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The English Roses (The English Roses)
The English Roses is a story of rivalry and friendship among schoolgirls in contemporary London. Four little girls—Nicole, Amy, Charlotte, and Grace—are eleven years old and the very best of friends. They have sleepovers, picnics and ice-skating parties that exclude Binah, a beautiful girl whose seemingly perfect life makes them "green with envy." However, when a feisty, p
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Hardcover, 48 pages
Published
September 15th 2003
by Callaway Editions
(first published January 1st 2003)
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First, let me just say I decided to try this book to see if it would be as dreadful as I'd feared. Also, I've always really liked the cover illustration! I had low-low-low expectations of Madonna's story and I admit they were not completely fulfilled--the story was okay. I have read worse in children's lit, believe me ("Goldilicious" comes to mind!) The concept is actually cute, but overall it's a bit too in-your-face and didactic for my taste, and there really is no "style" to speak of. Basical
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My first english book. So cute! Very easy to read. The easy type of language and the really cute drawings led me to the reading of this book. I gave it 3 stars, but I know this is a children book. Anyway, I enjoyed the story of these five girls, although it was little bit predictable. But I do recommend it for people who actually enjoy a different type of reading, sometimes. I don't usually read illustrated books. I guess that's changing.
Mar 06, 2008
Becky
rated it
2 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
fans of the illustrator, because the story is doodoo
Shelves:
children-and-ya
As far as children's-books-by-celebrities go, the good, the bad, and the ugly, The English Roses is merely bad. Which is rather high praise, all things considered. I expected the book to be downright ugly.
Instead, it's mostly harmless. The four "main characters," the group of girlfriends known as "the English Roses," are featureless and interchangeable. They have lots of fun dancing, talking about boys, and having sleepovers.
They are also united in their hatred of the prettiest girl in school (t ...more
Instead, it's mostly harmless. The four "main characters," the group of girlfriends known as "the English Roses," are featureless and interchangeable. They have lots of fun dancing, talking about boys, and having sleepovers.
They are also united in their hatred of the prettiest girl in school (t ...more
The English Roses is one of my favorite picture books. It is written by Madonna and I know what some of you are thinking: Why did Madonna write a book? It's probably horrible! Well you are all wrong! The English Roses is set in England and it is about four friends: Charlotte, Amy, Nicole, and Grace who do EVERYTHING together. They have everything too: a great friendship, awesome clothes, nice houses. But, one day, when a new girl named Binah moves in, they get jealous. Binah is very beautiful an
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These are the English Roses. They aren't a flower shop, the aren't a box of chocolates, they aren't a pro soccer team , just a group of best friends that do EVERYTHING together. In the summer they go to the beach together. In the fall, they make leaf piles together. In the spring they pick flowers together. In the winter they go ice skating together. Whatever these five girls do they do it together. In this book, there is a new girl in town. And this girl is the prettiest, most beautiful girl th
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*Written after the review: 4.5 stars*
This has been going on for a while:
Gwendolyn: 4
Eleanor: 5
G: 4
E: 5
G: 4
E: 5
G: 4!
E: 5!
G: 4!
E: 5!
G: 4! YOU CHOSE LAST TIME!
E: DADDY! I wish there was a way we could both choose!
G: 4!
E: 5!
G: 4!
E: 5!
*this continues for some time, with some breaks to explain why each should get to choose... also, Gwendolyn got confused at one point and said "5." ...Eleanor didn't catch it.
Dad: Hey guys? Hey guys?!?
Both: What?
D: Ummm... how many stars should I give it?
E: 555555555555 ...more
A charming effort from the Queen of Pop, Madonna. The Engish Roses is a book about a group of english girls who become jealous of another girl simply because of her beauty. Little do they know that Bina, who in fact is very beautiful, comes from a lonely due to the death of her mother and the everyday struggles of her home life.
The book teaches young children the power of jealously and how it can deeply effect people and their surroundings. Every parent and child should experience this book. Mu ...more
The book teaches young children the power of jealously and how it can deeply effect people and their surroundings. Every parent and child should experience this book. Mu ...more
Binah is really pretty, so the other girls assume she must be stuck up, and they are jealous of her. But when they are magically shown Binah's real life, with her dead mother and her many responsibilities, they decide she needs a friend and offer her their companionship.
