This is a wonderful way to teach children about idioms. Every page has an idiom not only listed but also beautifully illustrated and giving its literal meaning. The illustrations are hilarious and sweet, especially as they all feature birds or animals. My favourites were ‘Bring home the bacon,’ ‘No spring chicken’ and ‘Let the cat out of the bag.’

The meaning of the idiom, along with an example of its usage in a sentence, is written at the bottom of each page, inverted, and in minute lettering, so that it can be referred to only when you really try to read it. Unfortunately, the writing was so small that I had problems reading it at all.

“Birds Of A Feather” concludes with an explanation of how a particular idiom originated, and encourages readers to find the origins of other idioms, as the words that are used in an idiom are generally not meant literally, however, neither are they a random group of words thrown together.

{Thank you to NetGalley, VanitaBooks, LLC and the author for a free copy and for giving me the opportunity to provide an honest review.}

Vanita Books and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of Birds of a Feather: A Book of Idioms and Silly Pictures. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

Author Vanita Oelschlager has done a great job of explaining the idea of idioms on a child's level, but where this book really shines is with the illustrations. Robin Hegan has made the book come to life, with vibrant illustrations that have life and movement. Each idiom is displayed with such character that will captivate children while teaching them something new.

Each idiom is given a definition, along with the phrase used in a sentence that children will understand. The idea of an idiom is a complex one, but both the author and the illustrator have done a good job of bringing it down to a child's level. I would absolutely recommend the book for both a classroom setting or a home library, as Birds of a Feather will help both parents and educators explain the concept of the idiom in a fun and colorful manner.

Cute children's book. Great story. Illustrations are beautiful. Children will enjoy. Animals are great in the story

This is not really what I was expecting, and it kind of missed the mark for me. This is basically just a collection of illustrated idioms (some illustrated better than others; what was with the square "butterflies in your stomach"?) with basic descriptions of what the idioms mean. For example, "ants in your pants" means you are "excited and squirmy and can't sit still". Unfortunately, that wasn't enough for me. I wanted to know why that combination of words came to be used in that way, and I probably would've loved learning about the origins of these idioms (since I would've known the basic meanings of many of them as a child, anyway). There is one example of this at the end of the book, where "barking up the wrong tree" is given a more thorough treatment. I would've preferred the whole book to be like that, with the origins of these idioms explained, rather than just their meanings.

The illustrations are hit and miss for me, and I don't like the way the explanations are printed upside down in tiny print, necessitating flipping the book around if you want to read them (I read this on a laptop, which was pretty awkward). I also don't like how "bring home the bacon" has to adhere to gender stereotypes with the phrase: "In our family, my dad brings home the bacon." This book was published in 2009; why can't the mom bring home the bacon?

Overall, this wasn't great. If the author had extended the idiom origins throughout the whole book, rather than just having one footnote at the end, I would've liked this one more.

Birds of a Feather introduces children to the concept of idioms in a very simple and straightforward way. For each idiom, there is a large and colorful illustration demonstrating what one might think the phrase means based on the individual words (for “barking up the wrong tree” there is an image of a dog barking up one tree, while the cat he is chasing resides at the top of the tree just behind him), followed by the actual meaning of the idiom and the phrase used in a sentence.
It’s a very quick read and the illustrations are a lot of fun. My children just learned about idioms last year, in 1st grade, and my son has been inserting idioms into his speech ever since (and then informing me that he has just used an idiom, and what an idiom is). When I saw this book was available, I gravitated towards it for that exact reason. Two of my kiddos read it with me the second time around and they giggled at several of the illustrations, and both agreed that it was a good way to explain idioms to kids who might find them confusing.

This book was just OK for me. From the illustration to the content. Thing i did like about the illustrations that they did show how silly some of the idioms my seem to a child.

