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Pip O'Possum: Work, Then Play
Pip likes to play.
There's no other way to put Chores are BORING! But soon winter will be here, and Pip has no food and no home. If he wants to survive, he'll have to become the sort of opossum that makes Mama proud.
Engaging, pastoral artwork enhances this timeless tale that teaches children when the work is done there's still plenty of time to play.
This is book one of the Oakwoods series of early reader chapter books featuring under-appreciated woodland animals. Perfect for young readers transitioning from picture to chapter books. Features
Sassoon Primary font - a proven easy-to-read font for beginning readers.Internal thoughts of the main character printed in color. (Useful for very early or struggling readers. They can read those while you read the rest aloud.) Children love color.Beautiful full-color illustrations with a hidden creature to find."What If?" discussion questions. Some about the story, and others for application to real life.A glossary for new words."Did You Know?" section with facts about the real animal. In this story you'll learn about the opossum.
There's no other way to put Chores are BORING! But soon winter will be here, and Pip has no food and no home. If he wants to survive, he'll have to become the sort of opossum that makes Mama proud.
Engaging, pastoral artwork enhances this timeless tale that teaches children when the work is done there's still plenty of time to play.
This is book one of the Oakwoods series of early reader chapter books featuring under-appreciated woodland animals. Perfect for young readers transitioning from picture to chapter books. Features
Sassoon Primary font - a proven easy-to-read font for beginning readers.Internal thoughts of the main character printed in color. (Useful for very early or struggling readers. They can read those while you read the rest aloud.) Children love color.Beautiful full-color illustrations with a hidden creature to find."What If?" discussion questions. Some about the story, and others for application to real life.A glossary for new words."Did You Know?" section with facts about the real animal. In this story you'll learn about the opossum.
54 pages, Paperback
Published April 4, 2025
About the author
Kathy J. Perry
17 books262 followersPlanting seeds for tomorrow's leaders, I hope my books will inspire kids and young adults to be confident and of excellent character.
Award-winning author:
Nibbler & Captain Make Peace - Bronze Award for children's fiction in 2019 with The Wishing Shelf. (From the Bandana Acres series)
Emeline -A Journey - Finalist Award in the young adult category from both The Wishing Shelf (2020) AND Book Excellence Awards, 2021.
Author & Speaker of stories for children and teens with compelling plots and memorable characters.
Emeline-A Journey, a young adult historical adventure and companion journal - My Journey (guided journal). Published 2nd edition, illustrated 8/1/23 under the title A Journey.
My Bandana Acres Journal (guided journal for ages 8-12).
Released the sequel to Emeline's story: Finding Strength: During the Panic of 1893. (2024)
Released new 5- book early reader chapter book series: Oakwoods, April, 2025.
Member of ALLI (Alliance of Independent Authors). and The History Quill
Award-winning author:
Nibbler & Captain Make Peace - Bronze Award for children's fiction in 2019 with The Wishing Shelf. (From the Bandana Acres series)
Emeline -A Journey - Finalist Award in the young adult category from both The Wishing Shelf (2020) AND Book Excellence Awards, 2021.
Author & Speaker of stories for children and teens with compelling plots and memorable characters.
Emeline-A Journey, a young adult historical adventure and companion journal - My Journey (guided journal). Published 2nd edition, illustrated 8/1/23 under the title A Journey.
My Bandana Acres Journal (guided journal for ages 8-12).
Released the sequel to Emeline's story: Finding Strength: During the Panic of 1893. (2024)
Released new 5- book early reader chapter book series: Oakwoods, April, 2025.
Member of ALLI (Alliance of Independent Authors). and The History Quill
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
June 25, 2025
My first thought when starting this delightful series was that the books reminded me of Beatrix Potter’s series about Peter Rabbit and his friends. In Pip O’possum Kathy Perry looks at the theme of work before play in a way young children can understand.
Pip doesn’t see the importance of working today - tomorrow is soon enough. He is easily distracted by fellow woodland animals. Until Boon shows up. Boon is the neighborhood turkey vulture. Boon helps Pip see why he needs to live his life differently and focus on work before play.
