Children's Fiction: The Naturals, by Sharon R.C. Petersen

The Naturals, by Sharon R.C. Petersen, is a collection of short stories about nature. Each story features a natural element as a main character that interacts with the other characters in the story. At the beginning of each story a question is posed as to what children think will happen (e.i., "Does Rainy make things worse...or can he truly save the day?"). At the close of each story is a sweet little saying to help tuck the wee ones in bed, followed by a discussion prompt to help the children explore and answer the question asked at the start.

There are stories about Cloudy, Windy, Snowy, Rainy, Sunny, Moony, Hailstones, Starry, Rainbow, and Earth. Each one tries to explore the intentions of the characters in an attempt to get children to connect and identify with their surroundings.

I read this at night to my 9 and 5 year olds. The 9 year old didn't enjoy the stories very much. She was not able to give me any concrete reason other than she felt that some of the stories were boring.  My youngest daughter, on the other hand, said that she loved the book. Because this is a book from the UK, we were able to experience new words such as "trotters" (feet), which made the book that much better for her.

I like the concept of this book, though some stories were better than others.  The author made a point to incorporate a lesson and discussion with each story, which made it easier for me to engage my children. Also, I liked how each story ended with the same "signing off." It gave a sense of continuity and predictability which some children enjoy. However, I would have put the closing after the discussion prompts, that way it showed a true end to the matter.

Overall, this is a good bedtime story collection for children who like to personify the world around them, or who enjoy stories about talking animals and engaging environments. I feel that the ideal age group for this book is children under 8.

On a scale of 1-4, I give this book a 3. My 9 year old wasn't too impressed, but my 5 year old loved it. I felt it was engaging, and I liked how the author offered suggestions for further story exploration.


This book was published in the UK by Book Guild Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-84624-340-0

Thank you to Sharon Petersen for the gift of this book.

More information about The Naturals can be found at http://thenaturals.uk.com/index.html
A percentage of the profits from the sale of this book will benefit WWT (Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust) to help save wetlands and wildlife, as well as the NSPCC (National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children) to help stop child abuse.