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bethanymartin's review against another edition
3.0
a beautiful meditation on grief complete with giant space monsters
give to thoughtful 6th grade readers
give to thoughtful 6th grade readers
jpraska006's review against another edition
5.0
I used this book as a read aloud in my 4th grade classroom and it proved very popular with everyone! Each day I was met with exclamations of "one more chapter!" before we had to put it down and move on. On top of that, I found myself really loving this book more than I expected as well.
Michelle Cuevas' The Care and Feeding of a Pet Black Hole gives off some strong A Wrinkle in Time vibes (a book I also love) but it also very definitely blazes its own trail. It's just so incredibly imaginative, fun, sweet, and heart-wrenching all at once. It takes a silly premise and makes it truly poignant and clever. This was my first time reading anything from Cuevas but I am certain it won't be my last. I'll definitely be getting more of her work to have in my classroom library.
Michelle Cuevas' The Care and Feeding of a Pet Black Hole gives off some strong A Wrinkle in Time vibes (a book I also love) but it also very definitely blazes its own trail. It's just so incredibly imaginative, fun, sweet, and heart-wrenching all at once. It takes a silly premise and makes it truly poignant and clever. This was my first time reading anything from Cuevas but I am certain it won't be my last. I'll definitely be getting more of her work to have in my classroom library.
leeza_robertson_writes's review against another edition
5.0
This book is incredible. It made me laugh. It made me cry. Lot's of FEELS about this book. Great love for Care and Feeding of a Pet Black Hole.
taberiusrex's review against another edition
4.0
It definitely took me a little while to adjust to the right headspace for this book. It's not the type of thing I would have read when I was the target age. But after a little while, it definitely clicked.
The text is full of quirky humor and wit. The story is interesting, baffling at first until you understand what it's supposed to be illustrating: the anatomy of grief. It might start small and pointed, but if you don't take the time to process it, it grows and grows and eventually swallows up everything you thought was important.
Probably the biggest disappointment were the characters. Stella, the main character, is naturally fleshed out over the course of the story, but nobody else gets the same chance. This makes sense for characters like the mom, but Stella's little brother Cosmo doesn't project any sort of growth. His development comes across more like Stella becoming aware of her brother's qualities, and I found that vaguely unsatisfying.
This is a very short read. It took me weeks because of other reasons, but a decently fast reader can probably finish the whole thing in an afternoon. I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to anyone who's currently grieving, but it's a good explanation of the emotional truth of grief for younger readers around them.
That's one MCBA book down, four to go!
The text is full of quirky humor and wit. The story is interesting, baffling at first until you understand what it's supposed to be illustrating: the anatomy of grief. It might start small and pointed, but if you don't take the time to process it, it grows and grows and eventually swallows up everything you thought was important.
Probably the biggest disappointment were the characters. Stella, the main character, is naturally fleshed out over the course of the story, but nobody else gets the same chance. This makes sense for characters like the mom, but Stella's little brother Cosmo doesn't project any sort of growth. His development comes across more like Stella becoming aware of her brother's qualities, and I found that vaguely unsatisfying.
This is a very short read. It took me weeks because of other reasons, but a decently fast reader can probably finish the whole thing in an afternoon. I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to anyone who's currently grieving, but it's a good explanation of the emotional truth of grief for younger readers around them.
That's one MCBA book down, four to go!
emily_charlotte's review against another edition
4.0
This was one of the sweetest, funniest, most creative MG books I've read so far! An absolute delight to read <3
innae's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
What a wonderful and terrible little book. It is about grief. And how to deal with it. It’s sad and beautiful and made me remember so many things. Beware if death has taken someone you live, this little book will bring it back up. But maybe that’s not such a bad thing.
whitneydrew's review against another edition
3.0
This was a sweet funny read that deals with grief. Not what I was looking for (searching for a book club pick for my kids), but I enjoyed it.
carrieksnider's review against another edition
3.0
I decided to read this book solely based on the book's title. How could I not? The title is very clever. I loved the concept for this book and thought it was very original. The story was a very sweet and fun read. Stella is a quirky character who loves science and making lists. She's also trying to come to terms with her dad dying.
There were times I wished it was more descriptive, like when she's in the black hole, and I wished that I could read about Stella's thoughts a little more. But overall a great read and appropriate for most any age.
And personally, I wouldn't want a black hole as a pet, even though this one was pretty cute and ate all sorts of garbage.
There were times I wished it was more descriptive, like when she's in the black hole, and I wished that I could read about Stella's thoughts a little more. But overall a great read and appropriate for most any age.
And personally, I wouldn't want a black hole as a pet, even though this one was pretty cute and ate all sorts of garbage.
froydis's review against another edition
3.0
This was kind of a silly book on a pretty serious subject. It was a little discordant for me, and not really my type of humor. I think kids would appreciate it, and it may be helpful for other kids going through this same type of situation.