Johnny the Phoenix by Scott A. Batten

• 11/12/2013
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Johnny the Phoenix
Scott A. Batten
AuthorHouse (2008)
ISBN 9781434372970
Reviewed by Cayden Aures (age 5) and Mom for Reader Views (10/09)

“Johnny the Phoenix” is a story about a worm named Johnny who wants to become a Phoenix butterfly.  His mother tells him that in order to become one he needs to climb up the tree past the green apples, past the red apples (stopping for a few bites to give him energy), and then all of the way to the top to the golden apples.  If he eats the golden apples he will turn into a Phoenix butterfly.  He tells his friends this but none of them have the determination and perseverance to continue to the top except for him.

Cayden:  “I liked that he listened to what his mom said and believed her about the golden apples at the top.  She was right and he found them even though his friends didn’t think that they were there.  He was the only one that wanted to keep going.  I am glad he got to turn into a Phoenix butterfly.  I liked making the alphabet letters out of Play-Doh at the end of the book like it told us to.  That was fun!”

Parent’s comments:
“Johnny the Phoenix” teaches a couple of great life lessons and is a wonderful story to read to any young child.  The “Wuzzle Worm Alphabet Acrobatics” section at the end was creative and my child enjoyed doing the activity.  “Johnny the Phoenix” by Scott A. Batten is an inspirational story that we highly recommend!