Little Star
3.8
25
5
1
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780736958592 |
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| Publisher: | Harvest House Publishers |
| Publication date: | 09/01/2013 |
| Edition description: | Reprint |
| Pages: | 36 |
| Sales rank: | 387,873 |
| Product dimensions: | 9.20(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.40(d) |
| Age Range: | 5 - 8 Years |
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Little Star
3.8 out of 5
based on
0 ratings.
25 reviews.
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Since we were out of town, I didn't receive this book in time to read it to the kiddos before Christmas. I did, however, make sure that we read it before we put our Christmas books away for the year and I was glad that I did.
This book tells the story of a little star who always feels left out and ignored. All this changes when he hears that a king has been born and uses all his energy to be the brightest star in the sky on the night of the king's birth. Although the other stars warn Little Star that he will burn himself out, he shines his brightest that night and everyone in the heavens and on Earth notices. Little Star does burn himself out that night, but he will never be forgotten; he is the reason many people place a star at the top of their Christmas trees. The star helps us to remember Little Star and the way he pointed others toward a tiny, newborn king so many years ago.
This book is well written and easy for children to understand. The illustrations are wonderful and my children were excited to see what was on each new page. Though the story connects past and present, the connection is seamless and my children were able to make the connections quite easily. This book will definitely be one that our family reads for many years to come.
Disclaimer: A complimentary copy of this book was provided for review by Waterbrook Multnomah Publishers. All thoughts are my own and I was not required to post a positive review.
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Little Star is a charming little story about the true meaning of Christmas. While the story line is close to the real story of the Christmas story, it's not exact, however this story does make it relateable to real life for children.
The first thing I always notice when reading childrens books, are the illustrations. The pictures in Little star are semi-real life, however still cartoonish enough to keep the attention of little ones. The illustrator uses dark hues and tones, but with the addition of the yellow star, the mood is brightened.
The story line itself is very easy to follow and my 2 year old enjoyed this book and was attentive for the most part. Older children will be able to relate the story in a more mature manner, however it was still interesting enough for a young child. I like how the end of the story ties the little star to the star on the top of a Christmas Tree, giving a real life connection for the children listening.
Overall, this book will make a good addition to your Christmas book collection and leads for some great discussions about the True Meaning of the Season.
"I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review"
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The children's book "Little Star" written by Anthony De Stefano is an excellent story. The author tells the Christmas story from a totally different point of view. A young boy is anxiously searching for the Christmas star. His did gives him the unfortunate news that the little star is no longer in the sky. And then he proceeds to tells his son the story.
Little Star is a lonely star, the smallest of them all. He isn't made fun of by the other stars, but he is ignored. While all the other stars are preparing for the coming king to be born on earth, he is sadly off to the side. And yet, once the King is born, Little Star is the only one that recognizes Jesus for the King that He is.
Little Star is an excellent addition to our family's Christmas stories. I would recommend this book to any families with younger children. I'm sure it will be read time and time again.
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I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review. I am excited to say that this is my first book review for blogging for books. I chose Little Star as my first book because I believed that it would be a great book for the holidays and a great tradition to start reading to my daughter every year at Christmas.
I was thrilled when the UPS guy dropped off my package today just in time for Christmas. I was a little worried that the book would end up coming after Christmas. I ripped open the package and was so happy to see Little Star by Anthony DeStefano laying inside. The cover is illustrated beautifully by Mark Elliott. First thing after dinner, I grabbed up Virginia and we sat on the couch and started reading the book. The vivid pictures kept her attention for a while. The book is a little longer then most books I have read to her. So considering this it did take us two sittings to finish the book. But I do believe as she gets older that this book will be a favorite and will be a great tool in teaching her about the birth of Jesus Christ, our Savior.
As an adult, I loved reading this story. I had never read the Christmas story from the point of view of the star. I thought this was such a creative way to tell the story. I believe the child-like perspective and the beautiful illustrations will grab children's attention. I believe that parents will love the fact that this book brings up morals like treating everyone equal no matter what size they are and no matter how much money they have in their pocket. I would recommend this book to any parent. My daughter is 2 years old and it was a little long for her attention span, but she did still enjoy the book. I do love the fact that I will be able to enjoy the book with my daughter for years to come. I believe that I will read Little Star every Christmas Eve to my daughter as a family tradition from now on.
