I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A silly whimsical story that will appeal to children. I wasn't a fan of the illustrations.

Albert 's Very Unordinary Birthday was such a fun and entertaining book to read. This book is perfect for children with wild imaginations and those who like to dream.

Albert usually has an ordinarily dull birthday every year until he wishes for an unordinary birthday, Enter Grandma Z who takes Albert on unforgettable adventures and and shows him extraordinary things. This was a cute story about relationships between grandparents and grandchildren.



I received an ARC of the book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I love a picture book with an interesting grandmother. When parents are dull grandmas step in to save the day. This one has a fairly standard plot but the illustrations really stand out. Kind of a watercolor style.

Albert lives a very ordinary life and even his birthday is just an ordinary day. No parties for him, instead he got birthday socks as his gift and plain toast for breakfast. All he could do was imagine that he had a candle to blow out on his piece of chocolate-cherry-ripple cake. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door and when Albert answered it, there stood his Grandma Z. She told his parents that they were just going to do ordinary birthday things, but their day together was anything but ordinary! They explored the woods, climbed a huge rock, looked at a dragon’s tooth, visited a palace, rode a roller coaster over and over again, and finally had a big slice of chocolate-cherry-ripple cake.

This import from Australia is an entirely energizing read. Nicely, the text doesn’t rhyme but instead holds together with its structure and tone. Told in a breathless voice once the fun starts, the book moves from its staid and dull beginnings into a hurtling pace of doing all sorts of marvelous things over the course of one amazing day. The text and illustrations work together well, showing them flying with birds, a dragon asleep in a cave nearby, and horses riding the coaster with them.

A wild ride of a birthday book, expect requests for chocolate-cherry-ripple cake in the future. Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Such a delightful book, sure to make the children laugh out loud. Albert’s aunt takes him on the most unordainary birthday adventure there ever was! Filled to the brim with vibrant illustrations, beautiful colours, and simple script. This book is sure to be a favourite amongst young children learning to read. I can see this being popular in classrooms, libraries, and at bedtime!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I truly appreciate it.

Albert is a child much to be pitied. His mother and father don’t go for the unordinary or the exciting, so his birthday is pretty much just like every other day only he gets birthday socks and birthday toast. One birthday Albert wishes on his birthday toast for an unordinary birthday, and next thing he knows Grandma Z arrives to whisk him away on the most stunning days he’s ever experienced.

I’ve got to give props to Grandma Z. When that woman says unordinary, she means unordinary. The activities the author dreamed up for Grandma Z and Albert are definitely creative and unique. The color scheme helps convey blah to exciting as it starts off in shades of gray and then adds blues and oranges. Kids who enjoy fantastical adventures should enjoy this, as well as kids who might secretly wish their birthday was a little more unordinary.

I received an ARC of this title from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Fun story about a boy with BORING parents and a fun Gran. Gran shows up to take him on a birthday adventure. Would read for grandparents day.

Ablert's parents think all days, including birthdays, should be ordinary.

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But, his Gramma Z comes to take him away sfrom all that, and provides him with a fun birthday after all.

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And when he returned home, he kept the feeling of being unordinary, which he loved.

Thanks to NEtgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

Can't we all have a Disneyfied Mary Poppins-esque granny? While the premise seems very familiar -- parents poo pooing childhood wishes, but saved by a fairy grandmother -- the story was fun and imaginative,

A very cute little book with an important message to learn. Would recommend to anyone thinking of trying this out. Will be reading others by this author.

Who wouldn't love an aunt like Grandma Z? Albert's birthdays are always the same, not much excitement and not much different from every other day. Yet, when Grandma Z come to the door, that all changes,
Suddenly, Albert is swept away to places that he's never seen and experiences adventures he's never imagined. This is so contradictory to his parent's take on birthdays.
This book is certain to appeal to my younger readers. The illustrations are so creative and the story pure fun.
Sure to be a hit!

Albert’s Very Unordinary Birthday was a delightful, easy read. It is the sort of book reminiscent of my own childhood. The illustrations in this book are amazingly simple, yet detailed, but they go wonderfully with the story. The book is about Albert’s parents who seem fussy and sadly, don’t celebrate the birthday of their son in the way he wishes. That is where his grandmother comes in. Probably equally fussy in her day, she embraces Albert’s day with everything he needs for his special day. This would be a great gift for a birthday present, a classroom library and a special book to be read on birthdays in a classroom. Buy it for that special child in your life. Books are the gift that give for years. A solid four star book for young children.

Thank you to the publisher and #NetGalley for a pre-publication ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Albert’s Very Unordinary Birthday was a fun, easy read. The illustrations in this book definitely take the spotlight, but they go wonderfully with the story. This book is a perfect choice for a quick, fanciful bedtime story.

Thank you, Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I like this story, but also think it’s very depressing. It’s not something I would have in my library. It’s Albert’s birthday, but it doesn’t get celebrated because his mom doesn’t like noise and his dad doesn’t like a mess. But he lucks out when his grandma comes to town and makes his day extraordinary. He has one great day. Just one. And says there will never be an ordinary day again. It doesn’t flow. It says one happy day can make all the unhappy ones go away. And that they will stay away forever. Nope, not liking it.

ARC Copy...felt like a vintage children's picture book where the ordinary becomes unordinary with the help of a mysterious but fun relative. Delight to read.

The first thing that drew me to this book (no pun intended) was the illustrations and color scheme. They ended up being my favorite part of the story. I liked the general idea of the story, but it seemed to kind of end abruptly.

As reviews for this book under its original name of ''Grandma Z'' will testify, this is a strong read. Staid (and unseen) parents demand their lad Albert have a typically dull birthday, but Grandma Z picks up on his wishes and leads him through a gallimaufry of unusual incidents and adventures. At the same time the artwork smoothly turns from dull greys to two-colour, kinetic glory. It's only another way to convey the 'carpe diem' message, but it's a good one - until you realise that Grandma Z clearly didn't work for her own children... That pesky real life must have got in the way, but this is for when a boy can certainly dream.