This book was about a small tug boat. It wasnt the biggest or the fastest ship but it always helped everyone out ( )

Simple and sweet ( )

I loved this children’s picture book for many reasons. The book is simple in print and in the pictures, but had a deep and meaningful plot. It’s okay not to be the biggest, tallest, or fastest boat in the sea, because little boats still have big jobs. This big idea message will give students an understanding that they don’t have to be good at everything as we are all different with different strengths and weaknesses.
The illustrator showed feelings of the Little Tug by drawing a face that portrayed his expression. He had a straight face when he was feeling not proud and a big smile when he was helpful to the other boats in the sea. Another way the illustrator helped tell the story was having only a few colors. Little Tug was always red and the illustrator didn’t add much other color. His pictures were real simple, just like the text. There were very few words on the page for a book with so much meaning. The characters were not believable, but the actions were believable if the reader puts himself in the characters shoes. For example, one of the big boats took care of the little boats as they were the parents. The sailboat “tucks him in with his sail”, as he covered him up for the night when Little Tug gets tired.
The language was simple and choice of words was primary. The author kept the text simple so in my classroom some of my early readers could read the story independently and I could also read aloud for a character education lesson.

Little Tug is a charming character but the ending is bit too syrupy. ( )