| Fish Finelli (Book 1): Seagulls Don't Eat Pickles Author: E.S. Farber Illustrations: Jason Beene Genre: Children's Fiction Publisher: Chronicle Books Release Date: April 16, 2013 Paperback: 156 pages Ages: 8-12 Source: Free from publisher Buy the Book: Amazon |
When bully Bryce Billings bets Fish Finelli that he can't find Captain
Kidd's legendary long-lost treasure, Fish and his friends embark on a
quest to find real-life pirate treasure. Between sneaking into the
library to track down Captain Kidd's map, stowing away on a boat, and
trespassing on an island, Fish and his friends have their work cut out
for them. But will Fish actually be able to find Captain Kidd's booty
and win the bet? Appropriate for both boys and girls, this first book in
the Fish Finelli series will inspire readers to use their imaginations,
learn about the world around them, and appreciate the bonds of
friendship.
Review
I received this book at SCIBA last October along with a million other ARC.
I have a strong opinion about children's book. (Yes! I am jumping on my soap box.) A children's book should give the young readers a few things:
1. Fun. That is always important to get them hooked.
2. An example of good behavior. (If not number 3)
3. An example of bad actions. If you do bad things then this will happen.
4. Good always does right. You don't have the good guys do bad things to prove their goodness. I know that does not make sense but keep reading.
In this book Fish Finelli three young adventurous boys (Fish, Roger, and T.J) are confronted by Bryce (a bully type) to find Captain Kidd's treasure the boys quickly go on the Captain Kidd quest to find his long lost treasure.
Now here is when the story takes a crazy turn. The boys break into the librarians office (not accidentally get locked in after hours.) I thought they were the good guys. Stowing away on a boat and trespassing onto private property is only to come next. Say what!? This is so not right. They are the GOOD GUYS! Really?
My next issue is the age range this book is geared to. The ARC says 8-12 and Amazon listed 7-10. I am not sure if the book would be in the vocabulary level of an 8 year old. 9 and up maybe. Through out the book there are definitions of words in the margin with bigger words in the definitions. It's as if they just cut and pasted the wikipedia definition into the illustration. Not age appropriate definitions.
This book has the feeling of the Goonie's movie but missed the mark for me. I need to have a reader in the age group read it and give you their thoughts.
I received this book at SCIBA last October along with a million other ARC.
I have a strong opinion about children's book. (Yes! I am jumping on my soap box.) A children's book should give the young readers a few things:
1. Fun. That is always important to get them hooked.
2. An example of good behavior. (If not number 3)
3. An example of bad actions. If you do bad things then this will happen.
4. Good always does right. You don't have the good guys do bad things to prove their goodness. I know that does not make sense but keep reading.
In this book Fish Finelli three young adventurous boys (Fish, Roger, and T.J) are confronted by Bryce (a bully type) to find Captain Kidd's treasure the boys quickly go on the Captain Kidd quest to find his long lost treasure.
Now here is when the story takes a crazy turn. The boys break into the librarians office (not accidentally get locked in after hours.) I thought they were the good guys. Stowing away on a boat and trespassing onto private property is only to come next. Say what!? This is so not right. They are the GOOD GUYS! Really?
My next issue is the age range this book is geared to. The ARC says 8-12 and Amazon listed 7-10. I am not sure if the book would be in the vocabulary level of an 8 year old. 9 and up maybe. Through out the book there are definitions of words in the margin with bigger words in the definitions. It's as if they just cut and pasted the wikipedia definition into the illustration. Not age appropriate definitions.
This book has the feeling of the Goonie's movie but missed the mark for me. I need to have a reader in the age group read it and give you their thoughts.
Reviews by Other Bloggers
Recommendations
I recommend this book to children ages 10 and older.
Challenges
This book is number 9 in my Off the Shelf Reading Challenge
This book is number 15 in my Women's Reading Challenge
This book is number 10 in my TBR List Reading Challenge
This book is number 22 in my Good Reads Reading Challenge
3 out of 18 books in my ARC Pile.
This book is number 9 in my Off the Shelf Reading Challenge
This book is number 15 in my Women's Reading Challenge
This book is number 10 in my TBR List Reading Challenge
This book is number 22 in my Good Reads Reading Challenge
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