Andersen's Fairy Tales

Title: The Princess and the Pea

Author: Hans Christen Andersen

Genre: Traditional Literature

Summary: There once was a prince, who was looking for a princess to marry. But not just any princess, he wanted to marry a REAL princess. So off he went looking for a real princess. After a long search he returned to his home one night, troubled that he couldn’t find the right real princess. All of the sudden there was a knock at the door and outside was a princess who was such a site, because the wind had messed up her hair, and there was rain was dripping and drenched all of her clothes and shoes. She claimed to be a real princess, and her mother decided to test it out. She put 20 mattresses on top of each other and underneath all of them, she put a single pea. The next morning, she asked the princess how she slept. To their surprise, she had slept awful. She was covered in bruises from that awful pea. Convinced, the prince and the princess were soon engaged, and the famous pea was put in a museum.

Reaction: I thought this was a really cute story and one that was much appreciated. I remember reading this as a child, and thinking it would be the funniest thing ever if the princess fell off the bed during the night.

Recommendation: I’d recommend this story to any child of any age. Even at 22, I was able to enjoy this tale the same as I did when I was 4 years old.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I don’t think I could find a reason not to like this tale. It was cute, cleaver, and fun to read.

Title: The Saucy Boy

Author: Han Christen Anderson

Genre: Traditional Literature

Summary: An older man, was warmed up in his home, while there was an awful storm outside. He hears knocking, and opens it to find a naked little boy with an arrow. Sure that the boy would perish outside in the storm, he lets him in, warms him up and gets him some hot food. The boy decides to go once the storm has let up, and grabs his bow. The older man, thinking that the bow is defective, tells the young boy that his bow is unable to be used yet. The little boy turns to him, tells him that his name is Cupid, and that the bow works perfectly. He shoots the older man in the heart and the runs away. The older man goes and tells all the others of the evil Cupid, so that they can save themselves from this Cupid.

Reaction: I thought this book was rather disgusting. First off, the little boy is naked, and he’s dancing around with the older man. Then he shoots him in the heart. I just wasn’t very impressed with this book, and I’d honestly rather not read it again.

Recommendation: I wouldn’t recommend this book to many children unless they are of an older age. I just don’t feel like younger children would appreciate it, and I didn’t feel that the message sent across was a good one.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I honestly thought that this tale was disgusting and slightly perverted. I wish that the older man had gotten some clothes on the boy before he sat him on his lap, and danced around with him.

Title: The Ugly Duckling

Author: Hans Christen Anderson

Genre: Traditional Literature

Summary: There was a duck who laid many eggs, and the last egg to hatch was that of the Ugly Duckling. He was so hideous that no one wanted to talk to him or be his friend. He was constantly made fun of, for he didn’t look like the other ducks. One day, he saw beautiful swans flying south for the winter, and he longed to be them. He tried to stretch his neck like they do, and make the same sound, but it only frightened him. One day, he is captured and nearly eaten for dinner. Luckily he escapes and flies to meet the beautiful birds. Expecting the same reaction that he’s gotten all his life, he ducks in embarrassment, but they did something that he wasn’t used to. They were excited to meet him, and claimed that another swan had joined them. They call him beautiful, and the most fair of all the ducks. He had turned into a beautiful swan.

Reaction: I think this is an amazingly sweet tale. The message is one of not judging, and the impact that judging someone on their outward appearance can have on a person. I loved this tale, and I was thoroughly reading it. I couldn’t wait to read the end of it.

Recommendation: I’d recommend this to any child at a young age, as well as children that are having a hard time fitting in.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I didn’t really see any problem with this book. I just continuously felt bad for the ugly duckling, and wished that the other ducks weren’t mean to him.

Title: The Loveliest Rose in the World

Author: Hans Christen Andersen

Genre: Traditional Literature

Summary: This is a tale about a queen who is on her death bed. The only way to save her is for one to bring her the most loveliest rose in the world. Far and wide, roses are brought to her bedside, but none of the flowers are that of the loveliest rose. Finally, after several tries, her son comes up to her bed and reads to her of the book of Him who died (AKA Christ). It’s beneath her tears that she sees the rose of which they have talked about. Whoever holds this flower, is given life, and shall never die.

Reaction: I actually cried at the end of this book. I thought it was very sweet, how people everywhere wer trying to save the queen, and then it was her little son who ended up saving her. But what I loved more than that was the fact that religion was brought into this tale. It was so special and I was very touched at the spiritual-ness of this tale.

Recommendation: I would recommend this book to not only children but adults as well. The message was clear and beautiful. I was thoroughly impressed with this book, and couldn’t believe how sweet it was.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I didn’t find a single problem with this book. I loved it! 

Jacob's Fairy Tales

Title: Jack and the Beanstalk

Author: Joseph Jacobs

Genre: Traditional Literature

Summary: Jack and his mother were very poor. All that they had that was worth any money was their cow Milky-White and its milk. One day the cow didn’t produce any milk and they decided that Jack should take it into the city and sell it. On his way to the city, he runs into this funny looking man an trades him five beans for Milky-White. When he returns, his mother is furious and throws the beans out the window. The next morning, Jack wakes up to find an enormous beanstalk outside his window. He climbs in it, and meets a giant woman. She warns him to run away, but before he does, he gets a good meal. In walks her husband, and after he eats his large breakfast, he takes a nap. Before Jack leaves, he steals one of the bags of gold that the giant had. A period of time later, Jack tries his luck again and climbs up the bean stalk. Again the woman warns him of her husband, and again Jack waits until the giant is asleep before he steals the goose that lays the golden eggs. The third time that he runs up the bean stalk, he steals the harp, but it cries out for its master as its being stole. Jack hurries down the beanstalk, with the giant close behind. Seeing the giant approaching, he chops down the beanstalk, killing the giant.

Reaction: I thought this was a clever little tale, one that pretty much all of us know. It was entertaining, and I loved the chant the giant says every time he smells a little boy.

Recommendation: I’d recommend this tale to pretty much anyone who’s eager to read these stories.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: The only problem that I had with this tale was that it taught children that stealing was ok, and that there wasn’t anything wrong with it because Jack and his mother was poor. That’s not really a message that I would want my children to learn.

