Monday, May 11, 2020

39. Arlo and the Great Big Cover-Up

Arlo and the Great Big Cover-Up. Betsy Childs Howard. Illustrated by Samara Hardy. 2020. [June] Crossway. 40 pages. [Source: Review copy] [picture book; children]

First sentence: It happened during quiet rest time. Arlo noticed a scratch on the wall, just over his bed. The scratch looked like a mouth.

Premise/plot: Arlo, the star of this Christian picture book, is tempted during rest time to do something naughty--really naughty: draw on the wall with MARKERS. He isn't just tempted; he gives into temptation--all the way. But once he sees what he's done--its permanence, its obviousness, well, Arlo feels DREAD and regret. What will his mom say? Is it really there forever and ever? Will it be a forever reminder of his disobedience? What sounded like a great, fun, super idea...has turned into something awful.

My thoughts: I really enjoyed this one. I was a bit hesitant at first. Would this picture book be well written? Would it be preachy from cover to cover? Would the characters be relatable? Would it be super cheeseful? But I was well pleased. I thought Arlo and his situation were definitely relatable. As were his feelings. It didn't really turn preachy until the last page--and it was a good kind of preachy. (If that makes sense.)

Overall, I definitely liked it and would recommend it.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

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