Archives for June 2024

On sale June 25^th from S&S Books for Young Readers, VILLAINS ACADEMY by Ryan Hammond is a new and hilarious illustrated middle grade series about what happens when a young werewolf realizes he might… want to be the good guy?

This is a highly entertaining book to read and kids will love Bram the Werewolf!

Perfect for fans of The Bad Guys and Amelia Fang, VILLAINS ACADEMY is the perfect twist on the fantastical school genre that teaches young readers about self-confidence and being true to yourself! Kids can sink their fangs into this pun-filled story while subtly teaching them the importance of critical thinking, context, and challenging their own assumptions. Ryan Hammond’s kid-friendly text and delightful illustrations will have kids clawing for more of the misadventures of Bram the Werewolf!

Perfect for fans of Victoria Jamieson and Raina Telgemeier, this heartwarming middle grade graphic novel follows two nonbinary kids who navigate anxiety and identity while having fun and forming friendships at their summer orchestra camp. Publishing in simultaneous paperback and hardcover editions! Middle school age kids will love these characters! A very engaging and fun summer read!

Real cooking is about following your heart rather than the recipe, because cooking is more than just a blending of ingredients from land, sea, and farm, according to Chef Seadon Shouse, the notable Nova Scotia chef who brought its cuisine to the Hoboken coast. He details his philosophy through recipes and memories, in From the Hill by the Sea, a cookbook-memoir. Chef Shouse is Executive Chef of Halifax Hoboken is both memoir and recipe for cooking and for life, educating the reader in Chef Seadon’s Nova Scotia-grown roots of foraging, hand-making, and cooking from the land with heart and soul.

Recipes feature unique twists on mackerel, oysters, salmon, periwinkle dishes. There’s even an open fire-roasted chicken recipe. The master chef introduces new techniques broken down into simple steps. Homespun sides like Biscuit Dough Boys (cooked on a stick), Bread and Butter Vegetable Pickles, Roasted Brussel Sprouts, Brown Sugar Bacon and his twist on Nova Scotia’s famous Blueberry Grunt delight the senses and create delectable, sustainable meals.

Chef Seadon’s recipes and stories hail from his childhood spent in Coastal Nova Scotia where the connection between food, land and sea is a direct and intimate experience. He encourages the reader to step out of their comfort zone and step into an ocean of possibility that opens up a whole new chapter for the exploratory, yet sustainability-minded cook.

From the Hill By the Sea will appeal to readers interested in finding new ways to cook fresh dishes, whether they forage or not. This book will delight the sustainably-minded cook, from beginner, intermediate to expert, as long as they are not afraid to put on a pair of rubber boots and slosh around in the proverbial culinary sea. The book can be purchased at Halifax Hoboken or the W Hoboken, or online at www.halifaxhoboken.com.

Self Disclosure: I received free copies of the above books to feature in this book spotlight. Images and information were also provided.

With Tokyo under siege from rising monster attacks, baseball star Ken Sato reluctantly returns home to take on the mantle of Ultraman. But the titanic superhero meets his match when he reluctantly adopts a 35-foot-tall, fire-breathing baby kaiju. Sato must rise above his ego to balance work and parenthood while protecting the baby from forces bent on exploiting her for their own dark plans. In partnership with Netflix, Tsuburaya Productions, and Industrial Light & Magic, Ultraman: Rising is written by Shannon Tindle and Marc Haimes, directed by Shannon Tindle, and co-directed by John Aoshima.

KIDS FIRST! Film Critic Ryan M. comments, “As an Ultraman fan and someone who likes science fiction animation movies, I loved Ultraman Rising. The animation by the Sunrise team is really great – sometimes I forgot I was watching an animation.” See his full review and interviews with cast and directors below.

Ultraman Rising
By Ryan M., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, age 10

As an Ultraman fan and someone who likes science fiction animation movies, I loved Ultraman Rising.

