Beetle Power! (Bug Buddies) by Joe Miller
| Beetle Power! (Bug Buddies) by Joe Miller | |
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| Category: Confident Readers | |
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Reviewer: Keith Dudhnath
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| Summary: The latest book in the Bug Buddies series continues the insect-based action. Ok, so it's light froth, but it's pleasant enough and newly confident readers will plough through it. | |
| Buy? Maybe | Borrow? Maybe |
| Pages: 96 | Date: September 2009 |
| Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books | |
| ISBN: 978-0007322473 | |
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In the first book in the Bug Buddies series we met Zap, Buzz, Lurch and Crunch - insects living in Spinner's Wood. Five books later, they're still doing battle with the evil spider Spinner, and receiving wise advice from Gonzo. This time, everything's coming to a head as either Gonzo or Spinner will have to leave the wood for good.
I like the basic concept of the Bug Buddies books - the cast of insect characters has a lot of potential to offer something a bit different. The stories themselves are enjoyable, action-packed adventure romps, which keep the pages turning. They're not the greatest books ever, but for a little light reading, newly confident readers will plough through them.
A few more nods to the insect world wouldn't have gone amiss. On the one hand, the characters do need to be easy to identify with for the young audience, but on the other they need to stand out from other series about gangs of friends, robots, what have you. It wouldn't take much, but it would be nice if Beetle Power broke out of the well-trodden ground a bit more often.
It seems a bit mean to knock a book in a series for being, well, like a book in a series. It's not the sort of book you'll read again and again, but it's pleasant enough. The vocabulary is clear and the story is engaging, so children starting to read for themselves will enjoy themselves. As with the first book in the series, it does feel like the novelisation of a cartoon, but sometimes a bit of light froth is just the ticket.
Thanks to the publishers for sending it to Bookbag.
For other action-packed romps, check out It's Them Monkey Pirates Again! by Mark Skelton and Ben Redlich and Pongwiffy Back on Track by Kaye Umansky. If creepy-crawlies are your thing, you'll love Wonderful Wriggly Worm Rides Again by Eugenie Summerfield.
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You can read more book reviews or buy Beetle Power! (Bug Buddies) by Joe Miller at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
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