12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Good Manners Subtly Taught, January 15, 2001
Enjoy this lovely book over leisurely cups of tea and hot cocoa with a youngster. Ms. Rylant paints a vivid picture of a community where the animals are very different from each other, but they accept and appreciate those differences. Although the book is not preachy or pushy, here are some lessons a young reader/listener might pick up: Nigel welcomes a newcomer, though the hummingbird's flashy style makes him dizzy; Nigel patiently helps a worried little perfectionist owl "redecorate" his home -- back to the way it was in the first place; Nigel encourages a garter snake to plant a garden, aware that his lazy friend will not see it through. And finally (this is a lesson most children need to hear) Nigel politely accepts lunch with a salamander, knowing his friend serves only terrible-tasting health food. His graciousness is rewarded in the end. The painted illustrations are as delightful as the stories and characters themselves. This book is remniscent of Jan Karon's good-natured Mitford series for adults.
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6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Nigel isn't very pleasant!, August 12, 2006
Thimbleberry Stories is a quartet of short stories highlighting the life of the main character, Nigel Chipmunk, on Thimbleberry Lane. Nigel is a proud little fellow, and as we learn, he is very partial to his own way of thinking.
Nigel is supposed to learn through his encounters with a young artistic hummingbird named Dipper, his good friend Little Owl, Claudius, the garter snake, and Mudpuppy, the salamander, that life is about variety and accepting differences in others.
However, while I understood the author's objective in trying to teach children to accept differences, I found that Nigel was a bit too disposed in judging his friends to ever learn the lesson of compassion.
For instance, when Little Owl stops by to ask for Nigel's help in rearranging his living room, Nigel quickly agrees to go to Little Owl's home and help. On the way, Nigel finds that he didn't bring his hat along to protect him against the summer sun. Being an ingenious fellow, Nigel, grabs a large leaf and wraps it around his head, tying it off with corn silk. Ever conscious of his looks, he frets about someone laughing at his newly made hat. The only other animal he passes on his way to Little Owl's home is a porcupine. Yet he doesn't worry about the porcupine's opinion, because according to Nigel, this porcupine, "Never laughed at anybody because she herself always looked a little silly. (All those garish quills!)
Ouch! For Nigel to think so highly of himself and to make fun of another who was clearly self-conscious was not appropriate. It was these types of comments and opinions that made me dislike Nigel.
I would've enjoyed this book much more had the author shown Nigel growing in the knowledge that he was wrong to judge others. It would've been a better lesson to show children that while we are all quite capable of making the same errors as Nigel, to be a sympathetic person, one must learn from the mistake and take steps not to repeat the error.
Armchair Interviews says: A message to children that one aspect the adult reader may want to comment on.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
I recommend most people to get it, April 30, 2010
A Kid's Review
I am six and I have read this book twice. It is very good; it is my favorite book. It's very nice about friendship.
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