Ms. Frizzle's Adventures: Medieval Castle
Grade 2-5-One Saturday morning, Ms. Frizzle runs into one of her students, Arnold, at Craig's Castle Shop. They find themselves traveling back to medieval times, checking out life in a castle. The story mixes adventure with humor, fact with fiction. Cartoon illustrations, as usual, are awash with action and scenery. The busy layout includes large-type narration in white rectangles, pale yellow dialogue bubbles, and fact boxes. Kids will appreciate the funny asides, particularly Arnold's thoughts on his teacher-"Not my teacher! It's Saturday!" Although most of the facts can be found elsewhere, the presentation will be a draw for the many Frizzle devotees. Although the book has a larger format than the "Magic School Bus" series (Scholastic), it will attract the same audience. Even the endpapers have a spiffy spin on heraldry, with coats of arms depicting the teacher, her student, and their friends. Bus or no bus, there's no denying the Frizzle magic.Anne Chapman Callaghan, Racine Public Library, WICopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.