Pages

Friday, December 30, 2016

Review: The Rhino Who Swallowed a Storm by LeVar Burton, Susan Schaefer Bernardo, Courtenay Fletcher (Illustrator)

23720749Title: The Rhino Who Swallowed A Storm
Authors: LeVar Burton and Susan Schaefer Bernardo
Illustrator: Courtenay Fletcher
Published: Oct. 7, 2014
Publisher: Reading Rainbow
Pages: 32 (print)
Genre: Children ages 4 on up
Review: ebook from library
Buy Links: Amazon, Amazon.uk 





When little Mica Mouse is scared by thunder booming outside her cozy home, Papa Mouse reaches for just the right story to comfort her. Hugging her close, he begins to read The Rhino Who Swallowed a Storm. In this poetic book-within-a-book, a happy little rhinoceros is overwhelmed by a storm that sweeps away everything he loves. Swallowing the storm just makes him feel worse, so Rhino sets off on a whimsical journey toward healing. Along the way, he meets many friends, including a kind spider, a brave kangaroo, a wise tortoise, and an uplifting whale. With their help, Rhino lets go of the storm inside and learns to see the light in a world turned gray. Mica Mouse is soothed by the story and Papa’s gentle reminder that even though bad things sometimes happen, the world is full of people who care.







She is 4 and didn't understand the message that was within the story she just thought it was sad that a storm got rid of everything and that Rhino was in a hole. Then she liked how she got to see a lot of different animals in a circle at the end and laughed when he sat on a tortoise which gave great wisdom. 

For this story this is a storm outside that Mica the mouse is scared of and it is because her home was destroyed. Her papa tells her the story of the rhino who swallowed a storm after his own home was gone and how he coped it with it all. He needed his friends to help him understand he doesn't have to keep things bottled up inside. He should talk about what is bothering him. 
The book does rhyme and the pictures are pretty good.
I think this is a good book for children to read and maybe understand the message that is being told.






LeVar Burton is an actor, director, and educator who has been an icon for more than 35 years. He was the host and producer of the influential television program Reading Rainbow for more than three decades, and starred in the TV miniseries Roots and on Star Trek: The Next Generation. He lives in Burbank, California.

Susan Schaefer Bernardo
One of my books is in SPACE!!! (I had to lead with that - it has been such a grand adventure!)
Hello! I've been writing poetry and stories since I could hold a crayon. I'm a former language arts teacher with a BA from UCLA and my MA in English Lit from Yale.

In between writing projects, I facilitate creativity workshops and stay close to my inner flower child by dancing, raising cats and chickens, traveling, sculpting, painting, tide pooling and taking nature hikes with my two sons (some of these excursions led to me create the ABC Guidebooks Explores Santa Barbara Coloring Guidebook for Kids!)
Sun Kisses, Moon Hugs was my first children's picture book -- what a joy to see that the book is helping kids stay connected to people they love and miss. My next book was The Rhino Who Swallowed a Storm, which I co-authored with LeVar Burton, to help kids cope with traumatic events and realize there are helpers all around them. The Rhino Who Swallowed a Storm was selected as part of the Storytime from Space program and is currently orbiting earth aboard the International Space Station. (I even got to go to the Kennedy Space Center when they launched the rocket that carried the Cygnus spacecraft with my book aboard - and watched breathlessly when the Cygnus attached to the Space Station.)
In addition to writing books for kids, I'm a published poet (see The Cancer Poetry Project 2 anthology and All We Can Hold due out in Summer 2016). I am currently revising a novel for young adults and working on new picture books. I am a strong believer in the magical healing powers of nature and creativity! xoxo


No comments:

Post a Comment