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 selected to help diversify your bookshelf for $22.95 per month + $2.95 flat rate shipping. 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.
This review is of the Book Club for ages 4-7 years.
This box was sent to us at no cost to review. (Check out our editorial guidelines to learn more about how we review boxes.)
First Impressions
1 of 4
Little Feminist Book Club items come in a distinctive cardboard holder with drawings on it. In addition to the book(s), Little Feminist includes an introduction to the book (which has an activity on the reverse side – see below) and a bookmark with thought-provoking questions.
What's Inside The Box
Tía Fortuna's New Home by Ruth Behar - Retail Value $18.99
1 of 8
The story is about a young girl named Estrella, who, along with her mother, helps her grandmother move out of her beloved home into an assisted living home. Grandma is in her typical chipper mood and Estrella wonders how tia can be so happy on such a sad day. While her physical suitcase carries only a few trinkets from her culture, grandma points to her head and says, "I have so many memories in this suitcase right here." She reminds Estrella that their ancestors moved from country to country and that they carried their memories, traditions, and treats with them. They bake some traditional borekas and share them with tia's new neighbors. They unpack some of her cherished possessions and she said, "Feels like home already."
As I've come to expect with reading to my daughter, she is often not interested in the meaning of the story, but she always takes an interest in what's happening. In this case, she was mostly concerned about having to move to a different house. So we spent most of the time talking about the logistics of that. She was also very interesting in the idea of what she would bring and leave behind. Spoiler alert: all her stuffed animals made the cut.
From Penguin Random House Publishing:
A poignant multicultural ode to family and what it means to create a home as one girl helps her Tía move away from her beloved Miami apartment.
When Estrella’s Tía Fortuna has to say goodbye to her longtime Miami apartment building, The Seaway, to move to an assisted living community, Estrella spends the day with her. Tía explains the significance of her most important possessions from both her Cuban and Jewish culture, as they learn to say goodbye together and explore a new beginning for Tía.
A lyrical book about tradition, culture, and togetherness, Tía Fortuna’s New Home explores Tía and Estrella’s Sephardic Jewish and Cuban heritage. Through Tía’s journey, Estrella will learn that as long as you have your family, home is truly where the heart is.
What Do You Think Card
1 of 2
Each book comes with a 'What Do You Think' card that provides questions that you can ask your little reader about the book. They are nice in the way they help you ask direct questions– something that might actually get a real answer rather than "It was good" or "I liked it."
Little Feminist In Action
This month's activity asks your little one to think of what they would bring with them to a new home. Then they are supposed to draw it. My girl had a lot of good answers, but had a hard time picking just one for each question.
The Verdict
Another positive installment from Little Feminist Book Club. My daughter always finds something to ask questions about, even if it's not exactly the point of the book. Now she's very focused on what she'd like to bring with her to a new home. That's a fascinating thing to witness. Especially because we're not moving. I liked this book, but one thing I find with these books that include foreign words is that between try to pronounce them and then checking the glossary in the back, it disrupts the flow of the reading. That leads to my kid losing interest. You can certainly argue I should have a deeper knowledge of these things and that this is how we learn, but for a caveman like me, some times it jams me up. It's a small annoyance that I could probably be treating as an opportunity. Regardless, we enjoyed this book and now I have to go unpack a bunch of stuffed animals.
Value - Was This Box Worth It?
Subscribers – current or future – will have to be understanding of the fact that Little Feminist Book Club is not a subscription that saves you money. The cost of the sub will always be a little more than the book itself. This subscription's true value is the quality of the books and the complementary paperwork, which is carefully chosen and sent to your front door. If you are focused on dollar amounts, this subscription may not be for you. The monthly subscription costs $26 (with shipping). This book retails for about $19. That is a $7 difference in value. Amazon has it for about $15. And a quick search will find it very cheap used.
One thing to note: Little Feminist offers four ways to purchase: monthly, three months, six months, and 12 months. They cost $22.95, $21.95, $19.95, and $18.95, respectively. Shipping is always $2.95. So if you were certain you'd like this subscription for a year, it would be $4 cheaper per month and much closer to the book's retail value.
To Wrap Up
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? You have to order before the 25th to receive that month’s selection. 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.
Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist.
Do you subscribe to Little Feminist Book Club Box? Comment below with what you thought.
Please do not enter your email address in the Name field or in the comment content. Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *. Remember to post with kindness and respect. Comments with offensive language, cruelness to others, etc will not be approved. See our full comment policy here.