Half Popped Book Review & Giveaway

Half Popped is a new children's book featuring Kenny the Kernel - a half-popped piece of popcorn who doesn't feel he has reached his full potential ... because he was only half-popped when the microwave stopped.

Kenny is sad that he wasn't fully popped and feels like no one would want to eat a half-popped piece of popcorn and that he will languish at the bottom of the bowl.

He decides to take a little trip through the kitchen and in the process encounters other food items that for one reason or another feel like they are down on their luck as well. Among some of the foods he encounters are the baby carrot who doesn't feel as important because he's not as tall as the other carrots, the green and red grapes each wish to be the other color, the banana who has a brown peel and is too soft.

Even though Kenny feels depressed about his own ... life as a half-popped kernel, he maintains a more positive outlook for the foods he crosses paths with. He helps them see the good qualities and helps each one see itself in a new light with a new purpose. For instance, he tells the banana that even though its peel is brown and he is starting to turn mushy he is perfect to be used in banana bread. Kenny ends up cheering everyone else up and showing them the positive side of things.

This is an easy story that will appeal to young kids with the combination of photography and illustration and a silly, rhyming dialogue. The underlying message is a story about self-confidence and how the power of your positive words can make a person's day better.

With Kenny showing the other snacks that they can be used in different ways the lesson of the book is also showing that "there's a place and a purpose in this world for everyone" and Kenny finds out that's true for himself at the end of the book.What a great lesson for all kids to learn.

This would be a great book to have in preschool and Kindergarten classrooms to help foster discussions on self-confidence, differences, and having a different perspective on situations.

I have a copy of this book to also offer as a giveaway. If you would like a chance to win please leave a comment and make sure I have a way to contact you if you're the winner!