A blackbird tries to catch the rays of the sun and hurts his wing. He asks passersby for help, but no one will help him, until a young boy takes pity on the bird and nurses him back to health.

The story has a good message of kindness and generosity, but the plot is kind of strange. A random lady passes by eating cake with a spoon, and refuses to help the bird because she doesn't want to get feathers on her new dress. Who walks down a public road eating cake while they walk? That's weird. The illustration shows her carrying an entire cake on a big platter with a spoon sticking out of the cake. What kind of freakish glutton carries a massive platter of cake down a dusty gravel road and eats it while walking around?

The rhyming text is not that great in places. I am very picky about children's books that use rhyme, since they are usually badly written. This book rhymes "calamity" and "family". That actually hurts my brain. The rhythm of the lines don't always match. I've seen worse, but this isn't great writing.

The illustrations are oddly misty, with distorted lines and weird perspectives that don't match up. People's faces look warped somehow, and their features aren't symmetrical. There is also one page that has a completely different art style from the rest of the book, which I found really strange. Some of the illustrations are extreme close-ups of people's hands or faces, and others are a whole panoramic scene of the road and fields. The angle changes so drastically from page to page that it's disconcerting.

This book is okay. It needs a more coherent design though. I showed the art to my artist brother and he said, "Oof."  I showed the text to my English teacher mom, and she said, "Awkward wording throughout." It's too bad, because the concept is a good one.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

This book details all the reasons why Christians should worship God for his goodness, his power, and his love. God is strong even when we are weak and tired. God is good and loves us even when we make bad choices. God is big and all-knowing so we can ask him for help with anything we need.

I love how this book takes big spiritual ideas, and puts them into simple language that a child can understand. It also explains ways that even a small child can participate in worship at their church through listening quietly, giving to the offering, singing songs, and praying.

The illustrations have a quirky style that I like. The watercolor art is bright and fun, and the designs are simple enough to capture the attention of a child. However, the book is very text-heavy for a children's picture book. It would be more appealing to children if there were more illustrations.

I love that the text includes Bible references to particular verses that talk about worship.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

This book details all the reasons why Christians should sing together and learn lessons and tell stories through song. Singing together helps us to worship God and thank Him for His blessings to us. Songs about God's goodness and power can make people more courageous and happy. Sharing our joy through music can comfort people who are sad.

I love how this book takes big spiritual ideas, and puts them into simple language that a child can understand. It also explains ways that even a small child can participate in singing to praise God, whether in a group or all alone.

The illustrations have a quirky style that I like. The watercolor art is bright and fun, and the designs are simple enough to capture the attention of a child. However, the book is very text-heavy for a children's picture book. It would be more appealing to children if there were more illustrations.

I love that the text includes Bible references to particular verses that talk about worship and singing.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

This book gives reasons why Christians should pray, and ways that prayer helps us to become closer to God. Prayer brings us peace, and is a way for us to talk with God and tell Him our wants and needs. Through prayer, we can thank God for everything He has given us. We can confess when we are struggling to do right, and ask for forgiveness. We can pray with confidence that God always hears us.

I love how this book takes big spiritual ideas, and puts them into simple language that a child can understand. It also explains ways that even a small child can participate in prayer by listening carefully to prayers in church and praying on their own as well.

The illustrations have a quirky style that I like. The watercolor art is bright and fun, and the designs are simple enough to capture the attention of a child. However, the book is very text-heavy for a children's picture book. It would be more appealing to children if there were more illustrations.

I love that the text includes Bible references to particular verses that talk about worship and prayer.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

This book gives true stories about the history of sleeping, nocturnal animals, interesting bed designs from around the world, the largest bed and the biggest sleepover, with a dozen other amazing facts about the nighttime.

There are details about what happens in our brains when we dream, the sleep cycles we go through, and how our body is replenished and healed during sleep. There are stories about stars and planets, and how astronauts sleep in space. There are facts about the phases of the Moon and how an eclipse happens. There are even details about how animals hibernate and prepare for that long winter sleep.

I love the illustrations in this book! The art style is colorful and clear, and the designs are really attractive.

This would be such a fun book to read at bedtime with a curious kid who loves to find out about the world!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

Chameleon uses his disguise skills to play tricks on the other jungle animals. He plucks feathers, steals food, hides away during chore time, and even makes poor sloth fall out of his tree. But when Frog plays a trick on Chameleon, he learns that it's not so fun when the tables are turned.

I love the positive messages in this book, and how Chameleon learns a good lesson about playing tricks on people. The moral in the story is not too preachy, and the story is light and fun.

