Review: Cute and Colorful, Entertaining and Educational
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 02 25, 2013
"The Tale of the Clownfish and the Great Shark" by Lily Lexington is a clever story that teaches children not to make assumptions about people or things they don't really know about. In this case, the fish all assumed the Great Shark was a horrible, mean, ferocious predator who would eat them in a heartbeat, given half a chance. They all dare the Clownfish to go steal a tooth out of the mouth of the shark. (Note: I think a secondary lesson to be learned in this book is to NOT succumb to a dare, just because others may think you a coward or ridicule you.)Clownfish accepts the dare, so as not to look afraid, but when he reaches the shark's domain another predatory fish throws a net over him! To his great surprise, the shark rescues him, and acts very friendly toward him. As it turns out, the shark is misunderstood; he only eats plankton, not other fish!Because of his great size and his misunderstood culinary preferences, the shark is also very lonesome, and gladly welcomes the Clownfish to stay and play awhile. He even freely volunteers one of his teeth, so the Clownfish can prove he went through with the dare. In the end, the shark invites all the other fishes to come and visit him whenever they like.This book is very vividly colored, with a variety of fish to entertain the youngsters. The "lessons" to be learned are not overtly "in your face", but rather subtle, and more likely to be learned by hearing the story a number of times, and by discussing the lessons with the child. All things considered, this is a good little story that will both entertain and teach valuable life lessons. I recommend it for the little ones on your shopping list.