If I had A Little Dream
Nina Laden & Melissa Castrillon
Simon & Schuster Australia
Paula Wiseman Books
ISBN: 9781481439244
Description:
See and appreciate through a child’s eyes how fortunate we are to live in the world we do. Celebrate the wonder of the world – the joy, love, and beauty that is part of each and every day. Our world is full of possibilities if you look for them.
My View:
Utterly delightful, beautifully illustrated and narrated.
This books speaks to young children and the child within the adult – it is full of optimism, wonder and joy. The rhyming prose can be simply taken literally – or the older reader can explore the meanings/associations of the words, of phrases – such as:
“If I had a little bed, I would name it Nest…”
“If I had a little pond, I would name if Wonder. Wonder would show me…”
And my very favourite: “If I had a little book, I would name it Friend. Friend would go wherever I went, our story would never end.”
There are so many ways a child can interact with the language, the words in this book. And the art…stunning, detailed, and glorious. If reading this book doesn’t bring a smile to your face you need to go back and read it again, out loud.
Reading, Writing and Riesling 
This really sounds lovely, Carol! And such positive lessons to teach children, too. This sounds great!
This book is just beautiful – I love the direction kids books are going these days – bright, clever, simple yet with an added layer of complexity available depending on the reader.