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I had the chance for reviewing this book through Blogging for Books. This story reminds us of the true meaning of Christmas and is a good way to teach children this true meaning. The author also does a good job at including simple messages such as not ignoring others and not giving up on people. In the end, the author brings the story together by explaining why the star is put on the top of the tree....a wonderful tradition that many kid dont know the true meaning behind! Mark Elliott has beautiful illustrations which kept my daughters attention. This will surely become a story which will be read many more years at Christmas!
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*Spoiler Alert* This is a story about the special star that showed the way to find baby Jesus. I like the parallels the author draws between a tiny, seemingly insignificant and overlooked star and the birth of Jesus. The illustrations are very nice with depth even in muted colors and does a fair job of differentiating between fantasy (more cartoon-like drawings of the stars) and real life (more life-like drawings of people). I also like the parallel of the tiny star giving its life for Jesus. However, like other reviewers, I don't care for the fact that the star burns out by dawn. The Biblical star did not burn out after one night and we as Christians do not burn out when we are shining with God's light. The book says there was to be "a special reward ... given to the star who could shine the brightest on the night the baby king was born." If the reward is that some people put a star on their tree at Christmas, I'm sorry but that's a let down. I could see where some children would be very sensitive to this ending. Biblically, I think the ending should have been different. I would not recommend this book and I don't know if I will keep it. I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review
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Have you ever known someone who just seems to give their all to the task at hand? Or how about that little one who is multi talented?Well, I just finished reading a picture book called Little Star by Anthony DeStefano provided by WaterBrook Press for review. It's a delightful children's book that any parent or grandparent will enjoy reading together. I recommend this one for your personal library and Sunday school library, too. In fact, once again WaterBrook Press provides an excellent gift book for boys and girls that are on your Christmas list.Little Star The story begins with a warm, tender discussion between a father and his son about the Christmas star. The enchanting illustrations by Mark Elliott compliment the author's text perfectly. I love the way little star feels a bit sad about his tiny size (trying to figure out his purpose) and hears some story amidst the community of stars (much larger stars) about a rumor of a king being born. My favorite sentence is "¿I think I understand!¿ Little Star cried out. ¿The baby Jesus IS a king! He¿s just little!¿This Little Star of Bethlehem gets the King's message of love and burns brightly to keep baby Jesus warm. Perhaps it seems a bit sad to read of a star's legacy to burn ever so brightly only to burn oneself out but his great reward from the Father is to be remembered each Christmas, as tradition goes for many, to place a star on top a tree to celebrate Jesus' birthday. I found this to be a sweet story for everyone. 5* "The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world." -- John 1:9
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This charming Christmas tale tells the story of a little boy who receives the meaning of why stars are granted the privilege of highest honour as they are placed atop the Christmas tree. One night the little boy is gazing out the window and he is trying to locate the bright Christmas star. This encourages his father to tell him this charming narrative of a very special night long, long ago.
Little Star lives among a babbling cluster of big, bright stars that engage in a lot of Twinkle talk. He is isolated and rejected by the other stars because of his size so he is a very lonely little star indeed. He hears the other stars twinkle that one night soon, an incredible event is about to occur. A king is to be born and the star that can shine the brightest will be richly rewarded. The big stars shine and glow, polish and preen for the big upcoming event. Little Star however gets passed over because of his size and insignificance in their sight. Lo and behold the night arrives that the King is born and all the stars hurry to the competition to see if they will be chosen to be the brightest and best for him. When they see him they are shocked to find that he is just a wee, insignificant baby, not a noble, proud king at all. They feel that they had been tricked, a baby, a king indeed....so they zoom away grumbling and complaining all the way.
Little Star stays however because he recognizes that the baby truly is a king....a baby king...small and insignificant... just like him. He makes up his mind to shine to the best of his ability and to bless that little baby King with all that he has to offer...which turns out to be everything he has.
The illustrations are beautiful and engaging. This retelling of the nativity story is fresh and this book is destined to be a Christmas classic. It brings a whole new meaning to the significance of the Star that sits and shines on top of your Christmas tree. I highly recommend this book be added to your Christmas book collection.
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Review: This children's book received the "Mom's Choice Awards Honoring Excellence." Acclaimed author Anthony DeStefano and illustrator Mark Elliott have produced a sweet nicely illustrated children's story. It is the story of a little boy whose father tells him the story of a star - a little star - in response to the boy's question, "Dad, which one is the Christmas star" as he gazes out the window at the night time sky.
Dad proceeds to tell the story of a little, not very bright, star in the heavens that was simply neglected and overlooked by the others. Then the stars began to dust themselves off because a king was about to be born and they wanted to be bright stars at the occasion. But little star wasn't dusted off.
