Phoebe pulled this book off the shelf the other day and slammed it down in my lap. Then she climbed up on the couch beside me, folded her hands, and waited. That girl knows how to get things done.
And so we read 47 Beavers on the Big, Blue Sea. I had almost forgotten about this book, purchased when our seven year old was Phoebe’s size and read many, many times since then. Reading it to Phoebe reminded me of why I love Phil Vischer: though it doesn’t have the theological depth of Sidney and Norman or What’s in the Bible?, this book is hilarious, fun to read, and held together by a message that my daughters need to hear every so often: things work better when we work together.
Jared Chapman’s illustrations make the whole thing feel like an old cartoon—Rocky & Bullwinkle, perhaps?—and add to the slapstick feel of the book’s comedy. And rediscovering this story reminds me that it’s good for a home library to have a wide range of books: sometimes, you need a long, thought-provoking story. And sometimes you need to read about forty-seven beavers at sea—with a shark.
47 Beavers on the Big, Blue Sea
Phil Vischer, Jared Chapman (2012)