When you take the time to open a book, you never know just what you might get. It seems like a simple story on friendship but then you’re delighted to discover it is more than that. It’s about middle graders who put others ahead of themselves, it’s about reaching out to the community to give back, and dynamics between people. It’s also about the journey of self and discovering all that you have to give is so much more than you ever imagined.
I wasn't sure what this book was exactly going to be about, apart from a Sloth Who Came to Stay of course. I could only imagine that there would be an element of slow to the book, I did not expect there to be such strong and emotive message for adults. Although I am not a mamma it certainly illustrated to me how our busy, fast paced lives that we continue to fill, shape how we are as a family (not just those with children) and dictate our lives. It takes something, like the Sloth in this picture book, to make us stop and realise just what we are bypassing when we are speeding around. There is so much to see, appreciate and love when we are reminded to take our time.
When you open a book and before you even get to the first chapter you read a statement that says "No chickens were hurt during the course of writing this book, because chickens are good and we LIKE chickens" you know the book is going to be a little bit quirky and a lot of funny.
If you haven’t met Ruby Wishfingers before, you wouldn’t know that she gets 12 wishes a year, these make her fingers tingle and need to be used thoughtfully. You also wouldn't know that her parent's don't believe these wishes exist, that her brother Jellybean can make things appear and disappear, and that grandma has wishes too. These wishes were inherited from Ruby's great great great great grandfather Wishfingers.
There is a children's picture book author whose books stand out on the book shelves, literally, because they are bright and colourful. Lucy Cousins books are familiar to children, especially the Maisy Books. Personally I have never been the biggest fan of Maisy, however when this book jumped out at me...the bright colours and size largely responsible, I saw Maisy and the story she had to tell from a completely new perspective. So, today's post is me sharing with you why this book has changed my view.
Listen. What do you hear? The first words in the book are on a blank page and they instantly awakened my senses and curiosity saw me turning to the next page. "Today I woke up to the silence of a new morning." The next page, I literally had a small gasp and a large smile as the beautiful illustrations greeted me. From this moment I knew I was hooked, that beautiful beaming face that is Olivia, and the beautiful morning greeting the reader through the curtains.
If I were to meet Pelle No-Tail I would tell him that at times I loved him so much, other times I worried for his safety... but then I realised that he is just a curious little cat that just wanted to be everybody's friend.
This Book Stinks! The publishers think it stinks, the author thinks it stinks...most people think it stinks and so do I!
Each time I do a Throwback Thursday post, I am always reminded how very blessed I am to have been exposed to the wonderful world of literacy from such an early age. I am sure most of us have grown up with the Little Golden Books, I know that they were a staple book in our house and we had many. I still have Heidi that was gifted to me from my nanny and poppy just before I turned 1.
I hope you are ready for a laugh and some mischievous bunnies, and a bear that CAN'T babysit...or so it is said. This delightful book sees Mr and Mrs Burrow needing a babysitter for Anna, Adelaide, Betsy, Bill, Caspar, Clive and little Dottie. They put out an ad and only one animal answers the call...Bear.
Little Big Reads 