The Great Carp Escape

This is a cute picture book with the underlying message that all of God's creatures are important/special.

The Great Carp Escape is a cute children's story about how all God's creatures are beautiful regardless of what they look like on the outside. There is a pair of children that find a dead carp and find it ugly. Later, after enjoying a season with a pond full of carp, the pond is drying up and they want to help the carp get out. It is a book of humanity, spirituality, (NOT religion- I don't like books that push religion), working together, and caring for others. The pictures are colorful and bright and I know my grandkids would love this book because there is so much to see in the pictures. The artist puts lots of little things in besides the main action. It is a cute story with a good moral without the kids knowing they are getting a moral lesson.

The Great Carp Escape by Irish Beth Maddock is a picturebook. For siblings Beth and Paul, growing up on a lake is fun However, when they discover the scaly, moustached carp, they become afraid and avoid the area the carp frequent. When a flood brings about a life-or-death situation for the creepy looking carp, they need to overcome their apprehensions about the carp and help save them before it's too late.

The Great Carp Escape starts with a nice connection siblings Beth and Paul have with nature and the world around them. The pair play together well and with the world around them. quickly I discovered that this is a Christian picturebook as the children and their father mention the ugliness of the carp, and how God created it and still loves it despite its appearance. When the carp's lives are threaten the family works hard to save them and come to see past the appearance of the fish. I liked the message, but think that the quotation of scripture and pushing of the Christian theme will limit the audience. It is a message everyone could stand to learn and enjoy. the illustrations were well matched with the story, but did not stand out as amazing or very interesting. They did their job, but did not add a whole lot to the book.

The Great Carp Escape is a nice Christian picturebook about respecting nature and all of God's creatures. I think works well for what it is, but does not stand out in a good or bad way.

Cute picture book. I loved it

What a great story about overcoming fears and coming to terms with things that are different from you and helping and persevering. A fun fishy tale that I would recommend. The lesson was there but it was not forced on the reader and the illustrations were wonderful. I would definitely suggest this if you have a child/know a child with a fear they need help overcoming or a child who might not understand how special it is to be selfless and help someone/something else.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1426726913

Beth and Paul live near the lake and love spending time in the water and on the beach. The do not like going near the willow tree where the water is stagnant and the ugly carp live there. They are worried that the carp might nibble their toes. Their dad tells them that they are one of nature and God's creatures and they are all part of the world. When the lake rises in the spring, the yard floods and a small pond forms near the willow tree. As the water starts to recede, the children check out the pond and find tadpoles and carp. They still think they are ugly. As the pond shrinks though, they are worried the carp will die without water. They go to their dad for help and he tells them that they can try and save the carp by digging a trench from the pond to the lake. When the neighbours hear what they are doing, they come to help and eventually the carp swim to freedom.

Once all the carp are in the lake, Beth, Paul and their father stand on the edge of the lake and reflect with pride on what they have done. This is an excellent nature book for it gives the lesson that animals, even wild ones, need to be taken care of. Despite their dislike of the appearance of the carp, Beth and Paul work to save them and when they are done, they feel very good about what they have accomplished. It also shows us that outward appearances of creatures and people do not measure the worth of that creature or person. Moral decisions and how they affect the world could also be discussed.

The illustrations are also very well done, there is a great deal of detail in the people, the background and the animals.

Lovely story, not so lovely illustrations (crucial in a picture book!!)

This is a delightful children’s book with superb, colourful illustrations and an important message to be shared. Yes, it does have a strong ethic of everything and everyone being important, respecting wildlife and their role in the world which I don’t think should ever be solely viewed as a Christian ethic. The end of the story does have the chorus from the Christian hymn “All things bright and beautiful” but again, it is highly appropriate after this story.

I found the story easy to read and relate to and think children will, too. The overcoming of fear which is based on appearance rather than actions is key to the story, together with how working together can help save lives. I believe children will love reading this story - or having it read to them and the illustrations help bring it all to life.

I suspect teachers and parents would also find this a great story to share with children, one that could easily prompt discussions and be used in many different ways in lessons such as in connection with environmental studies when examining the impact of weather conditions or habitats and, of course, in personal and social education as well as RE.

Thanks to the author, publishers and NetGalley, too, for letting me read an ARC of this book in exchange for this, an honest review.

A good book about facing your fears to do something you know is right. The illustrations are calm, which actually makes it seem less frantic when it comes time to save the fish. Still, overall, it's a book that the kids will like.

Such a good story to teach children that all of God's creatures, great and small, beautiful and not so beautiful are worth saving.I would recommend this for kids age 2 and up to read this book. The adults would do good reading this as well. I would get this one for sure.

I love fish and think that there are far too few books featuring them. This is a lovely story about fish and life and getting over fears.