The Best Story- Picture Book #5

The Book
Spinelli, E. & Wilsdorf, A. (Illus.). (2008). The Best Story. New York, NY: Dial Books for Young Readers.

Summary
The Best story is about a young girl who wants to write the best story to win the Red Brick Library contest. If she wins, first prize is a ride on  the Sooper Dooper Looper rollercoaster with her favourite author. She really wants to win this contest as in her mind first prizes don't get any better than that. She then starts asking advice from her family on what makes a good story and she gets all different kinds of ideas from everyone she talks to. However, none of their suggestions seem to sound right once she writes them down. Her mother then gives her great advice and tells her to write from her heart, and as soon as she does she is pleased with her story. In the end she doesn't seem to mind whether she wins or loses the contest as the story she wrote is her own, it came from her heart and nobody elses and that is what makes it the best.

Response
This was a really cute book.Eileen Spinelli does a great job of encouraging children to write from within and create their own stories and inspiration.I found this book to be quite charming and funny. The illustrations really added a nice touch to the story and the theme is pretty realistic which allows the reader to relate to it. The results of the contest are left to speculation and Spinelli does not name the child which allows the reader to think about what's important in this story. The point is not whether or not she wins the contest but that she is proud of the story she created as it came from her own heart.I think this would be an excellent story to read to young children to motivate them to write their own stories and narratives and would also be a good read aloud to inspire them when learning about creative writing.

Awards received/Reader's advisory information
This book has not won any awards that I know of. It's theme is story telling, creative writing and using your imagination. I think this book would be most appropriate for children 4-9  years old. It has vibrant fun illustrations that would draw younger children and a theme that is appropriate for children learning to write. I think this would be a great book for grades 1-3 to motivate the children to write their own stories and learn more about creative writing.