The Bad Seed, The Good Egg, The Couch Potato, and The Cool Bean Book Review
/
Let’s talk about behavior and actions and how they affect others. Or better yet, let’s read about it and then use the books as ways to discuss these important topics with our kids. At least, that is what I did.
The Bad Seed
Book Review
This story is great for showing kids that your reputation and past actions don’t make you who you are. It is possible to change but you’re not going to be good all the time.
The Bad Seed is a story of a seed who does some pretty awful things. His manners (and hygiene) leave a lot to be desired. One of my rascals favorite pictures is when the Bad Seed intentionally makes a baby cry. He happily disturbs the peace. The seed has been through some rough patches. He had a happy family life but they lost their home and were separated. He felt that the things that he had gone through had caused him to turn into a bad seed. But one day, he decides to be better.
The book also shows that your behavior is a decision that you make. It’s also refreshingly honest in showing that some people will hold your past actions against you and that the rest might not think you’re immediately good, but maybe not all bad.
The Good Egg Book review
It’s a amazing message that you don’t have to take care of the world or be perfect all the time. It’s also nice to see mental and physical health tied together.
A companion book to The Bad Seed, The Good Egg is a fun self help book that my rascals could relate to while reading it. The good egg is as helpful as possible (sometimes in a way that makes things worse, as the very funny illustrations show). He has put himself in charge of everyone. The other eggs in his carton misbehave and he spends all his time trying to fix their messes until finally he cracks.
He decides he needs to leave. He goes on a long journey of self discovery. Along the way, he learns to take care of himself. The egg finds hobbies and ways to relax. Taking time for himself helps him heal. He realizes that he misses his carton of friends and returns home. While he was gone, they’ve learned to appreciate him a bit, too. Most importantly, he’s learned that they can be a bit bad and it doesn’t really affect him. Sometimes, he even joins in.
The mindfulness and coping tools used in this book are ones that kids can easily use themselves when alone, at home, or in a classroom.
The Cool Bean Book Review
This is a gentle, sweet story of how generosity and kindness are the true qualities to champion, and offers a great example for young readers and an important reminder for older readers.
In this story, we meet three coooool beans...and one pretty uncool bean. Although the beans started out close, they started to grow apart thanks to different interests. Day after day, the one bean tries his best to fit in, but he just never could reach the “coolness” of the other three. But in his most challenging moments, he learns that the real definition of being cool is kindness.
The Couch Potato Book Review
The story stresses balance between devices and the outside world, The Couch Potato also teaches children that relaxation inside is important too and it’s OK to veg out on the couch every once in a while.
The Couch Potato is a delightful story that will teach children (preschool to elementary age) the value of unplugging in a technology-driven world. Parents will appreciate Couch Potato’s humorous personality and will have fun laughing along with their children as Couch Potato rediscovers all the things he’s been missing.
We each had our favorite in this book series. Mama’s pick was The Good Egg. This book’s important message acknowledges anxiety and teaches kids healthy ways of dealing with their emotions. AJ loved The Couch Potato because he could relate to the main character, creating balance from screen time and enjoying time outdoors. Ben appreciated The Cool Bean because of the kindness shown to others; it gave him examples of how he could be kind to his friends. I loved using these books as a starter of many discussions with my rascals.
Written by Head Rascal (Ngoc Nguyen Lay), mother of two rascals, ages 6 and 8. Photos by Simply Adri Photography.
Shop This Post
