Official Review: My Island Home

[Sushan Ekanayake]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "My Island Home" by Penelope Ann Smith-Carter Dichiera.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Penelope Ann Smith-Carter Dichiera lived in England until she was six years old. Then her family decided to move to Australia and she was taken along. Her destination was not a popular city that all the world has heard of, but a small island near the city of Perth, which was called Finucane island. It was a remote, yet a very beautiful island, and it made her days colourful and joyful. After growing up she decided to share her childhood experiences with the rest of the world, and that is how the book, My Island Home, came to life.

It is a short and sweet children's book with 24 pages, which are filled with colourful drawings and short narrations. There is no mentioning of the name of the artist, but given the author is a freelance artist(according to her Linkedin profile), the drawings can be considered as her own ones. This book is a collection of descriptions of how she saw the beauty of the island as a child, her own imaginations and dreams, and how her days passed by. During her childhood, there has not been any unusual experiences or heroic stunts(sorry to mention if you expected any). It has been a usual child's life, which has been more free, yet more happening, and it is presented in a lovely manner in this book.

It is written using very simple English, so it is suitable for a young child. Since it is edited exceptionally well, there are no errors to be noticed. Some poems are included among the texts, so it can be read as well as sung to a child. I cannot name anything that I disliked about the book, but there are some points that I would like to highlight. The letters are too small for a children's book. A child might find it difficult as well as tiresome to read such small letters. On the other hand, much younger children who cannot read can ignore the letters since the letters are tiny, and can appreciate the drawings, which cover large portions of the pages. Other thing is the breaking of the sentences.

A place so
Hot and sunny
Where the sea was
Crystal blue and a
Magical playground.

It can be a bit confusing to a child. But if the author's idea was to add a poetic touch to the book by doing so, she is blameless. The book can be narrated to a child in a song like manner due to the breaking of the sentences as mentioned above.

My Island Home by Penelope Ann Smith-Carter Dichiera is an enjoyable read to children as well as adults. So I recommend this to any child who loves to read, and also to adults, like myself, who enjoy reading children's books once in a while. Finally, I heartily rate this with 4 out of 4 stars.

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My Island Home
View: on Bookshelves

[nwabugwu_1]

A very suitable review,just reading your review of the book MY ISLAND HOME BY PENELOPE ANN SMITH I can vividly answer a question or two about it.

[Chimdi_3]

Nice review.Makes me want to read the book to have a glimpse of the author's gowing up days.

[Stephanie Elizabeth]

I like that the author is able to recount her experience in a creative way that can be easily understood by children. Thanks for the great review.

[Nerea]

Sounds like an appealing book for children. Thank you for highlighting a bit of the author's history. It's helpful. I agree tiny texts can be ignored by the young ones. I hope the author will take the point into account and fix it. Thank you for your well analysed review.

[fadjei]

I thinks this sounds like a great book for children. I like how the other decided to use her own childhood experiences. I do agree that the font size of the letters should be larger to make it easier for children to read.
Thanks for the review!

[Jlblawrence]

While I was first reading your review, I was really hoping this was a novel I could go read! I was surprised to see it is a children's book. Though that also sounds appealing. Thank you for the review!

[Gracious Ngy88]

The ability of the author to share her childhood experiences with others in such a lovely and creative way.
Children will really love to read this.
Thanks for the Great review.

[Caffrey_19]

I think the writer and I agree on one thing and that is - to actually relate with children, one needs to act like them. I admire Penelope’s method of communication with her audience. Nice work.

[Adanna Inya]

Looks like the little ones will love this. Colors are attractive and I love that it was creatively utilized. Great review.

[Julyet_Chris]

Children will definitely enjoy reading this book.Thanks for an amazing review.

[Anindita Roy]

Thank you for the detailed and beautiful review. Highly appreciate the fact that the text is exceptionally flawless. The pictures would help in stimulating the child's imagination.The story is captivating and easy to read for our young readers. Children are going to adore this book.

[Sushan Ekanayake]

A very suitable review,just reading your review of the book MY ISLAND HOME BY PENELOPE ANN SMITH I can vividly answer a question or two about it.

I am glad that I could give you a more or less a complete idea about the book. Thanks for stopping by

[Sushan Ekanayake]

Nice review.Makes me want to read the book to have a glimpse of the author's gowing up days.

Try for yourself, and you will definitely enjoy the read. Thanks for reading and commenting

[Sushan Ekanayake]

I like that the author is able to recount her experience in a creative way that can be easily understood by children. Thanks for the great review.

Her childhood has been so colourful, so she may have recounted it everyday. And I am glad that she shared it with us. Thanks for sharing your thoughts