God's Easter Miracles: Adventures of the Sea Kids by Lee Ann Mancini

God's Easter Miracles: Adventures of the Sea Kids
by Lee Ann Mancini

  As a preschool teacher I was interested in getting this book to read and review. Even before I began working with preschoolers, I always had a love for children's books and always found time to read old classics as well as new favorites.
Children will absolutely love the brilliantly-toned illustrations in this picture book. Ages 2-6 will especially love the colorful fish and settings in each picture. I thought the size of the book perfect for holding the attention of a whole class of young listeners.
The text in this book is a little much for two to four-year olds. Pre-K will be able to understand it better. In an effort to open children's eyes to a variety of things, the author included relationship struggles such as real children deal with. One of these relationships includes interacting with an autistic fish in the ''sea children's'' class. One of the fish is encouraged to be especially kind to the autistic fish. On a side, critical note I did feel like there was a little too much emphasis to treat the autistic fish better and thus differently than the other fish, instead of kind of letting him be a part of the group. At the same time, having dealt with autistic preschoolers, I know they are not always like the other children and do get certain privileges. But I think that is often up to the teacher to think of ahead, not the classmates. Teachers should always teach kindness and respect towards others, including those with special needs of course. I don't know if this will make sense at all. I just think children will be left slightly confused about the lessons they should take away from this book. I felt that the text in this book was a little too detailed and specific for the quality of the illustrations and the fact that these are fish, not people. I think the message the author was trying to impress upon children would be suited to a story featuring real children, but not fish! However, there are so many children's books out there that have illustrations which don't always match the text. Many of these books are popular, so I'm sure there will be an audience for this book as well.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion.

More about the book...

Paul, Jimmy, Brian and the whole town, witness God's Easter miracles in this unique story.

"In God's Easter Miracles, the sea kids learn that Easter isn't just about the Easter bunny or candy. It's about Jesus Christ giving up His life for all of us, and how we are to sacrifice ourselves for others. Paul, who is autistic, struggles with relationships. Jimmy doesn't want to share and Lenny clings to life due to a terrible boat accident. "
~from back cover