Title: Master of All Masters

Author: Joseph Jacob

Genre: Traditional Literature

Summary: This is a tale about a little girl who gets herself hired as a servant. When an old man hires her, he takes her back to his home, where he informs her of all the different names. Instead of normal names that we would call a bed, or cat, he creates new words that she learns. One night the cat runs away and she must wake him up and let him know of what has happened.

Reaction: I thought the tale was kind of pointless. I wasn’t impressed and didn’t see a point to it.

Recommendation: I’d recommend this tale to younger children, but probably not ones over the age of 7 or 8.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I just didn’t see a point in this tale, and honestly, I was quite bored reading it.

Title: The Cauld Lad of Hilton

Author: Joseph Jacob

Genre: Traditional Literature

Summary: This is a story about a Brownie (half man, half goblin) who messes up the kitchen of the Hilton Hall. If the servants leave it a little treat, than he cleans up their messes, but if not, he destroys the place and makes it look awful. One day the servants stay up late, and wonder what they could possibly do to make the Brownie go away! The nearest hen wife tells them that if they pay the Brownie, he will go away. And that’s exactly what they do.

Reaction: I thought this was a cute story and definitely one that the children would like to hear or read. I thought that the story line was interesting and I was entertained by it. I couldn’t figure out what a Brownie was for the longest time, and that bothered me a bit.

Recommendation: I’d recommend this book to children of a younger age. I don’t think that the older children would enjoy this tale as much.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: The only problem that I had was that I didn’t know what a Brownie was, and so that’s what I concentrated on for the first part of my reading.

Title: The Magpie’s Nest

Author: Joseph Jacob

Genre: Tradition Literature

Summary : This is a story about how all the bird were questioning how to make nests. They all huddled around Magpie’s nest and as she instructed them step by step, they would take that one piece of information, and leave. It wasn’t long before there was only one turtle dove left, but Magpie didn’t know this. She had her head down, concentrating on her nest. The turtle dove kept telling her to take two sticks, and finally she glanced up, aggravated. She flies off and vows to never help another bird learn how to properly make a nest.

Reaction: I thought it was a cute story, and I liked how (at least to me) the message of patience was sent across to the readers. They all waited until they found out the information that they needed or wanted, and then they left. But it was the last turtle dove that learned it all.

Recommendation: I don’t know that I would recommend this story to anyone. I didn’t really see a story line along the book, and I was slightly bored.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I didn’t like how the story started off with “and monkeys chewed tobacco, and hens took snuff to make them tough”. I didn’t see how that related to the story and I don’t think that telling children to chew tobacco is a smart idea. 

Perrault's Fairy Tales

Title: Puss in Boots

Author: Perrault

Genre: Literature

Summary: There was an old man who on his death bed, gave his three sons all a gift. The youngest son was very disappointed to find that his father gave him a cat. What am I going to do with a cat he wondered? Upon hearing this, the cat sprang up and began talking to him. (His name is the Marquis of Carabas.) Puss, the cat, instructed the Marquis to get him a sack and a pair of boots to fit his tiny feet. Puss went into the gardens and played dead, with the intent on catching dinner for the king. Once he caught the food, he brought it to the King and told him that it was from the Marquis. This continued for quite a while. One day Puss found out about the Kings carriage ride, and told the Marquis to go bathe in the water, and to leave the rest up to him. As the King and his beautiful daughter were passing the lake where the Marquis was bathing, Puss cried out “help my Lord! He’s drowning!” The King, recognizes the cat, and his men help him out of the water. The King gives the Marquis clothes and a ride, and he meets the Kings daughter (who falls quickly in love with the Marquis) while Puss runs ahead, threatening the servants to say that the land is all the Marquis of Carabas’s land. Once he reaches the actual land owners castle, (who is an ogre) and tricks him into turning into a mouse and eats him. They reach the castle and the King, so impressed with the Marquis success, “convinces” the Marquis to marry his daughter that very same day.

Reaction: I grew up loving this tale, but looking back on it, I don’t think it sends a good message to the children. No matter, I still think that it’s a very cute story, one that many children should read.

Recommendation: I would recommend this story, but probably towards older children because I don’t want them to get the message that lying is acceptable.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I had a problem with the fact that Puss went around threatening people, to make it seem like the Marquis is this wealthy man, who has all this land and prosperity. I just don’t like the message that comes across.

Title: Little Red Riding Hood

Author: Charles Perrault

Genre:

Summary: Little Red Riding Hood was a pretty child, whom the town loved. Her mother made her a red cape, and the town nick named her Little Red Riding Hood. One day, mother called Riding Hood over and told her to take a basket and butter to her grandmother. (Hearing that her grandmother was sick) she heads over to the next village. On her way, Little Red Riding Hood runs into a wolf. Not knowing that she shouldn’t talk to the wolf, she tells him where she is going. He decides to pretend to race her to her grandmother’s house. He arrives before Riding Hood, mimics her voice, and enters into the grandmothers’ house and eats her up. Shortly later, Little Red Riding Hood reaches her grandmother’s house, and upon seeing her “grandmother” she informs her that she brought her a basket of food and butter. The wolf tells her to climb in bed with her. Little Red Riding Hood notices that the wolf is different than her grandmother, and right before she is eaten she says “what big teeth you have.” “The better to eat you with my dear”

Reaction: I thought this version was a cute story, but I wasn’t too impressed. I didn’t like that Little Red Riding Hood ended up getting eaten, and that no one was saved.

Recommendation: I think children should all read this story, but may not this exact version of it.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I had a problem with the fact in the story it says that Little Red Riding Hood takes off her clothes and climbs into the bed with her “grandmother”. That parent just really bothered me.

Title:  Blue Beard

Author: Charles Perrault

Genre:

Summary: Blue Beard is an extremely wealthy man who could a wife anything in the world, the only problem was that he had a blue beard that made him look frightening to others around him. He had a neighbor who had two beautiful daughters. He asked to marry one of them, and for a time they handed him off, back and forth to each other. He takes them and several others up to one of his country homes where they have fun the entire week. They eat, play games, and thoroughly enjoy themselves the entire time. The youngest daughter decides that he’s actually quite a nice man and decides that she could marry him. (He has been married several times before this, but no one knows as to where the wives have gone). One day he goes on an important journey that will last up to six weeks. He gives his wife the keys to everywhere in the home. The only thing he asked of her was that she not open the tiniest closet downstairs. Dying with curiosity, she goes down and opens it up, only to find it filled with blood and the bodies of his past wives. He comes home, and when she returns the key, he knows what she’s done. He tells her that he must kill her, and gives her a bit of time to pray and collect herself. She, knowing that her brothers are on their way, finally goes downstairs where she is to be killed, and just before that dreadful moment, the brothers rush in and save her life, killing Blue Beard.

