Review of NICO
Posted: 13 Jul 2024, 12:16
[Following is a volunteer review of "NICO" by Marlene Rattigan.]
NICO, written by Marlene Rattigan and illustrated by Sergio Drumond, is a children’s story about a clever and friendly parrot named Nico, whose joyous demeanor captives everyone around him. Nico loves living with Kim (a young girl) and thrives on entertaining her friends with tricks and chatter.
Unfortunately, Nico experiences loneliness during the long summer days when Kim and her mother are away for hours. His distress results in his refusing food and ceasing his lively shows upon their return. However, Kim suggests to her mom that they take Nico to the flower shop, which changes Nico’s demeanor.
After arriving at the flower shop and learning new words, Kim goes off on the train by herself, and Nico decides to fly after her. Unfortunately, he did not find her on the train and got lost. Fortunately, the empathetic Inspector (the book capitalizes ‘inspector’ to refer to this character) finds Nico. Will the Inspector help find Nico’s family? Will Nico ever see Kim again? Will he have a new purpose to maintain a positive demeanor? Read this book and find out.
I like that the book has proper dialogue tags, making reading easy for kids. In addition, the book uses simple yet straightforward language, eliminating the chance of confusion for young readers. I also liked that young readers are encouraged to pay attention to details, such as whether Kim wears glasses. In addition, the author adds facts about sulphur-crested cockatoos, making the short story very educational. Lastly, I liked that the book demonstrates the power of empathy and socialization in combating loneliness.
One note for American parents and children is that the word “crikey” (informally used in Australian and British English) means “wow” or “gosh.” At first, I thought it was Kim’s nickname, but after checking the word in a dictionary, I understood it.
My only criticism is that the book had missing commas, which could improve readability for younger children, especially those learning to read. However, this did not detract from the reading experience. In addition, I only found one grammatical mistake, and the book is well-edited. I rate it 5 out of 5 stars. I recommend NICO to families who want an educational children’s book with themes of empathy and loneliness and to readers who enjoy stories about birds or want to learn more about sulphur-crested cockatoos.
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NICO
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
NICO, written by Marlene Rattigan and illustrated by Sergio Drumond, is a children’s story about a clever and friendly parrot named Nico, whose joyous demeanor captives everyone around him. Nico loves living with Kim (a young girl) and thrives on entertaining her friends with tricks and chatter.
Unfortunately, Nico experiences loneliness during the long summer days when Kim and her mother are away for hours. His distress results in his refusing food and ceasing his lively shows upon their return. However, Kim suggests to her mom that they take Nico to the flower shop, which changes Nico’s demeanor.
After arriving at the flower shop and learning new words, Kim goes off on the train by herself, and Nico decides to fly after her. Unfortunately, he did not find her on the train and got lost. Fortunately, the empathetic Inspector (the book capitalizes ‘inspector’ to refer to this character) finds Nico. Will the Inspector help find Nico’s family? Will Nico ever see Kim again? Will he have a new purpose to maintain a positive demeanor? Read this book and find out.
I like that the book has proper dialogue tags, making reading easy for kids. In addition, the book uses simple yet straightforward language, eliminating the chance of confusion for young readers. I also liked that young readers are encouraged to pay attention to details, such as whether Kim wears glasses. In addition, the author adds facts about sulphur-crested cockatoos, making the short story very educational. Lastly, I liked that the book demonstrates the power of empathy and socialization in combating loneliness.
One note for American parents and children is that the word “crikey” (informally used in Australian and British English) means “wow” or “gosh.” At first, I thought it was Kim’s nickname, but after checking the word in a dictionary, I understood it.
My only criticism is that the book had missing commas, which could improve readability for younger children, especially those learning to read. However, this did not detract from the reading experience. In addition, I only found one grammatical mistake, and the book is well-edited. I rate it 5 out of 5 stars. I recommend NICO to families who want an educational children’s book with themes of empathy and loneliness and to readers who enjoy stories about birds or want to learn more about sulphur-crested cockatoos.
******
NICO
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon