Must-Have Marvin!

By: Christy Ziglar
Illustrated by: Luanne Marten
Publisher: Ideals Children's Books
Publication Date: March 2014
ISBN: 978-0824956578
Reviewed by: Holly Connors
Review Date: June 3, 2014

Marvin was sooooo excited! He had a brand-new dinosaur t-shirt and he couldn't wait to show it to all his friends at school. Marvin was one young man who LOVED new things! Anything new was exciting and fun. He also LOVED showing his new stuff to his friends. What could be better than getting new things? Marvin was about to find out...

When Marvin arrived at school, he was surprised to see that Oscar had the exact same dinosaur shirt! To make matters worse, Oscar had the very cool glow-in-the-dark matching shoes. How awesome was that? Marvin knew instantly that he had to have the matching shoes. A little while later, Marvin sat on a bench thinking about those shoes while the other kids planted the school vegetable garden. He had no time for his friends when there were neat, new shoes to think about.

When Marvin saw somebody with a Super Galactic Robot at recess, well, you can imagine what he thought. He HAD to have one! He thought about that robot during science class, soccer practice, and he even skipped playing with his brother so he could count up his savings to see if he had enough money to buy that robot. Would Marvin ever get his robot? More importantly, would he ever realize just how much he was missing out on by obsessing on new “things”?

Must-Have Marvin is the perfect story to teach little ones the importance of friends over things. Marvin learns a very important lesson when he comes to realize just how much his fixation on getting the newest, and best, of everything impacts his friends. He also learns how much he is missing by placing material goods above his friends. The story is fun and cheerful, with a happy ending, that helps children grasp the importance of friends. The illustrations are bright and children will delight at finding, and following, a little yellow star that appears repeatedly throughout the story and perfectly reflects the decisions Marvin makes by how it looks. In addition, there is a note from the author to parents, with a link to the publisher’s website for additional resources.

Quill says: Not just a fun story, Must-Have Marvin! will teach a valuable lesson to your child about the importance of friendships over the acquisition of material objects.