Jennie Poh

I am a little mixed on this book. Herbie is a hedgehog who is growing up. Mother sends him off to forage on his own, but he is not sure he is ready yet. The message that children need to try new things and not be afraid is good as well as independence, self-reliance, and resourcefulness. The thing I was not sure about was the way this happened. There was no safety net for Herbie and he took many risks that we would not want our children to take. Going to a home of someone he did not know for help is an example of this. I know this is a cute animal story but some children may take this very literally. The illustrations were cute and kids would like them. Of course in the end everything turns out wonderfully for Herbie. Depending on the age of the child reading or listening to this story, some discussion about what was safe and what was not would be advisable.

I received a copy of this book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.… (plus d'informations)

This is an inherently pleasant story about a not-so-little-anymore hedgehog overcoming his self-doubt. When his mother suggests he is ready to embark on a foraging adventure of his own, Herbie is skeptical and maintains that he is too little and therefore incapable. This, at times, can be a persisting attitude in children as they develop their sense of self-confidence.

With its extremely cute illustrations, my only real dissatisfaction stems from the adversity arc. After starting to build his confidence in himself, Herbie's "moment" of bravery was a bit out-there for me, and I generally like very odd story elements - he encounters a "snowbear," which I am unsure whether it's an actual magical being within the story or just a metaphor of a snow flurry... or something? He cuddles up in its "embrace" and sleeps warmly through the snow storm, so I really just don't know. But once that's resolved, the wind blows him back home.

Read to your kid if s/he is driving you nuts with their "I can't!"s and you'd like to address it in a very benign way.

Proceed with caution if your child (like mine) would drive you nuts until the end of your days trying to decipher the "snowbear."

I received a digital copy of this book via NetGalley for reviewing purposes.… (plus d'informations)