I constantly found myself comparing it to Giles Andreae's Be Brave, Little Penguin, which is one of my favorite Story time (read-a-loud) titles. Not-S0-Brave Penguin was an adorable little story, but it didn't quite live up, IMO. While the illustrations were adorable, the Posy and Percy were basically indistinguishable from each other in all but a couple pages towards the end, which is vital in engaging little readers.

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

<em>The Not-So-Brave Penguin</em> by Steve Smallman is an adorable little book. Who doesn't love penguins? And who can resist a not-so-brave penguin that steps up and does something brave?

Percy and Posy are young penguins. Percy is outgoing and adventurous while Posy is cautious and timid. Percy loves to slide down icy slopes on his bottom as fast as he can, but the idea is terrifying to Posy who also doesn't like loud noises or the dark.

One day a new iceberg floats up near to the penguin home and Percy can't wait to investigate - hoping there might be some great new slopes to slide down. Posy, of course, won't go.

As night comes on and Percy isn't back, Posy gets nervous and the adults don't seem too concerned. At first light, Posy rushes over to the new iceberg and slides down a long slope to find Percy hurt at the bottom where he is grateful the Posy came to find him.

This book has just about (but not quite) everything you want in a children's book. Cute pictures that kids will love to look at. A cuddly animal. A moral that would hit you over the head if you were a little older. And a story that promotes self-determination and individuality.

But it is missing something for me.

I shared this with my wife and my now older children to see if they had similar reactions. They each thought it a nice book but thought that something was missing - though they couldn't pinpoint what, exactly, without some prompting.

What we don't get is <em>why</em> Posey rises above herself and goes after Percy. While we see them together in many pages of the book, we see them as contrasts. While we might assume that they are close friends, we don't get that, either in the story or in the pictures. They have different likes, they do different things, and nowhere are we told they are close friends. So why is looking for Percy so important to Posey that she conquers her fears for him?

Of course assumptions can be made and actually having a conversation about a book with a child is an important part of reading to a youngster, but I still wish there was something other than inference about their relationship to lead us to Posey's actions (especially given the adults' lack of concern).

Looking for a good book? <em>Not-So-Brave Penguin</em> by Steve Smallman is a cute and charming children's picture book that is likely to be a favorite for a child's early years.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Posy and Percy are best friends, but it does not mean they are the same. In fact, Percy is brave, while Posy is afraid of snowstorms, heights, loud noises and, above all, the dark. When Percy does not come back home after playing on an iceberg slippery slide, Posy knows something went wrong. She jumps into the sea, follows Percy’s footprints on the iceberg and enters a very scary cave just to find her friend. Percy, who is grateful for her help, tells her that she is the bravest penguin of all not only for rescuing him but also for acting in spite of her fear.
A heart-warming story with cute pictures and a great moral, this book will definitely appeal to young readers. There is a support page with presentation suggestions and follow-up activities. Children will really enjoy painting the iceberg and snowflakes, as well as making paper penguins to role-play the story.
Thank you to NetGalley and QEB Publishing for the ARC provided in exchange for an honest opinion.

This was just the cutest little book! I'm not ashamed to admit I still love reading good picture books from time to time, and this one was adorable! The illustrations were so whimsical and lively, and the story was fun, encouraging, and charming. The themes of fear and bravery were woven so well into the story. Percy and Posy Penguin are such precious little characters, and I think any child (or even adult!) can relate to them on some level. I will definitely be purchasing a hardcopy version of this book to read to my nieces and nephew!

4 Stars!

Posy the Penguin is scared of everything. Her best friend Percy is not - he likes to do all kinds of things and is very brave. Something happens one day to Percy- and its up to Posy to save the day. Can she overcome her fears and help her best friend?

This was such a cute read about being brave. I think the illustrations were perfect and the moral of this story is a great one. There are discussion questions included as well to help talk about the story. Totally recommend for young readers and teachers!

.***Thank you to Netgalley for providing this digital arc for preview in return for an honest review. ***

The Not-So-Brave Penguin was a short read about overcoming your fears. Posy is scared of a lot of things, but her biggest fear is darkness. At night she imagines the worst possible scenarios, even though she is huddled against friends and family. Eventually the need to save her friend becomes more important than her fear, and she's able to overcome her personal obstacles. While the story itself was okay, I felt like it was missing something. There was no oomph!

Originally posted at Do You Dog-ear? on January 17, 2019.

A fantastic children’s book introducing the wonderful characters of Posy and Percy and their journey to discover their own types of bravery! Wonderfully illustrated and a great narrative which makes you realise that Posy has her very own type of inner strength. Can’t wait to read more offerings by this author and buy this for all the children in my life!

I enjoyed this book. I thought it was cute and had a really good story. This book has some great illustrations and great lessons for kids. This would be great for an elementary classroom.

