Tag Archives: beach

Laggie and Grillo: The Sea Glass Mystery by Phyllis Schwartz (Book Review)

Fifth grade poet Yoshi and her two curious critters, Laggie and Grillo are back!

Something mysterious washes up on their hometown beach in the beautiful surf town of Encinitas, California.

“Mommy and Laggie and Grillo and me,
trying to find our beloved sea glass by the sea.

Blue and green and turquoise and gold—
it’s a mystery tale that’s never been told.”

There are lots of twists and turns as they try to answer the question: Is it sea glass or a real gem?

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(review request submitted by the author for an honest critique) 


Yoshi and her two critter companions are back; this time, they are putting their detective hats on to solve a mystery of who the sea glass belongs to. Pirate? Explorer? Sailor in love or thief? Wager a guess and then read the story to discover who the owner of the heart-shaped sea glass is. 


Laggie and Grillo: The Sea Glass Mystery is a cute detective story, with many positive qualities. The story demonstrates the power of teamwork and determination. It also shows that help comes in all forms and from the unlikeliest characters, as was the case with the lizard and the cricket. In addition, the story incorporates interesting facts about the beach town of Encinitas, California, the story’s setting. Read the story to discover who wrote a VERY popular song about the wonderful waves at Swami’s Beach. Read the story to discover how to say, “small lizard” and “cricket” in Spanish and what Yoshi’s cat’s name, Ketzeleh, means in Yiddish. The book also features pages dedicated to the five jewels mentioned in the story and the Sea Glass Cookie recipe. If that wasn’t all, the author included a tune sung to an old sea shanty “Sailing, Sailing.” If you are like me and don’t know the old tune, I would advise looking it up so your family or class can sing “Laggie and Grillo’s Detective Victory Song” to the right beat.

Laggie and Grillo: The Sea Glass Mystery is a book worth reading time and time again. It’s interactive, educational, and visually very cute. Just wait until you see pirate Grillo! ADORABLE!! 

I recommend this book for readers ages 4-8! I also recommend reading the author’s other creations. Oh, I 100% recommend baking up a batch of the Sea Glass Cookies! Yuuuuummmmm! 


Heart Rating System:
1 (lowest) and 5 (highest) 
Score:
❤️❤️❤️❤️1/2

(It will be rounded to 5 on Amazon and Goodreads.)

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Meet the Author

Phyllis Schwartz is a married mother of two, who, after a highly successful career in the TV news business, finally has the time to indulge in and focus on her “civilian” writing. Even as a kid, she kept a diary and wrote little stories and poems, a creative release that continued well into adulthood. She wrote news by day and poetry by night. And despite battling three different types of cancer over more than three decades, she is still filled with energy, joy, and optimism, and she looks forward to writing much more poetry and children’s books in the future. Her writing often centers on what she observes daily: including her friends, husband, and two children, as well as her garden and her beautiful beach town residence in dreamy Encinitas, all providing continued inspiration for her verse.

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FB/Insta: phyllischwartz_author

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One Little Squiggle by Jodi Adams (Book Review)

When you look at this picture, what do you see?

One little squiggle? What else could it be?

 

Follow a young girl armed with a sketchpad and a big imagination as she scooters to Squiggleville, an imaginary place where she joins a circus, explores a jungle, swims with sea creatures, and more. Everywhere she goes, she discovers more things that one little squiggle could be, and she makes squiggly sketches to document it all. Then, drawing inspiration from her adventures in Squiggleville, she returns home and makes the ultimate squiggle art masterpiece.

With its catchy, rhyming text, beautiful illustrations, one-of-a-kind squiggle art made by real kids, and uplifting message about the incredible power of human creativity, One Little Squiggle inspires artists of all ages to think outside the box and make their own squiggle doodles.

Now, it’s your turn. Go on- get creative!   

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I received a complimentary copy of this book from Reedsy Discovery.  I voluntarily chose to read and post an honest review.

 

One Little Squiggle taps into an artist’s mind and asks them, “When you look at this picture, what do you see? One little squiggle? What else could it be?” As the little girl, dressed in mix-matched clothes, scoots her way to Squiggleville, we get an inside look at how one single multi-colored squiggle can be transformed into many ways.

In the enchanting world of Squiggleville, the boundaries of imagination are limitless. You can traverse any landscape, witness any spectacle. Your sole constraint is your own creativity. As readers turn the pages, we see the darling girl’s sketches come alive. A magnificent red dragon, a pink unicorn, an orange four-eyed creature, a colossal snail, a fairy, and others emerge from the strands of colors from the child’s paintbrush. A wildly imaginative circus emerges where pigs fly and a tutu-wearing crocodile leaps through the air. As the scene switches, we watch the artist and her kitty companion interact with a monkey-wearing roller skates and a mermaid. They explore the underwater world and brave the cold before warming their bodies by the fire and turning in for the night.