The storyline follows a baseball player named Ken Sato (Christopher Sean) who left Japan for the United States with his mother when he was young and became a famous baseball player. Now he needs to return to Tokyo to take over the role of Ultraman because his dad (Gedde Watanabe) asks him to come and take a bigger role in his life. He lives with a robot named Mina (Tamlyn Tomita) who helps him in his tasks.  One day, while fighting Ken finds a Kaiju egg and knows that he needs to learn to care for the baby Kaiju and learn the importance of family.  A man named Dr. Onda (Keone Young) wants to destroy all the kaijus, he wants to take revenge because his family died in a kaiju attack.

The animation by the Sunrise team is really great – sometimes I forgot I was watching an animation. The actors’ voices match the characters quite well. Director and writer, Shannon Tindle and co-director, John Aoshima, even including something from the original series – at the beginning it shows the kaiju from the first episode of Ultraman. They also incorporated some very funny scenes and lines, like the baby kaiju going wild! I really love the baby’s incidents – they are so funny. Don’t leave your seat too soon at the end or you will miss an important part of the story.  I want to mention that I noticed that there are some flashing lights in some scenes, so people sensitive to stroboscopic flashes may be affected.

The film’s message is that family is the most important thing in your life. Also, you can’t deny anything you don’t like. Ken tried to find solutions, but they all weren’t good enough.

I give Ultraman Rising 4.5 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 8 to 12, plus adults and Ultraman fans. This film begins streaming on Netflix June 14, 2024.

As most of you know, I am a BIG Peanuts fan! I love Snoopy and his pal Woodstock! So, I was quite excited when I found out about this new book!

Enjoy nature with the Peanuts gang in Snoopy’s Beagle Scout Tales by Charles M. Schulz! This graphic novel features classic Schulz comic strips, previously published stories, and an all-new original camping-themed story!

This year also marks the 50th year of the Beagle Scouts, so you will be seeing a lot of them in 2024!

The book is so much fun to read and perfect for this Summer!

Welcome to Camp Snoopy,which is a playful guidebook that ties into the Apple TV+ show, Camp Snoopy! You’ll get to see the Peanuts gang bunking up with friends, telling stories around the campfire, and all the other experiences that summer camp has to offer. After all, camping-themed stories are the perfect summer read!

This one is also fun to read and great for camping trips with the kids!

In the new Transformers: Earthspark chapter book, No Malto Left Behind!, by Ryder Windham, Robby and Mo are super bummed—their Terran siblings are going on a top-secret undercover mission with Bumblebee, but they must stay behind. Robby and Mo decide to make their day a lot more interesting with a little help from Nightshade’s Smart Trainer 5008. But when the Smart Trainer spins out of control, Robby and Mo must think about what responsibility really means. Since they got themselves into trouble, can they find a way out on their own? 

Iconic tales from two widely acclaimed franchises! Simon Spotlight graphic novels are chock-full of the adventure and humor emerging readers are looking for, with age-appropriate text, amazing illustrations, and perfectly paced storytelling. 

Through six diverse and inclusive families, author and illustrator Krina Patel-Sage shows how love infuses all kinds of activities in our daily lives. Her new book Love is All We Need [ISBN: 978-1-62371-692-9; $18.95; Crocodile Books; May 2024] is a beautiful hardcover picture book about all the different ways we all show our love and care for each other.

This book really is a beautiful book and I recommend for all families of younger children!

Written by Maryam Hassan and illustrated by Anna Wilson, Until You Find the Sun: A Story About Discovering Home Wherever You Go [ISBN: 978-1-62371-693-6; $18.95; Crocodile Books; June 2024] is an uplifting story about coping with change and finding your way in a new and unfamiliar place. This is an important message for all young children!

CAMP PRODIGY by Caroline Palmer (on sale June 11, 2024)

Perfect for fans of Victoria Jamieson and Raina Telgemeier, this heartwarming middle grade graphic novel follows two nonbinary kids who navigate anxiety and identity while having fun and forming friendships at their summer orchestra camp. Publishing in simultaneous paperback and hardcover editions! Middle school kids will find this very engaging!

Happy Summer Reading!

Self Disclosure: I received the above books free to facilitate this post. Images were also provided.

The little voices inside Riley’s head know her inside and out—but everything changes when Disney and Pixar’s “Inside Out 2” introduces a new Emotion: Anxiety. Inside Out 2 returns to the mind of newly minted teenager Riley just as headquarters is undergoing a sudden demolition to make room for something entirely unexpected: new Emotions! Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust, who have long been running a successful operation by all accounts, aren’t sure how to feel when Anxiety shows up. And it looks like she’s not alone. Maya Hawke lends her voice to Anxiety, alongside Amy Poehler as Joy, Phyllis Smith as Sadness, Lewis Black as Anger, Tony Hale as Fear, and Liza Lapira as Disgust.

KIDS FIRST! Film Critic Tiana S. dives into the teenage mind: “The teenage mind has a lot of emotion, which we explore in Inside Out 2! From taking rides down your river of consciousness to discovering your deep dark secrets, Inside Out 2 makes you think and discover a bit of yourself.”  Neo M. is head over heels: “I absolutely love the film Inside Out 2 with its vibrant, imaginative worlds, hilarious and unique characters, and engaging storyline. I felt a deep connection to each character.”  Keila V. loves the animation: “The animation in this film is fantastic and the characters look stupendous. In one scene when Joy’s emotion changes and she gets frustrated, by the help of animation, she looks as if she is about to explode and cry at the same time.” Clara T. appreciates the familiar: “I enjoy that, even though there are a lot of new things and feelings, you can still see all the original ones. I also like the humor and the small details, like when Riley wakes up as a teenager and she has a pimple.” Katherine S. reflects on the message: “Inside Out 2 has many deep messages, like embracing every part of yourself and remembering that it’s okay to feel all sorts of different emotions. Its goal is to de-stigmatize anxiety and other emotions because they are normal and really common.” See their full reviews below.

Inside Out 2

By Tiana S., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, age 13

The teenage mind has a lot of emotion, which we explore in Inside Out 2! From taking rides down your river of consciousness to discovering your deep dark secrets, Inside Out 2 makes you think and discover a bit of yourself.

Inside Out 2 is a time skip to the first establishment. It continues to follow Joy (Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Fear (Tony Hale), Anger (Lewis Black) and Disgust (Liza Lapria), who are Riley’s (Kensington Tallman) original emotions. As Riley enters her “teenage years” new emotions are introduced such as Anxiety (Maya Hawke), Ennui (Adèle Exarchopoulos), Envy (Ayo Edebiri) and Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser). When Riley gets accepted to Hockey Camp, Anxiety and new emotions try to take over her core beliefs. It’s up to Joy and her group to find a way to get Riley back to the way she was.

This film is much deeper compared to the first film. This explores the concept of growing up and the more complex emotions that can “take over” other feelings. Anxiety, as the villain, is genius in the sense that most people see it that way. Anxiety tends to overpower joy as metaphorically shown in this film. My favorite aspect of Inside Out 2 is the little hints of the mind they added. I love that they now have beliefs that create the “self,” the river of consciousness which changes floating items based on your thoughts and, even the vault of secrets. This film runs 1 hour and 36 minutes and is worth the watch for new and prior fans!

The film’s message is to be true to yourself and, while you should prepare for the future, don’t let that stop you from experiencing the present. In the film, Anxiety works on always preparing Riley for the future which means her destroying who Riley is and should be. Riley begins to “suffer the consequences” of that action which takes a toll on her. While there is nothing to look out for in Inside Out 2, it is a much deeper-minded film so it can get viewers thinking deeper or experiencing certain emotions.

Inside Out 2 gets 5 out of 5 stars from me and I recommend it for ages 12 to 18, plus adults. You can watch it in theaters June 14, 2024.

Inside Out 2

By Neo M, KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, age 14

I absolutely love the film Inside Out 2 with its vibrant, imaginative worlds, hilarious and unique characters, and engaging storyline. I felt a deep connection to each character. Every scene captivated me with its colorful animation and the hilarious chaos carries throughout the film. 

