Customer Reviews

Friends of a Feather: One of Life's Little Fables

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

 

 

I absolutely loved this book on many, many levels.

The illustrations are colorful and at the same time incredible simple AND incredibly complex.

I love that Bill Cosby and his daughter, Erika, collaborated on it.

And then secondarily, reading the reviews from the others, I also see the richness of the whole concept of "Fables" as well. Each reviewer has taken away a special - and different - nugget from the book.

Here is what especially intrigued me:

Hog compared the "raves and applause" that Feathers received
to what he received.... nothing. He craved what Feathers received.
He judged himself unfavorably and risked his life to
have the applause, like Feathers.

Feathers didn't care about the applause. He was just doing what
he loved to do, which included being an excellent friend of
Hog.

The most inspiring moment for them came when they flew out
of the "applause range" and could simply enjoy flying and being
together.

It would be fascinating to read this as a family or a group of friends and see what they people walk away with... my guess is that each would walk away with something inspiring, something different, and some significant unique message especially for them.

Read it to hear your significant message.

Written by comedian and humanitarian Bill Cosby, Friends Of A Feather: One Of Life's Little Fables is a children's storybook with an underlying moral about the importance of having the courage to be oneself. The eye-catching, brilliant style of color illustration by Erika Cosby (Bill Cosby's daugther), present avian characters as if they were paper shapes, in this original story of a pair of stunt-flying comrades faced with choices about how much value to put on the limelight versus one's own goals. Friends Of A Feather is recommended for grade school and community library picturebook collections for young readers.

This is a great story about what being a real friend means.
Feather is beautiful and hog admires the attention Feather garners when he flies. What hog didn't understand was that just because he wasn't as beautiful, didn't mean he's not just as good. (or maybe better)
Friends of a feather reminds everyone about being yourself and supporting friends.
The story is written in a playful style that engages the reader in moments of humor and a bit of drama while telling an effective story that I'm sure most will enjoy.

In the beautifully illustrated children's book, Birds of Feather, author Bill Cosby tells the story of three birds, Blank AKA "Slipper," Hog, and Feathers. Slippers serves as the narrator and tells the tale of how the birds all flew together in an area called "Beach by the Rock." Hog is the most talented of the group, but Feathers, whose sheer beauty entices people from all over, overshadows his stunts. Initially, Feathers enjoys the attention that the crowds of people bestow, but soon just flies for the fun of it; however, Hog wants some recognition and begins to perform death defying stunts in hopes of pleasing the people. In the end his stunts may end up costing him his friendship, his pride or even his life.

Bill Cosby has written a book that can be enjoyed by people of all ages. The pictures are stunning and accurately portray the tale of the birds. What I enjoyed most about this story is that it teaches several morals. Issues such as peer pressure, insecurities, and competition are dealt with in a kid friendly way so that even the youngest of readers can understand. I highly recommend this book as it will be a welcome complement to any home library.

Reviewed by Latoya Carter-Qawiyy
APOOO BookClub

The friendship message is fine, but this is truly one of the worst children's books I have ever read. I never thought I would be one to really not like a book--but this is the one.

Read this twice in one sitting.

This is a great tale of friendship that overcomes envy and showing-off. It has a light touch, but on the second read-through the "voice" really comes through.

It's fun to read this out loud to my kids - especially because every time we travel or have visitors, we do get a bit of sibling rivalry. This book is a gentle reminder that everybody is special. And for friends, having fun together is much more important than getting approval from others.

Be yourself.

This is a good one.