Memoirs of a Goldfish - Our Favorite Book
My children and I have read over 2,600 children’s books! I feel passionate about books and the education and joy that children receive from books is priceless, not to mention the quality snuggle time spent reading together. I love sharing and recommending our favorite books to others and started the 2,500 & Counting Book Blog as a way to do it on a larger scale.
I am thrilled to announce our favorite book – Memoirs of a Goldfish – written by Devin Scillian (journalist, author and song writer) and illustrated by Tim Bowers. I discovered this gem as a Goodreads recommendation and fell in love with the cover and 4+ star review immediately. I found a copy at our local library and my kids and I sat down to read. As soon as we finished, I said, “Wow, we need our own copy.”
If you have not read this book, I highly encourage you to get a copy. This is a book that must be experienced. I don’t want to give away the humor and plot so instead, I will write about the book’s rich and powerful meaning.
Memoirs of a Goldfish excels in every component for the makings of a great book: Meaning/Theme, Plot, Illustrations, Humor and Readability. I had the pleasure of meeting representatives from the publisher, Sleeping Bear Press, at Book Expo America in May, 2016. I love this book so much that I was able to give it a shout out in my novel, His Kate. Note that the book is part of a four book series in which there is also Memoirs of a Hamster, Memoirs of an Elf and most recently, Memoirs of a Parrot. My children and I love them all.
The book is geared toward children ages four and up. However, sometimes I read it by myself. It is just that good.
I want to touch on the powerful meanings and the other factors that make it an A+ book.
This book is about diversity and family. There are many living creatures and inanimate objects that join the Goldfish in his bowl. They come together as one unit, one family. They help each other, accept each other and despite all of their differences, love each other. The Goldfish takes it upon himself to help everyone, regardless of the fact they are taking over his bowl. He feels it is his responsibility to keep their unit united and together. This is a crucial concept for children to learn from an early age.
It is about validation. Everyone wants to feel and needs to feel validated, that their life has meaning and purpose. The Goldfish is no different and in this book, he realizes it and takes an active role. No one wants to feel their life and/or work is dispensable. People want and need to feel important. Not only does it provide higher self esteem, but it provides motivation to work harder and smarter. You hold your head high when your life has meaning, when you wake up in the morning with a purpose and goals to meet. This can come in many forms. It can be a job, being a full time parent or any other role where someone is counting on you. In this book, the Goldfish finds his purpose through his new family and is happier for it.
It is about sharing. Sharing your space, your belongings and your life with others is better than living all to yourself. It means that you have others to talk with, spend time with and to love.
It is about love. As happy as the Goldfish is being a part of this new family, helping everyone and being the role model and leader, he still needs love. Let’s just say that the story has a sweet and innocent happy ending.
It is funny. The Goldfish at times is downright hilarious, especially his facial expressions (kudos Tim Bowers!). Children and adults will relate to the humor in a pure sense. The illustrations enhance the wonderful story and make the reader want to turn the page to find out what is coming next.
It is about realizing how good you had it, only after it is taken away. The story is about being selfless and putting others needs ahead of your own. It is about being the best person (or Goldfish) you can be. It is about doing the right thing for the greater good of others.
If I had to sum it up in one sentence, Memoirs of a Goldfish is about the fact that people need people, family, friends, love, and purpose to survive, thrive and be happy. You may need to read this book multiple times to get all of the meanings intertwined throughout the pages, but when you do, it is a beautiful moment.
You might be asking yourself, all this from one children’s book? And the answering is a resounding yes!
If you already read the book or read it in the future, please share your comments with me via email, on Facebook or Instagram.
Enjoy!