The Mystery of Meerkat Hill : A Precious Ramotswe Mystery for Young Readers by Alexander McCall Smith, illustrated by Iain McIntosh, 90 pp, RL 2

-


In 2012 Alexander McCall Smith debuted a new series that introduced readers to the young Precious Ramotswe, star of McCall Smith's adult mystery series, No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, and first female private investigator in Botswana. The Great Cake Mystery : Precious Ramotswe's Very First Case, illustrated magnificetly by Iain McIntosh, is thrilling, mostly because this setting and type of character are severely underrepresented in chapters books, but also because writing genuinely engaging, well plotted, plausible mysteries for young readers of any ability is a rare feat that McCall Smith accomplishes in a thoughtful, interesting way in these chapter books. With The Mystery of Meerkat Hill : A Precious Ramotswe Mystery for Young Readers, we get to see Precious continue to hone her investigative skills as she asks questions and looks for clues when her new friends' cow goes missing. 


As with The Great Cake Mystery: Precious Ramotswe's Very First Case, The Mystery of Meerkat Hill : A Precious Ramotswe Mystery for Young Readers begins with a story from Obed, Precious' father, a master teller of bedtime stories. Precious's school also plays an important part in this story as it did in Book 1, this time introducing her to new friends, brother and sister, Pontsho and Teb. Pontsho is also the owner of a pet meerkat, Kosi, who once bravely lured a cobra off the feet of Pontsho's sleeping grandfather, saving his life! It is Kosi who is the star of this story, with Precious fascinated by everything about him. Because of her keen observation of Kosi, at Ponstho and Teb's home and when the meerkat is brought to school, Precious is able to use some quick thinking to convince two skeptical cattle herders that a pregnant cow amongst their many is really Teb and Pontsho's cow. The Mystery of Meerkat Hill : A Precious Ramotswe Mystery for Young Readers ends with a celebration around a campfire, delicious fat cakes and a story from Pontsho and Teb's grandfather as the three children and Kosi drift off to sleep, Kosi curled up next to Precious. 

The Mystery of Meerkat Hill : A Precious Ramotswe Mystery for Young Readers also includes a glossary of the Geography and People of Botswana, a Reader's Guide with Common Core curriculum connections and, best of all, the recipe for fat cakes!

Source: Review Copy



Popular posts from this blog

Fox + Chick: The Sleepover and Other Stories by Sergio Ruzzier

-
Image
Fox + Chick : The Sleepover and Other Stories  by Sergio Ruzzier Review Copy from Chronicle Books Friends. Opposites. Inhabitants of a pastel-hued, water color world that is vaguely surreal, Fox and Chick are back for a third installment of their inviting, if curious, easy-to-read stories. In "The Sleepover," "The Hammer," and "The Surprise," Chick's odd logic is once again upending Fox's life. Happily, Fox responds with patience and even wisdom at times. To these unforgettable characters and luminous illustrations, Ruzzier brings a sublime simplicity that makes this series perfect for emerging readers, adding books with character and intelligence to the often dull world of beginning reader books. If you aren't familiar with this delightful duo, definitely check out my reviews of the first two books (links below) where I put the greatness of Ruzzier's work into historical ( Frog & Toad ) context. Then check out ALL of Ruzzier's p
Read more

Be a Tree! by Maria Gianferrari illustrated by Felicita Sala

-
Image
Be a Tree! by Maria Gianferrari illustrated by Felicita Sala Review Copy from Abrams Kids I picture-walked Be a Tree! three times before I actually read the words. Felicita Sala's illustrations for Maria Gianferrari's poetic text are mesmerizingly immersive and richly colorful within a palette of earth tones. Throughout the text, Gianferrari, who shares her inspiration for this book in the author's note ( Peter Wohleben's The Hidden Life of Trees ), gently maintains the human connection to trees and the connections (and communications) trees share with each other.  Be a Tree!  begins exuberantly, inviting the reader to "Be a tree! Stand tall. Stretch your branches to the sun. Let your roots curl, coil in the soil to ground you." From your spine/trunk to your skin/bark and your heart/pith, the words carry you inward and then zoom outward and up to the canopy and ultimately, the forest. "You are one of many trees," and our roots "twine with fung
Read more

Reading Levels: A Quick Guide to Determining if a Book Is Right for Your Reader

-
Image
While I wrote an article titled Reading Levels: How I Assign Reading Levels to Books, How the Publishers Do It and How You Can Help Your Reader Find the Right Book at the Right Time that discusses how reading levels are determined by professionals and amateurs like myself, there is more on this subject to discuss. Determining the reading level of a book from the children's section is never easy, mostly because there are several different standardized methods of determining reading levels. Add to this the fact that knowing their children's reading level is most often the only tool a parent is armed with when exploring the bookstore, library, website, etc, and the job becomes even more difficult. While I think that knowing a child's reading level is a very valuable tool if your child is reading below grade level, I think that it is a secondary consideration when finding books for children reading above, especially well above, grade level because, in most cases, content app
Read more