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PRE- AND RE-, MIS- AND DIS-

Name: PRE- AND RE-, MIS- AND DIS-
Author: Brian P. Cleary
ISBN: 978-0-7613-9031-2

WHAT IS A PREFIX?

From the Words Are CATegorical series

by Brian P. Cleary ; illustrated by Martin Goneau ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 1, 2013

Whether it’s for vocabulary building or helping students understand how to take apart a word to discover its meaning, Cleary...

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A bright, busy and colorful addition to the Words Are CATegorical series, this time about prefixes.

From the definition of prefixes on the dedication page to the helpful chart on the final page, teachers will find many reasons to turn to this reliable series to supplement their grammar lessons. Fully saturated colors accompany the rhyming text, introducing common prefixes like re- and un-. Goofy characters like wildly colored animals and extraterrestrials move the light verse along, extending the text and helping readers understand more challenging concepts. Using kid-pleasing words like underclothes and bicycle adds to the interest and fun. The final page, a chart with prefixes, meanings and examples, is a particularly helpful addition, allowing students both to study the concept and to add examples of their own. At times, design choices detract from the content. The prefixes are in slightly different colors from the root words, on top of colored pages, which sometimes makes them difficult to discern.

Whether it’s for vocabulary building or helping students understand how to take apart a word to discover its meaning, Cleary and Goneau have the right touch. (Informational picture book. 7-11)

Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2013

ISBN: 978-0-7613-9031-2

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Millbrook/Lerner

Review Posted Online: Aug. 27, 2013

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2013

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

- BOOK REVIEW
EATING MY WORDS
by Brian P. Cleary ; illustrated by Brian P. Cleary

- BOOK REVIEW
CRUNCH AND CRACK, OINK AND WHACK!
by Brian P. Cleary ; illustrated by Pablo Pino

- BOOK REVIEW
THE SUN PLAYED HIDE-AND-SEEK
by Brian P. Cleary ; illustrated by Carol Crimmins

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THE TERRIBLE TWO

From the Terrible Two series , Vol. 1

by Mac Barnett ; Jory John ; illustrated by Kevin Cornell ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 13, 2015

Fluffy, fast, fun reading for fans of Clueless McGee and the Wimpy Kid.

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Miles used to live near the sea. Miles had friends. Miles was his school's greatest prankster...how will he survive a move to Yawnee Valley?

Yawnee Valley is famous for one thing: cows. All new students at Yawnee Valley Science and Letters Academy receive a booklet of 1,346 interesting cow facts from fussbudget fifth-generation principal Barry Barkin. On the first day of school, when Principal Barkin's car is found mysteriously parked on the school's steps, Barkin suspects Miles and assigns Niles Sparks to be Miles' buddy. Miles can't think of anything more awful than spending every moment of every day with smiling, officious, king-of-the-obvious Niles. On top of that, Barkin's son, Josh, has decided Miles is a good bullying target. To make life interesting, Miles plans a perfect prank in his pranking notebook, but it’s foiled. That's followed by an invitation to join forces in pranking from an unexpected source...no way! Let the prank war commence! Barnett and John launch their cow-resplendent illustrated series with the humorous origin story of the pranking duo who lend the series its name. Characters may be stock; however, the pranks are anything but, and it's peppered with cow facts. Cornell’s goofy cartoon illustrations (especially the blasé cows) add giggles aplenty.

Fluffy, fast, fun reading for fans of Clueless McGee and the Wimpy Kid. (Fiction. 7-11)

Pub Date: Jan. 13, 2015

ISBN: 978-1-4197-1491-7

Page Count: 224

Publisher: Amulet/Abrams

Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2014

Categories:

CHILDREN'S GENERAL CHILDREN'S

- BOOK REVIEW
THE FIRST CAT IN SPACE AND THE WRATH OF THE PAPERCLIP
by Mac Barnett ; illustrated by Shawn Harris

- BOOK REVIEW
SANTA'S FIRST CHRISTMAS
by Mac Barnett ; illustrated by Sydney Smith

- BOOK REVIEW
THE FIRST CAT IN SPACE AND THE SOUP OF DOOM
by Mac Barnett ; illustrated by Shawn Harris

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THE SINGING ROCK & OTHER BRAND-NEW FAIRY TALES

by Nathaniel Lachenmeyer ; illustrated by Simini Blocker ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 18, 2019

Alert readers will find the implicit morals: know your audience, mostly, but also never underestimate the power of “rock”...

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The theme of persistence (for better or worse) links four tales of magic, trickery, and near disasters.

Lachenmeyer freely borrows familiar folkloric elements, subjecting them to mildly comical twists. In the nearly wordless “Hip Hop Wish,” a frog inadvertently rubs a magic lamp and finds itself saddled with an importunate genie eager to shower it with inappropriate goods and riches. In the title tale, an increasingly annoyed music-hating witch transforms a persistent minstrel into a still-warbling cow, horse, sheep, goat, pig, duck, and rock in succession—then is horrified to catch herself humming a tune. Athesius the sorcerer outwits Warthius, a rival trying to steal his spells via a parrot, by casting silly ones in Ig-pay Atin-lay in the third episode, and in the finale, a painter’s repeated efforts to create a flattering portrait of an ogre king nearly get him thrown into a dungeon…until he suddenly understands what an ogre’s idea of “flattering” might be. The narratives, dialogue, and sound effects leave plenty of elbow room in Blocker’s big, brightly colored panels for the expressive animal and human(ish) figures—most of the latter being light skinned except for the golden genie, the blue ogre, and several people of color in the “Sorcerer’s New Pet.”

Alert readers will find the implicit morals: know your audience, mostly, but also never underestimate the power of “rock” music. (Graphic short stories. 8-10)