Customer Reviews

Blueberry Girl

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Ladies of Anapest, Ladies of Iamb
Lightly your feet skip along
Here is a lilt for a Blueberry Girl,
A wish written into a song.

Oh, we all wish our babes to be
Both good and kind, to have
Courage and honor and joy.
We wish all these things for
Our Blueberry Girls,
And we wish just as much for each Boy.

I've purchased this book
For my Blueberry Girls,
Now grown into Ladies of note.
Glorious women,
Well set on their paths,
They fill both my dreams and my hopes.

Oh Ladies of Doggerel, Ladies of Rhyme,
Of Metaphor, Image and Trope,
Here is a song for a Blueberry Girl,
But I'm Nearing the End Of My Rope.

Ladies, you whisper, you sing, and you chant,
You haunt me awake or a-dream.
Ladies, dear ladies you're driving me mad:
Get out of my head or I'll SCREAM!

I am reluctant to give this book up.

It's Neil Gaiman, and that means words: good words. It's Charles Vess, and that means art: beautiful art.

It's also for girls and women and probably other feminine creatures, and I don't qualify for any of those titles.

However, my daughter... now, for my daughter, this is the perfect gift. Its inspiration and encouragement will be there for her, give her something to look through and keep in mind when I'm not right there to say all the sorts of inspirational and encouraging things a father can say to his daughter. Maybe, when she reads it, she will smile and think kindly of all the times I've said something similar, and maybe, just maybe, she won't roll her eyes like she would when I say those things...

She's nearly a teenager now, and the only problem I really see with this book is that it wasn't around a decade or so ago so I could read it to her over and over through the years...

The lilt of the rhyme, the excellence of the message for girls and future women, the gentle, beautiful illustrations...these are the reasons that I'll be buying this book for many new moms and young girls. This simple, short poem/story uses good sense, good balance, and good vocabulary. I'm not much of a book reviewer, but, as they say, I know what I like. This goes into the same category as "Oh, The Places You'll Go" as a go-to book as a gift, with a special emphasis on girls. It was clearly written and illustrated by people with a loving respect for the women in their lives. I didn't look at how much of the book is available in preview, but even if the whole book is there, it's still one that I'm glad I have in hardcover...it will be shared, and shared, and shared.

Blueberry Blessings For Your Wild Child, a review of Neil Gaiman and
Charles Vess' Blueberry Girl, by Lichen June

Lovers of art and lovers of whimsy,
lovers of words, the magical kind
this is a review for a Blueberry Girl
a tale from Neil Gaiman's mind

A book filled with prayers and hopes for a child
to guide and watch over her play
to protect her from troubles and woes of all kinds
add kindness and delight to her days

Words can be blessings, words can be curses
when spoken with the firmness of truth
Neil's words have intent, filled with love and bright purpose
to protect a child's trust and her youth

Lovers of dreams, lovers of nature
lovers of mysteries told
this is a rave for a Blueberry Girl
for teaching her to be brave and be bold

The pictures are beautiful, vibrant and strong
watercolor to dazzle the eyes
the verses enchant the young and the old
at turns graceful and really quite wise

Buy this book for your loved ones to grow on
to imagine, share and inspire
to teach the dance of great joys and deep sorrows
the balance her life will require

Lovers of sunlight, lovers of starlight
lovers of "shadows that fall"
this is rejoicing that Blueberry Girl
is here to be enjoyed by us all

Thanks Charles Vess for your love of the natural
Neil Gaiman for your love of this child
you've both interwoven vast talents to create
a present most wondrous and wild

Truth is a gift we must find for ourselves
"precious and rare as a pearl"
but it comes just a little bit easier now
with a gift like the Blueberry Girl

[...]

I just had to take one look at the sample page and I was completely captivated by the beautiful language and the amazing illustrations. I've already given this book away as a gift four times.

The prayer for the Blueberry Girl contains well-wishes that every little girl everywhere in the world should be blessed with. And I dare say these lines will be uplifting and inspiring even for some not-so-little girls.

I also love the illustrations. They are enchanting and intricate, with many colourful details that are just waiting to be discovered. It's a perfect book for mothers and fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers reading with and to their little girls.

I am certain that this will turn into one of those magical books that stay treasured and beloved for a life-time and beyond.

Blueberry Girl is magical. Neil Gaiman's prayer for the daughter of a friend is beautifully written with sentiments shared by any one who has or had a little girl in their life. It's truly lovely and encompasses every wish I could bestow upon the baby girls coming into this world. I plan to share it with all of my friends.

Also, I highly recommend everyone watch the video, put together by Brady Hall, using the illustrations in the book and a reading of Blueberry Girl by Neil.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QH4lyJWa_84&feature=player_embedded

I read this in a bookstore last weekend. It felt like being hit by a truck. The illustrations were so beautiful, I wanted to hire someone to reproduce them on the walls of my bedroom so I could be lulled to sleep by looking at them. The words were so beautiful I had to say them under my breath, imagining saying them to my daughter one day. Now I don't have to wonder what to get the next time a friend has a child.

The words in this book embody every wish a parent holds in their heart for their child. This is an absolutely beautiful 'prayer' that is only made more endearing with Vess' illustrations.

My eight and ten year old sons enjoy this as much as or more than my thirteen year old daughter and I. This book has inspired many thoughtful discussions led by my children concerning everything from their future aspirations to how they desire to treat their spouses!

Blueberry Girl has quickly become a staple bedtime story in my home.

I loved this book. Vess did the art for a Circle of Cats for Charles deLint, so I am a hugh fan. The poetry and pictures are so beautifully matched that I wish this book had been available when my own girls were little. As it is . . . my grandaughter (7yo) liked it so much--she read it back to me. Thank you Gaiman and Vess.

This is a wonderful gem. Neil Gaiman's poetry flows beautifully and Charles Vess's illustrations are fantastic. "This is a prayer for a blueberry girl..." is the beginning, and it is one of the best new baby blessings I have ever found. Do not let a potential giftee's age deter you, though--this book has been well received by new baby's parents, by little girls, by girlfriends, and mothers themselves. I wish EVERY little girl could have a copy of this on her shelf, and believe it when it's read to her.