In this fun-filled, action-packed picture book, our main character is quite convinced they’re not in a book. After all, if this was a book, there’d be pages to turn … Oops! We’ve just turned the page.
But that’s not conclusive proof this is a book. If it was a book, there’d be interesting settings and problems to solve. Hold on! Why is our lead character being chased by a lion? Why are pirates stealing treasure? And are those mermaids playing in a rock band?
This is NOT a Book! is the perfect introduction for kids to how a book is structured and how to tell a good story. It’s metafiction made fun!
About the Author :
Kellie Byrnes is a children’s author, freelance writer, kidlit blogger and book reviewer. Her first picture book, Cloud Conductor, was published in 2018 and she's had three more picture books released since then. Her next book is How Do You Love?: The Five Ways We Show We Care.
Aśka is an energetic visual storyteller and a science communicator who is a passionate advocate of visual literacy. She has illustrated ten published books, makes comics, and is a regular contributor to The School Magazine and other children’s publications.
Review :
“Marvellously entertaining This is NOT a Book! from Kellie Byrnes ... teaches about book construction while telling a totally hilarious tale of denial filled with fun.”
“This is NOT a Book! is a fun picture book that breaks the fourth wall. It’s a light-hearted and action-packed meta-fictive story about a character who is VERY sure they’re NOT a character, and certainly NOT in a book.”
“A fun and clever way to show the building blocks of a story.
This is a book that denies it’s a book, which is actually a book that tells you how to write a book! Loved it!”
I think my tagline for this would be ‘my first metafiction’- a book dedicated to picking apart what a book actually is, piece by piece, for children to understand. Aśka’s illustrations are charming as usual, following our purple-haired protagonist across each page to discover the next plot point, setting, or conflict until we- unfortunately- reach The End.
"Teachers will love this book – it is a great way to break down how to write a narrative and the reasons we have different parts to a story"
“This clever meta fictive text is lots of fun for readers. The likeable protagonist speaks directly to them, demanding a response. Children will love that the power is theirs"
"A cleverly crafted piece of metafiction"
“It is a fun little read and could open up conversations with emerging readers as to what a story book is. The illustrations are rather cute, especially of the main character”
"The perfect way to spark your child’s imagination and teach them the fundamentals of storytelling.”
“The boy’s reactions to what’s happening in this NOT-book are hilarious, and kids will laugh as they learn the various pieces of a published story.”
I think my tagline for this would be ‘my first metafiction’- a book dedicated to picking apart what a book actually is, piece by piece, for children to understand. Aśka’s illustrations are charming as usual, following our purple-haired protagonist across each page to discover the next plot point, setting, or conflict until we- unfortunately- reach The End.
