I received an ARC from SOURCEBOOKS Kids through NetGalley, thank you for this!

The book reminded me a bit of The Rainbow Fish. But this one is a bit different.

I absolutely loved the drawings, it’s really adorable and it does well with kids. I’m a really sucker for cute drawings in children’s books, so well done with this.

Though the ‘moral’ story, I felt like there was something missing.
There’s a lot of potential with this book and I must say I loved where they explained true difference between Fans and Friends in the end and other facts about squids, very educational.

Thank you to Net Galley for the ARC. While the concept was nice, it didn't translate well. There was some disconnect in the story, which made it a pass for me. I do storytimes often and can't imagine this one being a big hit. The illustrations were very cute and I enjoyed how colorful it was. One thing that bothered me, and this is me just being nit-picky, was that in the beginning Glow has friends, but then later refers to them as only fans. The resolution is Glow realizing that friends are better and then making friends with the fans, who where the same characters introduced as friends in the beginning. It's not very consequential, but it made me double back to make sure I was following.

The Glow Show is about a bioluminescent squid named Glow who loves to spin and twirl and be the star of the show for his friends. Glow travels to a new area of the ocean and loses his glow, then needs his friends to help him get back home. His friends want to glow as well, and he learns to share the spotlight with his friends.

This book had adorable illustrations that my kids loved, as we love ocean animals here! We also really enjoyed the squid facts at the end of the book and learning something new about bioluminescence.

I did feel as though the story was missing a little something, maybe because most of the words were very simplistic and repetitive. It was a bit young for my 7 year old in that aspect.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks kids for the ARC of this cute book in exchange for my honest review.

Enjoyable read, but the “moral” piece didn’t seem to make much sense. The focus was on looking out for others, only when it helped you too. The kids loved the squid facts at the end!

I received an electronic ARC from SOURCEBOOKS Kids through NetGalley.
Glow is a squid who is bioluminescent. He likes to put on shows where he spins and dances and glow more and more. Several other sea creatures want to learn to glow and offer to teach their skills. After ignoring them and getting into some tough situations, he realizes he would prefer friends to fans. The four of them then put on shows together and discover how bright and colorful life can be when you work together. I appreciate the facts shared at the end of the book as well as the explanation of fans and friends. Terrific to start discussion on how to treat friends and grow friendships.
Though the story works, there are some places where it skips ahead in an abrupt fashion. The artwork brings the undersea world to life in vibrant colors.

Perhaps my digital copy had more errors than others but part of this repeated and frankly it seemed like part of the story was missing. I think the concept is cute, but nothing about felt engaging (my 5-year-old definitely agrees).

For Libraries: Perhaps the print edition offers more in terms of continuity in the storyline, but basing it off of this preview-it's going to be a pass for me.

This was a beautiful book! Oliver and I really loved the color palette in this one. Who doesn’t love a beautiful book under the ocean?! The art is really beautiful.

The Glow Show is about a bioluminescent Glow squid. The more he twirls the more he glows. I loved the message this gives to kids. This squid decides to leave his friends and become the spotlight and have fans. He’s so happy showing off for fans. Then he starts to lose his glow and realizes that his fans are not friends and he’s having trouble finding his way home. The message: Friends over fans. Friends help us do things and be better in life. It’s nice to have attention but you need to keep that ego in check!

Oliver and I really liked this one! The vibrant colors and the message are the things I love the most about this one. We are big fans of the ocean and ocean life.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Sourcebooks kids for an e-arc to review.

This was a fun read! My daughter loves the colors of the illustrations. A great story on the importance of friendship. I have caught myself needing to find refuge in friends when I figure out its not fun doing things alone, and this book shows exactly that.

I wish it would have more of a fluffy or exaggerated ending, it just kind of fell flat for me.

The facts at the end were very interesting. My husband and I didn't know a few of them, so that was fun.

All in all a great book!!

Thank you NetGalley & Sourcebooks Kids for the ARC!

