Customer Reviews

The Storm (The Lighthouse Family)

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

 

 

We love all of Cynthia Rylant's books and series of books, and The Lighthouse Family series is our new favorite! We are anxious to read the next book as soon as it comes out so we can know what happens to Pandora the cat, Seabold the dog and their three little mice children. Rylant uses wonderful words in her books, painting a beautiful story of words. (the illustrations in this book are beautiful too!) This is for a little older readers than her Mr. Putter and Tabby, Henry and Mudge, Poppleton, or Little Whistle series, ALL of which I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!

"The Storm" by Cynthia Rylant is one of the most joyful stories a writer could ever put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) to write. Finding Preston McDaniels to illustrate is probably a sign from heaven that this book was meant to be. It is perfect. That simple: "The Storm" is perfect. Because this is a ready-for-chapters book, a beginning reader has the story to practice reading skills. As a bonus, the story is didactic in teaching that solitude comes with a price and that friendship heals loneliness. Even if the young reader does not understand these concepts on a conscious level, surely the subconscious makes that registration.

The adult cannot miss the themes of solitude and friendship and what each bring. This is one of those books that I would like to stand in the foyer of Wal-Mart and hand out to everyone who leaves. Rylant has a soft touch, a magical way with words that go straight to the heart.

In children's books animals are often the characters. Why, you may ask? Studies explain the psychological use and also why they dress as humans. The first main character is Pandora, a cat who has accepted the loneliness that goes with living in a lighthouse, but her sole purpose in life is saving ships from crashing on the rocks. Enter Seabold, a loner dog who loves to sail the seas, who finds safe harbor one stormy night in the seas near Pandora's lighthouse. A dog and a cat living in the same house is difficult at first. He is a salty, crusty old dog, she is neat and tidy, a follower of rules. Their family is made complete with the rescue of three little mice.

Think of it: how incongruous it is that three such disparate sets of persons could make a happy home, but they do. This statement may be a spoiler, but it is not. It is not the make up of the family that this story is about; rather, it is about love and acceptance and kindness and generosity of spirit. Mostly, it is about the magic of love in transforming people, in making them human.

See what I mean. This book needs to be handed out at Wal-Mart. Pay it forward, make the world better. Another of Rylant's magically worded books is "Missing May," a Newbury Award winner. "The Storm" is the first in her Lighthouse Family series. Very highly recommended!

The is the first book I have read my Rylant. Being a fan of lighthouses and children's books, I had to check this one out once I saw the cover. I was very impressed. The story is about 2 lonely animals,an adorable sheepdog and kitty cat, who love the sea and develop a deep friendship. They decide to tend a lighthouse together. The illustrations are some of the best I have seen in kids' books. This is definitely a cozy read for bedtime.

The Storm introduces us to a new book series by Cynthis Rylant, one of my favorite children's authors. We are introduced to Seabold, a seafaring loner (and a dog), the cat Pandora, a lonely keeper of the lighthouse, and three mouse orphans. The text is melodic and never overwrought. The story is sweet, and though filled with virtue it is not moralistic. By the end of the book my son and I wanted to live with the lighthouse family, and share in their new life together. A sweet book, that I read to him, but equally appropriate for a mid-level independent reader. I would think the age group anywhere from 5-10 depending on who is doing the reading, an adult or the child herself.

We read a lot and have struggled to find the right chapter books to read out loud to our 6 (almost 7) year old. He can read the Magic Tree House series on his own now, so we were looking for something slightly more advanced in terms of vocabulary and number of words on a page to read TO him. Many of the books we've tried have had subject matter too dark for a 6 year old (Lemony Snicket, Winn-Dixie, Edward Tulane, Swiss Family Robinson early classic version, etc. - they all seem to include kids or parents dying).

This book was perfect. It included just enough new words for his vocabulary - not so many to make the story difficult to understand but enough to stretch his mind a bit. :-) The story itself had the perfect balance of drama/adventure and simple peace and goodness. I don't know just how to explain this, but the book itself just has a cozy feeling...it makes me want to snuggle up close to my son for an old-fashioned wholesome read.

I was surprised at how different this was in writing style from Rylant's books for younger readers (Henry and Mudge, Mr. Putter and Tabby). We liked those too, but the style here is much different. It's not just a longer story. The words chosen give the sense that she carefully crafted each page. I can't say enough about how much we loved this book and are looking forward to reading the others in the series.

I think the vocabulary would make this a little tougher for our almost-5 year old, so I'd recommend this for 6-9 year olds, depending on whether you're reading TO them or whether they're reading these on their own.

This is, amazingly, the first good series I've found to read to my four-year-old son. They're good stories, no meanness or sarcasm that I've found in way too many children's books. They're just good, nice, interesting stories--and I don't have to skip or change the words! Thank you Ms. Rylant!

A very nice chapter book for young readers about a cat who discovers that her purpose is to run a lighthouse and save sailors from the rocky shores.

However, the story focuses on more than just the lighthouse, it focuses on how the cat, Pandora, finds friends and a family as the sea brings to her what she had given up for it.