Violet Mackerel's Remarkable Recovery

Violet Mackerel's Remarkable Recovery by Anna Branford; ill. by Elanna Allen
Which readers? 1st and up

A couple of months ago, I reviewed the first Violet Mackerel novel, which I thought was a delightful treat for young children who are strong readers for their age. This second little novelette in the series does not disappoint! Violet is as spunky, precocious, and creative as ever.

Violet is going to have her tonsils removed, and she once again has a silly yet oh-so-true theory. In the first book, her theory involved the universe rewarding and signifying a remarkable thought by finding some special trinket on the ground (in a first grader's language, of course!) This time she has created The Theory of Giving Small Things, which states that small items which are given to someone when they have a problem have a bit of the givers wishes for the person inside of them. Such as, when you give someone who is sick a little statuette, your wishes for their recovery and good health live inside of the item and stay with the recipient.

This charming sentiment is surrounded in the story by Violet's witty comments, stubborness, and tenacity, which creates such a heartwarming and real little girl. I think that little girls (and boys!) will fall in love all over again with Violet. Once again, the text is widely spaced with adorable illustrations by Allen. This series has four books coming out this year in the US, it has multiple cover images when I search Google images, and the author lives in Australia. I am deducing that this series has already been published elsewhere (my guess is Australia), although I have not done any research to verify.

Yes, still in love with little Violet.

A Few Spunky Girls who live in Early Chapter Books

I am loving the precocious, outspoken girls who I find in Early Chapter Books Series Fiction these days! Here are a few of my favorites.

My first little lady I would like to introduce is Violet Mackerel...




Recommended Age - 6 and up

As many children do, Violet comes up with theories to help the world make sense. Her latest theory is that when you spy something special on the ground (a special rock, lost button, bit of ribbon, etc.), it is a sign that what you were thinking about at the time you spied the special object is a very significant thought in your life. This theory runs throughout the book as Violet accompanies her single mom to the market where her mom sells her knitting. When Violet spies a blue china bird that catches her fancy on the table of a neighboring seller, she also spots a small red button on the ground. She takes this as a sign that she has to come up with her most brilliant plot ever to earn the money to buy that blue bird. Of course, her brilliant ideas will bring some mayhem, lots of laughs, and perhaps a new friend for mom.

I thoroughly enjoyed this sweet little book. Violet is funny and spunky. The story moves quickly, and the black and white illustrations are modern, lighthearted, and offer lovely surprises on each page. The theme of mom's knitting is woven throughout the illustrations, which I found delightful. The text has quite a bit of spacing and there are many illustrations, which make this perfect for a child who is just transitioning from beginning readers. It looks like Violet has a brand new adventure that just came out February 5th, and there is another Violet book being released in May 2013.

The author's website is fun! She calls herself a children's author and maker of things, and there are pictures of her projects on the website. This is fun for a crafter like myself. http://annabranford.com/

Next up, Marty Mcguire...



Recommended age: 2nd grade-ish


Marty is an adventurous third-grade tomboy who is on a mission to win the school Save the Earth contest. She first thinks that she will go into the woods behind her house and "protect the habitat," but it turns out that there is no one trying to chop it down. Saving the woods gets old very quickly when it does not need saving. After several other ideas don't pan out, her grandma suggests they start a worm bin for her project. The worm bin is exciting at first, but Violet quickly gets discouraged because worms just don't do much, and things happen very slowly in the bin. The awards ceremony for the competition is quickly approaching, and all of Marty's classmates have very showy ideas. Marty is resigned that her contest entry will be a total bust, but it turns out that Marty's entry might be the one ingredient that makes one of the other entries shine.

This is Kate Messner's second Marty adventure. Messner is an author with an eye toward the environment, and it seems that this series will explore this interest, as do many of her other books. Yes, this is a message book, but it is a positive message that will go well with science lessons, science fairs, and Earth Day. I like little girls who go over the top in their passion for their interests.

Messner writes books for lots of ages, and her blog has info about all her books, her interests, and appearances. http://www.katemessner.com/

I am entertained that Amazon lists the age group for this book as 4 year olds. This book is definitely not for your average 4 year old. I'm sure there a few four year olds who read at this level, but NOT very many.

And last, but certainly not least - Daisy Dawson!




Daisy Dawson often dawdles on her way to school, and her teacher has just about had enough! But what is Daisy to do when the animals want to talk to her and take her on adventures? Soon, they are seeking Daisy out in other places - even sneaking in her house!

These little early chapter books are the magical combination of wonderful text and equally wonderful illustrations. Meserve's black-and-white illustrations are sweet and attention grabbing, and they complement the story so well. Children will love how Daisy has to defy the adults to help the animals!

I can't find websites or blogs for Voake or Meserve! I was hoping to see more of Meserve's work. I do know that they both live across the pond. CORRECTION: A friend in publishing has let me know that Meserve is actually from Massachusetts. I hope she gets a blog soon!