It's an odd idea--the moral of the story seems to be implying that you should be nice to people because you never know what they're dealing with at home and they might have a really hard life, and that's a lovely thought except ...more
It's an odd idea--the moral of the story seems to be implying that you should be nice to people because you never know what they're dealing with at home and they might have a really hard life, and that's a lovely thought except ...more
The BigBug received this book for her birthday. Let me start by saying the illustrations in this book are darling and the Bugs enjoyed the artwork immensely. That is where my praise ends. The actual story was the disappointingly typical group of girls who shun another girl simply because she's prettier and they judge her before they know her. And it took a Fairy Godmother to make them realize perhaps they weren't being very nice and that they didn't know the little girl at all.. So, while it had
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The English Roses is about four girls named Grace, Charrlotte , Amy ,and Nicole. They are popular and there is also this other girl named Binah she is lonely and The English Roses are jelouse of her but they ignore her but she was so beautiful so if you want to see find out by reading English Roses!
This was one of the most adorable book for children I've ever read.
The story is so cute and the lesson is so true.
You can never judge a book for it's cover, or a girl over her looks.
Apperantly Madonna can do anything that she wants and made the public like it ^^
The story is so cute and the lesson is so true.
You can never judge a book for it's cover, or a girl over her looks.
Apperantly Madonna can do anything that she wants and made the public like it ^^
When I first heard that Madonna was writing a children's book, I found the idea kind of ridiculous because I figured it just another one of those celebrity-pocket-padding-schemes (and I greatly admire Madonna!). But now having read the book, I have to admit that it is a little unique and I guess does fill a niche. Her story-telling method was unusual, a bit brash and unapologetic (much like her on-stage persona) but I liked the moral of the story; so overall, the book was worth checking out at l
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Satu hal yang membuat buku ini istimewa adalah buku ini ditulis oleh Madonna.
Satu hal yang sangat saya suka dari buku ini adalah ilustrasinya yang dibuat oleh Jeffrey Fulvimari.
Ilustrasinya sangat kaya warna dan juga lucu. Selain itu juga membantu dalam pemahaman isi cerita bagi anak-anak.
Bagaimana dengan ceritanya ? Menurut saya biasa aja, nggak ada hal baru yang 'mengejutkan' dari buku ini.
Jadi, kalau kita membaca buku ini, seolah-olah kita adalah seorang anak yang sedang mendengarkan dongeng ...more
Satu hal yang sangat saya suka dari buku ini adalah ilustrasinya yang dibuat oleh Jeffrey Fulvimari.
Ilustrasinya sangat kaya warna dan juga lucu. Selain itu juga membantu dalam pemahaman isi cerita bagi anak-anak.
Bagaimana dengan ceritanya ? Menurut saya biasa aja, nggak ada hal baru yang 'mengejutkan' dari buku ini.
Jadi, kalau kita membaca buku ini, seolah-olah kita adalah seorang anak yang sedang mendengarkan dongeng ...more
The moral of the story is a good one but this book could have done with some serious editorial help on the writing. It seemed long winded and wordy to me and very much too spelled out for a good story with a lesson. The illustrations are ok not my favorite style. Her book Mr Peabody's Apples is much better and I highly recommend it... And it's illustrated by Loren Long which doesn't hurt either.
The English Roses by Madonna will not be what you think it will be.
Beautifully illustrated by Jeffrey Fulvimari, it has a strong moral message.
Being and 'English rose' is not just about being beautiful on the outside, it is also about being beautiful on the inside.
With the help of a fairy godmother, Binah shows Nicole, Amy, Charlotte and Grace that you should appreciate what you have. Binah reminds them of Cinderella because her life consists of chores upon chores, in addition to all this, she d ...more
Beautifully illustrated by Jeffrey Fulvimari, it has a strong moral message.
Being and 'English rose' is not just about being beautiful on the outside, it is also about being beautiful on the inside.
With the help of a fairy godmother, Binah shows Nicole, Amy, Charlotte and Grace that you should appreciate what you have. Binah reminds them of Cinderella because her life consists of chores upon chores, in addition to all this, she d ...more
Not surprisingly, Madonna won no Pullitzer Prize for this, and the story is moderately good, the tone sometimes annoying. But the drawings are exquisite, so at least two of the stars I give this book are for the artist. Both my daughters have enjoyed this book, including the story, and they are after all the target audience, so I guess the four stars are in order.
I read this book to the girls in my fourth grade reading class. It doesn't have a rich array of vocabulary words, but it has a good message about friendship, jealousy, and passing judgement on someone you don't really know. The girls loved it and gave it a five star rating. I knocked off a star for the lackluster vocabulary and simplistic writing style.
A beautiful story about friendship. There are four little girls: Amy, Nicole, Grace and Charlotte. These little girls go to the same school and live in the same neighborhood. They have everything and they are happy with themselves until a new girl, comes to town and steal other people's attention by her beauty, her kindness and smart brain.
