At the Ragtag Hotel: The Elevator Ride

At the Ragtag Hotel: The Elevator Ride is such an amazing and cute book. Even though reading it only took me a few minutes to finish, I really liked the message behind the story. What got me curious and interested was the elevator scene, where different animals kept squeezing into the small elevator one by one. At some point, I was wondering, "okay, what is happening on the fourteenth floor?" Everyone was in a hurry to get there, so it kept me reading to see what was going on. Also I enjoyed the illustrations. They made the characters feel so much real, and you could literally see how uncomfortable they were in the elevator, which made their expression even funnier. The ending part which I honestly wasn't expecting. Finding out what Dallas the Dingo was trying to fix in the basement explains why the whole hotel was so ridiculously hot. Overall, it's an easy book to read, but still manages to make you smile while having a nice message underneath all the funny moments. I think children would enjoy the characters and illustrations, and also appreciate the lesson about patience and getting along with other people regardless of the situation we find ourselves in. That's why I'm giving it 5 out 5. I really loved it!

At the Ragtag Hotel: The Elevator Ride by Freya Novak and illustrated by Anastasiya Halionka is a lively children's picture book which takes the reader into a world of beautiful imagery. Dallas Dingo is a steadfast, hardworking, resourceful dingo who is ready to provide help to his fellow community members who he comes across while operating the elevator in the sweltering heat. I liked how At the Ragtag Hotel passes the message of communal love and a hardworking culture to young readers. Dallas demonstrates how to be enterprising and keep his community folks together despite the challenging circumstances they face. I mostly enjoyed how Freya Novak took the reader into a totally different perspective of a seemingly simple elevator ride. The beautiful illustrations by Anastasiya Halionka depicts the diverse nature of each character trying to avoid the harsh sweltering weather. The author does a beautiful job of showing how Dallas stays committed to helping everyone reach the fourteenth floor, no matter how crowded the elevator gets. Each animal has their own way of dealing with the heat, but they all come together, and this brings out the beautiful lessons that lies in the Ragtag Hotel picture book.I will recommend it to young readers and their families. I received an advance reader copy from the author and I'm leaving this review voluntarily.

This story takes place at a hotel where seven animal find a way to escape the heat of the day. This book was so cute! I work in education and can absolutely see myself reading this book to students. The plot is clear, and as the story progresses, the dilemma grows like a balloon being blown up until the inevitable pop. The illustrator does a great job showcasing the animals' facial expressions with each page turn, making it easy to understand the emotions even without words. I found myself widening my eyes, a smile on my face, and thinking, 'Oh, my!' with every animal that piled into that elevator. It was adorable and definitely made me chuckle, which I think every good children's book should do. This book also left room for kids to learn how to say 'Hello' in other languages! That is so fun! I love it when kids' books include something else to learn apart from the main message of the story. I will be sharing the title of this book with all my teacher friends, urging them to buy it for their classrooms.

At the ragtag hotel is a very interesting and colorful children’s book. I feel like the book is an interesting way to teach children about sharing as Dallas accommodates all the animals on his elevator ride despite the little space they have they manage to all fit in and get to their destinations. The book is very colorful and using animals as characters is a very interesting way of delivering information to children especially since they have a very low attention span. I also feel like the book can also teach young children about communication etiquette as all the characters are using polite language. I feel like as a parent this will really help my child understand that they should always address everyone with respect. I believe this book is for kids the age of 7 years to 10years as the language used is simple to understand hence they are able to read it on their own. I like how the author has used different types of animals which shows that we might always be willing to accommodate everyone even though some might look different from us.

At the Ragtag Hotel: The Elevator Ride is a Children’s picture book that highlights the diverse range of animals rarely depicted in usual animal stories. Capybara, Okapi, tarsier etc, are few animals that are showcased in this book offering children a glimpse into the diverse animal life that is generally overlooked in the mainstream culture. Due to this, it becomes a very good source of information and knowledge for children as they learn about diverse range of animal species. The narrative begins on a sunny afternoon, with the elevator operator Dallas, as he navigates the hotel’s elevator, taking residents up and down with a bright smile. As more and more animals board the elevator, it ends up becoming too crowded. The narrative reaches a surprising climax when the elevator reaches the fourteenth floor. This created an element of surprise making the story intriguing towards the end. However, the overall plot remains simple, only functioning as an educational resource for children rather than a proper narrative.

Freya Novak makes it as simple as possible and somehow nails it. Dallas the Dingo is operating the elevator in the Ragtag Hotel on the hottest day in history, and one by one, six thoroughly wretched, sweaty animals are getting on the elevator, all heading to the 14th floor, all quite tired of the heat. Before the okapi can squeeze aboard the elevator, the machine is chugging, squeeking, and shuddering as it makes a formal complaint, and all those inside are merely hoping that things will turn out to be all right. Then it sticks the landing. The 6 animals all burst out of doors and into the roof pool. Dallas waves, presses the basement button, examines his tool-box, and silently departs to repair the broken air-conditioning that brought about the entire state of affairs. No big moment, no speech. Just a dingo doing his job. The multilingual greetings are an a silent highlight as well - Spanish, Swahili, Filipino, Lingala all so naturalistically they almost go unnoticed that you are learning something!

Freya Novak was born and raised in Perth, Western Australia. Her book, titled "At the Ragtag Hotel: The Elevator Ride," is an enchanting and delightful children's picture book that blends fun with animation. Her storytelling includes languages from diverse cultures to enhance the reading experience. She created different characters in the form of animals by adding elements of surprise and unique features. The focus is on learning about these animals, their languages and their countries. The double full-page illustrations make the visuals rich in colour, size, form, and expression. It's a gentle and effective way to teach children the value of diversity and inclusivity. There's a character for every reader to love in this journey of discovery. The elevator is the vehicle to take residents up and down, paving the way for new adventures in this interesting community. There is concern and expectation. There is wonder about the surprising adventures awaiting them on the mysterious fourteenth floor. This is not only visual storytelling, but is accompanied by an array of identifying descriptions for each animal. It brings personality, laughter, global awareness, and diversity. The story offers snippets in various languages, including Spanish, Swahili, Filipino, and Lingala. Dallas Dingo, the elevator operator’s mission that is not without challenges but to escort each guest to the fourteenth floor. He is met by a colourful group: Colin Capybara, Oona Ostrich, Queenie Quokka, Tiny Tarsier, Amie Armadillo, and Oma Okapi. I like the variety of words representing sounds that describe movement: “frolicking, and paddling” of the characters while the elevator’s door “whizzed shut” and “Queenie hopped into the elevator, where she stumbled against the mirrored wall.” The elevator doors “stuttered closed” and “ The doors clunked shut with a squeal.” Using striking phrases like "a toothy grin, a poised ostrich strutting with grace, large soulful eyes, a whimsical armadillo rolling around playfully" creates a happy and lively atmosphere. This book is a feel-good reminder of wonderful adventures awaiting a young life and is satisfying for learning and togetherness that I fully recommend.

The Ragtag Hotel, tells us a story about Dallas Dingo an elevator operator who operates the elevator at a busy hotel. ‎ ‎The story bases on how a hot day collectively brought different animals from different places with the same goal of getting to the rooftop pool on the fourteenth floor, all trying to cool off as they shared the little space they had with each other on their way to a cool pool. ‎ ‎ ‎The book showcases each animal having its own personality and way of moving. It also a good book to enlighten kids about the different languages and to embracing other people's language. ‎ ‎I enjoyed this book greatly. I loved the anticipation within the elevator as each occupant got in, wondering if it would get them to their destination. The book carries a lot of values kids can learn from. I loved the pictures; they were amazing and very engaging. The illustrations were wonderful and we also learned how to say Hello in Spanish, Swahili, and Lingala and Good Morning in Filipino. ‎ ‎This is a good, short and easy pick for bedtime or anytime, really, most suited to preschool or kindergarten ages.

The Ragtag Hotel, The Elevator Ride, is an amazing kids' book with colorful pictures and different languages mentioned. It's a highly engaging book that can teach kids to share and not to be mean towards others. Mentions of different languages also helps kids become more aware how there’s different languages and embracing different languages is something amazing to peoples diversity. The story bases on how a hot day collectively brought different animals from different places with the same goal of cooling off snd they shared the little space they had with each other on their way to a cool pool. There are different values kids can learn from this book with the help of an adult.I loved the pictures; they were amazing and very engaging. You can find a bunch of activities to discuss with kids from these lovely pages like discussing where different animals are found .It's an enjoyable book and very pretty. I would recommend getting it because I'm sure almost every kid will love this in their collection.

I felt sweaty just looking at these pages. My own apartment air conditioning is acting up today. This book is called At the Ragtag Hotel: The Elevator Ride. It follows a dingo named Dallas who operates an elevator at a busy hotel. A bunch of different animals pile into the small space. They are all trying to get to the rooftop pool on the fourteenth floor. I liked how the characters use different languages to say hello. Seeing Swahili and Filipino in a kids' book is cool. The elevator makes funny noises like judder and squeak as it moves. The drawings are very bright and look professional. One thing that didn't work was the layout of some pages. The text gets a bit crowded when everyone is inside. I also felt bad that Dallas didn't get to swim because he had to work. Read this if you want a fun book to help kids learn animals and greetings. The story ends with the guests jumping into the cold water. Dallas goes back to the basement to fix the broken cooling system. This book is mostly about animals trying to escape the heat. It features creatures like tarsiers and okapis that you don't always see. The pages are full of color and detailed drawings. Each animal has its own personality and way of moving. It is a quick story that is easy for children to follow. Dallas ends the day by checking his toolbox and fixing the air conditioner.