The strongest appeal to this book is the illustrations. The story is pretty clear, from the title alone. THere's some messaging about safety and following rules. But The photos of plush characters that suggest motion and lend an air of "realness" to the story are worth it.

A sweet story about adventuring safely. Rumie and Uncle Hawthorne build a raft together for an adventure. The art style is beautiful with a sweet contrast between the real photo settings and the stuffed animal characters. The lesson of the story is a bit understated with minimal consequences. However, I don't think this takes too much away from the message trying to be conveyed.

Weak message of patience. Creative and well-composed images that are created from real-life elements such as miniatures. No introduction to characters. Text placement could be improved to become more effective. Whimsical setting. Straight-to-the-point plot leaves no room for imagination. Adorable protagonist. Overall, a mediocre read.

'Rumie Goes Rafting' by Meghan Marentette is a sweet story of mild adventure. The best part are the pictures of lovely vignettes that propel the story forward. They are so detailed and engaging kids will love poring over them.

We are big Meghan Marentette fans, her stories are always so creative, realistic and filled with nature. There is something so special about the photos that accompany her stories, I believe that's because they are easy for children to understand, simple but so rich! All photos clearly depict what is happening both thematically and contextually in the story. I will always recommend her work; all children will find these stories entertaining. This story in particular does show a wide verity of cause and effect relationships that are important for children to understand. Especially topics such as, creative problem solving as well as consequences. My little loves the river and will certainly love this tale. Thank you to Netgalley and Owlkids Books for access to the digital ARC, this was a treat to read, this review is my own.

The pictures in this book were so well done, and the overall moral of the story is to have patience. I think children will enjoy this book.

I received an ARC from Owlkids Books | Owlkids via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I loved everything about this book! The story was engaging, and the artwork has so much fine detail that you could spend 10 minutes looking at each page. Very engaging. I really enjoyed the stop-motion feel and depth that the miniatures in real life created.

The story is about the importance of patience, how excitement can overwhelm good sense, and how it is important to listen to your grown-ups warnings.

The imagery in "Rumie Goes Rafting," both photographic and illustrated, is beautiful. Action depiction is flawless. Characterization, individual and via interaction, is well done, though the reader does get a sense that these are characters we are expected to be familiar with already.
The text itself has several instances where a little rearranging would emphasize the action more effectively, but the charm of the interactions makes up for a lot. The moments (such as needing rain for higher water levels) that seem to need more explication for the intended audience can be considered opportunities for further discussion, but are somewhat answered (with rain and flood, for instance) in future pages.
This style lends to the full experience of the book, which is trepidation that leads to resolution. Both child and adult readers alike need to be prepared for the main character's endangerment, the resolution of which brings this book to a calm close, balancing but not erasing the experienced alarm.
Rumie Goes Rafting is a real warning-story encased in a sweet presentation.

The illustrations are amazing. The illustrations consist of photos and a stuffed animal being used for the illustration rather than graphics. I loved that aspect the most about the book. This book reminds me of how kids play with their dolls or figurines and imagine a whole world as they play. Kids can learn patience by reading this book.

Love Always, Catherine

I received an advanced review copy for free. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to Owlkids and NetGalley for the eGalley to review!

The first thing I want to say is I am totally in love with the pictures in this book. I genuinely can stare at and admire them all day long. Each one of them is carefully and lovingly set up to show the dolls and props interacting with the natural world in a, well, natural way. It's the definition of whimsy and I want to live in the set.

The story itself is a very simple one of kid wants to go on an adventure and adult guardian tells them that safety is the most important thing on an adventure so it's best to get prepared first. Kid then gets ahead of their self and into quite a pickle wherein thankfully they are rescued by said adult guardian. Kid learns lesson and has a wonderful time with the adult guardian on their adventure together and ends up thinking about their next one already. It's classic, it's easy to understand, and it's to the point.

Personally, I think this book shines most with its creative pictures and anyone could get lost just looking at all the little details in each one. That's not to say the story is weak--I just think the text story supplements the pictures instead of the other way around. I rather enjoyed it.

These illustrations/photographs are delightful! The story is cute, with a small bunny, Rumie, who dreams of adventure, but gets ahead of his uncle and ends up in a predicament. He learns that adventures are better when shared, so there is a good moral to the cute story. However, the illustrations are the real shine here. The illustrations are diorama photographs with mostly natural elements. Rumie is a cute stuffed rabbit which will delight young readers. Charming!

Rumie wants to go sailing, but the water is too low for his uncle's boat. When he seea a ladybug float
on a leaf, the idea of a building a raft pops into his mind. With his uncle's help, they construct a
raft. His uncle says they will take the raft on a safety test tomorrow if he can find life vests.
When Rumie wakes up the next morning, Rumie is too impatient to wait for his uncle and heads out
the raft alone. Disaster strikes but luckily his uncle is there to rescue him. Rumie realizes that he
should have listened to his uncle and waited.
#RumieGoesRafting #NetGalley

Thank you to Netgalley and to Owlkids Books for this eARC in exchange for my honest opinion. This is a delightful, cozy picture book about a young rabbit and his uncle who live in a forest and want to make a raft to sail on the river. The photo illustrations are absolutely captivating and adorable, showing the stuffed rabbits in a real-life forest setting. The text (just a few lines every page) is easy to read over the solid color sides of the pages. This is such a unique looking picture book and I think that parents and children would love to read it again and again. I will definitely order it for our public library.

Rumie is a curious little woodland creature, longing for adventure. When she and Uncle Hawthorne create a raft to explore the stream, Rumie cannot wait for the safety tests or life jackets. Rumie soon discovers that adventures are better shared. The photographed dolls and their settings make this a beautiful book with a rich setting. I can just see the child's imagination at work with each photograph. What a delightful book!

Rumie decides to go rafting without her uncle and consequently runs into obstacles. Thankfully her uncle shows up to save the day.

This is a book all about patience, which is something all kids need a few reminders about! It also lends a discussion to cause and effect! I loved the "real" factor of photographing tangible items for the book. Kids would love that as well!

Thank you to NetGalley and Owlkids for the opportunity to read this book.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. This is a cute book about Rumie and his adventures as he tries to go rafting in a stream that is low on water. Adorable illustrations.

I was a little let down with this story. The art is fantastic, but the story felt too simple for me.

Super adorable! I loved the little sewn animal characters and all the handmade furniture and props. The small details really made the world come alive. It was a very cute story that I think lots of kids will enjoy.

This is a book on a weird concept and has strange pictures. Kids may like it, but I don't really know if it would hold their interest.

Rumie Goes Rafting
By Meghan Marentette
Book Review by Liz Ortiz Perez

Genre: Picture Book
Interest Level: Grades K-3
Theme: Curiosity, Adventure
Summary:
Rumie Goes Rafting is a beautiful photo illustrated book set in nature. Rumie, a woodland creature, is a curious scamp who longs to raft on his local stream. He convinces his uncle to help him build a raft and rain arrives just in time to swell the route. Will Rumie’s new raft float? All of the characters and their charming home were handmade by Meghan Marentette. Rumie Goes Fishing is an enchanting work of art, sure to delight readers of all ages.

Curriculum tie ins:
Use as an intro to a science lesson on Density
“Flying!” thought Rumie as they rowed away. One day, maybe. One day …” Extend the story.