| Title | : | How to Catch a Star (The Boy, #1) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0007228074 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780007228072 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages | : | 32 |
| Publication | : | First published June 3, 2004 |
First-time author/illustrator Oliver Jeffers offers a simple, childlike tale of reaching for the stars, and emerging with a friend.
How to Catch a Star (The Boy, #1) Reviews
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I read this trying to find a book for an essay I'm doing on reaching for your dreams! And this is by far the CUTEST childrens book ever! With a great message. To reach for your biggest dreams, don't give up! Eeekk this was ADORABLE and SO precious! Anyone with younger kids or siblings, you should read this to them! <3 So cute and meaningful.
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Really cute illustrations, loved by both my nephews. Would be really useful as an early years science prompt.
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Oliver Jeffers has done it again! The man can spin pure magic with such simple words, images, and joys in life.
Our young hero is determined to catch a star. It’s his dream. After waiting, jumping, and stretching though, his dream still looks and feels so far away.
”But in his heart, the wish just wouldn’t give up.”
These big, open, colorful pages will inspire readers of all ages to keep reaching for the stars. Hope and smiles shimmer and shine on every page. Sometimes we need to look at goals and dreams in life in a different way. You never know where your dreams and stars may be hiding.
Just keep looking and dreaming!
Highly recommended. -
He thought he could fly up in his spaceship and just grab the star. but his spaceship had run out of petrol last Tuesday when he flew to the moon.
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Great illustrations as always. Lovely story line but could’ve done with a little more depth. Although, I think the one thing we can take from it is that you can wait for a long time, try and try again but fail. However, what you were looking for was right under your nose the whole time.
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I love Oliver Jeffers' books, especially his series about the little boy, of which this is the first book. We had already read the next book,
Lost and Found, the one where a lost penguin turns up on his doorstep and he tries to help it find its way home again - such a wonderful book! This one is just as delightful, and really captures the kids' imaginations.
In this story, the boy loves stars and wants one. He tries many different ways to catch a star, like climbing to the top of the tree to reach it, and comes up with some other ideas that turn out to be not so doable - like using his rocket ship to reach a star (except it's out of petrol from his last trip to the moon). The boy is persistent and determined, but an aura of sadness and loneliness surrounds him. He's very good at dealing with frustration and really thinks problems through, though he has a habit of asking birds for help and is always disappointed.
It has a happy ending, and the boy does get a star for a friend (or possibly just a washed-up dead starfish), but it's really interesting the range of emotions he goes through over the course of the story, and seeing how kids relate to them. Two-year-olds are especially attuned to characters from stories who become sad, and there is a scene where the boy is so forlorn and dejected that young readers are really concerned for him. All good signs of developing empathy.
Pair the sweet and ironic story with Jeffers' distinctive artistic illustrations, and you've got a really lovely book in your hands. This is one of those rare stories that I never get tired of reading - which is important, because my own two-year-old likes to have it read about three times in a row, in one sitting! -
A story about a boy who doesn’t give up on his ambition to catch a star, even when it seems unlikely. As I read this book, I wished I had done so long ago. I thought of several pupils who I taught on placement that needed motivation to continue working hard, this would have shown them the importance of perseverance in a fun way!
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A fun read with beautiful illustrations (as usual) by Jeffers about a boy who wants to catch a star. Particularly good if your child currently has a space rocket obsession :-)
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"Once there was a boy and the boy loved stars very much..." And so begins the simple narrative here, as the boy tries everything he can think of, from climbing a tree to using a lasso, to catch a sparkling star. All of his efforts prove futile, until he finds what he is looking for in an unexpected form (), and at an unexpected time...
Originally published in 2004, How to Catch a Star is the first of four picture-books about the adventures of this boy - subsequent titles include
Lost and Found,
The Way Back Home and
Up and Down - and was author/illustrator Oliver Jeffers' debut. It's certainly a lovely debut, and although not my favorite Jeffers book, it does feature that gentle sense of heart to be found in all of his stories, and the colorful, stylized artwork I have come to expect. Recommended to anyone searching for children's stories about the longing for something just out of reach, as well as to all fellow Jeffers fans. -
This book introduces the reader to a boy who loves stars so much, he wants to catch one of his own. He tries many different ways to catch one (such as climbing to the top of a tree), by the end of the book the boy collects a starfish. “The boy had caught a star. A star of his very own.” I loved this book – and my three year old daughter did too! I chose to read this book as Oliver Jeffers was an author recommended to us at university last year, and now I own quite a few of his books! I really enjoy the way Jeffers writes, and the colourful illustrations are lovely with a variety of full page illustrations to smaller ones. This book demonstrates the boy’s determination and perseverance to catch his star, and shows children how he overcomes problems along the way such as disappointment and frustration. The story also encourages readers to feel empathy and really engage with the main character. The author has chosen to use short, simple sentences and lets the illustrations tell the story. This allows the opportunity for reader’s own ideas and interpretations of what is going on, or how the boy is feeling. This book is most likely aimed for younger readers (up to age 6) however I really enjoyed it and would definitely put it in the reading area for older readers too, because picture books definitely shouldn’t be limited to a younger audience!
