Melanie's Musings review

Melanie's Musings
December 13, 2010

Red in the Flower Bed by Andrea Nepa
by Melanie

Adoption is an issue that is very close to my heart, so when Tribute books offered me the chance to be a part of the blog tour for Red in the Flower Bed I was very excited. This is my first review of a children’s book, but I don’t think it will be my last!

This book is a story about interracial adoption. It’s nicely done, and it made me smile. However, for children I think the metaphors would have to be explained before they could fully understand what the storyline means. I know that I would have needed it explained if I had read this book while being its target age group.

The illustrations were quite pretty and added a lot to the story. This is a book I would definitely recommend to all. I think it would help adopted children understand a completely life altering event in their lives, and I also think it would give other children a basic understanding of the process as well.

Writings from the Tub review

Writings from the Tub
December 13, 2010

Blog Tour: Red in the Flower Bed - Andrea Nepa
by Carly Bennett

Here at Writing from the Tub I do like to try and be diverse as possible with the books I read and review, though my preferences are firmly rooted in contemporary YA I always like to try new things and broaden my horizons. Red in the Flower Bed is definitely not my typical pick but I’m so glad Tribute approached me to be part of the blog tour as I fell in love with the story Nepa tells in her book.

Red in the Flower Bed is short but very, very sweet and you won’t be able to make it through without breaking into a soppy smile, I promise. I’m not adopted myself but I imagine younger adopted children who are going through a confusing time could take great comfort in this story.

The imagery used is great – accessible to both adults and children and the writing is superb, simple enough that it isn’t daunting at all for young readers but complicated enough that the language doesn’t come across as patronizing. This is a great book that could be shared with the whole family and I really did enjoy it, perfect for lifting my mood on this horrible grey day!

Rating:
Plot: 5/5
Writing: 4/5
Characters: 4/5
Cover: 3/5 Total: 16/20 (B+)

The Freebie Junkie review

The Freebie Junkie
December 13, 2010

Book Review: Red in the Flower Bed: An Illustrated Children's Story about Interracial Adoption
by Angela Walker

We're blessed with two biological children but I always think if at some point in our lives whether we can adopt. If we were not able to have children of our own there would be no doubt that I would adopt although I know from friends adoption is a long, expensive and draining drawn out process but definitely with wonderful experience and outcome after all said and done.

When Tribute Books approached me to review Red in the Flower Bed, I said yes immediately as this would be a book that I could read with my children. Red in the Flower Bed by Andrea Napa is an illustrated story book about interracial adoption. The journey of adoption is beautifully depicted with the comforting imagery of a poppy flower seed who is sent to a new place to flourish and is welcomed into a garden family of other flowers. We enjoyed this simple yet meaningful story with homespun complementary illustrations. I took the time to explain the words and the pictures since it is written in way that there is not a direct link to interracial adoption as such. You can take this story to new levels depending on your home situation and age of your children.

BUY IT
Purchase Red in the Flower Bed here for $11.65 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25.

Saving Obsession review

Saving Obsession
December 12, 2010

Red in the Flower Bed Children's Book on Interracial Adoption: A Review
by Micael Givens

"Red in the Flower Bed" by Andrea Nepa is a darling story about interracial adoption. When I first learned that I was going to be able to do this review I immediately thought of my friend Meghan, her sister Emily and their family's story of adoption from Africa. With that I began to read.

"Red in the Flower Bed" is the journey of a poppy seed traveling far from home but landing exactly where she needed to be. This story is perfect for those families who have had the blessing to adopt. It handles what can be a difficult topic for some, in a very gentle, loving way.

The images and illustrations are brilliant. I love its bright colors too.

I also think that just from the human point of view, this story is great to show children, adopted or not, that we can all be different but be happy together all the same. I highly recommend this book for anyone with kids, but especially those who have gone through the adoption process.

You can read a little snippet from the book, purchase directly from Tribute Books, or purchase on Amazon.

A Page Turner 4 U review

A Page Turner 4 U
December 11, 2010

Review - Red in the Flower Bed by Andrea Nepa
by Jen Wilson - reviewed by Wendy

Rating: 5/5
Reviewed by: Wendy

A delightful rhyming tale of a little fallen poppy seed looking
for a home to grow.The little seed was blown all about until she found the right little spot. She found her home among a little flower patch and she became part of a family. So colorful and full of cheer.....

It makes me ponder what life is all about as I take a look at my youngsters and shed a tear, thinking how much they are a part of me, my little family. They grow a bit each and every day and I wonder what they will be.. We all start off like this little seed. Then with the right tender loving care we grow and strive to be as bright as we can be.

Mental Foodie review

Mental Foodie
December 11, 2010

Book Review - Red in the Flower Bed: An Illustrated Children's Story about Interracial Adoption by Andrea Nepa
by Christa B.

First Sentence:

One day, a seed dropped from a poppy flower onto the earth below.

Why did I pick this book?
I was approached by Tribute Books to see if I was interested in reviewing this book. Since I don't have children so I hardly read any children's books. However, since this book was about adoption, and one of my sisters-in-law was adopted, I was curious.

My thoughts:

• What a cute and colorful book!

• It is hard for me to rate this book since I don't usually read children's book, and with no children, I won't know how they'd like it. So I'd have to judge it from an adult's perspective

• I think this is a book that would be understood more by an adult than a child - the implied message, the symbolism, and the metaphor. The description said "the book's loving approach helps children to understand adoption" -- I wonder how much children would truly understand about adoption from this book. Maybe I am underestimating how much children know nowadays... or maybe I was just a dumb kid :) (I suppose, children can be anything from 0-18 years old... so it's hard to say at what age would the child see through the story)

• I hope when the author's adopted daughter read it when she grew up, she'd understand the love from her mother for her

Quote:

Rating: 3.5 Stars

Day by Day in Our World review

Day by Day in Our World
December 11, 2010

Red in the Flower Bed, a Review
by Laura O'Neill

The older I get, the more I am exposed to books for children that are trying to teach a lesson without coming right out and say it.

Red in the Flower Bed is one such book.

Subtitled as a children's book on interracial adoption, this book was written by Andrea Nepa for her adopted daughter. The premise of the story is a red poppy seed that makes it's way far from it's origins to land in a flower bed where it is the only red flower. Instead of feeling like it was 'different' and 'didn't belong', the flower is finally at home with a rainbow of color.

This is a short book and could be used to help start discussions on adoption, whether there are any racial differences in the family or not. I'm not sure that my boys even picked up on the adoption theme from just the story. So, I would say that the message is subtle and not prone to overwhelming a young child that might be sorting out their feelings of being different than other family members. While Ms. Nepa had interracial adoption in mind, I would say that this sweet little book could work for any kind of blended family situation.

Published by Tribute Books, Red in the Flower Bed retails for $12.95 in print. You can purchase in other formats, visit here to check out options and pricing. They offer a sample of the book for preview as well.

You can keep up to date on other offering from Tribute Books by following them on Twitter or liking them on Facebook. Andrea Nepa also has a fan page on Facebook.