I received an ARC through NetGalley from First Second. This picture book tells a fun story of Sara and her pencil. It guides the reader through the steps in the story making process and how to use your imagination. A graphic novel format for young readers, ages 4-7. My son loved the real pictures of Sara, her pencil and her dog Sweet Pea at the end of the book. It blew my son away when he saw the illustrations come to life with her actual image working at her writing desk.

This was cute book about a girl that’s trying to write a book. She goes along the process with her dog and trusty pencil. This would be a good book to use to discuss the writing process as well as perseverance. But, the book was okay. The characters didn’t stand out and the book didn’t have much of a plot.

This book, My Pencil and Me, was a cute story that I could see being read in an elementary setting. It starts with a young girl who has writer's block and her dog suggests she asks her pencil for help. The pencil comes to life and helps her create a story. Only problem is, the pencil gets broken and the character has to figure out how to end the book.
I think this book would be a great mentor text read right before it is time to begin writing. It includes a lot of the aspects of reading and writing such as setting, plot, and climax.
However, don't count this book out just because you are not in a classroom setting. This book also lends itself to conversations on growth mindset, perseverance, and problem solving.
The illustrations were okay. They were not too kiddie or overdone. I really liked the last few pages that took you into the life of the author turned character. Overall, I would give this book 3.5 stars.

Nicole Shaw

A cute and fun little story with advice on crafting your own book. Perfect for younger readers and filled with adorable and engaging illustrations.

This was a cute story about writing a story. The illustrations are great (although I noticed that Varon made themselves a righty but in the picture at the end they are a lefty). This would be a great starting off story to encourage children to write, and illustrate, their own stories. It definitely simplifies the publishing process but I think the point is to jus get children to create their own stories.

sort of a cross between picture book and graphic novel--hard to tell in the egalley format, but the description says "picture book." I think this would have more appeal specifically to kids who love graphic novels (but picture book readers will gladly pull this one off the shelf as well). I loved this glimpse behind Sara's creative process, but as a picture book I don't think it would stand out.