When I’m shining with LOVE

When I’m shining with LOVE by Wendy Mason & Lisa Maravelis, illustrated by Kayleen West (Kids Light Up)  PB RRP $12.99  ISBN 978-0-6482065-3-8

Review by Wendy Haynes

When I’m shining with LOVE is part of a picture book series that is designed to drive a positive message and to help children 3 plus with everyday life skills.

The co-authors Wendy Mason and Lisa Maravelis have crafted a well written story in rhyme that will delight children. The adorable character Stella Bear features in the series, and in this book she helps guide the reader and listener on the concept of what love is. It’s a discovery of self, feelings, and a reminder to be there for others and embrace friendships.

Kayleen West brings the text and the understanding of love to a deeper level with her beautiful illustrations showing how different we can all be. The pictures are pleasant and inviting to the eye.

When I’m shining with KINDNESS

When I’m shining with KINDNESS by Wendy Mason & Lisa Maravelis, illustrated by Kayleen West (Kids Light Up) PB RRP $12.99

Reviewed by Kylie Buckley

When I’m shining with KINDNESS is a picture book aimed at kindergarten-aged children. The book is based on the premise that we all ‘shine’ when we display kindness and are treated with kindness. Given that this concept is a metaphorical one, the book helps young children understand the idea by using cute bear characters that have a large star on their chest. The stars shine when the bears display appropriate behaviours and they become dull and misshaped when the bears are treated poorly. The story highlights examples of kindness and introduces the phrase: ‘Stop, look, think, speak!’ as a reminder for young children to behave positively towards others.

When I’m shining with KINDNESS is written in verse and is beautifully illustrated using soft colours. It is typeset in Open Dyslexic font aimed at making ‘reading this series even more enjoyable for children and adults with dyslexia.’ 

The book is a part of a series for young children that gently introduces a range of values. This series includes 10 books: Kindness, Joy, Love, Peace (all available now) as well as Patience, Faithfulness, Gentleness, Goodness, Self-Control and Light (launching at a later date). To purchase this book and others in the series visit your local bookstore or kidslightup.com.au. This website also includes teaching notes and handy parent tips. 

When I’m Shining with Joy by Wendy Mason and Lisa Maravelis, illustrated by Kayleen West (Kids Light Up) PB   RRP $12.90 ISBN 978-0-6482065-0-7

Reviewed by Stacey Gladman

When I’m Shining with Joy is a young children’s book designed essentially to put a face to joy. The authors describe joy as a ‘stable emotion that is a deeper sense of contentment than happiness. Joy allows one’s true self to shine through’ and work through how joy feels like, and how you look with joy in your heart.

On the flip side, it also describes what it feels not to have joy and how it can impact on your life - for example, “when I feel grumpy or sad/ then I just cannot see/ the light has turned off/ and joy fades from me”.

When I’m Shining with Joy is all about teaching children to find the inner joy in themselves. It uses the descriptor of a switch within oneself and using it to turn on the lights to find joy again if life gets you down. 

The story is easy to relate to and a cute way to teach children about inner resilience. The imagery is also sweet and eye-catching; I think the use of bears was a nice touch to tell the story. This is fantastic learning tool for young children, and adults alike who may need a reminder to shine bright.

When I’m Shining with Peace by Wendy Mason and Lisa Maravelis, illustrated by Kayleen West (Kids Light Up) PB   RRP $12.99   ISBN 780648206514

Reviewed by Dianne Bates

Both Australian authors are founders of the Kids Light Up© project, a forum for educational information, which teaches resilience as its foundation. Their picture book series, When I’m Shining with Light, of which this book is a part, emphasises positive values and qualities to help children (aged three plus years) to thrive. Mason is Director of early learning at an independent school in Melbourne and Maravelis is a youth worker and counsellor. Both women are passionate about empowering children to be the best they can be.

When I’m Shining with Peace features an (unnamed) cuddly, clothed girl bear who talks about the role of peace in her life and how it affects her and her relationships with others. The book starts by referring to a ‘PEACE light’ which ‘we all have’, which, when switched on, has positive effects. It’s not stated how to ‘switch on’ the PEACE light but, the story continues, ‘When I’m shining with PEACE/ I’m still and steady.’

The story is related in rhyming text and continues to show readers ways in which inner peace is rewarding, such as having clear thinking, readiness to learn, calm breathing and so on. This allows the small reader to come to an understanding of what peace is. The book also shows the negative: when the ‘PEACE light goes out’, it makes the bear ‘scream and shout’ and want her own way.

One would assume that the child’s carer (parent or teacher, for example) would explain to the child how to create inner peace as sadly the book doesn’t do this.

