This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.
Reviewed by Sarah Scheele for Readers' Favorite
Melo: The Quest for the Flaming Red Flower by Lehann Anderson is a beginning reader’s book about adventure, outer space quests, and making new friends. In it we meet Melo, a cute blue alien from Mars who lives a life much like a child on Earth. He learns about Earth in school and dreams of visiting, as children here study other places and long to see them. Melo has friends, teachers, a happy life. But when one of his teachers takes the whole class on a field trip to Earth in search of a mythical flower, Melo gets separated from his classmates. He makes new friends, which is good because they’ll need to help him with more than his quest.
This delightful story has a fun, child-centered take on outer space and a narrative that’s meticulous and multi-layered for a book in this age bracket. Melo: The Quest for the Flaming Red Flower offers some fantasy, some sci-fi, gorgeous illustrations that bring the world of spunky, enthusiastic Melo to life, and a lovable little hero who’s all gung-ho to see the world and certainly reminded me of myself at that age. Lehann Anderson brings Melo’s emotions to the forefront as he journeys amid fantasy scenarios in a simple, daily way.
In spite of his blue skin, Melo is actually very human, and children will see themselves in him—cheerful, friendly, and truly boundlessly curious. Every child’s imagination and ability to explore has the potential to stretch to distant planets (if only their parents and teachers had the spaceships to take them there!) and the sudden friendships Melo makes are resonant and realistic to kids, who often find old friends disappearing and new people taking their place in a sudden way.
