Reviewing 4 children's book based on Transitional level

 1. The Book Hog- Greg Pizzoli

Pizzoli, Greg. The Book Hog. Little Brown Books for Young Readers, 2019. 48 pages. Tr $16.99 ISBN 9781368036894

The Book Hog is a very charming, sweet, and visually pleasing children's book about a pig (or hog, if you will) who learns to read and finds a new love for all the books he used to hog and hoard. Pizzoli uses very simple and precise sentences to convey his story and accompanies them with characters, an art style, and color palette that is visually pleasing for the eye to look at. 

Ultimately, Pizzoli's endearing picture book should be conisdered a level 2, in terms of its transition level. Pizzoli's work maintains an equal balance between the words and the illustrations on a the page. The Book Hog contains lines per page within the 4-15 range. Additionally and comparitively speaking, The Book Hog has slightly more complex words than that of something that would be considered a level 1. However, Level 2 books typically have 5 words per line and this book, in some parts, exceeds that. It alson only contains a few multiple syllabic words such as "surrounded", "Librarian" and "several". Othwerise, the rest of the words are basic one syllable and easily understood. However, I still believe this book is a level 2 simply based on the substance and plot of the book paired with the fact that it is a picture book with few words per page. 

2. Stop! Bot!- James Yang

Yang, James. Stop! Bot!. Viking Books for Young Readers, 2019. 40 pages. Tr $17.99 ISBN 9780425288818

Stop! Bot! is a very simple yet amusing book about a toy robot that escapes from his owner up a city building. Illustrtations are more boxy and simplistic contributing to a more modern look. The detail I find most enjoyable about this book is the physical construction of it. This book is tall and skinny to mirror the look of a skyscraper. This makes it visually condusive to reflect the narrative story moving upwards and then back down again. 

I would consider this book to be an example of a level 1 book, in terms of its transition level. For starters Yang implements the use of varying the size of the font to emphasize words and their intent within the story. There are not very many words per page. Each page is a new progression to how high the robot has managed to climb up the building without being stopped by the building's inhabitants. There are 5 words and often less per page and each page only contains one line. I believe the most complex word in this book would be "Trombone" as it is a specfic instrument. However the illustrations provide context to any reader who does not know this word. 

3. Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir Stinks-a-lot - Dav Pilkey

Pilkey, Dav. Captain Underpants and the Sensational Saga of Sir Stinks-a-lot. Scholastic Inc., 2015. 208 pages. Tr $12.99 ISBN9781338347258

This final installment of a beloved book series is equal parts funny, inventive, and somehow bittersweet. Filled with fourth wall breaks, jokes that only adults will understand, and creative opportunities for reader interactability, Pilkey's final story of Captain Underpants is worthy of true praise. I found his use of time travel to visit the future George and Harold to be especially charming and reminiscent of classic saturday morning cartoons. But the real star of the plot is Pilkey set up for his next book series "Dogman". And finally culinating to the very clear point that this is in fact the last time readers will see Capatain Underpants in action. 

For all of these reasons, this book should be considered transitional. It in and of itself a book that represents and is indicative of transitioning. An end of an era, as they say. Though the argument can be made that this book is a level 3. There is roughly 15 lines per page with very seldom instances that exceed that number. In fact there are some points throughout this book where there as little as 1 line on a page. Additonally, this book has an illustration on each page, with the text fort the most part taking up 3/4 of the page. However, due to its wonderfully weird and ridiculous plot chock full of advanced humor and complex words, nonsense or otherwise, my final verdict is Captain Underpants and the sensational Sag of Sir Stinks-a-lot is transitional. 

4. Dragons in a Bag- Zetta Elliott

Elliott, Zetta. Dragons in a Bag, Random House Books for Young Readers, 2018. 160 pages. Tr $16.99 ISBN 9781524770457

Dragons in a Bag is a lovely ubran fantasy chapter book about a young boy who finds himself helping a witch transport dragons to a magical world. The book also mentions more heavier themes such as eviction and splintered families. Overall a cute adventure similar in maturity level to that of Magic Treehouse, with a more modern tone. 

Elliott's whimiscal fantasy middle grade book is easily indefiable as a trnastitional book. It contains all the aesthetic of a traditonal novel. The pages are all text with illustrations only every 3-5 pages. Illustrations are in black and white as well, somtimes taking up a whole page, mostly appearing on half of the page. Additionally, the text itself while not hard to understand or overly complex, it tells a more cohesive and detailed narrative. Dragons in a Bag is a great choice for readers who are looking for something new and ready to evolve past picture book and even graphic novels. It is also the first in a series, making it a continued opportunity for children to continue their trnasition into fiction.