Thomas Kingsley TroupeCritiques

andolph Caldecott Medal ; Year this Award was Won: 2 002 ; Award Win Active Date: Sunday, January 10, 2010 - 18:00 ; Defunct Winner UID: 2 ...

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In this spine tingling *but not too scary for kids* tale, 13 year old Al is having a run of bad luck and suffering some spooky consequences after a school trip to the museum where he disrespected a cursed doll. At first he assumes it's mere coincidence, but as things begin to escalate and his friends start to blame the curse, Al can't help but wonder if Robert the doll is out to get him. Is the fear all in his mind or is the curse for real?
The fact that there really is a Robert doll added to the creepiness of the story and it was a plus for me that there is an underlying theme for kids that it never hurts to be polite.

I received an advance copy for review.

Jayla, 12, and her brother, Dion, 7, spend a week at a hotel in Colorado. They are left on their own while their father works at an emergency temporary job restoring trails. It might have been boring for the kids, cooped up in a hotel all day, except they happen to be staying in a haunted room. Based on a real hotel and its supposed ghost, this story is a pretty exciting one but not too scary for its intended age target of 8-12. The writing is good and kids will likely identify with the characters. The kids sometimes get into mischief, but take care of each other, and the family is a solid one. Even though the mother is not in the picture, there is obvious love and caring between the kids and the dad. Part of a series of ghost stories set in various states, kids will enjoy reading this chapter book by themselves or with a parent or older sibling.

The Curse of the Dead-Eyed Doll is the fifth book in the Haunted States of America series. Every state has its own famous ghost tales and legends. Each book in the series focuses on a different state. So far, tales have been told from Tennessee, Minnesota, Texas, and Colorado. This newest book in the series adds a famous tale of a allegedly cursed child's toy in Florida.

The basics: Al Padilla takes a school field trip to the East Martello Museum in Key West. All of the students are excited about seeing the museum's most popular exhibit: a doll that is reportedly cursed. Robert the Doll has a strange backstory, and was donated to the museum decades earlier. Supposedly, if the doll is disrespected or has his photo taken without first being asked for permission, bad things happen. The museum displays a collection of letters sent to Robert apologizing for bad behavior and asking for him to remove the curse placed on them for slights or disrespect. Al doesn't believe in curses or haunted dolls. So, he snaps Robert's picture without asking permission. When everything starts to go wrong after the field trip, Al starts to wonder if maybe he is cursed.

This spooky tale is geared to middle grade readers. It's a bit creepy, but not overly so. There is a bit of supernatural stalking by an angry doll....but nothing that would be too freaky for elementary age kids. I enjoyed the story. I'm always up for a good creepy story, even one written for kids. I like the fact that the story is based on an actual real doll with a real creepy legend behind it. Robert exists. His real story is told in this book. I want to read the rest of the books in this series now! I will have to request my local library purchase them, as I believe local kids would love to read this series as well!

**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Flux (North Star Editions) via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

Trapped in Room 217 by Thomas Kingsley Troupe is a quick and fun romp through the horror genre that is geared to middle grade school children. It is based on the Stanley Hotel specifically the famouse Room 217.
Although it was intended to be a horror novel, it also has elements of mystery that brings Nancy Drew to mind. All in all, it was a nice introduction to horror for younger readers that has a sense of excitement and mystery that is not overdone.

This book is part of a new series called The Haunted States of America series that will focus on "haunted locals" in the different states. I loved that this story centered on the infamous Stanley Hotel in Colorado. Stephen King wrote The Shining after staying there in 1974. So, right there the atmosphere gets a thumbs up. It's labeled MG horror, but between you and me it's more like MG creepy. Unless you've got a sensitive reader, this one won't inspire nightmares.

The main characters in the story are staying at the hotel with their Dad while he works nearby for the week. That leaves two kids wandering around a "haunted" hotel on their own. They see a ghost and then investigate who it might be.

I'm looking forward to reading more of the books in this series.

Curse of the Dead-Eyed Doll by Thomas Kingsley Troupe is a book I requested from NetGalley and the review is voluntary. This is a middle grade book and there really is a doll named Robert that is supposed to be haunted. This of course is fiction and is very good! Robert wants people to ask permission to take his picture but our boy of the story thinks it's hogwash and doesn't! See what happens! Fun story!
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Curse of the Dead-Eyed Doll is a YA story with middle school'ers being the target audience. I am many, many moons from school age, middle or otherwise. But I enjoy YA titles. I like being in 'the know' about what my granddaughter will be reading. Although an advanced reader, she is a couple of years from middle school. She really loves spooky, creepy stories, so we read this together. She loved it!