Cute little book about glow a young squid who wants to dance and twirl for all his fans. He goes off in search of more fans to dance for and ends up lost and loosing his glow. His friends help him find his way back home and they all dance together. Which makes them glow together. I love the ink facts at the end, letting kids learn about the ocean! I would recommend this to kids ages 3-7.

Thanks NetGalley for allowing me to review this book.

Thanks to SOURCEBOOKS Kids & NetGalley for the free copy in exchange for an honest review!

The Glow Show is a story about a squid named Glow. Glow is used to putting on a show, spinning and twirling, for fans! However, while getting caught up in the spotlight, Glow forgets that there are other sea creatures who want to genuinely connect. If only Glow would slow down long enough to realize there are already people who love them, with or without the theatrics!

When Glow gets lost, their friends lead them back home. That’s when Glow realizes that fans come and go, but friends are forever. It’s much more fun to glow together with all your friends! <3

The art is colourful, and reminiscent of crayon drawings. It lent a feel of nostalgia and collaboration to the story, which, to me, helped emphasize the overall message. Not sure if it were my own expectations that led to my disappointment, but I felt as if the story was missing…something. Perhaps I was expecting more based on the summary. Solid 3/5, though!

Cute story and I enjoyed the facts at the end. Seems like there were some issues with my copy (duplicate pages) but overall- great illustrations and a cute story about appreciating your friends. There is also a typo “are you fan?” Which doesn’t make a lot of sense to a kid.

Thank you to the author, illustrator, publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A cute read paired with lovely art on the value of friendship. Included facts about squid and life in the sea, as well as a quick definition on the difference between fans and friends.

We thought this was a really cute book. Our 2.5 year old really enjoyed it. The illustrations are bright and fun and kept his attention, I thought the story was cute and it was well perceived.

Like "The Rainbow Fish", but you don't lose part of yourself. This book is about a young squid who learns the importance of friendship.

It's cute, brightly colored, and my 18 month daughter will love the dialog and opportunities for me to voice act.

Thanks to NetGalley for an Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for my honest review.

Glow is a squid who loves to twirl and glow for his fans! When his friends ask to learn how to glow too, in exchange for their talents, he leaves in search of more fans instead. Glow gets lost and ends up missing being where his friends are.

This was a cute story with fun and colorful illustrations in it! I felt like the story could have had a bit more of an impact with more description, I felt like it lacked a bit in comparison to what the description said, I thought there’d be more of an impact for kids reading, but I wouldn’t have really known the concept without the description so it fell a little flat for me.

Thank you NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS kids for my ARC in exchange for my honest feedback!

I loved the bright colors of this book and the cute illustrations. The message of how having friends is more important than impressing strangers was well communicated and it made for a very good book.

Thank you, NetGalley, for giving me a digital ARC of this book.
The Glow Show, has a good concept, and the illustrations are sweet. It is a book about Glow, a bioluminescent squid, who learns it is better to have friends than fans. I love the bright colors. Unfortunately for me, the storyline is lacking. The author tried a little too hard and missed the mark.

It's a cute story. A cute book for kids who live ocean life. It provides little facts about squids at the end.

The story tells of a squid who is a tad bit self involved and loves to show off his tricks and has a group of "friends" who are eager to learn from him. The book shows not to take people for granted and be nice and helpful to others. In the end it helps squid create friends and be more open to others. My children liked the art it's colorful and a few words per page but shows off a good story with a moral that's pretty straight forward

A fun story where you find it's better to spin and glow with friends then it is to glow by yourself. In fact it's kind of scary to glow by yourself in the dark!

A delightful, vibrantly illustrated story about a squid who is introduced to the idea that sometimes it is more fun to share the spotlight than to be in it alone.

I read this story with my 6 year old, who exclaimed that she loved it because of the bright colors and "all the twirls". Our favorite part was reading the fun facts at the end, as she is enormously interested in sea creatures! I think this is a nice and gentle introduction to the idea that working together with your friends can supersede the desire to have All-Eyes-On-You.

We didn't really find Glow to have a "bad attitude" as noted in the description of the book. If it hadn't been for it being written out, I wouldn't have known it was meant to be so negative in the beginning, as it reads much more gently (and more effectively) than the description gives it credit for.