The four girl jealous over this new girl and vowed to ignore her until one night during their sleepover party, they have the same dream about this fairy godm ...more
The four girl jealous over this new girl and vowed to ignore her until one night during their sleepover party, they have the same dream about this fairy godm ...more
Kind of silly & didactic... I do see a lot of young girls wasting time being jealous of another girl they have decided has everything- so I suppose the lesson is relevant. But it is heavy handed the way it's written.
The narrator addressing the reader was cute the first few times, but then became annoying.
I gave it 3 starts instead of 2 because I thought the illustrations were adorable.
The narrator addressing the reader was cute the first few times, but then became annoying.
I gave it 3 starts instead of 2 because I thought the illustrations were adorable.
I LOVED this book so much!!! Its really girly but interesting!! There is a lot happening in it! I not going to tell you much about the series because i don't want to spoil it! My favorite character is all of the five girls because they all have the own unique personality! I recommend this book a lot!
Sep 24, 2007
Kecia
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
4th and 5th Grade Girls
Shelves:
kiddie_lit,
picture-books
After reading a borish review on this board by someone who admitted to not reading the book I decided the check it out from my local library and read it for myself. OK, so Maddona's pop music is far superior to her writing but I enjoyed the book nevertheless.
While the writing may not be first rate the illustrations are charming and story is good. It deals with issues of social cliques and jealousy. Even some adults still have problems understanding that just because someone is pretty does not m ...more
While the writing may not be first rate the illustrations are charming and story is good. It deals with issues of social cliques and jealousy. Even some adults still have problems understanding that just because someone is pretty does not m ...more
I thought this was a cute book. The illustrations are really nice. The book even came in a little dust jacket cover which made it kind of special. I like the message of this book which is basically don't judge someone before you get to know them. It's a cute book for little girls.
What a great debut book for Madonna.
This story is about four girls who are best friends; they do everything together, including ignoring another girl in their class. They knew nothing of this other girl except that they were extremely jealous of her. One night at a sleep over, they all had the same dream: they learned all about this other girl and thought that they should get to know her. They did and she soon became a part of the English Roses.
The moral of the story is that people should not c ...more
This story is about four girls who are best friends; they do everything together, including ignoring another girl in their class. They knew nothing of this other girl except that they were extremely jealous of her. One night at a sleep over, they all had the same dream: they learned all about this other girl and thought that they should get to know her. They did and she soon became a part of the English Roses.
The moral of the story is that people should not c ...more
The English Roses
by Madonna
Illustrated by Jeffrey Fulvimari
Published by Callaway in 2006
This book is about a group of three girls who are best friends. A beautiful girl, named Binah, comes into the neighborhood and the three girls become jealous. They do not want to invite her into their friend group because they think she has too much attention as it is. A fairy godmother visits them in their sleep, and she shows them what Binah's life is really like--she is a hand worker and is often lonely. T ...more
by Madonna
Illustrated by Jeffrey Fulvimari
Published by Callaway in 2006
This book is about a group of three girls who are best friends. A beautiful girl, named Binah, comes into the neighborhood and the three girls become jealous. They do not want to invite her into their friend group because they think she has too much attention as it is. A fairy godmother visits them in their sleep, and she shows them what Binah's life is really like--she is a hand worker and is often lonely. T ...more
I took this book into my preschool class because I loved the illustrations. It's a longer book and I hadn't planned to read it to a group. I did have two little girls request it and we started reading it, but didn't finish. The next day I didn't have the book with me because I figured the girls wouldn't remember.. I was wrong. The four year old not only remembered we needed to finish, she also remembered all the characters and where we were in the story. It a perfect story to read to girls who a
...more
Every child should be required to read this book. It's amazing. It teaches empathy and understanding. The artwork is incredible. I loved this book as a child, and now I own it again I am very happy.
I wanted to hate this book, but I don't.
the illustration is good. the story is uneven and the breaks of the fifth wall are annoying.
but the message and intention are good.
the illustration is good. the story is uneven and the breaks of the fifth wall are annoying.
but the message and intention are good.
Cute little children's book with gorgeous illustrations. Liked the story, although it was a little bit too much on the moral side. I'm curious about the next ones in the series.
Madonna wrote a beautiful story when she decided to share the tale of four best friends who are jealous of a beautiful little girl. Beautiful illustrations and great lessons.
Someone laughed all the way to the bank. The story has charm, and Madonna did a nice job establishing the likability of the characters for the series.
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Madonna Louise Ciccone is an American pop singer-songwriter. Through her music career, she has also gained some notability as a dancer, record producer, film producer, actress, author and a fashion icon. She is a multiple Grammy- and Golden Globe-award winner, known for her ambitious music videos, stage performances and use of sexual and religious themes in her work.
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