Scribble & Author Book Review & Blog Tour

SCRIBBLE & AUTHOR         

Author: Miri Leshem-Pelly

Publisher: Kane Miller Books

$12.99

An excerpt from the book:

A color spot,

some pencil lines,

and here you are… Scribble!

Hi, who are you?

Hello Scribble.

I’m the author, and I’m here to help you create your journey.

Let’s start at the beginning.

Wow, Author, you’ve created a beautiful beginning!

Where do I go next?

Well, it’s your journey, so it’s up to you.

What would you like to do?

About the book:

Scribble & Author is written as a dialogue between the main character, Scribble, and the author who created her. 

Scribble's journey starts on a peaceful shore called THE BEGINNING, continues to the rough, adventurous MIDDLE, and leads finally to the gate of THE ENDING, but it’s not at all what Scribble expected… Scribble is a scribble and Author is an author, but who really gets to tell the tale?

A picture book about finding your own voice, making your own decisions, and writing your own story.

My thoughts:

I wasn't really sure what to expect from reading the blurb about the book. I have been purchasing Usborne Books though for years and love nearly everything they have ever put out (thats the first thing I look for at garage sales & thrift shops - it's like a thrill goes up my spine when I find one!). 

The first things I thought when I received the book is:

1) It's not really for younger kids. I tried reading it with my 3.5 year old Gianna and I think we got about 4 pages in before I lost her. She is able to sit through a 18-20 page storybook that isn't fiction but she just wasn't ready yet for a book like this. 

2) Now elementary age kids who are learning about the parts of a book and learning to use their writing skills may be able to read it and use it as a lead in to a activity. I'm thinking that Scribble & Author is for kids 7/8 and up.

3) I love the images in the book and I think a fun followup to do with preschoolers or elementary kids would be to have them "write" their own book using thumbprints and lines to illustrate their book. It would be fun to encourage kids to have the creature they create from their thumbprint talk back to them in the book. Can't you just see cute little thumbprint dragons, aliens and Darth Vadar's arguing with the author or planning an adventure? 

4) Another neat feature of this book is the use of watercolor in the story. It adds another element to catch the eyes of the reader and the use of the brush and watercolors draw the readers eyes to the movement of the story and the final conclusion of the book. If you've ever seen a post or an article about mixed media journaling the pictures very much remind of that technique. 

You can purchase Scribble & Author online @ Usborne Books & More for $12.99. 

About the author:

Miri Leshem-Pelly is the author-illustrator of 14 children’s books. She’s also illustrated 14 books for other writers. When Miri isn’t writing she can be found speaking at schools, kindergartens and libraries. She is invited to do more than 200 presentations with her books per year. Miri is also a Regional Advisor for SCBWI (Society of Children’s book writers & illustrators).

Miri is represented by Olswanger Literary Agency. Miri’s works have won awards and her illustrations have been shown on several exhibitions.

Miri lives in Israel with her husband and two children, and loves reading books and going on nature hikes. Her latest book is Scribble & Author.

Find her at:

Website: http://mirileshembooks.com/

Twitter:   https://twitter.com/MiriLeshem

FB:         https://www.facebook.com/mirileshem

Prince Noah and the School Pirates (kids book review)

Prince Noah and the School Pirates

by Silke Schnee

ISBN: 978-0874867657

$ 13.14   (hardback)

About the book:

It’s time for young Prince Noah to go to school. The prince, who starred in the book The Prince Who Was Just Himself, may be a little slower than other students, but he has no less joy in learning. In his kingdom, children go to school on sailing ships. There is a ship for girls and one for boys. There is a ship for children with an eye patch, a ship for children with one leg, and a ship for children who are slower learners. No one knows why there are so many different ships, but it has always been that way.

Then a terrible storm drives the ships into the hands of pirates. The boys and girls realize that they will only escape if everyone does what he or she does best. Through their adventures, they learn that diversity makes us strong and that every person has something to teach us.

My thoughts:

This is a very fun book for children who have the attention span to sit and listen. There are a lot of words to this story and it reads like a storytelling session with Grandpa or Mom at bedtime. It will open up lots of questions like "why don't girls learn math" and "why is there a ship for boys and a different one for kids with one leg". Its a good opportunity for you to discuss how children and sometimes grown ups are treated differently from others and yet each person is able to participate and help with a problem in different ways.

I did try to read this book with my 2 year old but she barely has the attention span yet for a storybook unless it's very interactive. This one doesn't have a lot of rhyming text or sing song passages for her join in the story so it's didn't hold her attention. If you have a 4 year old that will sit for a fairly long story book this will be a great book to encourage thinking about situations and how we can help each other with tasks.

To see more books by Silke Schnee, click here.

To see more books by the publisher Plough, click here.

Disclaimer: I was offered a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. No money was offered for a positive review. Thanks for reading GivingNSharing.