The circus has always been a magical place to me. I have been fortunate to attend the circus many times as a child and as an adult. I have to admit that the circus experience as a child is much different than that as an adult.
My now 5.5yr old son has only been to the circus once. I know it was a wonderful memory for him because it was his first time, it was just him with his parents and no twins because they were too young, and we took him to see a smaller circus so it wasn't as overwhelming as a big circus would have been.
For this reason, I agreed to review the book Circus Fever by author, mother, and former grade school teacher Alva Sachs. I knew that my son would be able to relate to the main character's fascination with the circus.
What my son thought about this children's storybook:
1) My son was still able to relate to the protagonist, even though she was a girl.
2) The book did make my son think about his own circus memories.
3) Although he really liked looking at all the different circus animals, my son's favorite part of the book was the illustration of the main character's bedroom because it was filled with everything to do with the circus and there were so many things to discover. Patricia Krebs did an excellent job as the illustrator for this book.
4) He thought the main character, who was a 9yr old girl, was crazy for wanting to go to the circus alone. He explained to me that one needs to be 79yrs old to be able to attend the circus alone.
Although my son enjoyed this book, I think it is targeted at children slightly older. It contains a transition to and from a fantasy world that I had to explain to my son. Once I explained it to him, he understood that the girl was using her imagination and was engaging in pretend play.
You can find Circus Fever on Three Wishes Publishing and on Amazon.com . You can also visit Alva's Just for Kids page for fun free printables for grade school children of all ages.
Thank you to Alva Sachs and the Three Wishes Publishing Company for providing us with both a review product and a contest prize free of charge.
What you can win:
One lucky reader will win their own copy of Circus Fever by Alva Sachs.
Limitations:
This giveaway is open to U.S. addresses only. You do not need to be a blogger to enter, but you must have a valid email address and be age 18 years or older. If you enter anonymously and do not include a valid email address in your comment entries, I will not be able to notify you should you win this random drawing.
How to Gain Entries:
Leave a comment telling me what is your favorite thing about going to the circus. You MUST do this to be eligible to win this contest.
Extra Entries:
1) For an extra entry, take a look at Alva Sachs' Tips for Parents. Then leave a separate comment telling me which one you agree with the most.
2) For 5 extra entries, enter one of my other contests. Leave FIVE separate comments here telling me which contest you entered. You will earn 5 extra entries for each contest you enter.
3) Add this blog to your Technorati Favorites. Then leave a separate comment telling me you did so and under what username. Add to Technorati Favorites
4) For 10 extra entries, blog about this contest linking back to this post and to AlvaSachs.com . Then come back here and leave TEN separate comments with the link to your blog post.
5) Follow me on Twitter. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your Twitter profile.
6) Tweet about this giveaway linking back to this post. Then come back here and leave the link to your tweet in a separate comment. You may do this once per day until the end of the contest.
7) Subscribe to this blog's feed. Or you can follow me through Blogger or subscribe via email (widget is on sidebar). Then leave a separate comment telling me you did so.
8) Add my button or blog link to your blog's sidebar. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your blog.
9) Add my "Get Cool For School" giveaway event button to your blog's sidebar. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your blog.
10) Add my "Monterey Car Seat" giveaway button to your blog's sidebar. Then leave a separate comment with the link to your blog.
(All entries will be verified prior to awarding this prize.)
Random Drawing:
This contest will be closed on Monday, August 10th, 2009 at 11:59pm EST. A random number drawing will be held shortly after. The winner will be announced here and will be contact via email or through their blog. If the winner does not respond within 48 hours, a new number will be drawn.
Good luck in the drawing!
