Review of The Secret World of Delia and Mingli

[Kristy Khem]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Secret World of Delia and Mingli" by Harley West.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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The Secret World of Delia and Mingli is the story of how a stuffed animal helped a little girl to get rid of her nightmares. When seven-year-old Delia went to China with her parents, she chose a stuffed elephant as her only souvenir. She named the toy Mingli in remembrance of the nice store clerk that sold it to her. On the first night after she returned from the trip, Delia had a horrible nightmare. Surprisingly, Mingli woke up too. Delia was shocked that her new toy could move and talk. Mingli was indeed a special stuffed elephant. He promised to take her to a place where bad dreams disappear. Delia agreed and the pair embarked on a magical trip to a place called Imagine Nation where King Jesper and Queen Freya reigned. Along the way, Delia and Mingli became embroiled in all sorts of fun adventures.

I think that the author, Harley West, wrote this book for children aged seven and over. Children who especially like fairytales and fantasy stories will enjoy this book. This book has several short chapters, so it would appeal to youngsters who are starting to read lengthier books. Although the story is very childish, I think that the word choice is too advanced in some cases. Words such as ‘exhilarating’, ‘numerous’, and ‘apprehensive’ may be a bit difficult for children to understand. However, this may encourage learning instead of being a deterrence.

I liked the educational aspects of the book. For instance, Delia encountered a rabbit who was behaving rather aggressively. She was afraid of it, but she was told that rabbits perform a binky when they are excited. Here, Delia learned that rabbits are harmless creatures. In another part of the story, Delia was involved in an embarrassing situation and was very angry because Mingli laughed at her. By talking to Mingli, she understood that he would never intentionally hurt her feelings. From his perspective, she saw how humorous the situation was. Most importantly, she learned not to take things too seriously.

The animated pictures in the book were a colorful addition to the story. They will help readers to get a visual image of Delia and the other characters. The story was easy to read because it was typed in a large font. I found a few errors in the story, so one more round of editing would be useful.

At the start of the book, the story focuses on the trip to China. I was prepared for the tale to be set there, but the author abruptly changed the course of the story by skipping ahead to the last day of the trip. This was disappointing. I think that this story missed out on introducing an exotic location and culture to young readers. Chinese elements could have been easily incorporated in the story too; for instance, an emperor instead of a king or a Chinese dragon instead of a regular dragon.

Overall, I rate this book 3 out of 4. It was educational and easy to read, but The Secret World of Delia and Mingli has the potential to be even more amazing and unique if the book underwent another round of editing and if cultural additions were included.

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The Secret World of Delia and Mingli
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[Kavita Shah]

The cover is pretty. I really like the story of a stuffed animal coming to life and helping overcome the nightmares. Thanks for a thoughtful and nice review!

[Adego 002]

It's thrilling that this book is so much fun. Children would enjoy this book as it has been based on an interesting theme....nice review

[The frant1c reader]

I can't help but mention how my brain just screamed 'how cute!' while I was reading the review! Great job!

[Reader Chavez]

It seems like an endearing story! I love the cover of the book. Although I think I'm a little old to read this book Ill definitely recommend it to my nieces, they'll love it. Thanks for such a great review!

[Aniket23_j]

Although I think I'm a little old to read this book Ill definitely recommend it to my nieces, they'll love it. Thanks for such a great review!

[sankela sanday]

It's an interesting Book and i like the story of animal coming to life and helpin others I love the book can't wait to show to my kid.....

[Edria Dayyinah]

I totally agree when you said that the book will be better if it incorporated cultural elements in the story. There needs to be more asian representation in children’s books!

[Kristy Khem]

The cover is pretty. I really like the story of a stuffed animal coming to life and helping overcome the nightmares. Thanks for a thoughtful and nice review!

I totally agree! I like the cover design too!

[Kristy Khem]

It's thrilling that this book is so much fun. Children would enjoy this book as it has been based on an interesting theme....nice review

You're welcome! Thank you for popping by to leave a comment.

[Kristy Khem]

I can't help but mention how my brain just screamed 'how cute!' while I was reading the review! Great job!

It was definitely a cute story. Thank you for reading and commenting on my review!

[Kristy Khem]

It seems like an endearing story! I love the cover of the book. Although I think I'm a little old to read this book Ill definitely recommend it to my nieces, they'll love it. Thanks for such a great review!

Your nieces will surely enjoy this book. Thanks for reading my review and leaving a comment!

[Kristy Khem]

It's an interesting Book and i like the story of animal coming to life and helpin others I love the book can't wait to show to my kid.....

I am glad you liked the concept of the book. I know your kid will enjoy it! Thank you for leaving a comment!

[Kristy Khem]

I totally agree when you said that the book will be better if it incorporated cultural elements in the story. There needs to be more asian representation in children’s books!

Yes! The author set it up nicely with the trip to China but then backtracked

Thanks for reading my review and leaving a comment!

[Sarah Sonbol]

I agree that including difficult vocabulary can be useful for children, but at the same time, doing this excessively may lead to an opposite effect. I hope this is not the case here as the story looks to be appealing for young children. Great review.