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The Fleatastics
Serafleana loves to jump, and when her family joins the traveling acrobatic troupe the Fleatastics, she dreams of having her own act. But her family wants her to be part of their parasite pyramid, and nobody gives small Serafleana the chance to show how high she can soar. But on the first day that Serafleana’s family performs, someone in the audience says the forbidden “T” word—treat, which no dog can sleep through! When their host dog goes wild, Serafleana finally gets the chance to prove what she can do, saving her flea community and earning her own spot in the show at the same time. The art for this tale of a determined flea includes a multitude of subplots and dialog to follow, making this the sort of book that children will want to read over and over again.
32 pages, Hardcover
First published April 4, 2017
7 people want to read
About the author
Lisa Desimini
53 books8 followersAn American children's author and illustrator, Lisa Desimini was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1965, and educated at the School of Visual Arts, in New York City. Desimini has illustrated thirty-five books for children, nine of which she also authored. She is married to fellow artist Matt Mahurin, with whom she collaborated on My Beautiful Child. (sources: the author's website, and encyclopedia.com)
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
July 22, 2019
Sarafleana wanted nothing so much as to be the highest-jumping flea ever. Unfortunately, her large family already had an act - The Parasite Pyramid - and expected her to play her part in their performances. When the Flea family joined The Fleatastics in their ringside circus, it looked like Sarafleana would have no choice but to fall in with her parents' plan for her. Then Sparky, the dog on which the Fleatastics were performing, began to go wild after hearing the word "treat," and Sarafleana saw a way to use her talent to save the entire show, performers and audience both...
Although I appreciated the creativity displayed by author/illustrator Lisa Desimini, in creating The Fleatastics, and enjoyed some of the puns and wordplay, somehow this picture-book didn't quite work for me. Leaving aside the fact that the idea of fleas made me twitchy - something I found difficult to overcome, in the reading of the book - I also felt that there was too much going on on the page, textually speaking. The many speech bubbles, as the various flea characters exclaim aloud, or ask one another questions, distracted from the main narrative. Tastes vary, of course, and I can imagine that some young readers will enjoy reading all the little comments made by the cast of characters, but for me the effect was too busy.
Although I appreciated the creativity displayed by author/illustrator Lisa Desimini, in creating The Fleatastics, and enjoyed some of the puns and wordplay, somehow this picture-book didn't quite work for me. Leaving aside the fact that the idea of fleas made me twitchy - something I found difficult to overcome, in the reading of the book - I also felt that there was too much going on on the page, textually speaking. The many speech bubbles, as the various flea characters exclaim aloud, or ask one another questions, distracted from the main narrative. Tastes vary, of course, and I can imagine that some young readers will enjoy reading all the little comments made by the cast of characters, but for me the effect was too busy.
December 5, 2017
Desimini, Lisa The Fleatastics. PICTURE BOOK. Boyds Mills Press (Highlights), 2017. $16.95. Content: G.
Sarafleana's parents think that she and her siblings could make the perfect flea circus act, but Sarafleana isn't into their coordinated routine; all she wants to do is jump as high as she possibly can.
While the premise is fun, there is a lot going on in this book to the point where it feels messy and confusing. There are fleas and fun facts and dialogue and inner monologues all over the place. Because of the many asides, it would be difficult to read this one aloud with any sort of fluidity, but the small font and many challenging words (e.g. maternity, antihistamine, hypoallergenic) would likely be far beyond most young readers' skill levels for reading to themselves. In addition, the story and its ending simply didn't resonate as strongly as I would have liked, leaving me with a "meh" feeling rather than satisfaction.
EL (K-3) -- OPTIONAL. Reviewed by Sydney G., K-6 Library Media Specialist
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2017...
Sarafleana's parents think that she and her siblings could make the perfect flea circus act, but Sarafleana isn't into their coordinated routine; all she wants to do is jump as high as she possibly can.
While the premise is fun, there is a lot going on in this book to the point where it feels messy and confusing. There are fleas and fun facts and dialogue and inner monologues all over the place. Because of the many asides, it would be difficult to read this one aloud with any sort of fluidity, but the small font and many challenging words (e.g. maternity, antihistamine, hypoallergenic) would likely be far beyond most young readers' skill levels for reading to themselves. In addition, the story and its ending simply didn't resonate as strongly as I would have liked, leaving me with a "meh" feeling rather than satisfaction.