Reaction: I thought that this was an absolutely awful book! I was so disgusted, that I could barely read it! I don’t ever intend on reading this tale again!

Recommendation: I wouldn’t recommend this book to anyone. It’s awful and shouldn’t be a children’s book.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: The entire thing is awful. I was disgusted that this was considered to be a children’s fairy tale. It was incredibly violent in the sense that Blue Beard kept his ex wives bodies, and even the fact that he killed them was repulsive.

Title: The Fairies

Author: Charles Perrault

Genre:

Summary: There were two beautiful daughters, one who looked exactly like their mother and the other looked like their deceased father. The mother favored her daughter that looked like her, even though she was spoiled, rude and mean. The mother treated her kind daughter with no respect and had her fetch her a pitcher of water from the stream ½ mile away every day. One day, as the young girl was getting water from the stream, and old lady appeared and asked for a drink of water. She gave her some of the purest water and was kind to the old woman. In return the old woman blessed her that every time she spoke, flowers and precious stones would fall from her mouth. She went home and her mother found out of her new treasure. She sent her favorite daughter down to fetch some water, hoping that she too would receive such a gift. The spoiled daughter waited for the old woman to come, but instead a young beautiful woman (she was the old woman but had transformed into the young woman) arrived and asked for a drink of water. She was rude and bitter to the young lady, and in return she was curse that every time she spoke snakes or toads would fall from her mouth. Her mother found out what had happened and went to go kill the kind daughter, but she had already run away. She ran into the Kings’ son, and they fell in love and were married. Meanwhile the evil daughter was soon cast out from her mothers home and later went and died in the forest.

Reaction: I thought it was a cute story, and one that had a good message. I enjoyed reading this tale, and thought that the children would be able to use their imaginations quite well.

Recommendation: I’d recommend this story to anyone who is having problems with being kind.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: The only problem that I had with this story was the end where the girl goes in the forest and dies, I thought that part could have been left out and that it wasn’t necessary. 

Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales

Title: Rapunzel

Author: Grimm Brothers

Genre: Traditional Literature

Summary: An old man and woman longed for a daughter, and every day they hoped that God would grant them their wish. One day, the woman was looking outside her window at the evil enchantress’s home where she saw some beautiful rampion. Each day, her longing for it grew more and more. Her husband, eager to make her better he climbed over the wall after dark and got her some rampion. The next day, she craved it even more, so that night he went over the wall to get her some. Unfortunately, the enchantress was there once he climbed over, and decided to punish him. His first born child shall be given to her. Agreeing to this deal, he took the rampion and went back home. They soon had a daughter, and the enchantress named her Rapunzel, and took her away. She grew to a beautiful young woman, but saddened because she was locked up in the tower. The only way  to enter the tower was for Rapunzel to let down her hair. One day, the prince heard Rapunzel singing, and after hearing the enchantress call out “Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair”, he waited patiently for her to leave, and then called out those same words. The enchantress soon learned of their meeting and stole her way. The prince returned, climbed her hair but instead of Rapunzel, he found the enchantress. He jumped out of the tower to escape, but pierced his eyes with thorns on the way down, blinding him. He wandered for years, and one day came upon Rapunzel and her twins. Her tears of joy wetted his eyes and he was able to see again. They returned to his kingdom and lived happily ever after.

Reaction: I loved this story. I thought it was really cute, and it was a fun read! And what was even more entertaining was that it was different than the one I had heard originally, so it kept me entertained!

Recommendation: I’d recommend this tale to children of all ages, I doubt that it’s one that they have heard.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I didn’t have too many problems although I didn’t like the part where Rapunzel has the kids in the desert. It only makes the children wonder what happened…

Title: Cinderella

Author: Grimm Brothers

Genre: Traditional Literature

Summary: Cinderella’s mother dies, and her father remarries. Her stepmother, as well as her step sisters are beautiful, but have a black heart. Cinderella goes to her mother’s grave every day, prays and weeps. One day, her father asks what he should bring back from the town for the girls. The step sisters ask for dresses and pearls, while Cinderella asks for a branch from the tree that first hits him on his way home. Cinderella plants that branch and it grows into a beautiful tree, where a bird listens to her wishes and grants them. One day, the girls hear that the prince is looking for a bride and they are invited to a three day party. Cinderella (with the help of her animal friends) separates lentils from the ash several times, before find out that she may not go to the ball. She runs out, and back home. The next day, she does the same thing, although this time, the prince slicks the stairwell so when she ran away, her shoe was stuck. The next day he goes to their house, and the two evil stepsisters both try to get their foot in the shoe. The first one cuts off her big toe and rides away with the prince, but doves help him realize that her foot is bleeding and that she’s not the rightful heir to the shoe. Then the younger sister tries on the shoe, and cuts off her heal to make it fit. Same thing happens again, the prince realizes she’s not the shoes owner and returns her. He finds Cinderella at the house, and she tries the shoe on. It’s a perfect fit. They go off and get married, and the sisters (trying to get in on her new found fortune) get their eyes pecked out at the wedding.

Reaction: I thought this was a cute story, although it was slightly graphic for children to be reading it.

Recommendation: Honestly, I wouldn’t recommend this book to children. Maybe older children, but not young kids.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I had a problem with how the girls cut off body parts and how the birds pecked the girls’ eyes out. That’s disgusting and children don’t want to read that.

