I really enjoyed reading this book. I liked it because of the illustrations and the story. I picked this book for one of my multicultural books because it dealt with a boy who had a physical disability. The book never outright stated that he had a disability but you could tell that the boy was in the wheelchair with the illustrations. The book was divided into the four seasons. During each of the seasons the color palette for the book was different. For the spring and summer the colors were brighter and for the winter and fall the colors were darker, colder. The illustrations really helped the story move along and they were beautiful paintings. One thing I liked about this book was the idea of a handicap boy being able to engage in activities in the story without seeming different from anyone else. The story starts with Ben and his grandfather climbing down on the rocks to the water and later in the book Ben is shown taking surfing lessons. This book really shows how even though someone may be handicapped he or she is not so different from anyone else. The story is about Ben and his grandfather sharing this special bond of going to the cliff by the ocean and finding seals. Ben develops a friendship with the seal as well and even after a year the seal was there for safe Ben from drowning in the ocean. The main message of this book is friendship and it can be seen through various points in the text. ( )

In my opinion, this was a great book. The first reason I enjoyed this book was that it was written in an interesting point of view. While it was written entirely in third person, there were certain points of the book that seemed to emphasize the young boy, while others seemed to emphasize the baby seal. For example, when the young boy went surfing and was saved by the seal, it was written in a viewpoint that emphasized the young boy. Also, I enjoyed the characters of the story. The main characters of the story were the young boy who had a physical disability, his grandfather, and the two seals they saw when they visited the ocean. I thought the character development of the boy with a disability portrayed a good message about the abilities of people with disabilities. For example, the young boy learned to surf despite his disability which gives the reader the message that many things were possible for the boy. The main message of this book was that people with disabilities can accomplish great things with the support of those around them. ( )

Seal Surfer, by Michael Foreman, is a story heartwarming story about a boy and his grandfather which I had a really easy time relating to. I liked this story for one, because of its characters, the boy is developed very well as a loving character that wants to be in nature. After a few pages realize him and his grandfather have a very close relationship, which I related to. The characters in this book were developed well and made me think about real life people. Another thing I liked about this book was the push topic of a handicap kid being able to do things everyone else does. Since the boy is handicap, most children would expect him to not be very active but the story starts with him and his grandfather climbing down on the rocks to the water. Another scene in the book shows the boy surfing, making this handicap boy very active allows for great conversation on how handicap children are the same as 'normal' children are. Another thing I liked about this story was the plot. The story is mainly about a boy and a seal that saves his life, giving a good touching intro of a new born seal. Which connects well with the young boy, they almost follow each other through life which was great and allowed for a huge connection between reader, seal, and boy. The big picture of the picture book was friendship. Friendship was made between the seal and the boy and the boy and his grandfather. ( )

I really enjoyed this book for the character, setting, and plot developments, as chronicled by the changing seasons, and because of the illustrations. I liked that the story moved through time, eventually moving through over 2 years, but separated by seasons. The author used the seasons to create setting, letting the reader imagine what it’s like in those seasons in comparison to what is happening in the story. For example, winter is cold and dead, and in the story, the seal gets into a bit of trouble during the first winter during a winter storm. The change in seasons also helps the plot because it aids in the character development of the boy in the story. The read is able to see him grow up and can see him become more independent as he ages and begins taking over his grandfather’s fishing job. The other thing that I liked in the story was the illustrations. They were beautiful and very detailed, but also contained a very important piece of the story that was not written in the text: the boy in the story had a physical disability requiring him to use crutches or a wheelchair. This is not learned unless you look at the illustrations, though. I loved that the story showed that the boy was not defined by his disability, which is also a main idea of it, and that the boy could live a happy, normal life, even allowing him to surf with his friends, watch and feed seals, and fish. This would be a very important book to have in a special education classroom, as it shows that someone with a disability can have the same experiences as those without disabilities. ( )

Bit long for read aloud. Follows a boy and a seal through eight seasons-their interactions and similarities in life-they surf together. ( )