Review of A spot for a bed

[Maduabuchi Okwiya N Eze]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "A spot for a bed" by Maria perry.]

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3 out of 5 stars

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There have been growing concerns, especially in recent years, over the future of the planet Earth, the human race, and the continued existence of other biological elements on earth, following some unwholesome activities of some humans towards nature, the natural environment, and natural resources. A lot of efforts have been made towards initiating positive attitudes towards nature to stem the dangerous effects such unwholesome attitudes portend. If a discourse of this nature interests you, then I recommend you pick up A spot for a bed and read up on its contribution to this movement.

In this book, the author, Maria Perry, presents a creative reflection on the order of nature, wherein every creature maintains its own space and everything is in perfect harmony. Readers are treated to paintings of worlds like the rainforest (inhabited by creatures like monkeys), prairie (inhabited by creatures like horses), canyon (inhabited by creatures like scorpions), tree branches (inhabited by creatures like birds), and sea (inhabited by creatures like sharks), among others.

The creativity that went into this book is commendable. This book is a collection of verse poems illustrated with paintings of the habitats of various animals. It was amazing to behold. My favourite was the painting of a rainforest with monkeys jumping from one tree branch to another. Readers will learn about the volunteer activities of the author, Alex, Brandon, and Jerry at Dumond Conservancy.

I liked that Perry was able to address such complex and sensitive issues as ecological degradation and resource sustainability with just paintings, verses, and a couple of notes. Through those innocent, beautiful paintings of animals, nature, and natural environments, I learned about the need to respect nature and natural spaces. I found the thematic preoccupations of this book timely and motivational. There are a couple of lessons to be learned from the material in the "Annex," though I consider some of them beyond the scope of this book.

However, some work needs to be done as regards the organisation of this book. I consider it weird to find the table of contents just two pages from the end of the book. The table of contents ought to be on the preliminary pages to help readers figure out what to expect from the book. In addition, I think some information in the "Annex" is beyond the scope of this book.

I think the author should have left out the notes on endangered species, flooding, recycling, and the like for a new book. I wonder if the poems in the "Annex" should be there or in the main book. I found some grammatical errors in this book, and they, together with some unclear expressions, interfered with my comprehension of some passages. These suggest that the book was not thoroughly edited.

I rate this book three out of five stars. I removed two stars from the rating because of the above negative points. I can't rate it lower because of the positive points I noted in the above paragraphs. This book deserves a perfect rating if given thorough editing and proper organization.

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A spot for a bed
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[CrossK]

I liked that Perry was able to address such complex and sensitive issues as ecological degradation and resource sustainability with just paintings, verses, and a couple of notes. Great book.