Title: Rumplestiltskin

Author: Grimm Brothers

Genre: Traditional Literature

Summary: There was a poor minner man, who had nothing but when he went unto the king, he told him that he had a daughter who could weave straw into gold. This interested the King very much, and had her brought in to him. He set her in a room filled with straw and told her she had the night to sew it all into gold or she would be killed. Once the door was locked, she began to cry. A little man entered the room and helped her out, in return for her necklace. The next morning, the king arrived at the room to find all the straw woven into gold. He placed her in a bigger room, and locked the door. She began to cry again and the little man appeared. He wove all the straw into gold in exchange for her ring. One the third night, the king told the girl that if she wove all the straw (now in a bigger room) by the next morning, he would make her his queen. She began to cry, and when the little man appeared, she told him that she had nothing left to give. Your first born child will be enough. Thinking that won’t happen for a while, she agreed, and the next day became queen. A year later, she gave birth. The little man appeared, waiting to collect his baby. She cried, and begged him to let her keep it. He felt sorry for her and gave her three days to find out what his name was. She tried all sorts of names, and on the last night, she sent a servant out after the little man. He came back with a chant that he heard him singing, along with the name Rumplestiltskin. He came to the castle on the last night, expecting to collect the baby, but she was prepared. She guessed his name right, and out of furry, he plunged his leg into the floor and tore in two.

Reaction: I thought this was a cleaver little story, and one that was quite entertaining to me. It kept my attention and I actually thought it was quite humorous.

Recommendation: I’d recommend this book to anyone. I thought it was clever and funny.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: Honestly, I didn’t really see any problems with this tale.

Title: A Riding Tale

Author: Brothers Grimm

Genre: Traditional Literature

Summary: There were three young women who were transformed into flowers. One of the young women was allowed to stay at home during the night time. One day, when the day light came, she told her husband that if he came to the field and picked her, she would be freed from the spell. How did he know which flower she was? Easy, she stayed in at night, so there wasn’t any dew on her petals.

Reaction: I thought it was cute, but rather short. I wasn’t thoroughly impressed.

Recommendation: Honestly, I wouldn’t really recommend this story to anyone. There wasn’t a real point to it.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I thought it was short, and bland. It didn’t really speak to me. 

Santa's Book of Names

Title: “Santa’s Book of Names”

Author: David McPhail

Genre: Picture Book     

Publisher: Little, Brown and Company   

Copyright Date: 1993

Pages in Book: 32 pages

Reading Level: PreK- 3 grade

Summary: Edward is a young boy who had a hard time reading. His teachers grow worried and try to get his parents to allow them to do tests on Edward, but they say that the teachers need patience. He’ll learn when he’s ready. One night, he hears a noise and runs downstairs only to find that Santa has already come and gone. Then he notices an old book by the chimney. It’s Santa’s book of names of all the children in the world. He runs outside, but is too late for he sees Santa’s sleigh flying off. He decides to write the letters B. O. O. K. out in the snow. Santa soon reappears and asks Edward to come along and read the names and presents to him as he goes to each house. Unable to do so, he goes along and holds open the pages for Santa to read. They cross the big ocean and a bird knocks off Santa’s glasses! Edward is forced to try and read the names and presents now. Slowly, but surely he reads off the names. After all the deliveries were done, Santa gives Edward the last gift. A book. Next thing Edward knows, his mother is waking him up, and it’s Christmas day. His dad sees that Santa gave him a book, and Edward surprises them by reading it to them.

Reaction: I loved this book. I loved the message that it sent out to the children, and I loved how well it was written. The illustration was wonderful, and overall I was thoroughly impressed with how well done it was. I remember my mom reading this book to me when I was younger, and I still get the same feeling I did back then. This book was done wonderfully.

Recommendation: Although this book is recommended for children from the ages of pre-kindergarten to third grade, I would actually recommend it to children of all ages. Probably not for actual reading, but if it were around Christmas time, I believe that ANY child would love to hear it. I like how the author let the children who actually do have reading challenges know that it’s alright, and when they are ready, they’ll learn to read as well.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: The only problem that I had with this book, as minor as it was, was the fact that the pictures were a little dark. I would have liked the colors to be a little bit more bright and captivating. 

Mirette on the High Wire

Title: “Mirette on the High Wire”

Author: Emily Arnold McCully                    

Genre:  Picture Book/Fantasy                                                                    

Publisher: Putnam Books             

Copyright Date: 1992

Pages in Book: 30 pages

Reading Level: PreK- 3 grade

Summary: Mirette lives with her mother Madame Gateau who owns the boarding house in Paris that housed actors, dancers, jugglers and mimes. One day a retired high wire walker, named Bellini comes to stay at their house, looking for a vacation/rest. One day, Mirette see’s Bellini walking across the high wire, and gets up the courage to talk to him. He tries to discourage her from learning. “Once your feet walk across the wire, your feet will never be happy on the floor again.” One day, unable to resist, she tries to walk across the wire, and because Bellini is gone that particular day. After much persistence, Mirette is able to walk across, and she can’t wait to show Bellini. He is very impressed with her hard work, for most people give up after a while. They work together and he teaches her fun tricks such as, running, lying down and doing somersaults across the high wire. One day, and agent sees Bellini and tells the guests of his accomplishments. She runs back and learns that he’s actually quite scared. Disappointed, Mirette leaves him. One night, she walks outside and sees a big crowd. The agent staying at her mother’s boarding house is announcing the return of the great Bellini. He begins to walk out onto the wire and freezes. Mirette runs as fast as she can up to him, and takes the first step onto the wire. Bellini smiles and they walk together to the end of the rope.

Reaction: I thought this was such a cute book! I really liked the writing, and was impressed with the pictures. I was thoroughly impressed with how entertaining it was, and I actually shared it with my roommates! It was just that good!

Recommendation: I would recommend this book to children of all ages. It’s one of adventure, thrill, trying times, and joy.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: One thing that I quickly noticed was that I would be a little hesitant about letting younger children reading this for the fear of them taking this story literally and wanting to walk across the high wire. 

