Review of Donny and Mary Grace's California Adventure

[sayoniwrites]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Donny and Mary Grace's California Adventure" by Catherine A. Pepe.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Donny and Mary Grace’s California Adventure is a delightful story about the sibling duo Mary Grace Miller and Donny Miller. Catherine A. Pepe, the author, aims to educate children about disability and bullying with this fun story.

Mary Grace is a sharp and witty ten-year-old. Her younger brother, five-year-old Donny, has Down’s syndrome. Donny’s disability never posed any difficulty because Wichita was filled with wonderful and kind people. Mary Grace and Donny loved Wichita and could never think of living anywhere else in the world. But one day, the bad news came: Mr. and Mrs. Miller were asked by the church to go to Africa as missionaries. The kids would have to stay at their grandparents’ home for two years until their parents returned.

This sudden change brought out a lot of worries. Were the people of California as kind as the people of Wichita? How would Mary Grace and Donny adjust to a new place away from their parents? Will the children at the new school accept them? Or will they be bullied for being different? Read this book to see how Mary Grace and Donny deal with the sudden change and uncertainty in their lives.

I enjoyed this book a lot, and the author’s motive is commendable. This book aims to normalize disability and create a society where children can grow up with no stigma. We all know that children learn from their environments. If we were to raise them with kindness, empathy, and love from a young age itself, they will automatically turn out to be humane adults. This book also discusses bullying, that’s quite common in schools. Most of us faced have faced situations where kids bully their peers for being slightly different; Parents and teachers can use this book to create awareness about bullying. This book was filled with some great characters. The story behind the grandma gang was fun to read. Considering that this is book one in A Grandma Gang Mystery Series, I foresee more adventures in future books.

This book was professionally edited, and I found no errors. However, the syntax was too complex for a children’s book. While the dialogues were grammatically correct, it was slightly unrealistic. I found it strange that our miniature protagonists spoke like miniature adults in every situation. They could articulate their emotions clearly with no difficulty. While this book tackled difficult subjects, it represented a rosy picture of real life. I know children’s books are not a place to share the harsh realities of life, but they also should not depict unachievable idealization of life. A great example of this is the plane scene; it would never happen in real life. Considering all these positives and negatives, I will rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. I would have given this book a full-star rating if not for the unrealistic dialogues.

This book expressed children’s emotions through words. Overall, this book shows the power of inclusivity. While this story is useful in instilling good values, the complex sentences make this book unsuitable for young children, especially kids below the age of eight. The message of this book is too important; it should be taught to children, especially from a young age. So, I would love it if the author could create another version of this book with simple dialogues and maybe some illustrations. Because of the complex syntax, I will recommend this book to children who are independent readers and to those looking for middle-grade or YA books with a good message.

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Donny and Mary Grace's California Adventure
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[Mildred Echesa]

I recently read this book, and I surprisingly enjoyed it. Learning about down syndrome was heartfelt for me, but regardless, I enjoyed the book.

[WriteOn]

This book aims to normalize disability and create a society where children can grow up with no stigma. We all know that children learn from their environments. If we were to raise them with kindness, empathy, and love from a young age itself, they will automatically turn out to be humane adults.

I admire your statement sayoniwrites. People with Down's Syndrome are frequently stigmatized due to ignorance, misunderstanding, fear and prejudice. A book that promotes the importance of valuing and respecting people, regardless of their differences, is commendable.
You have explained the story and it's educative content clearly. You have also highlighted your concerns about the content and evidenced it with good examples. Thank you for this great review.

[lawisimportant23]

The book evokes all kinds of emotions in the reader. Great review.

[Oyedeji Funmilayo]

Changing environment is not always an easy task as you never can tell what to expect. This book is a good book for children and adults owing to the issues it addressed and the lessons in it. Wonderful review Welldone!!!