Review of Karrington the Kangaroo Visits a Farm

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Diana Lowery
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Review of Karrington the Kangaroo Visits a Farm

Post by Diana Lowery »

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Karrington the Kangaroo Visits a Farm" by Thomas Mitchem.]
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5 out of 5 stars
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Karrington, a sweet baby kangaroo with long eyelashes and an initialed headband, is the star character of this charming book by Thomas Mitchem. In this episode, Karrington takes an unplanned trip to a farm.

The story begins when Karrington and her parents are traveling through America as part of a show. After the joey asks her parents if she can stay in the back of the vehicle, she is warned not to go near the open window. Karrington disobeys. The moral of suffering the consequences of bad judgment is clear as the vehicle's driver, unaware that the kangaroo is no longer onboard, leaves her behind. Thankfully, she is rescued by a caring couple who take her to their farm where she meets different animals and ends up being a hero.

There are many positives in Karrington the Kangaroo Visits a Farm. I like that the author shows Karrington remembering her mother's advice to "do something positive to fix your problems" when she is confronted with conflicts. I like the interactions of Karrington and the other animals because they show compassion towards her. This scenario reminds me of one of my favorite children’s books Are You My Mother? I also like that there are no errors, and the beautiful illustrations accurately match the text on every page.

My only concern is with determining the appropriate age level. The size presents itself as a book for preschoolers, but the amount of text seems to be geared toward older children who have mastered some reading skills. If I were reading this to young children, I would have to paraphrase the content because their attention span would not make it through the 20-plus lines of text on some of the pages. Conversely, a second-grade child would be able to enjoy reading the book but might pass on the book as too babyish looking.

Despite the mixed signals, my rating is five out of five. The story, the message, and the illustrations are delightful. Details such as including a special dialect of the cow mooing, "How doo you doo" will make this a fun read for children and adults.

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Karrington the Kangaroo Visits a Farm
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Kelvinna
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Post by Kelvinna »

I appreciate the well-structured review. The author's excellent book and its intriguing title have piqued my interest, prompting me to add it to my bookshelf without a doubt.
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Certainly! The reviewer's exceptional work truly resonated with me, and I plan to include this review in my collection. The reviewer's excellent job has impressed me, prompting me to place this review on my bookshelf.
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Diana Lowery
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Post by Diana Lowery »

Kelvinna wrote: 03 Oct 2023, 10:10 Certainly! The reviewer's exceptional work truly resonated with me, and I plan to include this review in my collection. The reviewer's excellent job has impressed me, prompting me to place this review on my bookshelf.
Thank you for your comments. I did not know that keeping a collection of reviews was a thing.
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Post by Cara Wilding »

Diana Lowery wrote: 30 Sep 2023, 16:55 [Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Karrington the Kangaroo Visits a Farm" by Thomas Mitchem.]

My only concern is with determining the appropriate age level. The size presents itself as a book for preschoolers, but the amount of text seems to be geared toward older children who have mastered some reading skills. If I were reading this to young children, I would have to paraphrase the content because their attention span would not make it through the 20-plus lines of text on some of the pages. Conversely, a second-grade child would be able to enjoy reading the book but might pass on the book as too babyish looking.
While children's books are not in my preferred genre, I was impressed with your feedback with regards to determining the appropriate age level! Clearly, you must have some background to understand how each of these age groups might respond to this material. I thought your remarks would be quite helpful to the author. Thanks so much for sharing your review with us!
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Diana Lowery
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Post by Diana Lowery »

Thank you for your comment. I do have a lot of experience reading to children as a teacher, a mother, and a grandmother.
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Post by Bethany Kroeger »

This looks like a great children’s book! My eight year old would love this. Thank you for the thorough and honest review!
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Post by Chandrakant Patel »

Your review of "Karrington the Kangaroo Visits a Farm" by Thomas Mitchem effectively captures the essence of the book and provides insightful feedback for potential readers. You offer a balanced assessment, highlighting both the book's strengths and potential areas for improvement.
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Diana Lowery
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Post by Diana Lowery »

Bethany Kroeger wrote: 04 Oct 2023, 16:00 This looks like a great children’s book! My eight year old would love this. Thank you for the thorough and honest review!
Thank you for your comment
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Diana Lowery
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Post by Diana Lowery »

Chandrakant Patel wrote: 05 Oct 2023, 00:39 Your review of "Karrington the Kangaroo Visits a Farm" by Thomas Mitchem effectively captures the essence of the book and provides insightful feedback for potential readers. You offer a balanced assessment, highlighting both the book's strengths and potential areas for improvement.
Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment.
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Post by Miracle Oge Adaeze »

"Do something positive to fix your problems." This is a wonderful advice for parents to give their children. It will help them develop a solution-focused mindset. This seems like an interesting book for kids. Thank you for the review.
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Post by Upphilan Paul »

This is a captivating book and I appreciate your compelling and well detailed review. Children books always have a special lesson, apart from entertainment, it also helps gives children right knowledge. Well done
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