Little Parachutes

Picture books that help children

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Categories: Caring for the Environment, Confidence & Self-esteem, Courage, Friendship & Getting Along, Kindness, Moving House

Lula and the Sea Monster

This quirky and empowering story of the friendship between a girl and a rapidly-growing sea creature contains lots of helpful messages about the importance of kindness and perseverance, standing up for your beliefs and protecting the environment. It also acknowledges how difficult it is for children to leave their family home.
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Lula and the Sea Monster by Alex Latimerby

Author: Alex Latimer
Illustrator: Alex Latimer
Publisher: Oxford University Press

“But Lula wouldn’t go. She couldn’t. This was their home!”

Lula’s family home, set on a beautiful beach, is due to be sold and demolished to make way for a highway. When Lula rescues a tiny sea creature from a gull, little does she know that this simple act of kindness will save both of their homes. 

The sea creature (who Lula names Bean) grows at an alarming rate (possibly thanks to all the food Lula provides for him from her pantry) and she patiently relocates him to progressively larger rock pools as he outgrows each one in turn. As the time to leave her home arrives, Lula packs her bags sadly and can’t bear the thought of leaving Bean, her home and the beach. Where will all the wildlife live if the beach is destroyed? As the family pack their car to leave, the bulldozers arrive to start work on the highway. Lula stands defiantly in front of them and refuses to leave, but it takes the sight of a Bean, now a fully-fledged giant sea monster, wrapped around the house to scare them off and leave the beach untouched. 

Alex Latimer has crafted a thoroughly engaging picture book full of gorgeous seaside illustrations in summer-bright colours.  

This video link is provided to help an adult assess the book's suitability for a child's situation before purchasing it. It has been filmed by a third party and hosted on YouTube and is not made by Little Parachutes. More info

The messages we found in this book:

Acknowledgement:

  • Having to move home can be very tough emotionally. Lula feels ‘a terrible sadness’ at the thought of leaving her home, the beach and her new friend Bean behind. 
  • We sometimes avoid or delay difficult tasks. Lulu can’t bring herself to visit Bean’s rock pool on her final morning at her home. 

Guidance:

  • Everyone can make a difference, no matter how little, and small acts of kindness can lead to great things. Lula’s kindness and protective instinct allowed Bean to grow, and this in turn protected her home and the beach from the bulldozers. 
  • Spending time in a natural environment and/or with friends can make us feel happy. 

Hope & Inspiration:

  • The highway didn’t get built and the beach remained untouched for everyone to enjoy. Lula and Bean became friends and were able to meet up each day (‘They couldn’t be happier’). 
  • Lula cares for and protects Bean, who is very vulnerable when he is still tiny. She is very thoughtful, finding him food and a safe place to live (she notices that he’s ‘too small for the ocean’). 
  • Both Bean and Lula persevere: Bean keeps on chasing the bulldozers away each time they return and Lula persists in caring for Bean, despite the hard work involved. 
  • Lula stands up for her beliefs. She bravely puts herself between the bulldozers and her home not only to serve her own interests, but also to protect the ‘millions of little creatures far smaller than she was’. 
  • Lula shows empathy: she notices that her mum and dad are upset about moving house too (‘they looked as sad as I felt’).
Review by: Claire Ward-Dutton