Little Sid: The Tiny Prince who became Buddha by Ian Lendler by Marissa Posada

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Justification: The reason I chose this title was because I liked the idea of exposing kids to various religions. I'm biased and see Christianity everywhere, so I think that kids should be able to hear the stories from other religions. I was not exposed to the story of Buddha until I was already in high school. Allowing or exposing younger kids to this ideas allows student to be more open-minded as they grow older. If they grow up open-minded then society would be better.

Evaluation:As the story of Buddha it is obvious that there would be unexpected insight to this story. The unexpected insight is that material goods will not make you happy. Sid is given everything. The book mentions that Sid "was surrounded by fun every moment of the day." When he mentions he is unhappy his parents give him stuffed toys. Sid only finds happiness when he almost dies and realizes how precious the small things in life are. When he comes back he gets rid of the things he has by giving them away. His only request is that his parents spend time with him.

This book also uses understatements. Sid does not explicitly say that the things his parents give him do not make him happy. He just avoids the 'fun' to go read a book. When Sid reaches enlightenment, it does not say that is what happened. The book just says that Sid was different after his near-death experience. Hi is now happy and changes how things work at the palace. Because this is a combination of Buddhist fables, the author has to use understatement to get all of the points across.

The illustrations in this book extend or develop the plot. When Sid is asking for his parents' advice it says that his parents were busy. the illustrations shows that not only were his parents busy, but on the other side of a very long table and did not even look at Sid. After meeting the wise woman, Sid is thinking out loud as he wonders the mountain. the illustrations shows how a tiger has been stalking him before Sid is aware of it. Another example is when the book says that Sid changed and acted different. The illustrations show Sid was different, by helping the elderly, giving away toys, and helping the entertainers.

Response:Although I'm not Buddhist, I do like the message that is show in this story: This reminds me of the charity work by Misha Collins and his charity Acts of Kindness. Again this book strengthened my views in kindness for everyone. It would make a great world if people practiced kind thoughts and deeds, this times of reflection through meditation. I enjoyed this book as a work of entertainment and as artwork. It was a good story about enjoying spending time with family and not placing happiness on material things. The artwork was simple and beautifully added to the story.

Conclusion: This book has examples of unexpected insights, understatement, and illustrations that extend or develop the plot. I recommend this book to any one wanting to example children's knowledge of other religions. I would even recommend to people who just want a good story to show children to not covet material things. I gives this book two thumbs up.

APA Citation: Lendler, I. (2018). Little Sid: The tiny prince who became Buddha. New York: First Second.