Written by Geraldine V. Oates-Sese, Ph.D Illustrated by Franchesca A. Guerrero
Children who are unfamiliar with birding may be inspired to become nature lovers after reading this book. Highly recommended for elementary and middle grade readers.
I loved this colorful picture book packed with so much knowledge.
The protagonist, Melusine, enjoys bird watching. One day she notices an unfamiliar sound outside her window. Melusine travels to her multicultural neighborhood to identify this bird. Along her journey, readers learn about the songs and calls of many birds. In addition, Melusine’s trip to the market with her parents exposes readers to the different languages spoken by members of her community.
The author provides a comprehensive summary of each bird call and a glossary of the terms expressed by humans in the various languages spoken in the market. This book portrays a beautiful message of the diversity and inclusive sounds emitted by human and feathered friends.
Children who are unfamiliar with birding may be inspired to become nature lovers after reading this book. Highly recommended for elementary and middle grade readers.
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Publisher’s Book Summary: Art is autistic and artistic.
Art has just one friend – his teddy bear.
Art does not speak, but he makes art. Art that dismisses gravity.
The publication crowns the artist and turns royalty into a mere audience. The sophisticated illustrations inspire readers to express their emotions, verbalize their feelings, and create their own stories.
Marin is proud to be a self-published children’s book creator. He writes his stories, illustrates the books, designs the covers, formats the pages, and publishes the volumes. He even creates new fonts for his publications to make them one-of-a-kind. To achieve a world-class status for his books, Marin “marinates” them in a special creative compound.
Marin lives with his family on the Canadian East Coast. He is very thankful that the weather there is often bad and gives him more chances to sit in front of a computer and create. His works are available in several different formats:
HARDCOVER: books are cataloged and can be ordered in any bookstore or library in North America. A book title, author’s name, or ISBN is needed for placing an order.
SOFTCOVER and EBOOK: available on Amazon, Kobo, Google Books, Barnes & Noble, and other big and small book retailers.
AUDIOBOOK: obtainable from Audible, iTunes, MagicBlox, and other vendors.
Art: A story about an autistic and artistic circus virtuoso and his teddy bear
Illustrated by Marin.
A compelling wordless picture book that is at once unsettling and unique. The protagonist is a young autistic man who possesses both artistic and musical talent. He is obsessed with the circus and magic. The whimsical illustrations are dramatic and dark, much like the world of an autistic soul. This man’s only friend is a teddy bear, which he uses to delight the circus audience and to escape the bonds of this world’s gravity as he soars high above the ground. In this way, Art creates a unique environment that provides joy and exhilaration, releasing him from the bonds of his autistic prison.
This picture book is a welcome resource for an autistic child, but certainly a wellspring of imaginative opportunities for any child to release his storytelling creativity. As a special educator who has worked with many children on the autism spectrum, I applaud Marin’s contribution as a bridge to understanding this disability as well as a unique opportunity for elementary and middle grade students to enhance their creative expression abilities.
GIVEAWAY
Enter the giveaway for the chance to win an autographed hardcover copy of Art and $50 sent via PayPal! A complimentary download of Marin’s book The Smileis also available to everyone right now on Amazon.
Have You Seen My Sock? A Fun Seek-and-Find Rhyming Children’s Book for Ages 3-7.
Written by Barbara B. Thompson
Illustrated by Remesh Ram
I loved this rhyming picture book for toddlers and preschoolers. A little boy becomes increasingly frustrated when he cannot find his favorite dinosaur sock. The repetitive lines encourage vocabulary retention and early reading skills. Bright illustrations draw children into the story. It teaches them the necessity of patience and the ability to be patient as they learn to logically follow a sequence of steps to solve a problem. This book encourages interactivity and helps parents and teachers to guide their young charges to follow through and remain on task.
I highly recommend it for a home or classroom bookshelf.
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Every child is unique and special. One of the reasons I believe each child’s educational setting needs to be unique not formulated by a cookie-cutter curriculum.
Abigail, the eight-year-old protagonist in this book is intelligent and happy until she notices that her reading group moves slower than the others and fellow classmates make fun of her. When she is diagnosed with dyslexia, Abigail feels stupid and lonely until her family and reading specialist show the remarkable capabilities and achievements of dyslexics. Through their love and support, Abigail learns there are many ways to be “special.”
