Saving Forest Farm

by Jack Purser

The Forest Farm is enduring a drought and all the animal residents are wondering what to do. If something doesn't change soon, they may all have to move away. After they elect Farrell Fox and Gunther Goat to search for a turtle who may be able to help, the two animal friends set off on an incredible journey without realizing they are being followed by a pesky pig on his own mission. Soon, they meet new friends like Suri Squirrel and Marley Mockingbird while facing many challenges. But will they be able to outsmart the pig in time to save the farm? In this charming children's tale, two animal friends set out on a brave adventure to save their farm from a drought, Will they succeed? Please follow "Saving Forest Farm" on Facebook and Instagram @savingforestfarm for upcoming events and promotional contests.

30 pages, Paperback

Published November 7, 2018

About the author

Jack Purser (1983) was born in Flowood, MS and grew up in Puckett, MS. After completing High School, Purser earned his Bachelor of Arts in Communication (2007) from the Mississippi University for Women in Columbus, MS and Master of Education in Educational Leadership (2009) from Valdosta State University in Valdosta, GA. Since 2005, Purser has worked in the Student Affairs profession on college campuses helping students navigate and grow through their college experience at the Mississippi University for Women, Valdosta State University, University of Charleston, and most recently Mississippi State University. “Saving Forest Farm” is his first published book and is the first of many Forest Farm Stories. Purser is an avid movie fan who loves bringing stories to life with his amazing animal sounds. Over the years, he has gained a wealth of movie and film knowledge that allows him to win the majority of movie trivia games. He currently lives in Fayette, AL with his lovely wife, Keela, and three children, Jack, Livy, and Benji.

You can follow me on my Amazon.com and goodreads.com Author Pages as well as on Facebook & Instagram @boonepurser or Twitter @jack_purser.
For more information, please go to the following link for more information about Jack Purser and his first book: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXOZR...

Reviews

[Boyko Ovcharov · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saving Animal Kingdom

A very nice book about animals, nature, community, friendship and survival.
It features lovely characters like Farrel Fox and Gunther Goat who accidentally become heroes. They want to save their Farm from drought. Rafi Rat encouaregs them to seek Trevor Turtle for help.
There is also a negative protagonist, a priest, who does everything to stop them. Which is a bit odd somehow. However, as assumed, he undergoes a bit of transformation in the end.
On the negative side I personally could note that am not a big fan of anthropomorphic animal illustrations. I like cute animals more, to be honest. Kids do too, presumably. So the target audience should be taken into consideration here.
Also, the formatting is a bit clumsy, but that is perhaps a remark to the publisher.
Otherwise, the editing is done almost perfectly, if not counting a couple of spelling mistakes, including the names of some protagonists.
Overall, the story has a powerful message, sounds educational and reads like a fairy tale, that is, it is immersive. Therefore, I can award the book 5 out of 5 stars.
I could recommend it to children in general and maybe their parents.

[Keep Calm Novel On · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author via Booktasters provided a copy of the PDF in exchange for an honest review.

Saving Forest Farm by Jack Purser is a delightful picture book. This read brings an important topic to light—climate change. The reality is droughts happen and what can be done. The animal friends are determined to problem solve. The characters each have unique characteristics and individual voices. When groups work together great things happen. This book is a perfect starting point on an important discussion—caring for our environment. The illustrations are brilliant and draw the reader and listener into a creative world.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Forest Farm is drying up. There hasn't been any rain and the animals have began to worry. Farrel Fox and Gather Goat are chosen to look for Trevor Turtle who might be able to bring back the rain. On their way,they encounter helpful friends and some who were not.

Saving Forest Farm is a delightful read. Not only does it teach about the changes in the environment but also the fact that just because something hasn't been done doesn't mean it can't be done.

[Rebecca Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Join the adventure with Farrell Fox and Gunther Goat as they try to find a way to bring rain back to the farm.
When the farm is going through a severe drought, all of the farm animals are suffering from the lack of water. When they find out that they can ask Trevor Turtle for help, Farrell Fox and Gunther Goat are chosen to go and ask the turtle for help.
Along the way, they have to learn to ask for help to find their way and come across a few adventures along the way.

