Ronaldo: The Phantom Carrot Snatcher - Maxine Sylvester

Date of Reading: 06/04/2019

Author: Maxine Sylvester

Publication Date: January 28, 2019

Publisher: Matador

My Rating: 4.5/5

About the book:

Ronaldo and Rudi discover friends come in all shapes and sizes as they embark on a superhero mission to help a lost wolf cub called Ernie to find her pack. 

Rudi comes up with a plan to find the pack and deliver a message during a speed test at flying school. But Ronaldo isn’t totally onboard with the idea. He desperately wants to break the speed record and the plan means jeopardising his chance of becoming champion. 

Will Ronaldo go for glory… or will he discover the true meaning of friendship and sacrifice the race for Ernie? 

My Review:

      Ah! The second book in the 'Ronaldo: The Flying Reindeer' series is nothing short of charming. We are introduced to one more character, the wolf cub Ernie, adding to another dose of fun to an already remarkable set of characters. An evil side of me was actually hoping that Ernie won't find her pack so that we could see a bit more of her in the coming stories. But I am glad at the way story unfolded and I really really hope she will be a permanent part of the series. Such cuteness could never be overlooked.
       Reading this has taken me back to my Harry Potter days where the characters grow with each story and the plot thickens along with it. Our Ronaldo is growing too, now engaged in risky adventures and faced with more complex choices. And the setting and the pictures are absolutely gorgeous, making me wish for Christmas again. But this is a story for all seasons and can even be read as a standalone. 
        I will suggest this as a perfect reading choice for children up to 10 or 12 years depending on their reading preferences. I doubt anyone can resist such an adventurous story set in a sparkling winter land.

Meet the author:

I was born in Hounslow, Middlesex in the south of England. As a child, I loved drawing and took private art classes with a wonderful teacher called, Pearl Lee. She had an abundance of Disney magazines, and I would paint the characters on wood, card, canvas or anything else I was allowed to use, including walls.
  
When I was nine, my mum took me on holiday to Majorca. I clearly remember being fascinated by how other people lived outside of England. Travelling became my new obsession.

After Sixth Form College, I intended to go to art school, but my travel bug got the better of me and chose to work as a holiday representative in Greece instead. This was followed by seven years working on cruise ships, two years in Israel and Palestine, and six years in Russia and Armenia. Although I lapped up the different cultures, I found my work over the years very unfulfilling. I decided to dig out my Caran d’Arche pencils, and do something about it!

I enrolled in The College of Cartoon Art and was mentored by the renowned caricaturist, Steve Chadburn. I created a character called Ronaldo and decided to write a short story about him. Before I knew it, my head was spinning with ideas and the first book, The Reindeer Flying Academy, went from a small picture book into a full-blown chapter book … but more importantly, I loved every minute of the writing and illustrating process.

Nowadays, I live in Bali, Indonesia, with my amazing partner, Mark, (Bristol born and bred) and am currently illustrating the third book for the Ronaldo series, Rudi’s Birthday Extravaganza.

I am still a self-confessed Disney geek and get excited as a five-year-old whenever a new Disney animated film comes out. I love the Disney theme parks and have visited Orlando, Paris, Hong Kong and Tokyo – California and Shanghai are next on my bucket list.

I have an unhealthy fondness for pizza and chocolate but a healthy love of Pilates - I like to think they balance each other out. And finally, I am a lifelong Arsenal supporter … although sometimes I wish I wasn’t!