The illustrations are soft and sensitive, yet emotionally powerful and appealing to the eye.
I would strongly suggest this book be included in elementary and middle school classroom bookshelves as a read aloud discussion book. It provides a wonderful asset for parents of a child with any type of disability to raise self-esteem.
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A beautiful rhyming picture book written for Christian children and their families.
What child does not love the mythical unicorn creature? Aden is introduced as a young yearling with spirit. He has a tender heart filled with compassion and kindness for others and never seems to put himself first.
One day Aden is gifted with a magical power. He is transformed into a unicorn. Rather than becoming impressed with this gift, Aden continues to be kind and unselfish. His love for others is soon tested. Will Aden ever fit in? Does he really want to be like all the others.
This book teaches children lessons from the Bible as well as strong character values.
I received a copy of this book from the author and voluntarily chose to read and review it with my honest opinions with no compensation.
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Publisher’s Book Summary: Coloring the Rainbow: The Power of Connection tells a story of the magic created when the unique talents of a diverse group of children are shared in a colorful adventure.
The adventure begins when we see through a boy’s window to find a young trombonist pausing his practice to wonder if other musical voices exist. When an alluring treble note wafts through his window, he begins an excited quest to find the answer. Playing his horn through his neighborhood, the boy draws other curious children to play their unique instruments along with him.
Together, they played: “Lend your voice, play your part! Something grand is beginning― join us for the start!”
The procession of music makers is touched with magic when their combined voices, raised in harmony, orchestrate a colorful miracle.
The ease of poetry and vibrant illustrations make this book a perfect keepsake for any gift-giver wishing to explore the values of diversity and inclusion with young, loved ones.
Catherine Rose is enjoying that time of life when one thinks of creating a legacy. What are the lessons learned from living life’s adventure that would benefit generations to come?
As a pediatric nurse, she wrote therapeutic stories to help children cope masterfully with injury and illness. Her present stories weave tales with similarly empowering messages to support children’s development of resilience, confidence and empathy.
Rose writes from the back porch of her log home, inspired by the profile of Mount Jefferson in North Carolina. Married to her high school sweetheart, they now enjoy perpetual recess with their two grandchildren, whose favorite activity is to read a book written by Nana!
Jeff Dale’s foray into artistic design began when his boss at a printing shop asked him to design a logo for a client. While the logo was an impressive design, creating the art had an even more impressive effect on motivating a true passion for creative design.
Educated in the design world of Washington, DC, Jeff’s wide scope of interest and talent has inspired him to design, create, and build just about anything one can conceive of creating, including this debut as an illustrator of a children’s book. Jeff is the founder of Dale Design, situated in Raleigh, North Carolina, where he resides with his wife and two grown children.
His varied talent in artistic design can be appreciated by visiting his website: www.daledesign.com.
GIVEAWAY
Enter the giveaway for the chance to win a signed hardcover copy of Coloring the Rainbow and a $100 Amazon gift card!
Coloring the Rainbow: A Story about the Power of Connection
Written by Catherine Rose
Illustrated by Jeffrey Dale
What a beautiful message for children in the primary grades but appropriate for any reader! This beautiful rhyming picture book features a young boy who enjoys playing his trombone. One day he ponders how much more enjoyable it might be if it were combined with the voices of other instruments. He walks through the streets searching for other children who play different musical instruments. Sounds high and low ring out from all parts of the world. What a beautiful symphony they create when blended. Just as music, the unique talents of each child combine to form a gorgeous tapestry creating harmony from individual differences.
Simple, soft colors in conjunction with crisp rhymes suggest this multicultural picture book to be a top choice on a parent or teacher’s bookshelf.
I was elated to receive book five in this author’s stunning picture book series about groundhogs, chipmunks, and squirrels. In this edition, adorable Fiston reveals the secrets of life as a chipmunk.
I love watching these adorable creatures prance around my backyard in the northeastern U.S. Snellings taught me how they eat, move, hibernate, raise their young, and protect themselves.
