The illustrations of this book were very nice, but I’m not sure the actual story is right for children. The young girl basically feels ignored by her parents so she takes off, camps out in the woods overnight by herself, and then walks to the sea. Her parents find her and never seemed alarmed, but I don’t think these are good ideas to put in kids’ heads. In real life there either would have been an Amber Alert or something larger than a fox would have found her. The story had a lot of potential and it was beautiful, I just think it missed its mark.

This story would be an interesting shakeup for kids I think — it’s not necessarily 100% happy or silly, which it seems like a bulk of children’s books are. Some nuance and awareness is necessary, but the book is straightforward and the illustrations are Pretty great!

Meet me by the sea is a story that tugs on your heart strings and sends out a big message. A little girl who feels alone in the world ventures to the sea and encounters things along the way that make her feel less alone. The illustrations are really appealing and the little ones loved looking at the images. It's lovely and makes room for heart-warming discussions.

Adorable.
The illustrations were beautiful. I liked how simple they were and the format of just illustrations + a sentence. The idea of the book is amazing, adults work a lot so they don't have time for their children but maybe by reading this book they could learn something. Overall, I liked it but I wish it had more pages to develop the story better.

This is a lovely picture book with a few surprises along the way. I liked that the little girl set off on her own and made a new friend and that she wasn't afraid of new adventures by herself.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC

While this book contained beautiful illustrations, it was a bit lacking in storyline in my opinion. I feel like the "moral of the story" might be a bit too abstract for children to understand.

A good story for little ones who may feel lonely sometimes. Such beautiful illustrations that tell the story. I think children will want to just sit and look at the pictures!

My thanks to NetGalley and NorthSouth Books for allowing me to read and review this book.

The illustrations in Meet Me By the Sea are gorgeous! The storyline is a little sad for kids (I think), but might open up a good discussion about family relationships and healthy communication. The open ending leaves room for young authors to continue the story -- what do they think happens next?

Meet Me By the Sea by Taltal Levi is a very cute Children's Book with an important message. A little girl is feeling invisible so decides to go to the sea alone. There are surprises along the way that make her feel seen.

I really enjoyed the illustrations, and they added to a great story.

Thank you NetGalley and North South Books for Meet Me by the Sea.

This is a beautiful book that celebrates freedom, as well as the great outdoors and gives us the important message that we should all listen just that little more to our loved ones. I do worry that it does encourage children to just pack up and leave if they feel they are not being listened to. However, with the right teaching children will be able to look at how they could address the feeling of being ignored.

Beautiful! Very simple story about a girl lacking attention from busy parents who ventures out on her own. I liked the calm color palette and the soft aesthetic of this book.

Beautiful illustrations. I have mixed feelings about the message that it is sending kids though. Kind of like "runaway! That will solve your problems." Not a good message for me.

Meet Me By the Sea is a story of a little girl who feels invisible to her parents. She journeys to her favorite place and finds a new companion in the process. The illustrations are beautiful and my daughter loved them.

I received an electronic ARC from North South Books Inc. through NetGalley.
Soft colored illustrations emphasize the message in this book. Levi uses few words to bring out this child's feelings. Her parents are busy and not available to her so she sets off on her own journey to their special place. The illustrations show how different it is to be there alone and she wakes to an unexpected friend (a fox). She shares her journey to the special place and her parents arrive also. The tender message of love comes through as they reunite. I'm a bit bothered that she spent the night alone in the forest and they weren't looking for her and that jars the message.

This is a beautiful picture book but it does have a few issues. A simple tale of a lonely child who finds a friend in an unexpected place, this has at it's core a child running away from busy parents, sleeping overnight in the woods, finding a friendly fox and ultimately her parents.
I liked that her parents who appeared not to pay her any attention at first, knew her well enough to know where to find her. However, the problem is with her running away in the first place and to be honest the parents don't seem to have come looking for her and also don't look especially worried in the morning when they find her. I think generally children wouldn't take the running away solution literally but it would need discussion. The text is very simple which means there is room to do that.
In it's favour the illustrations are absolutely lovely! I really liked the medium used, the depth of colour and light etc are beautiful and they manage to convey all the feelings and emotions very well.

Sweet story about a little girl who loves nature and the sea. I love the ocean, so this was such a sweet read. Cute illustrations. Very short book, so it would be great for toddlers.

The first sentence of his book broke my heart. The story itself was sad in parts but at the end was very heartwarming.

I loved these illustrations! Levi is so talented and I loved all the colors and the meaning of the story. However, I wasn't super impressed by the text and most of the time it felt like an explanation of what we see instead of accompanying the illustrations. I would also have preferred if the main character didn't sleep in the forest at night because that's something that parents should have noticed and been more worried about at the end. But overall, I really enjoyed it.

What a whimsical book! The sparse words really give you the time to look at the illustrations and get pulled into the storyline. We follow a young girl who feels neglected by her parents, so she seeks comfort in a journey to her favorite place. Along the way, she bravely faces travel alone, making friends along the way and realizing that her heart, and those who are in it, mean she's never really alone.

Some parents may not want to read a book that seems to encourage embarking on your lonesome, but the overall message of exploration and family outweigh everything else. The illustrations are the icing on the cake, creating a lovely setting and really making you feel something through them. A wonderful story!

Meet Me By The Sea is a simply written story about a girl who goes off outside the house on her own after her parents are too busy to take her to her favorite spot. I read this aloud to my 3.5 and 2 yr old sons.

My 3 yr old is smart enough that the message of this book is actually worrisome. I would not put it past him to get the idea in his head to go play in the front yard by himself after I tell him no because I don't have time to watch him out there. Neither him nor I particularly enjoyed this book anyway though. It wasn't a naturally flowing read aloud. The illustration is stunning but not especially inspiring.

Thank you NorthSouth Books and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!