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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
It's hard to say who the audience for this book is. It's a very bleak look at a family stricken by poverty. The story is centered around Jackson, a boy observing facts from his life that show that his family is heading toward homelessness again. His father has MS, and his mother works three jobs. Jackson is forced to be strong for his parents and for his younger sister, while he's trying to figure out why his imaginary friend, Crenshaw, is back.
Crenshaw. *sigh*
I feel like Crenshaw added nothing to the story. He was just there. Yes, he helped Jackson realize the lesson before the end of the book, but I feel that Jackson could've learned that through other means, perhaps his friend Marisol. The moments from Crenshaw were forced and took away time that could've been spent on developing the family a bit more.
This is not a hopeful story. I understand that it's supposed to be given the ending, but given the attention that was given to how the family came into poverty, it's hard to see it that way.
Spoiler
What made me angry was his dad's refusal to get help, despite his mom's pleas. His kids are starving for crying out loud!Crenshaw. *sigh*
I feel like Crenshaw added nothing to the story. He was just there. Yes, he helped Jackson realize the lesson before the end of the book, but I feel that Jackson could've learned that through other means, perhaps his friend Marisol. The moments from Crenshaw were forced and took away time that could've been spent on developing the family a bit more.
This is not a hopeful story. I understand that it's supposed to be given the ending, but given the attention that was given to how the family came into poverty,
Spoiler
and the appearance of the dad's MS getting worse, which can affect his new job,
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
Lovely story. Very well told. We enjoyed snuggling and feeling grateful for what we have while we read this story together.
emotional
hopeful
sad
I was really excited when I got my hands on this book, but it was so disappointing. The entire book felt like the lead-up to something that never came. Readers get no explanation as to why any of it happens, and the explanation that was heavily hinted at (imaginary friends show up when you need them) is shot down at the end; the kid's problems get resolved (although the resolution seems very flimsy to me), he feels better, but the cat still sticks around. Why?!?! I also found Crenshaw to be a very shallow character, and the little bit of his personality that we do see is annoying.
این کتاب رو برای هدیه گرفتم ولی وسوسه شدم اول خودم بخونمش
من هیچ وقت دوست خیالی با تعریف کتاب نداشتم ولی از خوندنش لذت بردم.... منم همیشه مثه جکسون دنبال واقعیت ها بوده ام و توی هر اتفاقی دنبال دلیل میگردم.... شاید به قول ماریسول دوست جکسون باید اینکارو رها کنم و دنبال لذت بردن از جادوهای زندگی باشم!!!!
https://taaghche.com/book/78001/پاستیل-های-بنفش
من هیچ وقت دوست خیالی با تعریف کتاب نداشتم ولی از خوندنش لذت بردم.... منم همیشه مثه جکسون دنبال واقعیت ها بوده ام و توی هر اتفاقی دنبال دلیل میگردم.... شاید به قول ماریسول دوست جکسون باید اینکارو رها کنم و دنبال لذت بردن از جادوهای زندگی باشم!!!!
https://taaghche.com/book/78001/پاستیل-های-بنفش
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
“I guess becoming homeless doesn’t happen all at once. My mom told me once that money problems sort of sneak up on you. She said it’s like catching a cold. At first you just have a tickle in your throat, and then you have a headache, and then maybe you’re coughing a little. The next thing you know, you have a pile of Kleenexes around your bed and you’re hacking your lungs up.”
That quote really stuck with me after reading this book. I am currently doing a final project on homelessness/poverty in my children’s literature class. I think this book was really powerful and had a lot of great themes. Ultimately, it is written in such a way that children will be able to empathize with those who have money struggles in their families (or relate to the main character themselves), and the takeaway of this is that life isn’t always fair, but you can always find the magic and the bright side to every bad situation.
I love that the main character had an imaginary friend who was a big cat (I’m a crazy cat lady), and thought this had a lot of funny moments that would definitely work with children. However, I think this is maybe too long for the targeted age group and the pacing/timelines got a little wonky. I found myself confused at some points as to whether we were in the present, or the past. Not to mention the actual imaginary cat, Crenshaw, was barely in the story.
This was also overwhelmingly sad. For a book that’s telling kids to “enjoy the magic while you can” (in reference to having imaginary friends and enjoying your childhood) this was a bit too dark at times. It was just too messy. One moment it’s funny and childlike, and the next it’s very depressing.
I remember watching my mom cry over money and I remember how that made me mature faster as a child, but I just don’t think I’d want to have my future child or kids in my library read this one. It’s a bit too serious and the original message gets lost. I see what the author was trying to do with the story, but I just don’t think it was executed as well as it could have been.
That quote really stuck with me after reading this book. I am currently doing a final project on homelessness/poverty in my children’s literature class. I think this book was really powerful and had a lot of great themes. Ultimately, it is written in such a way that children will be able to empathize with those who have money struggles in their families (or relate to the main character themselves), and the takeaway of this is that life isn’t always fair, but you can always find the magic and the bright side to every bad situation.
I love that the main character had an imaginary friend who was a big cat (I’m a crazy cat lady), and thought this had a lot of funny moments that would definitely work with children. However, I think this is maybe too long for the targeted age group and the pacing/timelines got a little wonky. I found myself confused at some points as to whether we were in the present, or the past. Not to mention the actual imaginary cat, Crenshaw, was barely in the story.
This was also overwhelmingly sad. For a book that’s telling kids to “enjoy the magic while you can” (in reference to having imaginary friends and enjoying your childhood) this was a bit too dark at times. It was just too messy. One moment it’s funny and childlike, and the next it’s very depressing.
I remember watching my mom cry over money and I remember how that made me mature faster as a child, but I just don’t think I’d want to have my future child or kids in my library read this one. It’s a bit too serious and the original message gets lost. I see what the author was trying to do with the story, but I just don’t think it was executed as well as it could have been.