It is fascinating that these creatures can weigh only two to four ounces yet manage to collect as many as 165 acorns a day when preparing for hibernation! As a history buff, I was delighted to learn about the Iroquois myth connected to them and the analogy of their coloring to the uniforms of the Swiss Guards at the Vatican. The photography is spectacular. Children can visually understand and relate to the fascinating facts that Fiston reveals to his new friends.
I highly recommend adding this beautiful book both to a home or classroom library as a gem of knowledge and a beautiful piece of photography.
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Publisher’s Book Summary: Meet Toby: a young monster who has skin like a fish, fur like a dog, and smells like cotton candy when he gets excited. He lives with his family in the basement of Marymount Mansion and once a year ventures out into the real world when everyone is dressed for Halloween. Toby becomes frustrated with hiding below ground and sets off on an all-important quest.
Gregory G. Allen is an award-winning author, screenwriter, filmmaker, and actor. His children’s books include Chicken Boy: The Adventures of a Superhero with Autism, Chicken Boy Deals with Doctors & Dentists, and Irving the Theater Nut! He is a member of The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and The Dramatist Guild. The idea for his monster book goes back to the first musical he ever wrote, which was produced for the stage when he was 15, with the message that it’s okay to be different.
Shelby Goodwin is an illustrator, letterer, graphic designer, and all-around creative living in Hoboken, NJ. She is extremely passionate about children’s media and the power of art to romanticize the everyday. When she is not making things, she can be found with her spouse and three cats exploring new places, eating pastries, or cuddling up in her favorite reading chair.
Enter for the chance to win a signed paperback copy of The Monsters of Marymount Mansion, a signed paperback copy of each of the author’s previous picture books** (Chicken Boy: The Amazing Adventures of a Superhero with Autism, Chicken Boy: A Superhero with Autism Deals with Doctors & Dentists, and Irving the Theater Nut!), and a $50 Amazon gift card to buy other books! **All books teach children not to fear those who are different and to be proud of themselves FOR those differences.
One (1) grand prize winner receives:
– A signed paperback copy of The Monsters of Marymount Mansion
– A signed paperback copy of Chicken Boy: The Amazing Adventures of a Superhero with Autism
– A signed paperback copy of Chicken Boy: A Superhero Deals with Doctors and Dentists
– A signed paperback copy of Irving the Theater Nut
– A $50 Amazon Gift Card
Four (4) winners receive:
– A signed paperback copy of The Monsters of Marymount Mansion
Celeste lives in an old mansion that has belonged to her family for years. She hides a secret. There are monsters living inside that no one else knows about. Toby is an eight-year-old who lives there with his younger sister and parents.
Most of the time it’s boring because he must hide whenever anyone visits the house. But this year Toby is excited because Halloween is coming an he is old enough to disguise himself among human trick or treaters on Halloween and venture outside the house.
This book contains adorable black and white illustrations that will captivate beginning readers. (as well as adults) Allen knows how to move the story along for beginning chapter readers. I appreciate the message that monsters (like humans) are unique and special. Children learn to appreciate our differences produce our strengths. Certainly, it’s what inside that counts.
As a parent and retired educator, I would recommend the book as a read aloud discussion for homeschool or classroom. Warning! Adults will enjoy this one as much as the kids.
Don’t wander off is the lesson young children receive from this picture book. The protagonist is an adorable puppy named Rosie. Curiosity gets the best of her as she races after a butterfly in the park. Before long, Rosie is lost. Jo, her owner, frantically searches for Rosie. Will Jo find her?
The illustrations are large and created with soft pastels. While this book is targeted for children as young as four, the sentences are rather long and some of the vocabulary is difficult. It will require explanation from an adult reader.
Parents and teachers may want to utilize the book to teach important safety lessons.
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A children’s picture book with a purpose. This book teaches children about one of our most valuable community helpers, firefighters. At the same time, young readers are introduced to a lovable bunch of toys who are looking for someone special to love them.
These toys have been hidden away in a box stored in the firehouse until a firefighter accidentally finds one of them. Read the story to find how how two little girls learn a lesson that pulls the community together and spreads that message of love and empathy to all it touches.
This book is appropriate for all elementary age readers and a suggested addition for a classroom lesson on community helpers.
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December 10, 2023
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