Official Review: Sammie the Salmon by Debra Kline

[Juliana_Isabella]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Sammie the Salmon" by Debra Kline.]

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2 out of 4 stars

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Sammie the Salmon by Debra Kline is a children’s picture book about a tiny salmon fish. Sammie is born prematurely, and his parents are afraid that they could easily hurt him because he is so small. They have to learn to help Sammie make it through his childhood without letting their fear get in the way of Sammie having the experiences that all kids want to have.

I felt compelled to try this book after reading about the author’s experiences raising her premature son, Sam. I really appreciated how the book reflected many parents’ fears about hurting their tiny, premature babies. These fears were communicated in a kid-friendly way, and I think this book could help parents discuss these issues with their kids. The illustrations by Lynda Farrington Wilson are also a positive addition to the book, as they show how tiny Sammie is. I appreciated how she managed to communicate so much emotion on the faces of Sammie’s fish parents.

Although I think this book comes from a great place and has a valuable lesson to teach, I also believe that it could be improved. The lines are meant to rhyme, but the rhyme scheme is inconsistent, making it difficult to read aloud. The rhythm is also not very solid, and it seemed like too many words were crammed into some lines while too few were placed in others. The visual layout of the book could also use some editing, as I found that some pages felt bare. Often, there would be a few lines of plain text on a blank, white page, while the next page would have an illustration and no text. I strongly preferred the pages that contained both an illustration and text, and I think kids would too.

Overall, I would rate this book 2 out of 4 stars. I think this author has a great message to communicate, and the illustrator has done a wonderful job bringing the characters to life. Although I didn’t find any errors in the book, I chose to remove two stars for the inconsistencies in the writing and the issues with formatting in the book.

I would recommend this book for parents of kids ages four to six. It would be especially good for parents of babies born prematurely. However, I really think that the book requires further editing and revision which would help it more effectively communicate its wonderful message.

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Sammie the Salmon
View: on Bookshelves

[LinaJan]

I'm a little unsure about the subject matter, considering the target audience... Whilst this is not my cup of tea, your review was a pleasure to read Frank and informative

[FEislandqueen13]

consistently within the writing and illustration is the key to a successful children's book. thanks for the insightful review.

[Dayodiola]

The fears parents have of their kids only known but never told until they believed their kids are of age. For a book that will guide on how to say it, it sure is great.

Lack of consistency will be a put-off for me would advise the author to try and retrace that end.

[Diana Lowery]

I was interested in your review because I have a grandson named Sam who was born prematurely. I think I will hold off getting this for my son and daughter-in-law until the revisions have been made.

[Christabel Uzoamaka]

I appreciate the author’s line of thought and the lessons tone learnt here. However, it seems that extra work needs to be done to make this piece truly enjoyable.

Thanks for the honest review.

[gelli_baranda]

Birth conditions leading to disabilities have always been a sensitive matter for me, as a disabled person myself. However, it feels nice to break away from the usual romance books and get a good dose of parenting books. Sounds a good read to me.

[Mv94]

The subject of this book is sounding like excellent for small children's book. It seems like the story is told in an easy to understand way.

[Valkyrie9]

This sounds like a beautiful story with a great message to parents and children alike! A pity that the author did not pay more attention to her rhyme scheme. Children will engage more if the words and rhymes flow. Thank you for your honest and thorough review.

[Elvis Best]

I love children books that include animals, so it's sad to hear about the problems in this book. Thanks for your honest review though.

[Topsey]

The premise of this book sounded great so it’s a shame that the formatting and inconsistencies render is less interesting to read. Thank you for the honest review though.

[Usma Khann]

The summary reminded me of 'Finding nemo' where his father is so protective of the little fish. Appreciate the insightful review.

[Miss_chiege]

Salmon is like kids out there. It will equally be good for kids to read it whether born premature or not so as to know the extras parents have to do.

[Rodel Barnachea]

This book could be a great source of comfort for parents who are raising a baby born prematurely. The message is great, and most of the problem lies in the technicalities of the writing so I think a round of editing would have a huge impact on the overall rating of this book.

[drwcroaker]

Too bad the layout of the pages doesn't live up to the book's potential. Hopefully, this can be fixed before it his stores. Thanks for your review.