Storybook Corner Book Review: Seraphina Does Everything (Children's Picture Book)

Seraphina Does Everything

by

Melissa Gratias

Illustrated by Sue Cornelison

Publisher: National Center for Youth Issues
Publication date: 9th April 2019
Pages: 32
Format read: eBook
Source: Courtesy of the publisher via Netgalley

 

If I don't open every door, to see what lies within, I'll miss an opportunity, that might not come again. I stay busy day and night, through winter, fall, and spring. I crush my fear of missing out by doing EVERYTHING.

Seraphina wants to do it all. From soccer to ballet to French club, her schedule is jam-packed. However, Seraphina finds she feels blue. With some help from her dad, Seraphina discovers that in trying to do everything, she's missing out on some of her favorite things.

Seraphina Does Everything is a timely reminder that we need to slow down and spend time to relax in this hectic age where the fear of missing out is rife.

What child doesn’t want to try everything? They see a friend doing dancing and want to join in, or sport, gym, singing. There are so many extracurricular activities offered to children these days it’s enticing to want to do everything.

Seraphina is loving life rushing from one after school activity to the next. Weekends are spent driving to and playing sport. However the pace starts to take its toll and Seraphina can’t seem to perform well at anything. Her lessons are falling behind and her friends no longer invite her to parties.

She is doing it all but why is she feeling so blue?

Seraphina learns that she can still do the things she loves the most but she needs balance in her life and time to relax and enjoy her friends.

Dot listened to this story with eyes open wide because she is a girl that likes to try everything too. She decided that Seraphina was very tired because she doesn’t sleep because she might miss out on something in the night.

This beautifully illustrated book is written mainly in rhyming verse. The verse is happy and bouncy, narrated by Seraphina she is happy to be doing everything. When Seraphina feels down this part of the story is in a more subdued prose. Both narration styles suit the book perfectly.

I did get stuck a couple of times reading the story because you strike up a natural rhythm reading rhyming verse and then when it changes it takes a few lines to realise the rhythm has changed. Although on a second read (and this is a gorgeous book that will be read over and over) you know the changes in the pace and it becomes a natural progression.

Seraphina Does Everything will become a favourite story of children and parents alike and is a recommended read for parents who want to discuss the need for balance in the child’s life.

At the end of the book are tips for parents and educators on discussing the importance of balance and how to create it in a child’s life.

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Rated by Dot   5/5    

About the Author:

Photo credit: Goodreads

Melissa Gratias, Ph.D., is an international speaker, coach, blogger, and author. For more than 20 years, Melissa's coaching and consulting work has improved productivity for multinational, billion-dollar companies as well as individual solopreneurs. She creates workable systems so people can accomplish their professional goals in less time and with less stress. As a result, thousands of business owners, CEOs, and other overwhelmed professionals have become more focused, effective, and balanced in their lives and work. Melissa's expertise helps people thrive, and according to her clients, she is knowledgeable, approachable, and "ridiculously fun to work with."

About the Illustrator:

Sue Cornelison graduated  with a BFA from Drake University in Art Education before heading to Florence, Italy to continue her studies at the International School of Studio Arts. Sue has worked as a full time illustrator for over a decade, exploring different techniques and styles. Sue has won many book awards, including Moonbeam, Mom's Choice, Teacher's Choice, and CCBC.

   

Mailbox Monday - May 6th

Mailbox Monday is a meme started by Marcia of To Be Continued. Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came in their mailbox during the last week. It now has a permanent home at the Mailbox Monday blog. Head over and check out other books received during the last week. 

Happy Monday! During the last week I attended an author signing at Hachette Australia head office. It was an interesting night listening to Kelly Rimmer, author of Before I Let You Go, and Natasha Lester, author of A Kiss From Mr Fitzgerald, talk about their writing style, their inspiration and their journey to publication. There was champagne, canapes and a bag of books for everyone. After the talk we went for pizza and coffee.

Natasha Lester

 

Kelly Rimmer

 
















On Sunday my daughter and I decided to visit Australia's iconic Bondi beach. it was a mild autumn day although a little cloudy. We live a long way west of the coast so to visit the beach we first had a 40 minute bus journey east to the city and then another 40 minute bus trip to the coast. There was a protest march in the city so the 40 minute trip turned into 60 minutes. The weather turned and it started to drizzle. The closer we came to the beach the more it rained and when we arrived it was pouring. We found a rustic little cafe run by an elderly Italian couple and had lunch and a warming coffee, took a couple of photos and decided to make the journey home. The walk on Bondi beach will have to wait until another day. 

 

The books I received during the past week.

from the author:

Jacob's Toys by Claudia Woods

A wild storm sends Jacob's toys on an amazing backyard adveture....

How will they ever make it home?


from the publisher for review:

Rogue by A.J. Betts
There was no going back; there was no choice, anymore. I'd chosen out and this was it: hot-cold, dry-wet, bright-dark and lonely.

Hayley has gone rogue.

She's left everything she's ever known - her friends, her bees, her whole world - all because her curiosity was too big to fit within the walls of the underwater home she was forced to flee.

But what is this new world she's come to? Has Hayley finally found somewhere she can belong?
Or will she have to keep running?

from my sister-in-law:

The French Photographer by Natasha Lester
 Manhattan, Paris, 1942: When Jessica May's successful modelling career is abruptly cut short, she is assigned to the war in Europe as a photojournalist for Vogue. But when she arrives the army men make her life as difficult as possible. Three friendships change that: journalist Martha Gellhorn encourages Jess to bend the rules, paratrooper Dan Hallworth takes her to places to shoot pictures and write stories that matter, and a little girl, Victorine, who has grown up in a field hospital, shows her love. But success comes at a price.

France, 2005: Australian curator D'Arcy Hallworth arrives at a beautiful chateau to manage a famous collection of photographs. What begins as just another job becomes far more disquieting as D'Arcy uncovers the true identity of the mysterious photographer -- and realises that she is connected to D'Arcy's own mother, Victorine. 

from Hachette Aus:

Whisper Network by Chandler Baker
 Sloane, Ardie, Grace, and Rosalita have worked at Truviv, Inc. for years. The sudden death of Truviv's CEO means their boss, Ames, will likely take over the entire company. Each of the women has a different relationship with Ames, who has always been surrounded by whispers about how he treats women. Those whispers have been ignored, swept under the rug, hidden away by those in charge.

But the world has changed, and the women are watching this promotion differently. This time, when they find out Ames is making an inappropriate move on a colleague, they aren't willing to let it go. This time, they've decided enough is enough.
Sloane and her colleagues' decision to take a stand sets in motion a catastrophic shift in the office. Lies will be uncovered. Secrets will be exposed. And not everyone will survive.

The Forgotten Letters of Esther Durrant by Kayte Nunn
1951. Esther Durrant, a young mother, is committed to an isolated mental asylum by her husband. Run by a pioneering psychiatrist, the hospital is at first Esther's prison but soon becomes her refuge.

2017. Free-spirited marine scientist Rachel Parker embarks on a research posting in the Isles of Scilly, off the Cornish coast. When a violent storm forces her to take shelter on a far-flung island, she discovers a collection of hidden love letters. Captivated by their passion and tenderness, Rachel determines to track down the intended recipient.

Meanwhile, in London, Eve is helping her grandmother, a renowned mountaineer, write her memoirs. When she is contacted by Rachel, it sets in motion a chain of events that threatens to reveal secrets kept buried for more than sixty years.

What Books did your postman deliver this week?

Post a link to your Mailbox Monday or simply list your books in the comments below.

 

 

 

 

 
 
 

 

Book Review: The Border by Steve Schafer

The Border

by

Steve Schafer

Publisher: Scourcebooks Fire
Publication date: 5th September 2017
Pages: 364
Format read: eBook
Source: Courtesy of the publisher via Netgalley

A band plays, glasses clink, and four teens sneak into the Mexican desert, the hum of celebration receding behind them.
Crack. Crack. Crack.

Not fireworks--gunshots. The music stops. And Pato, Arbo, Marcos, and Gladys are powerless as the lives they once knew are taken from them.

Then they are seen by the gunmen. They run. Except they have nowhere to go. The narcos responsible for their families' murders have put out a reward for the teens' capture. Staying in Mexico is certain death, but attempting to cross the border through an unforgiving desert may be as deadly as the secrets they are trying to escape...

The Border is the debut novel of author Steve Schafer.

Four Mexican teenagers witness the cold blooded murder of their families, by a band of Narcos, whilst attending a 16^th Birthday celebration. They flee into the darkened night with the sounds of death threats ringing in their ears.

Schafer has lived, worked, volunteered and travelled throughout most of latin America, including northern Mexico and it is clear he has extensively researched his topic.

The story is narrated in the first person by 16 year old Pato. But we also get a good sense of the other three main characters, Arbo, Marco and Gladys.

When they realise their only means of escape is across the Sonoran Desert into the USA the teens are naive and unprepared. Desperate situations call for desperate measures.

It’s easy to feel empathy for these four teens. Good kids who have been placed in a life or death situation. Throughout the story they bicker, they get along, they dream and occasionally the leadership role shifts but most of all they are scared; just like normal teens.

This is a timely and relevant story with the immigration debate currently storming in America.

The Border is a highly emotional and thought provoking read with palpable suspense and page turning action.

Highly recommended!

A few words from the author:

Political discourse often loses sight of the individuals at the heart of the issue. To generalize they are people in need. They leave desperate situations to  find an opportunity for a better life.

                                        

My rating    5/5 

Content: violence

                 mild sexual reference

                                🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟  

Photo credit: Goodreads

 

Steve Schafer is an avid cultural explorer, animal lover, bucket-list filler, and fan of the great outdoors.

He has a master’s degree in international studies from Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania. He lives in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, with his wife and two children. The border is his first novel.