Cute short book about not giving up, taking a step back and going at it again - and succeeding . A message not just for little readers/listeners!

A great read for any storytime! You teach children how to work and learn problem-solving. We meet a little girl who is frustrated by her inventions. Nothing looks right, nothing is what she imagines it to be. She goes through countless tries and when she can't figure it out she is hit with perspective and a solution. Wonderful story with great illustrations.

A cute book teaching children about not giving up no matter how hard the task, also always be creative.

My five year old enjoyed this a lot.
The pictures are great and the story is endearing. I would definitely buy this for presents.
I particularly like the female inventor character.
I didn't know what she was trying to make until the last page but it made sense when I finally saw it.

My niece loved this darling and sweet book, as did I! I love absolutely anything relating to dogs and this was no exception. It teaches kids about teamwork, persistence, and friendship, while still being super cute & fun!

Another beautifully illustrated book that finds a young girl who likes to make things with the help of her trusty dog. Unfortunately she can’t seem to get the idea that is in her head correct. She tries multiple times before finally getting angry and frustrated. She decides to go for a walk to calm down. That’s when she realises what she’s been doing wrong and finally builds The Most Magnificent Thing. A hugely enjoyable read that deals with stress and creativity which my six year old grandson loved.

This is a great book to help your child understand anger and patience. The little girl in the story becomes very frustrated and her dog helps her to see that being patient, and stepping away is a great way to manage your feeling. By channeling her feelings she is then able to concentrate and create something magnificent! A great one-on-one read.

This was very sweet. It’s excellent for classrooms or homes in which one is trying to develop a growth mindset culture. It would also be great in conjunction with STEM or the scientific process, emphasizing perseverance and how sometimes you get something you didn’t expect. (That also makes it useful for writing lessons!)

I particularly enjoyed that the protagonist was a girl! And her doggy best friend! And the people who see value in the things that she didn’t value herself.

The Most Magnificent Thing is the story of a little girl who, with the assistance of her best friend in the whole wide world (a cute little dog), sets out to build "the most magnificent thing". Unfortunately, as she works, the thing she is trying to make just won't live up to the image in her mind, and fails to be magnificent. She becomes frustrated and gives up, declaring that she is no good at building things. Her friend suggests a walk, which works to clear her head, and she is able to come back to the project with fresh eyes and see that parts of her earlier failed attempts are not so bad after all.

This cute picture book, written and illustrated by Ashley Spires, author of the Binky the Space Cat series has a great message for children and adults- that it okay to fail, and that while you might not get something right the first time, persistence can eventually pay off, especially if you take some time out to regroup and don't let frustration stop you altogether.

The illustrations are sweet, and the little girl reminds me of certain little perfectionist I know and love. I especially liked the part where the girl finds "an out of the way place to work", ie. right in the middle of the footpath where everybody else has to get past her and her pile of materials and equipment.

The Most Magnificent Thing is a cute, inspiring story that would be suitable for children in the early grades of primary school (maybe grade one or two) to read on their own.


Published: April 1 2018
Disclaimer: I was given an complimentary copy of this book by Kids Can Press, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

A beautiful children's story that shares many important life lessons including practice takes perfect, try and try again, sometimes you have to step back and observe before you can see the answer, and hard work pays off. I found this book to be such a pleasant surprise, and I will be searching it out at the bookstores to buy for my nieces and nephews.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I truly appreciate it!

This is definitely a book we will be adding to our shelves! I loved the main character's tenacity and creativity. She's dedicated and incredibly focused on perfecting her idea. As the reader, we have no idea what she's trying to make, only that she tries again and again to make her project match what's in her head. As she gets increasingly frustrated, she starts to lose patience with her creations and pays less attention to what she's doing.

In the end, her dog saves the day. He sees her frustration and offers a simple solution to help her refocus on what she was trying to accomplish. They made the perfect team, and I really enjoyed watching their story play out. I had no idea what she was trying to make at first, but the end result was absolutely perfect.

This book would be great for teaching children to remain calm when they get frustrated, and how getting angry and upset only makes things worse. The Most Magnificent Thing shows readers how taking a step back can offer a different perspective and allow things to be viewed as a whole.

Originally posted at Do You Dog-ear? on June 15, 2018.

4.5 Stars!
How many times have you heard - "For-Get-It! It wasn't supposed to look like that!" Helping children understand stress, trying, accepting failures, and not being perfect is difficult. Hell-O-Fuzzy - - those feelings are hard to deal with as adults. This lil' book shows kids how to handle those emotions and could prevent your youngster's next melt down.

Just like my granddaughter (and daughter before) despite her best efforts the little girl failed to create exactly what she imagined. But unlike my precious, perfection seeking granddaughter in The Most Magnificent Thing, the little girl walks away, takes her dog for a stroll, and cools off. She returns to her project with a new attitude and gets it just the way she imagined it. The book is well written using verbs in sets of three. I loved seeing 'old school' words like fastens, fiddles, and tinkers. The art work is beautifully done. It is delightful, bright, and easy to follow. The strong positive message makes this book a winner at our house.

In a nutshell - I love the book! The author tackles anger, frustration, and disappointment head-on. Even the drawings leave no room for any doubt that the lil girl is mad. Then the author, complimented by the art, makes it easy to see there are other ways to handle these situations. But most importantly it demonstrates no-one is perfect. We all make mistakes and experience failure.The Most Magnificent Thing teaches an important life-lesson through age appropriate, fun to read dialogue, and beautiful illustrations.

Happy Reading,

This was an absolutely adorable book that addresses the quality of perseverance in a new way. A girl and her dog set out to try to create a new invention, but each version of the invention isn't quite right. The girls builds several models, but each isn't the "thing" that she is envisioning in her head. Eventually, she gets frustrated and quits. After a walk around the block with her dog, she encounters her inventions again and realizes that each invention is "right" in some way, and all together they accomplish her goal. My children loved this charming story, and I loved that it encourages kids to keep on trying even when the going gets tough. 5/5 stars.

A little girl and her dog set out to make the most MAGNIFICENT thing, a thing she has pictured in her mind, but she struggles to bring to life. After tons of iterations, none of them anywhere near what she had in mind, she grows increasingly frustrated, until she finally starts feeling like giving up. Will she walk away from her project or find a way to make it work?

What 's not to love about this book? Not. A. Darn. Thing. The illustrations are fabulous (and I'm a sucker for pictures, especially in a picture book), but the story is just as tremendous. If you're a fan of Andrea Beatty's books "Ada Twist Scientist", etc., then you will love this book! A confident little girl who is a natural inventor and creator, a child who perseveres, a child who is resilient, and adaptable...all wonderful traits. Exactly the kind of story I'd choose for my children.

The illustrations in this book are magnificent. Ashley Spires artistic style made me think of an Edward Gorey-esque black and white background only with brightly colored characters and objects in the forefront. The message of the book is one children need: don’t give up, and with determination, I can be successful in my work. It would lend itself well for a discussion about persistence.

I disliked how the girl in the story’s face is frustrated and angry for a good portion of the book. When she “smashes, jams, and pummels” her creation it’s a little extreme. Even though this portion could be used to discuss anger and losing your temper, it’s too much. The story could be told without the girl exploding.

The book is labeled for 3-7 year olds. It’s more a book I’d read to 5-10 year olds.

Thank you to Netgalley and Kids can Press for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

My son and I love this book. First and foremost, it was a great book about friendship. I love the friendship dynamics of the girl and her dog. I also love how it teaches creativity, ingenuity, perseverance, hope, failure and success in such simple storytelling. Sometimes you achieve something beautiful in something so simple. I also love the ending. The ending made their friendship stronger and was also a bit unexpected. I also love the illustrations! I love love love this book. I can't say it enough.
Thank you #NetGalley for the free copy.

Wonderful book!! I read this book to my daughter, and it's been Approved! Ha! The only negative is the small font of the story. It's hard to read when it's so small. The illustrations are great. I loved the story. :)

The Most Magnificent Thing is a very cute book indeed. The story is simple yet interesting, the language is rich and helps to keep the reader interested, and the situation is so well-known and relatable to both young and adult readers. The moral of the story is something we all need to keep in mind, no matter our age.

And I love, love, love the illustrations - I believe my pupils would love them as well.

I am looking forward to read this book with my pupils and to include it in our bibliotherapy shelf.

This is a cute story about a girl who is trying to invent something. She realizes that her several inventions will work better together. The text is simple and the illustrations are done very well. Children will enjoy reading this one.

First let me thank Netgalley for this digital copy. A very sweet book that addresses perseverance and creativity. It follows a little girl and her dog as they try to build the most magnificent thing ever. She gets mad when things don't work out but after she takes some time to step away from things, she gets another idea. I would definitely recommend this book. Illustrations as well as the story was wonderful.