Octavus the Octopus is tired of living in the cold ocean, so he takes a trip to the surface to enjoy some sun and learns an important lesson. Octavus Octopus has a surprisingly dramatic plot, and its characters are unexpectedly well-developed for a 20 page early-reader Latin novella. The story is written in simple language and uses repetitive vocabulary, as befits its genre. However, author Rose Williams makes clever use of alliteration in her word choices to introduce some quality euphony into her prose. She also plays around with cases and declensions to bounce the reader through the text. The resulting chiasmus was so much fun that I barely noticed the targeted reading declensions practice. Altogether, it reminded me a little of Dr. Seuss’ Fox in Socks. I strongly recommend reading this book out loud, particularly if you like tongue twisters. 

This book is the second in Bolchazy-Carducci’s “I Am Reading Latin Stories” series. The full series has four Latin novels, each increasing in difficulty. The target audience is kids aged 5-9, with no knowledge of Latin. This book is a perfect example of the fact that books don’t have to be complicated to still be engaging, delightful, and educational. – Krishni Burns