Children's Books

I've got to admit, I was quite impressed with this book and I also found it to be very interesting reading... in fact, I find it so interesting that I end up reading it over and over again. Heck, I might even start reading it again tonight. This book has all interesting facts about Nick Carter (even if some of it is outdated). It has everything about from how his parents decided to name Nick as well as who they named him after, and where he stands in the music business today as a Backstreet Boy. Like I said, this book goes back to 1998 but that is ok, because I like books that go back in time (history, biographies, etc). Anyway, I highly recommend this book (who figure?). KTBSPA

If you thought you knew all there is to know about Nick Carter, think again! Jane Carter tells us some stuff about her son that only she and the rest of Nick's family know about. This is a very nice book, beautifully written by Jane. It is full of secrets and anecdotes about Nick's childhood and rise to superstardom. However, the information about Nick's career may seem kind of old, now, since this book was published in 1998. Perhaps Jane should have waited a couple of years before writing a book about her son, because God knows she would have plenty of things to say : she could give her opinion on Nick's arrest, his solo career, the trials and tribulations that the Backstreet Boys have been through, Nick's relationship with Willa Ford (yeah right, like Nick would let her write about that!!), etc. Nick's been through a lot of things since 1998, and I believe that if Jane decided to write another book about Nick, it would have a lot more substance and depth than this one. But don't get me wrong! It's a great read, as pleasant as a fairytale. Because, in many ways, that's what Nick's life is! And seeing it through his mother's eyes really gives it a whole new dimension.

You shouldn't buy it i've had it for four years and ive only read the first ten pages I'm selling it because it is pointless!

I have got the book and I like the writing style and to know the facts as a BSB fan. I kinda think it's wrong to get money out of someone else his succes, but on the other hand it ain't lies and Nick knew of and agreed with it, so as not such a big fan anymore (NO I didn't become a hater) I would suggest it, but not too much.

I'll be completely honest:

If I weren't such an obsessed Backstreet Boys fan, I would consider this book (bad).

It's not well-written, it wanders and meanders to the point it doesn't make sense, and it's very self-serving.

However, being an obsessed Backstreet Boys/Nick Carter fan, I love the book.

The first few chapters are the best, because they read more like a story than a biography. Plus, they told me the most about Nick that I didn't already know.

Near the end, however, it turns into a "How to Turn Your Kid Into a Star" how-to manual. BORING!

BOTTOM LINE: LOVE Nick Carter? Buy the book. LIKE Nick Carter? Borrow it from a friend or the library. COULDN'T CARE LESS about Nick Carter? Avoid this book like the plague.

To this day I can still remember opening the Christmas package from my Grandma that contained the box set of the first 4 Thoroughbred books. I was in 5th grade and the typical horse crazy girl, so you can imagine my excitment over this new series. I followed the series faithfully, recieving them for birthdays and Christmas for years, yet those first four still remain the best. Ashleigh and Wonder saw me through a rough couple of months at a new school where I was teased endlessly for reading on top of the jungle gym instead of racing around with my classmates. Occasionally I pick up this book out of nostalgia and it still manages to suck me into the story, even at the age of 22. Excellent book, though I recommend if you read the series, keep in mind that the orginal author leaves the series after #14, and the series certainly goes downhill after that.

I ordered this a month ago for my daughter's friend's birthday gift. We used 'super saver' shipping and we are still awaiting delivery!

This is the first book in the Thoroughbres series by Joanna Campbell. It is about a girl, Ashleigh Griffin, and her fight to save a sick foal, Wonder, from being sold. This is a great book! Try The Saddle Club, to, by Bonnie Bryant, and Inkheart and Inkspell, by Cornelia Funke, if you like adventure and magic.
-horse-crazy, doll-crazy, book-crazy, 11-year-old

This book is about a girl who takes care of a sick filly. I loved this book because it's about a girl who wants to be a jockey and that's what I want to be. I think that the lady who wrote this book did a good job with the characters. She makes it seem like you've known them your whole life. My favorite character is Holly, the mare (Wonder's mom).
Whenever Ashleigh comes to see her she always whinnied and came over to get a carrot. Some parts of the book were funny but if you were looking for a funny book, put this one down and go find something else. I would recommend this book to girls who love horses and horseback riding. But, I think they would have to be ages 10-14 to enjoy it the most.

i loved this book. It's about a girl named Ashley Griffen. She move To townsend acres after a deadly disease wiped out her last family farm and killed her favoriteist horse in the world Stardust. Then Ashley falls in love with a horse named Holly. Holly has a foal. The foal was real sick when it was born no one but Ashley thinks it can be saved. But can Asley convince the owner of the farm Mr.Townsend that the foal can be saved!!!