As the story progresses, Dad explains that little star shone brightly on the little babe born in the stable in order to provide warmth for the little babe because it was such a cold night. And little star shone so brightly that he burned himself out and died.
Cute story. Sweet that little star gives greatly of himself for the little babe, but.....
I felt the story emphasized a little star that shone for one night and not the Biblical star that shined enough, and obviously many nights, to guide the wise men to the young child that was born in Bethlehem. Dad explained that the star atop the Christmas tree was the little star being remembered, but I see no need to remember a little star when we have the wondrous star that guided the wise men that we can remember if we so choose to top a tree with a Christmas star.
While this is a sweet children's book and the illustrations are very nice and use bold colors that are softened and gentle artistry to capture the essence of the story, I can not recommend it because it seems, to me, to detract from the wonderful story of the birth of the Christ Child and the star that God brought forth to guide the wise men.
DISCLOSURE: We received a complimentary copy of Little Star from Harvest House Publishers for the purpose of this review. Opinions expressed are those of the reviewer. No compensation was received for this review.
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I admit it - I love children's Christmas books! Perhaps it's because I'm still a child at heart, but whatever the reason, I look forward to new books about the sacred season. Stories that impart Biblical lessons into their pages are a special treat. Books such as The Donkey That No One Could Ride, by Anthony DeStefano, with its charming tale and beautiful illustrations, hold a special place on my bookshelf. Thus I was looking forward to receiving the newest Christmas offering from Mr. DeStefano, Little Star, and I am happy to report that it does not disappoint.
Little Star blends fiction with the Bible story of Jesus' birth. On Christmas Eve, a young boy is looking out his window to see if he can find the Christmas Star. He asks his father where the star is, and is told, "...You won't find him. He's not up there anymore." Eager to learn what happened, the boy asks to hear the story about the Christmas star.
A long time ago, far up in the sky, there were many stars who happily "twinkle-talked" every night to pass the time. All the stars except for Little Star. He was so small that the other stars ignored him. The stars had a lot to talk about because there had been a rumor going around for a loooong time that a king would soon be born. The stars were particularly excited because there was going to be a special reward for the star who would shine the brightest on the new king.
When the night of the king's birth finally came, the stars went to look for the newborn. Little Star came upon a very poor couple in Bethlehem who could only find a stable to sleep in. Surely, thought the other stars, the child born to that couple could not be the king, but Little Star came to understand - that Jesus "humbled himself to be born in a stable..." and that the new king's message was LOVE. Little Star did his very best to shine brightly, but would he burn himself out?
This is a beautifully written story that perfectly blends a fictional story with the birth of Christ. By telling the story of the star that shone above the stable that blessed night in Bethlehem, it connects the star that we put on top of our Christmas trees to the Nativity story. The illustrations, as always in DeStefano's books, are beautiful and add so much to the story. When you light up the Christmas tree this year, share this book with your children to help them connect the decorated tree to the most important event in our faith.
Quill says: A delightful Christmas story that is sure to become a favorite at bedtime as well as around the Christmas tree.
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Truly Touching and Hope filled! A great reminder of the real meaning of Christmas. Beautiful illustrations - easy to follow for very young kids, and grandparents tear up too! I give this book the highest recommendation I can give!
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We opened our box as soon as the mailman came, and the kids immediately wanted to read it -- I didn't even have time to find the camera! The book is a hardback, which is a necessity in these parts. The cover was of quick interest to the younger three. The colors are dreamy and warm, and the image got us talking about what the story might be about.
The story opens with a young bog and his father, and it draws the reader in quickly, when the father begins the story of Little Star. There is a competition for the brightest shining star for the new king, but the baby in the manger is quite a disappointment star clan.
All except for Little Star.
We all enjoyed the story, though the ending was quite a surprise! As a family, we were split with how it ended - some of us thought the ending was necessary to make the point, but the other half (those that can speak, anyway) thought it was abrupt, and in the words of my 10 year old, just "wrong." Either way, it makes for good dialogue.
We read the book again and again and again, proof that it is a good book. Little Star sees the new family in the stable for who they are, and he remains. And shines!
Without giving too much away, the book carries a wonderful message for the Christmas holiday, but also for Christian living - Shine for Jesus!
We are always on the lookout for books that honor God during the season of Christmas - that make Him the focus. This book is one that we are glad to have in our book basket this coming Christmas -- I hope that you will consider adding it to yours!