This is a book of idioms and silly pictures. There are things like raining cats and dogs and a picture of a little girl with an umbrella and cats raining on her, or Wild Goose Chase with a goose being chased by the police. Each one has what it really means written upside down on the page. This book is beautifully illustrated and the characters are really cute (love the ants). It has an explaination in the back of what an idiom is and explains how it has a hidden meaning. I recommend this book to 3-5 yr. olds. I really think they would love the illustrations and learn at the same time.
I received this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book is an adorable way to introduce children to Idioms of the English Language. Each page is an image that illustrates a literal interpretation of a saying and what they actually mean. It is very fun and beautifully done. I recommend to children in the 4+ bracket. Check it out!

What does "Hog Wash" mean? Why do people say going on a "wild goose chase?' Very cute illustrations and succinct descriptions to describe funny every day phrases. This book would be great for ELL students.

I'm not exactly certain how to review this title. I think it's a bit too old for my children. The illustrations are very amusing and the explainations behind the terms are clear and entertaining, but I think the amusement is lost on most younger children who aren't ready to grasp the concept of an idiom as of yet . Fun, funny, but not the right book. For me or my family.

Birds of a Feather teaches children the concept of idioms through helpful text and the cutest illustrations. Kids learn what it means to have goosebumps, be a bull in a china shop and to be caught when it’s raining cats and dogs. Highly recommended!

Thanks to the author, VanitaBooks, LLC and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are mine.

As an English teacher, I loved, loved, loved the introduction of idioms in this beautiful book. Lovely illustrations—always brought a smile to my face!

A big thank you to NetGalley and VanitaBooks LLC for the ARC. I am voluntarily reviewing this book. This is a children's book. The graphics are fabulous and gorgeous. The idioms fun for kids. I couldn't read the upside down words-not sure what they were for. I think most children would enjoy. I rated it a 4.

I LOVED this book! It was perfect for my daughter with autism! She has the hardest time grasping idioms. She takes everything so literal. This was perfect, I love the illustrations. My only negative was that it wasn't longer! There was a few idioms that I would have loved to seen added. This was also perfect for my younger kids who don't really understand a lot of idioms.

This is a really cute book. It is filled with idioms and upside down in the corner is the explanation of the idiom and an example of it used in a sentence. The pictures are colorful and engaging. I do wish the book gave us the origin of the idiom as well as the explanation.

I LOVED this book!! I love idioms and the history of language and I think that presenting it to kids in such a way is not only clever but exciting. I think it will definitely inspire a love of language within the right kid.

As a speech language pathologist, I am always looking for books to help convey certain language structures or concepts. I just love this book, as it is a book of ilIustrated idioms. So many children do not understand non-literal language and this book will help convey those concept. It explains the meanings of many different sayings to the reader that they may hear from older adults. It is great for young kids of all ages. I love the Illustrations in this book, which is the most important visual language. It is a fun and fast read. I would definitely recommend this book.
Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for a pre-publication ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I really loved the idea for this! The illustrations were beautiful, but I did have a problem with one: Let the cat out of the bag. It was a little too much. I understand the need to adequately convey the idiom through imagery, but I also think it sends the wrong message to kids. We shouldn't put animals in bags and tie them up, not even as a joke in a children's book. I feel like this could have been depicted in a better way.

My second issue with this book was the captions. They're upside down. Do you know how difficult it was to continuously flip the book over (impossible on an iPad that keeps adjusting the screen), to read the descriptions for the idioms? The idioms themselves were short and to the point, but the upside down portion (explanation and example) were a lot longer. My son was also frustrated because he wanted to look at the pictures, and I had to try and angle the book in a way that would allow me to read the captions. About halfway through I stopped flipping the book over and just gave my own explanations. I think it was a lovely idea that could have been executed better.

I love the Illustrations in this book. So very cute. This book is an educational book about idioms, what they are and how they can be used in sentences. It is a fun and fast read. It explains the meanings of many different sayings to the reader that they may hear from older adults. It is great for kids of all ages. I would definitely recommend this book. Thanks so much to Netgalley for the digital copy.

An interesting concept. Each page features a picture portraying an idiom. Ex: goosebumps. The child need to figure out what the idiom really means. The pictures are fun, but I’m not sure if young ones will get it at first.

#netgalley