Quick Kids Reviews #15

Title: Rosa Parks (Little People, Big Dreams)
Author: Lisbeth Kaiser
Illustrator: Marta Antelo
Source: Free ARC from Frances Lincoln Children’s Books

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Note: As stated under the Source (above), I received this book for free from Frances Lincoln Children’s Books via NetGalley. I pride myself on writing fair and honest reviews.

Once again, I learned something new thanks to Little People, Big Dreams (I’m starting to think I didn’t get a very good education as a kid!). Everyone knows Rosa Parks as the woman who wouldn’t give up her seat on the bus during segregation. What I didn’t know is that she did so much more than that (though that was a truly brave thing to do). She was an activist prior to that famously refusing to give up her seat, and harnessed the energy that action sparked, to fight for and create real long-term change.

In addition to highlighting events in the inspiring life of Rosa Parks, this book touches on the history of slavery and racism, while explaining at a very basic level how Rosa’s persistence paid off.

Definitely a critically important edition to the Little People, Big Dreams collection.

Title: The Cave
Author: Rob Hodgson
Illustrator: Rob Hodgson
Source: Free ARC from Frances Lincoln Children’s Books

Rating: ⭐⭐

Note: As stated under the Source (above), I received this book for free from Frances Lincoln Children’s Books via NetGalley. I pride myself on writing fair and honest reviews.

In a cave lives a little creature that can’t come out because a wolf has them trapped inside their home. The wolf stalks them and taunts them every day, hoping to entice the creature out so that he can eat them. This goes on for a very long time, until one day the creature feels comfortable coming out, and the wolf is very, very sorry when that happens.

The themes in this book are pretty bothersome, honestly. The wolf is a bully and an abuser and certainly there must be consequences for his heinous behavior. However, the consequence of his actions is to suffer what he has wrought, and that is not a moral that I would teach my children. Seeking revenge and “eye for an eye” are not lessons we teach in this household, nor are they lessons that I feel improve the society in which we live.

Hard pass for me.

Title: Mindful Bea and the Worry Tree
Author: Gail Silver
Illustrator: Franziska Heollbacher
Source: Free ARC from Magination Press

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Note: As stated under the Source (above), I received this book for free from Magination Press via NetGalley. I pride myself on writing fair and honest reviews.

Bea’s birthday party is about to start when her anxiety creeps in. She starts to worry about all the things that could go wrong and becomes so upset by it that she wants to cancel the party. After going out to the backyard to avoid answering the door, she starts to take deep, calming breaths and tries to focus on controlling her thinking. Eventually she calms down and is able to enjoy her party and her friends.

This book is a wonderful way to explain to children what anxiety can feel like. As an adult, it is a confusing feeling, so for a child who struggles with identifying and processing feelings overall, it can be especially so. In addition to showing the reader how anxiety can feel, how it can affect you, how it can pop up even at good times, it provides a simple method for finding calm: taking deep, slow breaths in and out, acknowledging the anxiety, and attempting to refocus your thoughts. This is the technique I’ve seen most commonly referred to and is simple enough for a child to do on their own. Good stuff.

Anxiety is a wily beast that can wreak havoc on your life and is especially disturbing for small children. This cute book provides concrete examples and tools for parent and child to help tame anxiety when it rears its ugly head.

Title: Muhammad Ali (Little People, Big Dreams)
Author: Isabel Sanchez Vegara
Illustrator: Brosmind
Source: Free ARC from Frances Lincoln Children’s Books

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Note: As stated under the Source (above), I received this book for free from Frances Lincoln Children’s Books via NetGalley. I pride myself on writing fair and honest reviews.

At this point, I’ve written so many reviews for the Little People, Big Dreams series that I feel like I’m always saying the same thing, but the truth is, they are consistently wonderful!

In this addition, Muhammad Ali, we learn about Cassius Clay, a little boy who learned to fight when his bike was stolen. He wasn’t the strongest fighter in the ring, but he was certainly the fastest, and all of his hard work led him to a gold medal in the Olympics and four heavyweight championships! However, Muhammad Ali was more than a world-class boxer, he was also an activist and a humanitarian who used his place of privilege to speak for those with smaller voices. Muhammad Ali was a good and faithful man who made the most out of his life.

You really can’t lose with any book in this series.