4.5 Stars

In Mika and the Dragonfly, we follow Mika, a shy girl who spends recesses alone because she doesn’t know how to approach her schoolmates. Mika finds solace in the nature around the school yard. One day, she notices a dragonfly without a wing and is determined to help it fly again.

This book has a beautiful message of empathy, kindness, but also that we should be prouder of who we are and our strengths. The illustration by Martina Schachenhuber is beautiful and inclusive, and she did a great job telling Ellen’s story visually. DeLange’s story is impactful and easy to read to children and for older children to read and comprehend.

Thank you, Clavis Publishing, NetGalley and Ellen DeLange for providing me with a copy of Mika and the Dragonfly in exchange for an honest review.

#ClavisPublishing #NetGalley

What a sweet story about a symbiotic friendship between a little girl and a dragonfly. This story touches on friendship and empathy without being too preachy. Well done!

A big thank you to NetGalley and Clavis Publishing for the ARC. I am voluntarily reviewing this book. This is a children's book. It is well illustrated. I think it is a nice premise but falls short. I am pretty sure that you can not fix a dragonfly's wing by gluing it back on. Can you really get over shyness by helping someone else? I don't think it works like that. I think I am turning into a pessimist as I think this may give children ideas to hurt bugs and then fix them. 2.5 stars

What a beautifully illustrated book with such a lovely message for young readers. Mika is a shy girl who takes refuge under the shade of large tree. While there she notices a hurt dragonfly and decides she can help this injured insect by trying to make him a new wing to replace the one that is missing. In her adventure to help the dragonfly she finds others are eager to learn more and is empowered to share what she knows about her new friend. As she masterfully attempts many inventions to help the dragonfly fly once again, finally she succeeds! Mika transforms from herself throughout this trial and the story ends with her bonding amongst her peers.

DeLange wrote a genuinely sweet story with a smart message for children. I read this book to my three kids after reviewing it for myself and they were very curious how all her inventions for a new wing, and exclaimed at the end "Mika looks really happy now." A wonderful addition to any children's library.

I think a lot of people need help trying to fit in in many situations. Mika shows us that if we enjoy something and have information about it and feel strongly about it, people will also enjoy hearing about it. Sharing your interests is a great way to make a friend and be a friend. When Mika interacts with her classmates with her dragonfly and the problem she is having, they are eager to learn about it too. That's the first step. The illustrations are just lovely, too.

This was adorable. Loved it.the illustrations and story were excellent. I can see this being perfect for 4-6 year olds.

Mika, a very shy girl who has difficulties communicating with other children and spends everyday alone in the forest, helps a little dragonfly who is missing one of its wings. And by that, she discovers friendship.

It's a cute story about children that they will probably like, I can't argue with that. But I have the feeling that it should be longer and written a little differently.

By making it longer, the story could be even cuter and more fleshed out.
Also, what I mean by saying that it should be written differently, is that the author should have tried to add dialogue in this, instead of saying "Mika did this, and that and that made her feel this way."

Generally speaking, I appreciate the message of this boon and may I add that the illustrations were very cute?

But overall, this was just an okay book. I hope to read more from the author in the future and see them writing better things.

If you made it this far, congratulations!
'Til next time, take care :) :) :)

I received a free e-book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Nice illustrations and interesting plot. It was funny to see how the dragonfly’s wing was fixed so easily.

Oh wow where do you start
I loved everything about this book
Eye catching cover
Great illustrations
Fabulous story bout children who struggle make friends and don’t know how readily fit in lovely concept with a lovely ending super cute,
Can’t to read this to the boys for storytime before bed!!

I love how the pictures in the book change from subdued and dull to bright and cheerful as the main character goes from being shy to taking chances. I think many students would be able to relate to it. As a teacher it is amazing to see a child open up. I think of them as butterflies, not dragonflies though :)

What a great story about how being yourself and leaning into what you like can help you overcome shyness.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. Mika is hanging out by a tree on her own during recess when a small dragonfly lands on her and isn't able to fly. The poor thing has lost one of it's wings and Mika tries to help the dragonfly, but can she do it?

The illustrations in this book are BEAUTIFUL. My kids loved this story. It's listed as for 5 and up, it's definitely a lot of text/bigger words so my 6 year old wasn't able to read it all to me. I like the underlying theme with shyness and how it's easier to overcome feeling shy when you have something to talk about that you are passionate about. I would have liked to see that come through a bit more obviously. I used it to spark discussion with my kids, but they didn't really pick up on that theme on their own. Thanks NetGalley for sharing this book with us!

This children book was so charming! The drawing were marvelous and the story was also really nice. Mika is a great little girl and the way she open up to the world with the help of the dragonfly during the story was very nice. A great picture book that I would recommend!

I really enjoyed the beautiful illustrations of this book.
The initial message of "not being shy* and share things that inspire you. Which is great for children, who struggle make friends.
However, there is a huge minus to this book. She carried dragonfly for days and then GLUED the ring back. Realistically we all know what would happen next. With this message Child would learn that it's okay to get involved with "the business of mother nature"...
It could've been better if other dragonflies would help with the wing?!

I loved the illustrations and the ideas in the start of the book. Overall it is a cute story for animal lovers, but it seemed a bit unrealistic that the girl became brave and popular all of the sudden. That has not been my experience working with lots of shy children and could give false hope to students with communication difficulties or social delays.

My kiddos really enjoyed this one! I thought the artwork was beautiful and loved how the shy little girl, was able to find the courage to talk to her classmates. I did find it a bit odd that she ends up gluing the dragonfly's wing back on. I get that it is a children's book, though, we usually prefer to teach correct principles, even if our children do not understand it. To my knowledge, you cannot, or rather, should not glue back on wings on dragonflies and butterflies. While they do not grow new ones, the broken one can be more of a hinderance than a help. However, they often can fly with a missing wing, so it would have been a nice plot, perhaps, for the dragonfly to fly at the end with her trying to find a solution, but not finding one that worked, because the dragonfly had what they needed all along to fly, just as she had an unknown courage to talk and make friends with her classmates. Again, my children did not particularly mind this discrepancy, so it is fine for entertainment purposes, but I would not recommend it from a logical standpoint or to be used with a nature unit study or anything of that nature.

Hmmm... This aims to show a girl who is painfully shy at school getting acceptance from the classmates she doesn't know how to interact with, and a girl who does so by virtue of rescuing a dragonfly and – well, that would be telling. It would also be bloody stupid, for the thing she does in these pages is patently ridiculous. I'd appreciate a book that showed in an almost zen-like way that the friends you want and need will come to you in unexpected ways, but not one like this that pulls the wool over the eyes of the young audience. It seems perfectly suitable for said audience, in text and certainly in image, but for the inherent falsity it contains.

Do you need a spoiler warning for a kid's book? It's only 17 pages, so I have no idea! But, uh, spoilers? Haha. The artwork in this is absolutely lovely, and there's a good message about being kind to insects and making friends. I'm a little unsure about the method of resolution, though: the dragonfly's wing fell off and the kid ends up gluing it back on.

Adults don't take kid's books literally, of course, but I'd just be sure to tell the kid you're reading this to not to attempt gluing a dragonfly's wing back on. I really worry about the dragonflies, okay?! That's my only nitpick, though. Overall it's a very sweet little book and definitely worth picking up.

Mika and the Dragonfly is a beautiful book about making friends and overcoming your shyness. The illustrations are beautiful and the message is a ver important one. I feel like some details were a little unrealistic, but, nevertheless, a good book for children.