Kid's Book Review
I have had the idea of a kids book group simmering on the back burner for several months. Unfortunately, I have too many ideas simmering there and not enough time. Solution? Blog a group! Take a few minutes and do book reviews for a few kids books and take some time to browse those already done. Then, once a month, add a few more. Feel free to add your comments to books you have read that have already been reviewed. When you do your review, please do one book per post, and use the scale on the right to rate your book. Add whatever additional information you would like!
Author: Cynthia DeFelice
Illustrator: Andrea U'Ren
Story: 5
Illustration: 4
Overall kid rating: 4
Overall mom rating: 4.75
What does it teach - It doesn't take much to be happy. Be grateful for what you have.
Length: 3 pages
Audience: About 3 and up
I love stumbling on a great book. Joy brought this home from the library, and I fell in love. It is about an old man and woman who have almost nothing but each other but are happy anyway. One day, they find a pot in their garden and discover that it doubles whatever you put in it. After increasing modestly on their modest possessions and making a fun discovery, they decide they are happy and bury the pot for someone else to find. It really is a delightful book!
Author Rose Fyleman
Illustrated by Jamichael Henterly
Story: 5
Illustration: 5
Overall kid rating: 4
Overall mom rating: 5
What does it teach - kindness to others and enjoying the beauty of nature
Length: 20 pages
Audience: 2-4 beautiful pictures and a sweet message, love it! for all fairy fans out there it's a must.
Author: Kate Coombs
Illustrator: Heather M. Solomon
Story: 5
Illustration: 3
Overall kid rating: 4
Overall mom rating: 5
What does it teach - That we need to be able to focus on the positive things in life, too.
Length: 32 pages
Audience: Fun for about 2 and up, but the message probably wouldn't sink in until much later.
This is a good story about a quiet, assured young woman who lives away from the village. Everyone comes to her to tell her their secrets and she catches their secrets, which then turn into different objects, and keeps them safely locked away from everyone else. Those people return to the village feeling uplifted and free from their burden once they have left it with Kalli. However, Kalli becomes sick and finds that the burden of being secret-keeper is too much. The villagers have to find a way to help Kalli feel better. It is probably one of my new favorite books and I may have to buy it for our library at home.
by Pat Hutchins
story-5
illustration-3
overall kid rating-5
overall mom rating-5
what does it teach-prediction
length-15 pages?
audience-3-6 years-old
An oblivious hen leaves her coop and goes for a walk around the farm. A fox quickly discovers her and follows her around trying to pounce on her. He always misses and gets himself into some sort of trouble. The text is about Rosie's path, but the illustrations tell the fox's adventures. It leaves opportunity for the reader to interact and ask questions with the listening ears. It's a really short book and it teaches important reading skills.
This is one of my kids FAVORITES!!
I guess you could say it teaches kids to be proud of who they are even if they are a little different. its about a Siamese cat who thinks he is a Chihuahua. we have the book on CD and listen to it every time we are in the car.
Author - Sally Lloyd-Jones
Illustrator - Jane Chapman (of Bear Snores On)
Story - 5
Illustration - 5
Overall Kid Rating - 5
Overall Mom Rating - 5
What It Teaches - Bedtime
Length - 30 pages - mostly illustration
Audience - little kids and up
One of my new favorites, especially for bedtime. I just happened to pick this up, and I love it! It goes through a bunch of different animals and tells them all to go to bed. Then, the animals tell the kids to go to bed. The illustrations are gorgeous, and I am a sucker for good pictures. It is a fabulous book for bedtime and is part of our evening routine now.
Author - Dan Andreasen
Illustrator - Dan Andreasen
Story - 4
Illustration - 5 - adorable!
Overall Kid Rating - 4
Overall Mom Rating - 4.5
What It Teaches - Mmm, cuteness? Actually, when you are doing something nice for someone, you need to consider the work you are causing.
Length - 25(?) pages - mostly illustration
Audience - as young as 2 and up
This book is about a little pig who wants to do some special things for her mom, but makes a bunch of big messes in the process. I hate to admit it, but the little pig reminds me of Joy and Brigham! The illustrations are super cute, and the pigs just make me happy. It is very short, so it keeps the attention of even the youngest readers. I would definitely recommend this one.
story: 5
illustration:5
overall kid rating:4
overall mom rating:5
what does it teach: Family
length:30 pages but 15 with words
audience: I read it to my two year old and she liked it, but to really get it I would say 5? I'm not good at judging the age group!!
The book is about a little girl who "just tries to help" and ends up making a huge mess of things!! She decides that she better just go find another family since hers has all these reasons not to love her anymore. Then she remembers that with her family "you're always family even when you Goof."
story: 4
illustration:5
overall kid rating:4
overall mom rating:5
what does it teach: math-fractions
length:30 pages but 15 with words
audience: We read it and Makenna is 5 but probably geared toward 7 year olds?
A sultan's daughter who loves math and riddles has to find a husband, she makes up a riddle and who ever answerers the riddle correctly gets to marry her. Very cute book and I love that it teaches a math concept in a riddle form and has a girl who makes up the riddle that many men can't solve except her true love of course.
Author: Patrick "Packy" Mader
Illustrator: Andrew Holmquist
story - 5
illustration - 3
overall kid rating - 4
overall mom rating - 4
what does it teach - creative problem solving, importance of working together & paying attention
length - 32 pages
audience - 4 & up
The illustrations in the book weren't outstanding, but the story was good. It helped my children realize that it's good to pay attention to the things around us, it's good to work together as a family to help care for each other and for those that depend on us, in this case animals. It also teaches that sometimes you need to do a little creative thinking for problem solving. My children were concerned about the calf and kept asking what they would do and what would happen next. It's not a book that I would run out and buy, but we enjoyed it and we may check it out of the library again.
