Review of Follow Your Dreams (Elmer Bailey)

[PinkRose572]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Follow Your Dreams (Elmer Bailey)" by Elmer Bailey.]

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4 out of 5 stars

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Follow Your Dreams treats readers to the various aspirations of children growing up. There is Butch, who, among other things, hopes to become an engineer and build his engineering firm. Then we have Joel, whose only dream is to become a professional footballer. We have Viola, who hopes to become a nuclear engineer. The list goes on to include other young characters like Benny, who wants to become a civil engineer, and Essence, who wishes to become an outstanding teacher someday. Can they be consistent and courageous enough to overcome the challenges that come with life and their aspirations?

Follow Your Dreams is a young adult story written by Elmer Bailey and illustrated by Jon Herzog. The paintings are clear, which should appeal to the readers. I liked that the paintings appropriately captured some memorable events in the story, like Butch's address to the newspaper reporters. The paintings should help readers have a deeper understanding of the events narrated in this book.

I found the thematic preoccupations of this book not just inspirational but also practical. Readers will appreciate the beauty and dignity of a purpose-driven life, the challenges that come with dream actualization, and the role of teamwork in maximizing our potential. I appreciated how the author used Joel's rise, fall, and restoration to pass across very important lessons to the readers.

It was great reading how Bailey artistically blended the characters' aspirations with their hobbies. The characters are lovers of sports. This should encourage readers to build their recreational and social lives even as they pursue their dreams. I especially found the roles of Coach Smaller and Troy crucial and interesting, especially in the heat of some events in this story.

The character development is great and realistic. For example, we see through the characters a raw display of passionate fantasies of what they'd like to become in the future. Some sudden incidents in this story should help readers understand the uncertain nature of life and get prepared to play any cards dealt to them. The pictures and notes at the end of the story helped me understand the reason behind writing this book.

However, I think the character Joel was prematurely cut off from this story. I expected to see him dominate more pages in this book. In addition, I found five grammatical errors in this book. There were also some unclear expressions in this book. Generally, this book seems to have been professionally edited. However, I recommend that the editor please pay more attention to these issues in a subsequent publication.

I rate this book four out of five stars. I removed a star from the rating because of the negative concerns in the above paragraphs. There is no reason to rate it lower. Follow Your Dreams is recommended for readers aged thirteen to eighteen years. It should also appeal to readers who like to read motivational stories. This book should make a great gift for loved ones, especially those who have yet to figure out what career to pursue in life.

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Follow Your Dreams (Elmer Bailey)
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[CrossK]

follow your dreams wow amazing what an interesting novel about Butch and his siblings inspiring on becoming something in the future. It is also interesting on how it talks on the challenges that come with a dream actualization. Great work!