Birthday Bling (Dollars to Doughnuts Book 1): Spending

by Catherine Daly, Genevieve Kote (Illustrator)

Overview

From budgeting to spending, from credit cards to gift cards, this new early chapter book series tackles and explains big financial topics for kids, Dollars to Doughnuts!

When Lucy’s aunt gives her a card—the plastic kind—for her birthday, Lucy knows just the blinged-out sweatshirt to spend it on. She plunks the card down at the store, but, cringe, it comes up short! Wait, what’s the difference between a gift card and a credit card?

In this early chapter book designed to help kids decipher finance facts and fallacies, Lucy and her best friend, Julian, find out about the pros and cons of gift cards versus credit cards.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781662670213
Publisher:	Astra Publishing House
Publication date:	01/09/2024
Series:	Dollars to Doughnuts , #1
Pages:	64
Sales rank:	404,599
Product dimensions:	5.13(w) x 7.56(h) x 0.19(d)
Age Range:	6 - 9 Years

About the Author

Catherine Daly has written many books for young readers, including The Magical Reality of Nadia and The Magical Reality of Nadia: Middle School Mischief, both with Bassem Youssef, What Was the Age of Exploration?, the Petal Pushers middle-grade series, and a few books in the Makers Make It Work series. She lives in New York City with her family and their feisty Boston terrier, Jack.

Genevieve Kote is a French Canadian illustrator who loves drawing kids and animals and bringing their adventures to life. She has illustrated the Agents of H.E.A.R.T., I Heart Band, and Animal Rescue Friends series, as well as American Girl’s According to Aggie.

Editorial Reviews

"Kote’s illustrations capture the emotions and diversity of Lucy and Julian’s neighborhood well...The financial lessons are sound and clearly conveyed...An important lesson in both finance and in weighing wants versus needs." —Kirkus Reviews

"For the intended audience, this title aptly covers important financial literacy elements. Adults trying to instill some important fiscal lessons will appreciate the opportunity to share this book with young spenders as well. Informative without being preachy, this story will be of interest to young shoppers who want to experience financial independence, but need to learn some important lessons in money management first." —School Library Journal

"It’s an interesting story for kids that gives them information while keeping it all interesting and relevant to them. The black and white illustrations also keep the kids attentive and show a couple of the cards for visual reference. A really great book, I’m looking forward to the next one in the series." —Youth Services Book Review (Rating 5+, starred review)

From the Publisher

01/01/2024

Gr 1–4—The first in this new financial literacy chapter book series features two friends, Lucy and Julian, who are looking forward to Lucy's upcoming 10th birthday. Lucy is given a gift card by her aunt but doesn't understand how it works. She's heard the new girl Avery talking about how she buys things with a credit card her parents gave her, which confuses Lucy and Julian all the more. Lucy finds herself in an embarrassing situation at a store when her gift card doesn't have enough money to pay for the sparkly sweatshirt she would like to buy. With the help of teenager Oona, Julian's babysitter, Lucy and Julian both get a lesson in the difference between credit, debit, and gift cards, and learn about the perils of late fees and interest on owed balances. Black-and-white illustrations capture the characters and help move the story along. The message is clear without being overly didactic. For the intended audience, this title aptly covers important financial literacy elements. Adults trying to instill some important fiscal lessons will appreciate the opportunity to share this book with young spenders as well. VERDICT Informative without being preachy, this story will be of interest to young shoppers who want to experience financial independence, but need to learn some important lessons in money management first.—John Scott

School Library Journal

2023-10-21
All that glitters is not plastic.

When Lucy receives a gift card for her 10th birthday, she assumes it’s like the credit card that trendy classmate Avery shows off. But when Lucy attempts to buy an expensive sweatshirt, she realizes that her card has a strict spending limit. The experience upsets Lucy, though her frugal friend and neighbor Julian attempts to comfort her. Later that evening, their teenage babysitter, Oona, teaches them the differences between credit, debit, and gift cards and gives them a hands-on lesson in how interest works. The allure of a high credit limit dims as Lucy learns just how easily debt can snowball. Lucy’s material envy gives way to a thrifty alternative thanks to Julian, whose in-story Moola Man comic closes out the book. Kote’s illustrations capture the emotions and diversity of Lucy and Julian’s neighborhood well. Each chapter heading includes an illustration of a gift card next to a credit card, helping readers notice the unique details of each. The financial lessons are sound and clearly conveyed, and though this is a purposeful book, with an obvious takeaway, Lucy’s interest in sports and horror movies makes her a more well-rounded character than she might otherwise have been. Lucy appears tan in the grayscale illustrations, while Avery is lighter-skinned, Oona is dark-skinned, and Julian reads as Asian.

An important lesson in both finance and in weighing wants versus needs. (tips for saving money while shopping) (Fiction. 7-10)

Kirkus Reviews