Meet the portly Bombus, a bumblebee created by God during the creation week, as he struggles to feel good about himself, in the midst of smaller, more mobile honeybees. This delightful, full-color story allows children to see their own uniqueness. The book concludes with some quick facts about bumblebees.
I love children's books especially when they have a wonderful message and beautiful illustrations! Bombus The Bumblebee is a lovely book with a strong biblical message geared towards children. I was impressed with the vocabulary in this read. The author uses words that describe as well as explain the different parts of a bumblebee. At the beginning of the read Ms. Larson uses descriptive words such as bobbed, lurched, clumsy and swooping. Then the story begins with honeybees and the biblical account of God speaking the world into existence and declaring it good. The honeybees notice that Bombus is larger than they are and that he drinks a whole more nectar than they do. The honeybees begin to resent Bombus so they decide to trick him into thinking that he was a mistake and that he was never created to fly. The story deals with the fact that Bombus was not a mistake. God's sweet assurances that Bombus was created for a purpose and plan and that Bombus is fulfilling his plan on earth is the message of this great read. Everyone is not created to look exactly alike nor do we all serve the same purpose on earth but like Bombus God created us for His glory AND God does not mistakes. Such a great 5 star read for children (well, actually for all ages). A lesson that we all need to be reminded of....God loves each and everyone of us because He created eachone of us to be different and unique! At the back of the book, after the story is completed, there is a two page spread about bumblebees and the unique way that they are hand crafted by God. Did you know bumblebees have fur? Or that they can change direction in midair with their wings? There are also discussion pages and a few pages that have fun, creative activities to do and make that are all inspired from the book! David and Elizabeth Haidle have done a marvelous job in illustrating this amazing book! The illustrations bring this book "to life." Bombus The Bumblebee is the first book in a series of two by Elsie Larson and illustrators David and Elizabeth Haidle.
What C (girl, age 5, Kindergarten) thought- I liked Bombus. I liked that he couldn’t go into skinny blossoms. Bumblebees are fatter that honeybees. The honeybees said Bombus wasn’t right for flying, because honeybees have zig-zag dances. And they all took flight and he watched them. He thought he was meant to crawl, but he wasn’t.
I liked everything. I would recommend this book for kids my age.
What B (boy, age 7, second grade) thought- I liked Bombus. The honeybees didn’t think he could fly, but that wasn’t true. The illustrations were also pretty good. In the pictures the honeybees are skinny and Bombus is huge. What to know an interesting fact? The name of the book is Bombus the Bumblebee, right? And the scientific name for bumblebee is bombus.
I liked the whole book, there was nothing I disliked. I would recommend Bombus the Bumblebee for kids my age.
My thoughts-
Wow!! What a great book to teach children about self-acceptance.
Bombus was a lovable bumblebee who wanted to be accepted by others. I can watch my kids playing with others to see how important acceptance and self-acceptance is. I have noticed that the kids who have the best self-acceptance have the best acceptance of others. We (as Bombus) need to remember that God accepts us as we are and we should not take what others say about us to heart.
The illustrations in the this book are great. The honeybees are drawn so well. You can see their haughtiness and how they think they are so much better than Bombus.
I would highly recommend this book to all families. As parents and especially was Christians we need to teach others about self-acceptance and the acceptance of others.
Disclosure of Material Connection- I received Bombus the Bumblebee by Elsie Larson and illustrated by David and Elizabeth Haidle for free from Master Books, a division of New Leaf Publishing Group. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
Come fly with me…….and learn more about God’s wonderful creation with a new friend, Bombus the Bumblebee. This delightfully illustrated and colorful book will fascinate children and the adults in their life, the book is illustrated by David and Elizabeth Haidle. The book is an 8 by 10 size which is perfect for those little hands that are learning about their Lord and His Creation and at just forty pages it’s short enough to keep their attention.
The illustrations are incredibly whimsical but realistic at the same time, the insects, animals, plants have such a real life look to them and are very colorful even I got enjoyment out of the pictures. Bombus is a bumblebee who meets up with some honeybees who criticize him and make him doubt himself. Without giving spoilers away, God intervenes in His Creation, and Bombus realizes why God made him a bumblebee and not a honey bee.
After reading the story children and parents alike can learn more about the bumblebee by doing some hands-on experiments. Learn how they fly, are bumblebees warm or cold blooded, how much are bumblebees worth to farmers, and more neat facts about these unique Creations by God. One way to really help children to retain information is by having a conversation and letting the dialogue flow, which is why the section titled “A Talking Time” is a great bonus. There are other activities such as tracing shadows, secret signals, and more that will aid in learning more about these fantastic bees.
As I said above this book held both mine and my children’s attention and we all enjoyed it. I liked being able to teach them more about bumblebees without them knowing they were being ‘schooled’. As a homeschooler, I can easily turn this into a fun unit study for all my children, since even my 9 year old liked listening in on the story.
**I was provided a copy of this book from Master Books in exchange for my honest review, no other compensation was given.
