I don’t usually post my book reviews this late, but this book seriously put me into the silliest reading slump and I don’t even know why. I’ve been reading and into reading a lot lately, but with this book I just couldn’t really do it. So I did not finish this book. At least not for now. I did skim it towards the end, but I did not fully sit down to read the entire thing.

I’m surprised that I didn’t love this book, because I thought it was going to be a fun and wholesome book about a girl and her horse, the supernatural elements like the ghosts seemed really appealing, and I thought it was cool to be rooted in Indigenous myths as well, but all of these things fell quite flat to me. None of the characters felt like they actually wanted to be in the story, I know that sounds weird, but when your main character seems this passive and she’s supposed to be active, it can have that effect on your story. Aislinn (the main character) feels like she’s just being dragged along where the story wants to take her, rather than her being the one who drives the story. And hey, sometimes a passive character is good, but Aislinn wasn’t supposed to be written like that in this book, and it really shows.

I want to talk about Aislinn as a character, because I understand that she is only 12 and that’s quite young. It wasn’t too long ago since I was 12, and I can say that Aislinn makes a lot of mistakes that remind me of myself at this age, but Aislinn is also supposed to be the main character of a book. A lot of the mistakes that she makes and the things that she does don’t make sense, because they’re not really accidents that just seem to happen to her. She’s reckless and has no regard for the rules that are put in place, and then when she gets punished, suddenly she actually pretends to care about the rules. I don’t feel much sympathy for her because all of these things were well within her control but she chose not to be smart about them. Multiple times. I don’t know if I love when a story’s plot depends on the main character being reckless and making bad decisions.

Discussing the plot is a worthwhile topic too. It’s standard, it’s basic, so many things happen in this book, and it’s like little scenes and little moments that just go at such a fast pace. Important scenes and things will happen within one passing sentence, Aislinn will have a complaint about something, and then she will move onto the next scene and the next thing. It feels so incredibly rushed, and little things and little details about the weather and the environment get just as much screentime and thought as actual important plot developments.
Aiding this, the chapters in this books are extremely short, and done strangely? I understand going for one chapter per scene, but that’s not really what this book does. It sort of just has the chapters jump around whenever they feel like cutting off and then starting again. For example, the 1st scene is Aislinn in the car so that’s where the 1st chapter starts off. But it’s a 2 and 1/2 page chapter and they’re in the car but then they also arrive at camp. I don’t understand why all of that chapter could have just been Aislinn in the car thinking to herself, and then them simply turning off the road and arriving there and then the chapter would cut off. But no, instead it’s a scene in the car, and then a scene getting out of the car and meeting people and THEN the chapter cuts off. There are lots more examples, but I think you can get the idea from just this one.

This book was both somehow everything that I expected, and also not? I’m sure this is the perfect horse girl book, but unfortunately, I am not a horse girl. Let me try to explain, I’m not one for horse girl movies or horse girl books, for that matter. Nothing against horses, or horse girls, but I don’t usually prefer content from this very specific genre because most of them are quite bland to me. So, with this one I was sort of expecting the same thing. I was also aware that there would be some supernatural elements, which I suppose is something unique, but that should have really been the main focus of this story. In my opinion.

Writing is subjective… art is subjective… whether a book is good or bad is also subjective… I subjectively think that this book is just wasted potential. I rarely DNF books, especially when I’m not in a reading slump, but this one was genuinely not captivating enough for me to want to keep reading. Better luck next time, I guess.

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"Even with all those adventures going on in Harold's life, he didn't forget his first friend." - Page 39

Harold and Harold, written by Budge Wilson and illustrated by Terry Roscoe, is a gentle and emotionally resonant children's book that quietly lingers in the mind long after its final page. Set in the coastal landscape of Nova Scotia, the story follows a lonely boy named Harold who forges an unlikely and tender bond with a local heron—whom he also names Harold. Both boy and bird feel like outsiders in their respective worlds, and in each other, they find a kindred spirit.

The narrative carries an emotional maturity that surpasses many stories in the same genre. Although written for children, it speaks thoughtfully to themes of isolation, empathy, and the simple, healing power of quiet companionship. There's a kind of understated wisdom in the way Harold interacts with the heron—he speaks sensibly, and while the bird cannot talk, it listens in a way few others do. Their connection is both whimsical and deeply human.

Living in a Maritime province myself, I found the imagery in this book especially poignant. Wilson's use of sensory language—like the rhythmic crashing of waves on the dock, the taste of a chocolate bar melting on the tongue, or the feeling of wind brushing against Harold’s cheek—creates a vivid and comforting atmosphere. It feels deeply rooted in place, yet universally relatable.

Emotionally, the story handles Harold’s sense of alienation and longing with sensitivity. It doesn't talk down to children but instead offers an honest portrayal of feeling out of step with peers or family. The resolution, which highlights the presence of love and care even when it's not always felt, is tender and hopeful. It's the kind of ending that can bring real comfort to kids experiencing loneliness.

While some whimsical plot turns—particularly in the book’s climax—may stretch logic, it's easy to give the story grace, knowing it operates in the magical realism space of a child’s emotional world. Like many great children's stories, it's not bound by rigid logic, but rather by the emotional truth it conveys.