The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe

Title: “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe”

Author: C. S. Lewis

Genre:  Fantasy                

Publisher: Geoffrey Bles

Copyright Date: 1989

Pages in Book: 208

Reading Level: K-6 grade

Summary: There are four children, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy who escape from their home in London to Professor Digory’s home during World War II. The children decide to explore the house, and little Lucy finds a wardrobe and a passage way into the magical world of Narnia. She meets a kind faun named Tumnus, and he tells her of the White Witch and her plan to get rid of the two sons of Adam and two daughters of Eve. Lucy heads back into our world, and tells her siblings of what she just experienced. None believe her, but her brother Edmund goes into the wardrobe and meets up with the White Witch. She tries to convince Edmund to bring back his siblings. Eventually, all four children enter into the wardrobe, and into Narnia. They meet Mr. and Mrs. Beaver who tell them of the story of how the witch’s powers will diminish once the two sons of Adam and the two daughters of Eve return to Narnia. They also tell the children about Aslan, the rightful king, who is on the move. Unfortunately, Edmund sneaks off and meets with the White Witch. Peter, Susan and Lucy meet Aslan and his army. Aslan and the White Witch meet, and she tries to convince Aslan that Edmund must be killed for being a traitor. Aslan convinces her to spare his life, and in return he gives up his own life. What the queen doesn’t know is that the “deep magic from before the dawn of time” allows someone to die for another, and then later return to life. There is a great war against the Witch’s army and the witch is killed. Years later, the children are walking around the countryside and come upon a lamp post, and sadly walk back through and out of the wardrobe.

Reaction: I thought this was such an amazing book. I had a great time reading it, and was into it the entire time. I really liked how it was a little different than the movie, so you actually HAD to read, to find out the missing pieces. C. S. Lewis did a great job with the writing. I felt like I was actually there. 

Recommendation: I’d recommend this book to children at the appropriate reading level. There are some unusual words in it that the younger children wouldn’t understand, and would need explaining.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: Like I said above, the words were slightly complex and if you hadn’t read the book already, there’s a good chance that you wouldn’t know what certain words mean. Other than that, I didn’t have any problems with the book. 

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Title: “The Very Hungry Caterpillar”

Author: Eric Carle

Genre: Picture Book                       

Publisher: Philomel Books

Copyright Date: 1994

Pages in Book: 13

Reading Level: PreK-1 grade

Summary: This is a book about a baby caterpillar who doesn’t know what to eat, so he starts eating food. Day by day he eats one more piece of food than the last. By day six, he is so full that he has an awful tummy ache, and decides to eat just a leaf. Satisfied, he takes a little nap, and turns into a chrysalis. Eventually he turns into a beautiful butterfly.

Reaction: I thought this was a cute book, and one that I’m pretty sure I absolutely loved when I was a little child. The colors were beautiful, and they just popped out, as to capture the children’s attention. I think this is an excellent book to help the children begin to learn to count.

Recommendation: I definitely would recommend this book to children. But like the reading level says, pre K through first grade. I think past first grade, the children would have a hard time having their attention kept.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: The only problem I had with this book, (that I remember as I was a kid) was that I thought the illustrations were a bit creepy, and the caterpillar looked slightly scary to me. 

Frindle

Title: “Frindle”

Author: Andrew Clements

Genre: Realistic Fiction  

Publisher: Aladdin Paperbacks

Copyright Date: 1996

Pages in Book: 105 pages

Reading Level: 3-6 grade

Summary: Nicholas Allen (Nick) has the famously disliked teacher Mrs. Granger. One day he decides to start wasting time in class by asking the teacher what every word means. This sparks his attention and inventively creates the word “frindle”, another word for pen. It isn’t long before all the students in the school begin using this word. Unfortunately, Mrs. Granger doesn’t like/approve of this book, and every time a student uses the words, she has them stay after school. Only problem is, practically every single student in the school says this word now, and they’re all forced to stay after. The principal decides to visit Nick’s house to try and stop him from using the word, but it’s too late. Men and women outside of the schoolyard have picked up the word, and it’s now out of Nick’s control. The book fast forwards to when Nick is an adult, and he receives a package in the mail from his fifth grade teacher, Mrs. Granger. Inside the package is a dictionary with the word “frindle” in it. She admits that she actually liked the word “frindle” and congratulates him on the fact that it’s now in the dictionary.

Reaction: I thought this was a cute book, and cleverly written. I think it’s quite hard to come up with a new word, so I was impressed with this young boy’s imagination. I wasn’t a huge fan of the book though.

Recommendation: Personally, I would recommend this book more to boys than girls. I just think that they would be more interested in it.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I thought it was rather hard to get into, and for me, it was really slow. 

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Title: “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs”

Author: Judi Barrett

Genre: Picture Book                       

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Copyright Date: 1987

Pages in Book: 32 pages

Reading Level: 1-4 grade

Summary: This is a cute story about a grandpa that takes his grandkids to the city of Chewandswallow. In this incredible city, the weather is different from any other city. The weather comes three times a day, at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. When it rains its juice and soup, for snow it snows ice cream and when there’s wind, it brings in hamburgers. One day, there is a big flood that forces the people in Chewandswallow to leave the city of boats of bread and go to a place where the weather doesn’t bring food for them.

Reaction: I thought this was a cute book. I had forgotten what happened in it, and rereading it brought back many fun childhood memories of my family and I acting out this story (and then later getting in trouble for it.) It’s a fun book that all children know and love.

Recommendation: I’d definitely recommend this book to children, but probably ones younger than 8. I don’t think that the older kids would want to read this book.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I didn’t have any problems with this book. It’s one that we all read when we were little, and especially now that the book has turned into a movie, its created a more interesting twist to the book. 

The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey

Title: “The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey”

Author: Susan Wojciechoswski                                 

Genre: Fiction                                                      

Publisher: Candlewick Press       

Copyright Date:  1995

Pages in Book: 34

Reading Level: K-4 grade 

Summary: The story of Jonathan Toomey is one of mixed emotions. He is a local carpenter who is known to the town as being gloomy. He never smiled, never laughed, and never made a sound more than a grunt. But there was a reason to his silence and sadness. Years ago, his wife and little child died days apart from each other. It was in the days before good doctors and medicine, so there wasn’t much that he could do for them. So he packed up his belongings and moved to this little town. One day, the Widow McDowell and her son Thomas stopped by his workplace. Together they asked Jonathan if he would be able to carve a replica of their nativity scene, which they seemed to lose in their move to the city. He agreed, and said that the pieces “will be ready when they are ready”. Days later, a knock is heard at the door, and the Widow McDowell and Thomas are there. Timidly, they ask if Thomas can sit and watch as Jonathan carves the pieces. Jonathan agrees and continues to work. This continues for several days, but each time that Thomas comes, he informs Jonathan that he is carving the figurine wrong. “My cows were happy, or Joseph looked like he’s serious”. The widow McDowell just sat in the corner, and knit a red scarf. Each time that the two would come over, Jonathan would come to life just a little bit more. Once he arrives to the last figurine, he is stumped. He wants to get Mary and Jesus PERFECT for them. But sketch after sketch, he comes up with nothing. Suddenly, he goes to the corner where there’s a chest, full of things that belonged to his wife and baby. He reaches in and picks up a picture of them, and begins to carve. The next day, Christmas Eve, Jonathan delivers the nativity figurines to the Widow McDowell. Overjoyed, they all look down at the masterpiece. Jonathan goes to church services, with Thomas’s hand in his, and laughs. The town never called him “gloomy” again.