The main character, Riley (Kaitlyn Dias), is now officially a teenager and the film begins with a brief recap of Riley’s life over the past couple of years. We are introduced to four new emotions: Anxiety (Maya Hawke), Embarrassment (Paul Walter), Envy (Ayo Edebiri), and Ennui (Adele E). It seems like an ordinary day at headquarters until everyone realizes that demolition is happening – quite symbolic – and a new emotion, Anxiety, has arrived with the intention to dominate and conquer. Anxiety introduces the other new emotions and takes over with the ultimate goal to eliminate Riley’s sense of self and create a new one. Then chaos erupts!

One of my favorite parts in the film is when Joy and Sadness go down to the belief system. The visuals are so clear and beautiful. I really like the visual imagery throughout the film, with characters navigating worlds like the back of the mind, or the stream of consciousness. I also love the idea of the good memories being “planted” when released into the water, creating a stem to Riley’s sense of self. This film also had me uncontrollably laughing. For example, the moment when a button labeled “PUBERTY” starts beeping, waking up the emotions in the middle of the night. It is hilarious to see how the emotions react to Riley’s changes. This film is very relatable, especially for my age group, because it makes tons of jokes about going through the teenage years.  My absolute favorite moments are related to the character development that emotions like Joy and her counterpart, Sadness, go through. Seeing all the emotions come together and realize that they each play a part in Riley’s sense of self also strikes home.

The film’s message is that all emotions shape us into who we are. For example, we need to experience sadness in our lives in order to feel joy. The film expresses the positive message that all emotions are necessary and are part of connecting to who we are.

Inside Out 2 gets 5 out of 5 stars from me and I recommend it for ages 8 to 18, plus adults. You can watch Inside Out 2 in theaters, June 14, 2024. 

Inside Out 2 

By Keila V., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, Age 12

I really enjoyed Inside Out 2. It is a thrilling film about a young girl becoming a teenager and I could relate to the many new emotions she is experiencing. This movie is perfect to watch with someone the age of the protagonist.

The story follows a girl named Riley (Kaitlyn Dias) who is just entering puberty and needs to make room for new emotions as she becomes an adolescent. Riley’s headquarters (which is where all her emotions stay) gets demolished so that it can make room for her new “sophisticated” emotions, including: Anxiety (Maya Hawke), Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser), Boredom (Adele Exarchopoulos), Envy (Ayo Edebiri) and Nostalgia (June Squibb). In one of the scenes Anxiety tells Joy that Riley needs more sophisticated emotions and pushes aside our classic five being: Joy (Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Anger (Lewis Black), Fear (Tony Hale) and my personal favorite Disgust (Liza Lapira).

The animation in this film is fantastic and the characters look stupendous. In one scene when Joy’s emotion changes and she gets frustrated, by the help of animation, she looks as if she is about to explode and cry at the same time. There are no special effects, but there are many visual effects that match the storyline perfectly. When Joy, Fear, Anger and Disgust get trapped inside of a safe a small character named Pouchie (James Austin Johnson) appears and that animation looks different than the other characters, he sort of looks like a cartoon from the 80s. My favorite scene is when the five emotions first meet – Anxiety, Boredom, Envy, Nostalgia and Embarrassment. The interaction between Anxiety and Joy is a bit strange since Joy thinks these are intruders to headquarters and Anxiety is crazy when it comes to meeting new people. I mean, “Emotions!” Another one of my favorite scenes in this hilarious film is when Riley meets the popular girls. This is one of my favorite scenes because of how funny and awkward it is when Riley goes to meet these girls. To see what happens next, you must watch the movie! I know that you will love it just as much as I did! 

The film’s message is that it is okay to experience a variety of emotions and not just feel happy or sad. Another message is about how starting to become adolescents brings about different feelings than we had in our childhood, so, we need to understand why we feel this way and accept these feelings.

Inside Out 2 gets 5 out of 5 stars from me and I recommend it for ages 12 to 18, plus adults. It opens in theaters June 14, 2024.

