Review: The Gullfather: Birdsy Seagull by Jeff Sikaitis and Jake Wheeler

Not to be punny but the new novel, The Gullfather: Birdsy Seagull, just quacked me up. This debut graphic novel for kids by Jeff Sikaitis and Jake Wheeler is the first book in their A Seahawk Situation series. With its colorful & engaging graphics, despite being targeted to kids I feel the adults would appreciate the humor and enjoy this also.

The book centers around The Gullfather aka Birdsy Seagull & his crew. If the kids had a mafia and gangster version, this is them. In an attempt to maintain their turf on the boardwalk, they find themselves in a situation with one of the restaurants. In an attempt to get rid of them, they put up a wooden statue thinking that was going to keep them away for good. Well, if Birdsy has anything to do with it, it’s his turf and that’s not going to happen. They come up with a plan to show them who’s boss. After things escalate and some of the crew find their backs against the wall, we see how great things can happen when you look out for one another. Will Birdsy still be king of the boardwalk?

I read this and couldn’t get enough of it. If you have a kid that may be reluctant to read, this will definitely grab their attention. Also to mention, introduce them to graphic novels. Between the nice mix of visuals and texts, it gives an engaging experience. There’s more to them than just the obvious but some good underlying takeaways that have good meaning. I haven’t read many graphic novels but this one really grabbed my attention and piqued my interest to explore more. I’m definitely going to be on the lookup for the next book and will be a follower of the series. If you have a kid that loves comic and graphic novels, make sure to check this one out.

Buy on Amazon | Bookshop.org

Review: My First Veggie Bible Stories by Pamela Kennedy, Anne Kennedy Brady and Illustrator Jerry Pittenger

My First Veggie Bible Stories is such a wonderful board book for those who want to introduce the Bible to your young ones. As with the other books in the series, the colorful characters brought together with these wonderful stories make this a wonderful learning experience. I love how each story is referenced from where in the Bible. This highlights some of the significant events and serves many purposes for how you want to present this collection. I love how they take what happened and present it in a way that is easy for them to absorb and grasp. Overall, a really book that for families who wat to introduction Bible stories that will appreciate.

Pages: 24

Reading Age: 2 - 5 Years Old

Buy on Amazon | Bookshop.org

Review: I Can Be Your Friend by Veggie Tales, Pamela Kennedy and illustrated by Lisa Reed

Teach little ones about making and being friends with this VeggieTales board book about all the things that make friends the best. 

The Veggies know it is important to be kind and loving to all. Bob, Larry, Laura, Junior, and the rest of the Veggies learn all about what being a good friend means: being kind, forgiving one another, taking turns, sharing, and laughing together. Children will take away the message that we can be a friend to those we meet, whether we share a lot or very little in common on the surface, and that God is the best friend we can ever have.

Review

What a fun and endearing board book this is. Honestly, this would be the first time many kids would probably want spend time with veggies! The colorful illustrations are so cute and welcoming. The overall message is wonderful and who wouldn't want to be friends with them. The veggies are so wonderful with their acceptance of anyone no matter who you are and showing the value of being and having a friendships is so welcoming. This would be a great one that promotes making and being a good friend.

Pages: 20

Buy on Amazon | Bookshop.org

Audiobook Review: The House on Sunrise Lagoon: Sam Makes a Splash by Nicole Melleby and narrator Taylor Meskimen

From an acclaimed author comes a cheerful, uplifting story of family and belonging, the first in a series perfect for fans of the Vanderbeekers and the Penderwicks.

If you want to get to know eleven-year-old Samantha Ali-O’Connor, you need to know three things:

One, she isn’t the only one of her siblings who is adopted, but she is the only one whose name isn't inspired by the ocean.

Two, she and Harbor always compete with each other to be the best Oldest Sibling—and just about everything else.

And three, she is determined to prove she's a real Ali-O'Connor by taking over the family business, repairing and chartering boats.

Except there's a Capital-P Problem: Her mothers have been Serious Whispering about selling the business before summer's end! Sam needs to come up with a plan, quick, before Harbor finds out. And before Sam loses her chance to inherit the business and be an Ali-O'Connor forever.

Review

In any other circumstance, the technical issues probably would’ve distracted my interest from listening to the book but the narrator had such an engaging voice presenting the book that I was able to enjoy it despite my obstacles. For full transparency, I’m not sure why but my copy of the audiobook kept stopping and repeating with some parts seeming to be cut off. In other moments, it’s as if it were frozen. I had to restart and fast forward but that didn’t change my opinion of the quality of the overall experience. I’d say with all the disruptions, I probably was able to get 80% off the book. I was thoroughly happy with what I was able to listen to.

The House on Sunrise Lagoon: Sam Makes a Splash by Nicole Melleby is the first book in the The House on Sunrise Lagoon series. Based on what I listened to, this sounds like a wonderful series featuring characters that are going through some things that other kids can relate to. With themes of trying to belong and fit it, friendships, being adopted and sibling relationships, the book presents characters that are very likable and you will want to follow along with.

I normally would never address this but I saw a post by someone online who commented about a certain aspect of the book that I would like to address. Everywhere is entitled to their opinion, however, I appreciate the development of a storyline that showed another version of a loving family. It didn’t register to me until I realized there were two mothers in this family. There are all types of families and this one is full of love, fun and support for each other. There’s no focus on that other than that they are their parents. The overwhelming love and support they show their children, especially helping them get through some challenging moments pulls at the heart.

There are some moments in the book that I thought could spark up some wonderful conversation about some of the things kids deal with. Samantha was a wonderful character to begin the series and the supporting storylines involving different aspects of her life kept me listening. The narrator made this book awesome to listen to. Her voice was engaging and fun to listen to. She did a great job with the different characters. Hopefully she will narrate the second book because she made this overall a great listening experience. Again, despite the technical difficulties I experienced with this audiobook, the overall book grabbed my interest to keep going with the second book.

Buy on Amazon | Audible | Bookshop.org

Review: Billy Balloon by Jack Payton

Inspired by the story written when he was a child, Billy Balloon is the debut in the self-titled series hoping to share adventures for the young reader and their parents. This book features the journey of Billy Balloon and his siblings and friends getting ready for the Great Balloon Race. Each year cards written by children in school are attached to them in the hopes that they will be discovered by another child and become a penpal. Whoever is determined to reach the farthest becomes the winner.

An interesting book to lead the series, with colorful illustrations that has a goal that would be such a fun idea to inspire a child’s imagination. Actually, I know at their age how great it was to be able to make a new friend with a pen pal, which by the way, we are still friends today. This would be such a fun idea for kids to learn about a new place and hopefully be the start of a wonderful friendship.

My only issue was the ending. When the goal of the book was reached for this character, it left me with a wonderful feeling. I thought it was a sweet story but then in the last couple of lines, the character did something that left me with a few questions. The author leaves an open ended question about whether the race is over or not but I just feel like that contradicts the goal of them in the book if he went back out there. He can’t participate. Once you reach a child, that’s it. Where did he go? What happened to everyone else? Do they all meet up again somewhere? Who won? I felt like it unwrapped the ending. Yes, presumably you can draw your own conclusions but if this is going to be a series, it would’ve been nice to be wrapped up in one book. That way we can experience the next adventure with Billy. Despite my questions, overall I enjoyed the book.

Unique to this series, the author has extended an open ended invitation for families to submit future ideas for co-authoring books. I’m curious and look forward to seeing the creativity that will evolve from this series.

Buy on Amazon | Bookshop.org

Review: Rohan and Nyra and Big Sister's Bet by Anthony C. Delauney

About the Book

Rohan can't wait for his big sister Nyra to come home, but when she does, she has a surprise in store for him.

What starts off as a fun game of playing catch soon turns into a powerful, loving lesson on gambling and greed that Rohan will never forget. Discover what awaits in Big Sister's Bet!

Review

Rohan and Nyra and Big Sister's Bet by Anthony C. Delauney is the next book in the Owning the Dash Kids series. We are introduced to Rohan and Nyra and what I loved most about them was that they’re siblings who care greatly for each other. Just like the preceding books, there is such a great takeaway message being taught between them through a relatable experience that Rohan will never forget. I loved how with his sister, their dad shared this same experience, she decided to share her wisdom with him that made things so much more special. The bond they have is so wonderful and the admiration he has for his older sister is so sweet. 

One thing that is never mentioned but meant so much to me is that upon first glance on the cover, we all see that Nyra is in a wheelchair. What I loved is that it was never part of her narrative because it never defined her. She went out there and threw the football with her younger brother. When she came home, the anticipation he had to see her was just unconditional love. The lesson that she taught him, sunk deep within him because he had the utmost respect for her. To me that is such a powerful, inspirational lesson to the young reader that in spite of her chair, she can do fun things and is loved.

As always, another wonderful book in the series. If you haven’t stumbled upon this series, please check them out. The reading age for this book is 4-8. 

Buy on Amazon | Bookshop.org