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Reviewed by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers' Favorite
Do you like bugs? Ants crawling on your bare legs? Caterpillars dropping into your hair? I have to admit, bugs make me a bit squeamish. They’re not my favorite critters. Lelia feels the same way. But, like Lelia, we’ve both learned that bugs have their purpose and they really are amazingly resourceful critters. Lelia’s grandfather very kindly and carefully explains how important all creatures are: “We should respect and care for everything in nature, even things that are tiny, strange, and not always easy to relate to because we all share the same life.” When Lelia finds ants crawling on her legs, spiders in her shoes, or caterpillars dropping into her hair, her grandfather is there to share some interesting facts about these critters. Lelia learns that, even though she may never really like all these little things, she can at least respect them.
Deborah Burke Henderson’s picture book, Lelia’s Aventura, is a clever story that will open the minds of those not sure about the little things in life, like ants. The plot follows Lelia as she encounters one bug after another and learns some interesting facts from her grandfather. The characters are realistically portrayed, including Lelia’s brother who’s quite the tease, but not so brave as he lets on when comes to bug interactions. Dialogue is used to set the scenes and impart interesting facts on the bugs in that particular episode of the story. I like the way the story ends with a trip to the butterfly sanctuary, proving quite subtly that something small and sometimes creepy can turn into something inspiringly beautiful. There are some bug fun facts included at the end of the story. This is a wonderful tool to both educate and entertain young readers.