I LOVE the rhyming text in this book! And I am very picky about rhyme in children's books, because it is often done badly with terrible rhymes and worse rhythm. But this writing is perfect! Every rhyme fits, the rhythm of the lines is good, and the story is so clever. The writing is never awkward or trite. It flows beautifully through the lines and is a joy to read aloud.

The illustrations are brightly colored and attractive with a clear style that I like. It's really fun to search through the page and see where Chameleon is hiding and how he changes colors to blend in with green leaves, pink flowers, or gray rocks. The illustrations add so much to the story, and bring a delightful energy to each scene!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

A rhino is taken into captivity and kept in a zoo with other endangered species. He thinks he is the last of his kind, but when he is released and returns to his wild home, he discovers that there are others like himself.

This book was very emotional, told from the rhino's perspective. You can feel the joy in his free and wild life with his herd family. You feel the terrible loss when he is captured and separated from his mother, the boredom of the long days in the zoo, and his delight to be returned to his home. There is also the hope that brightens his heart when he finds other rhinos, and he is no longer alone.

The text is concise and powerful, using a few well-chosen words to tell a moving story. It is inspired by the true story of a Northern White Rhino called Sudan.

I liked the weird and wild illustrations. They are impressionistic and strange. Sometimes people's faces are distorted, but I'm not sure if that is just sloppy art, or on purpose as if from an animal's perspective. The art is definitely powerful and emotional. It adds a lot to the story.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

Calvin's older brother tells a funny joke right when Calvin takes a drink of milk, making Calvin squirt milk out of his nose at the family breakfast table. Calvin searches the dictionary for the perfect words to describe his annoying brother and plots a way to get his revenge.

I'm confused about the messages in this book. One minute Calvin is standing up to bullies who took a child's pencil case, not allowing them to tease a younger child. The next minute Calvin is pranking his older brother by dumping an entire cup of water on his head while his brother is sitting in bed reading. How is that any different than the bully who pranked the other kid by taking their pencil case? And then the two brothers laugh about it and sit on the wet bed looking up the word "Family" in the dictionary. And who is gonna get out dry pajamas for the brother, and change those sheets, and dry out that mattress? What a mean prank to sneak up behind someone and dump a glass of water on their head! It's way too destructive. I think it is supposed to come across as mischievous, but it is more malicious.

I don't understand this morality at all. Isn't "revenge" generally considered to be an evil thing? Why is it being applauded in a children's book? Maybe I'm taking it too seriously. Maybe I just don't understand the humor of this author. But it rubbed me the wrong way. I wouldn't want a child of mine learning to do nasty pranks like this to their siblings.

I like the concept of a kid who loves to learn new words and uses his large vocabulary to describe his world. I was a child who loved words and had a large vocabulary, so I identified strongly with the main character.

I LOVED the illustrations in this book! The art style is clean and fresh with beautiful colors. Each scene is interesting and funny, and adds a whole new layer to the story. Each page is full of energy and movement. The art is truly delightful from start to finish!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

A girl begins running a race. But she falls and scrapes her knee. She gets a cramp in her side. She has to call up all her fortitude to continue the race. She discovers strength within herself, both internal strength and outward strength to keep going.

This story is told in a few concise and powerful words. I love the progression of the race as the girl starts out strong and confident, but begins to lose hope when the race is too hard. Then she finds her inner strength again and pushes through to the end of the race with joy. It's very emotional and beautiful!

I love the illustrations! The lines are delicate but strong. The colors are clean and bright. Each scene is full of movement, and really enhances the story. You can feel the girl's determination in the set of her mouth and the drawing together of her eyebrows. Her face is so expressive, and the action as she runs flows wonderfully in the artwork. I love the details like each strand of her hair or the lines in a blade of grass as she runs through the trees.

This girl is fierce, and I love her story of courage and determination!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.

Bibbit is a frog who has forgotten how to swim. His frog friends try to teach him, but he gets confused. His tadpole baby sister tries to teach him, but he doesn't have a tail anymore. Bibbit might not be able to swim, but he loves to jump! He jumps to the highest tree to collect a banana. He jumps up to help squirrel collect nuts in the trees. He even jumps high enough to touch a rainbow.

This book is divided into chapters of around 7 pages each. The writing is perfect for children who are just learning to read simple chapter books on their own. Each chapter tells a separate little story about Bibbit and his sister.

Each story is sort of random and doesn't always have a concrete ending. Some of the plot is left open to the reader's imagination. The style reminds me a little bit of the Winnie the Pooh books, sort of dreamy and aimless.

The illustrations are watercolor and ink, and are rather messy on purpose. The art style is whimsical. Each illustration is full of bright colors and really brings out the comedy in the story.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.