Book Review: The Surfer & The Seal by Paul Gallagher

A few weeks ago I was delighted to receive an email from author Paul Gallagher asking me if I could review his children's picture book. I immediately jumped at the chance. The book sounded so cute from his description and I loved that the book is dedicated to his grandson Logan. A portion of each book sold will be donated to non-profit organizations dedicated to protecting the marine environment.

The surfer and the seal is based on a true story. Paul, a surfer who has been going to the beach since he was a little boy, has a special spot he likes to surf at. Along the way he checks out the tide pools and the various sea creatures that can be found in them. When he arrives at his secret surfing spot he finds a seal. Soon he and the seal become friends and everyday the surf together.

First I have to mention the illustrations by Monica Chenglo. They were AMAZING! Such gorgeous vivid colors. My adored all the pictures of the sea creatures and kept pointing them out before I could even begin reading the words on the page. These pictures were perfect for this children's book! I'm a sucker for great artwork.

The story itself is very cute. I love that it teaches children about marine life. Also I'm glad that it teaches children not to be scared of the water. I've met children who are scared of the ocean because of sharks and jellyfish. But this teaches that there are our marine cousins that are friendly and curious about us humans as much as we are curious about them.  Living in Jersey the shore is pretty important to me so I'm glad to read books to my son that feature ocean (even if it is a different one than the one we go to).

My son loved this book. As I said earlier he was pointing out the different sea creatures. He said how he wanted to meet a seal too. He also expressed an interest in surfing. I told him he would have to learn how to swim first.

This was a solid 5 out of 5 stars.



* I received a physical copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion
** This book was read with my severely learning disabled son and my review reflects his opinion as well as mine.