Beegu

Product Information

It would be an excellent book for teachers to use when welcoming new students into the classroom, encouraging the children to be considerate and make sure no one in the class feels anxious and isolated like Beegu. Alexis Deacon graduated from the University of Brighton, where he studied Illustration, gaining a first class honours degree. Finally she finds some children on the playground that welcome her, suggesting that children are much more open- minded as they have fewer misconceptions. The story unravels to reveal that although the adult humans weren’t very helpful or even nice to Beegu, the children on Earth were. With this message behind it, I feel it can be read to any children whether they are four or eleven, there can be clear discussions after and during the story in terms of their comprehension of it and what the important factors were.

Beegu tells the tale of an adorable little three-eyed alien who unexpectedly finds herself alone on Earth after her spacecraft crash-lands, leaving her stranded. RAT LAW’ states that ‘Cheese Belongs To You’ – at least until someone bigger, stronger, faster, or scarier decides otherwise. It can encourage children’s creativity in art as they design and make Beegu figures, as well as making alien friends for Beegu to play with. The pictures are very well done with the format changing page-to-page, some are a comic strip style, others have a small illustration and others take up the whole page.Here she seems sad from the way her, what looks like ears, are drooped back like a sad dog, as well as sadness in her eyes. Ignored by both the rabbits and leaves she seeks friendships from the adults she finds in the city of London, only to be dismissed. They appear to be done in water color and they are simple pictures, yet they convey a lot of emotion. This is a fun, interesting and moving story with a happy ending, beautiful illustrations, colour palette and wonderful message. There are not too many words on each page, so this is suitable for the youngest child, but older children (and this adult) are likely to love it too.

Along with The Doll's House by Rumer Godden, this child's picture book demonstrates the aristotelian concept of "catharsis" as well as any other work of drama/fiction I've encountered, and shows exactly how powerful children's literature can be. I love the scene where she is reunited with her parents and she retells her experiences in her special language, the pictographs are great in her speech bubble. Feeling bewildered and alone as she awaits a rescue signal from her mother Beegu sets off to find friends with the strange creatures she comes across. Beegu is a bright yellow, strange looking creature from another planet who somehow gets lost on earth. They remind me of Allie Brosh’s dog illustrations that manage to pack so much expression into a line drawing.

Deacon’s simple text and soft illustrations cleverly convey a child’s feelings of uncertainty and confusion when faced with new surroundings. The Story centres around an Alien coming to Earth and finding it difficult to find a place to fit in; with everywhere he goes, he is turned away and rejected.

I enjoyed the style of the images, which seemed to echo through colour the mood Beegu was in throughout the story e. Then an adult from an animal shelter finds Beegu and it is obvious that, “Beegu wasn’t wanted there.

The story is a great one to use with all ages, with the lesson behind it being to accept everyone for who they are. I have seen this story read to a class of year 2 pupils and it was totally captivating for both boys and girls. Beegu soon finds some children in a playground who are accepting and become her earth friends until an adult finds her and she is once again discarded. An important book which could be used for so many different ages and abilities especially as mentioned bellow with SEN and EAL children. The story could be used to teach children about those who are different and don't fit in as easily as others, and the importance of making people feel welcome, as throughout the book the idea of loneliness is repeated and presented through the text and pictures, making the reader empathise with Beegu.

The book is geared for younger elementary students, but it is the illustrations that are extraordinary and make this book an excellent read. The beautifully simplistic illustrations convey a lot of emotion, and children and adults alike will be able to interpret when Beegu is happy and sad. T, a young alien that had become separated from their family and lost on, what was to them, an alien planet, however befriends a group of children and is soon to be reunited by their family.The illustrations beautifully demonstrate the different emotions Beegu feels throughout the story, with his ears moving up and down just like a puppy dog when they’re happy or sad. This story was requested again and again and again at bedtime and I never grew tired of this baby alien’s adventure.