Hazel and Her Sun

I loved the idea of this story but was too wordy for me. I also would have loved more of the characteristics of the sun in the story. It only talks about it being loved for the light. Heat is a big part if the sun. Missed opportunity for science to be integrated in the story.

In a Nutshell: A beautiful and imaginative picture book about a little girl who wants the sun for herself. Lovely plot, nice illustrations, valuable moral. Recommended!

Plot Preview:
Hazel loves the sun and watches it every time she can. In fact, she loves it so much that she begins hatching a secret plan to steal the sun and keep it in her room. When she succeeds in capturing the sun, she realises that she forgot to take something important into account: the sun is not hers alone.

This is the kind of creative story that little children enjoy with all the strength of their young imaginations and their firm belief in the magical. Hazel’s adventure will offer little minds a lot to think about. However, let’s be clear that the story is not scientifically and practically accurate. So it is to be read not for factual preciseness but for its magical plot and the beautiful moral.

Hazel is a sweet character whose single-minded passion for the sun results in this misadventure for the world. The book shows her as a resourceful child who rectifies her mistake as soon as she realises it. The story depicts how every decision has repercussions and we should always think not just from our needs but also from a general and long-term perspective.

The ending of the story works especially well not just because of the message but also because of how it casts doubt on certain events that occurred before. A good way to continue discussing the story after the last page!

The illustrations are also really cute and match the story perfectly. The contrast between bright and dull works in sync with the text.

The only main thing that I would have altered is the text distribution. Some pages have only one line of text while some others have 8-10 lines of text without para spacing. These longer text blocks might be a bit overwhelming for beginner-level independent readers.

I wish the book could have ended with some interesting facts about the sun. As the story is so fantastical, it would have been great to learn some fun trivia about the star that lights up Hazel’s world and ours.

Overall, a really sweet book to be read with the eyes and heart of a child. This story would work well as a bedtime story for little readers aged 3-6. Amazon has this book pegged as being for children aged 6-8, so that might be the age range for independent reading. I feel that the fanciful nature of the story makes it suitable to the younger segment.

4 stars.

My thanks to Austin Macauley and NetGalley for the DRC of “Hazel and Her Sun”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

Loved Hazel and Her Sun. Great book to teach kids that sometimes what they want is not always what is best. I love how Hazel works through her feelings and empathizes. Wonderful addition to any elementary classroom.