What readers are saying about My COMPLICATED WEEK AND MY IMAGINARY Week:
A grandmother writes that her granddaughter Eva (6 yrs., Florida) is “thoroughly enjoying Volume 1 of Annabelle-Please-Don’t-Tell! – ‘My Complicated Week.’ The characters and the dialog are so appropriate. For starters, she is definitely adding vocabulary. She and her sister enjoyed the illustrations, too, and really laughed at the ‘tomato helmet.’ Honestly, I planned to read only the first 2 chapters today but they insisted I keep reading. A wonderful book! Thanks for writing it!!!” T.R. on Facebook – December 23, 2015
Provocative and Charming Stories (5 Stars)
I’m a grand mom and enjoy reading to my grandchildren. This is a favorite. I love My IMAGINARY Week’s gentle and provocative stories and the children find the book’s unique characters and situations charming and interesting. K.G. on Amazon – July 13, 2015
A Delightful Story Full of Humor and Big Ideas (5 Stars)
This is a delightful story – the characters come to life on the page. Children will laugh and anticipate the next line as they think through the puzzles with Annabelle and her little brother. This is a great read aloud story – and equally wonderful for the emerging reader. Each chapter is rich in language and ideas that will have you and the children you are reading to talking and thinking about long after you’ve closed the book. You’ll find your child (or students) begging you to read “just one more chapter….” T.G. on Amazon – September 17, 2014
Smart and original (5 Stars)
Carole Lyn Woodring’s debut chapter book for elementary grades Annabelle-Please-Don’t-Tell! is nothing short of original—and filled with vibrant, intelligent, and engaging prose for the young reader. The title of the series itself is an excellent cue as to what one can expect to find—an inventive narration by the title character and well-written, accessible yet still imaginative dialogue between characters.
From the very first line, a line that very well could be lifted from a poem’s stanza due to its unique phrasing, the reader is invited into a story that taps into a world of surprises, secrets, playfulness and emotion. Woodring clearly knows how to engage a young reader but is also willing to challenge them with exuberant and inventive descriptions of everyday activities. In her writing, she also acknowledges and validates that children possess a certain level of emotional intelligence and trusts that her readers will be able to understand Annabelle’s experiences by way of her realistic and smart narration. Sometimes this can be a missing element in children’s literature as there can exist an assumption that such emotional intelligence is not yet in place at such young ages.
The expressive illustrations by Kasia Simura succeed in bringing Woodring’s prose to life, and offering readers a chance to see the characters and scenes but still leaving room for a child’s imagination to fill in the rest throughout. An excellent first book of an ongoing series. Amy A. on Amazon – February 1, 2015
See More great reviews at Amazon and Goodreads!
And other comments …
- “This book is so much fun! We loved talking about how the children and parents had different perspectives on the same things.” Sherri Doebrick and her daughter McKenna (8 years old)
- My friend’s granddaughter kept saying, “Please Grammy, just one more chapter!” M.G. contacting us about My COMPLICATED Week, February 5, 2015.