Fiction

Fiction genre

The Bear Who Wasn’t There

Bear’s search for himself doesn’t matter so much as the charm of Lavie’s storytelling voice as he narrates it . . . Erlbruch gives the bear big, puzzled-looking eyes and a lovable grin. He lives in a forest made of ornate trees seemingly lifted from vintage engravings, whose delicate lines play off Bear’s dumpy figure. Bear’s encounters with various characters—the Turtle Taxi, the Penultimate Penguin—feature gentle wordplay and Lewis Carroll–like paradoxes . . . Everything is new to Bear, and his discoveries will delight readers.

The Tale of Kitty-in-Boots

Beatrix Potter created some of the world’s most beloved characters, and they will be coming to life in a movie slated for Spring 2018. And this book, written in 1941 but never illustrated, introduces the charming Kitty-in-Boots, who has been imagined by Quentin Blake. When Miss Kitty sneaks out to go hunting in her beautiful boots she gets herself into all sorts of scrapes, but on this particular night she meets the foxiest hunter of them all—Mr. Tod!

The Book Thief

Trying to make sense of the horrors of World War II, Death relates the story of Liesel–a young German girl whose book-stealing and story-telling talents help sustain her family and the Jewish man they are hiding, as well as their neighbors.

When I Am Happiest

A standalone follow-up to My Happy Life and My Heart is Laughing. Dani is very happy it is the last day of school, and summer is about to start. But then there’s a knock on the classroom door, and Dani is told her father has been in an accident. He’s in the hospital! How can she possibly be happy now? A warm and heartfelt story about Dani’s love for her dad and her ongoing friendship with Ella. It’s a story about sorrow and joy and how life really is.

The Jungle Book

First published over a century ago, these three unabridged stories from THE JUNGLE BOOK about the man-cub, Mowgli, have delighted adults and children ever since. The stories tell of Mowgli’s upbringing among the wolves; his lessons in the Law of the Jungle from Baloo the bear, Bagheera the black panther, and Kaa the python; his kidnapping by the Monkey People; and his clash with the evil tiger, Shere Khan.

The Jungle Book is critiqued as presenting a colonial British view of India.

The Tortoise and the Soldier

As a boy, Henry Friston dreamed of traveling the world. He thought he was signing up for a lifetime of adventure when he joined the Royal Navy. But when World War I begins, it launches the world, and Henry, into turmoil. While facing enemy fire at Gallipoli, Henry discovers the strength he needs to survive in an unexpected source: a tortoise. And so begins the friendship of a lifetime. Based on true events, and with charming illustrations, this story of war, courage, and friendship will win the hearts of readers.

Featured in WOW Review Volume IX, Issue 1.

A Night Divided

When the Berlin Wall went up, Gerta, her mother, and her brother Fritz are trapped on the eastern side where they were living, while her father, and her other brother Dominic are in the West–four years later, now twelve, Gerta sees her father on a viewing platform on the western side and realizes he wants her to risk her life trying to tunnel to freedom.