Wonderful Birthday Gifts

Tomorrow, January 25th will be my granddaughter Haylee's 6th birthday.  She is a book addict like me.  She has a collection of over 300 books between her house, my house and her other grandmother's house.  In addition to the other gifts we purchased for her I am giving her 4 books.  I received these books for review so I thought it only proper to write the review today so that you will see what wonderful books are out there and will be able to pick them up for your child or grandchild.

Jonah's Whale by Eileen Spinelli and Illustrated by Giuliano Ferri
Publisher:  Eerdmans Books for Young Readers
Pages:  32

Eileen Spinelli and her husband Jerry Spinelli have written some of my favorite books to share with children.  Okay, so they are some of MY favorites.  This one is another favorite.  Jonah's Whale is the retelling of the Biblical story with a twist.  It is told from the Whale's perspective.  The whale is happy living and playing in the ocean.  One day a storm come up and he sees a boat.  A man in the boat is telling the other men to throw him into the water to stop the storm.  God speaks to the whale and tells him to save the man.  This is such a great lesson to talk about with  your young one.  If God expects obedience from the animals then we need to obey God as well.  The illustrations are so gorgeous that they could each be framed and hung.  This is one that I will enjoy sharing with my granddaughter.  Because I like it so much I'm purchasing a copy to keep here on my shelves for all of my grandchildren to share.

Lucky by Craig Inglis and Illustrated by Richard Kinsey
Publisher:  CreateSpace
Pages:  36

The story starts off with a man waking up.  From the picture we see him smiling from his bed and waving to the sun, who waves back.  He is a happy man but feels something is missing from his life.  He decides to get a dog.  He checks several places and finally finds the dog he wants.  They have a great time together.  One day the dog gets away from him and runs in front of a car.  He is hurt.  The doctor saves his life but he loses a leg.  He has to learn to do the tricks the man taught him all over again.  The man lets him know that no matter what he is still the same to him and he still loves him just as much.  This is such a simple story to teach kids about disabilities and how just because someone with a disability can't do things the same way you can, doesn't mean they are not a great person to get to know.  Wonderful book.   Fun and whimsical illustrations.

The Carrot King by Sally O. Lee
Publisher:  CreateSpace
Pages:  38

A young boy finds himself king when his parents die.  He is so young and all he wants to do is play.  One day he decides to go outside to look for rocks.  He sees a poor boy, whose clothes are all ripped.  He's never seen a boy like him.  He pulls out a carrot, his favorite food, and the young boy asks him for a bite.  He share the carrot with the boy and then is invited to the poor boy's home.  The young king is welcomed and invited to eat dinner with them.  Later he invites them to come to his house for dinner.  They do and become very close friends.  This is a wonderful way to teach kids that no matter where you are in life that people are still the same and need friends.  I enjoy reading and review Sally's books.  They are simple  and convey such wonderful messages.  They open up conversations with children in ways you may not have thought.  Her illustrations, created by her, are wonderfully simple like her messages.  This is another one of her books that I whole-heartedly recommend.

Ann's Amazing Adventure by Jeanetta Brancaccio  and Illustrated by Sara Petrous
Publisher:  Self-Published
Pages:  52

I really enjoyed this book.  In the back the author states that this book came about because of an event in their life.  Their daughter had a doll that was lost and twenty some years later they found the doll at an antique sale and purchased it for the granddaughter.  The story is about the adventures the doll had while she was lost.  Ann was the property of a little girl named Nancy.  Nancy loved Ann very much.  While on a trip they family stopped at a rest area and Ann fell out of the car.  The family didn't know this and kept driving.  Ann waited until dark and wished on a star.  A car stopped and she suddenly found herself in the mouth of a dog.  The dog's owner was a little girl named Julia.  Ann was taken home with Julia, cleaned and placed on a shelf.  She was taken care of but never felt the same love she'd felt from Ann.  By chance when Julia grew up, Ann found herself in a flea market where she an Julia were reunited.  I loved this book.  First because even at age 53 I still have a soft spot in my heart for dolls.  I make clothes for my granddaughter's dolls now.  I play dolls with her.  One of my favorite parts of the book was when the dolls were being packed away to go to the flea market.  Ann helped all of the other dolls with their fears. Such great lessons in such a simple, yet wonderful book.  I can't wait to read it to my granddaughter after she unwraps it.  It came with a bookmark and I will be able to give that to my granddaughter.  It will be her first bookmark.

I am looking forward to tomorrow.  Any day I can share a book with my grandkids is a wonderful day.