Hi there, my name is William and I have a question for you!
Welcome to one of the June 2nd stops on the blog tour for Papa the Shoemaker by Kyra Kalweit and Dayán Mantecón Roldán with Goddess Fish Promotions. Be sure to follow the rest of the tour for more reviews and a giveaway! More on that at the end of this post.
Please note that this post contains affiliate links, which means there is no additional cost to you if you shop using my links, but I will earn a small percentage in commission. A program-specific disclaimer is at the bottom of this post.
About the Book
Papa the Shoemaker Hardcover
by Kyra Kalweit and Dayán Mantecón Roldán
Published 10 February 2022
Tellwell Talent
Genre: Children’s Fiction
Page Count: 44
Add it to your Goodreads TBR!
Hi there, my name is William and I have a question for you!
Would you like to know how your shoes are made?
I invite you to come inside my papa’s workshop and learn all the secrets of the ancient art of shoemaking and more.
Let’s embark on a creative adventure of fun challenges and life lessons along the way.
Amazon US | Amazon CA | Amazon UK | BD | Chapters Indigo | B&N
Excerpt
On Saturday, Papa leaves the shoes to rest in the shoe last for the whole day.
Papa tells me, “Giving the time and space needed shows respect. When facing any situation, it is best to take a moment and breathe, then think things over.”
My Review
My Rating: 4 Stars
Consider liking my review on Goodreads
I was granted complimentary access to Papa the Shoemaker by Kyra Kalweit and Dayán Mantecón Roldán as part of my participation in a blog tour for this title with Goddess Fish Promotions. Thank you for the opportunity! My thoughts are my own and my review is honest.
Papa the Shoemaker is a cute life lessons story about a boy named William who goes to work with his father, a shoemaker, and learns some lessons that apply to both shoemaking and life in general. The shoemaking process in the story text and illustrations is fascinating, and I loved reading it! I love the message that the same sort of careful planning, preparation, practice, and patience required for shoemaking are also the foundation to succeeding in just about everything else in life. It’s a good message presented in a digestible way for a young audience.
With that said, I felt like this book went on too long. The whole bing your kid to work day life lessons time, including the arc where they come home, chat about life lessons, and go to bed, feels like a complete story. Then little Williams gets the brilliant idea to sneak out of bed, add to the perfect red shoes they made, and then wait for the morning to show Papa. This didn’t feel necessary, and the messy paint splotched result of William adding to the shoes feels like it deserved a corrective lesson if it was going to be included, but it didn’t get one.
The artwork in this book is an alternating presentation of full-page illustration to go with the story segment on the paired page, which is always on the same semi-illustrated background featuring the red and black spotchy shoes that William finishes over night. The full page illustrations are colourful, engaging, and add a lot to the story. The text pages are well laid out with easily read text surrounded by relevant imagery and soft colours that avoid the jarring stark black text on plain white situation of some other illustrated storybooks.
Overall this is a cute book with a good message. I can see this book doing well as a read-aloud book in a primary classroom where the teacher engages the class in page-by-page discussion. Parents should note that this book is text-heavy and presents quite a bit of text per illustration, so it may not be ideal as a solo or guided reading book for beginning readers.
About the Authors
Having decided to change careers as professional dance instructors and competitors, Kyra and Dayán completed a yoga teacher training and strategic intervention life-coaching certification and together embarked on the journey of self-discovery by following a calling from deep inside their hearts.
Inspired by the messages from numerous teachers of spirituality and personal growth, plus their love for children, Kyra & Dayán have made it one of their life purposes to translate the teachings they have learned throughout their evolution into children’s books, so the younger generations can benefit early on in their lives from the wisdom of those who have passed before them. Together they founded Feeling Good Books, with the intention to empower, inspire and provide children with tools that will help them navigate through life. They share a desire to contribute to the growth and well-being of each child and parent out there.
Kyra and Dayán live in Montreal, Canada, with their five children.
ABOUT FEELING GOOD BOOKS
Feeling Good Books is all about empowering the divine within each child through meaningful messages found in each book and providing tools that will help children navigate through life. We love children, and children’s books! As parents ourselves, we are passionate about books that will help create a better world for the next generations.
Our mission is to spread awareness about the inner knowing and inner wisdom we all possess since birth. Through each book we invite these inner powers to come forth and flourish into being. We believe by teaching our children early on the fundamental truth about life, it will help them to have a brighter and more positive journey.
We invite you to check out every page on this website and begin seeing the world in a different light.
Sending ‘feeling good’ vibes your way!
Website | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads
Giveaway Alert!
Kyra Kalweit and Dayán Mantecón Roldán will be awarding a $15 Amazon or B&N gift card to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
a Rafflecopter giveaway| Jun 2 | Lisa’s Reading | Jun 2 | Westveil Publishing |
| Jun 9 | Splashes of Joy | Jun 9 | Sandra’s Book Club |
| Jun 9 | Andi’s Kids Books | Jun 16 | Gina Rae Mitchell |
| Jun 16 | Gimme The Scoop Reviews | Jun 23 | Fabulous and Brunette |
| Jun 23 | Our Town Book Reviews |
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Thanks for hosting!
Great review, thanks.
The book sounds like a wonderful read. I’d love to read this to my grandkids.