Digital Commons @ ACU (Abilene Christian University)

Barrington, Susannah

James Webb Space Telescope: A Peek Into the First Galaxies

Soupiset, Janie

Mama\u27s Panza

Martinez, Shan

Lorgnette v.37 no.1 
Book Review:  ISLAND OF THE DOLLS AND OTHER SPOOKY PLACES 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Author 
Cooke, Tim 
  
 
Illustrator 
 
 
Reviewer 
Martinez, Shan 
 
 
Pages 
32p 
 
Price 
$31.99 
 
ISBN  
979-8-7656-0923-1 
 
Publisher & Date 
Lerner, 2024 
 
 
Classification 
Nonfiction (133.1) 
 
Grade Level 
4-6 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Book Review:  
ISLAND OF THE DOLLS 
AND OTHER SPOOKY 
PLACES 
This book is part of the Ultimate Adventure Guides series.  The cover 
provides a disturbing introduction to this book.  An old, dirty doll without 
hair and cloudy broken eyes stares blankly at the prospective reader.  Do you 
dare open this book?  Beware, because every place described in this book 
has some creepy story attached to it.  The Island of the Dolls is a real place in 
Mexico City.  Visitors hear the story of a man who tried to save a young girl 
from drowning, but she died.  He was haunted by her cries for her doll, so he 
began gathering old dolls and propping them up near trees and attaching 
them to fence lines.  Now all these years later, the island feels spooky 
because of hundreds of dolls everywhere.  That is just the first story.  There 
is a chapel made from bones, a deserted village in Russia where the dead 
were left to decompose, and a number of “haunted” prisons.  The publisher 
recommends this book for children ages eight to eleven.  Children don’t 
always understand the way adults talk about creepy things.  This author 
states that ghosts and spirits are present in these places.  While this book 
introduces the reader to real places all over the world, this may not be the 
best way to encourage travel.  This book should be handled with care 
because it may be disturbing to some readers. 
 
 
 


English

Island of the Dolls and Other Spooky Places

O\u27Quin, Ashley

Lorgnette v.37 no.1 
Book Review:  REVENANT GAMES, THE 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Author 
Fuston, Margie 
  
 
Illustrator 
 
 
Reviewer 
O'Quin, Ashley 
 
 
Pages 
403p 
 
Price 
$19.99 
 
ISBN  
978-1-6659-3441-1 
 
Publisher & Date 
McElderry Books, 2024 
 
 
Classification 
Fiction 
 
Grade Level 
8 and up 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
** 
Book Review:  
REVENANT GAMES, 
THE 
How far would you go to right a mistake you made?  In THE REVENANT 
GAMES, Bly is faced with that exact dilemma.  One mistake cost her the 
sister she adored and the man she loved, and she would do anything to get 
them back.  Forced to make a choice to play for the Witches or Vampires 
during the games, Bly chooses both, putting an even higher price on her 
head for the bounty hunters.  Would raising her sister from the dead make 
her feel whole again, or would it simply open up another hole in her heart?  
Will she have everything she has ever wanted, including love, or will she be 
alone again? 
 
 
 


The Revenant Games

Baker, Laura

Lorgnette v.37 no.1 
Book Review:  SPICE BOX, THE 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Author 
Sriram, Meera 
  
 
Illustrator 
Illustrated by Sandhya Prabhat 
 
Reviewer 
Baker, Laura 
 
 
Pages 
Unpaged 
 
Price 
$19.99 
 
ISBN  
978-0-593-42713-2 
 
Publisher & Date 
Knopf, 2024 
 
 
Classification 
Fiction 
 
Grade Level 
K-2 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Book Review:  
SPICE BOX, THE 
Rishi is excited when he learns his Paati--his grandmother--is coming for a 
visit.  He asks to help his father make the special curry for Paati.  Eagerly he 
gets the wooden spice box down, running his fingers over the carvings and 
finally lifting the lid to breathe in the pungent spices.  Spice is the signature 
ingredient in their family cuisine, and Rishi wants to carry on the tradition. 
 
The box contains the essential flavors for their family dishes, but it also 
contains much more.  It contains their heritage.  When Rishi touches the box, 
he remembers how his Paati faithfully carried it through the streets of India 
as she looked for work in restaurants and finally earned her own reputation 
as a spice master.  He remembers how his father took the box when he 
immigrated to America and cooked with the spices whenever he needed a 
reminder of home.  The smells and flavors connect them to family and 
remind them of who they are. 
 
