Blue Wolf Reviews

Tag: imagination

  • Our Incredible Imagination

    Our Incredible Imagination

    To explain to children how the brain works and what is imagination, is a difficult task. The author has done a masterful job of clarifying and simplifying a tough topic. As an adult, reading Our Incredible Imagination helped to clarify vague ideas and notions of what imagination is.

    The explanation is that “Imagination is the brain’s ability to VISUALIZE THINGS THAT ARE MISSING.”  The following pages expand and explain this idea and show how musicians, artists, athletes and dancers, (to name a few) use imagination to further their goals. It is shown that you can visualise something real, or a wish, or something made up. Children have vivid imaginations, but often these fade as we get older. Artists often retain this strength as their mind is largely taken up with their art.

    Many questions are posed and answered. Can you train your imagination? Can it break down? Can imagination play a role in science? There are different kinds of imagination. An area of the brain switches off and on depending on whether you are thinking scientifically or daydreaming. When we are fearful our thoughts can be very frightening, but when the fridge is empty, our imagination helps us plan our meals and what food to buy.

    Some thoughts can be connected to a particular place. “That’s the Church I was married in.” There are automatic thoughts, when your alarm goes off for example, and thoughts that stay with us for life. After the table of contents, there is a page which tells about the author, has some tips on a deeper understanding, and references to finding other materials on the subject.

    Our Incredible Imagination is such a well thought out, brilliantly compiled book that it should be in every school and home.

  • If I Were a Lion

    If I Were a Lion

    Being brave and fierce and wild and free sounds a lot like a lion to me. The character in this Children’s picture book, If I Were A Lion wants to be all of these things. As well, she wants to say, “No smooches until I am ready.”  The young one wants to have many voices, loud and soft, happy, and sad. She would always be brave, except when she was being careful. Being a lion would mean that you could eat cake any way you wanted.

    Then the girl thinks, maybe she is a lion because she already has so many choices, and she can shine. The pathways open to lions and little girls are very similar. Both hunt with their pack, both can fight for dominance (although girls have less claws), both can relax when their bodies are tired, and both can roll around in the mud.

    Kitty Black and Giuseppe Poli have shown many children in various situations. The inclusion of handicapped children is clever, in showing they can also be fierce. The artwork consists of outlines and sketches suggesting movement and action. The humour adds an extra dimension to the story. “If I were a lion I would not eat like a lady.”

    The ending is highly appropriate suggesting it’s alright to be a lion but it’s also good to be ME.

  • Imaginations

    Imaginations

    If you ever needed an excuse to chill out for an hour Imaginations from Dutch composer and musician Ronald van Deurzen is just that, as he entices you into a world of music that is varied, enjoyable and deliciously relaxing; perfect to take the time to take time, to simply be in the present through the gift of music.

    From the gentle and peaceful Little Falling Flake to the soft and careful melodies of Early Years the stage is set for an hour of pure enjoyment which is reinforced with the dainty offering Moon Flower, written to the romance of the delicate white flower that unfurls in the evening and closes once again as the light touches the sky in the early morning.

    Come Back Because I Love You is an intriguing title for a song, as are the melodies that form the piece, strong with passion, a sense of longing that had not yet become acceptance. Intriguing and beautifully structured the piece compliments the previous Midsommar Känsla laced with the wonders of the outdoors at Midsummer, when all around is washed in the blessings offered by the sun.

    Gorgeous, Autumn Park is, at least to me, the pinnacle piece of the work, clean, crisp, clear and glorious; the riot of autumn has been captured with the strength, classic patterns and vibrancy that shape a season full of change, delight, colour and joy. The addition of an electronic element to the piece simply underscores the talent of the creator.

    As the work opens up, it is easy to see why van Deurzen is considered a musician of note within his field that of piano, orchestra, fusion and prog rock as Imaginations delivers the lot in one incantation or another. The deliciously complex piece Momentum Figures, captures the imagination as it ebbs and flows in what what could be considered as pure fusion, almost as if he has gone, well let’s see what happens when you do this and add that, which has created a fantastically fun piece, full of pomp and frivolity before ending in a classically formed flourish.

    Deep, dramatic and forceful Stuck in a Dream completes what is an album to be enjoyed over and over again, full of fun, variety, entertainment asking nothing more than to be enjoyed in the moment in time that this work finds you.

