Review: Jake and the Biggest Yawn Ever by Chris Hardy

 

Genre: Children's 3-8

Published: January 13, 2022

Pages: 34

When the biggest yawn ever escapes from Jake's mouth and makes his way through the neighborhood, nobody can stop the yawns from happening! Yawn after yawn, one after the other. From squirrels to mice and even coyotes, no one is safe! This soothing bedtime story will get the yawning started and will lull anyone to sleep!

I received a copy of this book through Netgalley. This is my honest review. 

This is a cute little rhyming story about a great big yawn that starts with a puppy and travels all through the town making everyone very sleepy. I don't know how well the power of suggestion would work on little ones at bedtime and can't really test it out with my kids any more, but it made me yawn near the end while reading, so make of that what you will. 

The illustrations were on the dark side, but as this book is set in the evening, presumably, that is fitting. The more muted colors probably work to keep kids more drowsy and less amped up. And I'm not sure how I feel about the yawn being depicted almost ghost like. Does that mean yawns are really spirits leaving our bodies?

Overall I give this book 4.1 out of 5 stars. - Katie 

Amazon

Chris Hardy, a native of California, decided to finally pursue her long-time dream of writing books that touch the hearts of children and adults alike. "Jake and the Pandemic" was her first book and it was inspired by her nieces' experiences during the pandemic as well as the adorable dog, Jake, who she adopted after the passing of her neighbor. With another three books under her belt ("Jake and the Purple Unicorn," "Jake and the Biggest Yawn Ever" and "Grateful Jake") she is ready for the next round! Her writing goals are to create engaging stories filled with humor, life lessons and education to not only help children but also to help them thoroughly enjoy their book reading experience. When she isn't engaged in her creative outlet of writing, she runs her business that she has owned since 2002 selling natural products. In her spare time, she enjoys going on walks with Jake, playing tennis with her 80-year-old mom, hiking, watching movies, riding bikes at the beach, vacationing anywhere, spending time with family and being grateful for all the good that is in her life.

Victoria Osipova (Wally_LL) is a Russian illustrator and designer and from a young age became very interested in drawing. Every year she attended courses and seminars on creating illustrations. Thanks to her family, she found faith in herself and realized that drawing is a part of her life. Her inspiration is her beloved son and two dogs.