Little Feminist Book Club is a monthly book subscription box for kids ages newborn to nine years old. Each month you will receive one to two books to help diversify your bookshelf. Plus, you will also receive hands-on activities and tools to help your book come to life. Subscriptions are offered for ages 0-2, 2-4, 4-7, and 7-9. From Little Feminist:
Only 31% of children's books feature a female character, and only 13% feature a person of color.
About Little Feminist Book Club
The Subscription Box: Little Feminist Book Club
The Cost: $22.95 per month + $2.95 shipping. Save with longer subscriptions.
The Products: At least one book (sometimes more) and hands-on activities and tools to help bring your book to life.
Ships to: The U.S. for $2.95. Shipping costs may vary for international orders.
This box was sent to us at no cost to review. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
Little Feminist Book Club Ages 7-9 June 2021 Review
Little Feminist offers book clubs for all ages, and each of them has a different focus depending on age. This club for older children is geared towards encouraging children to explore the world around them. Each month you'll receive one hardcover book or 2 paperback books to help with this goal.
We received this card from Little Feminist which explains a little bit about why they chose this month's book.
On the back of our letter was this activity that helps kids determine what kind of assumptions they might make about someone before they get to know them. I think this is a great activity to get them thinking about how their perceptions may not always be accurate!
This month, we received a second activity where we get to give one of the characters from one of our books a fun disguise! On that back, there is also a place where we can add some dialogue to make our own comic!
Astrid & Apollo and the Starry Campout by V.T. Bidania - Retail value $6.95
From Amazon:
Astrid is afraid of the dark and doesn't want to go on her family camping trip. But her twin brother, Apollo, is excited. When they encounter scary things such as crawly bugs and the creepy dark, Apollo helps his twin through them. And when they encounter the scariest thing of all, Astrid might just be the one to save the starry campout.
This was such a relatable book! This is written so perfectly from a child's perspective that I knew my 6-year-old would love it and be able to relate to it. Not only that, but I also found myself relating to the parents through the subtleties within their dialogue. Astrid and Apollo have a cousin who tends to exaggerate quite a bit which has given Astrid a not-so-pleasant idea of what to expect from their upcoming camping trip. She is not eager to experience bears, mosquitoes, and smelly bathrooms that don't flush (and I can't say I blame her!). In the end, Astrid has a completely different experience than she expected and is pleasantly surprised to find that it was a great trip!
Not only was the story cute, but it also included tidbits of Hmong culture and words throughout which was just enough to introduce kids to a new culture and pique their interest. They also had a nice glossary in the back to describe some of the bigger English words which is great for beginning readers!
Shirley & Jamila Save Their Summer by Gillian Goerz - Retail value $12.99 (On sale for $10.99)
From Amazon:
Jamila Waheed is staring down a lonely summer in a new neighborhood--until she meets Shirley Bones. Sure, Shirley's a little strange, but both girls need a new plan for the summer, and they might as well become friends.
Then this kid Oliver shows up begging for Shirley's help. His pet gecko has disappeared, and he's sure it was stolen! That's when Jamila discovers Shirley's secret: She's the neighborhood's best kid detective, and she's on the case. When Jamila discovers she's got some detective skills of her own, a crime-solving partnership is born.
The mystery of the missing gecko turns Shirley and Jamila's summer upside down. And when their partnership hits a rough patch, they have to work together to solve the greatest mystery of all: What it means to be a friend.
This month we received two books, and our second was at a bit of a higher reading level than the first, although it is a comic-style book with plenty of illustrations making it easy to read and especially engaging. In this book, two girls who are very different from one another come to an agreement that allows them to both skip camp for the summer, and instead they have some independence, although it has to be with one another. Shirley is a very different girl who doesn't have many friends because while her intelligence and observational skills are well-developed, her social skills are somewhat lacking. Jamila just wants to play basketball and while the court is where they spend most of their days, she begins to get curious about what Shirley is doing all that time. Soon she finds herself on the case with Shirley as she attempts to recover a missing backpack. The two girls, while very different, have to learn to let each other in and actually learn to be a friend. They also end up making some more friends as they solve the case which makes for a heart-warming tale that proves assumptions and pre-conceived ideas about others aren't always accurate.
The book has some humor throughout that kids will enjoy and there is some name-calling (jerk, freak, weirdo) and a few questionable moments (two kids singing "99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall" and a teacher who says "hold onto your butts" when she announces a pop quiz), but overall, it felt age-appropriate.
Discussion Question Cards
This month we received a bookmark with discussion questions for each book. As usual, these were thought-provoking and range in difficulty. This time we discussed perceptions and trying something new with Astrid & Apollo, while our questions from Shirley & Jamila were all about friendship and making assumptions. All great topics that help kids think about their own thoughts, ideas, and feelings and encourage them to express them.
Verdict: This month's Little Feminist Book Club selections were very different from one another, but each had many diverse characters and showed some very positive familial relationships that were both respectful and loving. I liked that there were two different styles here to please different types of readers. I liked that they tackled the topics of perception and assumptions, which are crucial to shaping experiences, but something you often may not even be aware of until adulthood. This month we also received two activities and two bookmarks with discussion questions, so it felt like a nice full box although we are still coming in a little low for retail value at $19.94 for this $25.90 ($22.95 + $2.95 shipping) box.
To Wrap Up: Can you still get this box if you sign up today? If you order today, your first box will be the June box. From Little Feminist:
Once you purchase a book subscription your first box will be shipped within a week. From then on, your book box will be sent the first week of every month.
Check out all of our Little Feminist reviews and our list of the best book clubs for kids!
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