jelly
I am so disappointed. Susie's and Ada's books from this same series were wonderful, but this one, omg, falls completely short.
Illustrations are great, at least.
The storyline feels off and segmented. The teacher, who was very strong and supportive in the previous books, is either a bully perpetuating her childhood traumas, or a fainted women lost on a island. I mean, come on! What are those ugly female stereotypes doing there?
Also, as many have suggested, Iggy is an engineer more than an architect here.
And final point, I wish they could have portrayed a girl of color, instead of an over-represented white boy to be an architect.
I would not recommend it.
Read and reviewed: 2018-10-08
This is a great book for kids with social/anxiety. Scaredy Squirrel feels safe in his nut tree with his very predictable daily routine. One day, an unexpected event happens and he realizes that the outside is not as scary as he thought. He then decides to integrate a daily outside exploration in his schedule, always at the same time, to let himself be curious but always feel safe. A treasure book.
Read and reviewed: 2018-10-08
The illustrations were promising and they delivered. Unfortunately, the story didn't. It was not well written and the pace was completely off.
When the bully appears, he is scolded away without explanation, and then only appears once flying in the middle of a tornado. In the final illustration, the bully has become friend with Stick and Rock, without any explanation, apologies or reason, just because “I need you so much”, as he says. What a terrible way to teach kids about bullies, asking for forgiveness and second chances.
The illustrations that captured Stick and Stone's friendship were very cute though.
Read and reviewed: 2018-10-08
This book encourages kids to enjoy nature without cellphones and all the comfort of their house, but it felt too constructed and quite narrow-minded.
I would have loved seeing a more balanced view where technology can be very useful and appreciated while camping, and times when it's good to simply eat together around a fire camp.
