Food Allergy Research Organizationhas wiggled his way in my daughter’s heart! Although, according to her book review, her favorite character is the penguin. Author Stephanie Sorkin sent me the book to check it out and my family eagerly dove right in to read it. Please note: as always, my opinions are my own; the good, the bad and the ugly. I simply try to share with my food allergy community items that I enjoy. In my family we are lovers of art and all things cheery with big eyes! My daughter gave her review first: she wrote, “I love the book Nutley. My favorite Character is the Penguin, he is so cute! I like this story because it doesn’t make me feel bad about allergies”!
photo courtesy of Mascot Books
Next up was my husband who simply stated, “ooh, where’d you get this book..the drawings are great!” Okay, not a man of many words on this topic, clearly. My fourteen year old son said gave his nod of approval as he explained that he liked that the book was age appropriate for the little ones and was not scary. He felt that sometimes food allergy books give too much information too soon and this was scary to him when he was younger. He thought this was a great introduction book for our littlest food allergic buddies. Some of the book’s points really resonated with me…
My daughter’s review of Nutley, the Nut-Free Squirrel
[unordered_list style=”star”]- First, the artwork is right up my alley! Bright, colorful, interesting and warm.
- When Nutley discovered his allergy, he immediately called a meeting to brainstorm with his fellow animal kingdom. Brilliant! He tackled his new challenge with his community.
- The animal group took turns talking about their favorite foods. Double brilliant! They were now problem solving.
- During this meeting, he discovered others had allergies too, he was not alone but alas, he was still one of a kind.
- A recipe for Nut-Free Banana Bread was featured at the end of the book, so another happy solution was provided.
- Lastly, all proceeds from the book are being donated back to the Food Allergy Research Organization (FARE-formally known as the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network and the Food Allergy Alliance before these two organization merged).
Nutley leading his community meeting!
Again, one of my favorite lessons in this book was that Nutley addressed his new diagnosis with his community. He just laid it right out there! I remember twelve years ago as I fumbled through sharing my son’s allergies with family, friends and those within his community. If I could have a do over, I’d go for our little fuzzy hero Nutley’s approach: don’t fumble around with words, just say what you have going on and problem solve as s community. Stephanie posts on Twitter about her school visits and other interesting things: @stephsorkin
Yes, Nutley, the Nut Free Squirrel, it does take a village and I like that your book shows little children with food allergies that they too are part of a larger community.
p.s. Stephanie–nice job too! Congratulations on a darling book with a beautiful lesson.
[twitter style=”horizontal” float=”left”]
[fbshare type=”button”]
[google_plusone size=”standard” annotation=”none” language=”English (UK)”]
[pinterest count=”horizontal”]
One of the hardest things I find about managing both life threatening food allergies and asthma is talking to others. I hate to be the one that might be perceived as demanding, pushing or for asking too much. What I now know, fourteen years later, is that honest, clear information presented with kindness works!..
We have this book and my daughter loves it! I, too, am a fan of penguins. 🙂
We are lovers of penguins and darling little characters too!
I just purchased this book to share with my grandchildren. I downloaded and will let them read it next time I’m with them. One has a lactose intolerance and they know about grandma’s myriad of food allergies and other sensitivities. I think it will be a great add to my collection.
It is soooooo cute! I am also a big fan of the lesson of community.
Your grandkids will enjoy it!
( 2012.02.19 05:28 ) : Yesterday, while I was at work, my cousin stole my apple ipad and tteesd to see if it can survive a forty foot drop, just so she can be a youtube sensation. My iPad is now destroyed and she has 83 views. I know this is completely off topic but I had to share it with someone!