Illustrator Prabhat shows the power of the box in her drawings.  Each page is 
full of warm browns, deep reds, and vibrant yellows as if one could see and 
smell the brown lentils, chili powder, and pungent turmeric.  The colors swirl 
from the box as a visual representation of the memories the contents evoke. 
 
When Rishi accidentally drops the spice box, he is crushed; however, he and 
his father together mend it and carefully refill it with the traditional spices, 
thus signifying new memories that add to and affirm the family connection.   
 
The book is appropriate for ethnic studies and conversations on heritage and 
traditions.  The recipe at the end for potato curry could prompt a wonderful 
activity where children share their own special foods and memories. 
 
Lorgnette v.37 no.1 
Book Review:  SPICE BOX, THE 
 
 


The Spice Box

Bond, Janet

Lorgnette v.37 no.2 
Book Review:  BORN NAUGHTY: MY CHILDHOOD IN CHINA 
 
 
 
 
 
Author 
Wang, Jin 
 With Tony Johnston 
 
Illustrator 
Illustrated by Anisi Baigude 
 
Reviewer 
Jan Bond 
 
 
Pages 
98p 
 
Price 
$16.99 
 
ISBN  
978-0-593-56361-8 
 
Publisher & Date 
Anne Schwartz Books, 2024 
 
 
Classification 
Nonfiction (951.7 or biography) 
 
Grade Level 
2-5 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
** 
Book Review:  
BORN NAUGHTY: MY 
CHILDHOOD IN CHINA 
Jin Wang has written a series of short stories about growing up in inner 
Mongolia during the 1980s.  Her family shared the same bed, and their 
house had dirt floors.  Although they were poor, like most children she did 
not realize it.  She tells some of the fun adventures she had as a child.  The 
reader can easily tell how different Wang’s life was from that of children 
growing up in America.  
 
The chapters are short and easy to read.  The black-and-white illustrations 
bring the author’s stories to life.  This is a very good book for comparing life 
in Inner Mongolia with life in Amer-ica.  Although her life was different, 
Wang shows how kids can have fun wherever they are and whatever their 
situation is.  
 
 
 


Born Naughty: My Childhood in China

Fine, Jewell

Lorgnette v.37 no.2 
Book Review:  GIANTS' VISITOR, THE 
 
 
 
 
 
Author 
Yolen, Jane 
  
 
Illustrator 
Illustrated by Tomie dePaola 
and Richard Kolding 
 
Reviewer 
Jewell Fine 
 
 
Pages 
64p 
 
Price 
$17.99 
 
ISBN  
978-1-5344-8864-9 
 
Publisher & Date 
Aladdin Quix, 2024 
 
 
Classification 
Fiction 
 
Grade Level 
2-4 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Book Review:  
GIANTS' VISITOR, THE 
The Giant family is preparing for Grandma to visit.  They think that Grandma 
is old and needs to be taken care of and won’t be any fun.  Imagine their 
surprise when Grandma arrives on a motorcycle!  Readers will enjoy seeing 
what adventures the Giant family and Grandma get into. 
 
 


The Giants\u27 Visitor

Blake, Pam

Lorgnette v.37 no.2 
Book Review:  TREE OF LIFE: HOW A HOLOCAUST SAPLING INSPIRED THE WORLD, THE 
 
 
 
 
 
Author 
Boxer, Elisa 
  
 
Illustrator 
Illustrated by Alianna 
Rozentsveig 
 
Reviewer 
Pam Blake 
 
 
Pages 
Unpaged 
 
Price 
$18.99 
 
ISBN  
978-0-593-61712-0 
 
Publisher & Date 
Rocky Pond Books, 2024 
 
 
Classification 
Nonfiction (940.5318083) 
 
