This was gorgeous! Babushka sets out to learn the meaning of life, and thinks the best way to do this is by sending her four outer shells into the world to be their best selves - beauty, riches, brains, hard work. Amazing illustrations and a great message :)

An incredibly enchanting and well-composed book for children that had me hooked from the first page until the very last. Highly recommended.

What is the meaning of life?

That is a hard question to answer, but this illustrated story provides a great possible answer, one that fills one up with understanding of both our internal and external strengths.

Guided by Babushka's experience, the reader can understand how easy or difficult life tends to be when we star looking for meaning and fulfilment. The story shows us how things like love, wealth, creativity, wisdom and love make up our true selves and all that surrounds us.

Together with beautifully illustrations, this simple tale, pinpoint a deep critic of the world and how easy it is to lose one self, but also bringing the light of hope as to achieve a better future.

A beautifully crafted story that will be a delight to share with your yourself and your ove ones.

The ARC of this book was received free in exchange for an honest review.

The Story of Babushka is one that should be in every child's library! While the illustrations are lovely, it is the written content that makes this tale so great. The story begins with an introduction to Babushka and her five bodies within. Each body has a different quality or asset which contributes to Babushka's character overall.

Like many of us have done, Babushka ponders over what the meaning of life is. This one question and her subsequent choices are where the story lies.

Throughout Babushka's journey she will learn a few valuable life lessons that will ring true for everyone. Sometimes we could all use a reminder that we need to remain true to ourselves and not spread ourselves too thin.

I would recommend this book for children of any age. However, with the vocabulary being what it is I believe children ages 6/7 and up would have a greater level of reading comprehension.

Beautifully illustrated, middle-grade fable telling the story of a Babushka, Russian nesting doll. Each member of this contains its own identity and tale. Together they create one full identity. Highly recommend.

I received a e-arc of this in exchange for an honest review.

Sadly I was not able to read this copy since the formating was really off the pages repeated over and over and the print wasn't even visible because it was so tiny. The pictures though were gorgeous and I do hope I get a corrected copy so I can properly read it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Story of Babushka was more than intriguing to me, I have seen the little Russian nesting dolls many times over the years and think they are precious. The illustrations in this book should win an award they are so beautiful. The story seemed a bit complex for children, but I think that older ages ( around 10-13) could comprehend the messages. The story tackles many issues, with the overall intention of showing children that one main characteristic cannot be all that defines them. It got a bit political at times, but I think it did it tastefully. I would definitely recommend this to others.

This is such a lovely book! Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for giving me an e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

I was always fascinated by the Babushka dolls. This is perfect for children to find purpose in their life. It has valuable lessons. Complex themes simplified in a lovely story.

I love the illustrations. It will be easy for little ones to connect with the characters and the story. It is so full of hope. Teaches no problem is too big. Every problem can be overcome. Teaches how everyone is unique and have different qualities. Steeped in tradition. An engaging read.

Very well written and heartwarming. I definitely recommend it and will be getting a copy for myself.

I really liked this simple story and the illustrations were beautiful too. It was lovely and had a good message behind it. It had a lovely happy ending too.

The first thing that struck me about this book was the cover art. The illustrations throughout this book were so lovely, gentle and full of color and meaning. They complimented the story well and gave insight into the characters and themes without distracting from the story. I did make the mistake of assuming this was a picture book and was surprised to find that instead it was a middle-grade chapter book. To me there seemed to be a little disconnect between the presentation and the audience. The simple stories, moral lessons, and pictures seemed to be for a younger audience but the length and vocabulary were for a more advanced reader.

This book tackles some complex ideas about the self and one's place in the world and presents them in a simplified setting. It also boils down commentary on corrupt society and makes it digestible for a young audience. The emphasis on finding one's place in society as well as putting oneself first are noble and a nice way to present these themes to children.

I did enjoy reading a story written in folktale style from another culture. People may be familiar with the Russian Nesting Dolls, but this story delves in the history and connections with Russian views of womanhood and the self.

