Little T, a dragon prince, loves the parade called the Royal Swagger. Once a month, everyone dresses up in formal clothes, and his mom and dad (the dragon king and queen) parade through town wearing the most beautiful things in the kingdom, the crown jewels. Little T is impatient for his turn to wear the crown jewels, so he sneaks away to take them. While he is wearing them, they fall into the cake batter! What will Little T do? Will his mistake destroy the Royal Swagger? Lots of pictures make this early chapter book a great choice for beginning readers.

Similar books: Little T and the Royal Roar by Frank Rodgers; Little T and Lizard the Wizard by Frank Rodgers

Reviewed by: emc

Date read: 8/26/2010

ISBN-10: 1404827269

ISBN-13: 9781404827264

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Aliens can be walking among us every day, even now! In this book they are. Klatu, Lek and Ploo, three siblings from the planet Loogl, wander the desert toward Las Vegas from their wrecked spaceship. They were told to look for Jo Jo, who is the expert who can repair their ship. When they arrive in Las Vegas, they are surprised to find a pyramid, the Eiffel Tower, and the Empire State building, which they were certain belonged in other cities. To blend in, they have morphed into a boy, a girl and an old man, modeled from pictures in very old books. To stay at a hotel, they must convince the manager that they are big bettors. Soon, they run afoul of the casino boss, who is sure they have been cheating to win at roulette, when they only want to rid themselves of the money they won. Will they find Jo Jo and fix their ship before they are caught?

Similar authors: Daniel Pinkwater

Reviewed by: vverscaj

Date read: 11/5/2010

ISBN-10: 037593345X

ISBN-13: 9780375933455

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In this first installment of the Franny K. Stein series, Franny K. Stein is a mad scientist. She loves bats, tarantulas, snakes, and has a doll named Chompolina that she's modified with steel teeth to chomp the heads off other dolls. When she starts at a new school, the kids don't know what to make of her. They've never seen anyone jump rope with a snake before. They keep their distance, and Franny is lonely. When she decides to experiment to learn how to fit in with the other kids, it seems to be going pretty well until a monster emerges from the trash can. Can Franny save the day and keep her new friends? This funny read is a great story, full of pictures.

Similar books: Adventures of Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey

Awards won: Gryphon Honor Book, 2004

Reviewed by: emc

Date read: 4/16/2010

ISBN-10: 0689862911

ISBN-13: 9780689862915

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Magic Trixie gets grounded for a week because she makes such a fuss about going to bed. Trixie's friends don't have to brush their teeth or take a bath so Trixie spends one night with each of them. However, Loupie Garou eats dog biscuits and howls at the moon at midnight. Nefi smells her food but doesn't eat it and sleeps in an airtight tomb. Spending the night with Stitch Patches or the vampire twins will be more fun, won't it? Will Magic Trixie ever find the perfect place to spend the night? Third in the Magic Trixie series.

Reviewed by: hap

Date read: 3/24/2010

ISBN-10: 0061170488

ISBN-13: 9780061170485

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I loved the story of The Little Red Hen when I was a child, and this story puts a whole new twist on the old fable. Follow Iguana as she tries to get her friends to help her prepare for a great fiesta (party) on sabado (Saturday). With each new day, Iguana becomes more frustrated with her friends' excuses. Conejo (co Nay ho - Rabbit) is much too fast to help, Tortuga (tor TU gah - tortoise) is much too slow, and Culebra (cu Lay brah - snake) will have to try to grow arms tonight so that maybe he can help Iguana manana. Sabado arrives, and the fiesta begins, but Iguana whips her tail around in angry circles when her friends think they can attend the party. The lazy friends can only watch from afar as Iguana and her party guests enjoy their evening. But the story is far from over: read Manana, Iguana to see what her friends do to surprise Iguana on domingo (Sunday).

Reviewed by: sc

Date read: 6/29/2009

ISBN-10: 0823418081

ISBN-13: 9780823418084

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