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acourtofreading's review against another edition
3.0
love that this book had kiddos of different races, but it was a little long for a preschool storytime. Great book for a child who is about to take swimming lessons!
barbarianlibarian's review against another edition
2.0
i feel like this would be more likely to scare nervous swimmers rather than make them feel more confident. also, it seems totally unrealistic. have you ever seen kids wear a mix of arm floaties and life vests during a learn to swim class? and who puts flippers on little kids learning to swim?!
ajv930's review against another edition
3.0
I liked the text but really hated seeing the illustrations of kids in arm floaties and life jackets during a swimming lesson. As someone who has been teaching swimming lessons for 25 years, this probably bothered me more than it would other readers, but I was also hoping this book could be suggested to parents whose children are afraid of the water or if there is bad weather and we have to get out before the lesson ends.
jesstele's review against another edition
4.0
These illustrations are just too cute! Definitely a book to reassure kids who are nervous about pools and swimming. Nicely done.
backonthealex's review against another edition
4.0
In this picture book about that first scary swimming lesson, an off-page narrator tries to encourage a very reluctant young girl to take that first plunge. After getting suited up, the girl stands at the pool's edge with her swim class while the swim teacher begins by teach pool safety and etiquette. Then it's time to jump into the water, but our protagonist remains behind, afraid the cold water will turn her into a kidsicle, not liking the smell of the chlorine, afraid of the pool's filter - what if it's really a creature? The narrator gently explains away all these fears, while the swim teacher allows the girl time to conquer each one. So she sits at the pool's edge and practices blowing bubbles and kicking while the other kids learn to do this in the pool. What finally gets our girl to jump into the pool? Reassurance that her teachers will catch her, and the promise of trying out some flippers. Patience and humor win the day in this sweet story about overcoming fear. The playful cartoon-like pool illustrations are done in shades of chlorine blues surrounded by white tiles against the colorful bathing suits of all the swimmers, including the supportive older women doing water aerobics. Pair this with Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall and Saturday is Swimming Day by Hyewom Yum for a nice collection of learning to swim/conquering fear books.
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