Reaction: I thought this book was absolutely amazing. Amazing. The illustrations were beautiful, the written was wonderfully done, and the emotions that were brought to the book were incredible. I was immediately captivated by this book, and couldn’t put it down. It’s one that I intend on reading for several years to come.

Recommendation: I would recommend this book to ANYONE. It brings such a sweet spirit into the room, and anyone that hears it, would get such a sweet feeling from it. It’s a pretty easy read, and one that I feel would be appropriate for anytime of the year.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I don’t have a single problem with this book. Out of all the books that I’ve read, this might possibly be one of my favorites. 

Farmer Boy

Title: “Farmer Boy”

Author:                Laura Ingles Wilder

Genre: Non Fiction         

Publisher: Harper and Brothers

Copyright Date: 1987

Pages in Book: 372 pages

Reading Level: 4-7 grade

Summary: Almanzo is a young boy (and Laura Ingles Wilder’s future husband) who works hard on the farm to prove his himself, because of how very small he is. He has three other siblings, Royal, Alice and Eliza Jane. He craves to have a horse, and strives to show his father that he is responsible enough to own one. Throughout the book, you see Almanzo’s adventures from taking an apprenticeship all the way up to a crazy weekend when his parents are gone for the weekend, and everything goes wrong. He ends up receiving a colt at the age of ten, and begins training Star.

Reaction: I thought this book was such a fun, and inspired book, and to know that it was based off a real live story made it that much more interesting. Almanzo seems like such a fun spirited young boy, and the entire story through, I was captivated by it. Laura did an excellent job with this book, and personal y its’ my favorite one of hers.

Recommendation: I would recommend this story to ANY child of all ages. It’s such a fun story, with many parts that keep you at the edge of your seat. Mothers could read this story to her children, and they would still be able to understand it, and enjoy it fully.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I have no problems with this book. It was amazing, and so well written. 

The Rainbabies

Title: “The Rainbabies”

Author: Laura Krauss Melmed                                   

Genre: Picture Book/Traditional Folktale                             

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers         

Copyright Date:  2004

Pages in Book: 32 pages

Reading Level: PreK- 3^rd grade

Summary: An elderly couple is saddened by the fact that they haven’t been able to have children. One night, there was a rainstorm and lightening hit the ground. They ran outside, and found several extremely tiny babies lying on the ground. They take them inside and care for them, taking them places, and enjoying them. One night, their mother comes for them. The elderly couple is distraught and doesn’t want to give them up. The rainbabies mother helps the adopted mother realize that the babies need her in order to grow, and in exchange, she gives them a baby of their own. The baby girl grows up and the elderly couple finds the joy that they were missing.

Reaction: I loved this book. I enjoyed the illustration and was captivated by the story. The story line was a little slow, and I was more into the pictures than the story.

Recommendation: I would probably would recommend this story to only younger children. I don’t think that the older children would enjoy this book.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I thought that the story was rather boring, but that was my only problem that I had with the book. 

Mufaro's Beautiful Daughter

Title: “Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughter”

Author: John Steptoe    

Genre: Picture Book                                     

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers         

Copyright Date:  1988

Pages in Book: 32 pages

Reading Level: K-3 grade

Summary: Mufaro is an African man that has two beautiful daughters. Nyasha is kind, caring, loving, and overall just an amazingly sweet girl, while her sister Manyara is a snotty, selfish, spoiled girl. They hear of a proclamation that the is going to marry the most beautiful daughter in all the land, and the girls convince their father to travel to the capital to see the king. On their way both daughters (each traveling on separate paths) encounter a snake, and old woman, and a poor little boy. Nyasha, being the kind daughter that she is, does everything that she can to help all of these creatures/humans.  On the other hand, Manyara see’s these people and is rude and cruel to them. She doesn’t help them at all, and walks away. Once they reach the city, the daughters walk up to the queen only to find out that the king is the snake/old woman/young boy that they saw on the way to the Capital. Manyara realizes how she treated the king and runs away, ashamed. Nyasha becomes the “soon to be queen” and her father couldn’t be prouder.

Reaction: I thought this book was very sweet, and reminded me a lot of the Cinderella story. I thought it was a cute way to twist things around, and had a different cultural aspect to it. The pictures were very well done and kept my attention the entire time.

Recommendation: I would recommend this story to anyone from any age on up. I think it has a good message and one that everyone would enjoy.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I didn’t really see any problem with this book. I thought the illustration was great and the author did an amazing job. 

The Wanderings of Odysseus

Title: “The Wanderings of Odysseus”

Author: Rosemary Sutcliff           

Genre:  Fantasy

Publisher: Laurel Leaf    

Copyright Date:  2005

Pages in Book: 144

Reading Level: 4-8 grade

Summary: The Wanderings of Odysseus is a story of Odysseus and his men returning from the war in Troy. On their way back, they encounter several different trials including a Cyclops, a lotus flower, and a little battle inside his own home. He and his men stay inside a cave, not knowing that it belonged to the Cyclops. They devise a plan to escape, and after blinding the Cyclops with a beam of wood, they strap themselves to the stomach of the giant sheep that the Cyclops takes care of. Then the men and Odysseus and his men and stuck on an island and every time they eat the lotus flower it makes time slow down, and they forget the purpose of where they were going. Once they reach their home, Odysseus finds his home filled with suitors, trying to marry his wife. She devises a competition, whoever can string Odysseus’s bow, and shoot an arrow through nine rings, will be her next husband. Pretending to be a homeless man, Odysseus watches as countless men try and fail at this feat. Finally he asks for a try, and succeeds. He takes over his home once again.

