Quantcast
Channel: Writer and Dreamer at work » Eileen Spinelli
Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 2

“PERFECT PICTURE BOOK” – Friday

0
0

When No one is Watching

BOOK- When no on is watchingWritten by:   Eileen Spinelli

Illustrated by: David A Johnson

Published by: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers Imprint of Eerdmans Publishing Co 2013

Ages: 4 – 6 years

Theme: Shyness, friendship

Opening Lines: When no one is watching, I dance. I leap and I spin and I prance round the room. I twirl with my pillow and whirl with the broom. When no one is watching, I dance. But…

Synopsis: From Amazon – When no one is watching, it’s easy to be brave — to dance and sing, growl and cheer. But when everyone’s watching, this book’s shy young narrator finds it far easier to hide. With her best friend, Loretta, though, she doesn’t feel shy, embarrassed, awkward, or odd — not one bit. Together they’re like two peas in a pod, whether anyone’s watching or not.

Why I like it: I loved this book the minute I picked it up. I suppose it’s because told in first person this shy character is sharing her thoughts and private moments with me. Anyone, like myself, who knows what it’s like to be shy will understand her need to hide away when people are around. Alone we are treated to her real abilities to shine. We are introduced towards the end to her equally shy friend whom she shares her active and quiet times with, and it is great to see her not feeling so shy around someone she obviously trusts. This book shows how it is okay to be shy and that with time and in the right place, one learns to shine. The illustrations are warm, earthy and colourful, attracting the eye with lovely rhyming text.

Edit:  Eek! I forgot to add:

Resources/Findings:   Here is the book trailer…    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cBRYeMP4j4

This was also an interesting program to come across should your child be suffering from fear or anxiety causing the shyness.  http://www.turnaroundanxiety.com/?gclid=Cj0KEQjwnZShBRDfxqzr55rcyMEBEiQA1iRNP0uedXsNI7VNetMR0zQh3D85kZbX6bwLwukVSxdYa3AaAjCz8P8HAQ

A fun exercise I thought kids could do in the classroom is to write down ten things they would do when no one is watching and have them explain  why they would do these things.

I’m so pleased to be able to bring you some more special books that have come my way and be able to share them with you and join other great writers over at Susanna’s Blog, where there are literally hundreds of book reviews to view.  So pop over  and visit the lovely author, Susanna Leonard Hill’s blog and find the tab for Perfect Picture Books.    Her blog is full of resources links and activities associated with books reviewed by many authors.

I’m also off to enjoy some Birthday time with family this weekend, since it’s Saturday already.  Have a great weekend everyone!


Filed under: Children's literature, Picture Book Review Tagged: Alone, Children's Picture book, David A Johnson, Eileen Spinelli, Susanna Leonard Hill, Through the eyes of a child

Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 2

Latest Images

Trending Articles





Latest Images