Almost everyone liked something about our picture book,
Elizabeti's Doll, and there were also things that various folks weren't
thrilled about. Most of us thought the last line was completely unnecessary and
actually distracting. We liked the premise of the book, and thought it was a
pleasant enough story about a little girl with a new baby brother who needed
something to care for herself and decided on a 'baby-sized' rock (her
'doll') who never cried, kept clean diapers, and slept well every night. One
person thought it was kind of 'old-fashioned' (published in 1998) and might not
even be published today. Another member strongly objected to the use of the rock
as the 'doll,' since, as the size of the rock was depicted, it would have been
way too heavy for Elizabeti to even lift. We did feel it was a good read-aloud,
and that young children could certainly relate to its premise and would probably
like it a lot.
We all loved the beginning of the story of Willow Chase in
Counting by 7s. We loved being 'in her head,' and learning who she was
as a person. But -- as the story continued on, most of us were less and less
thrilled. A couple of people couldn't even finish the book. Although we agreed
that all of the characters were very unique and well-written, we just felt that
the premise that this 12-year-old, although very brilliant and
highly-gifted, could accomplish what she did to bring a group of very quirky
people together on her behalf. We just found many of the plot points to be
completely unbelievable. One person said it sort of worked as a fairy tale, but
she wasn't crazy about it. Only one person loved everything about this book. She
loved the characters, the story, and the fact that it was all wrapped up neatly
in a happy ending, which, she said, is so rare in many of today's novels for
young people.
...and it is the differences of opinion that make our meetings so
much fun!