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What Oliver Jeffers does so very well in this story is capture the child's perspective and voice. A little boy loves stars and wants to catch one. He attempts with great childlike enthusiasm and creativity again and again. It celebrates imagination, persistence and dreaming without ever stating any of these. The text is perfectly honed and paired with illustrations that bring to life the emotion and yearning of the sweet protagonist. Told with a quiet, calm beauty that is punctuated with just enough action this is a beautiful tale to share with children.
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How to Catch a Star is a brilliant book to use in a KS1 classroom. There are multiple discussion points and curricular links to do with reflections and day and night. The illustrations are warm and eye capturing, I particularly love the shapes of the stars as they are very child-like drawn. The book teaches important values such as patience which could be used to discuss with a class of children.
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A cute, imaginative story about a boy who wants a star for his own, so he can be friends with it. The ending was pretty cute, and I was happy. The illustrations were pretty fun, and fit in perfectly with the imaginative story.
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Beautiful illustrations and cute story for kids ^ - ^.
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There once was a boy who followed his dream. Although the end result wasn’t exactly what he had originally planned, what he received was perfect. Oliver Jeffers does it again, as my heart was singing when I finished reading this book and I immediately, had to reread it.
The young boy loved stars so much, he wanted to have one of his very own. I loved how the boy originally wished for a star and how he imagined his life would be, once he got his new star friend. The illustrations compliment this story nicely and I think they showcase what the text is trying to accomplish. The illustrations draw you in, they move you through the story.
The boy finally decides to take matters into his own hands and he makes plans to catch a star. Great idea for such a young child. It was entertaining reading about all the methods that he used and his thoughts while he attempted this feat. The seagull and the rocket ship were hilarious. His determination, cleverness and patience does pay off and although, he didn’t get exactly what he had originally wanted, he was thrilled with the end result. 5 stars -
Buku #2 yang dibaca di Seattle Public Library.
Seorang bocah laki-laki yang amat menginginkan bintang sebagai sahabatnya. Baca ini jadi ingat lagu "Ambilkan Bulan, Bu". -
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Un cuento con ilustraciones hermosas y una historia bastante interesante, pero hasta el momento es el que menos me ha gustado del autor, siento que le falta ese no sé qué que lo caracteriza.
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Un libro muy bonito que les enseña a los niños a luchar por sus sueños
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Reflections and lessons learned:
Is there anything more grounding and yet meteoric as a star? Aha - a star falling into the sea… sweetly magical -
جميل أن نعلم الأطفال كيف يكونوا حالمين، هذه القصة جعلتني أنا الأخرى أحلم! أحب الفضاء وكنت أحلم بأن أنضم إلى "ناسا" وأزور الكواكب.. ولكن أن تكون النجمة صديقتي فهذا حلم أروع من أن أكتفي بزيارة كوكب!!
ملاحظتي كانت حول فكرة أن تكون النجمة صديقة للولد بذاته، ربما-أقول ربما- اللفظ الذي استخدمه قد يعزز من الأنانية -- وربما لا يؤثر على الإطلاق! -
A lovely story book, perfect for KS1 which emphasises the skill of patience and that things may not always seem to be how we expect. This story of a little boy who eagerly wants to catch a star and has managed to achieve this when he’s about to give up. Great story to read and relate to children’s day to day life, friendships and the importance of carrying on no matter what and not giving up.
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Last month when I was so swamped with grief and stress, I found this cute childrens book in one of my friends car. I was her nephews book. I took it along with us and I read it to my friends over dinner. It was a dreamy and charming little companion.
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Great story to read aloud. Also, I think the story is cute.
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loving the imagination of oliver jeffers ... the child in me loves these books and the love of children in me loves the idea that these books are available to read to children.