Each chapter opens with a cute, whimsical illustration by Claudia Gadotti. The illustrations give readers a glimpse into what is coming in the chapter.
The book closes with discussion questions, a glossary, and a Did You Know section. Because of these additions the book would be a good choice for homeschooling or traditional school reading groups.
Pip O’possum, and the other books in the Oakwoods series, would make a great addition to the early reader section of a K-12 Christian school library.
I received a complimentary copy of Pip O’possum. This is my honest review.
Pip doesn’t see the importance of working today - tomorrow is soon enough. He is easily distracted by fellow woodland animals. Until Boon shows up. Boon is the neighborhood turkey vulture. Boon helps Pip see why he needs to live his life differently and focus on work before play.
Each chapter opens with a cute, whimsical illustration by Claudia Gadotti. The illustrations give readers a glimpse into what is coming in the chapter.
The book closes with discussion questions, a glossary, and a Did You Know section. Because of these additions the book would be a good choice for homeschooling or traditional school reading groups.
Pip O’possum, and the other books in the Oakwoods series, would make a great addition to the early reader section of a K-12 Christian school library.
I received a complimentary copy of Pip O’possum. This is my honest review.
May 1, 2025
Pip desires it all: playfulness with minimal responsibilities. He’s a charming opossum who will soon learn the value of hard work as he faces the coming winter. Will he learn his lesson? Or, will he play with his new friend, Sneak? And let’s not forget Boon, the turkey vulture, who adds his friendship to this sweet story. I adored the pastoral artwork that enhances this delightful tale, created by Claudia Gadotti. Readers will appreciate this narrative, complete with informative discussions, a glossary, and fun facts at the back of the book. I wholeheartedly recommend this book for young and old for pure learning and enjoyment.
May 2, 2025
Lovely Book
This book was absolutely precious! Beautiful story and beautiful illustrations. The story is very wholesome in its telling and its moral. I highly recommend for young children or anyone that has a soft spot for children's books. It is my first by this author and I plan to read her others.
This book was absolutely precious! Beautiful story and beautiful illustrations. The story is very wholesome in its telling and its moral. I highly recommend for young children or anyone that has a soft spot for children's books. It is my first by this author and I plan to read her others.
May 2, 2025
Great lessons for kids...and adults!
Lovely illustrations and life lessons make this a great story to share with your littles! I love opossum anyway so this was delightful!
Lovely illustrations and life lessons make this a great story to share with your littles! I love opossum anyway so this was delightful!
June 29, 2025
This is an author that my kids have enjoyed several books by. When I saw she was coming out with this new series we knew we had to read them all! So, when I got the chance to review them it was a no brainer! Of course we wanted to!
This series is super sweet. You get to meet some less-than-desirables. The animals that most people don’t like are the stars of this show. We’ve got a skunk and a bat just to name a few. Fun story, my mom actually has always wanted to have a pet skunk because her grandma did. I am not of the same persuasion.
When I was at our local homeschool conference this past spring I had the chance to chat with the author about this series. It was just coming out them and we discussed how we had read all of her others and couldn’t wait to read this one! Let me tell you a bit about each of the books and what we loved.
The artwork in these is amazing! I loved it. It was engaging for children but also timeless and reminded me of some other animal book series I’ve read.
Pip O’Possum
Pip is the first book. And if you can’t tell from the title he is a possum. We’re not fans of possums here on our farm. They tend to kill chickens and are a bit of a nuisance for us. But that didn’t stop us from loving Pip.
He’s such a great example of the life lesson that we have to do our work before we play or we will reap the consequences. Whether that is we don’t have clean clothes or we don’t have food, it’s very important to do our chores before we play.
I think this is something that every child struggles with. Who wants to do the responsible stuff first? We all, even as adults, want to do what we want to do, what feels good. But we have to remember that work comes first or nobody will be having fun later.
Recap
I hope you get the chance to read this whole series! It’s sweet and teaches some great leassons. If you do get the chance to read this series make sure you check out all the other wonderful books by this author. They will not dissapoint.
I have voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, which I received from JustRead Publicity Tours. All views expressed are only my honest opinion. I was not required to write a positive review, nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC regulations.
