Flare by Kallie George, illustrated by Geneviève Côté
Simply Read Books
ISBN: 978-1927018507
Published Aug 1, 2014
Hardcover, 44 pages

Our Review
Reviewed by Laura Fabiani & Son

This is the second book in the Tiny Tails series. My son and I read the first book Spark, which we really liked. You can read our review here. My son noticed that both books deal with mythical or historical creatures. The first one was about a dinosaur and this one about a phoenix, which pleased my son who has been fascinated lately with mythical creatures.


Flare is a feisty little phoenix who never cries. He thinks he is too tough to cry, but Flare will soon learn that crying can do good and that no one is too tough to express sadness or compassionate feelings. Once again, my son and I enjoyed this chapter book.  Flare is cute, stubborn, and tough but then he encounters a situation which makes him realize that even though you cry it doesn't mean you are weak. Crying has different purposes. Someone may cry when in pain, and crying can even help someone feel better. Flare learned to show empathy.

The illustrations in this book are by the same illustrator as the first book. They are simple sketchy watercolor illustrations, well-suited for the target audience.

Both my son and I feel this is a good series that should be included in school libraries. They teach profound lessons in a simple way, using good repetition, with good dialogue and perfect rhythm and structure for the beginner reader. Highly recommended.

Note: This book is rated G.



Kallie George is an author and editor living in Vancouver, BC. She completed her Masters of Children’s Literature at the University of British Columbia in 2007. She is the co-creator of a series of acclaimed board books, the Simply Small Series, by Paola Opal, author of the art book Mr. M the Exploring Dreamer with art by Soizick Meister, and the author of the picture book, The Melancholic Mermaid illustrated by Abigail Halpin. Her most recent project, Clover's Luck, Book 1 in the Magical Animal Adoption series, will be published in Summer 2014, by Disney-Hyperion. When she is not writing or editing, she’s teaching creative writing workshops through Capilano University and CWC (Creative Writing for Children). www.kalliegeorge.com

Disclosure: Thanks to the author for sending us this book for review. We were not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.

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