Let me start off by saying that this book is FANTASTIC. Before I tell you why, let me make it clear that this book is WAY out of Ellie's age range. There's a fair amount of text on each paper page. Hopefully she will soon be able to be trusted with paper page books, but still not quite yet. And she's still too little to 'get' the moral of the story. I'd say ages 4 and up will appreciate this story. I won't put a top age on that because even I liked it and I'm 27 and a half.
Now, what makes it so great? Oh, just everything. I love the premise of the book - a group of pirates decides to retire and move to the country, next door to a down-to-earth farm family. The kids struggle with how to 'love their neighbor' when their neighbors are so odd. The story is silly, without resorting to childish or inappropriate humor. The illustrations are vibrant and beautiful, but perfectly reflect the story's silliness without looking like a child or amateur drew them. And the author does a fantastic job of driving the biblical point home without beating you over the head with scripture.
Check out the illustrations and my two other favorite 'features' of this book...
The bottom left image is found at the beginning of the book. A cast of characters. Like the maps at the beginning of Lord of the Rings or Chronicles of Narnia, I love this addition because it really helps you connect with the story a lot faster. The author doesn't have to take extra time explaining who is who in the pictures when there's a map right in the beginning! It's also helpful for parents to be able to answer the inevitable toddler questions.
The bottom right image is found at the end of the book. It's a letter from the author to the parents. She tells about her inspiration for writing the book AND empathy for the parents on how to teach these tough subjects to your kids. If nothing else, it just makes you feel good and it was incredibly thoughtful of the author to include. This book was clearly written with both the children AND the parents in mind and that's part of what makes it so refreshing. I think the right pastor (*cough*dad*cough*) could preach a sermon using this book and pull it off quite well. Yes, it's that good.
Ok, final verdict: I love this book. I can't wait to share it with Ellie when she's old enough to care. Right now, she likes looking at the pictures, but I don't trust her with the pages, so we put it on the special shelf. But I can't recommend this book more highly. It's adorable and silly and teaches such a fantastic message that you cannot overemphasize - love your neighbor!
Disclaimer: Zondervan provided me with a free copy of this book for reviewing purposes. All opinions are 100% mine.
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