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Little Star is a recipient of the prestigious Mom's Choice Award. The Mom's Choice Awards honors excellence in family-friendly media, products and services. An esteemed panel of judges includes education, media and other experts as well as parents, children, librarians, performing artists, producers, medical and business professionals, authors, scientists and others. A sampling of the panel members includes: Dr. Twila C. Liggett, ten-time Emmy-winner, professor and founder of PBS's Reading Rainbow; Julie Aigner-Clark, Creator of Baby Einstein and The Safe Side Project; Jodee Blanco, and New York Times best-selling Author; LeAnn Thieman, motivational speaker and coauthor of seven Chicken Soup For The Soul books. Parents and educators look for the Mom's Choice Awards seal in selecting quality materials and products for children and families.
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Little Star, by Anthony DeStefano and illustrated by Mark Elliot, is a children's book that tells the story of the Christmas star. The story opens with a little boy asking his father which star in the sky is the Christmas star, and the father goes on to tell him the story of a tiny star, Little Star, who understood the meaning of Jesus' birth when all the other stars did not.
I thought the story was well written and entertaining. The illustrations were beautiful and captured the imaginative nature of the story.
The only concern that I might have (spoiler) is that in the end Little Star herald's the King's birth by burning as brightly as he can to keep the baby Jesus warm, but he ends up burning himself out and dying. That fact might be disturbing to younger children. However, there is a positive spin on the end of the story as the father points out that the Lord rewarded Little Star for his sacrifice by letting us remember him every year by placing a star on top of our Christmas trees.
Overall, I thought Little Star was a sweet stroy, and I look forward to reading it to my children in the future.
Note: I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review. It is my honest opinion.
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I received Little Star by Anthony DeStefano from Water Book Multnomah Publishing for review. I absolutely loved this book. This is a great way to share the birth of Jesus. The story is a little outcast star that realizes that Jesus is born as a humble poor human baby, and that He humbled himself because He wanted to show everyone His love. Little star burns himself out shinning for Jesus. As a result, we honor the star by placing a star at the top of our Christmas trees every year.
The illustrations are very beautiful. The story is short enough and simple enough to read to a group of 3 year old kids, and also great for beginning readers. I would use this as a gift for youngsters during the Christmas season!
I highly recommend this book for all preschoolers - second graders.
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This is a book I enjoyed reading. It is about a father explaining the story of the Christmas Star on top of the tree, to his son. The illustrations where bold and vivid, which helped the story come alive. I would recommend this book to a friend. I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.
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I love Christmas stories, especially ones that help remind us what Christmas is all about. In the book "Little Star" by Anthony DeStefano we are reminded that Christmas is about the birth of a king, and not just any king but the King of Kings. In this book a father tells his son the story of Little Star, and how he shined as bright as he could on the night of Jesus' birth while the other stars didn't want to waste their time because "kings aren't born poor." I really enjoyed this telling of the Christmas story, I think that I enjoyed it as much as I did because it isn't a perspective that we are used to hearing every year. Another thing to note about this book is that it has beautiful illustrations. This would be a great addition to anybody's Christmas book collection. Be sure to check it out!
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I was excited when "Little Star" arrived in the mail. I LOVE children's books, and now that I have my own child to read them with, I was even more excited about this one. "Little Star" by Anthony DeStefano is a story about the stars in the sky competing to see who will be the brightest and celebrate the birth of a king. When they see the conditions the "king" is about to be born into, they think they are being fooled and decide it is not worth their time. Little Star remains faithful and shines his brightest for the king. I won't give away the rest of the story, but I think it is a great story to share with your children. I can see this story being a family favorite, especially around Chritmas! The story itself is memorable and the illustrations are great! This story could definitely spark many discussions with your little one. My daughter is only 6 months old, so no discussions yet, but even she enjoyed the pictures. This is definitely a story worth checking out.
I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review. All opinions are my own as part of an honest review. You may or may not feel the same about this book as I did.
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I received this book to review from the publisher through their Blogging for Books program, I was not required to write a positive review.
We received this book just in time to read for Christmas. It is now on our list of books to read every Christmas. It's an endearing story about a little star who feels left out (kind of like Rudolph), but when he sees baby Jesus sleeping in the manger in the stable, he takes all his strength and shines his light down to keep Jesus warm. It's a great Christian view on the tradition of the star atop the Christmas tree.
I would highly recommend this to anyone with small children.
