Children - Fiction & Literature

Ladybug Girl at the Beach

Name: Ladybug Girl at the Beach
Author: David Soman
ISBN: 9780803734166

by David Soman, Jacky Davis

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Overview

Lulu loves the beach. Well, she’s never been there before, but she knows she will love it. And then she sees the ocean and it is big and loud and rough. That’s okay—Lulu wanted to build sand castles and fly her kite with Bingo anyway. But while they are building their sand castle, the sneaky ocean comes in and tries to steal Lulu’s favorite pail. This is a job for Ladybug Girl!

Lulu conquers her fear of the ocean when she remembers that Ladybug Girl can do anything, in this gorgeously illustrated companion to the popular series.

Six Fun Activities for Ladybug Girl at the Beach: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6.

Synopsis

Lulu loves the beach. Well, she's never been there before, but she knows she will love it. And then she sees the ocean and it is big and loud and rough. That's okay—Lulu wanted to build sand castles and fly her kite with Bingo anyway. But while they are building their sand castle, the sneaky ocean comes in and tries to steal Lulu's favorite pail. This is a job for Ladybug Girl!

Lulu conquers her fear of the ocean when she remembers that Ladybug Girl can do anything, in this gorgeously illustrated companion to the popular series.

Publishers Weekly

Even though Lulu--in full ladybug bathing suit regalia--has never been to the beach, she knows that she’s going to love it. But at the edge of the water, where she’s dwarfed by a curling wave that spills over an entire spread, she isn’t so sure about going in. Luckily, there are other things to do, like building sand castles and getting ice cream on the boardwalk. Davis’s warmly expressive illustrations capture Lulu’s trepidation and, in the end, her triumphant self-assurance: when her bucket gets drawn in with the tide, Ladybug Girl finally has to confront the ocean. A tender addition to the series. Ages 3–5. (May)

About the Author, David Soman

David Soman and Jacky Davis live in Rosendale, New York. They are a husband-and-wife team, and the Ladybug Girl books are inspired by their daughter and son.

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Editorials

From Barnes & Noble

Ladybug is popular in any locale. In this sunny picture-book offering, she makes a trip to the beach.

Publishers Weekly

Children's Literature - Kathleen Karr

Lulu, the popular Ladybug Girl, sets off with her family to the beach for her third adventure. Miss Confidence Incarnate—antennae foremost—sashays down the dunes to the very edge of the water with her faithful sidekick, Bingo the low-slung hound. Suddenly, THE OCEAN looms. Big. Noisy. Overwhelming. The bottom drops out of her charade. The kid is scared. How the Ladybug Girl deals with this new emotion is the grist of the remaining story. The pen-and-ink and watercolor drawings are mostly easy, lighthearted beach scenes: Lulu flying a kite, building a sand castle, eating a double-decker ice cream cone, collecting seaweed. Only in the one telling scene—in which Lulu stands face-to-face with her monster fear—do the illustrators get serious. It is the double-page spread of nothing but a few gulls and a little girl and her dog up against a veritable tsunami-sized wave. This is the true child's perspective, the view that makes the book. Yet after Lulu conquers all and returns to her vaguely annoying persona, one question remains: Why has the daddy figure been minimalized nearly out of existence? Reviewer: Kathleen Karr

School Library Journal

K-Gr 1—With her antennae quivering and her wings shimmering, Lulu (aka Ladybug Girl) and her basset hound find sun and sand on their first trip to the beach. There's a problem, though; the too-big ocean, too-loud noises, and too-tall waves are a bit intimidating. "Lulu takes a few steps backward. Bingo barks at the waves." While her brother runs for the water and her parents bask in the sun, Lulu's courage fails, and she begins a round of activities designed to help her avoid the ocean. She builds a sand castle, flies her kite, begs for ice cream, takes a long walk across the beach, and digs for pirate treasure. Young readers may recognize the swing of Lulu's emotions—will she ever enter the water? It takes an emergency—a lost pail in the waves—to bring forth her courage and move her knee-deep into ocean water. Suddenly Ladybug Girl "loves the beach!" Cartoon figures on a background of summer pastels fill illustrations; Bingo's floppy, swinging ears follow the bend of grass in the wind as the hound stretches out in a series of naps across the sand. A welcome new adventure for Ladybug Girl fans.—Mary Elam, Learning Media Services Plano ISD, TX