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Picayune
Picayune might be just a dormouse, but he always has dreams of grandeur -- from knights and princesses to adventures in faraway lands. Little did he know he would have to overcome his shy, timid ways and embark on his own adventure through the Land of Red Tails, the underground lair of the badgers, the sky mountain fortress of the Hoo-Caw tribe and beyond in search of his best friend, Ameera. Does Picayune have what it takes? In his dreams, perhaps. Big things come in small sizes... A story about over coming shyness and believing in yourself.
- GenresFantasy
201 pages, Paperback
First published November 15, 2011
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74 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
April 1, 2012
I received this book free from a Goodreads First Reads giveaway
This short book packs a good punch. It has a fast paced plot and is full of many characters. It opens with young Picayune, a mouse who dreams of being a knight in shining armour. His village is attacked by Dragon and his friend Ameera is taken prisoner. The rescue party sets out to save her, but Picayune stays behind. He then feels challenged to set out on his own to find his lost friend, who he discovers is really the princess. On his journey he befriends a squirrel, gets captured by the Badger Clan, and eventually helps bring about a peace between the Hawks and Badgers. His new friends rally around him and they all head off to fight Dragon.
The only thing I wasn't a huge fan of were Picayune's dreams. Every other chapter or so was an alternate reality where Picayune was a strong knight who battles dragons and orcs. They didn't make much sense until right at the end, where Picayune's last dream is recounted. He is himself, a mouse not human, and he sets off on an adventure with Ameera while they ride their kangaroo mice, not horses. The main point to me was to show that Picayune had had an adventure and was finally content with who he was as a mouse. He no longer wished to live in a fantasy world.
Overall a good story, a nice range of forest dwelling animals as the cast. Some parts could have used a bit more detail, the plot seemed rushed once in a while. A fun quick read.
This short book packs a good punch. It has a fast paced plot and is full of many characters. It opens with young Picayune, a mouse who dreams of being a knight in shining armour. His village is attacked by Dragon and his friend Ameera is taken prisoner. The rescue party sets out to save her, but Picayune stays behind. He then feels challenged to set out on his own to find his lost friend, who he discovers is really the princess. On his journey he befriends a squirrel, gets captured by the Badger Clan, and eventually helps bring about a peace between the Hawks and Badgers. His new friends rally around him and they all head off to fight Dragon.
The only thing I wasn't a huge fan of were Picayune's dreams. Every other chapter or so was an alternate reality where Picayune was a strong knight who battles dragons and orcs. They didn't make much sense until right at the end, where Picayune's last dream is recounted. He is himself, a mouse not human, and he sets off on an adventure with Ameera while they ride their kangaroo mice, not horses. The main point to me was to show that Picayune had had an adventure and was finally content with who he was as a mouse. He no longer wished to live in a fantasy world.
Overall a good story, a nice range of forest dwelling animals as the cast. Some parts could have used a bit more detail, the plot seemed rushed once in a while. A fun quick read.
April 27, 2012
I received this book for free from a First Reads giveaway.
Overall I think it is a charming story. I would recommend it for young people who are getting into fantasy and just can't get enough.
At times I felt it was too fast-paced and worded in a confusing way. I had to reread sections in order to understand what was happening. I think it could benefit from more editing, especially because it is aimed at a younger audience.
I liked Picayune's dreams that paralleled the journey of a human, but I was unsure of how a human world fit into Picayune's animal world, because the animal characters do not acknowledge that humans even exist.
I think kids will enjoy the variety of characters, especially Phineas, and will root for the success of the group. Personally, I wish that there had been stronger female characters. Azure-Bound had good beginnings of a character girls could look up to, but other than that, they are left with a traditional group of male heroes. The rescuing-a-princess/woman plot is nothing new to fantasy and leaves little to young girls getting into the genre to identify with.
Overall I think it is a charming story. I would recommend it for young people who are getting into fantasy and just can't get enough.
At times I felt it was too fast-paced and worded in a confusing way. I had to reread sections in order to understand what was happening. I think it could benefit from more editing, especially because it is aimed at a younger audience.
I liked Picayune's dreams that paralleled the journey of a human, but I was unsure of how a human world fit into Picayune's animal world, because the animal characters do not acknowledge that humans even exist.
I think kids will enjoy the variety of characters, especially Phineas, and will root for the success of the group. Personally, I wish that there had been stronger female characters. Azure-Bound had good beginnings of a character girls could look up to, but other than that, they are left with a traditional group of male heroes. The rescuing-a-princess/woman plot is nothing new to fantasy and leaves little to young girls getting into the genre to identify with.
April 10, 2012
Picayune
by: John DeJordy
I won this book from a Goodreads/First Reads giveaway
Picayune is a mouse who has always dreamed of being a knight. He has big dreams but when his village is attacked by Dragon and his friend is taken, Picayune sets out on his own to find his friend. On this journey he has big adventures with a badger clan, a squirrel and a Hawk and they all ralley together to help fight of Dragon.
This is a cute fun read. In the end Picayune begins to believe in himself.
by: John DeJordy
I won this book from a Goodreads/First Reads giveaway
Picayune is a mouse who has always dreamed of being a knight. He has big dreams but when his village is attacked by Dragon and his friend is taken, Picayune sets out on his own to find his friend. On this journey he has big adventures with a badger clan, a squirrel and a Hawk and they all ralley together to help fight of Dragon.
This is a cute fun read. In the end Picayune begins to believe in himself.
April 8, 2012
I gave this a two rather than a one, because the idea of the story was interesting and I feel like it was just executed poorly. The language was a bit confusing at time, and the story kind of skipped around and didn't move at a very constant pace, and felt awkward in some places. I feel like it was published prematurely, and with more cleaning up could be quite a contender in the young adult field, tweens seem to really latch onto warrior animal related books.
August 1, 2014
A solid fantasy novel for younger readers
For a full review, please go to http://www.examiner.com/review/picayu... and follow me on Twitter @josenher
For a full review, please go to http://www.examiner.com/review/picayu... and follow me on Twitter @josenher
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews