The Donkeys Jesus Chose: A Catholic Chapter Storybook
Written by Christine Calabrese
A beautiful early reader for Christian families to describe the events leading up to Palm Sunday and the profound affect it had on one family.
Joshua, his wife, Miriam, and their disabled daughter, Mara lived a humble life in a small village. They have a stubborn, donkey named Sapphire who is about to give birth. Sapphire refuses to allow anyone to ride her. Mara must face the bullying of the village children who taunt her as a cripple. In those times, a handicap was often seen as a sign of sin. Mara has one true friend, Hannah, who tells her about Jesus, the Messiah.
As the village prepares for Passover, the family hears that Jesus will enter Jerusalem in a procession. Mara pleads to go. Then an unexpected request comes from a stranger to use the family donkeys for the Messiah in the procession. How will this request and the miracle that follows change the life of this humble family?
Along with the touching tale containing lessons of empathy, compassion, resilience, and hope, children are treated to the beautiful, colored pencil drawings of a budding young artist, Anna Williams who illustrates the chapters. As a bonus for young readers, the author includes a link to learn all about donkeys.
This book is especially recommended to Christian families and beginning chapter book readers.
SUBSCRIBE TO THIS BLOG FOR NEW BOOK REVIEWS EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY.
Publisher: AM Ink Publishing (2024) ISBN-13: 978-1-958842-24-9
Publisher’s Book Summary: A precocious pug delights in shenanigans which drive her frazzled owner to declare she will give her pup away!
Laugh along with the snorting, snoring, and gaseous clown of the canine world as its owner struggles to reign in the messes and mayhem of a new addition. But there is nothing that a few licks and cuddles can’t fix, right?
A true delight that any family can relate to, Ode to a Pug is full of heart… and a lot of slobber.
Jill Rosen is a career marketer and advertiser who lives with two kids, three dogs, two cats, one bird, and a former stand-up comic and Princeton sketch-comedy writing husband. She doesn’t need to go far for comedic inspiration or advice!
Through her brand management work, Jill’s early recognition of, and appreciation for, powerful writing and artistic design only flourished. She is a seasoned workshop facilitator and strategic healthcare consultant specializing in the areas of mental health and infertility.
Jill was inspired to begin writing her own stories by her two boys, both avid readers. Now Jill can’t wait to share them with all the young readers out there.
Steph Rohr is a French Award-winning children’s book illustrator who earned a distinction from ECV Art School in Paris. She is fond of anything silly, funny, wacky, daft, and colorful. A freelance Illustrator & Art Director, Steph has been working in London in publishing and advertising.
What a delightful picture book to delight dog lovers! The protagonist is a woman who has just adopted a new member of the family, an adorable pug. But wait, this cuddly little creature proves to be a lot more than she can handle.
He snorts, toots, tinkles on the carpet, and destroys the furniture. This tiny creature creates chaos everywhere he sets foot. Finally, the owner has had enough. Today is the day she will get rid of him!
Then she looks at those endearing eyes, can she follow through?
This picture book consists of short, clever rhymes and simple, cartoon-like illustrations that will delight young children and adults alike. Anyone who has owned a puppy will empathize with the owner and feel her mixed emotions.
GIVEAWAY
Enter the giveaway for the chance to win an author-signed hardcover copy ofOde to a Pug, a 4″ custom pug plush, plus a die-cut pug sticker!
This is a very short picture book with a quirky sense of humor. It consists of short rhymes from a spider who catches a fly in its web. It appears that this spider is a picky-eater because it refuses to eat the fly. On subsequent days, the spider catches more flies and continues to protest. How do the flies feel about their predicament? Does the spider learn a lesson?
The book might appeal to young children who enjoy silly stories. It is fun to read-aloud. This author uses speech bubbles and the layout is similar to a comic book format. There is little educational value. A simple book for primary grade readers.
SUBSCRIBE TO THIS BLOG FOR NEW BOOK REVIEWS EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY.
I love how this author presents the ocean topic. Children learn about twelve examples of sea creatures that inhabit the ocean, and the life cycle of plant life that interact with them. Then the author discusses the problems that modern-day life has imposed on the oceans and the life within them.
The author uses crisp rhymes with challenging vocabulary that is highlighted in colors that pop off the page. Human characters represent the many cultures that inhabit our planet and how they can work together to sustain it. At the end of the book, readers receive an opportunity to go back and identify the creatures they learned about in the story. Then the author presents them with tangible and actionable steps they can take now to protect our oceans and its resources.
This interactive book should be part of libraries and classrooms. Parents who want to teach their children to be mindful of protecting our planet can count on this resource to put them on the right track.
SUBSCRIBE TO THIS BLOG FOR NEW REVIEWS EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY.
This is the first book in a middle-grade adventure featuring two brothers named Iggy and Oz. Strange names because the boys consider their parents unusual. Iggy is twelve; his younger brother Oz was adopted from China. The boys compete against each other and exhibit the usual sibling rivalry.
Iggy loves to write and has an active imagination so his parents tend not to believe him. Oz wakes him up in the middle of the night to investigate monsters in the attic. When the boys finally get to the attic, they find some old plastic dinosaur toys have come to life, but the adventure begins when the dinos escape into their suburban neighborhood. There is a lot of humor, boyish banter, and a caste of interesting characters including bullies. Iggy, Oz, and their friends must save the neighborhood from destruction before it’s too late.
The plot is absurd, but perfectly believeable for the target middle-grade audience. Recommended for readers ages eight through twelve, particularly boys.
SUBSCRIBE TO THIS BLOG FOR NEW BOOK REVIEWS EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY.
Publisher’s Book Summary: Marion is a kind, creative, and easy kid… but he’s faced with BIG emotions. Help Marion identify those BIG feelings in this interactive children’s picture book.
Guess How Marion Feels is a transformative experience that lays the foundation for emotional intelligence and meaningful connections. A gentle Social Emotional Learning (SEL) tool to guide parents, caregivers, and teachers to teach kids who struggle to pick up social cues and have challenges in social situations.
This book is made to celebrate and honor the feelings of our little ones, foster open communication, and create inclusive learning with our neurodivergent kids. Written by a neurodivergent author, Miss Kaye aims to support kids and everyone struggling with social interactions.
Miss Kaye was born in the Philippines. She had challenges as an adult neurodivergent. This serves as her inspiration for writing fun, engaging, and educational stories to teach life skills and mindfulness to kids.
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR
Miss Waitthk is from Hongkong. She enjoys making people feel happy and joyful through her drawings. As a kid, she remembered drawing anime characters and coloring them with colored pencils. Since then, she kept on drawing.
MY REVIEW OF THIS BOOK
IT’S OKAY TO FEEL THIS WAY…
Guess how Marion Feels
Written by Miss Kaye
Illustrated by Miss Waitthk
A beautiful, interactive picture book that allows young children to explore and communicate their emotions with others.
Marion wakes up happy to start the day. When his mother reminds him that today is the first day at school, his feelings switch to being scared and apprehensive. As the day progresses, readers watch Marion, and his feelings change. A new situation creates mixed feelings of excitement, worry, hope, anger, confusion, and relief.
Young readers are asked to guess what Marion is feeling in each situation by studying the pictures and text. At the end of the book, they get a summary of the book when Marion discusses the whole range of emotions with his parents.
The book is targeted for readers ages one through seven, but I feel the message in the tale is just as valuable for older children.
GIVEAWAY
Enter the giveaway for the chance to win a 1-hour FREE coaching session to launch your own picture book, along with signed copies of Guess How Marion Feels (one to keep and one to share with a neurodivergent charity of your choice under your name).
Animal Antics: A Rhyming Book of Creatures Big and Small
Written and Illustrated by Tamar Tepper Kochen
A silly rhyming picture book, the first in a series about animals doing absurd things. A few examples are a deer with a rainbow ear, a ferret dressed as a carrot, and a flamingo who loved to play bingo.
The rhymes are short and easy to remember, the illustrations huge and vibrant. Children are encouraged to make up their own silly rhymes with several scenarios included at the end of the tale.
I think that preschoolers and primary grade children who enjoy books about animals and silly stories will especially enjoy this book. It’s fun as a read-aloud or a bedtime story.
SUBSCRIBE TO THIS BLOG FOR NEW BOOK REVIEWS EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY.
The author explores the different locations for homes that both humans and animal creatures inhabit. They could be underground, underwater, up in the trees, or under open skies. Some are found in cold climates, and others in warm areas. They might be built of different materials like ice, stone, wood, or even the shell on the animal’s back. Most important, a home can be found anywhere as along as there is a loving support group.
The rhymes are crisp and sharp, the illustrations colorful and alluring.
I highly recommend this book exploring the diversity of our world to parents and teachers of preschoolers and primary grade children.
SUBSCRIBE TO THIS BLOG FOR NEW BOOK REVIEWS EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY.
Sometimes we don’t know what to do with them or how to change our thoughts that cause these feelings. The first day of school can be scary, but “Furrapist” Jackson Johnson and cute pup Ralphy of Ralphy’s Rules for the Good Life are committed to helping a busload of kids understand and manage their big feelings. During the ride to school, Furrapist Jackson Johnson teaches the children that they can choose their emotions and decide how to respond to them. Ralphy and Jackson make the complicated subject of emotional intelligence accessible for kids to understand and, more importantly, implement in their everyday lives.
So hop on the bus with us, and let’s learn about how taking charge of our feelings can change our day!
Talar Herculian Coursey is a lawyer by day and a children’s book author, Life Coach, and philanthropist by night (more like mornings). She has been a General Counsel since 2011 and recently joined ComplyAuto, a privacy/cybersecurity SAAS company. Before going in-house, she was a file clerk, associate, and partner at the national labor and employment law firm Fisher Phillips LLP. Talar is a co-author of both #Networked: How 20 Women Lawyers Overcame the Confines of COVID-19 Social Distancing to Create Connections, CultivateCommunity, & Build Businesses in the Midst of a Global Pandemic and Women In Law: Discovering the True Meaning of Success. Her first children’s book,Ralphy’s Rules for Living the Good Life, was published in 2021.
Talar has served as the President of the Salt Lake City Chapter of the Society for Orphaned Armenian Relief (“SOAR”) since 2015. SOAR, founded in 2005, supports orphanages in Syria, Lebanon and Armenia. She runs the Salt Lake City Half Marathon every year to raise money for SOAR in memory of her father. Net proceeds from her children’s books also go to SOAR. In addition to being a mother, wife, lawyer, life coach, and philanthropist, she is also a runner, yogi, and Jesus, Eckhart Tolle, Peloton, and Brandon Flowers groupie.
SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL SKILLS EXPLAINED FOR YOUNG CHILDREN
Ralphy’s Rules for Feelings
Written by Talar and Riley Herculian Coursey
Illustrated by Meri Andreasyan
This is the second picture book in a series that defines and explains how to deal with emotions for elementary school age children.
Ralphy, a dog, drives the school bus and his friend Jackson Johnson, the Furrapist, sits next to him on the first day of school. As each child passenger enters the bus, Jackson asks how they are feeling. The children express feelings like excitement, sadness, nervousness, and tiredness. Jackson encourages each child to put this feeling on the front seat and decide later whether to leave it or take it with them when getting off the bus at school, teaching children that a feeling can be changed by thinking differently about it. The book portrays a wide range of feelings exhibited by multicultural children, which allows any reader to identify with the characters. At the end of the story, readers are encouraged to discuss their own feelings.
While the book is targeted for readers ages four through ten, it is relevant for a reader of any age. I would recommend it to parents and teachers for a read aloud and discussion.
GIVEAWAY
Enter the giveaway for the chance to win a classroom set that includes 25 copies of Ralphy’s Rules for Feelings!
Saint Valentine the Kindhearted: The History and Legends of God’s Brave and Loving Servant
Written and Illustrated by Ned Bustard
This picture book presents an interesting review of what is known about Saint Valentine.
Bustard is both the author and illustrator. I particularly enjoyed the illustrations done in woodcut style and then embellished with bright colors.
The story is presented in rhyme. Each part is a kind of vignette about different aspects of Valentine’s life. They include his experiences with individuals as well as soldiers and the Emperor Claudius. Despite imprisonment, Valentine continued to write his poetry about the four types of love and sent some of them as lettters. Hence, the origin of sending Valentine’s on the date of his martyrdom, February 14th.
I believe this book will have wide appeal with Christian schools and parents
Reviewed by Barbara Mojica for Net Galley.
SUBSCRIBE TO THIS BLOG FOR NEW BOOK REVIEWS EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY.
March 3, 2024
bamauthor
Comments Off on AN IMPORTANT DECISION
Barbara Ann Mojica's BLOG 
You must be logged in to post a comment.