Pike wowed me as a pre-teen, some eightenen years ago, with Slumber Party, Weekend, and Chain letter, etc...he continues to wow me in my early thirties; now a wife and mother, who does not have the luxury to read Pike's books all day in her bedroom. Thank you for continuing your creative writing genius in the adult fiction relam. This book was simply captivating. I am looking forward to Pike wowing me through the next several decades!

I have always enjoyed reading Christopher Pike's books, not only for their intriguing storytelling, but for the way the stories are written. Specifically, Pike goes deeper into his stories, as opposed to other young adult horror writers whose books about vampires who drink blood and serial killers who lurk in high schools are meant to be taken at face value, and thus provide shallow tales of blood, gore, and - ah! someone tapped me on the shoulder and I thought it was a murderer so I jumped and screamed at the end of the chapter. But, to my relief, it was actually just my mom telling me to finish my homework. You know...THAT kind of writing.

Pike's stories are not these kinds of stories. His stories often contain a web of mysteries that all come together at the end - making you want to reread them to "catch" things you didn't notice before.

This is definitely one of those stories. I really enjoyed reading this book, and I looked forward to reading more every time I picked it up. This was, I believe, the only story I have ever read that actually creeped me out a bit when I was reading. The part where they head into the cave and find the island...yeah, don't read that at night, when you're by yourself. Or do - it makes it all the more spine-tingling. Thus, the reason I recommend this book.

It's not for those who just want a shallow horror book with zombies and vampires and blood. It's for those who enjoy actual, well-thought-out, original stories. Maybe you'll like it, maybe you won't. Give it a try.

I found a copy of this book at my library and was able to buy it for forty cents a while ago. The only reason I picked it up was because the author's name caught my eye. I have read many of Christopher Pike's young adult books and enjoyed reading most of them, if not all of them, so I decided to get this book.

I'll admit, I wasn't sure if I was going to like this particular book, only because I was somewhat disappointed with one of his other adult books. However, once I started reading it, I couldn't put it down--- everything about it is so good; the characters, the plot. I have read it several times already, and I plan to read it over and over again.

Definitely a worthy read.

When I was growing up, I think I read every Christopher Pike teen thriller book, and loved every one of them. The Season of Passage was the first of his adult novels I read, and I must say that after 8 years, it is still one of my favorite books. If you enjoy thrillers you need to read this book -- you will not be disappointed!

Having looked at some of the other reviews, I too have must say that this is perhaps one of the most complex and amazing books I have ever read. I always handed out my well worn paperback copy of the book or purchased it for friends who like Vampire stories. And like many of the others, I had to get a second copy, this time on hardcover, to make sure I had a decent one around the house. I only wish Christopher Pike would write more adult novels. I read his YA as a child and loved them. This book shows what extreme talent he has. Read it!

My family loves Boynton and this book. It is a fun, catchy story that my 2 and 4 year-olds enjoy dancing to. Though it's tough to choose, this is probably our favorite Sandra Boynton book of all!

This book is so fun to read with little ones because it has a song-like rhythm to it.

Stomp your feet! Clap your hands! Everybody ready for a barnyard dance! This is just great read-aloud fun and was one of my youngest son's first "favorite" books - even when he was too young for it, he liked to hold it and look at it. Also, if you're familiar with the Turkey from "Red Hat, Green Hat" - my two-year-old likes to point him out in this book and say "Oops!"

