The author, Kerelyn Smith, so sweetly gifted #BookAllies a copy of her new middle grade debut for us to read, review, and share. If you enjoy high-fantasy, especially with ogres and some pretty bad poetry, then you’ll get a kick out of this one.
Summary:
A bad idea is nothing to worry about… until it knocks on your door.
Mulrox the ogre harbors a secret desire to become the world’s greatest poet. Unfortunately, all of his ideas are rotten.
But when his terrible ideas come to life, Mulrox soon finds himself on a quest to protect the very ideas he loathes-the malcognitos as they call themselves. Accompanied by his sassy pet toad, quirky neighbor, and a hoard of mischievous bad ideas, Mulrox must travel to the
malcognitos’ realm, uncover the mystery of the beast hunting them, and return home in time to deliver the best poem of his life.
Fans of L. Frank Baum, Bruce Coville, and Roald Dahl will delight in this middle-grade fantasy novel about embracing your imperfections. If you like prophetic rodents, spellbinding sneezes, and ferocious sheep, you’ll love this book.
My Thoughts: Kerelyn seriously has a way with words. Her descriptive writing is unlike anything I have ever read! I am not a typical high-fantasy reader because I struggle with imagining what is happening since it is not realistic. However, Kerelyn describes each detail with such precision and the village, characters, and even the little malcognitos were so well done. I loved the idea (hehe) behind Mulrox and his “bad” and “good” ideas. Each of his bad ideas were created as a character, aka a malcognito. The names of them were too funny too, like Death-with-a-kiss and Rock-like-skin. The underlying messages were great in this story too because there were times where you felt bad for Mulrox and times where you cheered him on. He overcomes his fear and becomes more confident along the way, he takes a step back and realizes that he needs to be less of “them” and more of “him”, and many, many obstacles. Young readers will thoroughly enjoy this book. I recommend it for 5th graders and up!
Toadtastic Resources
If you plan to get this book in the hands of a young reader or use it in your classroom, Kerelyn has developed some amazing activities and discussions questions for you to use.
If you want to take the Mulrox and the Malcognitos Character Quiz to see which character you are most like, go for it! I am like Yagurkin.
After reading this wonderful book, you can join Kerelyn’s Readers Group where you can receive occasional emails about new releases, deals, and behind-the-scenes information! Check it out here.
About the Author
Kerelyn Smith is a writer of literary, speculative, and children’s fiction. By day she is a software engineer but she gets up in the wee hours of the morning to write. She lives in Seattle, WA, with her partner and dog, and enjoys hiking, gardening, and overcomplicating things. Mulrox and the Malcognitos is her first novel.
What are some of your favorite high-fantasy books? Share with me below!
Xo, Sierra
Books. Iced Lattes. Blessed. 
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