Category: Children

Review for My Dog Skip

My Dog Skip by Willie Morris

Genre – Memoir, Historical, Humor

Rating – PG – rare uses of mild language

Series – No, stand-a-lone

Synopsis –

Willie receives a dog for his ninth birthday, while his family has had previous dogs, but Skip is special. Skip and Willie grow up a small Mississippi town back in the 1940’s. As Skip & Willie grow up, they have many adventures and learn a few lessons along the way. Whether it’s Willie’s night at the cemetery or Skip driving the car, it sure to bring a smile to your face.

My Thoughts –

This book was such a heartwarming & quick read that I didn’t want it to end!! I am a sucker for a good dog story and feel like I find a new one every year. I discovered this one by chance when I saw the movie for the first time. It was cute and brought tears to my eyes at the end. When I realized it was a book first, I quickly put it on hold from my library. My Dog Skip is less then 200 pages long and yet after reading it you feel like you’ve known Skip and Willie all your life.

The stories are not really in chronological order just by theme or year. Despite that fact, I didn’t mind it; it just flowed so easily. So, sometimes you get many little stories within one chapter or one single story. Morris has a humorous way of writing which made me chuckle and smile several times. You could picture the town and the characters. 🙂 Who would have thought to create a prank around a dog driving a car or putting dewormer into cookies.

I will say its not really character driven, just mostly focused on the author’s memories of growing up with his dog. He names some of his friends, but doesn’t give very many details about them. Skip makes up for it though for he has quite the personality.

Language – Many 3 uses of mild language.

Violence – None

Innuendo – None

Conclusion –

Morris writes such a charming book about a time long past & makes you want to go back and visit this small town. You can tell how much the author loved his dog & all the fun adventures they had together. Plus it was pretty clean and might make for a fun read aloud!

Have you read this book or seen the movie? How is your fall going? What have you been reading?

Anna

Review for Quest

Quest by Aaron Becker

Wordless picture book

Age range- 2-5

Book Rating – G

Summary –

It is a tale of two kids who go on an adventure to help a king save his kingdom from destruction. Their goal is to find the missing crayons before the guards catch them.

My Thoughts –

So, I stumbled upon this book in the wordless section at my library. I looked through it first and decided to show the kids at work. It was hands down a winner!!! They loved it, and I love narrating what the characters are doing. 🙂

First, the illustrations are amazing. They really draw the reader into the story. I get more out of the story the more I read it. Lots of little details hiding in the pictures. What is even cooler, is that the kids in the story draw some of the illustrations. Think of the movie Bedtime Stories and that is kinda of what happens here.

Secondly, the plot is quite creative. The story spans all three books and keeps you on the edge of your seat. The author does a great job inspiring kids to use their imagination. Certain characters develop more then other characters. It is a neat twist on fantasy for young children.

Just a side note, but this is the second book in a wordless trilogy. I did not know that when I first read it to the kids. They kept asking for more “king books” and I found out there are two more. We have read them as well and the kids adore all of them.

Language – None

Violence –

There are some guards with spears chasing the kids throughout the book , but nothing happens.

Innuendo – None

Conclusion

If you know a young child, run over to your nearest library and find this book! I enjoyed so much and the kids at work beg me to read it. The illustrations are bold and colorful. Plus, it depicts different types of geography.

Until next time,

Anna

Review for The Umbrella

The Umbrella by Ingrid and Dieter Schubert

Synopsis –

This is a story about a little dog who ends up going on an adventure that takes him around the world. He visits Africa, the jungle, and even the ocean.

My Thoughts-

I recently found this book at my local library and read it to the kids at work. They have asked to hear this story over and over. It is still a current favorite after a couple of weeks. The pictures are beautiful, and the more times I read it, the more things I can point out to the kids. The fun thing about wordless books is that I can discuss things with the kids that I think are important like what animals live in Africa or what facial expressions the dog is making.

Violence –

One picture does show native Americans holding spears, but they are not in detail. You see the spears fly through the air and one hits the dog’s umbrella.

Another picture shows the little dog surrounded by alligators and one snake (as my kids like to point out). Nothing is directly shown.

You do see the elephant trunk who rescues the dog and blows him to safety.

Language – None, it is wordless after all.

Innuendo – None

Conclusion –

This is a delightful little book that introduces kids to using their imagination and different regions around the world. Throughout the book, you will enjoy seeing the adventurers the dog goes through. The one native American scene may need some discussion, but overall this is a book I highly recommend. Age range probably 2-5 on this one.