Once in a Forest

by Adriana Pernetz

Once in a Forest is a timeless narrative, both amusing and insightful — a perfect tool for teaching children the value of friendship and camaraderie in life.

Animals in the forest are having a hard time accepting each other's differences. One day, an unlikely friendship shows the forest that differences are what the woodland creatures need to bring happiness to all.

24 pages, Paperback

Published July 1, 2018

About the author

Adriana Pernetz has been a school teacher for 23 years. She taught in Venezuela before moving to Texas in 1997. She has a degree in Pedagogical Sciences from La Universidad Católica Andrés Bello (Venezuela) and a Masters in Bilingual Education from Southern Methodist University (United States). She presently teaches 2nd-grade dual language in GarlandISD, Texas.

Reviews

[Etienne · Rating 1 out of 5]

That was bad. The illustrations are just horrible and the story isn't good. Yes it has a strong and positive message, but there's just so much books that present that kind of message but with a better story/artwork to go with it. Not worth it!

[Richard · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am all for teaching children great truths and ideas in simple stories. It has long been a recognised style in literature like aesop's fables.
Once in a Forest has a wonderful desire to continue this tradition by using animal relationships to relay an inportant social lesson; indeed it calls the story a parable.
However, the story is too simplistic and clichéd in terms of what the animals do and like. This is backed up with simple coloured illustrations yet here the imagination runs wild, animals are reading books and behaving out of character, yet the text stereotypes the animals like when it says squirrels gather nuts.
Also as a parent I would struggle to explain what a duck was doing in a forest; let along helping bees and climbing trees.
So despite lofty aspirations, for me the story missing the point. I get the idea it is trying to convey but the story is poorly executed and ultimately is nothing more than average. Not sure it has enough even to get the message across but I applaud the effort and ambition to share with children, deeper values.
For me though it is too confusing and its mixed messages get in the way of the sense it is trying to give through relationships and living in harmony.

[Julie Barrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once in a Forest by Adriana Pernetz
Starts with a dedication page then the story.
Colorful children's book about animals in the forest and one baby bear.
The first page has many colorful items that you should be able to play a game with your child, finding different ones.
The bear is very talented and sees a lost duck along the way and tries tohelp him.
They had fun as each other couldn't talk to one another: bear growled and snorted, the duck quaked and nobody knew what they were saying.
When Mama bear comes baby bear quacks to her saying he loves her-the duck taught him!
Love what happens next as they are one in everything they do.
Cute story and so many pictures to talk about with your child.
About the author is included at the end.
Received this review copy from Christian Faith Publishing via NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.
#OnceInAForest #NetGalley

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very sweet story about a baby bear finding a lost baby duck and they become best friends. It has beautiful illustrations to go with the story. It teaches a valuable lesson that just because someone is different from you, doesn't mean you can't be friends. Thank you Christian Faith Publishing via NetGalley for the free copy of this book. I was not required to write a review. This is my honest opinion.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

The concept was very sweet and innocent. In a world where no one got along or understood each other, baby bear and baby duck were able to just play together, not even being able to speak each others language. They developed a relationship and taught each other their own ways and languages. Mother bear accepted baby duck as her own and they all lived happily.

This is very reflective of today’s society and I loved that bear and duck were able to overcome their differences and be friends anyway!

The artwork was cute, but I wasn’t a huge fan of the wording. At times it felt like it was supposed to rhyme, and then it would veer off which made the flow a bit awkward and hard to read consistently.

I received an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Christian Faith Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet little story about a duck and bear who become friends, in a forest where no animals usually talk to different species. Very beautiful illustrations really bring the story to life. The only negative for me is that the blurb said that the friendship brings the other animals together, but the story doesn't really talk about that, just about Duck, Baby Bear and his mum. But it's an excellent story that still wonderfully demonstrates the point that love and friendship can overcome any barrier, and we should look past the outside, to love the person within.
NB I received a complimentary copy of this book, but I always give an HONEST review based wholly on my own opinions

[Seraphia Bunny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once in a Forest is a sweet short story ideal for young children. This story tells you about two animals who, despite their differences become friends.
This story is full of beautiful illustrations that follow the story perfectly. The words are simple for young children who are comfortable reading on their own and easy enough for those not yet ready to read on their own.
This story is short, sweet, endearing and lovely. I highly enjoyed and recommend to those who have children. I am rating this book 5 out of 5 stars.

[Nikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an adorable narrative of how very different strangers can become the best of friends! Bear and Duck could not be more different - they don't even speak the same language! But Bear happens upon Duck one day, and notices that Duck is very sad. In spite of their differences, they sit together and discover their own way to become friends. Before long, Duck is cheerful and has become a part of Bear's family! This is a great story to help kids understand that friendship can happen regardless of barriers.

[MoonGarden · Rating 4 out of 5]

fun story about friends

A Child's Review:
I liked that bear and duck were friends and they learned to talk to each other and be a family.

My Review:
The pictures had a lot of vibrant color, which the kids always like. The story was cute, and probably would sound better in the original Spanish, but the message still comes across clearly.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a cute little story about how the things that make us different from each other are not really all that important. It also teaches how good things happen when we deal with others based on who they are and not something different about them. It is really well written and provides a great lesson to go along with a great story. I voluntarily read and reviewed this book in exchange for a free copy.

[L_manning · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are so many things that make our children feel different- some small, some huge. This book shows us that our differences can be celebrated and even bring us closer together. The author does a wonderful job of showing that no matter how strange someone else's culture or language might seem, we can all learn from each other and help each other out. This book speaks to children in a way they can understand and shows that we can always find things in common.

[Victoria Baldin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m Sorry I did not like this book at all.

The message it’s trying to teach is wonderful. We should all live together in peace and harmony and except each other’s defences. But the story does not do the message justice

Thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

[D Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book with a great lesson about acceptance and friendship. My son liked it and his favorite character was the duck. The illustrations were cute and the book was easy to follow.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Pat Eroh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this story about friendship and so did the kiddos that I work with. This book has great characters that the kids loved and so did I. I highly recommend this book for parents and teachers.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This one fell a little short for me. It had a good premise, but I didn't really enjoy the pictures. I think it could have been executed a bit better.

[Donna Maguire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review to follow - 3.5 stars

[The Endless Unread · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very sweet children's book with a very powerful message of friendship and love behind it. I adored the illustrations and the book really made me smile.

[Jeannie Huie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a good little story just right for children to "see what you can see.". A good parable about differences not causing problems! I really liked it! !

[Steff Fox · Rating 2 out of 5]

| Reader Fox Blog |


Despite my best efforts, I really didn't like Once in a Forest by Adriana Pernetz. With the message she was trying to send, that differences should not prevent friendships, I really wanted to like this book. In fact, I'm a pretty strong believer of the idea that children's books should have a purpose further than just being ridiculous and I requested this one specifically on NetGalley because of the message the author was trying to send. But I feel as though the message was never really portrayed enough for a child to see it and even I found that it required a lot of reading between the lines for me to see it. And while the message is good and one that I strongly believe in, I just don't think this book really did its best job in portraying it.

To begin, the story is incredibly simple and merely follows the tale of a bear and a duck who become friends. Duck visits bear's home and bear's mother welcomes duck with open arms. It was sweet, but it didn't really derive from anything else. I also wasn't the biggest fan of the artwork, which was choppy at best at times and just didn't keep my attention. Perhaps a young kid would enjoy it a lot more, but it certainly wasn't for me. And I think the most important piece, at the end of the day, is the simple fact that if I were looking for a book to buy my niece or even my own child that was specifically about diversity and accepting others differences and building amazing friendships because of that, I would not be getting this one. I would be looking for a superior one that does a better job of sending that message.

I was provided a free copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

| Instagram | Twitter | Reader Fox Blog | Bloglovin’ | Facebook |

[***Book Lady *** · Rating 2 out of 5]

This children's book had a beautiful message but was hard to understand from a children's point of view. This book just wasn't for me, even the pictures were hard to understand. I give a lot of credit to the author for trying to portray this message of friendship and accepting others who are different.