Customer Reviews

Joy the Jellyfish

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

 

 

Joy is a lonely little jellyfish looking for a friend. She travels far and wide, seeing many creatures but none to be her friend. Until she meets Bella the whale.

This is a delightful story with wonderful illustrations that will please children of any age and the moral is included in such a way the child will not be aware of it. It is a book that children will want to read or have read to them more than once.

I'm pleased to highly recommend this book to any parent to give to their child. It can be used to spend happy time as child and parent read and enjoy the colorful illustrations.

An adorably illustrated book well written to help the young child to deal with issues of making friends.

I just got my copy of Joy the Jellyfish from Amazon. I was originally attracted by the illustrations.(which is why I ordered it)

When I got my copy, I revelled in the text. I love the repetition phrase and I love the message. This is a story that you really want your children to have because it deals with esteem issues and distance them by using fish. I love it.

Joy the Jellyfish has a very serious problem. More than anything, he wants to make friends. But how on earth can he make friends when he's nearly invisible!

He tries to get the attention of the other Great Barrier Reef creatures--Amy Anemone, a school of sea horses, Gantian the Great White Shark, Bogart the Blowfish, Daphne the Dolphin--but because of his near-invisible nature, he's mostly ignored.

"My only wish is to have a friend," says Joy the Jellyfish. Then, as he keeps traveling deeper into the ocean, and the waters become icier and darker, he meets Bella Beluga the Whale, who teaches him the secret of friendship and how friendship itself has nothing to do with his nearly-invisible physical nature. Thanks to Bella, Joy learns how to overcome shyness and make friends. More confident, he swims back to the reef, this time powered with the knowledge of true friendship.

Joy the Jellyfish is a sweet story about friendship and about how to overcome shyness in order to make friends. The prose and dialogue are engaging and the brightly colored illustrations captivating. This is a book that will make a fine, delightful gift to any child, not only because of its beautiful artwork and engaging plot, but also because it teaches the different animals which inhabit the great barrier reefs. This book is the second collaboration between talented illustrator Kevin Scott Scollier and his author wife, Kristen. I hope this book will not be their last and I certainly look forward to more children's picture books from this winning team.

--Mayra Calvani, Midwest Book Review

This story is cute and engaging. I love the illustrations and the message is a good one. When you make yourself friendly people are more likely to want to be your friend. At least that is the message I got from the story. A few times the author uses words that are a bit advanced for a child - like trepidation - but if an adult is reading the story to a child it shouldn't be an issue, and may even expand their vocabulary. I would recommend this book to teach a child who is not outgoing and a bit timid how to reach out and make friends. This would be a great tool to illustrate that point.

Joy the Jellyfish wants a friend, but she's invisible to the other creatures in the sea. She's also very shy, which makes it difficult for her to talk to the animals that live in the Great Barrier Reef with her. She's so lonely that one day, she decides to go in search of a friend. She smiles shyly at each animal she meets, hoping to be their friend, but the anemone doesn't see Joy. The seahorses turn up their noses at her. The Great White Shark swims away. Will no one be her friend?

Then Joy meets a ghostlike creature that has an answer to her problem. Oh no! I'm not telling. But children will be delighted by Joy's discovery of the "secret of true friendship."

The playful illustrations, with bright-eyed sea creatures, complement Ms. Collier's tale of friendship. It is a lovely book that young children will want to read or have read to them over and over. There's one word--"trepidation"--that a parent will have to explain to this age child. A nice story for bedtime or for anytime.