Wow, this book is fantastic. Babushka is made up of 5 different bodies but all of them are different facets of the entire Babushka. It combines a really cute story with thought provoking ideas and themes as well as some life lessons about beauty, wealth, and knowledge, I think every child should read this and most adults too. I would highly recommend this book.

This book has a lot of complex themes that will interest young readers. It talks about how people can be multi-faceted and there is more than just one aspect to any person. Kids will probably be familiar with Russian nesting dolls (I have had some in my classroom and they are always very popular), so it will be easy for them to connect with the story. The illustrations are absolutely beautiful. They are colorful, playful, and inviting. If I still taught in a classroom with younger students, I would share this book in a reading circle.
I would highly recommend buying this as a physical book as some aspects of the ebook did not download well. Thank you for the advanced copy.

I received this ebook in exchange for an honest and fair review. What a delightful story. Very well written and illustrated. I loved the tales and the lessons each taught. Would be great for elementary read aloud.

This is a story of Babushka. a set of five nesting dolls, who want to find out the meaning of life. Each of the separate five bodies head out of the forest to search for their destinies. Each body has a goal/life dream they want to achieve. For example, find true love, help others in need, etc. During each of their journeys they are full of hope. Many obstacles occur while they are trying to find their purpose and they end up back together to truly understand their meaning. Such a heartwarming story that has a lot of great lessons for children to learn from and enjoy!

Reading this book was accompanied with the feeling of playing with a set of Babushka dolls. There was a true sense of taking the dolls apart, studying them, assigning them unique qualities and then bringing them back together again.
As a set of 5 dolls, within the story, they are all unique and have different qualities to offer the world and the last doll allows them all to go and find their way in life- leaving her behind with the heart. All choosing different directions, it is not until they are all gone that the last doll finds her own purpose in life and goes on her own journey of discovery.
As the set of dolls is meant to be together, so too are the dolls in the story. Having learned new lessons on life and discovering that not all is as it seems, they come together to feel complete once more.

Completely heart warming with a soul steeped in tradition, there is much to share and enjoy with this beautifully illustrated story.

Likely to engage and enchant readers, young and old.

The Story of Babushka was such a quick, charming read. The artwork was what drew me in, but the story is what made me stay. It's really easy to follow and not a story that I've seen before, so it was super enjoyable! The story is honestly quite heartwarming and full of good life lessons, and I think this would make a great read for students and kids, either to read with someone or by themselves. I even really enjoyed it myself, so I'd also recommend this to anyone who is looking for a charming, gorgeously illustrated, and heartwarming story.

I have been drawn to nesting dolls since I was a kid. Embarrassingly I never thought to look up their origins. There are a lot of valuable lessons for children in this story. The artwork was fantastic, and was my favorite part of this book.

I was drawn to THE STORY OF BABUSHKA because of the gorgeous glowing art. The narrative describes the journey of a Russian nesting doll, but I often found it too complex for targeted readers age 8-12 and clumsy at times in its approach. Suspect translation issues are at play. 3 of 5 Stars

Pub Date 29 Jul 2020

Thanks to BooksGoSocial and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are mine.

#TheStoryOfBabushka #NetGalley

This story gently introduces young readers to the inevitable existential crisis that most people experience at some point in their life. One wonders about the meaning of life and how one can fulfill such a purpose. The Babushka is made up of five women with a particular characteristic: beauty, wealth, talent, wisdom, and love. They each go their own way to what they think will fulfill their own separate purpose of life. The Babushka learns additional truths regarding a work-life balance, self-value, and the power of the collective on this journey, which is a positive learning experience for readers. The illustrations contribute to the story like a wind guiding someone to a destination. One of the illustrations depicts one of the women lurking in the shadows that added an element of humor. The language is appropriate and not challenging for its target audience. Ultimately, the creative use of the Babushka in this story is employed well in this story that promotes life lessons that promote inner growth for middle grade readers.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I like the story. It was fantasy but the lessons are so realistic. It is a good book for children to learn different lessons in life. I like the illustration though the copy I had was a bit difficult to read. I had to adjust the font size to be able to read a paragraph completely but it's worth it. I saw some grammatical errors which can be corrected through a little proofreading. It's something I can recommend to friends that can be read to children.