The Extraordinary Pause

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Pub Date 15 Sep 2021 | Archive Date 05 Oct 2021

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Description

The Extraordinary Pause is a keepsake testament of the pandemic of 2020-2021, a tribute to the simple and remarkable efforts people made in the face of the unexpected and unknown, and a tool to discuss how it is affecting kids as they start heading back to school. This book is a wonderful tool for reflecting on the physical, mental, and emotional impact of this extraordinary event. The text is complimented with thoughtful and poignant illustrations with a minimal color palette and plenty to explore for the young audiences, as well as a few talking points to help kids reflect and remember this experience.

This book will have a place in a child’s permanent collection of childhood favorites. It will be a place to return to as we reflect with our kids on the challenging period we experienced during the extraordinary pause and help us all to grapple with the social, physical, and mental parts of the journey.

If you purchase an ebook you can receive a coupon code for a discount on shipping for a hardcover copy by going to Eifrig Publishing.

The Extraordinary Pause is a keepsake testament of the pandemic of 2020-2021, a tribute to the simple and remarkable efforts people made in the face of the unexpected and unknown, and a tool to...


Advance Praise

"Kirkus Reviews: ""A child’s-eye view of the pandemic that will spark conversations."" (Picture book. 4-6)

""A young child experiences the pandemic in an urban setting.

""With a minimal but meaningful text and naïve illustrations in a limited palette, the book focuses on an unnamed child who lives with their parents through the strange time when the virus, depicted as a bipedal, rusty-red monster, appears. “The world changed overnight. Schools were closed. Restaurants were emptied. Birthday parties were postponed.…And all the world’s swings, seesaws and slides were abandoned.” The main characters, who also include the child’s grandfather, are White; other humans depicted are racially diverse. To signal the universality of the virus, small vignettes of different countries are included, with well-known monuments like the Statue of Liberty and Big Ben as well as, in a rather stereotypical shorthand, giraffes and camels. In some of the city scenes, signs in different languages are posted about stores and restaurants. As time goes on, after the new reality of “the extraordinary pause” settles in, eventually there is hope. “There was loneliness, but also connection. Light was starting to shine between the cracks.” There is nothing specific about the illness itself or the worldwide deaths, but this short picture book speaks directly to young readers about the many life changes that happened as a result of Covid-19 in ways they will comprehend. Discussion questions at the book’s close encourage reflection, and a QR code will take readers to a resource page for further engagement. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

 ~Jojo's Book Club

""It was a hectic morning here and this book was just what we needed.

“The Extraordinary Pause” by Sara Sadik is a timely book about how the world has changed due to the pandemic we’re all experiencing and a reminder to pause and notice one another.

Without getting into specifics about the virus itself, the book is told from a child’s perspective and is easily relatable. The child and their parents live in a bustling city when all of a sudden an unwelcome virus arrives. “The virus,” Sadik writes, “felt like a big old bully - mean, scary and unfair.”

We all know what happens next.

Birthday parties are cancelled, hugs are outlawed, and playgrounds are abandoned. Life becomes unexpected and unknown.

Everyone is forced to change the way they live, the way they see things and you know what? It’s not all bad. Behind the closed doors families find each other and slow down. There is loneliness, yes, but also connection.

Illustrator Karine Jaber’s homey drawing compliment Sadik’s sparse text with dark and light scenes to match the mood.

Coming from a Palestinian/Lebanese author and French/Lebanese illustrator, it was an interesting choice to portray the main character and their family as white with fair pink skin, but Jaber’s pictures allude to the universality of COVID with shop signs in different languages, supporting characters with varying skin tones and dress, and images of monuments and landmarks from around the world.

This book was sent to us by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.""

 ~Green Gables Book Reviews

""An important book to read with your kids.""

“Even as adults, we’re don’t fully understand the pause our world has taken. If we don’t understand, how can our kids? Sara Sadik has written this book, The Extraordinary Pause. I highly recommend it for parents, grandparents, and teachers to read with the children you love.”-Green Gables Book Reviews

The Extraordinary Pause will be released in mid-September, 2021, and I think this book will have a big impact on kids. I am so impressed by the way this book is written. It is focused on all of the changes that happened during the pandemic and why. I love that it talks about things important to kids-missing birthday parties, hugs, playing with friends, and more. And, it also talks about the changes families made, what we learned and gained through the pandemic. It’s written by a mother of three, who wrote this book with the sudden changes her kids were going through in mind. Not only is it a great storyline but the illustrations are great! They are colorful and I think they will really kids follow along. Near the end of the book, there is a guide for discussion with your kids in this Pandemic keepsake book.

I highly recommend The Extraordinary Pause. It’s being released in the US soon and releases are also being written in Spanish, Arabic, French, and German.""

"Kirkus Reviews: ""A child’s-eye view of the pandemic that will spark conversations."" (Picture book. 4-6)

""A young child experiences the pandemic in an urban setting.

""With a minimal but meaningful...


Available Editions

ISBN 9781632333209
PRICE $2.99 (USD)

Available on NetGalley

NetGalley Shelf App (PDF)
Send to Kindle (PDF)

Average rating from 17 members


Featured Reviews

The Extraordinary Pause by Sara Sadik and beautifully illustrated by Karine Jaber examines the pandemic through the eyes of a child. With brief, simplistic text and complementary illustrations, the book successfully conveys the enormity of the impact that Covid has had on us all, both young and old, the world over. Unfortunately, the file I was sent did not download properly, and I was unable to view the pages in their entirety, but I was able to ascertain a strong sense of the timely message that is so effectively conveyed.

Many thanks to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for an ARC.

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I can't imagine how kids are making sense of the past 18 months, but they've shown wonderful resilience and ingenuity. This book is a lovely resource to give them a framework and vocabulary to talk about what has happened to them as a result of the pandemic. It's especially valuable because it prompts an examination of both the good and the bad, acknowledging that things are rarely all one or the other.

This has a very thoughtful, soothing tone and would be great as a classroom read and especially appropriate for small groups where kids can discuss their thoughts, feelings, and experiences with each other. I would definitely recommend it for pre-K through at least mid-elementary.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review!

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This will be one of those books I will say will definitely help children understand the pandemic in the near future because it broke everything down piece by piece so it’s adaptable to understand. It was a pretty good book to follow as you read and continuously follow the story. I would say that the author and the illustrator did an amazing job at the book itself because I loved it. Again a very easy 5 out of 5 star I’ve given. It was pretty thought provoking as I tend to love in books!

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I thought this was a very cute book that emphasized what was (and is) difficult about the pandemic . I appreciated the illustrations and how it was written through a child's perspective. The language is appropriate for young children but I'm sure a wide variety of ages could relate to the story. The only complaint I have is that on one page it says "kisses were illegal". Kisses were definitely not illegal and that's sort of a flippant use of the word "illegal".

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I absolutely love this and will be buying it for my nieces. I love the creativity of viewing the pandemic from a. Child's eye and the illustrations are gorgeous! This is such a good idea to bring that this is a strange situation to light and talk about it rather than e to make children just look past it.

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This book is great to explain what happened in 2020 and to open up a discussion about it with kids. Our world changed so quickly from what we knew and made us appreciate it so much more when we weren't able to do the things we typically did in our daily lives.

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Children’s non fiction about parenting and children. I really loved this. It was a beautifully written non fiction piece of literature and I really enjoyed it. It was everything I wanted in a book and will for sure keep an eye out for more from this author in the future!

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The Extraordinary Pause is an excellent picture book. I think it would help younger audiences connect with and understand their experiences from 2020. I think it would help parents talk with kids and help them process what we all went through.
A very touching book, I liked it.

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I am so happy I came across this simple yet meaningful book about the pandemic/coronavirus/2020!!

Even though it is a children’s book, I appreciated it as an adult because I felt so much meaning behind each statement.

I truly think this could be a book teachers use in the near future when referencing how this virus affected the world.

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"For some, life s-l-o-w-e-d down, while for many others, it had never moved faster."

This book is the life in the pandemic through the lens of a child. I like how the authors help children understand that, while the pandemic was terrible, it did allow us to slow down and "really notice each other". The illustrations are just great and are able to convey the full message of the story.

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A really beautiful and thought provoking book. Read this to my 7 and 5 year olds and although there were a few big words I needed to explain they were very receptive to it and it provoked a good discussion about the past year or so. The illustrations are perfect. I felt very thoughtful and a bit emotional after reading - a little like how I feel after reading some of Oliver Jeffers more recent books about planet earth. Lovely book, hope it does well.

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The Extraordinary Pause gives a look into the world during the covid pandemic. It looks at both what has been taken from us during these times but also the things we gained. A great book to encourage kids to talk about how they feel about covid and the changes it brought with it.

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A beautiful, thought provoking book which explores how life has changed for so many people in the past year. Considering both the many hardships people have suffered, but also the way that lockdowns allowed many people to slow down and appreciate what they have a little bit more.
This will be a great health and well-being resource to help children understand and speak about what they have experienced and how they feel after this time of massive upheaval.

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The Extraordinary Pause by Sara Sadik is a lovely book for children that explains what happened in the worldwide pandemic and shutdown. This book encapsulates all the good that came with the world coming together to fight this virus and protect each other. It is a lovely remembrance of those early days and I think kids and adults would like this book. I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher with no obligations. These opinions are entirely my own.

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