Rebekah Borucki has made (so far) four titles of a young bi-racial girl called Zara. She is the oldest of two (a younger, annoying brother, Sam is the other). They live with their mom, and weekends are for dad. We get a fun dynamic between Zara and her family, each on helping her deal with one of the issues she must deal with. Overall, she is a good kid, but she lets things bottle up and she can explode.
In no order, the books. In Zara’s Big Messy Playdate, we find Zara excited for the book sale the next day. However, another parent comes to help Zara’s mother prepare, and she is the mother to the mother of playground bullies, Penelope. The two girls try and have a playdate, but Penelope bosses Zara around. And it does not end there. At the book sale, Penelope continues her bossy ways. What is Zara to do? We see how Zara and Penelope can figure out how to fix their issues without yelling or allowing one person to dominate. Zara’s Big Messy Goodbye shows how everyone deals with a death differently. Zara is having a hard time processing her aunt’s sudden death, but Zara’s mother shows her how to deal. The common thread throughout the books is how to deal with the stress. There are breathing tips, talking tips, and more. In this book, we focus on how Zara is feeling and how she can deal with the stress of seeing her family sad, the routine has changed and the worry a child has knowing that a loved one might not come back. We also see how see how Zara becomes upset when Sam, her brother, is not acting “right” and is still making noises and running around, so we see not just Zara but the people around her and their reactions. A great twist to the end of the story is shown and not told that helps explain why Zara is reacting the way she is. Zara’s Big Messy Day is relatable to all of us. Sam spills Zara’s juice on her new outfit and later knocks over her block tower, and Mama is too busy to pay attention to Zara. At school, Penelope makes fun of Zara’s new shoes that were a special gift from her father. But with the help of tips from her mother, Zara learns how to be calm and let these feelings wash over her. Her outfit is still stained, she can rebuild the tower, she can ignore Penelope, as she is feeling better. Overall, it is perhaps the easier subject to deal with and work with because who hasn’t had a messy day or two? Especially recently. Finally, we have Zara’s Big Messy Bedtime, which might be my favorite of the bunch as I picked up a tip or two. This book deals partly with the divorce aspect with Zara having her own room at dad’s house that she can put a sign on the door saying, “Keep Out” (meaning Sam) and can paint it her favorite color. But it also deals with new situations. Zara cannot sleep, even with her bedtime routine. There are shadows, sounds and scratchy new pjs. This makes Zara too tired to play with her new friends and play soccer. It is her maternal grandmother that helps her out this time. The checklist that Zara uses is actually a good one for we adults too. So, while I enjoyed these books and I am glad I found them, there were a few bumps. We learn casually that the parents are divorced by a statement Zara says. But we haven’t seen her meet the new friends, and if you read them out of chronological order, you do not realize the issues with Penelope. Also, the artwork is nice, but not my favorite. They show you the stories, and they support the cast, move things along, but I personal was not “feeling them.” I would say these books can be any ages, but since the character is about seven/eight and in second grade, the ages might be best for kindergarten up. The tone is terribly modern, so it might not be for all adults. Various other people have contributed various illustrations, story pieces, and more. Such as Danielle Pioli, Alexandra Jamieson, Bob Gower, and Gina Moffa.
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Raven’s Big Messy Book Reviews
Zara’s Big Messy Playdate by Rebekah Borucki
Zara's Big Messy Goodbye by Rebekah Borucki
Zara's Big Messy Day by Rebekah Borucki
Zara's Big Messy Bedtime by Rebekah Borucki