Lucky Song

by Vera B. Williams

Lucky listener! Lucky reader! Listen to this lucky song about Evie and her blue-sky, kite-flying day. But Evie's day wouldn't be nearly as special without a little help from her grandpa and grandma, and her mother and father and sister. The beloved picture-book world of Vera B. Williams comes vividly to life again with Evie in the warm embrace of her family. Young readers will want to hear her lucky song again and again and again.Lucky listener! Lucky reader! Listen to this lucky song about Evie and her blue-sky, kite-flying day. But Evies day wouldnt be nearly as special without a little help from her grandpa and grandma, and her mother and father and sister. The beloved picture-book world of Vera B. Williams comes vividly to life again with Evie in the warm embrace of her family. Young readers will want to hear her lucky song again and again and again.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens

32 pages, Hardcover

First published September 16, 1997

About the author

Graduate of Black Mountain College, North Carolina, where she majored in graphic art. In her own words, she has "done graphic art, school teaching, children-raising [she has two daughters and a son], has run a bakery and been a cook in schools and restaurants." (from back flap of book)

Vera B. Williams is the winner of the 2009 NSK Neustadt Prize for Children's Literature.

You can read much more about this author here or here

Reviews

[Cassandra Gelvin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel lucky I don't have to read this again.

What. Seriously, what? The title is kind of misleading since the text doesn't use the word or concept of "luck" anywhere. The book is kind of without end or beginning, and the first words are, "Now this little Evie wanted to do something," as if we were already introduced to the main character. It feels jarring. Maybe it's a cultural thing and I just don't get it?

The book is just a list of "She wanted X" and "So she did Y." The only thing that really happens is her flying a kite. And at the end it tells you to restart the book from the beginning. It's got a nice depcition of an extended family shown in a very loving, involved manner, but the story itself is so bland and the syntax so repetitive than it ends up banal.

The diction marks the story as coming from another culture from mine (white southwest American), with phrases like "and on the hook she found it." The characters have very few emotions. Nothing happens. At the end, the whole thing resets. It doesn't go anywhere, doesn't say anything, and is just a list of mundane events, making it boring.

For more children's book reviews, see my website at http://www.drttmk.com.

[Alyssa Lundy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genre: non fiction
Age group : prek -k
This cute little easy read is perfect addition to your younger classroom teachers. It is a cute story with a message across as well. The fully colored pages kept me fully entertained with the book.

[Tessa · Rating 2 out of 5]

What is the song?

[Suzanne Lorraine Kunz Williams · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great concept. Somehow this book just didn't work for me. I think it was partially the illustrations.

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Evie is a very determined little girl. She knows what she wants, and she gets it. She gets ready for the day all by herself, and even finds something new to wear. She wants to play with something new, so she asks her grandpa to help her make a kite. She wants to fly the kite, so she works hard to get it up in the sky. After she is done playing, she asks her father to sing her a song that sends her off to sleep.
The full color illustrations for this book were done with watercolors. The background on each page is comprised of a solid color. Most of the book takes place indoors, with the floor being a related shade of the same color used for the background walls. This technique allows for the people in the story to stand out. The characters in the story are drawn with great care in a cartoon style. The parts of the book that take place outside are illustrated with bright green grass and pale blue sky with beautiful wispy white clouds.
Lucky Song is best suited for reading to an individual child. This story is very short and will appeal to children who want to hear a simple story. A creative reader can make this a very interesting story by creating a tune to sing it to.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was kind of iffy about one. The illustrations are bright and colorful and it's fun but there isn't too much story to this one. Little Evie gets ready for the day and it's lucky because people help her and everything seems to go her way. Everything she wants she seems to get. I was also a little bit confused by the title "Lucky Song" and how at the end Williams says that "if you want to hear that song again, go back to the beginning." I've give it a 2.5/5. It still is a cute book that is full of the happiness that is in Williams' other stories.

[June · Rating 4 out of 5]

A simple story/song about a determined little girl flying a kite. 3/14/12

First book chosen for PJ Story Time. 3/31/14

Used in Lap Time and went over well. 3/17/15

Used for PJ and Lap Story Times again. Went over pretty well with the bright colors and I love all the family members who participate in Evie's day.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

i had to look online to see if this was supposed to be sung, and if so what the tune was. nope, just read it. that bugged me, because it would make more sense if actually sung (although in all likelihood my daughter would kindly request that i please stop singing). i loved the illustrations and the story is sweet, but the whole singing thing just didn't work for me.

[Victoria Dimmitt · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is written in the format of a song. Cute, short story that would be fun to read to a kindergarten or 1st grade class. The idea of the story is about a little girl and she is telling about her day.

[Rebecca Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

This might work well for a toddler storytime. It's a simple story about a girl's day and ending cyclicly. The illustrations were colorful and textured. I was a little confused by the ending because I wasn't sure if I was meant to sing the book or if it's just a joke.

[Jessie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't like this one much. It is actually kind of a weird story that is suppose to be a song, I guess. Anyway, didn't really come all together and isn't one I will ever recommend.

[Danielle · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think I just didn't understand what the author was trying to say.

[Patrizia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Got this book at a library and had to buy it for my daughter who asked me to read it over and over again. However I don't get the name. Is it a song? What song? Please somebody help!

[Sarah Kramer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Topics:
-babies
-growing up
-I can do it.
-families

[Q]

recommended by Sojouners' article