I loved the illustrations and the chance for parents to explain vocabulary. However, I would have liked it more if the book itself explained the new vocabulary. Also, the conclusion to the story was a bit abrupt. I would have liked some closing thoughts, like whether or not the characters felt ok with it or would try again tomorrow.

Good illustrations. Fun activities in the beach. Felt incomplete as we don't know what happens when the tide comes in

sA day at the beach is not complete unless the tide comes in. Maybe, jut maybe, the castle can be saved.

Read this to my daughter, some big words that younger childern wouldnt understand. But a pleasent story.

A family spends a day at the beach, some relaxing and others building a sand castle. . . a big fancy one. When the tide comes in there’s crabs and seaweed to contend with, and then of course the tide itself.
The best character is the really helpful dog.
Nicely painted, but not much of a story. I can almost hear the kiddies asking, “Then what happens?”

Nice book about going to the beach but the wording is a little stilted for a beginning book for children

Sweet book with beautiful illustrations by Joanna Czernichowska about the inevitability of the rising tide.

This is such a nice little book! Illustrations are great, story is just right , and adds vocabulary words children may not be familiar with, and many children will relate to a day at the beach! It would make a great gift for a child visiting the beach over the summer!

Wow, this book has such wonderful illustrations and such a great idea about a sandcastle being washed away when the tide comes in, but the vocabulary was out in left field. This is a children's book with words like fortress, rogue wave, mount our defensed against the inevitable and more. My grandson lost interest almost immediately and he loves the beach. Sorry but I can not recommend this one.

The Tide is Coming In is all about a day at the beach. The pictures are sunshiny and beachy, and the colors are vibrant. The sand is bright, and sandy; the ocean and waves bright and blue. This book invites you in to take a beach chair and sit in the sun and soak up some rays, until the tide turns, then run! Fun book! There are some complex sentences with a few words you may have to explain to your child, but it leans towards the precociousness of children. i.e. "structural integrity" on p 5.

Two small children build an elaborate sand castle, determined to protect it at all costs from the rising tide in this engagingly-illustrated picture book. Parents may need to explain terms such as "structural integrity" and some of the pithy humor may be lost on little ones. Nevertheless, four stars for a fun read about a day at the beach and a sand castle saved from encroaching waves.

The illustrations in this book are beautiful, but the storyline is lacking. I like the general plot (simple, easy to follow story about a sandcastle), but it could have been written better.

I want to love this book because the illustrations are fantastic. They drew our three year old in immediately, BUT the language is not even remotely accessible in many instances for his age. I feel like choices could have been made to introduce new vocabulary in context without going to this extreme. I read this aloud with three other adults in the room and everyone was laughing at the end at the ridiculousness of the choices for a picture book. We get that the children took fortress building seriously, and the tone is set for that, but it causes the book to miss the mark. While I love the story the pictures tell, the words are very much lacking.

This is quite a nice book with some nice and bright images. The story is fairly simple but I did think that some of the sentences were quite complex for this type of book. 3 stars from me.

Really enjoyed the book. But there were to many big words for the age group it's aimed at. Read it to my 5 and 7 year olds and I changed some of the bigger words to make it more enjoyable and understandable for them.

This is a sweet book with a very simple storyline around building a sandcastle. The illustrations are really beautiful, ensuring that there is not a single white patch on any page, and the text is black and large enough to be read across the colourful backgrounds. My reservations about this short story lie with the actual vocabulary. One such phrase I questioned was 'structural integrity' - do young kids really know what this means? I agree it's great to teach new vocabulary and phrases through children's books, but too advanced and it'll go over their heads. Some of the sentences also sounded rather complex, and that's what let this story down for me.