It was a tropical storm day on Monday, and what better way to pass the time than read and review NetGalley picture books! And luckily, there were a few good ones on “read now.”

We started with Tag and the Magic Squeaker by Sam Hundley. So this book was really cool. The story follows a dog that loses his squeaker toy under the couch, a mouse that helps him out, and a suspicious cat. It’s a simple but sweet story perfect for ages 2-5. But the coolest part is that the characters are made of scrap art of dug relics. There is some explanation in the back of the pieces used to make the art, and also a picture of Theo the beagle and his squeaker (the inspiration of the story.) Overall, totally cute and interesting kid’s book that I would highly recommend. And my 3yo & 5yo both said they liked it a whole lot! 😍 We all agree we’d rank this #3 out of the 4 books we read.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Then we moved to Brian the Dancing Lion by Tom Tinn-Oisbury. I loved this book! My kids have actually started dance class, so I thought this message was fantastic. Lion loves to dance, but feels too shy to dance in front of his friends because lions are supposed to be brave and strong and fierce, and no one would think a dancing lion is brave and strong and fierce. But when his friends find out, they’re actually really supportive, and also share their own hobbies (singing, knitting, crafts etc.) Really loved the message of being a supportive friend, and also being brave enough to be yourself! And the illustrations were super cute too. Weirdly both of them said it they only liked it some, 😕 and ranked it #4 of the 4 books we read. (I rank it #2.)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Melville by Paul Schmid was next. A cute little book where the baby octopus goes out on an adventure to find a place just for him and eventually finds his way back to his mother’s embrace. The illustrations are cute and vibrant, and the story is simple but both my 5yo and my 3yo said they liked it a whole lot. 😍 They ranked it #2 out of the 4 books we read. I ranked it #4 but I think it would definitely be a best fit for the younger picture book crowd (ages 1-3), and I’d definitely recommend! 

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Lastly we read My Pet Cloud by Amanda Rawson Hill, and this was unanimously our favorite. The story follows a boy who decides to adopt a cloud as a pet, but realizes there’s a lot to know about taking care of a pet (even a cloud!). The clever story concept perfectly showed the responsibility of having a pet, the illustrations were adorable, and I loved the cloud science knowledge sprinkled throughout. A fantastic story for ages 3-7, and my 3yo and 5yo both said they liked it a whole lot. 😍 Highly recommend!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Got lucky with our picks this time! Thanks so much to NetGalley for the ARCs. (And Husband, stop making me laugh while I’m trying to take embarrassing selfies! 😂)

Thanks for reading!