The story centers around a doll named Robert currently on display in a Key West, Florida museum. Before entering Robert's room visitors are instructed to be respectful at all times and if they want a photo, to ask Robert's consent first. All the students comply, except one. (There is always one.) Al doesn't believe in such mumbo-jumbo. So acting the part of class smarty-pants, he insults Robert the doll and snaps a picture without permission.

Soon after strange things start happening. He chalks his sudden case of bad luck up to coincidence. There's no such thing as haunted dolls. As the reader sees Al spiraling into a frenzied state of near insanity his denial of the supernatural ring more and more hollow. Is Al being haunted by Robert or is he driving himself mad?

I am flipping the pages like 'mad'. . . Curious to know what happens next. The author's vocabulary, overall pacing, and characters were well thought out. I kept wondering about Al's Mother. I would've liked an explanation of her absence. My granddaughter asked about her too. She thought if his Mom had been there, he could've confided in her. We both wished the story had been a little longer. Maybe then some of the important sections would have felt more realistic, vs. stated and rushed past. All said this is an excellent, very creepy, rapid read that saves the real chiller to last. Standing your hair on end with five little words -- "Based on a true story." Don't miss this one. (You wouldn't want to insult Robert. LOL)½

Dinosaurs and Pirates, what more could you ask for. Gary the Stegosaurus wants to be a pirate. Unfortunately he has some issues due to his body and his size. Even though he is trying to do a good job, he ends up messing things up. The illustrations were great. They were bright, colourful and humorous as well as having some hidden jokes and answers to questions in them. Watch for the nod to the Titanic Movie. At the end of the book is an questions section where you can use the page number given to find the answers hidden in the illustrations. A cute story that young children will enjoy and parents will enjoy reading to them, especially if you can do a good pirate voice. A great addition to public, school, classroom and family libraries. The publisher generously provided me with a copy of this book via Netgalley.

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to review.
The Sir Mitchell Nightingale City Library is magical. Every Saturday at 12pm the library transforms into a story of a book. The Gulliver Giant takes place after Gulliver's travels. I read this book with my kids ages 9 and 10. They thought it was hilarious and really good. We can't wait to read the other books in this series.

Pirates and dinosaurs....it’s a fun combination! This is a cute story.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC

I didn't realise this was for younger readers when I selected it, but it wasn't a bad read. I like how it's based on a true haunting. It's a quick read, and not scary enough to freak out younger readers. It's certainly not dark enough to be classed as horror for YA or adult readers.
I would have liked a more solid explanation as to why the ghost is still there.
I received my copy from NetGalley.

@kidlitexchange #partner Thank you to #kidlitexchange for sharing the review copy of this book. All opinions are my own. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟Trapped in Room 217 by Thomas Kingsley Troupe. When I was a kid I got lost in Estes Park Colorado at a campground so naturally exploring was the thing to do, only I didn't find anything spooky, so when I saw this book was based in Estes Park I couldn't wait to dive into it! Jayla Walters isn't sure how to feel about her Dad's job sending them to Colorado to stay in a hotel just before spring break begins and so soon after their mom left them. She puts on a brave face for her younger brother, Dion as they begin this unsure adventure. On their first night in the hotel Jayla and Dion realize something isn't quite right. Someone, or something, or more than one somethings, visit their hotel room every night. They arrange a private tour of the haunted hotel after befriending the clerk and the janitor. Jayla has come up with the perfect solution to help set the spirit free or has she? Sometimes the things we think are the best, may iinly be the best solution to you. It's important to consider everyone when you make a choice Jayla and Dion and their new friends find out. Review also posted on Instagram @borenbooks, Library Thing, Go Read, Goodreads/StacieBoren, Amazon, Twitter @jason_stacie and my blog at readsbystacie.com

The Story of Orion is a simplified version of the Roman myth of how Diana, the goddess of the Moon, fell in love with Orion. The colorful and simple pictures are engaging and help children understand the storyline. This would be a great book to read aloud to students from first to fourth grades.

Two of my favorite things growing up as a child? Pirates and dinosaurs! So imagine my delight when coming across this book. For me, the T-Rex is my all time favorite, but a Stegosauraus pirate is still pretty cool. This would be a nice gift for any child that loves either of those subjects (or both!). The pictures are colorful the dinosaur cute, and the situations silly. Poor stegosaurus tries to be like the other pirates, but he’s too big, too heavy and just not built for piracy. Amusingly, he chooses a different profession at the end. After the story, the author includes a few informational pages on the dinosaur, so it isn’t just fun and games. Kids will learn a bit about the stegosaurus, such as the purpose of the plates on his back. I received a free ebook in exchange for my honest review. And honestly, this would have been a book I would have picked up for my kids.

The picture book discusses the origins of the star constellation of Orion through a mythological perspective. The book also tells the twisted love story between the goddess Diana and the hunter Orion.

This was a fun book to read with my kids and it would definitely be perfect to have around when “Speak Like a Pirate” Day arrives.

The story wonderfully teaches a lesson on how sometimes what we dream of doing may not be possible but that’s okay because we should never stop dreaming to find the perfect fit. At the end of the story there is a fun Dino Dig where answers to the questions are hidden in the art work throughout the book. There ae also facts, discussion questions and a glossary that help turn a fun experience into an educational one as well.

The art work is vivid and perfect with the story as it really brings to life this adorable and well-intentioned dinosaur. There was plenty of humor sprinkled throughout the art like the pirate flag whose traditional skull and crossbones kept changing its expression depending on what was going on in the story. The requisite parrot who seemed to take all the mishaps at ease by finding underwear for the dino, floating on a plastic raft and drinking ‘coffee’?

My favorite was what appeared to be a nod to the Titanic movie where there was a female pirate on a raft while the guy was in the water clinging to the edge.

As a mom I had fun reading this, especially in a pirate voice which made my daughters laugh, and they enjoyed the story. It gave us a great opportunity to talk about some of the things they want to do when they grow up, what it would take to get there and what other things might they enjoy if the first turned out to be something they didn’t want to do after all.

I liked having a book that turned into an opportunity to learn more about my kids.

This was a fun book to read with my kids and it would definitely be perfect to have around when “Speak Like a Pirate” Day arrives.

The story wonderfully teaches a lesson on how sometimes what we dream of doing may not be possible but that’s okay because we should never stop dreaming to find the perfect fit. At the end of the story there is a fun Dino Dig where answers to the questions are hidden in the art work throughout the book. There ae also facts, discussion questions and a glossary that help turn a fun experience into an educational one as well.

The art work is vivid and perfect with the story as it really brings to life this adorable and well-intentioned dinosaur. There was plenty of humor sprinkled throughout the art like the pirate flag whose traditional skull and crossbones kept changing its expression depending on what was going on in the story. The requisite parrot who seemed to take all the mishaps at ease by finding underwear for the dino, floating on a plastic raft and drinking ‘coffee’?

My favorite was what appeared to be a nod to the Titanic movie where there was a female pirate on a raft while the guy was in the water clinging to the edge.

As a mom I had fun reading this, especially in a pirate voice which made my daughters laugh, and they enjoyed the story. It gave us a great opportunity to talk about some of the things they want to do when they grow up, what it would take to get there and what other things might they enjoy if the first turned out to be something they didn’t want to do after all.

I liked having a book that turned into an opportunity to learn more about my kids.

The legend of Bigfoot started in North America in the 1700s. No one knows if Bigfoot is real or not, but with all the reported sightings, the legend of Bigfoot has grown larger and larger as the years continue. Bigfoot sightings have been reported everywhere, but Washington state is the top spot with 486 sightings. Bigfoot is reported to be over 7 feet tall and 900 pounds, and is very hairy. In Canada, Bigfoot sightings are called Sasquatch sightings. The Roger Patterson film from 1967 is the most controversial and biggest piece of evidence about Bigfoot being real. Some say the film is a hoax, some say it is authentic. This book was very interesting. The story had a lot of details and mysteries surrounding Bigfoot. A lot of the facts were interesting and the stories about sightings were fascinating. This book would be a good story to get students interested in myths and legends. It would also be a good story to start a debate on student’s opinions on whether Bigfoot is real or fake.

This book is all about the Greek and Roman myth of the hunter Orion falling in love with Diana and being placed in the sky as a constellation forever more. The illustrations in this book are really striking and colorful, which draws the eye in and makes it a page turner. I always believe that the Roman myths especially do a wonderful job of exploring human themes such as vanity, love, desire, war and banishment that are still relatable to today. That's why I love to see modern takes and rewrites of these classic stories done because I think they transfer seamlessly into tales for modern audiences full of morals.

This book is about how the garbage Gang meets a sunflower. The sunflower teaches the garbage gang about the different parts of plants. I would use this book during an anticipatory set/ engagement piece into a unit study on plants.I would use this with third graders.

The constellation illustrations are amazing and vivid. I feel this story is a bit mature for its intended audience and I might suggest it for grades 5th and above.