Book Review: Brightest by Johann de Venecia and Joanne Crisner

Rating:

Genre: Filipino Fiction > Children’s book > Fantasy

Author: Josephine Litonjua (author), Johann de Venecia (artist and coauthor), Joanne Crisner (coauthor)

A story about a lost firefly catcher, trying to find his way home… and a broken firefly that had long lost himself. And how friendship and being there for each other made a difference in their lives.

(An actual copy was given to me by the author in exchange for an honest review.)

*****

I like the illustrations. Even more so when my toddler son keeps on pointing at the star in almost every page when we are reading Brightest. But the story… seemed incomplete. There’s no rise and fall. Was there a conflict? Oh, when the firefly ignored the firefly catcher – that’s it, I think. I wonder: why did the firefly never called on the firefly catcher because he’s capturing fireflies?

If not for the written message by the author (when the story ended), I wouldn’t understand the message behind the tale at all.

Brightest could’ve been better. Something’s missing that I know is essential to building the firefly catcher’s story. It’s like a sentence without a verb. Makes sense?

But, if for the illustrations alone, kids will love this book. My son enjoyed it, and that’s enough for me to like Brightest as well.

After all, Brightest is intended for children.