With spring finally here, it’s hard not to SMILE! And did you know that NATIONAL SMILE POWER DAY is just around the corner on June 15th, 2014? (Yes, this is also Father’s Day… another reason to smile!)
With this in mind, we’ve decided to GIVE AWAY our favorite bilingual book about SMILING: Augustus and His Smile. This award-winning book – available in over 20 languages* – teaches children that happiness can be found all around and within us (see review at the bottom of this page for more details about the book).
How can you get a free bilingual copy of this book?
There are two ways you can receive a free copy of “Augustus and His Smile”: either make a purchase of $150 or more via our website; or enter our lottery to win the book (3 lucky winners will be chosen)! Here’s what you need to do (by June 15, 2014):
Option 1) Place an order of $150 or more on our Language Lizard website between today and June 15, 2014, and we will add a FREE copy of the book to your order! To be eligible, you must write the word SMILE in the order notes (also write the language edition* that you would like). Note: this giveaway cannot be applied to orders already placed. Product total must be $150 or more (excludes shipping/handling).
Option 2) Enter our GIVEAWAY. THREE Winners will be chosen at random to win a copy of the book (your choice of language edition). Fill out our contact form in full by June 15, 2014. In the Questions/Comments section, write “SMILE GIVEAWAY” and include the language edition* that you would like. Note: we never share your contact information, we use it solely to notify you and send you the prize if your name is chosen.
–> Want an extra giveaway point? Simply write a comment on one of our other blog posts or post about the giveaway on Facebook or Twitter. Let us know that you have posted when submitting your contact form and you will be entered twice!
And be sure to subscribe to our Culture Connection Newsletter to be notified of future giveaways and special promotions!
*This bilingual book is available in English and you can select one of the following language editions: Albanian, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese Simplified, Czech, Farsi, French, Haitian Creole, Hindi, Irish, Panjabi, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovakian, Somali, Spanish, Turkish, Urdu, Vietnamese, and Welsh.
Details: Winner will be selected using random.org‘s sequence generator. Winner must include ship-to address in order to be included in drawing. Only new orders placed and contact forms received between May 20 and June 15, 2014 will be eligible for the book giveaway. The offer is only for shipments to the US and Canada. For more details, please see our giveaway page at http://www.LanguageLizard.com/Bilingual-Book-Promotion.htm
BOOK REVIEW
“Augustus the tiger was sad. He had lost his smile.” So begins an epic quest as Augustus searches for his lost smile. His search takes him under bushes, up to the treetops, and to the crests of the highest mountains. He finds a beetle, chirping birds, and swirling snow clouds, but no smile.
As his journey progresses, however, Augustus’ expression gradually begins to change. His pleasure becomes evident as he swims in the oceans and “splishes and splashes with shoals of tiny, shiny fish.” His long tail also begins arching in a smile to match the one on his face. Suddenly he is prancing and parading in a desert, dancing and racing in raindrops, and splashing through puddles. Then he finds it – in the reflection of a “huge silver-blue puddle” – his smile!
Augustus comes to realize that he carries his smile with him, “whenever he (is) happy”. His journey teaches him that he only has to do the things that please him, like swim or dance or look around him at the world “for happiness (is) everywhere around him.”
For Augustus and his Smile, award-winning author and illustrator Catherine Rayner spent hours observing and sketching tigers at the Edinburgh Zoo. Her talent and attention to detail are evident as we watch this boldly-drawn tiger move through his various poses. Children will appreciate both this story’s message as well as the illustrations of Augustus.
The last page of the book lists some “amazing tiger facts” and notes their endangered status.
(Review by Maureen Barlow Pugh)