Interestingly, this book shares a striking thematic kinship with Studio Ghibli’s The Boy and the Heron. Both stories begin with a lonely child and a mysterious bird, using that relationship to explore grief, belonging, and transformation—though Harold and Harold takes a gentler, more grounded path. I wonder if the great anime studio itself took inspiration from such a humble book?

In all, Harold and Harold is a heartfelt and beautifully told story. It's a wonderful read not just for children, but for anyone who's ever felt a little different and found solace in quiet, unexpected friendship. A solid 4 out of 5 stars.

(Attached is fanart of Harold and Harold and my current favourite fandom, South Park! Butters reminded me of Harold so much, both bundles of innocence and quiet joy.)

Book: Broken Crayons
Written by Patsy Dingwell
Art by Marla Lesage
Published by Acorn Press

Broken Crayons by Patsy Dingwell is a children picture book that follows Mrs. Gillis, a Prince Edward Island teacher as she embarks on the long journey to Kenya to teach students but then something heartwarming happens!

I loved Broken Crayons! It helped me realize to love the smaller things in life and not to take anything for granted. The pictures in this book was bright and beautiful and I think that every young child ( or young adult) should read it at least once!

This book featured multiple DEI examples. DEI stands for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Some examples is when the young children wanted to share their crayons with their siblings! I liked that part of the story because I strongly believe that inclusion and kindness can do wonders to everyone!

In conclusion, Broken Crayons packs a powerfull punch and encourages readers to treat everyone with kindness! I absolutely recommend this book to everyone!
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟/5 (stars)

“There are fewer worries when your hands are creating” ~ Grammy Stewart (Page 87)
“Life isn’t easy and it isn’t always fair. Changing focus helps. Think of what you have done already, not what you haven’t. Be a warrior, not a worrier.” ~ Grammy Stewart (Page 114)

I wanted to read this story this month because April 2 is International Children’s Book Day, so I wanted to read a children’s book! This one is middle grade, and I read “A Beginners Guide to Goodbye” by the author of this one, so I went into this book with some decent expectations. A Beginners Guide to Goodbye was a book that dealt with a heavy topic like grief but broke it down so that it was easier for a kid understand. It was a sweet and touching story that I found quite meaningful. I rated it 5 stars when I read it 2yrs ago. Bertie Stewart is Perfectly Imperfect takes the same tone and spirit, and also has that same purpose of taking an important topic and breaking it down. This book tackles anxiety, what that can feel like, and how it can be dealt with.

As someone who doesn’t have anxiety, I can’t really comment on whether or not this is a good portrayal of it, but I do think it provides some understanding of what goes on in people’s heads, how they might overthink things, or feel a sense of panic. I think this book does well in presenting it in a kid friendly way, and I think it can be easy for kids to read this book and be able to identify some of the signs and indicators.

That being said, this book isn’t just about learning to deal with the inner voices in your head, there are also a lot of different subplots that I think this book could have cut out. There are too many characters that have different functions, Karla is the bully, Denise is the “evil” stepmom, Kevin is the best friend, Sally is the annoying sister, Grammy is the wise old mentor figure—there are so many people Bertie has met and frequently interacted with in such a short book, which is surprising since the main settings are just, home, school, and Grammy’s house. I think one of the drawbacks of my enjoyment of this book was that I thought it was going to be a fun, whimsy, maybe even cozy story about a girl going through life, but this book wants to be a lot of different things at all once? It wants to be that cozy and fun story, but it also wants to be a commentary about self acceptance, and dealing with these more heavy themes? Sure they can fit into the story, but I didn’t feel as if they were well developed enough. I understand writing a book with a message, but I would have liked this book better if it was more of Bertie vs Bertie and her having to overcome everything she’s going through by herself. This short and tiny book also wants to throw in Bertie vs the world and Bertie vs bullies at the same time, and it didn’t quite land as well as I thought it could.

The ending of this book is short and sweet. I think this book captures a childlike charm and wonder that’s since been lost from children as a whole. The characters are a bit underdeveloped, but they’re still fun to read about. They feel like kids in the sense that they don’t like how adults do things, and how they just want to be themselves. Bertie as a character is decent to read about, I didn’t find myself relating to her in a lot of ways, even if I was still younger. Bertie is snappy, but only a normal amount of snappy. She’s curious and quirky, and she isn’t liked by very many people at school. She only has one best friend, and they are friends because they both don’t follow any sort of mold.

I will say that sometimes the writing was a little bit strange, which I didn’t recall it being like this from “A Beginners Guide to Goodbye”, but some sentences just didn’t make sense? I understand that it’s a middle grade novel, but having strange sentences isn’t a stylistic choice. Maybe that’s too nitpicky, but that’s just a bit jarring to read a sentence that’s not fully edited halfway through your book.

Ooookay I think I actually found a lot to say about this book, but that’s not really even all of it. That’s okay though. I’ll leave it at this. Overall I think the book has a good heart of providing a new perspective on people who might have anxiety, and it might help a lot of young readers to actually identify what they are feeling. I think this book can serve as an aid for kids that have their own inner voices in their head. But I felt like the story element of this story was a bit lacking in some aspects, in my opinion. And I don’t think that books should be rated just because I can see the vision and the potential.