Never Give Up

I'm A Great Little Kid #1

by Kathryn Cole, Qin Leng (Illustrator)

Shaun is strong enough to know that even things that don't come easily can be mastered through determination and work. Learning to ride his two-wheeler, he overcomes fear and teasing and manages to impress friends and bullies alike. From the I’m A Great Little Kid series developed by BOOST Child & Youth Advocacy Centre to teach kids communication, self-esteem-building and other important skills.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Friendship

24 pages, Library Binding

First published April 1, 2015

Reviews

[❀Aimee❀ Just one more page... · Rating 3 out of 5]

I initially picked up this book because my oldest has sensory issues that make bike riding difficult for him. I didn't exactly get what I wanted from this, but it is a good story.

I think this book was more about perseverance and the meaning of good friends than a simple story for a child that is afraid of learning to ride a bicycle without training wheels.

Well told and worth a read if you're trying to teach about what really matters in friendship.

Thank you Netgalley and Second Story Press for a free digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Carla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story by Kathryn Cole has a great message for anyone who reads or hears it. Never Give Up is about a young boy named Shaun. He is trying to learn how to ride his bike. He still has training wheels on his bike but still falls off and hurts himself. His friend Nadia is sitting on the hill watching and when some other kids start to tease him and laugh when he falls she feels intimidated and is afraid to help him. Shaun does not give up and just keeps trying. The others finally get bored and leave. Nadia goes over to Shaun to apologize because she feels like a bad friend, and he tells her not to worry about it. He says he is not giving up and eventually will learn to ride. He tells her he is good at other things because he did not give up and kept trying until he became good at whatever he tried. Nadia goes home and enlists her dad to help Shaun learn to ride and it is a great success. Nadia asks Shaun if he will help her learn how to jump in when skipping. They have so much fun that even the kids that were teasing him before join in the fun.

The message of not giving up, helping your friends and even about being a bully are great ones. The skills used to teach the lessons (riding a bike, skipping) are easily identifiable to all children. The illustrations are well done and colourful. I recommend this book to families, school libraries and classroom libraries to teach children these valuable lessons.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Dee/ bookworm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Never Give Up by Kathryn Cole gives a great message to not only children, but any person as well. Shaun is trying to learn to ride a bike, he wobbles on his training wheels and gets made fun of, but he doesn't let this define him, he actually uses it as fuel to keep trying and keep going until the point he has mastered the bike, without training wheels, and is moving on to try something new. He is a great roll modle, never giving up, learning how to do it, and moving on to the next challenge. It is hard when you don't succeed at something, it takes real character to keep trying!

Nadia is a story within a story. She keeps quiet while kids are giving Shaun a hard time, and later apologizes. She doesn't go along with everyone else, which shows strength of character. And she shows remorse by coming clean with Shaun, who really is just happy she was herself. That she didn't go along, but that she stayed quiet. It also shows how to accept people for who they are.

And the bullies, or kids teasing Shaun. It was a lesson as well, they got bored harassing Shaun and eventually moved on to other things.

This book is full of good lessons, especially for kids!

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley for an honest review.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked Shuan's character in this book. Even though there were kids really not being nice to him, he persisted. And I like how the book resolved.

[Ana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shaun tries to learn to ride a bike. He tries with training wheels on, but still manages to fall and get hurt. Nadia his friend watches from afar as other kids tease and make fun of him. She eventually feels bad for him so she asks her dad to help him learn to ride a bike. The illustrations are very colorful.
Teachable points: don't give up, keep trying, ignore the teasing, help your friends

[Kate Hastings · Rating 3 out of 5]

Grades K-3. Shaun is still using training wheels while most of the other kids have moved on to riding bikes. His friend Nadia watches as he struggles and some kids make fun of his failed attempts. But Shaun has grit. "Never give up," he says to himself. Nadia feels bad for him, but has an idea that could help. There might be a different way for him to learn...

This book has attractive, multicultural illustrations. The message is important, but a little too preachy-- making it more useful as a bibliotherapy read-aloud for a discussion on perseverance.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Never Give Up' is a serious children's book addressing some important issues which are great for class and family discussion about bullying, self-esteem, determination and inclusion. The author has chosen learning to ride a bike as her teaching point, a subject that the majority of children can relate to at some point in their lives. The illustrations are reaslistic and colourful - possibly lacking a little in the fun factor bearing in mind this is a book for children.
Not a favourite of mine, but definitely has standing in the teaching of PSHE and similar lessons.

[Whole And · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good resource to teach children not to stand by while friends are being made fun of/bullied, how to keep on keeping on even when others are making fun and learning that those who care will come together and assist where needed.

A fairly gentle read, not scary or traumatic although the content is serious.