Here's a lovely children's book based on a folktale told by the Irish Travellers.

Many may have trouble understanding why slugs prefer forgoing a "traditional home," but the slugs consider the entire world their home. One slug, however, is swayed by popular opinion, and adopts a home that he can carry with him. It's all good in this book, which is gorgeously illustrated by Olya Anima.

This book is a little odd to review, I feel two different ways about it. This book is about two brother slugs that head off on adventure, and one day get stopped by a crow asking "where is your home?". The younger brother feels bad and off because he doesn’t have a home while the other brother thinks the my world is my home. But the younger brother slips away from older brother and creates his own home. The two brothers are cautious of each other because they are now different. This book reads like a Kipling Just So Story, except it’s much sadder and has a different connotation. When I read this, I see the plight of a homeless person the argument from some that the world is their home. Or how the homeless can feel separate and different from their family. However the back of the book we learn that this is a story passed down from a Traveler. According to the book, Travelers are a nomadic tribe of Irish people. Being a story that is passed down, and the implications of the Traveler culture, that changes the story a bit. Knowing that bit at the end makes this story have two very different meanings. However, this book still feels sad. The illustrations are beautiful but this is not a story I would want to read over and over and over again. Just for the feeling left when you close the pages.

I received an electronic ARC from Little Island Books through NetGalley.
Readers see a young boy be hurt by not being invited to a friend's birthday party because of who he is. His dad tells a bedtime story of how some slugs became snails. Two slug brothers met a crow and heard it ask about their home. One decided to build a home that represents the travels they have done. The other is content as he is. Sadly, they grew apart as their priorities changed but they realized they were still brothers in the end. Lovely illustrations support the text and tell the story of how large the world is. The author leaves the connections to the child's situation to the reader to figure out.

This is a beautifully illustrated telling of an Irish tale of Travellers, a traditionally nomadic ethnic minority group from Ireland. Slug and Snail are brothers, living their nomadic life in peace and tranquility, until the day they meet Crow. Crow has lots of questions about where they call home. Crow plants seeds of doubt and distrust the slowly pull the happy brothers apart. Only through exploring the ideas of home and connection are Slug and Snail able to reunite and live happily ever after.

The story of the slug and the snail could prompt many discussions about homes. It would also be an interesting starting point to learn about a new cultures (Irish Travellers) and nomadic lifestyles.

Thank you to Little Island, Skein Press, and Netgalley for the egalley version of this book. All opinions are my own. I look forward to getting my hands on the actual book when it's published!

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I definitely learned something from this book. There’s a group of people from Ireland known as Travelers. They are nomadic. This story points out that though we are different we can still find common ground. I believe that to be true. We shouldn’t focus on our differences. It also speaks to family dynamics. We often follow diverse paths, but we still love each other and are family. I was given an ARC to provide an unbiased review. The illustrations were good as was the story. Quite entertaining.