STORIES FOR CHILDREN MAGAZINE BOOK REVIEW

Rating: 5 stars

Reviewed By: Wayne Walker

If you are an adult, can you remember back to those days when you were a kid and it was raining so you could not go outside to play? What did you do to entertain and amuse yourself? Lexie is a little girl who finds herself in that very situation. She remembers that her Mommy once told her that she had an imaginary friend when she was a little girl and they did all kinds of things together. So Lexie decides to use her imagination to create a little friend of her own.  Her friend fits into the palm of her hand and wears many colors. She names him Lolly because his different colors remind her of lollipop flavors. What will Lexie and Lolly do? Where will they go?

 This picture book for children is a wonderful reminder of how imaginative kids can be when given the freedom to do so, and thus will serve as a great encouragement for them to conjure up their own fun at any time and in any place which they choose. Oh yes, there are television and video games, but sometimes it is actually more fun just to pretend. The author says that she was inspired to write the book when watching her daughter, named Lexie, play with her own imaginary friend. The colorful illustrations will be very helpful in enabling children to visualize the story. What Can We Do Next? is truly a keeper!

Reviewed By: Bettie Corbin Tucker

Rain, rain, go away; come again another day.  Little Lexie wants to play.”  As a child I remember staring out the window and repeating this rhyming message over and over because it seemed that I had the most fun when playing outside.  In What Can We Do Next? by Toula Magi, a mother and the author of this book, Lexie, the main character, looks wistfully out the window at her swing set, knowing she is stuck inside because it is raining.  However, this young child uses her imagination to create a tiny imaginary friend whom she names Lolly.  When children read this book, or have their parents read it to them, they will learn why Lexie chose this particular name for her colorful friend. 

Children, just like most writers, have great imaginations that can take them anywhere, create characters, and provide solutions to those “rainy days.”  Lexie and her friend Lolly have a wonderful fun-filled day, asking one another what they can do next.  The answer takes them on a hot-air balloon ride and other adventures that are fun and exciting.  When Lexie goes to bed that night, she thanks Lolly for showing her that a rainy day doesn’t mean she can’t have fun.

This delightful book is filled with colorful illustrations and age-appropriate conversations that will captivate the minds of children.  The author says that her own daughter was the inspiration behind the idea as she watched her use her imagination while at play.  I think most parents can appreciate and relate to this.  I suggest that the next time your children have a rainy day that they sit down and browse through the pages of What Can We Do Next?  I have no doubt that the pages will stimulate their imaginations and chase away the boredom.  There is a lesson presented in this book that, if learned, involves temporarily putting aside the man-made toys and gadgets that try to stifle the wondrous creativity of the minds of our children.  The imagination is a treasure that must be nurtured.  

This is a “must purchase” book for all parents and caregivers of young children. 

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Reviewed by: Margaret Orford

Lexie is stuck with the dilemma of what to do, while being confined indoors on a rainy day. Lexie decides to create an imaginary friend. With this imaginary friend, Lexie overcomes the obstacles of what to do for fun. They create many different adventures by using nothing but their imagination.

This book is very nicely illustrated. It should help teach children that you can do anything as long as you put your mind (and your imagination) to the task, and that they do not need to rely on outdoor games, TV or computer entertainment.

This is Toula Magi’s first children’s book. She was inspired to write this book by watching her own daughter use her imagination in play. She is currently working on her next children’s book.

This book teaches a good lesson to children, and takes the children on many adventures. 

This book is highly recommended by Margaret Orford, Allbooks Reviews.

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KAYE TROUT'S BOOK REVIEWS

Rating: Very Good

Reviewed By: Kaye Trout

This is a simple, easy-to-read story about how children can use their imagination, rain or shine, to entertain themselves–not a bad idea...an imaginary best friend. The illustrations are fun, well done and colorful.

Toula Magi’s inspiration to write her first children’s book came while watching her daughter at play. Now, that inspiration has manifested itself into a delightful little book...one I’m certain young children will enjoy again and again.