Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for July, 2017

Jason Segel, Kirsten Miller–Nightmares! The Sleepwalker Tonic [Book Two] (2015) [audiobook 2015–Jason Segel]

Posted in Adventure, Alternate Reality, Audiobooks, Big Books, Children's Books, Death, End of the World, Funny (ha ha), Goblins, How I Met Your Mother, Humiliation, Jason Segel, Karl Kwansy, Kirsten Miller, Marriage (Happy), Medusa, Monsters, Nightmares, Parenting, Superman, T., The Muppet Show, Unfinished series, Yuck!, Zombies on July 4, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[LISTENED TO: December 2016] Nightmares! The Sleepwalker Tonic

2I though the first Nightmares! book was great.  I had listened to both of these books before, but what was fun about listening this time is that the end of book one gives a little hint at what book two would be about.

Towards the end of Book One, the story tells us that Charlotte’s business was doing well, although a new store had opened up in the next town and was also doing very well–possibly taking away her customers.

And that’s essentially what book two is about.  (No, not about small town commerce).

But let’s back up.  In book one, Charlie Laird and his three friends Paige, Alfie and Rocco prevented the evil president of the Netherworld from taking over the waking world.

Back up some more.  Nightmares aren’t bad.  They are there to frighten us, yes, but their goal is for us to face our fears and come out stronger.  They don’t want to hurt any of us. But the nightmares have an enemy–the goblins.  The goblins have been forced out of the nightmare realm never to return.  And they are constantly trying to get back into the Netherworld. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Jason Segel, Kirsten Miller–Nightmares! (2014) [audiobook 2014–Jason Segel]

Posted in Adventure, Alternate Reality, Audiobooks, Big Books, Children's Books, Death, End of the World, Funny (ha ha), Goblins, How I Met Your Mother, Humiliation, Jason Segel, Karl Kwansy, Kirsten Miller, Marriage (Happy), Medusa, Monsters, Nightmares, Parenting, Superman, T., The Muppet Show, Unfinished series, Yuck!, Zombies on July 3, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[LISTENED TO: Summer 2016 & November 2016] Nightmares!

nightmresI loved Jason Segel on How I Met Your Mother.  I loved that Jason Segel was instrumental in bringing The Muppets back to the big screen.  And now I love that Jason Segel has written a series of really enjoyable–funny and frightening–children’s books.

This book is about–wait for it–nightmares.  But not in the way that you might expect.  Segel (and Miller–I have no idea how much she contributed to the book) have created a realm where Nightmares live.  It is a wonderfully realized and very well thought out world.  And I am really impressed with how well the whole story works.

It is the story of Charlie Laird.  Charlie is a pretty normal kid.  He does okay in school, he has friends, his family loves him.  But three years ago his mom died unexpectedly.  It was a harsh blow to him and his family.  Charlie has never really gotten over it.  And what has made it especially tough is that Charlie’s dad recently got remarried.  Apparently he got over it just fine.

If that weren’t bad enough, Charlie’s family moved from his old house–the house he grew up in and loved–into the mansion on the hill.  Not a far move–still in the city of Cypress Creek–but worlds apart from what he was used to.  Or what he wanted.

The mansion has always been there in town. It is huge and…it is purple.  It towers over the whole town–you can’t avoid looking at it–and it has always been rather creepy.  It was built a long time ago by Silas DeChant, and it has been in the DeChant family ever since.  So it makes sense that Charlie’s new stepmother, Charlotte, who is a DeChant, would want to live there.

But Charlie hates it  And he hates Charlotte, and he hates anything that tries to get him to see reason about his horrible stepmonster (I didn’t like the lazy use of this term, but it is rather appropriate). (more…)

Read Full Post »

Trudi Strain Trueit–No Girls Allowed (Dogs Okay) [Secrets of a Lab Rat: Book 1] (2009) [audiobook 2009–Oliver Wyman]

Posted in Audiobooks, C., Children's Books, Dogs, Funny (ha ha), Humiliation, Oliver Wyman, Poo, Pranks, Regrets, Revenge, Series, Set at School, Sisters, Smells, T., Trudi Strain Trueit, Unfinished series, Unlikable main character, Yuck! on July 2, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[LISTENED TO: June 29, 2016] No Girls Allowed (Dogs Okay) 

Scab McNally is a clever fourth-grade kid who is always inventing things. But he’s also kind of selfish and pretty mean to his sister.  Isabelle is his twin but because she really uses her brain (She is smart times ten) she has been bumped up from 4th grade to 5th grade.

Isabelle doesn’t understand Scab’s brand of cleverness (and mischievousness) and so she writes a daily news report about all of the things that Scab has done to her (and done at school) through the day.  She reads this to her parents every night.  It’s pretty hard for Scab to catch a break at this point.

But obviously, the more Isabelle tells on him the more things he does to her.  He puts cheese in her underwear drawer and dead bugs in her room.

This is all some background to the fact that more than anything else Scab wants a dog.  (There seem to be a lot of books about kids who desperately want a dog).  Scab’s best friend has a dog, Oscar–a wiener dog.  And Scab is super jealous but always happy to help out with Oscar.  Of course, since Isabelle is always attaining on him, his parents don’t think he is responsible to own a dog. (more…)

Read Full Post »

Megan McDonald–Stink and the World’s Worst Super-Stinky Sneakers (2007)/Stink and the Great Guinea Pig Express (2007) [audiobook 2008–Nancy Cartwright]

Posted in Advice, Audiobooks, Capybara, Children's Books, Elves, Funny (ha ha), Guinea Pigs, Megan McDonald, Nancy Cartwright, Smells, The Simpsons, Yuck! on July 1, 2017| Leave a Comment »

[LISTENED TO: April 15, 2016] Stink: the World’s Worst Super-Stinky Sneakers & the Great Guinea Pig Express

T. was listening to this book in her room and I said, hey, that’s Bart Simpson.  And indeed, the book was being read by Nancy Cartwright, the voice of Bart (as well as Nelson, Ralph, and dozens of other minor characters).  The next day we went on a car ride and she asked to listen to the stories.  So we did.  I heard the end of the Guinea Pig story and then all of the sneaker story.  Well, I couldn’t have a half finished story in my head so I had to listen to the beginning of the guinea pig story too, and call it all finished.

I knew of Stink from the Judy Moody books.  Stink is Judy’s younger brother (and she’s pretty awful in these books.  I don’t recall if she was awful in her own books).  But that could just be because this is about Stink and not her.  We learn how Stink got his name: Judy started singing a song about him in which stink was the chorus.  And it just stuck.

Stink goes by Stink in school and elsewhere.  And apparently he has a super duper sniffer (this may just be a coincidence and not a side effect of being called Stink).  (more…)

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts