My thanks to Quarto Group - Francis Lincoln Children’s Books for a temporary digital edition via NetGalley of ‘Freddie Mercury’ by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara with illustrations by Ruby Taylor.

This is the author’s latest in the highly acclaimed Little People, BIG DREAMS series of illustrated books intended for young readers aged 4-7. Each book introduces its readers to the lives of innovators in various fields. There is always a focus on the subject’s young years and how this contributed to their later life.

Here we follow the journey of a young Parsi boy named Farrokh Bulsara, who at an early age discovered his love of music and that he had an rare four-octave vocal range. At the age of twelve he formed a band, started calling himself Freddie and thought constantly of becoming a rock star. Later his family moved to London where together with friends he formed the rock group Queen. The rest is history!

I have been a great fan of Queen’s music and while somewhat familiar with Freddie’s later life, it was interesting to read about his childhood. I found it admirable that the author didn’t shy away from sharing that Freddie had been diagnosed with AIDS.

As always the book ends with a biographical timeline accompanied by photographs and a suggestion for further reading at an older level.

Ruby Taylor’s artwork was vibrant and I loved her use of colour. I especially liked the illustration that contained portraits of Freddie with Mary, along with his beloved cats.

I know these little books are intended for children but I always enjoy them and recommend them to friends with children and grandchildren. I expect that educators and librarians will also find them an excellent way to inspire children and encourage them to read nonfiction.

My family and I love the Little People Big Dreams series, especially discovering more about familiar celebrities. Not only are they beautifully illustrated but they get the tone just right for their audience, with engaging text of well known and new facts to learn about famous people.

Freddie Mercury is no different, with a whole host of interesting facts right from the start. From his roots in Zanzibar to boarding school in India and finally moving to England, we follow Freddie through his singing career. His rise to stardom, private life and untimely death are dealt with delicately and in a considered way that children will understand. The more 'grown up' text at the book of each book is useful to read first, so that you can answer any questions your children may have!

those little books are nice picture books to introduce kids very young to great people they should learn about.

i personally neither love the writing style nor the art but this series certainly has people that love both so i might just have a bit too high expectations of what i personally enjoy in picture books.

also as with the other of this series i do not really understand why there is also another version of the text -a adult targeted and with that a bit better written version1 at the end of the book that gives the same information with real life pictures of the people the book is about. why? no idea? maybe it’s one of those things that just don’t make sens e to me.

all in all?
it’s a nice series and if you like the art and enjoy very simple writing? go for it.

I absolutely love Queen and I have to say this book captures the glory that is Freddy Mercury. Beautiful pictures! Well Done! Thank you for this opportunity Netgalley.

As a life-long Queen fan as well as a lover of children’s books, I knew I needed to read this story. The author does an excellent job of giving the reader the highlights of Freddie’s life. If one is looking for a more in-depth dive into his background, this is not the book to choose. The illustrations are colorful a depict Freddie in a way that highlights his unique features without making him a caricature. This story is an excellent gateway into biographies for young audiences. Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

I adored Freddie Mercury and was thrilled to find this book The illustrations are beautiful and made me smile.

Freddie Mercury was an amazing singer and the original frontman of the band Queen. I must admit that I didn’t really learn much from this book, as I’ve enjoyed Freddie’s voice and Queen’s music for a long time, and enjoyed documentaries and the Bohemian Rhapsody film a few years ago. I enjoyed the illustrations and I’m sure families who don’t really know about his life will learn lots about him.

A great picture book that introduces children to one of R&Rs most famous stars .
This series of books is really good for introducing diversity to children

This book was a fantastic read and a fabulous addition to the Little People, Big Dreams range. From a functional view, the minimal text on each page allowed for the illustrations to really pop, whilst also communicating a good deal of information and allowed the story to flow. The illustrations matched the style that has been established in this line of books, but was able to communicate the characters in their own unique way.
I like that this book will allow a dialogue between young people and their parents and grandparents, particularly as it can lead to bonding opportunities over Queen's music. Additionally, I think it is important that this book acknowledged Freddy Mercury's relationship with Jim and, additionally, that it didn't omit the fact that Freddy Mercury had AIDS.
As always, the timeline at the end, with real photos was informative and added another layer of engagement for the adults who are likely reading or guiding young people through this story.

"Little People, Big Dreams" never failed to present accurate, simple and comprehensive biographies for young readers.
My primary reason for picking this book is that I am a huge fan of the Queens. Freddie Mercury 's and The Queen's work will forever be in my heart. Although, he left this world when I was a baby, it is amazing how my generation, and my son's generation STILL listen to their work. His songs indeed keep electrifying in our hearts, and he did encourage us to live a fabulous life.
Another reason to love this book, is that how the author handled to present his queerness, and his cause of death to young readers so simple.
The series and the author have once again done their best and I am truly impressed with this book. TRULY.

The series Little People, Big Dreams by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara has written a book about the young Freddie Mercury.
You will discover many important events that took place in Farrokh’s life that lead him to his success.
Freddie Mercury was born, Farrokh, and discovered his talent once in boarding school. From singing to playing piano, the talent was so strong for young Freddie. In this series, we follow Farrokh all the way to London where he found his stage name and his band.

Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara takes great detail about the musician’s life. Teamwork and collaboration contributed to the success of the band Queen. Highlighting the amazing success and historic concert 1985 Live Aid concert. And the care of mentioning the loves of his life (Mary, Jim, and all of his cats). Giving a moment to honor the way, Freddie Mercury chose to deal with knowing about his illness. As a matter of fact, it is respectful and language sensible for children to understand.

This is a great book that explains the life of Freddie Mercury to the younger fans. He was extremely talented and this book tells his story in easy to understand language and lots of illustrations. I like how the story starts off with Freddie as a young boy and tells his story in a way that is inspiring to young people to follow their dreams.

A beautifully put together and sweet take on the life story of Freddie Mercury, starting from his beginnings in Zanzibar right up to a heartfelt panel where he keeps pushing on to record even when he's sick.

Born in Zanzibar, schooled in India (where he learned all about music and singing), then moved with his Family to London where he met new friends who needed a singer for their band. Then he changed his name to Freddie Mercury and they called the band QUEEN! All their songs became classics, but Freddie became ill and died too soon. Yet his music lives on!
The illustrations by Ruby Taylor are fun, simple, colorful, and delightful.
Well suited for reading WITH someone of any age including ESL, and great for gifting to anyone, but especially to a school or public library!
I requested and received a free temporary e-book on Adobe Digital Editions from Quarto Publishing Group/Frances Lincoln Children's Books via NetGalley. Thank you!

The ARC of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The ‘My First Little People, Big Dreams’ series provides informative and inspirational biographies about people who left a mark on this earth, no matter what difficulties they have encountered.
These stories are very short, but that’s because they’re books for children, so it’s totally understandable.
I think they are a very smart and wonderful way to introduce little children to such important figures. This cute little book is about the great Freddie Mercury, singer of the rock band called Queen.
He was an incredible artist, one of the best singers that ever lived. I'm so glad that children have the chance to to learn about this astonishingly talented artist.

This is a fabulous introduction to the legend that is Freddie Mercury. It gives and honest and succinct summary of his life at a level suitable for children. It focuses on how inspirational he is. It provides a further timeline of his life and suggestions for further reading. I would definitely recommend it. My children really enjoyed it.

I absolutely love Freddie, he simply is The Greatest Showman and there never will be another like him. This is a cute little book that's beautifully illustrated and tells the younger generations all about the legend that was Freddie.

Thank you Netgalley for letting me review this story. My opinions are entirely my own.

This is a sweet book about a little boy who was destined for greatness. As he grew up broke the mold in what a real Rockstar looked like. This is a wonderful book about a man that was taken away from us too soon, but will live on in his music

I think kids will enjoy this book very much

What a sweet, short way to introduce Freddie Mercury to younger kids! Very happy to know Freddie Mercury is apart of this series, as he is a brilliant music legend whose story must continue to live on. Being a big Freddie and Queen fan, I even learned a couple things about him from reading this book!

Thank to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy.

Very brief look at the life of singer Freddie Mercury. I was hoping for a little more insight in the life and career. I also was not a huge fan of the illustrations.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book for review.