Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and the Race Against Time

by Frank Cottrell Boyce
sequel to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Flies Again
SORRY BORROWED THIS IMAGE FROM amazon.co.uk YOU CANNOT REALLY CLICK TO LOOK INSIDE!!

Rating: ****` (4.5 stars)
Age group: 8+
Type: Fantasy-ish

The Tootings are back and this time they have discovered the Chronojuster--the lever that allows their car Chitty Chitty Bang Bang to go back in time!!!!!!! So they do. They meet the original owner of the car, Count Zborowski. But they also discover two hardened criminals and a little boy called Red who is obsessed with money. Red accidentally turns the Chronojuster and off they go, zooming through time! But Tiny Jack is back, and with even more evil to bring... what will happen?
This book is also funny, especially since Lucy (who was really goth in the first book) is actually turning into a giggly teenage girl (!!!). This book  is more complex and harder to understand than the first one, but at the end, all the loose ends caused by the first book are wrapped up, plus most of this book's loose ends, and again there is a cliffhanger ending making everybody want to read the next book. Some things in this book: lucky cufflinks, the year 1966, and the lost city El Dorado!!! This is a a great book. :)

PARENTAL SECTION
Sexual parts: no
Violence: not really
Fighting: yes
Kissing/romance: well, Lucy starts to possibly have a crush on Count Zborowski
Pregnancy: no
Stealing: yes
Vandalizing: sort of

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang Flies Again

by Frank Cottrell Boyce

sequel to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang by Ian Fleming

Rating: ****` (4.5 stars)

Age group: 8+

Type: Fantasy-ish

This book is about the Tooting family, made up of Dad, Mum, Lucy, Jem, and Little Harry Tooting. They live in England. They have a great life, until Dad gets fired from his job at Small Parts for Big Machines and they lose their car. But then Mum brings home a camper van from her job at Unbeatable Motoring Bargains, and Dad fixes it--and incorporates a new airplane engine into it. They find out the hard way that the car has a mind of its own--and can fly! They name her Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and off they go to see the world. But a mysterious villain, Tiny Jack want Chitty and will stop at nothing to get her--so when the Tootings end up on his private boat, it's not good news. Will they manage to save Chitty and themselves? 

This is a great book. I like it mostly because of the humor, because it really is very funny. There are some more intense-ish parts but it's not super-dark. The Tootings go on really cool trips. Tiny Jack is a really evil antagonist. Plus at the end there's a really big cliffhanger that leads perfectly into the next book!!!

PARENTAL SECTION

Sexual parts: no
Violence: yes-ish
Fighting: not exactly
Kissing/romance: yes, Mum and Dad kiss hugely in Paris
Pregnancy: no
Stealing: no
Vandalizing: no
There are some intense moments like when Little Harry--wait, I won't tell you that! You just have to read the book!

Mr. Popper's Penguins

by Richard and Florence Atwater

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Age group: 7+
Type: Fiction-ish

Mr. Popper is a wall painter. But one day he gets a penguin shipped to him from the Antarctic. An aquarium donates another penguin, and they all have babies! Now there are 12 penguins, which is a lot. Mr. Popper adores his penguins, but feeding them and sheltering them (in the proper condition) costs a bit more than the Poppers would like to be paying. Their money is quickly running out. So... Mr. Popper decides to train his penguins for performance!
This is a good book that is good for both little kids and big kids. Fun fact: Richard Atwater began writing it, but then he got sick so Florence Atwater finished it! Something specific I like about this book is that there is lots of humor in it. The tricks the penguins can do are especially funny. I will not tell you what they are. You will just have to read this book! Recommended for but not limited to penguin-lovers. This is a great book. The only problem is that Mr. Popper calls Mrs. Popper "mamma" and Mrs. Popper calls Mr. Popper "pappa" which makes for some confusing sections. Warning! There was a movie made out of this book. The movie is not really like the book at all, though it is pretty funny still if you want to watch it. 

PARENTAL SECTION
Sexual parts: no
Violence: comic violence. It's funny! (Penguins hitting each other)
Fighting: comic fighting. It's funny! (Penguins hitting each other)
Kissing/romance: no
Pregnancy: the penguins have babies
Stealing: the penguins steal stuff to make a nest.
Vandalizing: nope.

Ties That Bind, Ties That Break

by Lensey Namioka

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Age group: 11+
Type: Historical fiction

Ailin lives in China and her family expects her to have her feet bound. Feet binding is when a woman's feet are wrapped in cloths to make them small and dainty. Unfortunately this process is uncomfortable, and Ailin doesn't want to do it. Her father is okay with that, but her mother, uncle, and grandmother do not like her reaction. Eventually they let her have it her way. Plus her family decides to send her to public school! She likes school a lot, and does well. But then her grandmother dies, and her father soon follows. Now Ailin's uncle is in charge. Her uncle thinks differently from her father. He first takes Ailin out of public school, but thankfully Ailin's English teacher agrees to tutor her at her house. Ailin plans to be a teacher, but her uncle has different ideas--she's either to be a farmer's wife or be a concubine to an older man. (A concubine is a woman who is married but treated badly and just helps her husband get a son.) Ailin doesn't want to do either. Can she get out of it and do what she wants?
This book is a pretty good book. It's very realistic and even though it does have history, it's also written in such a way that it could be modern (if people bound feet nowadays). It's not exactly a pick-it-up-and-never-put-it-down kind of book, but it's still really good. Ailin is a very brave, determined, likable character, and the antagonists are like real life people so in a way they're more antagonistic than ones that are super-modern gadgety people. This actually happened, which also makes them antagonistic.

PARENTAL SECTION
Sexual parts: not really
Violence: not really.
Fighting: yes
Kissing/romance: sort of, not especially
Pregnancy: not really
Stealing: no
Vandalizing: no