這是一個關於「創造與堅持」的故事。
小女孩帶著她最好的朋友──小狗，決定要打造「最最棒的東西」。她腦海裡有清楚的構想，也相信自己一定能成功。然而實際行動後，她一次又一次失敗，做出來的東西不是太大、就是太小，或根本不像她想像中的模樣。隨著挫折累積，她開始焦躁、生氣，甚至想要放棄。就在這時，小狗帶她出去散步，讓她冷靜下來。當她重新回到作品前，帶著新的眼光與耐心，終於成功完成她心目中的「最棒的東西」。
這個故事不只帶來幽默與溫暖，更告訴孩子失敗並不可怕，重要的是學會調整心情、再度嘗試。
Award-winning author and illustrator Ashley Spires has created a charming picture book about an unnamed girl and her very best friend, who happens to be a dog. The girl has a wonderful idea. ”She is going to make the most MAGNIFICENT thing! She knows just how it will look. She knows just how it will work. All she has to do is make it, and she makes things all the time. Easy-peasy!“ But making her magnificent thing is anything but easy, and the girl tries and fails, repeatedly. Eventually, the girl gets really, really mad. She is so mad, in fact, that she quits. But after her dog convinces her to take a walk, she comes back to her project with renewed enthusiasm and manages to get it just right.
For the early grades’ exploration of character education, this funny book offers a perfect example of the rewards of perseverance and creativity. The girl’s frustration and anger are vividly depicted in the detailed art, and the story offers good options for dealing honestly with these feelings, while at the same time reassuring children that it’s okay to make mistakes. The clever use of verbs in groups of threes is both fun and functional, offering opportunities for wonderful vocabulary enrichment. The girl doesn’t just ”make“ her magnificent thing --- she ”tinkers and hammers and measures,“ she ”smoothes and wrenches and fiddles,“ she ”twists and tweaks and fastens.“ These precise action words are likely to fire up the imaginations of youngsters eager to create their own inventions and is a great tie-in to learning about Science, Technology, Engineering and Math.
