book reviews

Latest book review:

"YOU'LL SOON GROW ALEX"
Andrea Shauick & Russell Ayto
Published by Orchard Picture Books, c2000.

Andrea Shauick, the author of "You'll Soon Grow Alex", came across our website and thought that his new picture book may be of interest to members of the SSPA. He was right!

It is significant to note the type of people making hits on the website and gratifying that they feel they can enhance the organisation. Andrea kindly donated a copy of the book to the SSPA Library. I chose it as the reviewed book for this month.

The large colorful illustrations in the book are eye-catching, as children's books should be! They certainly entice the reader to look at the text as well. The opening paragraph would be familiar to SSPA members - "He was so little the other children at school called him 'shorty'. He was so little his big sister's friends were always patting him on the head & saying "Aaahh, isn't he sweet?"

The book goes through all Alex's attempts to be taller, from high protein diets and exercise to sleep and stretching. When all schemes failed he spent the day with his very tall Uncle Danny, who experienced all sorts of difficulties because of his height.

Alex agreed being tall wasn't as much fun as he thought. When Uncle Danny said to Alex: "You're not little. I'll let you in on a secret - you don't need to grow on the outside, just grow a bit on the inside". With this advice under his belt, Alex's life became much happier as he gave, and received positive reinforcement of the boy he was on the inside.

Both Maddi and I enjoyed the book and thought it would be very appropriate for short-statured children about to embark on school adventures.

Leanne Besant

(Reproduced from SSPA Journal, No. 165, June-July, 2001, p. 2.)

Another comment on this book

This is a delightful children’s book with wonderful illustrations. The story follows the plight of a boy named Alex trying to find the answer on how to grow taller. Alex doesn’t like being little. He’s told by everyone he asks that he will grow soon. Alex gets very impatient with this answer and pursues different ways to become taller.

There’s a lovely moral to the story. This would be a great book for bedtime reading to your children. It would also be a great story book for a teacher to read to their class. The story raises the valuable lesson of the beauty of growth from within.

Angela’s rating: J J J J J
Five out of five smiley faces for this one! Well worth the read!

(Reproduced from SSPA Journal, No. 183, August-September, 2004, p. 9.)

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