This was my very first taste of Sandra Boynton's writing and I was hooked. She has a great writing style that's fun and snappy. That makes you want to sing and dance. Believe me, my 1st child and I did!! :)

My daughter is 18 months old and I have bought every Sandra Boynton book that amazon.com offers. "Barnyard Dance" is by far the best (in my opinion) out of all of them. And even though my little girl can't read yet, even she squeals with delight and laughs out loud the most when I read this one. If you only buy one Boynton book, this is the one! (although, like me, you'll be buying all of them soon because you'll be hooked!)

this is one of those books where not only do the children in my life enjoy this book, but i do as well. for a kid's book, it's pretty existential. A boy goes through this world where nothing exists and with his purple crayon, creates his world. What makes it more than just a kids book, what gives it the philosophical premise is that even though harold starts the story with this crayon, and has the power to draw anything, become anything, because all he need do is draw whatever he wants to be or where ever he wants to go, even though he has this power, he is unsatisfied and goes on a journey. he uses his crayon to create the world as he goes through it and ultimately finds some contentment, a resting place if you will :P, but the fact that he can create is irrelevant, its a means to an end. The implied 'end' gives us something to think about, and though the children who are meant to be reading this book will not go into such depth with the symbolism or the philosophy, they will pick up on some of the questions the author asks, like what is harold looking for? why did he need to do all that stuff if he was just going to end up back at home? (though actually he didn't start at home). even if the kids don't burst their brains thinking about this, even if they don't come to any logical conclusion, even if they don't ask any questions to begin with, i think exposing our kids to this kind of story is important. aside from being very amusing, it provides intellectual stimulation for those who look for it and for those who don't, well one day they may look back on this story as an example of some conclusion or another they have drawn. Even if they never understand the story philosophically, the fact that they are exposed to it will register somewhere in their heads and what they know of it will teach them something about life (as does everything, which always gets me critical of the constant stream of nothing we shove down our kids throats, like the bastardisations of stories presented by disney and now barbie... and lets not even talk about pop culture).
anyways, the kids i read this to love it. its a great story, i recommend

This is a great book to get in hardcover because you will use it alot if you have children of your own. If you are a children's literature collector you will want to look at older hard to find copies to invest in. For the rest of us this is a beloved favorite baby gift, but an even better first grader book. If you have a slow reader this book will help those who are struggling to read the opportunity to read a BIG book and for reasons I do not know it is often a "boy" favorite. The language is not babyish or unfriendly to adults so it will be a great laptime read for uncles and aunts to read as fill in bedtime readers.

My five year old son loves this book. It inspires creativity in kids to create what they can dream up.

I just got my son his first library card (remember them?) at the age of two and this was the first book we took out. I had heard of it, but didn't have it as a child and wanted to have a read through before I considered purchasing it. I LOVE this book and so does my son. The very thing that reviewers complain about: the limited illustrations, is what makes this book so great. In a time where our kids are constantly overstimulated visually (ie. TV, computers, video games, etc.) it is so nice to have books that are simple, clever and inspire imagination.

As a working artist, I can appreciate the simple genius of this book, not only in it's illustrations, but also in it's encouragement to use our imaginations, or what's left of them.

I love this book and i just had to get it for center i work for!
It's a book no daycare center shold be without!

My daughter and I discovered Fancy Nancy at the library when we checked out Fancy Nancy & the Posh Puppy. She was enchanted with Fancy Nancy, and we were tickled when she began using some of Nancy's fancy words like "plume". So, I purchased the original Fancy Nancy for her as a gift. It's the cutest story about how Fancy Nancy decided to teach her family about being fancy, and how her family loves her so much that they want to try it out. We absolutely LOVE the illustrations and the story gave us a lot to talk about.

I bought this book for my grand daughter who is five years old and enjoys being read to. She absolutely loves it! Her mother checked out several of the other books in the Fancy Nancy series from our local library, but this is the first one that she actually owns and can keep by her bed for night time reading. Thanks Robin Glasser for all the fun.

This is a cute book. My granddaughters love to put on high heels & dresses & la-de-da around in them & so does Nancy! It's a nice story and the pictures are very colorful. Good buy for all the "Fancy Pants" in your life!

This is a great book and the illustrations are fabulous!! We bought 3 Fancy Nancy books and enjoy all of them.

Fancy Nancy is an adorable book for young children. However, I use it to teach "word choice" in writing to upper grade students. It uses "fancy" words for regular words in a cute, fun way!

Stanek definitely has outdone himself in the second installment of his Quartet. Overall, The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches 2 was a great second installment to the set, staying true to the series and providing decent plot development. It did give more details into the storyline than The Kingdoms and the Elves of the Reaches but it still kept the reader hooked! I loved all imagary and description. Dean and I could sit and read it for hours you should get the Audio books as well the narrator really helps you feels the emotion the author is trying to convey.

After reading this book and the first one, I was very amazed at Stanek's talent. This is one of the most amazing stories I've ever read. It opens to the reader a whole new and vibrant world. And to the earlier reviewer who said that Stanek is America's Tolkien, I say ok maybe but more like America's C.S. Lewis. I would recommend this to everyone who loves action, mystery and fantasy books.

I definitely see why Robert Stanek is considered to be America's Tolkien. He writes with the deft hand of Lewis, and the clear eye for detail and worldmaking of Tolkien. Indeed some of the things I love best about the books as an adult reader are the careful prose, the solid pacing, the fascinating world, and the interesting characters. This is plain and simple good-old fashioned story-telling at its best. The kids in my classroom would mostly likely have a different line of thought as what I hear most about are the characters and the intruiging goings on. In this second book, Robert takes us farther into the mysterious otherwordly realm of under earth and farther into goings on in the kingdoms of men. This is where all the plot points of the previous book come together and the reader learns more about the villians from the evil shapeshifting queen to the evil maniacle king to the mysterious force that has returned from the distant past. One thing Robert knows for certain is plotting and pacing, and this ensures the story is a fast-paced rollercoaster ride all the way to the end.

One of the best things about the Ruin Mist series is that they keep gettin better and better, leading to some astounding conclusions (Kingdom's IV and Dragons IV).
The continuation of the previous book, this epic tale combines great characters, intruiging plot, and lush details and narrations- perfect ingredients for a great book. And a great book it is. Be sure to read all four of the kingdom's books, and the sequel series In the Service of Dragons.

Everything about the first book that made my son and I love it so much returns in this sequel.
The illustrations are absolutely gorgeous, and help to craft a definite image of the world unfolding to your eyes through the lushly detailed text.
My absoulte favorite part of this book, the thing that matters most to me, are the characters. The cast of characters in Robert's writing are always amazing, and they grow even more in this book.
The plot is epic and entertaining, but doesnt try to be more deep than it is, and makes for great reading.
Both my son and I blazed through it, eagerly anticipating the next adventure awaiting us.
For a great fantasy series you can't do better than the Ruin Mist books by Robert Stanek.

This is one of my favorite books. I usually don't read a book more than once, but I've read this one a couple of times. I recommend it highly.

I can not remember when I enjoyed reading a book so much. I probably should not have been reading it while working out at the gym. I was getting some very odd looks as I laughed aloud.

The book takes place from 1940-42, formative years in the life of Joey Margolis, an extremely precocious 12 year old Jewish boy growing up in Brooklyn. He is a prolific letter writer and an even more prolific schemer and wiseacre. Joey decides that he is going to get the NY Giants' new third baseman and phenom, Charlie Banks, to take him on a road trip and the scheming letters begin. The entire book is in the form of letters to and from the characters - including FDR and his press secretary. Eventually Banks becomes something of a big brother to the boy and the wisdom that is interchanged in the letters between the 24 year old and 12 year old is priceless. Joey even gets the young Protestant star to stand in for his father at his Bar Mitzvah!

This is not the typical book about being Jewish in Brooklyn in the 40's. Those are merely props to the story and in the relationship. It is about a wonderful relationship. What starts as pure hilarity becomes poignant. Most amazingly, the poignancy does not diminish the hilarity and laughter will continue until the last few pages. Although the ending is a bit predictable, it could not have ended any other way.

Once you pick this book up, you will have a hard time putting it down. It will carry you laughing all the way until... Highly recommended. Sometimes you just have to wonder why a book is not a bestseller.

What a gem! This is a wonderful look at another time, yet has something to say to everyone, full of life, humor, true glimpses into human nature, and a poignant and hope-filled ending. It is a very fast read, thanks to its humor and its invnetive use of correspondence to tell the story. A perfect little book for a plane or train ride, reading at the beach, or whiling away evenings before sleep.