This series is super sweet. You get to meet some less-than-desirables. The animals that most people don’t like are the stars of this show. We’ve got a skunk and a bat just to name a few. Fun story, my mom actually has always wanted to have a pet skunk because her grandma did. I am not of the same persuasion.
When I was at our local homeschool conference this past spring I had the chance to chat with the author about this series. It was just coming out them and we discussed how we had read all of her others and couldn’t wait to read this one! Let me tell you a bit about each of the books and what we loved.
The artwork in these is amazing! I loved it. It was engaging for children but also timeless and reminded me of some other animal book series I’ve read.
Pip O’Possum
Pip is the first book. And if you can’t tell from the title he is a possum. We’re not fans of possums here on our farm. They tend to kill chickens and are a bit of a nuisance for us. But that didn’t stop us from loving Pip.
He’s such a great example of the life lesson that we have to do our work before we play or we will reap the consequences. Whether that is we don’t have clean clothes or we don’t have food, it’s very important to do our chores before we play.
I think this is something that every child struggles with. Who wants to do the responsible stuff first? We all, even as adults, want to do what we want to do, what feels good. But we have to remember that work comes first or nobody will be having fun later.
Recap
I hope you get the chance to read this whole series! It’s sweet and teaches some great leassons. If you do get the chance to read this series make sure you check out all the other wonderful books by this author. They will not dissapoint.
I have voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, which I received from JustRead Publicity Tours. All views expressed are only my honest opinion. I was not required to write a positive review, nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC regulations.
June 23, 2025
The Oakwoods Series charmed me with its sweet, woodland setting and delightful animal characters that reminded me of beloved favorites like Heartwood Hotel and The Adventures of TumTum and Nutmeg. Each story holds charming illustrations and short adventures with character-building themes, perfect for young readers—and for parents or educators looking for fiction that’s both wholesome and educational. I loved how the author weaves real-life animal facts into the stories, grounding the stories in nature and giving them an added layer of richness. We enjoyed the series as read-alouds in our home.
In Pip’s story, he wrestles with laziness and distraction—something many kids can relate to—and learns the value of hard work. A quiet, but powerful lesson about developing a strong work ethic early in life, balanced with the reminder that there’s still room for fun and play.
At the end of the book was a discussion guide that made reviewing the stories for comprehension and learning fun, a glossary for understanding big words, and a Did You Know? section of exciting, educational content that we enjoyed!
The stories aren’t just adorable—they’re purposeful and encouraging. I recommend The Oakwood’s Series to families, homeschoolers, and anyone looking for character-driven tales that spark wonder, teach truth and build strong morals.
Note: These stories are not faith-based.
* I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary e-copy of this book from the author. All thoughts are my own and I was not required to write a positive review.
In Pip’s story, he wrestles with laziness and distraction—something many kids can relate to—and learns the value of hard work. A quiet, but powerful lesson about developing a strong work ethic early in life, balanced with the reminder that there’s still room for fun and play.
At the end of the book was a discussion guide that made reviewing the stories for comprehension and learning fun, a glossary for understanding big words, and a Did You Know? section of exciting, educational content that we enjoyed!
The stories aren’t just adorable—they’re purposeful and encouraging. I recommend The Oakwood’s Series to families, homeschoolers, and anyone looking for character-driven tales that spark wonder, teach truth and build strong morals.
Note: These stories are not faith-based.
* I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary e-copy of this book from the author. All thoughts are my own and I was not required to write a positive review.
June 25, 2025
These are very cute books. Each one portrays an animal interacting with the other animals around it, and learning character lessons. One learns to be diligent, another to be thankful, and another to be humble. The pictures are delightful. Young children who like animals will love these stories. My youngest is one of those animal lovers. I read her one of these books, and she told me at the end that she loved the way the animals worked together, and their relationship. That one happened to be a bit of a romance, which she loves. I’m saving the other ones for reading to her later, when we’re traveling.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author, and these are my honest thoughts about it.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author, and these are my honest thoughts about it.
May 1, 2025
💛💛💛💛💛
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 25, 2025
This was a very cute book and my daughter really enjoyed it. We are huge animal lovers and my daughter especially loves to read stories about animals. I think she would really enjoy another book by this author!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews