Official Review: Sock Lobsters by Michelle Bulriss
Posted: 05 Dec 2020, 08:27
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Sock Lobsters" by Michelle Bulriss.]
Sock Lobsters is a unique and wonderful children’s book by Michelle Bulriss. The story begins with an elderly lady knitting her adult granddaughter a pair of socks that look like lobsters. The socks are magical, and when the granddaughter receives them, she can hear them talking to her.
One sock is named Sebastian. He is a bit grouchy and tends to see the dark side of life. The other sock is named Lola, and she tends to look on the bright side. The socks like each other and Emily.
One day when Emily takes the socks to the laundromat, Lola falls out of the basket on the way home. The story discusses the stages of grief that both Lola and Sebastian go through being separated from each other. Parents don’t need to worry about the story making kids sad, though. It does have a happy ending.
I think that the author did an excellent job of illustrating the stages of grief to young readers, and adults can benefit from the story’s gentle wisdom as well. I believe that the story was professionally edited as I found no errors in the text. The pictures are bright and compelling, and the text was easy to read against the background.
I found nothing to dislike about this book. Although it is written for children, adults can find comfort and humor in it as well. We have all struggled with losses. I related to Sebastian’s feeling of self-reproach when he was asking himself how he could have failed to notice that Lola was gone, being so caught up in seeing the sights on the way home from the laundromat. I had a little rescue cat who was very dear to me, and because I was working so many hours, I failed to notice how sick he really was and ended up having to have him put to sleep. The question “how could I have failed to notice how sick he was” will be in my mind for the rest of my life.
As well as the main story and purpose of the book, there are other small touches that I appreciated. The grandmother is a realistic-looking elderly woman, not a thin and perfect idealized depiction of an older lady. She is shown as being devoted and kind. I like all the characters in the book and even found myself worrying about Lola when she got lost.
I give Sock Lobsters an enthusiastic four out of four stars. I recommend this book to everyone except for people who really hate children’s books.
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Sock Lobsters
View: on Bookshelves
Sock Lobsters is a unique and wonderful children’s book by Michelle Bulriss. The story begins with an elderly lady knitting her adult granddaughter a pair of socks that look like lobsters. The socks are magical, and when the granddaughter receives them, she can hear them talking to her.
One sock is named Sebastian. He is a bit grouchy and tends to see the dark side of life. The other sock is named Lola, and she tends to look on the bright side. The socks like each other and Emily.
One day when Emily takes the socks to the laundromat, Lola falls out of the basket on the way home. The story discusses the stages of grief that both Lola and Sebastian go through being separated from each other. Parents don’t need to worry about the story making kids sad, though. It does have a happy ending.
I think that the author did an excellent job of illustrating the stages of grief to young readers, and adults can benefit from the story’s gentle wisdom as well. I believe that the story was professionally edited as I found no errors in the text. The pictures are bright and compelling, and the text was easy to read against the background.
I found nothing to dislike about this book. Although it is written for children, adults can find comfort and humor in it as well. We have all struggled with losses. I related to Sebastian’s feeling of self-reproach when he was asking himself how he could have failed to notice that Lola was gone, being so caught up in seeing the sights on the way home from the laundromat. I had a little rescue cat who was very dear to me, and because I was working so many hours, I failed to notice how sick he really was and ended up having to have him put to sleep. The question “how could I have failed to notice how sick he was” will be in my mind for the rest of my life.
As well as the main story and purpose of the book, there are other small touches that I appreciated. The grandmother is a realistic-looking elderly woman, not a thin and perfect idealized depiction of an older lady. She is shown as being devoted and kind. I like all the characters in the book and even found myself worrying about Lola when she got lost.
I give Sock Lobsters an enthusiastic four out of four stars. I recommend this book to everyone except for people who really hate children’s books.
******
Sock Lobsters
View: on Bookshelves
