Book Review for Anthony and the Magic Bumblebee by Barbara Prignano

Anthony and the Magic Bumblebee by Barbara Prignano Anthony and the Magic Bumblebee
Eloquent Books
ISBN-10: 1609769244
ISBN-13: 978-1609769246
24 Pages
Ages 4–8
Children’s Picture Book Pollination

Barbara Prignano was born in Huntington, New York. She is the daughter of the late Robert Prignano (aka Robert Palmer) owner of Palmer Vineyards on the North Fork of Long Island and Lorraine Prignano. Her parents were the inspiration for her first book, How Bunnies Got Their Cottontails. She is an attorney and small business owner. She currently resides in New York with her husband and two children. Her children continually inspire her.

Reviewer: Renee Hand

Anthony and the Magic Bumblebee is an interesting and fun way to teach children about bees and pollination.

Anthony and the Magic Bumblebee centers around a boy named, Anthony, who waits for his friend, Joseph, to finish with his chores so they can play together. Joseph waters his plants over and over again, but they don’t grow flowers. He wonders what is wrong.


As Anthony waits, a bumblebee flies past with a magic wand in his hand. Curious, Anthony follows and talks with the bee. The bee tells Anthony that he sprinkles magic dust on the flowers and vegetables to make them grow. He shows him how he does it. Anthony thinks of Joseph and how his sunflowers won’t grow, even though they are given everything they need. They are given water, sun, nutrients from the soil, and of course, love. Can the bee help Joseph’s flowers grow big and beautiful?

This is a simply told story about the importance of bees and how they affect the growth of plants and vegetables via pollination. This is a 24 page picture book for children 4-8 years of age. It is a fun story for preschoolers who are curious about bees and pollination. However, this story doesn’t give too much of an in depth look at bees and exactly what they do and how they do it. It is meant to scratch the surface and get children into thinking about it in a fun way.

Anthony and the Magic Bumblebee is similar in style and illustration to the author’s other book How Bunnies Got Their Cottontails. Fans of the first book will love this one.

Book Review for How Bunnies Got Their Cottontails by Barbara Prignano

How Bunnies Got Their Cottontails by Barbara Prignano

(Eloquent Books, October 3, 2009)

How Bunnies Got Their Cottontails is an amusing fable that children will enjoy.

One of little Joseph’s chores was to water the plants every day, and though he knew the job was important, it also conflicted with play time with his friends. To create more play time for himself, Joseph thinks of a way to keep the plants watered without him having to stand there to water them. He decides to use cotton balls. So he wets each cotton ball and places them next to each plant. Thinking he solved the problem, Joseph runs off to play with his friend, Anthony. However, Joseph wasn’t counting on a bunny sitting down next to his plants to rest. As you can imagine, when the bunny wakes up and hops away, a cotton ball was stuck to his backside. The bunny’s friends were envious of his new tail, so decided to hop over and get one for themselves by sitting next to the plants. Joseph and his friend were amazed to see what happened next.

How Bunnies Got Their Cottontails is a charming tale for children to read. It is an interesting way to imagine how bunnies did get their cute fluffy tails. The artwork in this story is cheerful and simple, but helps bring the story to life. This book is for children between the ages of 9-12. It is a 20-page paperback picture book.

Reviewer Renee Hand is the award-winning author of The Crypto-Capers series for children. Look for her new release The Adventures of Joe-Joe Nut and Biscuit Bill, The Great Pie Catastrophe.