  • A Velocity of Being: Letters to A Young Reader

    A Velocity of Being: Letters to A Young Reader

    By the time she was in third grade Poet, naturalist and essayist Diane Ackerman already knew where to find heroes, monsters and so much more. Caroline Paul discovered books were a refuge and a source of great wisdom. Terry Teachout came to terms with the fact that in books you can be anything but ordinary. You can be a pirate, a King, an explorer or whoever you want to be; you simply do not need to be you!

    A Velocity of being – Letters to a young reader takes a journey into the lives of some fascinating people; writers, poets, scientists, journalists, explorers; people who have made a difference in this world, people like you and me who discovered books at an early age and the difference they made in their lives, both as children and adults.

    Each of the people that make up this charming anthology share a story about books; their love of reading, escapism, learning and pleasure discovered on the pages of a book.

    Born from a desire to keep books and the beloved pastime of reading alive and well in an age that was fast heading towards the extinction of books as we have known them since time memorial, Claudia Bedrick, an independent publisher of children’s books and Maria Popova, author and writer combined their talents, along with eight years of hard work and dedication, to build a work of memoirs from so many of the people who had influenced either their lives or others’ lives in some wonderful way or another. People such as Neil Gaimen, Jacqueline Woodson, Mathew Burgess, Lise Solomon and another 120 others who helped to create this treasure.

    Coupled with superb illustrations from celebrated graphic artists or illustrators adds a superb element to the stories as each of the invited contributors shares a special moment in their lives, when books offered solace, allowed them to escape to another world, offered a gateway to their future, bought laughter and adventures unimaginable.

    A Velocity of Being is a work born of love, full of love and offered with love to readers, young and old of this world, who still need to do all the things the generations of readers gone before loved to do; travel via the armchair to far flung places, escape on a secret mission to a save the world, at the very least, join an adventurer as they travel with dog-sleds across the icepacks of the world or learn more about the places, spaces and people who make up our world.

    Poetry, prose, simple letters, longer discussions, graphic, actually comic book tales, options to travel into space for just a moment or two, all rub shoulders to create a masterpiece of both children’s and adults reading that will become a treasure to be passed on through the generations.

    All the contributions that make up this wonderful, rich book have been offered with love and the desire to reach out to a new generation, to encourage reading. All proceeds from the sale of this book will go towards the New York public library system ‘because libraries are bastions of democracy and the oxygen for the life of the mind………….’

    David Bowies idea of perfect happiness was reading, What is yours……………………perhaps, hopefully, reading!

  • The Incurable Imagination

    The Incurable Imagination

    What an absolutely feel good, funny and 100 percent enjoyable celebration of all things, the Imagination, which may seem like a bit of ridiculous statement, but consider for a moment the age in which we live, the massive push to conform and the fall-out when you dare to be different.

    The Incurable Imagination from the witty pen of Paul Russel with quirky illustrations from Aska celebrates being different, with a little girl called Audrey who was always considered as different, right from when she was old enough to see things differently.

    The problem was that being different was something Audrey never grew out of and when all the other children painted their parents Audrey painted Ogres! Not just any Ogre but the one who loved to drink tea and also lived under her bed!

    When she went to school she was eventually diagnosed with having a very bad case of Imagination, in fact the very worst her teacher had ever seen. When they showed her eh alphabet chart, she turned it into soup, trolls were found in cardboard boxes and witches really did it seemed fly on broomsticks at least according to Audrey.

    But where will this serious condition end…………

    Being different Audrey style bought smiles, fun and a great sense of the ridiculous to all those who became infected with this ‘terrible condition’ , so be very careful when you read this book aloud, or even quietly, because you might find yourself smiling for no good reason, imagining castles in the air and generally having a really fantastic time all day, every day.

    A wonderful romp of a book that will without doubt become a firm favourite in the home and classroom.

    What a terrible thing to happen!

     

  • How to Get Rid of a Vampire (Using Ketchup, Garlic Cloves and a Bit of Imagination)

    How to Get Rid of a Vampire (Using Ketchup, Garlic Cloves and a Bit of Imagination)

    Zazie is a precocious child who seems to over exaggerate everything in her life. Everything is drama, drama, drama, drama. It does not matter whether it is a friend’s party, her ‘awful’ cousin Lucas or the new schoolteacher. Somehow or other she always finds something to dramatize!

    She loves to read and write and when she receives a lovely new note book, she decides it is time she began to keep a diary, so begins to write down her impressions of life, he cousin, her friends and her parents, which when you are about 10 years old, are very interesting indeed!

    That is all very well, but when she also finds a copy of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, a book she has been forbidden, and I mean forbidden to read, things begin to get rather out of control, even for Zazie.

    Hiding under her bed to read the story, out of the sight of her mother and father who, in her opinion always over react to everything, she decides to record her concerns about the fall out should a vampire be loose in the area.

    When a new teacher takes over her class, Zazie decides he is the image of Count Dracula, as described in Bram Stoker’s book and manages to convince her friends, as well as her deadly enemies the Chamille twins that he, Mr Fleder, with his pale skin and red rimmed eyes, is a vampire!

    The more she reads about Count Dracula, in her secret hideout under her bed, the more, convinced she is that Mr Felder is a real life Vampire! She begins to come up with a plan to save not just her life, but that of her friends and classmates, which is when events take a turn for the worse, getting outrageously out of control! Even for one of Zazie’s plans.

    Her beloved cat Roudoudou, is a great listener in all of this plotting, but when she finds s herself in terrible trouble, and all her friends laughing at her, Zazie begins to realise it is simply her imagination which is out of control.

    How To Get Rid of Vampire is a fun filled look at the power of the imagination, the unlimited scope of children’s minds and the huge amount of fun and chaos that can be created when there is the possibility of a vampire living in your neighbourhood.

    Entertaining, original and absolutely fun to read, with a lot of really neat illustrations, this is one book that perhaps should not be read at night while hiding under the bed!

  • The Song from Somewhere Else

    The Song from Somewhere Else

    There is a quote in the front of this book by Robin Stevens which says that this is “The kind of children’s book that’s the reason why adults should never stop reading children’s books”, and I couldn’t agree more. This story contains many layers of issues and complexities, which all need to be dealt with, by a young girl called Frank.

    Some of these issues involve bullying, communications, stereotyping and courage. Often Frank communicated with her stomach, which poses an interesting thought, where do you communicate with yourself?  Maybe her stomach dealt with feelings of fear, and was where her thoughts emanated from.

    The story revolves around a most unlikely friendship that develops between Frank and a boy in her class at school, Nick. Nick rescues her from a gang of bullies who delight in physical and verbal bullying of Frank, at every opportunity. As this occurs during the School holiday’s, they run to Nick’s house, and meet Nick’s father.

    Nick is a strange looking boy, extremely tall for his age, and with a face that is grey, and flat. He has no friends and is laughed at in School. Frank is anxious to escape his house, and return home, when she hears the most magical music. It creates feelings of great peace and harmony, and Frank can’t resist trying to find the source. This is how the young girl discovers Nick’s secret.

    Enthralled by the music Frank returns to Nick’s house the next day. She learns more about an extraordinary occurrence, which has placed Nick in this world. It is a huge secret, but one which is later wheedled out of Frank by the bullies. Events move quickly, and it takes an enormous amount of courage and bravery and love to sort out this deadly problem.

    This is a gripping read and difficult to put down. The illustrations add delightfully to the mystical nature of the story. They are in black and white and shades of grey, adding a gloomy, ethereal quality to the story. Although it is satisfying to see the bullies tamed, Frank moves on from that experience. Just as going back to school, people are shocked to see her befriend Nick, but being older, and wiser, she says “Why not?”

  • Nothing!

    Nothing!

    This brightly coloured Picture Book shows Lila, on the front cover, riding a giraffe while standing up. Instantly we realize that there are no obstacles that Lila can’t overcome. The end page of the book shows the female bear- like Lila, sword fighting, playing cards with an elephant and riding on a magic carpet. Is there nothing this girl can’t do?

     As the story begins, we find out that what Mum wants Lila to do, and what Lila is doing, are vastly different. Mum needs Lila to put on her shoes. When this doesn’t happen Mum asks “Lila, what are you doing?” The reply is “Nothing”, however, we can see in the picture that Lila is under the table fighting a fearsome beast, trying  to make it her pet. Instead of putting on her coat, Lila is gazing at a scarf, and guessing how she could play with it. As Mum and Lila progress on their journey to meet Grandpa, Lila’s imagination is constantly whisking her away, by horse drawn chariot, and other means.

     When they meet Grandpa he is curious to learn what Lila has been doing. “Nothing”, is her standard reply. Grandpa is amazed when he knows that instead of sitting on his shoulders, Lila is at the top of the tallest tree. He is very excited and joins Lila, flying through the air; “Pretend is so much better with a friend”  

     The illustrations in the book are simple and colourful. The text is in large print, with occasional words enlarged, or printed in a different font for emphasis. Lila’s imaginary play transports her into a different realm, and it is probably only parents who have “Dreamy “children who will relate strongly to this.

      The conversations arising from reading this with a child would be such fun.