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Serendipity
Lady Rose
After a long journey to discover the source of the water that flows into the sea, a sea otter finds a way to send a message back to her friends.
32 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1990
130 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
July 27, 2017
A book meant to help children understand loosing a loved one. It's not one of my favorites and I'm not sure it really does a good job of getting it's point across. I mean, the characters in the book keep telling Lady Rose, "You ought not go, little otter, Where you find the answer, you will want to stay, and you will never come back this way." It makes death's journey into a choice. Which is weird. Right?
Our 6 year old is too young to understand the message behind the story, and she occasionally requests it. I don't mind reading it to her because if you just skip over the hidden meaning it's an okay story about a curious otter with lovely illustrations by Robin James.
Our 6 year old is too young to understand the message behind the story, and she occasionally requests it. I don't mind reading it to her because if you just skip over the hidden meaning it's an okay story about a curious otter with lovely illustrations by Robin James.
January 5, 2020
This is one of the later additions to my collection, meaning I got it when I was a little older (~10?). I don’t think I ever actually understood the message until this reread. It was kind of confusing and boring to me when I was younger.
Lady Rose swam up a river to find the source of the water that flowed into the sea. Once she got there, it was so peaceful and beautiful that she didn’t want to return. She worried her friends might miss her or be concerned, so she sent rose petals floating down the river to signal that she was happy and okay.
So what it’s actually about is death, and finding meaning in small things around you as reminders of those you’ve lost. But the message is very very confusingly told here. And it’s very muddled because it was constantly stated to be Lady Rose’s choice to swim up the river to leave all her loved ones, a path that she could have turned back from at any time but was too curious and stubborn to.
I...don’t really understand what kind of message that’s supposed to convey. It feels like a pretty personal expression of grief from Cosgrove, based on his dedication, but I don’t think it was translated very effectively into a child’s storybook form.
Beautiful illustrations, though.
Lady Rose swam up a river to find the source of the water that flowed into the sea. Once she got there, it was so peaceful and beautiful that she didn’t want to return. She worried her friends might miss her or be concerned, so she sent rose petals floating down the river to signal that she was happy and okay.
So what it’s actually about is death, and finding meaning in small things around you as reminders of those you’ve lost. But the message is very very confusingly told here. And it’s very muddled because it was constantly stated to be Lady Rose’s choice to swim up the river to leave all her loved ones, a path that she could have turned back from at any time but was too curious and stubborn to.
I...don’t really understand what kind of message that’s supposed to convey. It feels like a pretty personal expression of grief from Cosgrove, based on his dedication, but I don’t think it was translated very effectively into a child’s storybook form.
Beautiful illustrations, though.
September 26, 2018
Maybe I’m just not good with these things 🤷🏼♀️ Actually I probably know I’m not good with these things, but I didn’t get it. Based off what it’s saying it’s supposed to be about or even what others have stated, but I don’t really see that.
Just a short story about an otter that finds what she’s looking for, her friends were right, and so she has to find a way to let them know she made it 👍🏼
So the reason it gets a low rating is because I don’t see what it claims to be about 🤷🏼♀️ I do get what they’re trying to say at the end, but only because they tell you that.
Just a short story about an otter that finds what she’s looking for, her friends were right, and so she has to find a way to let them know she made it 👍🏼
So the reason it gets a low rating is because I don’t see what it claims to be about 🤷🏼♀️ I do get what they’re trying to say at the end, but only because they tell you that.
April 29, 2012
This Serendipity book may be a little heavy hitting for younger readers if they understand the metaphor. Lady Rose is an otter with a mission - to find the source of the water she loves to play in. Her friends all think it's a crazy idea and don't understand why she has to go. She does eventually find the source and devises a way to send a message back to her friends.
The underlying story is, of course, about loss. This is hard to explain to small children and the story may not make it any easier; after all, Rose chooses to leave. However, the story could probably be used effectively to teach following your dreams despite naysayers along the way. Definitely a book to read alone so you can decide how your child might interpret and be affected by the story.
The underlying story is, of course, about loss. This is hard to explain to small children and the story may not make it any easier; after all, Rose chooses to leave. However, the story could probably be used effectively to teach following your dreams despite naysayers along the way. Definitely a book to read alone so you can decide how your child might interpret and be affected by the story.
October 2, 2014
Synopsis: from author's site "After a long journey to discover the
source of the water that flows into the sea,
a sea otter named Lady Rose finds a way
to send a message back to her friends."
My Review: I have always loved the Serendipity books, but I had never read this one before now. It is quite a sentimental book and can be used to teach children so many lessons, maybe an older sibling goes to college, or family member has to move away for a job, or maybe even a pet has gone over the rainbow bridge. While you can take so many messages from this book, it is still simply a beautiful tale with beautiful illustrations and you can enjoy the story of Lady Rose in what ever way suits you at the time.
source of the water that flows into the sea,
a sea otter named Lady Rose finds a way
to send a message back to her friends."
My Review: I have always loved the Serendipity books, but I had never read this one before now. It is quite a sentimental book and can be used to teach children so many lessons, maybe an older sibling goes to college, or family member has to move away for a job, or maybe even a pet has gone over the rainbow bridge. While you can take so many messages from this book, it is still simply a beautiful tale with beautiful illustrations and you can enjoy the story of Lady Rose in what ever way suits you at the time.
July 3, 2017
Beautiful story about following what drives you and also how to keep in check with your friends as your friends will always be there for you if they are good friends even when you move on. The only thing is this book has the lesson that she found beauty at the end of the path and wanted to stay while sometimes in real life there isn't always beauty, which I think is another lesson that parents can bring up to their children when they read this.
The pictures were beautiful and full of color so even if a child doesn't quite understand the message they will be charmed by the pictures. And the beautiful petals on the river were a wonderful icing to this charming story.
The pictures were beautiful and full of color so even if a child doesn't quite understand the message they will be charmed by the pictures. And the beautiful petals on the river were a wonderful icing to this charming story.
October 16, 2014
Lady Rose is about a sea otter that finds the source of the river. The illustrations are very nice and the story is entertaining as well.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews