Wednesday 5 June 2013

Kid Lit Blog Hop #17 :What About Barnaby Review + Giveaway



Welcome back to the Kid Lit Blog Hop #17
Today I have a great middle grade mystery that I won from a giveaway on this very hop to review for you. 

"What About Barnaby"
by Martha Rodriguez




Description: 
 When Barnaby Q. Percival's disappearance comes to light, Zeke and Scotty team up to find him. Will they be able to decipher the mystery of the missing mutt on their own? Come along as old and new friends, (furry and not) work together to reunite Barnaby with his best friend, Mr. Jensen!
What about Barnaby? is Martha's first middle-grade fiction book about two friends who try to solve the mystery of Barnaby the dog's disappearance.  Neighborhood friends chip in to help the boys find Mr. Jensen's mutt.  Will a new detective agency be born?


My Review:
I thoroughly enjoyed this first person point of view middle grade mystery. It starts off with Zeke awaking in the night to strange noises, only to find those noises could possibly have been the key behind the disappearance of Barnaby, Mr Jensen's lovable mutt.
With the help of his excitable friend Scotty, the boys set about to solve the mystery. They discover clues that involve secret codes and one fun fast paced adventure, full of hilarious observations by Zeke along the way.
During their investigation, they make a new friend in a little girl with epilepsy, who has one very special pooch looking out for her, but of course I won't spoil the ending.
I love the innocence of middle grade characters like these, which makes it so easy to like them straight away and get on board with their antics.  This is a 100% clean read, with no violence or themes unsuitable for children and I would recommend this not just for middle grade. 
I think reluctant readers will really be drawn into the fun shenanigans of Zeke and Scotty. I can see this being a fantastic read aloud book to kids age  6-10.
I give What About Barnaby 5 stars.   

and now, another giveaway, hooray
Martha has kindly offered 3 e-reader (mobi) copies of What About Barnaby, so jump into the Rafflecopter below to enter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
 

 
About the Author:


Martha Rodriguez is the author of the children’s books A Reel Cool Summer, Smell My Feet! 10 Seriously Silly and Sweet Short Stories for Squirts, and What About Barnaby?  She is also the owner of Read To Me Publishing, LLC.

Martha was born in Havana, Cuba and immigrated to the United States with her family at the age of three.  She is a wife and the mother to three awesome kids.  Like most moms, she has had many years of experience answering the question, “We’re bored, what can we do?"  One answer to that question brought about the story behind A Reel Cool Summer where her real kids are the characters!

Smell My Feet! is a collection of short stories, for children ages 7-10, which she original published on her blog.  An angel, a hero, and a cute dog named Charlie are some of the characters you'll meet.  Don't be surprised if you recognize yourself, a crazy uncle, or a friend in one of them.

Martha enjoys visiting elementary schools in person and through Skype to help kids get excited about reading and writing!


Martha and her husband, Jose, live in Tallahassee, Florida.

You Can find Martha:
Website:http://www.readtomepublishingllc.com/ 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ReadToMePublishingLLC
 
Other books by Martha:








Please see our NEW RULES below!
Welcome to the 17th Kid Lit Blog Hop. The Kid Lit Blog Hop takes place on the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of each month. We have managed to create a dynamic and engaged community of children's books bloggers, authors, publishers, and publicists, as well as parents seeking out their next great read. So, you are more than welcome to link in and take some time to make some new friends. Please join me in welcoming a new permanent hostess, Reshama at Stacking Books - a wonderful blog with many recommendations for the best children's books. We are also pleased to have Fiona Ingram, the author of The Secret of the Sacred Scarab (click for my review of this FABULOUS middle grade book) and a blogger as well, joining us this week as co-hostess of the Hop. Welcome Reshama and Fiona! Please be sure to give each of our hostesses a visit to say a quick hello!

Happy Hopping everyone and enjoy the Hop!

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24 comments:

  1. Julie, thank you very, very much for your wonderful review of What About Barnaby? and for hosting the giveaway! I'm so glad you enjoyed the book and I hope the kiddos will, too. Thank you for linking it to the Kid Lit Blog Hop as well. It's great to see how this community of authors, bloggers, parents, and teachers is growing.
    Martha

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    1. My pleasure Martha, great to connect with other like minded Middle Grade Authors so thanks for a great middle grade read. Cheers Julie

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  2. This looks like a really fun read. The description reminds me of my cousin's book "A Chicken for Christmas" by Jo Hatcher, which I doubt whether you'll find in any library or store, as she wrote it in the 1950s, but it was a good mystery with a great gang of kids!

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    1. WOW, your cousin wrote it in the 50's. Talented family hey, so glad to have you on the hop.

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  3. This looks like a great read, thanks for posting it, Julie. It reminds me of a great mystery by my aunt, "A Chicken for Christmas" by Jo Hatcher, but I don't think you'll find it in any library or store now. Good luck, Martha!

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  4. Thanks for hosting this hop and for sharing your great book review :0)

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    1. Thanks so much for stopping by Aileen, have a great hop.

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  5. This looks like such a cute book! Thanks for the chance at the giveaway. I think our favorite middle grade mysteries so far have been the Encyclopedia Brown books.

    Glad I found you via this blog hop. I'm now a new follower!

    Nicole @ Best Kids' Reads

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    1. Thanks so much for stopping by Nicole, and we have popped over to your blog to follow you back. I like Enc Brown too, great suggestion. I hope you enjoy the hop.

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  6. Thanks for hosting and for sharing these fun books! I hope I win! :)
    Tina @ Mommynificent

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    1. Thanks for stopping by Tina, great to have you on the hop, cheers Julie

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  7. Looks like an interesting read Julie. Putting this on my holdshelf to read later!
    -Reshama
    www.stackingbooks.com

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    1. Great to have you on the hop Reshama, thanks for stopping by and congrats on your new co-host status. Cheers Julie

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  8. Sounds like a great story! Thanks so much for hosting yet again, Julie! Enjoy hopping!

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    1. Great to see you again Jaymie, have a great hop.

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  9. Thank you for hosting! Favorite Middle Grade Mystery? Probably The Benedict Society.

    A stolen dog? Oh no! Seriously though, sounds like a fun read. Thanks for sharing your great review.

    Christine M/Cool Mom
    Tech Support for Stanley & Katrina

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    1. OOHH I haven't read the Benedict Society but I hear it is fab, going on the TBR.
      Thanks so much for stopping by and have a great hop.

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  10. Great giveaway - thanks for sharing! I'll have to add this one to my middle school reading list. I've always loved The Westing Game.

    Tales of a Bookworm

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    1. Oh, I haven't heard of the Westing game, I will check that one out. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you are enjoying the hop.

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  11. Interesting... a clean, violence-free, middle grade mystery... Are there any "accents"? lol Thanks for your great review. This one is on our list too! Thanks for hosting the Kid Lit Blog Hop Julie! :)

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    1. LOL, oi, no accents, just a great little story by Martha lol.
      Thanks for stopping by and the hop is going great.

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  12. Dog stories seem to be perennially popular with kids. Kids love animals so a mystery involving a missing dog is sure to be a hit.

    Thanks for sharing/hosting.

    Geo Librarian
    Kid Lit Blog Hop

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  13. Yes Heidi a great combination. Thanks for stopping by.

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  14. Stopping by very late on the Kid Lit Blog Hop. I'd have to say a favorite mg mystery is The Clue of the Linoleum Lederhosen by M.T. Anderson.

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