{"id":15748,"date":"2015-06-02T05:00:04","date_gmt":"2015-06-02T12:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ordinary-fan.flywheelsites.com\/?p=15748"},"modified":"2023-10-03T18:38:36","modified_gmt":"2023-10-04T01:38:36","slug":"mikis-and-the-donkey-by-bibi-dumon-tak","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redeemedreader.com\/mikis-and-the-donkey-by-bibi-dumon-tak\/","title":{"rendered":"*Mikis and the Donkey by Bibi Dumon Tak"},"content":{"rendered":"

*Mikis and the Donkey<\/em> by Bibi Dumon Tak, illustrated by Philip Hopman. Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2014. 89 pages<\/strong><\/p>\n

Reading Level<\/strong>: Chapter Books, ages 4-8; Middle Grades, ages 8-10\"mikis\"<\/a>
\nRecommended for<\/strong>: ages 6-12<\/p>\n

Bottom Line<\/strong>: Mikis and the Donkey<\/em> is a gentle story for younger middle grades about learning to care for a gentle, friendly creature.<\/p>\n

Mikis lives with his family on the Greek Island of Corfu, where school days are short and the sun is long. One day at the beginning of the school term, Mikis\u2019s grandfather surprises him with a donkey. Or rather, the donkey belongs to Grandpa, but Mikis can have the honor of naming him. The boy gives the donkey a choice of names, and both settle on Tsaki. Mikis and Tsaki form an alliance, sometimes joined by his classmate Elena and advised by the other kids in their class, who can\u2019t wait to hear more about Tsaki every day. Mikis takes up the slack his Grandpa doesn\u2019t notice, such as finding a doctor (a people doctor!) to treat the sores on Tsaki\u2019s back and finding a friend for Tsaki when he seems to be feeling lonely. The \u201cfriend\u201d happens to be female, so an astute reader will guess what comes of that.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a quiet and gentle story, told in a simple style, examining what it takes to care for one of God\u2019s creatures in a responsible manner\u2014both Mikis and Grandpa will grow more sensitive in that regard, and by the end the whole village is involved. There\u2019s an understated subplot of male-female attraction as Tsaki and the kids\u2019 teacher find suitable mates, and Mikis determines in his heart to marry Elena one day, as he could find no better friend. Fidgety boys and girls who like lots of action may not sit still for it, but Mikis and the Donkey<\/em> makes a pleasant read-aloud experience for ages 4-8, and a read-alone for animal-lovers ages 7-10.\u00a0 Don’t be surprised if they decide they want a donkey.
\nAlso by this author: Soldier Bear<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Cautions<\/strong>: None<\/p>\n

Overall Value: 5<\/strong> (out of 5)<\/p>\n