Reaction: I actually really liked this book for several reasons. One, it was well written and easy to follow along to. Second, it followed “The Odyssey” rather well, and I think it’ll be very helpful to have read before one would read “The Odyssey”. It made (me at least) want to read more, and kept me interested the entire time.

Recommendation: I would highly recommend this book to any child above the age of nine or ten. I think the level of reading is really important here because there are a lot of words that younger children probably wouldn’t know, nor would they understand if this story was being read to them.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I thought that the book was slightly violent, and I wouldn’t want my younger children reading it, for the fear of it giving them ideas. 

Jacob Have I Loved

Title: “Jacob Have I loved”

Author: Katherine Paterson                                       

Genre: Historical                              

Publisher: Crowell           

Copyright Date:  1995

Pages in Book: 263

Reading Level: 4-7 grade

Summary: Sara Louise aka Wheeze, is a young girl who has a hard time finding herself and is constantly in her beautiful sisters shadow. Her twin sister Caroline, was born sickly and near death. Because of this, her parents and everyone around her devoted a lot of time to her. She grew beautiful, and had a wonderful singing voice, unlike her sister Sara who no one really paid attention to. Wheeze had few friends on the island, but one was named Call, who would go crabbing with her. They meet the Captain, an elderly man who disappeared from the town after an incident with his father. Wheeze develops a crush on the Captain who later marries the cat lady. Call and Caroline both leave the island (Call to go into the navy and Caroline to pursue her music career) and soon fall in love and get married. Wheeze is distraught by this, and after having an emotional breakdown, her mother convinces her to leave the island to find herself.  She goes to college and goes to school to become a lawyer. After much trial, she becomes a midwife/nurse, marries a widowed father, and tries to make a worthy reputation in this new town. One night, she’s called in to help give birth to twins. They are both born, the boy healthy but the girls is sick and close to death. Wheeze does everything she can to keep the child from dying, forgetting about the baby boy. Upon realizing this, she checks up on him, and suddenly realizes that she did the same thing her parents did. They focused on the sick child. She tells the parents to watch and care for the healthy child, just as much as they do the sick baby girl.

Reaction: I thought this was a well written book, but with a lot of disappointment. Sara/Wheeze’s life seemed very depressing and she struggled with almost everything that she did. I know that there are people that go throughout life in that same way, but it was hard for me to read about, because it was slightly depressing.

Recommendation: I don’t know that I would recommend this book to many people, just because it was slightly depressing and I don’t want people to finish reading the book and think, “well that was a waste of my time, it only got sadder and sadder.”

Potential Problems/Conflicts: The main problem for me was that the book just kept getting worse and worse for Sara/Wheeze. It wasn’t a happy book, and I actually had a real problem with that. 

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Title: “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”

Author:                Roald Dahl                          

Genre:  Fantasy                                                                

Publisher: Penguin Books            

Copyright Date: 1987

Pages in Book: 189

Reading Level: 2-5 grade

Summary: Charlie Bucket is a young boy who comes from a very poor family who lives with his parents, and both sets of grandparents in one tiny house. One day, it’s announced that Willy Wonka from the Wonka Factory, is finally opening its gates after years of being closed. Inside Wonka bars, there are five Golden Tickets that will be hidden, and the lucky finder gets to spend the entire day inside the Wonka factory, with someone of their choosing. The first four tickets are found quickly by Varuca, Violet, Mike and Augustus. Charlie finds money on the ground, and decides to take his chances at a local candy store. He buys two candy bars, the first a fail. But the second one, to his astonishment, held the fifth and final Golden Ticket. Charlie takes his Grandpa Joe with him, along on this amazing adventure. Wonka meets them, and begins giving them a tour of the factory. Slowly, one by one, the other four contestants are eliminated and asked to leave, leaving Grandpa Joe and Charlie. Wonka declares Charlie as the new heir to his factory, claiming that he won! As they board the glass elevator, and blast out of the factory to Charlie’s home (to pick up his parents, and grandparents) they see the eliminated four children who misbehaved during the tour.

Reaction: I thought this book was written quite well. The author did a good job describing the details in the book, and actually made the book quite comical. (Turning Violet blue, Mike into a skinny tall boy, etc.) I think that it brought the message of obeying your parents and peers across quite well, because it showed the reader the consequences of not listening/behaving.

Recommendation: I would definitely recommend this book to children of all ages, even children younger than the required reading levels. It’s one that the children can have read to them, without having trouble of following allong.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: The only thing that I see really wrong with this book, is that the consequences of what happens to the misbehaving children can be quite severe to some children, and may frighten the readers. 

Holes

Title: “Holes”

Author: Louis Sachar                                     

Genre: Adventure/Fiction                                                           

Publisher: Straus and Giroux

Copyright Date: 1998

Pages in Book: 233 pages

Reading Level: 3-6 grade

Summary: Stanley Yelnats is a young boy who always seems to get himself caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. He is wrongly accused of stealing Clyde Livingston’s shoes, and as punishment is sent to Camp Green Lake for 18 months. Once he’s there, he and the other young boys are forced to dig holes all day to “build their character”. They soon learn that the warden isn’t out to help the boys build character, but to find buried treasure from years past. While digging, Stanley (aka Caveman) finds a lipstick tube with the initials “KB” on it, the initials belonging to an outlaw (once school teacher) Kissin’ Kate Barlow. There are two stories also being told in the middle of the book. One is about the curse of Stanley’s great great grandfather.  Because of a curse that his great great grandfather brought onto the family, by not carrying Madame Zeroni up the mountain, all the men have been cursed. The other story that is being told is of Miss Katherine, and her love Sam. Sam was killed because the town disapproved of inertial relationships. Kate steals Yelnats fortune and leaves him in the desert. Years later she returns to Green Lake, and instead of telling Trout where she hid the treasure, she takes a bite from a yellow spotted lizard. Trout’s decedents build up Camp Green Lake for little boys so that they could quicken the treasure search. Stanley’s friend Zero decides to run away, and the next day he runs after him. He finds him in the middle of the desert in a row boat. Stanley carries Zero up the mountain, where the find underground water and a field of unions. They go back to Camp Green Lake to find Kissin’ Kate Barlow’s treasure. They find the treasure inside a suitcase, but as soon as they find it the Warden comes, trying to persuade the boys to give it to him. Low and behold, Stanley’s last name is on the suitcase, giving him full claim of it. The boys’ lawyer comes up, and takes Stanley out of the camp and their able to buy a new house, and Zero is able to find his mother. They realize that Zero is a decedent of Madame Zeroni, and the bad curse is lifted.

