features Sailor, a young girl from Australia. The previous books focused on Cruz and he’s still part of the narrative along with most of the other students readers have come to...

What worked: Obviously, this book is about insects and the author indicates there are over 1.3 million of them around the world. The book is divided into four main sections by habitat: Cities and towns, countryside, wetlands, and forests. Each of these sections is formatted similarly. They begin...

What worked: The most unique thing about this book is how it highlights popular rodeo events like bull-riding and barrel racing. Vic is one of the top barrel-racers around and the relationship with her horse feels natural. However, she wants to learn how to ride bulls so the...

What worked: Ash became Prince Khufu’s shadow, his bodyguard, in the previous book and he faces new challenges in this new story. The prince’s parents reveal a prophecy to Ash and swear him to secrecy. This information adds more pressure to his role as the prince’s shadow especially...

What worked: There are immediate changes and strange occurrences to signal a mystery is brewing. The new students arriving at the Air Academy discover they haven’t been accepted yet and Clara is informed she’s only an alternate. She won’t be a student unless someone else drops out. Students...

What worked: The format of this book is easy to read and should appeal to reluctant readers. The narrative is written as if Penny is talking to her dog Cosmo and almost every page has some type of drawing. Many of the illustrations are written as comic strips...

What worked: The book focuses on a group of nature-conscious kids who call themselves the Backyard Rangers. The story is told through the eyes of Miles and his attitude seems more relatable than the other characters, especially Pia. Pia is gung-ho to save the local owls as she...

What worked: The book follows two stories told in alternating chapters of two larks, creatures that can talk, with separate journeys to travel. Wynn is a swivel-ear who has quested herself to retrieve an artifact that once protected her people. She is a guardian of it but a...

What worked: A chupacabra named Carter is obviously what makes this book different from others. His favorite food is goat so a talking sombrero made from goat hide gets his mouth watering. Other characters are startled or frightened when they first meet Carter due to the large fangs...

What worked: Maisie’s family is full of drama although she’s not aware of all of it. Her love of art will resonate with many young readers as will the motivation of some parents to give their kids well-rounded upbringings, whether their kids want it or not. Maisie’s brother...

What worked: Grief is a major topic as Morgan struggles to fill the role of her deceased mother. Morgan feels it’s her responsibility to keep the family safe and happy and she is very concerned about adding stress to her father’s life. Her mother always created ABC plans...

What worked: The author allows readers to become accustomed to Ace’s time travel by having him go back minutes in time early on. His needs begin simple enough as Ace needs to finish two questions on his math test and he forgets something on his shopping list at...