Lyn Murray’s Little Book of Memories is just that--a collection of four short stories told in a manner much like a grandmother talking to her grandchild. The uplifting stories, each one-thousand words or more, draw on the rich emotions and details embedded in the mind of the author. Each also carries a moral lesson, such as life will find a way and love works miracles. Illustrator Rebecca Riffey provides a few black-and-white, coloring-book style pictures in every chapter. There is a clear moral compass in the book that gives the stories direction and gives them a cozy, family-oriented feel.What I Like: If you are looking for an action-packed adventure, you won’t find it here. Instead, the stories are told in that passive yet appealing grandmotherly voice I mentioned. While I wouldn’t like all my books written that way, it seems to work for this one. I can see it being a nice, snuggly bedtime book. It may even work in a children’s Sunday School setting. Of the four stories, I enjoyed Broken Kitty the most. The other three were okay. The book also includes a code for a free audio book download, which is a nice perk.
What I Dislike: This is less of a dislike than a note. I feel like the book is too lengthy to enjoy in one sitting, and even the chapters may prove to be too long to keep the interest of younger readers. It's a little pricey for a paperback.
Overall Rating: Good. I enjoyed it.
Age Appeal: None given. I'm guessing the grade K-1 crowd.
Publisher Info: Tate Publishing, 2010; ISBN: 978-1615660254; Paperback, 104 pages, $9.99.
This book is not available at Christianbook.com.
Buy it at Amazon.com for $9.99.
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Great review! I'll keep my eye out for this book :)
ReplyDeleteJeremyH.
Thanks for the heads up on Little Book of Memories, Vol. 1. I got it as gift for my niece, and she loved it so much I bought one for myself.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Lori, this is the kind of book a grandmother would read to her grandchildren at bedtime. These "teaching stories" are so comforting. I love the gently interwoven moral values. They don't slap you in the face, they just nudge.
And I really like the fact that you get four stories for the price of one. Having four stories in one book is excellent for family reading time. You can read one story in about fifteen minutes, which makes them great for bedtime.
The Audio CD is out. Found it on Amazon.com and snatched it up; and to my surprise Murray has published Vol.2 in the Little Book of Memories volume series. You can find both the paperback and Audio CD of Vol.2 on Amazon.com as well.
I snatched up Vol.2’s CD on Amazon because there were so few of them, only to find it cheaper on CDBaby.com later. Amazon’s copies are a bit pricy, but Amazon’s resell feature makes it OK.
You'll love the whole audio presentation of Vol.2. Nicely done! My favorite story in Vol.2 is "Dippin' Chickens". I understand all of Murray's stories come from some aspect of her life - and I love that about her. I’m a new fan, but I love the way she writes, the stories go down so easy. I hope she never changes her style! If I want action packed, there are plenty out there to choose from; whereas "teaching stories" like Murray's are few and far between. Just good old fashioned, down to earth stories you don’t see much anymore.
Big, big Fan!
Thanks for the heads up on Little Book of Memories, Vol. 1. I got it as gift for my niece, and she loved it so much I bought one for myself.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Lori, this is the kind of book a grandmother would read to her grandchildren at bedtime. These "teaching stories" are so comforting. I love the gently interwoven moral values. They don't slap you in the face, they just nudge.
And I really like the fact that you get four stories for the price of one. Having four stories in one book is excellent for family reading time. You can read one story in about fifteen minutes, which makes it great for bedtime.
The Audio CD is out. Found it on Amazon.com and snatched it up; and to my surprise Murray has published Vol.2 in the Little Book of Memories volume series. You can find both the paperback and Audio CD of Vol.2 on Amazon.com as well.
I snatched up Vol.2’s CD on Amazon because there were so few of them, only to find it cheaper on CDBaby.com. Amazon’s copies are a bit pricy, but Amazon’s resell feature makes it OK.
You'll love the whole audio presentation of Vol. 2. Nicely done! My favorite story in Vol.2 is "Dippin' Chickens". I understand all of Murray's stories come from some aspect of her life - and I love that about her. I’m a new fan, but I love the way she writes, the stories go down so easy. I hope she never changes her style! If I want action packed, there are plenty out there to choose from; whereas "teaching stories" like Murray's are few and far between. Just good ole’ fashioned, down to earth stories you don’t see much anymore.
Big, big Fan!