Great book for kids. A super cute little story, and fun to follow. Great illustrations, and an easy to read storyline, which makes it easy to follow along. Perfect for kids who are learning to read!

[Heni Mujaa · Rating 4 out of 5]

First and the most important is ... The illustration is lit 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 If I were a child, I would love the book right at the first sight. The colors are bright and powerful and cheerful. The story is easy to follow, too.

To sum up:
Illustration ☑️
Moral values ☑️
Story ☑️
I could not find any typo.

Cons: TOO SHORT 😭

[Gina Rae Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a cute book with underlying messages for young children. It could be used to help educate them about droughts, the environment, asking for help, believing in something that seems impossible, standing up for themselves, and so much more. The illustrations are delightful.

[Patty Duplechin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing book. The illustrations is Beautiful . My granddaughter just loves it. We read it to her, she’s 5, and her 5 months old brother. She can’t wait to read it herself. The story is about a drought. They farm animals doesn’t know what to do. They elect Farrell Fox and Gunther Goat. They send them to find a turtle who may be able to help them. They meet and make friends along the way. Will they be able to find a way to save the farm? Two friends who are brave and wanting to save the farm. 5 stars. Wonderful read

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Number of stars 4 out of 5 stars

This book is a very cute story for your little children. This book will teach your little children about to believe and never give up on yourself. With beautiful and detail drawings your children will love this.

This story take place in a farm with two best friends who talk about their future. But on the same day a oldest told the two best friends to go talk with a turtle for some rain for the farm because their didn't see any rain for days.

The two best friends go on the quests but will they found the turtle and help save the farm? You guys need to pick up this book and found out with your little children.

[Miss Rankin]

A great book using current topics to encourage children talking about the way the world is changing in regards to our freak weather's. The children read this book as part of our book group and enjoyed that it was an e-book. They liked that, even though it was a chapter book, it still had full colour pictures running through it. They've quickly learned that once you can read lengthy pieces there are fewer opportunities to look at pictures as the detail and imagery is created by words. The animals of Forest Farm are the stars of this clever adventure as they embark on a journey to visit another animal who can help them save their farm from a nasty drought. This book brought many opportunities to discuss new vocabulary and identify synonyms for new words and to have discussions about the way the world is different in some parts for example in different parts of the world, drought is more likely to occur in places like Africa. Whereas there are also areas of the world, more locally to us, that suffer awful flooding. I thoroughly enjoyed the conversations that this book sparked and the children had endless questions to be answered. During literacy whilst reading this book we'd been learning about alliteration and this book sat perfectly in that category as each animal had a name using alliteration e.g. Gunther Goat. Many children quickly noticed this and enjoyed this aspect as it allowed them to practise using alliteration and to learn new vocabulary again. The children's thoughts about the book are below.

EL aged 7: I really liked this book because it teaches you about the weather and I liked how the animals names all had the same letters. This is called alliteration. It was abit of a tongue twister sometimes but I liked that too because I said them fast and it made me laugh. This book taught me that sometimes even when bad things happen something good can happen too.
EJ aged 7: I loved this story because it was an adventure story and I like going on adventures. We have just read a quest story and it reminded me of that too. I like the animals names because they were using alliteration and it was funny. My favourite character was Farrell Fox because he was clever. I'm glad they saved the farm because they all live there and wouldn't want to lose their home. I'm glad we don't have draughts in this country because that would be horrible. This book taught me to turn off the tap when I am brushing my teeth because it's not good to waste water when some people don't have any. My mom and dad always say that.
DK aged 7: I really liked this book because it was long and I like reading long books. I read it all on my own but needed some help with some Long words. It did teach me new words that I want to use in my writing. I liked Suri Squirrel the best because I like the name Suri. I didn't like Pastor Pig because he didn't believe the Turtle could save the farm.
HA aged 7: This book was good because it had lots of interesting characters in it and the characters all have names with the same letter. We learnt that this is called alliteration and I like alliteration. This book teaches you how to be patient and my mom always says being patient is a good thing. I like that it had a happy ending because I thought it was going to stay dry at the farm and the animals would have to leave to move somewhere else. I don't think they would have been happy if that happened because they liked the farm alot.

