Joan Holub

First sentence: Grrrreetings! My name is Brown Bear. I am the only bear in this book. [You are not].

This is a nonfiction picture book about BEARS (plural). It isn't your typical nonfiction picture book, however. It is written in a conversational--playful--narrative. The [many] bears of the book are having quite the dialogue--all in speech bubbles. All the information about each bear--what makes them similar or dissimilar to the others--is revealed through conversation. The conversation isn't dry and info-dumpy. Not really. There's plenty to keep it light and flowing--a bit silly.

I liked this one. It does have more text than you might expect based on the cover. I do think this one could easily be mistaken for just another picture book starring bears. It doesn't scream out "I'm nonfiction!" Because it is so text-heavy, I do think it would be a good fit for most elementary grades--especially second and third grade.… (mehr)

Prelim Review: As a kid who grew up on the tales of gods and heroes of Greece, I wasn't sure what to expect. With the...frustration I felt over Disney's Hercules I was a little reluctant truth be told. However I shouldn't have worried. Holub and Williams kept the spirit of the tales without sacrificing (much) of the tales themselves. Much of who Athena meets and what happens, while twisted so as to fit the junior high setting and tropes, were fun takes on the real myths. How Medusa got her snakey-hair for instance or the invention of olives.

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First I should point out that I was one of those people who went to see Disney's Hercules movie and spent almost the entire movie commenting to my friends that I couldn't believe the liberties they had taken. It was pointed out to me that the actual myth was probably too hardcore for Disney (or children). I am also a fan of the television shows Hercules: the Legendary Journeys and Xena: Warrior Princess, both of which took enormous liberties as well, but stuck to the mythology well enough.

I sincerely wish that the Goddess Girls book series had been around back then. Holub and Williams managed to adapt the myths of Medusa, Athena's birth, parts of the Illiad/Odyssey and even a few others into a sanitized, but entertaining read appropriate for the age group (10 ). The four Goddesses we follow are Athena, Artemis, Aphrodite and Persephone. Pandora is also a character, but as she's not a Goddess she isn't officially part of the mix. We only see a couple of the Gods--Zeus, Hermes and Poseidon--though in later books I'm sure that'll change.

I found it to be interesting that Poseidon, who is Zeus' brother, was instead shown to be significantly younger than Zeus--not quite keeping in line of things, but that's okay. Athena's transfer and adaptation to 'Olympus Junior High' is rocky, but relateable for young girls in a similar situation. Not knowing the school rules, trusting the wrong person with sensitive information, making rivals and enemies simply by being yourself--these are all things kids go through. Just because Athena happened to accidentally rain inventions down on the mortal plane or she showed up Poseidon by having Odysseus totally trounce the Trojans, well that was just fun.
… (mehr)