Grade Level 
3-5 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Book Review:  
TREE OF LIFE: HOW A 
HOLOCAUST SAPLING 
INSPIRED THE 
WORLD, THE 
During World War II, children in the Terezin ghetto had a teacher who taught 
them not only to read and write but also about their Jewish holidays.  She 
convinced a prisoner to smuggle in a sapling for the children to plant.  To 
take care of it, they shared their cups of water with it.  The tree grew and 
grew and became known as The Tree of Life.  After the war, the tree 
continued to grow for sixty years until a flood in 2007 caused it to die.  
The teacher survived the war.  She had gathered seeds from this tree to plant 
all around the world in remembrance.  In all, 600 saplings were planted.  In 
2021, a tree was planted in New York City, across from a school.  Children 
began to water and take care of it, just as children took care of the tree 
during the Holocaust. 
This is a true story, and the events surrounding the tree take place during a 
horrible time in world history.  Children will need to understand some of the 
words, such as ghetto and holocaust.  For that reason, they should have an 
adult explain to them at their age level about the events without giving dire 
details. 
 
 
 


The Tree of Life: How a Holocaust Sapling Inspired the World

Lorgnette v.37 no.2 
Book Review:  TRICKY CHOPSTICKS 
 
 
 
 
 
Author 
Chen, Sylvia 
  
 
Illustrator 
Illustrated by Fanny Liem 
 
Reviewer 
Pam Blake 
 
 
Pages 
Unpaged 
 
Price 
$18.99 
 
ISBN  
978-1-6659-2149-7 
 
Publisher & Date 
Atheneum Books, 2024 
 
 
Classification 
Fiction 
 
Grade Level 
K-3 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Book Review:  
TRICKY CHOPSTICKS 
Jenny Chow can’t master using chopsticks even though everyone else in her 
family, including her little sister, uses them with ease.  Her cousin’s birthday 
is coming, and there is always a chopstick challenge.  This year’s challenge 
will be to pick up cupcakes with chopsticks.  Jenny is determined to learn 
before the party.  Jenny enjoys origami, and after she makes a star, she 
wonders if it might wedge in her chopsticks to duplicate a hinge in tongs.  
After moving the star several times to find the right positions, her chopstick 
tongs work!  She practices at home on anything she can find—puzzles, 
popcorn, and a piggy bank.  When the day of the party arrives, Jenny is 
nervous.  The chopsticks given her are smooth, without her star.  At first she 
has trouble, but she begins to imagine how to hold them and soon masters 
her cousin’s cupcake challenge!  
This book is very relatable to many children but is a good lesson in 
perseverance.  It can help children understand the idea of never giving up.  
The back of the book has instructions on how to make chopstick tongs using 
an origami star.  This can be a fun activity for children.  The author’s note 
tells of the challenge her mother gave her and her sisters when she was 
growing up and some suggestions of what children might try with chopsticks. 
The illustrations are beautifully done, and the text adds some Mandarin 
words. 
 
 


Tricky Chopsticks

Bustos, Charlene D

Lorgnette v.37 no.3 
Book Review:  BOX OF DREAMS 
 
 
 
 
 
Author 
Kazmi, Faith 
  
 
Illustrator 
Illustrated by Christine Almeda 
 
Reviewer 
Charlene Bustos 
 
 
Pages 
Unpaged 
 
Price 
$19.99 
 
ISBN  
978-0-06-325136-6 
 
Publisher & Date 
Harper, 2024 
 
 
Classification 
Fiction 
 
Grade Level 
PreK-2 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Book Review:  
BOX OF DREAMS 
Told in first person, this sweet book displays a young girl’s deeper 
understanding of family, customs, and giving as she questions her mother 
when she’s packing up a big box to send back home to the Philippines.  The 
daughter asks, “Is this for someone’s birthday?”  Her Mama replies, “No, 
anak, it’s a balikbayan box.  It means ‘return to home,’ and it’s how we share 
our blessings with our family.”  Her mother carefully fills the box with clothes 
of various sizes for the cousins, school supplies, tasty treats, flour, and 
toothpaste.  With each item, Mama recalls her fondest memories of growing 
up in the Philippines, walking to school with her cousins, and enjoying the 
delicious traditional food her own mother cooked.  After the young girl adds 
her own “favorites” to the box, they start closing and taping it up.  The last 
item the little girl places in the box is her “dream of going to the Philippines.”  
The rest of the book shares some of those experiences of traveling to see 
family.  Double-page illustrations colorfully capture the child’s curiosity and 
delight.  The Author’s Note shares the tradition of the “balikbayan boxes” 
and the history behind them.  Readers will be exposed to a new language 
and traditions. 
 
 
 


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