[CinderBelle615 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you Booktasters @ Twitter and author for providing a PFD copy of this book for me to review

Pros:
Cute animation

Grammar and punctuation is used correctly (a few of the kids books that I have seen, don’t bother with correct grammar and punctuation)

Cons:
The fact that the author used a religious figure to be the villain in the story was a little weird for a kid’s book. I mean, I agree that there are terrible religious figures that need to be called out, but I don’t think that bringing a religious figure to be the villain (or the hero) in a KID’s book is really necessary for them to be reading. I prefer to see kid’s books that don't bring those characters into their story.

The summary on Goodreads SOUNDS really exciting and fun but it didn’t carry the same weight when I got down to reading it. The journey could have been extended, or at least we could have been shown more conflicts/villains throughout the journey other than a religious, stalker pig.

Also, I would have liked to have known a little more about their background (especially background on the rat and a snippet of detail on how he knew about the turtle) it seemed like they just jumped into this epic journey without the story providing enough development beforehand.
The characters weren’t relatable and I wasn’t really emotionally invested in them enough to want to see their problem be resolved. Perhaps if there could have been moments that could have shown the effects of the drought starting to affect the farm then maybe I could have been more worried about the farm.

The most important character in my opnion was the turtle and we barely got any details on him. I would have liked to know more about him.

[Lou · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is very sweet. The topics covered within the story - ranging from simple, everyday messages like being kind to others, to worldwide current events such as protection of wildlife - are all expertly woven through the narrative. They never feel heavy-handed or forced into the story. Instead, Purser gives children room to think about the messages being brought up in the story without seeming preachy. I also really enjoyed the characterisations. Each animal has their own distinct personality, with their own interests and hobbies. It makes them more endearing and interesting to read about, and younger readers can probably identify with at least one of the characters. Purser has done an excellent job with the story.
The images are probably the best I've seen from a self-published book (and, admittedly, some traditionally published ones too). I'm not sure who the illustrator was, but they have done a fantastic job. Each image is incredibly detailed, and looking back I noticed small things I never picked up the first time around. An example would be a character featured in the far back nearly out of sight, who would later have an important role in the story. The colour scheme is also very vibrant, and no two images were the same which helped to keep me engaged in the storyline.
Overall, I think Saving Forest Farm is a really good book for younger readers. Well-written and expertly drawn, it will appeal to kids and encourage their reading, as well as having positive messages for them to learn from.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Thank you Booktasters and Jack Purser for providing a copy in exchange for a review. This review is my honest thoughts and have not been influenced by anyone*

This book was beautifully illustrated. With vivid colors and animated animals, any child would be in awe while reading or getting read to. I enjoyed how well the pictures were able to tell a story without giving too much away at the same time.

The storyline portrays a great story surrounding climate change and the will of a few to find a solution. It also shows how there's always someone who doesn't believe. I really enjoyed how the author added the magical element of having a turtle have the ability to be Mother Nature while Mother Nature was on vacation. This story is a story that teaches so much: kindness, believing even when it seems impossible, how climate change can affect the livelihood of things and overall, the ability to ask for help.

Although the story is powerful, it was a bit short and felt somewhat rushed. I was also a bit thrown off by the pig being a religious figure. His character as a pastor didn't feel connected with the storyline. I think if it was a regular pig it would have been okay, but with thinking of real life events, it made a bit of sense why the author would make the pig in that fashion.

Overall, a quick beautifully illustrated read with great messaging.

[Chandni Majumdar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saving Forest Farm is a cute story for children. It is based on the life of the animals of a farm named Forest Farm. The farm is facing severe drought. How the animals try to solve this problem is the basic plot of the story.

Though the story is quite simple but it has been handled in a beautiful way. Here the animals can talk, dance, participate in fashion show etc. etc. In short they are nothing short of human beings.
What I liked about this story or shall I say fable is that it will make children understand the fact that animals are fellow habitats of this world and they should be loved not mistreated.
In my opinion kids will love the story. Be it the human like attitude and actions of the animals or the alliterations used in the names or the feel good factor of the story, everything will attract kids. And the icing on the cake are the illustrations. Simply beautiful.
If I had this book as a child then this would one of my favourite books and I would go to bed listening to the story every night. 😊😊

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun book, and the illustrations alone are worth the price. Although I am not certain age group this book would be best suited for, I chose to read it because I am a middle school special education teacher. It's short, and easy to read, but has many different lessons that could be incorporated using just the book. Plot line, alliterations, personification, and dialogue, just to name a few. This would even be a fun one to make into a Reader's Theater. The illustrations are precious, and the characters are full of personality. If a science teacher wanted to delve further into it, there's probably a plethora of science related content that could also be used. I love the idea of animals saving the day from the horrible drought, that could cause destruction and the need for animals to migrate and possibly lose their habitat if a rain doesn't save them, soon. I can't decide which character I liked the best, but I could definitely see the potential for a series of books based on these characters.

[Debra Cox · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet, motivational read!

Two brave animal friends, set out on an adventure to save their farm from a drought. By reading this tale, young readers will learn about the necessity of rain and that with the power of hope and determination anything is possible.
Children will be able to understand the story by just looking at all the vivid pictures. Also, they will love the animals and their catchy names. It's very easy to follow. Although, I did feel that Pastor Pig being the villain in this tale, was a little strange, simply because it might confuse early readers, since pastors supposedly personify good. (He's an interesting character though.) I thought Rafi Rat, the blind Forest Farm elder with his cane, his squeaky voice and mysterious vision was great. I would have liked to learn more about the mystic Trevor Turtle, and more other character backgrounds as well. Overall, kids will find a lot to enjoy here!

[Swati Kaushik · Rating 3 out of 5]

Saving Forest Farm is a children’s book touching on the topic which needs the highest attention in the current times, i.e. saving environment. The story is set in a jungle where the inhabitants are eagerly waiting for the rains to come. As the title suggests, the rain would save the ‘forest farm,’ which has animals thirsty and longing for rain as mother nature is on vacation. They rely on a turtle who has magical powers to bring rain.

The book very subtly explains the children the need and importance of rains for mother earth. It is not only crucial for human beings but also for innocent animals in our forests that require rains for survival. The book has one-pager illustrations which support the narration and maintains the interest of the kids till the end.

All in all, a good read!

[Romila · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got the book from the author for a honest review. Thank you Jack. This is my first children’s book which I read in 2019. I am so glad it was a happy read and I completed in less than an hour. This is truly a unique and different book for children. It is about two animals - Farrel Fox and Gunther Goat trying to save humanity while fighting the bad. The main characters are animals which I am sure will get connected with kids easily. The story talks about the importance of Mother Nature. I liked the illustrations which needs a special appreciation. I would highly recommend this book to kids and their parents, as animal as main characters in the stories or stories based on animals are always so educative and fun. The successfully keep the interest on in the story for the readers. Being an adult I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It actually made me nostalgic remembering my own childhood. Please do pick this book for yourself and the kids. Worth your time.

[Jill Domina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute book with lovely illustrations about two animals trying to save their farm from a drought. The characters are determined not to let naysayers get in their way.

The message of the story is overall positive, but I feel the story is lacking in description. There are a lot of different characters and events crammed into a very short story - almost too much info on each page. I feel as if the characters and events could have been developed more. Maybe adding more background information about each character or more of a story about the Fall Festival would have helped. (The Fall Festival almost came across as an afterthought and just something added to tie the beginning and end of the story together.) I also did not like how the villain of the story (if you can call him that) was named Pastor Pig - what message is that sending to children about church leaders?

[Vina Nurziani · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saving Forest Farm is a story about Farrel Fox and Gunther Goat went to Prairie Pond to ask Trevor Turtle for rain since it's been too long from the last rain to pour in their Forest Farm. On their way to Prairie Pond, they meet Marley Mockingbird. Despite all of difficulties they managed to have rain in the Forest Farm and they become heroes.

I was reading this along with Aesop's Fables, and before that I watched Beastars (an anime about animals that go to school). It's kinda a fable's week for me so I feel nostalgic out of the blue, because I love reading fables back then. Saving Forest Farm has a story that well-written and the pictures are beautiful. It is suited for young readers as they starting to sow the love of reading.

[Lieve Snellings · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice story, great illustrations and good message

Animal stories, and certainly those in which the animals can talk, are always fun. They keep the kids interest to see what comes next, and so want to read how the adventures goes on.

This is a nice story of finding a solution to the drought at Forest Farm. Farrell Fox and Gunther Goat start an adventures search for Mr Turtle who could bring rain again. As thinks in life go, their task is not always easy, but they do succeed. How? Well therefore you have to read the book yourself!
But let me reveal already, the illustrations are superb.

[Iman Mahmoud · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a beautiful book for children about Forest Farm facing a difficult time due to a draught and 2 courageous characters going on a journey to save their friends. The little adventure of Farrell Fox and Gunther Goat subtly teaches children about the importance of preserving the environment, which is a topic, that in my opinion, the sooner children learn about, the better. It also teaches them to believe in things that might seem impossible and to help each other out. I liked how the characters were named so it would be easier for the children to remember and the illustrations are a beautiful addition to the book.

[F86 · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute book.

I found interesting that all the animals and places had names with the same initial. But it was a bit repetitive to read when one name was repeated several time in the same page.

All the animals are mostly friendly, except for the Pastor Pig. But even him can be understood. It's hard to realise you don't know everything, and to accept to be wrong.

There is more text each page than I expected, so it can be good for kids who start to read alone.

And at last, the illustrations are very beautifull and detailled. The four year old I read the book to loved them and spend a lot of time on them each page.

[Bigote De · Rating 4 out of 5]

A story with a lot of action! It has a clear introduction, knot and end, which makes it very enjoyable for children who are beginning to read for themselves.Pros: It is encouraged to question the established order and there is even a small wink about it towards the end of the story (where the disruptive is adapted to the normative).Against: perhaps the story could have stopped a little more in the Turtle and its actions. Anyway it is highly recommended for children who are beginning to read.(I apologize for my English, I am not a native speaker of this language).

[wannorsyamimi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so amazing. Simple and very straight-forward. I am pretty sure children gonna love this book. The illustrations are on point and I love them ❤️

Well, this book focused on the drought happened in the Forest Farm. The animals were trying their best to save their homes. The representatives also determined to complete the task given to them in order to save their homes even there were some challenges came after them.

They did not give up until the end.

Thank you so much and I will wait for your next book Jack 😉😊

[Jenni Stand · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Saving Forest Farm” is a sweet story of two friends going on an adventure to save their home from a drought. The two animal friends learn a lesson in faith while making new friends along their way. Accompanying the story are wonderful pictures showing lots of activity and characters. This will make for a fun, and potentially noisy, storytime book. (Think of all the animal noises!) This book will be a fun, attractive addition to any child's library.

[Gaurav · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy via @booktasters for an honest review. The book is a kid's book which is pretty clear from the way it has been written. The book has beautiful illustrations with beautiful colors and would seize the interest of the kids from the first page. I found it quite short (I think that is the only con). It is a good example of a kid's book. A good read.

[Nadia · Rating 5 out of 5]

-Just because it’s not written doesn’t mean it impossible-
This is an interesting book for kids. I think children will love the story and the picture as well! It’s also easy to do the storytelling to the children. From this book I learned that we have to believe, do it and proof it!✨

[Emma Mbeche · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to @Booktasters and Jack Purser for recommending and letting me read this book.

Saving Forest Farm depicts the power of determination and collective responsibility for the greater good of the community.

The picture illustrations are just perfect

[Shreya Agarwal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short and sweet.... Perfect for children even adults can read it for a light reading session and to relieve the childhood days of cute bedtime stories

[Katie Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely delightful read loved the creativity in the names for the farm animals easy to read enjoyed the friendly environmental factor in the book loved it and would highly recommend this book.