Jag's New Friend

Rating:
Summary: WHO CAN YOU TRUST?
Review: Popular young singer LeAnn Rimes and her husband, dancer/choreographer Dean Sheremet follow their initial collaborative effort, Jag, with a story of friendship.

As Jag's New Friend opens we find the perky jaguar and her best friend, Simon, lazing in a field enjoying a beautiful day. But, Simon's been pretty busy lately as captain of the climbing team, and he no longer has a great deal of time to spend with Jag. When Jag complains to her mother, mom suggests she visit her friend, Isabel. However, Isabel the parrot isn't at home. Instead, Jag found a snake, Bo, who offered to play. Now, Jag has been warned that snakes aren't "cool". But, Bo looks good to him - he'll show those friends who ignore him.

The little jaguar is soon disheartened when he sees that what Bo really wants is Isabel's eggs. (Wouldn't you know, snakes are always the bad guys!). So, Jag has a lot of explaining to do about why he took up with this slithery creature in the first place.

The lesson is clear: even your best friends can't always pay attention to you, and be careful who you trust.

Sales for this title will probably be buoyed by illustrator Richard Bernal's colorful illustrations and the Rimes name.

- Gail Cooke





Rating:
Summary: A Good Book for Teaching Values
Review: I was afforded the opportunity of thumbing through this book at a friend's house. Aside from being a good book, it is just refreshing to see children books being written by someone who can really play the role model children need to see in celebrities. Too many stars "dabble" in this genre but lack the public character to add credibility to their work. Leann Rimes is star in every sense of the word, but more importantly, she is a warm and real person who projects the values she rights about.

As a fellow author of pet loss books, I know how difficult it is to bring a writing project to print. It takes a lot of effort and personal commitment. Given her other commitments, it is obvious that to dedicate the time and effort it took to produce this work she has to possess the values she writes about.

Even though I cheated and read someone else's copy, I recommend this book very highly.