The Camillias, A Dream With Wings, is a heartfelt story of how adventurous minds can be influenced by a not so know-it-all individual. This children’s book shows it is important to obey your parents and depend on what they say is for your own good. The story is also a lesson on life and how to handle difficult situations. It demonstrates the various kinds of communities coming together to help in “Neighborhood Unity” in times of need. The story teaches us a lesson about risks and consequences, unity, and forgiveness when communities of different types of individuals work together for a common cause and become heroes.

It is an interesting story gradually building to the ending and has great, beautiful illustrations of the birds and the final scenes. The final scenes of Chapter Sixteen — Nineteen are action-packed, riveting, and captivating with colorful words being utilized.

Recommending the Camillias for grades 2-4 dealing with relationships and social environment.

My 4th grade students were hooked by the book from the beginning. They enjoyed the characters and said they remind them of angry birds. One of their favorite parts were when Merrick was learning to fly (never give up), the students enjoyed the way the book was able to teach them lessons while still making it fun and entertaining to read.

From a teacher standpoint, I would say to think about your target audience with the layout of the book. From the outside, the book seems to be a picture book (for primary grades) but once you open it the layout is more like a novel/chapter book. Some of my lower levels deterred by the length. I LOVED the different lessons the characters experienced. This would be a great book to teach inference and theme to a class. A teacher could read specific chapters and have their class determine the theme. The theme is generally a difficult skill for students to grasp. It’s rare to find a book that lends itself to multiple themes throughout. This could also be a great resource for character education for guidance counselors.

A feast of words and images on A dream With Wings. “The Camillias” is a soaring, learn to fly, must-read adventure, about a feathered urban family of small sparrows. Two flight feathers up…!

Awesome read for young ones! Wonderful debut children’s books by Eneg Nivre! The book has multiple moral themes which encourage young readers to think about making good choices, while keeping them engaged as they follow the adventure that Merrick the bird and his friends embark upon, and some of the not so nice characters they meet in the process! Some of the themes covered are friendship, trust, parental obedience, and taking care of one another. I highly recommend this book to those parents/guardians/teachers who may be dealing with behavioral issues or those who simply want an awesome reading tool to promote positive behavior from the start with their children. Bravo Eneg, on such a fun and colorful book with such a profound and positive message!