George's Secret Key to the Universe (Book 1) by Lucy & Stephen Hawking: Book Review by Vihaan (8 years)

 

Vihaan's review of 

George's secret key to the universe by Lucy and Stephen hawking. 

I love this book. It is very very interesting. It is a science fiction and has facts about the universe. There are a lot of books by Lucy and Stephen Hawking. I got this book from my father who wanted to get me something interesting. Usually I only read a sentence or two but now I can read a lot. I want to read a lot of books in this series. 

My dad got me the book for the New Year. I got it on the New Year day and now I finished reading it in just one month though it has 300 pages. I learned a lot. I'll tell you a little about it. 

"Pigs don't just vanish," thought George to himself looking into an empty pigsty. After a few days he went to his neighbour's house and saw Freddy, the name of his pig. 

Then a girl came and said, "This is my house and you have come here. So you should tell me who you are first." 

"I am George and what are you doing to my poor pig?" he asked. The girl said, "I'm giving it juice." George asked surprisingly, "Juice? I thought it is poison" 

"It's Ribena," said the girl. Then a voice came, "Annie, where are you?"

After a few pages in the book, a few things happen and then George and Annie space travel. They make two space travels and in both of them they learn about black holes, planets, comets, and stars and so much more. 

For more info on the story, read the book. It's amazing!

My favorite part in the book is when he goes to bed, he sees a shooting star and then he sleeps and then the story is over. Even though the pictures that come here and there in a few pages are only drawn with a pencil, they are masterpieces. It's amazing art. 

I have read only around ten pages in one book so far but this one has 300 pages. The other books in this series are George's cosmic treasure hunt, George and the big bang, George and the unbreakable code, George and the blue moon, George and the ship of time. So read it, it's amazing.

Reviewed by Vihaan, 8 years

Title: George's Secret Key to the Universe (Book 1)
Author: Lucy & Stephen Hawking
Publisher: Penguin Random House UK
Pages: 297

Format: Paperback

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‘The Happy Place’ & ‘Ramya’s Bat’ – Children’s Books by Ms. Moochie Books

Book Title #1: The Happy Place – A Ramya Story by Samantha K

Book Title #2: Ramya’s Bat by Ritika Subhash

Illustrated by: Chetan Sharma

Publisher: Ms. Moochie Books

Book Genre: Children’s Books – Fiction – Picture Books

Reading Level: Emergent Readers (Ages 2 and up)

Book Format: Paperback

No. of Pages: 41 to 43 story pages, 3 activity pages

Amazon Buying Links: The Happy Place , Ramya’s Bat

Year of Publication: 2019

This post was first published in my personal blog Pages from Serendipity

About the Ramya Stories

The Ramya stories is a series of individual stories centered around a little girl, Ramya. The stories happen in an Indian set up and each talk about an interesting episode of Ramya’s little adventures.

The books are quite big (vertical books of 23 cm x 16 cm) with words of big font size. Each page includes one or two sentences with rich illustrations of Indian environments. The sentences are short, simple and appear in rhyming verses. At the end of each story, there are activities for kids from the story, like sequencing the pictures in the order of narration, colouring, finding the odd ones out, to name a few.

The Happy Place 

In this delightful story, Ramya goes to the backyard to find weeds everywhere which used to be her Dadi’s garden. So, she plunges to mend the garden. Despite the little difficulties and hard work it demands, Ramya with will and determination turns the place to a beautiful garden, just in time when her Dadi returns back from the hospital.

Image Courtesy: Amazon

• In a simple style, the story can introduce gardening steps to children – weeding, digging, sowing and names of some beautiful flowers.
• The book, of course, can instill the love of gardening in little children. If you have a garden at home or if you plan to create one with your little ones, you will find this book inspiring.
• Together with your children, you can cherish the feeling of giving a heart-warming surprise to our loved ones.

The Happy Place is indeed a happy read for children!

Ramya’s Bat

Ramya sees her friends play cricket. She at once wants to hold a bat and hit the ball. But, she finds no help from her family and friends initially. Soon, she proves her interest and talent in the game that everybody begins to adores her cricket skills.

Image Courtesy: Amazon

• Who said cricket is only for boys? Read Ramya’s story and how she makes the ball fly with her bat. The book can definitely inspire young girls to dream of sports that are stereotyped for boys.
• It can also educate parents to support girl children in their interests to pursue boyish games, letting go of the age-old gender stereotypes.

Enriching Illustrations

The illustrations need a special mention. Illustrator Chetan Sharma has done an excellent work. In fact, most part of the story is highlighted by the pictures rather than by the text. The meticulous details covered in the illustrations like a crow drinking water from a tap and Ramya’s cupboard of toys and books are a visual delight. Homes and neighbourhood of Indian scenario are well-picturized.

More books from the Ramya stories

Ramya’s Snack Box by C.G.Salamander & Chetan Sharma (2016)

Check more children’s stories on the blog

Locating the North Star

Mia and Grandpa go on a boat ride

Have you read a Ramya story to your little ones? Do share your experience in the comments below, I would love to hear from you.

Book Fair @ Kendriya Vidyalaya School, Pondicherry

The book fair at Kendriya Vidyalaya School, Pondicherry gathered several school children and parents on the 3rd, 4th and 5th of February, 2015. Siruvar Pakkam, an exclusive children's book store organized the fair, showcasing children's books for all ages.

I appreciate the thought of conducting book fairs at schools. It encourages reading habit in children and also introduces children to wide varieties of books available in the present-day market.  

The video at the end of the post gives you a glimpse of the range of books presented in the fair.

If You Were Me and Lived in … Peru by Carole P. Roman: Book Review

If You Were Me and Lived in … Peru  is one among the children's book series by author Carole.  This series intends to educate children about cultures of several countries. The collection is ideal for children of ages four to eight.

At least in the part of the world I live in, very little is known about this South American country Peru (Say Pir-roo). Not sure if my general knowledge was so bad all these years, but I have not heard the name of this city Lima (Say Lee-ma) before. However, the generation of my children would learn early about several countries and cultures around the world. Thanks to author Carole's children's book series! 

If You Were Me and Lived in … Greece by Carole P. Roman: Book Review

If You Were Me and Lived in … Greece  is one among the children's book series by author Carole.  This series intends to educate children about cultures of several countries. The collection is ideal for children of ages four to eight.

Fairy tales, bedtime stories, moral stories - well, your children must have heard enough of all these tales year after year. Why not introduce your little champs to something different and something interesting?! How about telling them how people in the other part of the globe live? Imagine how exciting it would be!

If You Were Me and Lived in … Portugal by Carole P. Roman: Book Review

If You Were Me and Lived in … Portugal  is among the children's book series by author Carole.  This series intends to educate children about cultures of several countries. The collection is ideal for children from pre-K to age eight. 

The book takes children for a quick tour to Portugal. As you can see, the book cover shows where exactly Portugal is in the world map. Another map on the first page gives a geographic outline of the country with its capital city, just for kids to identify; not a detailed one. And then a little about the country’s history; a little about the origin – all just a little for little children!

Seedlings: Fables from the Forest by C D Baker: Book Review

Seedlings is the story of the trees! If we were one among the trees, how would our lives been? Seedlings will take your children to an imaginative life of the trees. Trees eat, drink, sleep and share as much as we do. They interact and make friendship with their fellow trees as well. They age and learn values just like we do.

Author Baker has brought out the essence of life’s greatest virtues in the form of five beautifully written fables from the forest. Each story emphasizes one of these:

Thankfulness Forgiveness Humility Helpfulness Kindness

And each story highlights a Biblical verse!