OwlCrate Jr. is a monthly book subscription box for young readers ages 8-12 with a middle-grade book plus fun gender neutral bookish items designed to enhance your little reader’s experience. It’s from Owl Crate, a super popular YA (young adult) fiction subscription.
DEAL: Use coupon code ROAR for 10% off your entire subscription!
The theme for the April 2018 OwlCrate Jr. box is MYTH & MIGHT!
The information card cleverly conveys a bit about everything in the box.
Greetings from Owl Crate Jr.!
When you open the box, you can immediately sense the magic that it carries inside.
The owl inside the box has a message for everyone!
Everything in the April OwlCrate JR. box!
Sticker. This colorful sticker features a wolf with a little girl and boy wearing garlands on their heads.
Button Pin. The button pin is perfect for any bookworm and fan of Owl Crate as its design features books and an owl. It’s cute and it can be attached to bags, pouches, and the like.
Coloring card. The coloring illustration features The Valkyrie, a female helping spirit in Norse Mythology. They had a social sharing challenge to post your completed coloring with a hashtag – but they did neglect to mention to ask your parents. It’s always a good idea to unbox with your kids so you know what exactly is in the box.
At the back of the card is a word search, also related to Norse Mythology.
Greek Mythology Ken Jennings’ Junior Genius Guide ($12.99)
Unleash your inner genius and become a master of mythology with this interactive trivia book from Jeopardy! champ and New York Times bestselling author Ken Jennings.
With this Junior Genius Guide to Greek mythology, you’ll become an expert and wow your friends and teachers with all the best ancient stories: how Prometheus outsmarted the gods, how Achilles’s heel led to his death, and how we mere mortals always seem to get mixed up in so many misadventures. With great illustrations, cool trivia, and fun quizzes to test your knowledge, this guide will have you on your way to whiz-kid status in no time!
This activity book provides a fun way of introducing kids to Greek Mythology.
It’s packed with trivia and quizzes!
There are also illustrations that accompany each lesson, making it even more engaging for the kids. Some of the gods featured here are Aphrodite, Apollos, Artemis, Aris, and Athena.
Here’s how this book makes learning Mythology easier. There’s a profile for each character, which includes their Roman names, parents’ names, children’s names, their personalities, powers and skills, the weapons they have, etc. My daughter just slurped this one right up!
Also included in the box is a card featuring the next book, Aru Shah and The End of Time.
The author, Roshani Chokshi, has a special message for the readers.
Aru Shah “Don’t Wake The Sleeper” Sleeping Mask. Can’t think of a more appropriate phrase for a sleeping mask than “don’t wake the sleeper”! The mask is in dark blue, and it also comes with an elastic band to keep the mask in place as you sleep. My kids love sleeping masks. This was of promotinal quality but I thought it was a good pick.
Mirror. Packed inside a red velvet pouch is small compact mirror inspired by Aru Shah and The End of Time!
The best thing about this mirror is that’s small enough to be carried anywhere you go.
We also received a signed bookplate from the author!
Aru Shah and the End of Time (A Pandava Novel Book 1) by Roshani Chokshi ($11.72)
Best-selling author Rick Riordan introduces this adventure by Roshani Chokshi about twelve-year-old Aru Shah, who has a tendency to stretch the truth in order to fit in at school. While her classmates are jetting off to family vacations in exotic locales, she’ll be spending her autumn break at home, in the Museum of Ancient Indian Art and Culture, waiting for her mom to return from her latest archeological trip. Is it any wonder that Aru makes up stories about being royalty, traveling to Paris, and having a chauffeur?
One day, three schoolmates show up at Aru’s doorstep to catch her in a lie. They don’t believe her claim that the museum’s Lamp of Bharata is cursed, and they dare Aru to prove it. Just a quick light, Aru thinks. Then she can get herself out of this mess and never ever fib again.
But lighting the lamp has dire consequences. She unwittingly frees the Sleeper, an ancient demon whose duty it is to awaken the God of Destruction. Her classmates and beloved mother are frozen in time, and it’s up to Aru to save them.
The only way to stop the demon is to find the reincarnations of the five legendary Pandava brothers, protagonists of the Hindu epic poem, the Mahabharata, and journey through the Kingdom of Death. But how is one girl in Spider-Man pajamas supposed to do all that?
This is not your ordinary fairytale! It is also filled with lessons in Indian mythology and culture, plus the heroine is a such a relatable pre-teen.
The story also includes animals who can talk, which is very Disney!
The book pages come with well-sized texts. Kids won’t have a hard time reading this for sure. The pages of the book look neat and crisp, and they smell good too! If you love reading books, you know what a book’s scent smells like.
It’s such a page turner. If your kids loved Percy Jackson, there’s a great chance that they will fall for Aru Shah too!
This is the first book in Riordan’s new Disney imprint “Rick Riordan Presents.”
Basically, our goal is to publish great books by middle grade authors from underrepresented cultures and backgrounds, to let them tell their own stories inspired by the mythology and folklore of their own heritage. Over the years, I’ve gotten so many questions from my fans: “Will you ever write about Hindu mythology? What about Native American? What about Chinese?” I saw that there was a lot of interest in reading fantasy adventures based on different world mythologies, but I also knew I wasn’t the best person to write them. Much better, I thought, to use my experience and my platform at Disney to put the spotlight on other great writers who are actually from those cultures and know the mythologies better than I do. Let them tell their own stories, and I would do whatever I could to help those books find a wide audience.
You know what OwlCrate Jr? We’d be TOTALLY FINE if you decided to feature all three books this year!
Stella Bookish Art Percy Jackson Pillowcase. Speaking of Percy Jackson, we also got a pillowcase featuring a quote from Percy Jackson and the Olympians:
With great power… comes great need to take a nap.
The edges of this pillowcase are rounded. It’s soft and cozy too!
OwlCrate Jr. May 2018 theme is Monster Mash! Exciting!
What kind of creepy creatures do you suppose live beneath the ground? You’ll find out soon, brave reader! Our May book pick is an upROARious adventure, full of surprises, danger, and (you guessed it) MONSTERS! This box is perfect for fans of The Spiderwick Chronicles, Fablehaven, and The Hero’s Guide To Saving Your Kingdom.
This month’s box is definitely a keeper, as the books included are perfect for both boys and girls. We also loved all the cute book-inspired items, like the sleeping mask and button pin. There is just so much to learn about Mythology and it was a great idea to include a kid-friendly introduction book with illustrations and fun trivia. This subscription is great for building a children’s book collection, while the themed bookish goodies make it even more worthwhile. And Aru Shah is definitely a keeper – the author just landed her first movie deal too! Next month’s Monsters theme has us excited already!
What did you think of the Owl Crate Jr. box this month?
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