I was never much of a bug person as a child. Other than reading books like James and the Giant Peach, I spent as little time around them as possible. (This, of course, makes it all the funnier that I have a degree in Crop and Soil Science - aka Dirt and BUGS. lol) Of course, now that I am the Mom, I am often called upon to save the fair maidens from larger-than-life spiders and menacing pill bugs.When I recently had the opportunity to read and review a bug-themed story, I approached it with curiosity. After all, a Mom has to branch out and widen her vistas, right? ;)
When the book, The Travel Adventures of Lilly P. Badilly Costa Rica, arrived, I was immediately drawn to the bright colors and hand-drawn artwork and suddenly could not wait to share the story with my girls.
Here is what I found:
A book of fiction, aimed at children ages 5-10, Lilly P. Badilly is a young millipede who travels with her clever grandparents from Miami Florida to the depths of the Costa Rican rain forest. Several adventures are had along the way, allowing Lilly (and the readers) to learn lessons about travel, team work, and working through fears.
This hard cover book comes with a fully narrated CD that has authentic Costa Rican sound effects, voice-overs, and a new and original musical score.
The Travel Adventures of Lilly P. Badilly Costa Rica was written by the talented and creative Debbie Glade, a fellow Mom. With a degree in Creative Writing and a background in freelance travel writing, Debbie recounts that she was inspired to write this book when, after the birth of her daughter, she found there to be a need for some new and creative children's book ideas. As time passed, she wanted to integrate the musical talents of her husband and daughter and The Travel Adventures of Lilly P. Badilly Costa Rica was 'born'.
This hard cover book comes with a fully narrated CD that has authentic Costa Rican sound effects, voice-overs, and a new and original musical score.
The Travel Adventures of Lilly P. Badilly Costa Rica was written by the talented and creative Debbie Glade, a fellow Mom. With a degree in Creative Writing and a background in freelance travel writing, Debbie recounts that she was inspired to write this book when, after the birth of her daughter, she found there to be a need for some new and creative children's book ideas. As time passed, she wanted to integrate the musical talents of her husband and daughter and The Travel Adventures of Lilly P. Badilly Costa Rica was 'born'.
Here is what I did like:
As I said before, the colorful artwork is immediately eye-catching. Having hand-drawn characters gives the characters a friendly, personable feeling from the very beginning. Debbie provides maps of both North/Central America, showing where Miami is in correlation to Costa Rica and a map of Costa Rica itself, marking the main cities and a couple of points of reference for the story. This is such a great way to help teach geography. Throughout the story, the illustrations help to move the story along, showing feelings, thoughts and other incidental information. The factual information woven through the story is done in such a way as to go unnoticed by most kids and simply enjoyed - the perfect way to learn...while you do not realize you are!
The characters in the story are an amusing bunch and trust me, they appeal to boys and girls alike. The kids can relate to Lilly herself and some of her concerns like being afraid of the dark and being afraid of spiders while her Grandma helps keep the story and Lilly moving along with her sage advice and learned wisdom. Then of course, there is Grandpa. He introduces the levity all children so enjoy with his jokes, his calling Lilly 'Silly Badilly' and of course, his 'ploofs'.
The CD is a great-attention holder. Having the music actually written by a child has really helped to keep it on their wave-length - simple, energetic, and fun. Since it goes right along with the story, it helps to reinforce reading skills as well as reaching learners of different ages and reading abilities. My kids especially liked it because then they did not have to listen to their Mom try to make up the tunes as she went!
As I said before, the colorful artwork is immediately eye-catching. Having hand-drawn characters gives the characters a friendly, personable feeling from the very beginning. Debbie provides maps of both North/Central America, showing where Miami is in correlation to Costa Rica and a map of Costa Rica itself, marking the main cities and a couple of points of reference for the story. This is such a great way to help teach geography. Throughout the story, the illustrations help to move the story along, showing feelings, thoughts and other incidental information. The factual information woven through the story is done in such a way as to go unnoticed by most kids and simply enjoyed - the perfect way to learn...while you do not realize you are!
The characters in the story are an amusing bunch and trust me, they appeal to boys and girls alike. The kids can relate to Lilly herself and some of her concerns like being afraid of the dark and being afraid of spiders while her Grandma helps keep the story and Lilly moving along with her sage advice and learned wisdom. Then of course, there is Grandpa. He introduces the levity all children so enjoy with his jokes, his calling Lilly 'Silly Badilly' and of course, his 'ploofs'.
The CD is a great-attention holder. Having the music actually written by a child has really helped to keep it on their wave-length - simple, energetic, and fun. Since it goes right along with the story, it helps to reinforce reading skills as well as reaching learners of different ages and reading abilities. My kids especially liked it because then they did not have to listen to their Mom try to make up the tunes as she went!
Here is what I didn't like:
The first time reading the book, I enjoyed it but felt indifferent to wanting to read it again - it probably had something to do with my horrible renditions of the songs! I have to admit that we got interrupted when we were reading it and we read the story without the CD.
The story was MUCH more enchanting the second time through WITH the CD, so make sure to read the story with the CD if at all possible. Now my girls are excited to read/listen to the book again.
The story was MUCH more enchanting the second time through WITH the CD, so make sure to read the story with the CD if at all possible. Now my girls are excited to read/listen to the book again.
Here is what I say:
This book is aimed at children 5-10 years old and is a GREAT addition to any home or public library. It entertains and teaches at the same time - what could be better than that!
You can purchase a copy of The Travel Adventures of Lilly P. Badilly: Costa Rica by Debbie Glade, right from the website in their store for $22.95 plus shipping.
Calling all Kids Ages 5-10: Submit Your Original Story to our Travel Adventure Contest!
Hurry though - the contest closes on September 1st!
Smart Poodle Publishing Writing Contest for Librarians - $650 in Prizes!
Entries must be received by Monday, December 1, 2008.
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GIVEAWAY DETAILS:
This Giveaway Has Ended. Please Be Sure To Subscribe To Receive Notice Of All Of Our Exciting Giveaways!!
The Prize:
Thanks to Debbie Glade herself, an autographed copy of the book The Travel Adventures of Lilly P. Badilly Costa Rica.
How you can win:
Go to the Lilly Badilly site and find the tab at the top of the page marked Sample Pages and Audio. Click on it then on the book pages. Then leave a comment on this post stating what your favorite animal was in the book. Simple!
To earn more entries, you may do one or all of the following. Each one counts as an extra entry. Please leave a separate comment for each one.
- Subscribe to my 3 P's Mama Says... feed here or subscribe to my 3 P's in a Pod feed here.
- Add me to your Technorati Favorites and I will do the same in return!
- Mention this giveaway on your blog with a link back here and to Lilly Badilly.
- Add or have my button in your sidebar.
- Leave a comment of where you have seen me, my name, or either of my sites listed.
This giveaway is open to US addresses only. Good luck!
Who is eligible:
You must have a US mailing address. You don't have to be a blogger to win, just supply a valid e-mail address. Make sure to leave me that email address though because if I cannot get a hold of you, you cannot win!
When the giveaway ends:The giveaway will run now through Aug. 29th at 11:59pm CST. I'll pick the winner using Random.org as soon as possible after that. You may choose to check for your nickname at Prizey.Fetch, a new site that compiles winners in one convenient place:
Bonne Chance!!
This post courtesy of the Family Review Network .
5 comments:
What a wonderful journey! The little family of millipedes is adorable. I like Ruth the Spider! Please enter me in your drawing for this delightful children's book. I am subscribed to both of your feeds. Many thanks, Cindi
jchoppes[at]hotmail[dot]com
Definitely Ruth the spider. In the samples, though, I didn't really see many animals other than the millipedes, the spider, and a hummingbird.
jceko77@yahoo.com
I'm a subscriber
jceko77@yahoo.com
I did my best to see the characters in the sample book but I guess my eyes aren't that great. The picture of the hummingbird stood out to me but I couldn't decipher if it had a name or not.
onlycancan at hotmail dot com
This book is so delightful...I wish I had one for each of you! Thank you for participating!
THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED.
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