Today I have a very cool series of books to tell you about. I got to read the first two in the series. It’s a series of books to help kids explore different possibilities of what they can be when they grow up.

Series description from the publisher – “Wigu’s newly released children’s book series, When I Grow Up I Want To Be…, features vocations many children dream about – a firefighter, a teacher, a soldier, a doctor – all combining engaging elements of storytelling with real world facts and information. Both educational and fun, the fully illustrated book series takes its readers on a journey of discovery, exploring how one finds their career, learns the necessary skills, and how they excel and grow within their chosen field.”

When I Grow Up I Want to be… a Teacher! – Carlee Learns a Surprising Lesson!
By Wigu Publishing
60 pages ages 8-12
Published by Wigu Publishing on February 3, 2014

Summary – Amazon’s description: “Carlee always wanted to be a teacher when she grew up, until her mother is hired as a teacher at her school! Some of her friends are even in her mother’s class. Carlee is worried. What will her friends say? Will her mother do something to embarrass her? Carlee vows never to become a teacher like her mother, but as she journeys through the first day of school with her own new teacher, Carlee makes some surprising discoveries.”

What I Thought – I like the idea of this series. I know a lot of kids who have no idea what they’d like to be when they grow up. A series like this could help kids know a little more about certain professions and see if they may be interested in doing a job like the one described in the book. In  “When I Grow Up I Want to be… a Teacher! – Carlee Learns a Surprising Lesson!”, Carlee is certain she doesn’t want to be a teacher because her mom is, but throughout the story, she thinks about all kinds of things she can be when she grows up… just not a teacher.  Carlee realizes she learns a lot of cool things from her teachers and her friends tell her they really like her mom as a teacher. Carlee thinks it may be a good idea to be a teacher. I think the story in this book is more of Carlee being convinced being a teacher is okay not as much of what a teacher does in their job. The book has a bunch of fact boxes about all the different jobs Carlee daydreams about – lawyer, scientist, leader… The illustrations are a mix of real-life pictures/photos and cartoon illustration. I liked the real-life illustrations mixed into the cartoon ones – it was a neat effect. I thought the cartoon illustrations were okay and went with the story well.

I think the book is a great introduction to lots of different jobs there are in the world and a good reminder of the ton of stuff that we learn from our teachers!

I give this book four out of five bookworms.

When I Grow Up I Want To Be…in the U.S. Army!: Jake Learns about the U.S. Army.
by Wigu Publishing
56 pages – ages 8-12
Published by Wigu Publishing on August 29, 2013

Summary – Amazon’s description: “When Jake’s teacher assigns a “career” project, Jake decides he wants to be a soldier in the United States Army. Jake and his father visit an Army surplus store to find items he can use to present his project. As they search the store, each item makes the history and proud spirit of the U.S. Army come to life for Jake and readers alike. Through Jake’s discoveries, readers are introduced to the history of the U.S. Army, what soldiers’ duties include, and the equipment they use.”

What I Thought – Just like “When I Grow Up I Want to be… a Teacher! – Carlee Learns a Surprising Lesson!”, this book has a mix of cartoon and real-life pictures/photos. There are also some very nice pencil sketch illustrations included that I thought were very well done. This book described a lot of what is involved with being a soldier in the US Army. It describes some of the  units that a person can belong  to. It talks about some of the equipment used by soldiers and the ranks a soldier can have. There is a helpful index in the back with military terms and the book is loaded with fact boxes about the Army. That is a nice addition to the book. I like that the book shows all the jobs of a soldier. It shows that the Army needs doctors, lawyers, firefighters, cooks and a lot more. I think this is a good introduction to what it is like being a soldier for kids.

I give this book five out of five bookworms!

Check out the other Wigu books in this series – and there are more to come!

To learn more about this series, please visit the Wigu publisher website by clicking HERE.

Follow Wigu on Twitter HERE.

Follow Wigu on Facebook HERE.

Check out the Marvelous Ms. Morris’ review of “When I Grow Up I Want to be… a Teacher! – Carlee Learns a Surprising Lesson!” by clicking HERE and “When I Grow Up I Want To Be…in the U.S. Army!: Jake Learns about the U.S. Army” by clicking HERE.

Categories: Age 6-9, Age 9+

Tags: bibliophile, book review, bookworm, childrens books, when I grow up I want to be, wigu publishing