EL (K-3) -- OPTIONAL. Reviewed by Sydney G., K-6 Library Media Specialist
https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2017...
June 26, 2017
Sarah was the highest jumping flea in her family. As they grew up, her parents decided to join the circus with all their children. They practiced and practiced and finally landed a job on Sparky, the big yellow dog at the park. But when someone used the T-word (treat) Sparky went crazy and the fleas had to escape. Sarah saved them all by causing Sparky to chase his tail and scratch his back, thus giving the family time to escape.
October 13, 2017
Ahh... Even though the message is a good one, I wish the ending would have been something where the fleas leave the dog to perhaps another animal-neutral place. Yes, I know that I'm arguing about parasites in a children's book. But if I'm already in a fictitious world, why not extend that to a better ending (at least for me), where the damage of fleas is mentioned and dealt with in a better way.
September 3, 2017
Meh. Cute illustrations, though.
October 2, 2017
A flea family is preparing their act for the flea circus but one member just doesn't want to be in the act. preschool and up for the dialogue and concept.
November 12, 2017
Cute story, wonderful illustrations but too busy to read to a group of children. Better suited for one child, possibly a bit older, who can thoroughly point out and enjoy the easter eggs.
August 14, 2017
Anyone who has ever wanted to be recognized for their own special talent will certainly identify with Serafleana. From the time she was just a tiny egg, she has always been a jumper. She dreams of her own act in the Fleatastics Circus, but her family wants her to be part of an acrobatic pyramid instead. On the night of their first performance, disaster strikes! A child in the audience asks for a "Treat" and that word wakes the sleeping dog they are performing on. At last Serafleana can use her talent in a way that everyone approves of - to distract the dog while performers and audience all scurry to safety.
Young readers may not have heard of a flea circus, but adults who are reading along will certainly be amused at the idea of a big top pitched on a sleeping dog. The illustrations show performers balancing on top of rolling balls, twirling hoops on all six legs, or swinging on the trapeze. And mixed in with the action there are tiny speech bubbles that help make each flea unique. One wants to tell jokes all the time. Another has allergies and believes she needs to relocate to a hypoallergenic dog. Still another quotes random facts. Yet they all manage to work together to form the pyramid, even if Serafleana's brothers do have to hold onto her to keep her in position. When she finally gets to jump, what a jump it is!
Great for one-on-one laptime or bedtime reading, so the tiny speech bubbles can be explored and discussed. It could work as a read-aloud, but it would take plenty of extra time to read all the little extra bits and point out who was saying what.
I received a review copy from the publisher.
Young readers may not have heard of a flea circus, but adults who are reading along will certainly be amused at the idea of a big top pitched on a sleeping dog. The illustrations show performers balancing on top of rolling balls, twirling hoops on all six legs, or swinging on the trapeze. And mixed in with the action there are tiny speech bubbles that help make each flea unique. One wants to tell jokes all the time. Another has allergies and believes she needs to relocate to a hypoallergenic dog. Still another quotes random facts. Yet they all manage to work together to form the pyramid, even if Serafleana's brothers do have to hold onto her to keep her in position. When she finally gets to jump, what a jump it is!
Great for one-on-one laptime or bedtime reading, so the tiny speech bubbles can be explored and discussed. It could work as a read-aloud, but it would take plenty of extra time to read all the little extra bits and point out who was saying what.
I received a review copy from the publisher.
April 19, 2017
OK, there will be people who have a hard time rooting for a flea jumping around on a dog - yes, they're icky parasites that spread disease. But if you can put that aside and embrace the silliness of a flea with acrobatic dreams, you'll love this funny, brilliantly illustrated picture book.
April 30, 2017
Readers will enjoy this inside scoop of how fleas move from dogs to dogs! And how one flea is able to use her talent to save them all! The running commentary by the fleas is pretty humorous.
May 3, 2017
The lively world of fleas with running commentaries.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews