babyleo's reviews
1689 reviews

This review was published on Lost in a Good Book - https://wp.me/p3x8rS-33t

 Reading this book made me a bit emotional towards to end, mainly because I am known to be a sucker for sweet stories, but also because I was reminded of my own experiences during that time which foolishly wasn’t something I thought would happen.

I was perplexed by wombat’s grumpy face on the cover, but having finished the book I am putting that look down to her determination. It isn’t that she is grumpy, she is tired sure, but she is determined. And that is the face of a determined wombat. There is no malice like I thought there’d be – no wombat getting tired of helping all the time and dismissing her neighbours, she stays helpful even though it’s hard work, and when they really need her she is once again ready to help no questions asked.

Gyan does do a great job on the illustrations. The animals are lifelike but personified, and wombat looks adorable in her clothes and pottering around her little house. The images of the bush and the animals are gorgeous – natural while still having some picture book-eque behaviour. The colours are stunning and I love the natural look, even within wombat’s burrow which looks very Hundred Acre Wood in terms of homeliness.

It was a surprising read, and one that unexpectedly brought back some bad memories from those fires that summer. But as weird as it was that it’s not written by an Australian, I’m glad an American author was touched by our plight to write this book and give the animal’s story a voice – even if it is fictionalised. Having said that, I would have liked some more Australianness to the story, even the token stereotypical stuff would have sufficed. Having Wombat drink a flavoured seltzer? Which is not a common drink here, one I didn’t even think we had till I checked, and one I’ve only ever heard about from Americans. I dunno, it felt off that so much effort was made to tell our story and there was so much of another culture through it. Even a fictionalised gumnut tea would have been better. 

This review was published on Lost in a Good Book - https://wp.me/p3x8rS-34C
 

I really like this idea as a concept. Sometimes things aren’t going right and there’s no real reason why, but that doesn’t mean you can’t do something about it. If things are scary or something isn’t going well Colagiovanni tells us you can change it.

I liked the play on words about going right and left. It’s so simple but one that is obvious and eye opening. It’s a fantastic course of action to implement and easy for kids to understand. The little personified voices of the fears and worries were also great, and super fun when you read them out loud.

There is a rhythm to the story without it needing to rhyme. The repetitive actions make it predictable towards the end which actually works well and makes interacting with the story fun since the book already addresses the rhythm a little bit in the layout style.

I loved the illustrations and the colour scheme. I loved the dark colours for the not going right parts, and the brighter colours as we start going left. The gradual shift from darker shades to light was a great visual change of how the light can be at the end of a tunnel and there is a way from the dark, even with little choices like this character makes.

It is a great book about choice and how sometimes you have some agency in how you feel. You can choose to not be scared and try something new, choose to ignore your fears and doubt and leave them behind. I loved there was no given reason for why things weren’t going right and it’s only small changes that start to improve things. Colagiovanni acknowledges that those frustrations and doubts may still be there, you might not get rid of them entirely, but they will be easier to carry, and you’ll have a plan in place if it happens again. 

A longer version of this review was published on Lost in a Good Book - https://wp.me/p3x8rS-33g

 I am an avid hater of picture books that fall into the lazy trap of farts, poop, and other bodily functions. I know the kids love them, but aside from being stupid, it’s also something celebrities easily get to publish and it feels like a storytelling cop out.

I know there can be good poop books, this is another one that balances a fine line. It is quite fun, our parent mouse is obviously sick of the kids always mentioning poo, and on their outing they have strict instructions to refrain from mentioning it.

I liked the work around the kids had, and I liked that their discussion of poo end up being fun imaginings of what it looks like from various people and animals they pass. I liked that tattooed people have tattooed poo, that balloon animal makers have balloon animal poo. I also liked the fun illustrations that match the poo to their shape.

The story is told with a great rhyme. It’s a fun story that really plays into the taboo of poo and the sneaky ways the kids want to discuss it. The story isn’t all about jokes about poo. As the story goes on they discover what happens to the poo in the zoo and how it is used for growing plants and trees. It debunks the myth for the kids that’s there is anything special about poo, it’s the same for everyone, with a little bit of humour without taking it too far on the grotesque side.

If you’re like me and are sick and tired of the poo books, this one may be an ok compromise when the kids really want to laugh at the grubby side of things. 

A longer version of this review was published on Lost in A Good Book -  https://wp.me/p3x8rS-335

Initially I thought this book was about going to visit a library and borrowing books, and it is, but it is told from the perspective of a single book. It’s a first person narration too which is ok, if not a bit weird.

The little book waits impatiently as they wait to be chosen from the shelf, disappointed as other books around them are chosen. When finally selected they go on a chaotic journey back home, all with the dream of being read in a cosy bed at night.

I am always fascinated by these books normalising books going home from the library and being stained, drawn on, or covered in food. I get that there can be some rough times, torn pages, and yes ok, a scribble or two. But please can we start promoting that library books are for everyone, and you spilling spaghetti sauce all over it isn’t funny, because now that is going to be unable to be borrowed by someone else?

But in the magic picture book world the book is returned unharmed despite a lot of near misses (somehow being fine despite the spaghetti sauce???) and returned on the shelf ready for another exciting library day.

It is fun story about the poor book having a rough time before finally getting read. If you look at it from that perspective it could be funny. But that doesn’t fix there isn’t a lot of story to hold onto. There are other books that talk about the experience of library books that still talk about the chaos of going home while being a bit more interesting and engaging.

It was an ok read, not quite what I thought but a fun adventure of your library experience from the perspective of the books you take out.