Inside Out 2
By Clara T., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, age 11

I really love the movie Inside Out 2. I enjoy that, even though there are a lot of new things and feelings, you can still see all the original ones. I also like the humor and the small details, like when Riley wakes up as a teenager and she has a pimple.

The story follows Riley (Kensington Tallman), who is 13 years old, so she just became a teenager. She discovers new emotions that she doesn’t understand and they are much stronger than the emotions she had when she was younger. The new emotions are Envy (Ayo Edebiri), Anxiety (Maya Hawke), Embarrassment (Paul Walter Houser), and Ennui (Adele Exarchopoulos). They join her original emotions in what could maybe be called a disaster. A lot of things are happening throughout the story and, at one point, Anxiety even takes over Riley. At the end, all of Riley´s emotions are somewhat balanced.

Inside out 2 is one of Pixar’s newest animated films. It is directed by Kelsey Mann and produced by Mark Nielsen. The new feelings Riley gets are because she has become a teenager and they represent her coming of age. Anxiety, an important role in this movie, is voiced by Maya Hawke. Riley attends hockey camp and hopes to impress the high school hockey coach. When she goes there, she realizes that the high school team’s hockey captain will be there and she wants to make a good impression. However, she starts to ignore her friends since she knows they will be transferring schools and thinks it’s more important to make friends and connections with people she will be going to high school with. She starts to think this because of her new feeling, Anxiety, who fears what will happen in the future.

The film’s message is to observe and know your feelings, without letting one emotion control you entirely. When Riley becomes a teenager and discovers her new and stronger emotions, she learns to “hug” her emotions and embrace all of her feelings.

Inside Out 2 gets 5 out of 5 stars from me and I recommend it for ages 12 to 18. It premieres in theaters June 14, 2024. Look for it.

Inside Out 2

By Katherine S., KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, age 16

I love Inside Out 2! This masterfully made movie is a sequel to the 2015 film Inside Out that dives deeper into the emotional and mental changes children have as they become teenagers. It has amazing storytelling, numerous powerful messages and so much emotional depth. 

This movie follows Riley (Kensington Tallman) as she enters her teenage years in the summer before she starts high school. As she hits puberty, her mind headquarters undergoes an unexpected change to make room for new emotions, like Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser), Boredom (Adele Exarchopoulos), Envy (Ayo Edebiri) and Anxiety (Maya Hawke). These new emotions challenge not only Riley’s emotions but also her friendships and sense of self.   

I believe people of all ages will enjoy Inside Out 2. This film was made nearly a decade after the original movie, and with a purpose, it seems. I feel that the creators of this movie waited this long to make this sequel so that all of the original viewers would be older. I was only six or seven when I saw the original Inside Out. And now, I’m sixteen and my mind is so much more complex than the five core emotions featured in the original movie, which Inside Out 2 addresses and is why the timing of this release is so perfect. This movie really masters the more complex emotions that come as we age. Anyone in their teenage years or adulthood will be able to relate to this movie because of these new emotions. Younger children will definitely like this movie, but they may not understand it as deeply as an older person will. I love the new characters. As in the original movie, these performances blew my mind. The strongest performances come from Amy Poehler as Joy, Maya Hawke as Anxiety, and Kensington Tallman as Riley. Kensington, Grace Lu (as Grace) and Sumayyah Nuriddin-Green (as Bree) have so much chemistry and truly seem like they are best friends. My favorite performance is from Adele Exarchopoulos, who plays Ennui (boredom) and, even though she doesn’t have that many lines, she’s hilarious.

Inside Out 2 has many deep messages, like embracing every part of yourself and remembering that it’s okay to feel all sorts of different emotions. Its goal is to de-stigmatize anxiety and other emotions because they are normal and really common. 

Inside Out 2 gets 5 of 5 stars from me and I recommend it for ages 8 to 18, plus adults. People who enjoyed the original Inside Out movie will definitely enjoy this one. It comes out in theaters on June 14, 2024.