Shawn Loves Sharks

Reviewed by: Amy McInerney - Falmouth Elementary School, Falmouth, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: June 12, 2018

Review

Shawn Loves Sharks wonderfully portrays children's fascination with animals, specifically when they are compelled to research every single fact about one particular animal. Shawn's fascination with sharks is all-consuming: he eats like a shark, draws sharks, plays like a shark. When his teacher introduces a predator project at school, he is hoping to be assigned the shark. His disappointment at being assigned the seal is confounded when Stacy gets to research the shark. As he researches more about seals and learns that one of their predators is a shark, he takes out his anger on Stacy. Realizing that his emotions have gotten the best of him, he takes control of the situation and offers his shark books to Stacy. A sweet story that many children will relate to, this book offers a lesson in branching out and learning about new things. The theme of friendship appears at the end, and will resonate with readers as Shawn makes amends with Stacy. This is a perfect picture book read aloud to pair with research about animals.

Overall Book Score: good