One Little Squiggle is an extraordinary book. Its rhyming text and vibrant illustrations will amaze and entertain children and adults. I can envision readers eagerly scouring each page for the hidden squiggle lines. Kids racing to see who can spot the lines first. I also suspect they’ll love the one-of-a-kind squiggle art made by real kids as young as 3. I was pleasantly surprised to see adults had their creations added to the book. Loved the personal touch! Great idea!

I urge you to read One Little Squiggle, hunt for the hidden squiggle lines in the artwork, and then gather your art supplies to express what you see when you look at the squiggle. Think beyond the obvious and let your creativity and imagination flow. Your unique interpretations are not only welcome but also an integral part of the squiggle experience.

One Little Squiggle deserves more than 5 stars; it’s that good!

 

Heart Rating System:
1 (lowest) and 5 (highest) 
Score: ❤❤❤❤❤

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Meet the Author

Jodi Adams is a former Crime Scene Investigator turned stay-at-home mom and children’s book author. When she is not reading or writing, Jodi loves to cook and bake, run, golf, and spend time with her family. She grew up in Iowa but now lives in Omaha, NE, with her husband and two kids.

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My ABC Day at the Beach: An Ocean of Alphabet Fun! by Robin H. Elisabeth (Book Review)

 

New! (Revised for 2021)

A unique and joyful children’s picture book! Your child’s day-to-day vocabulary will be broadened through the introduction of words associated with a beach setting. Young learners can review the alphabet, as they read descriptions and see accompanying real-life images. Each alphabet word is presented to help reinforce reading, while the illustrations enhance a child’s imagination to hear the sounds and see the sights. These real-life images target the alphabetic words presented from A to Z. This picture journey will provide an opportunity to create, learn, and share family moments.

Use your imagination to hear the sounds, see the sights, and journey with us to the ocean’s sandy shores to discover an ABC Day at the beach. No matter the day or season, there is something for everyone to see and do on our adventure of ABC fun. We will practice the alphabet, as we explore a treasure chest of educational words. So, give your child an opportunity for vocabulary building, spelling improvement, and fun imagination time! Let’s go!


I set out to write a series of children’s books about ABC adventures with a fun and educational format using real-life pictures. I had my children in mind because when they were learning to read, they were easily bored and extra wiggly. So, getting their attention as youngsters and keeping them still during story time was a HUGE challenge.

I realized that my children needed time to be creative while learning. So, I am adding companion coloring books, flashcards, and workbooks into the series. Who says learning can’t be imaginative and fun? Begin your adventures together and explore a treasure chest of words. My ABC Day series will keep the attention of your child, even the wiggliest of all!

 

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I received a complimentary copy of this book from Reedsy Discovery.  I voluntarily chose to read and post an honest review.

 

Parents are always on the hunt for books to teach or reinforce the alphabet for their youngsters. We seek bright images, fun pictures or illustrations, and familiar ABC objects. Parents and teachers also want to broaden our children’s vocabulary, so we like a book to introduce new words too. My ABC Day at the Beach: An Ocean of Alphabet Fun! by Robin H. Elisabeth checked off all the boxes. 

Before we get to the first page, there’s a page dedicated to personalizing it to your child: “This book belongs to” and “This book is from.” I recall as a child loving to mark my book as mine. It made it more special. I suspect your child will love claiming ownership too. 

My ABC Day at the Beach: An Ocean of Alphabet Fun! isn’t your typical ABC book. It’s not structured where A is for Apple, B is for Boat, and so forth. Each letter has a specific word, emphasized in a red oval with white text and surrounded with bold, black text. Example: Look closely at the sand, and you might find a hermit crab. “Crab” is highlighted in the red oval. All the photos surrounding the specific letter allow imagery of (potentially) unfamiliar words: kayak and oars. Of course, there are many pictures that kids will be pretty familiar with: dump truck, nose, ice cream, and many more. 

Robin H. Elisabeth does NOT highlight every word in each section that begins with a particular letter. For example, “artist” is the word the author wants the child to focus on for the letter A, but you could extend the learning activity easily. Ask your child to find all the letter “A” words on their corresponding pages. Do the same for “B,” “C,” and the rest of the alphabet. For those letters that only have ONE word on the page, ask them what letters they see. 

In the end credits, the author informs readers there are flashcards available on Amazon. They use images straight from the book. Great idea!

 

Heart Rating System:
1 (lowest) and 5 (highest) 
Score: ❤❤❤

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Robin Elisabeth belongs to a small consortium of authors, editors, actors, and dreamers who bring life to children’s books. They collaborate with non-profits to facilitate grant funding for literacy initiatives. As dedicated artists, they enjoy designing reading activities for children’s education programs and products, including books, workbooks, coloring books, and flashcards.

 

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