Bombus the Bumblebee make you want to pick up a bumblebee & give him a big hug! Bombus has an identity crisis because of some unkind words from some honeybees. Bombus doubts God's purpose for him, but God reminds him the He always knows best! The story reminded me of the Hermie books and Bee Movie came to mind more than once. This is a story that can open up several spiritual and emotional discussions with your child. Simple enough for my 3 year old to understand but deep enough to catch my 6 year old's attention, this is a fabulous book! The illustrations are eye catching and the information in the back makes it a fabulous homeschool edition! Learn all about bumblebees and how they fly with the extra info at the end. There are also discussion questions to open up a dialogue with your child about self- confidence and seeking God's purpose. There are even activity and craft ideas that would make this an excellent read in children's ministry! The activities are simple but effective and one or two would be perfect for a Sunday School or children's church service! I was excited to see that there are 2 other Bombus books available and I will be checking those out! So if you are always looking to add Christian based fiction books for your child (I know I am!), or if you'd like a homeschool unit on bumblebees (Bombus is the scientific name for bumblebees) then check out Bombus the Bumblebee!
I received this book from New Leaf Publishing for the purpose of review. All opinions are my own and are not influenced by the author or publisher.
Bombus The Bumblebee Written by Elsie Larson Illustrated by David and Elizabeth Haidle Published by Master Books Source : Review copy Bombus.. even his name makes him sound large! Big, hungry Bombus loved his nectar and didn’t leave much for the honeybees, he was a bigger guy after all. The honeybees were not at all happy with getting the second best honey so they devised a plan to make Bombus doubt his flying abilities. They tell Bombus “Your body is much too fat and heavy for your wings. You are not shaped right for flight”. They tell Bombus he must have misunderstood his directions, that he obviously isn’t meant to fly.. he doesn’t fly like the honeybees fly. Bombus gets down on himself and tries creeping along rather than flying.. leaving the best nectar for those pesky honeybees. God’s voice booms out from the heavens and confronts Bombus asking him, “What made you think you cannot fly?”. Those jealous honeybees are in trouble now. God tells Bombus, you can fly because I gave you flight. Though they may not be shaped right to fly, God gave them flight and it is His miracle. The book has facts about the bumblebee, an activity section, and discussion questions for the kids in the back of the book. Bombus the Bumblebee is a great book on our uniqueness in God. He created differences in bees, what more difference has he created in us. Fantastic illustrations and great moral message makes this a top notch picture book for children. New Leaf Publishing has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book
"Created Just Like You and Me!" is the first book about Bombus the Bumblebee. Beautifully illustrated by David Haidle and Elizabeth Haidle, the little book brings you into the "mind" of a humble bumblebee and you get to learn a lot while you're there.
It begins with God's creation and there is "Bombus." Created by God. But Bombus has a problem with himself and his "peers." He is made fun of because of his bumbling way of flying. He is "told" by the honeybees that he really isn't flying and that he can't fly. Well, at that point Bombus flat-out stops flying.
Now how Bombus actually gets his wings going again and gets back into the air is a delight for the reader. Along the way as you're reading about Bombus, you'll learn more about bumblebees.
Example: Did you realize that Bombus is the scientific name for the bumblebee?
I recommend the book for young readers of all ages and their leaders. This is a good "peer" influence lesson, Bible lesson, and scientific lesson all in one beautiful book.
I was provided a complimentary copy of Bombus: Created Just Like You and Me! by Master Books-New Leaf Publishers in exchange for an honest review.
These two story books for children are about Bombus the Bumblebee and how God made him unique. Each book teaches children about creation from a biblical viewpoint while also teaching children a lesson about life - such as friendship, being kind, etc. The stories are well written and fun to read for both children and parents.
I appreciated the quality of the story and the downright adorable illustrations. It was also fun to learn facts about animals as we read the story. These facts didn't stand out, but were woven into the story. Another nice addition to this book was the extra sections in the back that contained fun facts, a "how to use this book" guide, and creative activity ideas.
You can also get an activity book to go with the two story books. It is full of games, puzzles, coloring pages, additional short stories, recipes, and mazes. It's a great way to stretch the learning out as the kids not only read, but "do" to learn, too!
All three books are targeted for 4-8 year olds but the story books are great for younger ages as well.
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These review copies were provided courtesy of New Leaf Press.
"An encouraging story celebrating the diversity of God's beautiful creation."
Bombus The Bumblebee is definitely an encouraging and heartwarming story. It is a book that uses a bumblebee created by God to show how God created everyone just the way He wanted them. Not only does it have an awesome story telling about God's creation, the book has awesome information in the back of it. On a couple of the pages it tells all about the bumblebee's body and how it works. Did you know that the scientific name for the bumblebee is Bombus? The book also continues with questions about the story, as well as activities to go along with the book.
I also have to mention David and Elizabeth Haidle, the illustrators.
I read this with my 5 and 7 year old children and they truly loved the story. They even enjoyed answering the questions about the book. I would definitely recommend this book for anyone with children.
I received this book free from New Leaf Publishing for an honest review.