4 out of 4 stars
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The Oregon Kids: The Big Catch by Bob Richley is a short children’s picture book. The main character in the story, Billy, loves to fish. He and his parents are going on a camping trip, and he is excited that he is going to get to go fishing. However, obstacles keep popping up that stop him from going fishing. With each obstacle, he gets more impatient. When he finally gets to go fishing, his mood is dampened because his little sister follows along. He has to learn to have patience if he is going to enjoy himself.
I love when children’s books have life lessons. Billy’s dad tells him that he is being selfish in the way he is acting because he was getting impatient with his little sister. As the story continues, Billy has to learn to be patient and selfless, especially with his sister. This is such an important lesson for children, and I feel like the book teaches the lesson in a fun way that is easy for the children to understand.
The main character is easy for children to relate to. He is even easy for adults to identify with. Almost everyone can understand what it feels like to be delayed in doing something he or she really wants to do. It is easy to see why he is so impatient. He really wants fish, but he keeps being stopped from doing so. Because Billy is so relatable, it is easier for children to understand the lesson in the story.
The biggest complaint I often have with children’s books is that they are either too difficult to understand, or they are so simple that the writing is boring. This book did not have this problem. The writing was not overly simplified, but it was easy enough that a young child would be able to understand it. It is meant to be read to the child, but I think that children around seven to eight years old could even read and understand it with minimal help.
I also enjoyed the illustrations by Hilbert Bermejo. I think that they depicted the story very well. Each picture was related to what was happening in the text on that page. I have noticed in many children’s books that the pictures do not always match the text. In this book the pictures helped tell the story, which is what illustrations in a picture book should do. I also liked that there was consistently an illustration for each page of text. The uniform pattern of the book is great for young readers.
I really enjoyed this book. I thought it was a great story for children, and I gave it 4 out of 4 stars. I would recommend it to anyone who has or works with kids. It was a well-written story that would be perfect to read with children. I think the ideal age for this story would be about five to eight years old. It is a great book with a great life lesson.
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The Oregon Kids
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