The Boy with 17 Senses

I loved reading Sheila Grau’s modern take on the Jack and the Beanstalk story. Jaq Rollop is a kind and naïve boy doing everything he can to save his family’s farm on the distant planet of Yipsmix. When things get so bad he must trade his beloved pet for a mysterious key, he sets off on an adventure......more

This book is amazing! I like it because it has a fascinating plot line and because the main character has synesthesia (because I can relate a little bit) On the planet Yipsmix, every resident has synesthesia, including Jaq Rollop, the very poor grandson of the owner of a small farm. One day, he disco......more

This was extremely clever - Sheila Grau knows what she's about (Her first Critchlore book was my favorite MG read of 2015). It took me about 50 pages to figure out, but this is a super witty retelling of Jack and the Beanstalk (which explains the weird quote about beanstalks on the cover - I was init......more

It was...alright. The worldbuilding was alright and the characters were alright; nothing really stood out to me. There was only one flaw I could find, which was that Vilcot was kind of reasonable to be suspicious of Plenthy and Greggin? Plenthy took his and Greggin's money without telling them what he......more

This is a pretty basic Jack and the beanstalk retelling. But it has a few issues. First, the overall tone of the prose has that syrupy quality adults adopt when they are talking down to children. I never enjoyed that as a child, and I still don't. Second, there were details that did not further the......more