While the book’s main benefit is in extolling the virtues of having peace so that one can live harmoniously, one of the stanzas is problematic. It reads: ‘When I’m shining with PEACE/ I choose to obey/Whatever you say/ I’ll do right away.’ Who is the ‘you’ to whom this stanza is addressed? One would assume the ‘you’ referred to is a parent, but it could be anyone, including a stranger. Despite this misgiving, one must admire the authors for investing their time and money into a project designed to help youngsters.

The illustrations are clear and attractive with lots of white space allowing focus on the bear character. And, too, the book is typeset in OpenDyslexic font, created to increase readability for readers with dyslexia. The font includes regular, bold, italic and bold italic styles, but it can easily be read by anyone who doesn’t have dyslexia.

There will be 10 books in the series, each of them covering a range of skills, qualities and values important for all children (and adults). The first four books dealing with Joy, Peace, Love and Kindness, were released in March 2018. All books are available through Denis Jones www.dennisjones.com.au  and www.kidslightup.com.au There are teachers notes and parents’ tips and notes available through the kidslightup site.

Celia and Nonna

Celia and Nonna by Victoria Lane, illustrated by Kayleen West (Ford Street Publishing)

HB RRP $24.95

PB RRP $14.95

ISBN 978-1925000603 (HB)

ISBN 978-1925000610 (PB)

Reviewed by Francine Sculli

Every now and again you read a picture book that stings a little. It stings because it hits a chord, a memory and a small untouched pain somewhere inside of you. Celia and Nonna is that book; a touching story so divinely written that it has left my heart with a familiar longing.

Celia is a little girl with a warming relationship with her Nonna (grandmother in Italian). She visits her for regular sleepovers. Her Nonna keeps special treasures at her house just for Celia. Together they bake biscotti and read so many books that the penguins and fairies get jumbled in Celia’s head. Celia is Nonna’s little angel.

But one day, Celia notices that her Nonna is doing some strange, forgetful things like leaving the stove on, locking herself outside and forgetting to get changed out of her pyjamas when she visits the market. As Nonna’s forgetfulness worsens, she is taken to a new home where there are people to care for her. Celia begs to still sleepover, but there is only one bed in a room that has bare, grey walls and stinks of lemon and vinegars. Celia wishes that things would go back to how they were before when they would sit in the kitchen and bake biscotti together. She struggles to connect with her Nonna’s new home.

Until Celia finds some pencil and paper in Nonna’s new room and decides to draw her memories of Nonna’s old house. She draws the house with its tumbledown bushes and rubs of rosemary. Next time she visits she draws the kitchen filled with shelves of borlotti beans and jars of spices and each time after that, she draws a new picture until her Nonna’s walls are filled with a happy collection of memories, and until Celia has forgotten the funny smell and grey walls and realises that she is happy wherever her Nonna is.

As a young child, it is difficult to comprehend the challenging dynamics and changes that come with ageing family members, particularly those we have such a close and special connection with. Yet this book handles these issues, through the eyes of a child, with such grace and delicacy that although it stings, it gently encourages the reader to embrace those changes. This heart warming story is made even more touching by Kayleen West’s illustrations, which capture this story in vibrant images that tell of both the pleasure and pain.

Celia and Nonna is not only a book about old age and grieving the loss of a life that was, it is a story of connection and compassion that can be read on so many different levels, making it the perfect book for any public or private collection. 

Without Me?

Without Me? by Kayleen West (Wombat Books)
HB RRP $18.95
ISBN 978-1-921632-53-2
Reviewed by Peta Biggin

A young child is feeling unwanted and unloved, so he decides to run away. As he begins his journey he reflects on the other members of his family and what his leaving will mean to each of them. Eventually he comes to the conclusion that the only way to lessen the impact of his absence is if everyone comes with him! Pretty soon he realises how loved and important he really is and that life would be better for everyone if he just stays home.

On the surface, this book is about realising your importance to other family members and, conversely, their value to you. Underneath that, it also touches on the wisdom of thinking a situation through and seeing things from another’s perspective. There is nothing didactic about the text, however.  Rather it is a gentle and light-hearted story that will appeal to any child.

Wait 1 minute…
If my puppy went without me, who would feed him?

He likes the treats I give him, especially the big juicy bones; you ought to see his tail wag.

I guess I better take him with me.

With beautiful, full-page illustrations throughout this would make a really enjoyable read-aloud book for lower primary children and younger.  The language is also straight-forward enough that it could potentially be attempted by early readers.

Kayleen West’s initial dream was to write and illustrate for children but instead she ventured into a career in fine art and later graphic design. Returning to her original passion in 2009, Kayleen is now a published children’s author and illustrator working on her fourth children’s book. She also writes Christian content for magazines and blogs. She can be found online at: http://kayleenwest.com.au/portfolio/