Review of Kaleb The Brave

[ciecheesemeister]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Kaleb The Brave" by Adam McCoy.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Kaleb the Brave is a children’s story written by Adam McCoy and illustrated by Stephanie Drake. It is based on the experiences of the author’s son, who developed a fear of the dark. The story illustrates the ways in which parents can be supportive of their children, both encouraging them to use their imagination in positive ways and encouraging them to face their fears without shaming them for having the fear.

Kaleb is an imaginative boy who dreams up scenarios of fighting a group of aliens called Revicks. In his imagined scenarios, Kaleb has superpowers, such as the ability to conjure a tornado or even move mountains, and he defends the Earth against the Revicks. However, when he wakes up and must face the still-dark hallway, he imagines monsters lurking in the shadows.

One day, Kaleb dreams of a magical tree that gives him the courage to face his fears. He learns to use the power of his imagination to control his anxiety.

The book is appropriate for middle-grade readers to read on their own, or adults can read the story to younger children. I think that most children will feel that the colorful monsters are fun rather than scary, but there were a few of them that younger children might find a tiny bit frightening.

Overall, Kaleb the Brave is a well-written story that expresses a compassionate approach to childhood fears. I really enjoyed reading it and feel confident in recommending it to parents. I loved the illustrations and found nothing to dislike about the story itself.

My only criticism is the fact that the author switched abruptly from telling the tale from Kaleb’s point of view to telling the story in the third person, and then back again. This happened at the end of chapter four and then again in chapter 5.

I believe that the story was professionally edited. There were no spelling or grammatical errors and the story flowed well and made sense. The switch from the first person to the third person may have been intentional, but it disrupted the flow of the story rather than enhancing to it. It was not a significant enough problem where I would consider removing a star from the rating, but I would recommend that the author might consider reworking this issue for future editions of the book.

I give Kaleb the Brave four out of four stars. It is a wonderful story that I think children of all ages can enjoy, and parents can appreciate it as well.

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Kaleb The Brave
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[Kanchan Sharma]

The review is interesting and intriguing. I love stories with children as the main character. I am eager to read the book and would like to give it to my young children to read it.

[B Sheila Holt]

Great review! You have shown me that this would be a good reading gift for my friend’s kids. I learned a lot of cool information from your review.

[Adrian Rondon Salazar]

The illustrations look great, I will recommend it to my niece.

[Ronna Lambojon]

The review is both informative and interesting. I adore stories in which the protagonist is a child. I'm excited to read the book, and I'd like to share it with my small children.

[Ruq_]

I hope every child out there must be like Kaleb!
Who overcame his fear of darkness!

[The frant1c reader]

Looks like I could take a break from serious novels for sometime! Children's books aren't just for children! Thanks for such a good review!

[Urvashi Tripathi]

I would love to read this book even though its for kids, as everyone have some kind of fears in their life. Hope so this book will help me. Colourful monsters would be fun part for me. Thank you for beautiful review.

[photosynthesis19]

I have a five-year-old nephew who is scared of the dark too. It seems like this would be a great book to give as his next birthday present. I like that the author focuses on the rich imagination that children tend to have, which is something that young readers can probably identify with very well. Thank you for the great review!

[Kavita Shah]

That's a great use of imagination. A tree that gives courage to face your fears. I like the message and it sounds like a really good book for children. Thank you for a delightful review!

[Jevontague]

Thank you for an excellent review! I teach middle school students with learning disabilities and this seems like a great book to add to my bookshelf. I particularly try to find books that my students can read on their own and it seems this may be such a book.
I am a little concerned about the switching from 1st to 3rd person that you had mentioned. Some of my students have difficulty with such shifts, as well as inference/comprehension difficulties that may make such shifts confusing for them. However this book still seems like something I'll want to invest some time and money into - I can definitely see myself creating a few lessons around facing fears and overcoming obstacles!

[Emily_Jen]

This story illustrates the ways in which parents can be supportive of their children, both encouraging them to use their imagination in positive ways and encouraging them to face their fears without shaming them for having the fear. I think the lesson this book teaches is an important one for children. Thanks for the review.