The value of public
speaking
Fiction – children/Juvenile - contemporary
50 pages
Publication Date:
2013
Ruby Lee’s essay won first prize
place and now she has to read it in front of the town. Can Great Aunt Alice help Ruby overcome her
stage fright before the big event?
This nice and age appropriate story
focuses on Ruby’s fear of public speaking; a very identifiable problem, and
something we all have to face at some point.
Ruby’s Great Aunt Alice clearly explains how important this skill is and
gives great - useful in the real world - advice. I loved that Ms. Buffington uses the dementia
ridden Great Aunt to help out Ruby. I
think as a society we are prone to overlook the wisdom and guidance our elderly
can give us and we don’t put enough emphasis on the respect they deserve. The illustrations were good. I loved the secret section at the end to
reinforce the lessons and some back story on the cast of characters.
On the downside the writing was
awkward at times and the characters tended not have much depth. Also Ruby going from a novice to a pro seemed
a bit unbelievable to me, but I understand that I’m not the intended audience
and this may not be a problem for children.
No comments:
Post a Comment
While I appreciate person's right to their own opinion - even when they disagree with me - please remember this blog is a place of respect for all. Keep it clean and temper your comments with kindness. Thank you!