Storytime is always a great time when you have entertaining stories like this one. Naming the series of books Storytime makes it even better. This one shows children that even though you are afraid, you can still be brave. Posy the penguin must be brave and help find her friend. How she does this and saves the day will have you re-reading this book many times.

Lovely book about being brave even when scared. The illustrations are gorgeous, and the characters are easy to relate to for children.

The Not-So-Brave Penguin, is another cute addition to the Storytime series. It follows two penguins, Percy who is a bit of a daredevil and Posy who is quite frightened of pretty much everything. Heights are hard for Posy, she doesn't like sliding down the ice very fast like Percy does, she is afraid to jump into the water in case she belly flops, she doesn't like snowstorms and she is very, very scared of the dark. One day, when a new iceberg floats close to their home Percy goes out for an adventure. Posy is to frightened to follow him on his fun adventure, but when he doesn't return she is worried. Can she overcome her fear to help her friend?

The artwork in this story is wonderful, definitely the sort that would keep a child engaged. Sweet watercolour illustrations that show emotion of the penguins very well. As with all the stories in this series, there are many ways a parent, caregiver or teacher can go with this story. Learning about penguins, where they live, how they move etc. would be one direction, but the one I really like is the idea of being brave. I remember hearing about soldiers saying that it is normal to be afraid of war and battle, but the brave person will face and overcome those fears to do what they need to do. That is a bit dramatic, but that is the message in this story. Once again the activities at the end of the book help to extend what the reader or listener hear in the story. This is one that my granddaughter especially loved, penguins of course. I definitely recommend this story to families, teachers and librarians. A great addition to any character trait collection. The publisher, QEB Publishing, generously provided me with a copy of this book upon request. The rating, ideas and opinions shared are my own.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Cute picture book that focuses on overcoming fear. I love the questions at the end--very helpful for librarians and teachers.

A story with two penguins that, although they have different characters, the care for each other is bonding them. Occasioned by this love the little female penguin (Posy) overcomes herself, trusts her instinct and manages to save her adventurous (yet somewhat reckless) best friend .
As a book it has the ideal length to be read to younger children, since their span of concentration is limited,
as well as a first reader for older children, who are now beginning to read on their own.
The illustrations are excellent, and the color changings places perfectly the reader in the timeframe of the story (morning-afternoon-evening).
At the end of the book there are "instructions" on how to use this book as an educational aid. Oveall , a well-written book that I would recommend reading to all children, but mostly to children who are facing their life so far with a "more fearful point of view".

The message in this story is very positive and important, and is something we should teach kids, but it does lack originality. I really enjoyed the art in this story, especially the imagined scary things in the dark.

Not-So-Brave Penguin is a precious book about how one can be brave - even while still being scared.

As a teacher, this book can be used for various teaching purposes. I found myself relating to both Posy and Percy throughout the story. Both to Posy's careful and reserved approach to life, and Percy's impulsive and, somewhat, careless ways.

With such detailed and exciting illustrations, this will quickly become a child (and adult) favorite!

Adorable, and a wonderful way to teach kids about love and colors! Looked to be a few formatting corrections that needed to be made, but otherwise, I liked it!

Cute, fun and a good way to start a conversation.
The illustrations are fun and sweet.
This is the sort of book I love to see in print format.

I did receive a digital copy via Netgalley to review. I feel an adult could read this several times without being bored.

Percy is bold and daring and likes to do things like jump into the water and slide down slopes on his tummy. Posy is much more cautious and afraid of lots of things. But when Percy doesn’t return from exploring the new iceberg in the area after a long time, Posy faces her fears and goes to look for Percy.

A cute story about a little penguin who cares enough for her friend to brave her own fears when they are in trouble. The illustrations are sweet and Posy's fears are very relatable for littles. There are conversation starters to talk with kids about fears and bravery in the back of the book as well as some activity ideas. A cute, short story that kids should find a fun read as well as providing an important discussion opportunity for them. Definitely recommended.

I received an ARC of this title from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Such a cute book! Loved the artwork and the storyline. Read it to my 4 year old who wants to purchase the book to read over and over. She liked the names of the penguins and that she could relate to Posy, also that it had a happy ending. Overall a very nice story and good job to the author and artists.

Thanks to Quarto Publishing Group - QEB and Netgalley for providing me the opportunity to readthis and give an honest review.

I really enjoyed The Not-So-Brave Penguin, by Steve Smallman. We follow Posy, an adorable penguin who isn't as adventurous as her friend, Percy. Percy, When Percy's daredevil ways lead him into trouble, it is Posy that helps him out!

This will be an excellent addition to any child's library as it has the potential to be read again and again. My daughter is 19 months old and will love it because she loves animals and the illustrations are perfect. What I love is that when she gets older, we can talk about the lessons of this book and relate that to her life.

This doesn't have anything to do with the story, but I really liked the discussion page at the end of suggested topics to review with a child and then fun activities to replicate the penguin's home environment. This provides a great activity for a rainy day and the opportunity to make learning fun!