3 stars from our household

Lovely book and beautiful illustrations. My little boys enjoyed the story and images, although I feel it did go over their heads at times. I feel the refugee story snd helping children understand them could have been simpler

I had wanted to enjoy this book. I didn’t realize it was so political. I wouldn’t read this to my children. It is definitely not the same message I would want my children to receive. I believe in helping others but you can not help everyone needing asylum from every country. People who think just because some countries are better off doesn’t mean they can handle droves of people moving in. Most countries have a border control/asylum laws that determine who can come in and stay. That is the best way to safeguard its citizens. I do understand that it is hard on children when they are separated from their family but we have the same thing happening with parents being reported to CPS. How is that any different. I do think that there are pros and cons to the system in place now. The way it is now is a system that makes you prove that your child is yours and can help children who are kidnapped for sex trafficking. No matter what you do nothing will ever be perfect. We will either help save to many people and destroy our country or we won’t save everyone. We will either try to protect children from being sex trafficked or we will will allow immigrants belief that they are not criminals trying to harm children. Is there a better way? The sad truth is, no system will accommodate everyone. Someone is always going to be one the short end of the stick no matter what system you put in place.

Hope loved her forest but the wind of change brought danger with, the kind that was human and deceiving. Though hope had no idea why the other does were being sent back into the forest without their fawns, she was happy that finally she and freckles were united. They got to live in the safety and comfort of their new home in the forest behind the fence, away from the dangers in Olden forest. A lovely heartwarming tale of love and trust.

I really enjoyed this story and it was definitely one that tugged on the heartstrings too!

I loved the idea behind the story and this is certainly one I will read with my daughter when she is a little older as it is quite hard hitting and really brings hope how awful it much be to be a refugee and to find yourself in this position - it is a great choice to tell the story this way using Hope and Freckles too.

For me personally we need to be discussing topics like this with children from a young age to make they are kind and show compassion as not all adults do this. It is 4 stars from for this one, it was well written and the images are lovely - highly recommended!

Hope and Freckles are a baby and a mother deer who live in the Olden Forest. The Olden Forest was becoming dangerous for Hope and Freckles. The summers were hotter, there was less food and water and the persistent threat for life from other carnivores and hunters. Hope, Freckles and other deers walk to the Big Pine Forest to take refuge but the guards don’t let them in because the Forest had enough white-tailed deer. When they plead to let them in, they separate Hope and Freckles. Freckles is taken to another family and Hope lives in a fenced area waiting for her child. Will Hope see Freckles again?

This book explains with animal characters and eye-catching images, the immigration scenario in the United States and other countries. It is a good book to teach children why people take refuge, why they are denied entry to a new country, and also their suffering when children are torn from their parents and hopefully reunited later.

I was surprised to learn that the author is a retired Deputy Police Chief and also a retired Colonel from the U.S. Army. At the age of 70, he published this picturebook for his granddaughters. This is the first book in the series.

Hope and Freckles - Fleeing to a Better Forest // by Bill Kiley // Illustrated by Mary Manning

"I came for the safety of my fawn."

Hope and Freckles is the story of a deer and her fawn fleeing their home to find refuge in a safer place. Along the way, they meet more deer heading the same way and together they arrive at the new forest, where they are stopped and detained by the guards at the gate. Shockingly, Hope and Freckles have to be separated at this point while they away the decision of the General. Will Freckles be able to reunite with his mom? Will they be able to stay in the new forest?

Oh my heart! I only glanced at the description of this book so I was not prepared for what I headed into. During our journey to conceive, I often wonder how I would describe certain current events to my future children and what books would be able to assist with this. As an immigrant married to a hispanic immigrant, the current climate regarding refugees is very upsetting to us and this story hit very close to home. Kiley beautifully turned reality into a story that is easy to convey to young children to encourage discussions surrounding the topic of refugees and asylum. I also like how he included additional questions in the back of the book to encourage even more thoughts and conversation. As if the book was not already beautiful enough, Manning accompanied the story with absolutely stunning illustrations. Who knew it would be possible to portray these emotions so well on deer? This really enhanced the experience for me.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review. I cannot wait to read the next one and will be sure to add these to our shelf.

This book carries a wonderful message about refugees in today's society. Families who are seeking asylum are so often tricked, swindled, and separated, and this book gives a very basic look at all of that through the story of two deer looking for a safer place to live. While the story ends well for Hope and Freckles, it shows that this isn't always so, and also provides resources at the end for parents and kids to learn more.

Beautiful, peaceful story about finding a safe place. The relationship between mother and child is positive and loving. I recommend this picture book for reading with your children before bed. I love a happy ending before bed!

It's one of the stories that made me feel warm. It shows the love of a parent to her child and vice versa. The illustrations are as good as the story.