  

Reaction: I thought this was an incredible book. It caught my attention from the very beginning. And what I liked about it, was that it was actually a little bit different than the movie, so you had to read closely to what was happening.  Overall, I was very impressed with it.

Recommendation: I would recommend this book to any child, from the third grade on up. I think any child would be content with this book, and would be able to follow along, and truly enjoy it. There are some tough words, so I would make sure that the child is up on their reading level.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: The only problem that I might have with this book is the difficulty of words in it. Some 8 and 9 year olds might not be able to understand what is being said just by the complexity of the words. 

The Missing Piece Meets the Big "O"

Title: “The Missing Piece Meets the Big O”

Author: Shel Silverstein                                

Genre: Picture Book                                     

Publisher: HaperCollins Publishers

Copyright Date: 1981                     

Pages in Book: 98 pages

Reading Level: K-3 grade

Summary: The missing piece is lonely, and longs for a circle to join. But whenever it comes across a circle (or an O) with a piece missing, it never seems to fit. It’s either too small, too bit, to short, too fat, not the right shape, etc. It finds a “O” that it fits perfectly in, and for a while they’re happy together. But randomly one day, it starts to find itself growing out of the “O”. Lonely again, it goes in search of another “O”.  Finally one day, it comes across a circle that doesn’t have any pieces missing. How did the “o” find its missing piece? It realized one day that it didn’t need to feel lonely anymore and decided to make itself whole by rolling, and squirming itself until that missing piece wasn’t missing anymore. The missing piece is no longer just a piece, but an “O”.

Reaction: I thought it was a cute book, but not one that I would read to my children. There are a lot of pages, and I just wasn’t able to really get much out of it.

Recommendation: I would probably recommend this book to little children, but not ones older than kindergarten. I just don’t feel that it’s a book they would be interested in. 

Potential Problems/Conflicts: For me, the book was very bland. My main problem with this book was that he pictures didn’t capture my eye, and I didn’t feel that it was one that I would want to read again. 

The Eleventh Hour

Title: “The Eleventh Hour”

Author:                Graeme Base                   

Genre:  Picture Book                                      

Publisher: Abrams Books for Young Readers

Copyright Date:  1988

Pages in Book: 32

Reading Level: 3-7 grade

Summary: This is a book about a young elephant that turns eleven years old. He decides to throw a party, and invites eleven friends, makes eleven different treats, creates eleven party activities, etc. They all come to the party dressed up in different costumes, and once they enter Horace’s (the elephant) house, they see the table filled with wonderful treats and deserts. Horace informs them that they aren’t able to take apart of the food until the eleventh hour. So until then, they play games with the thought of that wonderful feast waiting for them. Once the eleventh hour comes around, they go to eat the food, but it’s all gone! Who stole all the food? (Throughout the entire book, the author tries to give you clues as to who ate the food) Once you have solved the mystery, you find out that Kilroy the mouse and 111 of his friends stole the food.

Reaction: Honestly, I didn’t like the book at all. I didn’t feel like it was age appropriate, nor did I feel that young children would be able to understand it. I couldn’t even figure out who stole all the food! Lucky for me, the answer was in the back of my book, but I highly doubt a young child would be able to figure out that mystery.

Recommendation: I wouldn’t recommend this book to young children. Maybe if their parents were there to help them, then yes. But otherwise, I wouldn’t recommend this.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I thought the whole book was confusing. Even with all the clues that were given to us, I had a really hard time trying to figure out who the thief was. Also, the mice that the illustrator put in the pictures of all the “hidden mice” were barely seen! I had a hard time finding them, and even when I did find one of them, some of them barely looked like mice! 

The Polar Express

Title: “The Polar Express”

Author:                Chris Van Allsburg                          

Genre:  Picture Book/Fantasy                                                                    

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Co.                

Copyright Date: 1985

Pages in Book:

Reading Level:

Summary: A young boy is struggling to believe in Santa Clause and even the North Pole. A while after he went to bed, just lying there, he heard a noise outside. The Polar Express was standing outside his house, waiting for him to board. Hesitantly he boards the train, and joins with a group of children who begin telling him of how they are going to the North Pole. He begins to relax as they drink hot chocolate and talking about how they hope that they are the first to be chosen to receive the first gift of Christmas. Finally they arrive at the North Pole, and the young boy is overcome with all the wonderful Christmas lights, decorations, and the countless number of Santa’s elves. The begin filing off the train, when they are joined by Santa, his sleigh, and his reindeer. The odd thing is, the young boy can’t hear the reindeer’s bells jingling as the move and dance around. It’s all about faith though, because only believers could hear of the sound that it made. Santa picks the young boy, and after being able to now hear the wonderful sound that the reindeer’s bells make, he decides to pick a bell off the reindeer’s harness.  He puts it into his robe pocket, and he and the other children board the train again. On the way home, the children crowd around him, begging to see the bell. But alas, the bell is missing because there is a hole in the pocket of his robe. Saddened, the Polar Express pulls up to his house, and he goes in an crawls into bed. The next morning, when they are opening presents, his sister pulls out the very last present from underneath the tree. It’s addressed to the boy, and he opens it. Inside is the bell, along with a note from Santa. He jingles the bell and only he and his sister are able to hear the noise. It’s broken, to his parents’ knowledge since they can’t hear the sound. Years down the road, his sister and friends loose the opportunity to hear the sound the bell makes, but he never stopped believing, therefore he never stopped hearing of its sound.

Reaction: I just thought this was an amazing book. It was so inspired, and well written. It allows the children to use their imagination and they are able to take an imaginary journey to Santa/The North Pole. I love the message that it sends as well. To me, it sends the message of faith, and that if you have faith in something, it will always be there for you. Also the illustrations in this book are amazing.

Recommendation: Honestly I would recommend this to children and adults of all ages. It’s such a wonderful book, and although it’s mostly for the Christmas season, I think it’s one that could be read all year round.

Potential Problems/Conflicts: I have no problems or conflicts with this book. It’s one of my favorites, and I couldn’t find anything wrong with it.