A review by nicolemhewitt
Xander and the Lost Island of Monsters by Choong Yoon, Margaret Dilloway
4.0
4.5/5 Stars
This review and many more can be found on my blog: Feed Your Fiction Addiction
This book was absolutely perfect for us because of how excited my son has been about Japanese culture. None of us had ever heard the Japanese folktale that this book is based on—Momotaro (about a Japanese samurai who is found as a boy in a peach!), but we really enjoyed learning the tale right along with Xander and his best friend Peyton. When the book begins, Xander is an average, everyday kid who tends to get in a bit of trouble at school because his head is in the clouds. Xander is creative, which shows up in his artwork and in his video game programming, but he doesn’t feel like his creativity is particularly appreciated. Until one day when Xander’s world is turned upside down—his father is taken by oni (which are sort of Japanese demons), and Xander discovers that he might have to be very creative indeed to get him back. It turns out that Momotaro’s story is much more important than Xander ever imagined as he and Peyton are faced with tsunamis, strange creatures, oni, and other friends and foes. This book is filled with Japanese cultural references and folkloric magic (neverending rice balls to eat!) that make it incredibly fun, and it’s action-packed which kept it exciting.
I have to confess that I wasn’t as fond of the very beginning of the book, when Xander was still in school. His thoughts and feelings about school and some of his classmates weren’t my favorite aspect of the book, but it didn’t take long to be rid of the school setting and to move onto the fantastical adventures, so I’m not taking much off of my rating for that. My kids and I can’t wait to hear the next installment and we’re eagerly awaiting more of Xander’s adventures!
Narration: I thought the narration for this book was spot-on! Chris Patton has a great kid voice that sounds natural for this age group, and his inflections and speech patterns made him completely believable as a middle grade MC.
Overall, I give this book 4.5/5 Stars.
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via AudioBook Jukebox in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***
This review and many more can be found on my blog: Feed Your Fiction Addiction
This book was absolutely perfect for us because of how excited my son has been about Japanese culture. None of us had ever heard the Japanese folktale that this book is based on—Momotaro (about a Japanese samurai who is found as a boy in a peach!), but we really enjoyed learning the tale right along with Xander and his best friend Peyton. When the book begins, Xander is an average, everyday kid who tends to get in a bit of trouble at school because his head is in the clouds. Xander is creative, which shows up in his artwork and in his video game programming, but he doesn’t feel like his creativity is particularly appreciated. Until one day when Xander’s world is turned upside down—his father is taken by oni (which are sort of Japanese demons), and Xander discovers that he might have to be very creative indeed to get him back. It turns out that Momotaro’s story is much more important than Xander ever imagined as he and Peyton are faced with tsunamis, strange creatures, oni, and other friends and foes. This book is filled with Japanese cultural references and folkloric magic (neverending rice balls to eat!) that make it incredibly fun, and it’s action-packed which kept it exciting.
I have to confess that I wasn’t as fond of the very beginning of the book, when Xander was still in school. His thoughts and feelings about school and some of his classmates weren’t my favorite aspect of the book, but it didn’t take long to be rid of the school setting and to move onto the fantastical adventures, so I’m not taking much off of my rating for that. My kids and I can’t wait to hear the next installment and we’re eagerly awaiting more of Xander’s adventures!
Narration: I thought the narration for this book was spot-on! Chris Patton has a great kid voice that sounds natural for this age group, and his inflections and speech patterns made him completely believable as a middle grade MC.
Overall, I give this book 4.5/5 Stars.
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via AudioBook Jukebox in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***