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Book Review- Little Star
by Anthony DeStefano
illustrated by Mark Elliot
Waterbrook Press
copyright 2010
ISBN: 978-0-307-45805-6
Little Star is a Christmas Children's story. It is the telling of an interaction between a Father and Son. The Father tells his son the story of the star that shown brightly the night of Jesus's birth and the stars fate. The story includes a moral lesson of how to treat people kindly, this could be elaborated in discussion outside of the book. The book also includes the important message of Jesus and an explanation for the circumstances surrounding his birth. "Jesus wanted to be born little to show all the people of the world that he loved them, no matter how small or poor they were". Many aspects of the story line flowed nicely. There were a few abrupt transitions that could have been made more smooth by adding a sentence or two more of description or explanation.
The illustrations in the book were well done. Some are very cute while others are beautiful The colors are very calming.
Overall, this book was a fun read. A good read aloud story for children, with several opportunities for further discussion.
"I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review"
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'Tis the season for celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus. What better way to teach your kids the greatest story ever told than through beautiful Christmas story books.
One in particular is titled, "Little Star", by Anthony DeStefano. I was given the chance to review it through Blogging For Books. As soon as I received it in the mail, my son was thrilled to read it. Anything that gets him excited about reading is great!
That evenings bedtime story, told of the Christmas Star. It's start out with a dad telling his son of how Little Star played an important role in the birth of baby Jesus.
A lonely little star in the heavens felt sad and all by himself because of his size. His light couldn't compare to the bright lights of the other stars. Feeling insignificant, he wondered what his place in the universe would be. But when it was time for baby Jesus to be born, he was the only one to understand just what gift the infant King would bring to all mankind.
I thought it was a sweet story to read to your little ones around the holidays. Especially at bedtime.
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DeStefano tells the story of a Christmas star named Little Star. Little Star is the smallest star in the heavens. He was had no friends and was very lonely. One day he heard that the King was to be born. Little star was so excited that he decided to shine brighter than any of the other stars in the sky. He shone so bright trying to warm baby Jesus, that he ended up burning out and lost his life. The story says that each Christmas we remember the Christmas Star by putting a star at the top of our Christmas trees.
I don't think this will be a story I will want to read to my children. I found it to be biblically incorrect. A story of a star loosing it's life in order for Christ to be born, just did not sit well with me. My small children take things to heart that they read, and at this age they believe everything! So while I understand the creativity of fiction, I think it can be quite messy if it's not an accurate account of the things we've taught them to be true. This may be a good story book for older children who know the difference between fiction and non-fiction, however not good for our age range (0-5).
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*Spoiler Alert*
This is a story about the special star that showed the way to find baby Jesus. I like the parallels the author draws between a tiny, seemingly insignificant and overlooked star and the birth of Jesus. The illustrations are very nice with depth even in muted colors and does a fair job of differentiating between fantasy (more cartoon-like drawings of the stars) and real life (more life-like drawings of people). I also like the parallel of the tiny star giving its life for Jesus. However, like other reviewers, I don't care for the fact that the star burns out by dawn. The Biblical star did not burn out after one night and we as Christians do not burn out when we are shining with God's light. The book says there was to be "a special reward . given to the star who could shine the brightest on the night the baby king was born." If the reward is that some people put a star on their tree at Christmas, I'm sorry but that's a let down. I could see where some children would be very sensitive to this ending. Biblically, I think the ending should have been different. I would not recommend this book and I don't know if I will keep it.
I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review
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I really didn't like that the star died!
I don't know what age this book was meant for but it seemed inappropriate.
I thought the story was mildly cute but not buy worthy.
My son was not very interested in the story or pictures.
Now, my other thought was the story took away from Jesus' birth.
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My family is concerned that the real Christmas star, the Star of Bethlehem from Matthew's gospel, has been eclipsed and replaced by a well-meaning little star that shone briefly and "died" on Christmas morning.
For centuries the "Christmas star" has referred to the one that led the Three Kings from the East to the Christ Child, "and so it continued both day and night." ("The First Noel.") This is the traditional star that's on our Christmas tree.
Unfortunately, the book "Little Star" mixes this real, time-honored star with an invented modern star whose story contradicts the original Bible story - and that troubles us.
Additionally, we didn't like the idea that a "real" star sacrificed his life and was rewarded by returning as, gasp - a fake star? This isn't a fitting parallel to the Resurrection. (Even Pinocchio got to be a real boy.)
I know it's hard to keep Christ in Christmas these days, and we need good children's books to stir their hearts. But, let's stir them with biblical truth and not well-intended half-truths.
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