Official Review: 25 Days of Roses by Mellanie Brown

MsH2k · Post by **MsH2k** » 26 May 2020, 13:38

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "25 Days of Roses" by Mellanie Brown.]

1 out of 4 stars

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Marcus is a well-mannered third-grader with an interesting dilemma. His mother’s birthday (which happens to be on Mother’s Day) is in three days, and he has picked the perfect gift: roses. However, the roses cost twenty-five dollars, and he only has fifteen. How will he find ten dollars in three days?

This challenge was a great beginning to 25 Days of Roses, a children’s book by Mellanie Crouell Brown. By the end of the first day, Marcus had several options—some with a higher chance of success than others. My favorite part of this book was seeing how much Marcus loved his mother and how hard he was willing to work to buy her the roses. I could picture him listing his options as he decided how to proceed.

Unfortunately, this book had no illustrations. A few strategically placed drawings would engage the target audience (ages seven through eleven). It would also help the flow of the dialogue, which felt forced. Almost every line contained a vocative even when it was obvious who was taking part in the conversation. In addition, there were many punctuation and capitalization errors.

The story took an unexpected turn in the last few pages of the book. Without giving away too much detail, it dealt with the circumstances of the death of Marcus’s grandfather. This event was revealed too abruptly, particularly since it had not been an acknowledged part of the story beforehand. It was a disturbing scene that was disclosed unexpectedly and wrapped up in two pages. This was what I disliked most about the book. I recommend this story arc be removed to let the focus remain on Marcus and his quest for his mother’s roses.

There were also a few logic errors in this 31-page read. The most obvious error was when Marcus’s grandmother said that his mother was a young girl when his grandfather died forty years ago. But they were preparing to celebrate his mother’s thirtieth birthday. A quick calculation would show a discrepancy of at least ten years.

I rate 25 Days of Roses 1 out of 4 stars. I deducted one star for the many punctuation errors and another star for the lack of illustrations. I deducted the last star because of the logic errors and the handling of the grandfather’s death. The core storyline is delightful, but in its current state, I would not recommend this book to the intended audience or their parents/other adults. The punctuation errors do not set a good example for young students. In addition, there are logic errors that could cause confusion, and the handling of the grandfather’s death may disturb the target age group.

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25 Days of Roses
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GiselleBengochea · Post by **GiselleBengochea** » 27 May 2020, 12:45

You did an excellent job! Thank you for your honesty in your review! I am in agreement with you about grammatical, spelling, and logical errors being in a children's book. This maybe interpreted as the 'correct' or standard way to produce written work as the targeted audience is young and impressionable. Excellent review!

Post by **Ngozi Onyibor** » 27 May 2020, 15:50

I wouldn't expect a children's book to broach a topic as heavy as death, even though I understand why the author might think it appropriate. I hope she will make the suggested changes. Thanks for your detailed review.

MsH2k · Post by **MsH2k** » 27 May 2020, 18:30

GiselleBengochea wrote: ↑27 May 2020, 12:45 You did an excellent job! Thank you for your honesty in your review! I am in agreement with you about grammatical, spelling, and logical errors being in a children's book. This maybe interpreted as the 'correct' or standard way to produce written work as the targeted audience is young and impressionable. Excellent review!

Thank you for your comment and for stopping by! What time is dinner, and what can I bring?

MsH2k · Post by **MsH2k** » 27 May 2020, 18:37

Michelle Fred wrote: ↑27 May 2020, 15:50 I wouldn't expect a children's book to broach a topic as heavy as death, even though I understand why the author might think it appropriate. I hope she will make the suggested changes. Thanks for your detailed review.

I think it was more the shock of having it brought up so unexpectedly and the circumstances than his actual death. I really hope she makes the changes, too. This book has lots of potential. Thanks for your visit, Michelle.

Nonso Samuelson · Post by **Nonso Samuelson** » 27 May 2020, 21:08

It's sad that the book had no illustrations. They would have really helped readers to visualize the story.

MsH2k · Post by **MsH2k** » 28 May 2020, 00:13

Jachike Samuelson wrote: ↑27 May 2020, 21:08 It's sad that the book had no illustrations. They would have really helped readers to visualize the story.

It really would have been nice to see Marcus as he interacted with his friends and family. I hope there is another edition of this book. It is a sweet story. Thanks for your visit and your comment, Jachike.

Adanna Inya · Post by **Adanna Inya** » 28 May 2020, 08:55

All the issues raised about the book resonates with me. Most importantly, there is no room for grammar, and punctuation errors in a children's book because this is how they expand their vocab. However, I love premise, a show of pure innocent love and responsibility. Thank you for a beautiful review.

MsH2k · Post by **MsH2k** » 28 May 2020, 18:42

Adanna Inya wrote: ↑28 May 2020, 08:55 All the issues raised about the book resonates with me. Most importantly, there is no room for grammar, and punctuation errors in a children's book because this is how they expand their vocab. However, I love premise, a show of pure innocent love and responsibility. Thank you for a beautiful review.

I do hope the author makes some revisions and releases another edition of this book. Marcus’s story is a sweet one. Thank you for your visit, Adanna. I appreciate your comment.

Caffrey_19 · Post by **Caffrey_19** » 29 May 2020, 06:12

Marcus seems like the type of protagonist that indulges the audience to a certain level. Too bad the storyline was disrupted by an unnecessary insertion. Nice work on the review.

MsH2k · Post by **MsH2k** » 29 May 2020, 15:15

Caffrey_19 wrote: ↑29 May 2020, 06:12 Marcus seems like the type of protagonist that indulges the audience to a certain level. Too bad the storyline was disrupted by an unnecessary insertion. Nice work on the review.

Yes, that insertion was quite a surprise. Thanks for your visit and your comment!

Jlblawrence · Post by **Jlblawrence** » 30 May 2020, 14:20

It's a shame this story was so marred by spelling issues. It sounds like it would have been a heart warming story. Thank you for the review.

fadjei · Post by **fadjei** » 30 May 2020, 23:57

This sounds like a sweet story. However, there were many errors found in the writing. I definitely agree with the points you have made. It is essential that children's books are free of grammatical errors given the fact that they are being read by young impressionable readers.
Thanks for the review!

MsH2k · Post by **MsH2k** » 31 May 2020, 00:07

Jlblawrence wrote: ↑30 May 2020, 14:20 It's a shame this story was so marred by spelling issues. It sounds like it would have been a heart warming story. Thank you for the review.

The central story really is heart warming. I hope the author decides to send it for another round of editing.
Thank you for your visit.

MsH2k · Post by **MsH2k** » 31 May 2020, 00:11

fadjei wrote: ↑30 May 2020, 23:57 This sounds like a sweet story. However, there were many errors found in the writing. I definitely agree with the points you have made. It is essential that children's books are free of grammatical errors given the fact that they are being read by young impressionable readers.
Thanks for the review!

Thank you for stopping by! I appreciate your comment.