This was a very innocent story about immigration. I loved the metaphor. I know, I am not the target market, but I love these small picture books.
The story was a solid four out of five. I missed some heartwarming moments, but I liked it overall.
The pictures were beautiful. I loved the art style.
I recommend this one for adults also because it can be enjoyable for them, too.

I'd like to thank the publisher and netgalley for providing me a copy of this book.
I thought this was okay!

Hope and her faun, Freckles have to leave their home, due to increasing danger in their forest. We follow their struggles as they try to find a new place where they will be allowed to stay.

This book is intended to educate children about the struggles of refugees, and despite the fact that I found the story almost too obvious, I think it’s a great way to introduce younger children who are unaware of these issues to the topic. It also has some questions at the end to help children think about the matter for themselves.

Hope and Freckles by Bill Kiley is a sweet story with a big message. When these deer flee their unsafe home for a new forrest they're met with difficulties getting in and mother and fawn are separated by those in charge. Eventually, they are reunited and have a happy ending, but this is a great conversation starter for kids about refugees.
Many thanks to Mascot Books and NetGalley for the advance copy.

Hope and Freckles is the story of two deer, a mother and child, who flee from their home forest when it is being overrun by danger and predators. They finally find a safe forest to seek shelter in as refugees, but must be separated from each other for a time. Readers follow both of their journeys as they await to be reunited.

I was really moved by this book. The story of child being separated from parent while searching for a better life is one that is both common and heartbreaking. Bill Kiley did an excellent job at taking such a heavy and important topic and turning it into a children's book. I believe it is essential for children to learn about these types of situations early in life so that they will be able to recognize and discredit harmful stereotypes, such as immigrants being lazy or malicious, when they grow up. I also think he did a great job of approaching the subject delicately, by showing that there is the possibility of being reunited (which we see with Hope and Freckles at the end), but that not all families are so lucky (which we see when many of the other deer are being sent back to their dangerous forests). It is not a traumatic description of events, but is still a very effective metaphor that opens up the topic for discussion and education. He leaves children with the message that it is our collective responsibility to advocate for change in the system so that someday, all of the deer may be allowed to stay in the safe forest.

Besides the wonderful message, this book was beautifully illustrated, and used language that would be easy for a fairly young child to understand. I also appreciated his use of the final page to include both discussion questions for parent and child, as well as a link to resources for parents to learn more about people seeking refuge/asylum. Overall, I would highly recommend this book to anybody with young children as a must-read!

Link to my amazon review: https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/RAO63AOVCPJCE/ref=cm_cr_othr_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=1645432548

Pretty illustrated book about a deer and her fawn.
They leave their home land in search of safety in a protected forest.

It's a child's story of helping to understand refugees, but it could of been done a little better as it's a little confusing for little ones.

Thank you Netgalley for my ARC

This story aims to help children understand refugees, but I found that it was too simplified but also confusing. I think the story could have been edited or changed with more impact. I’m not sure if the messages will come across. I thought the illustrations were very good.

This children's book illustrates the complexities that affect refugees and asylum seekers in a way that children can comprehend and learn from. The main character Hope and her son Freckles take a chance to look for a safe place to call home and we get to follow their journey. This might be a little over the heads for younger children. However, for children starting grade school it will be a good read with a lesson that helps develop empathy for others and what struggles they may have to overcome. There are also questions and discussion points for teachers and educators at the end which will help create conversation. The pictures had a good classic feel to them which was pleasant. Overall a good book with a nice teaching point.

This is a great way to discuss what is going on at our boarders and how we treat those refugees that try to see asylum in the USA. It is a well written book and really would be great for many adults to ready to simplify to whole process. Great book, thank you for my ARC.

A stunning book with simple yet detailed pictures providing plenty of scope for discussion.
The story provides a very accessible way for children of all ages to begin to understand the plight of refugees.
The story follows 2 deer forced to leave their home and face a difficult journey and separation before being reunited.
Sensitive and poetic yet a real introduction to a very topical theme.

I am telling myself to get the physical copy of this storybook when it comes out. The illustrations and the story telling is just top-notch! The reading experience will be much, much better with the physical copy I say!

Because this book is really important to me. It gives me all the classic storybook feels. It's emotional, urgent and important.

The story depicts how the lives of the wildlife are endangered told from the perspective of a white-tailed deer, Hope, who is struggling to survive and stay safe worrying about the safety of her own fawn, Freckles.

This is heartbreaking to read. At the same time, it is hopeful, and informative regarding how animals get shifted to another place and the procedures that are required.

This storybook is such an eye-opener for me.

Waiting for the book to hit the stores!

Thank you #NetGalley for the ARC.