Pirates of the Sea! by Brandon Dorman

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Title: Pirates of the Sea!

Author: Brandon Dorman

Length: 32 pages

Publisher: Greenwillow Books

Classification: Children's Book, Adventure, Pirates

Release Date: April 26, 2011

Source: library book

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"No cryin'No dyin'No brushin' yer teeth!No stealin'No squealin'
No eatin' Parrot Pete!
No nappin'No scrappin'No wimpy moans or groans!No veggiesNo wedgiesNo disobeyin' Cap'n Bones!" It's the pirate code! Do you pledge? Do you agree? Then open this book to join the crew on the Dragonfish of Doom and become a pirate of the sea! (From GoodReads)

 Cutie Pie’s Rating:

What is this book about?

About pirates sailing the sea to find treasure.

What was your favorite part of the story?

How Cap'n Bones saved the day.

Why did you like it?

Because Cap'n Bones was fighting a big dragon monster thing, I think it is called a serpent. Then fought him by spitting in his eye.

Is there anything you didn't like about this book?

No, it was good.

Do you like the illustrations?

I liked them. They are awesome!

Who do you think will like this book?
Everyone that likes pirates and adventures.

My Rating:

This is a fun and entertaining story.
I really like the rhyming. And it really made me want to read it in a pirate voice while reading it to my girls.
Both girls enjoyed the story, although I think my youngest (3) cared more about the pictures than what was being read. The pictures are fun and bright and have a lot of detail.
The story is fun. The pirates are about to embark on a new quest to find some treasure. They encounter some trouble along the way. The names are funny and really give the story that extra pirate feel.
I think that older children, K-3 would really enjoy this story. Definitely an exciting story full of adventure to read with children that like pirates!
I recommend giving it a read. 

Splat the Cat What Was That? by Rob Scotton

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Title: Splat the Cat What Was That?

Author: Rob Scotton

Length: Approx. 14 pages

Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books/HarperFestival

Classification: Children's Book, Halloween

Release Date: July 2013

Source: paperback 

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Splat the Cat and his friends have a Halloween adventure in Splat the Cat: What Was That?, a  lift-the-flap book by Rob Scotton, creator of the beloved Russell the Sheep. Halloween should be a black cat’s favorite holiday, but Spat the Cat is nervous about visiting a creepy haunted house. He’s worried it will be too scary. Splat’s friend Spike tells Splat not to be a scaredy-cat—the haunted house is just for fun! Splat and Spike’s visit to the haunted house turns into a rescue mission when Splat’s pet mouse, Seymour, gets lost inside.Kids will relate to Splat’s apprehension about visiting a haunted house and they’ll enjoy the exciting surprises under every flap in the funny, spooky book. (From GoodReads)

Cutie Pie’s Rating:

What is this book about?

About Splat and Spike hearing weird noises in the spooky old house.

What was your favorite part of the story?

When they found Seymour. 

Why did you like it?
Because they were kinda like investigators finding Seymour.

Is there anything you didn't like about this book?

It was all good.

Do you like the illustrations?

Yes, a lot. I think the flaps were cool.

Who do you think will like this book?
Everyone that likes Splat the Cat.

My Rating:

Splat, Spike, and Seymour are treat or treating and there is only one house left. A big spooky house. Splat is hesitant to go in (with good reason, it is a big spooky haunted house!) But Seymour doesn't stay to hear what Splat thinks about the house, he runs inside.
Splat and Spike decide they need to go and find Seymour so they go into the old spooky house too.
Not long after entering the spooky house they hear noises. But instead of running away from the spooky noises, they continue on their search for Seymour.
They find the type of stuff that one would think they would find in a haunted house. Creepy paintings, something that looks like a witch (but isn't), possible ghosts, spider, and eyes in the dark that are really vampire ducks (my kids thought that was really funny). They find the source of the noises that they hear and they eventually find Seymour.

I think that this is a fun and cute story.
I like that this book isn't really scary. Which I think is good, there were a couple parts that my little one thought were a little spooky but she wasn't scared.
The recommended age range is 4 to 8 years old.
My almost 4 year old loved the story. She really got into wanting to find out what was behind the flaps and what would happen next. Cutie Pie (almost 8) enjoyed the story a lot, but I don't think she got into it as much as my younger one did. So I think that this is a good age range.

My Recommendation:
I think this is a fun (not really scary) Halloween story that younger kids will probably enjoy. Especially if they already love Splat the Cat!