Review of “Colin the Crab Gets Married” by Tuula Pere, PhD

Score: 94/100 (9.4 out of 10)

Colin the Crab Gets Married by Tuula Pere, is a charming and heartfelt children's story about the hardworking Colin the Crab and his journey to marry Clara, whom Colin met and fell in love with in the previous book. The tale beautifully highlights themes of love, friendship, and the importance of respecting others' wishes. The plot takes an entertaining turn as Colin and Clara's friends enthusiastically take over wedding planning, leading to amusing misunderstandings and a clash of expectations.

Have you been married and/or been involved in planning a wedding? It can be one heck of a headache! This is especially true when all sorts of egos, motives, and expectations get involved. Maybe your mother-in-law wants a certain kind of cake from a certain bakery. Maybe your maid of honor wants a certain song or a certain type of music to play for old times sake. Maybe the best man is a little too insistent on the kind of food that needs to be at the reception. Maybe the flower girl doesn't want to wear pink, she wants to wear a pretty white dress like the bride.

When planning a wedding, all sorts of these things tend to come up! It often feels like everyone else is getting married but you!

Colin the Crab Gets Married really captured that feeling while also exploring themes like friendship and community—themes which have really lifted this phenomenal children's book series into the stratosphere!

In this book, it's finally time for Colin the Crab, a hardworking and selfless handyman, to settle down with his sweetheart, Clara.

The two bonded in the previous book, Colin the Crab Falls in Love, in which Colin the Crab came to realize that Clara loved him just the way he was. There was no need for him to do anything big, exotic, or extraordinary like be able to drive a robocopter.

Well, in Colin the Crab Gets Married, Colin and Clara finally agree to take their relationship to the next level—to finally tie the knot and get married!

It couldn't have happened to a nicer crab!

Seriously, of all the hundreds of characters to come through our contests, Colin the Crab is one of the kindest, most caring, and most helpful. He's the kind of friend you'd genuinely like to have—the kind of friend who'd help you move or fix your washing machine when it breaks down.

So, we couldn't be happier for him! He deserves his happy ending!

Unfortunately, some of his neighborhood friends—like usual—are a bit self-centered and overzealous. As usual, they see things a bit differently from Colin and Clara.

While Colin and Clara are content with their own simple plans, their friends insist on holding a big, huge reception with all of the bells and whistles they would personally want. For example, the talkative, ever-pushy Mrs. Catfish insists on there being a grand and traditional celebration like the one she had with the late Mr. Catfish (may he rest in peace). She reminisces about her own wedding, where she wore an antique lace dress and had an orchestra, and she expects Colin and Clara to follow similar traditions. She takes it upon herself to organize the music for the wedding, assembling an orchestra and choosing her favorite tunes

Sally the Starfish takes charge of several wedding-related tasks, including suggesting a trip to a seamstress for Clara's wedding dress and even trying on a custom-made gown herself—though hilariously, the dress ends up being made to her own measurements!

Eddie the Eel suggests polishing his motocopter to offer the couple a fancy honeymoon ride. Keep in mind: Eddie the Eel and his motocopter caused all sorts of problems in the previous book!

Norma the Newt plans on setting up an elaborate playground slide near Colin's pavilion for the children to enjoy during the party. Keep in mind: Norma the Newt appears to have the most children of all the characters, so this is more so to her/their benefit than Colin and/or Clara.

Also keep in mind that all of these characters essentially invite themselves to the wedding, and all of the characters just so happen to forget to let Colin and/or Clara know about their elaborate plans!

Oh, no!

Now, this book doesn't quite reach the same heights as some of the other books in the series like The Caring Crab, Colin the Crab Find a Treasure, and Colin the Crab Falls in Love. It's really hard to pinpoint why that is, but our best guess is that a lot of the shine is taken off of Colin and instead put on his many neighborhood friends. Colin and Clara are off doing their own thing for most of this book while everyone else is plotting and scheming.

Another thing we noticed is that the scope of these illustrations is much more zoomed out than in the previous books, so the characters are out of focus. You don't get nice close-ups of the characters like you do in the previous books.

There are also some humorously odd pages like page 33 (page 19 in the PDF) in which characters like Cary the Calamari are mentioned as playing instruments, but not shown. Instead. Just the instruments (drums, a piano, a saxophone, etc.) are shown. But none of the characters are shown playing them. It seems like a small missed opportunity.

In any case, the book is still richly illustrated, complementing its warm and lighthearted narrative. It effectively teaches young readers the value of communication and compromise while maintaining a playful and engaging tone. It's perfect for children who enjoy whimsical stories with relatable lessons wrapped in fun underwater adventures. If you're looking for a delightful read that balances humor and life lessons, this book is a wonderful choice!

Check it out on Amazon!