I picked this one up after reading another title by the same author. I don't have anything to add to what's already been said about this amazing novel--except that when I was about 20 pages into it, I went out and bought a second copy for my 15-year-old so that we could read it together. It's just that kind of book.

Someone has to give a review of this book a reality check. So I will.

I just finished this last night, after about, oh, 150 eye rolls. Even if a book is maudlin crap, like this one, I'll finish it anyways, just so I can accurately detail why it's so bad. Kluger's pseudo-epistolary novel is a beach read for guys who need something to flip through while their kids are running around the park or playing little league. And the structure of the book, sort of a scrapbook, offers a lot of graphical variation with big fat type and occasional fun flourishes (e.g., incorporating signed matchbooks by famous people, kind of a vogue thing for celebs to do in the 1940s), so if you're looking for a book that makes you feel like you're flipping through a lot of pages in a short timespan, while not thinking too hard, this is a good candidate. And the subject matter - finding surrogate father figures in the unlikeliest of places - is comfortable ground for guys, I could see dads and sons reading this book together (an impression no doubt influenced by the cuddly photo on the paperback's back panel).

While I understand that this is a child's perspective of baseball and the events leading up to WWII, Kluger wants it both ways, retaining the wide-eyed innocence of witnessing history one doesn't quite understand, yet somehow having the sense/maturity to navigate through such a cultural period despite such innocence (several of Joey Margolis' complicated pranks strain credibility, to say the least). And even if this is largely a child's-eye perspective of WWII, Kluger's glossing over of the Japanese internment camps in the second half of the book is frankly offensive to that unfortunate period of American history (the protagonists visit there with an apparent carta blanca security clearance...gosh, Manzanar's remarkably like summer camp!!!).

Kluger's biggest mistake however, are his occasional references to Dickens, particularly David Copperfield, which this book tries very hard to emulate. All those references did was make me want to re-read David Copperfield or Oliver Twist, or even Great Expectations (all have orphans or quasi-orphans as their protagonist) again. These allusions do not disguise the fact that at least Joey has a strong Jewish mother in his corner, so it's not as if he's completely tetherless, although the text wants you to believe he is. Any kid who can fool the Army while hitching a ride across a pre-Interstate America (!)...you know, that kid's going to be all right.

By the predictably sappy, they-all-went-on-to-productive-lives coda, I'd compiled in my head a pretty decent catalogue of alternatives that this bus read tries to one-up. Guys looking other more fun reads about the myths of baseball might want to consider W.P. Kinsella (Shoeless Joe, or the lesser-known Iowa Baseball Confederacy), which has the common sense to embrace the possibility of baseball's fallable mythic status from the get-go. If you have a yen for the downbeat you might want to consider Malamud's the Natural (that is, unless you don't want your impression of the upbeat film adaptation tarnished). Also, a quick reading of James Jones' The Thin Red Line will get readers to quickly establish Kluger's innaccuracies with describing Guadalcanal (also offensive - there were no firefights on the beach!). And one can never go wrong with Dickens - Charile Banks was right, David Copperfield is still a good solid read.

Cut the syrup in half for your next book, and take off your damn Cosby sweater while writing it, okay, Mr. Kluger?

I read this book a few years ago, and it practically had me rolling on the floor laughing at times. Finally got it for myself to own, and it's still every bit as good. Gary Paulsen has a wonderful way with words, and is an excellent storyteller. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone.

One of the most entertaining books I have ever read. After reading one of the other reviews where the criticism was the authors lack of writing skills, for-gedda-bout-it. This book wasn't meant for your English Lit class. It's about one crazy dude's journey. It's funny, it's gritty, it's real, and if you're a dog lover, it's both happy and sad. I give it 10 thumbs up (ok, so I'm "all thumbs").

Very disappointing book. Boring, lots of padding. Poor and repetative story line. Not well written. Couldn't even read it to the end which I'm sad about as I love books and don't give up easily.

This book is outstanding.

Some of it is written in the manner of a tall tale, so I had moments when I doubted the narrator's credibility. But then I thought about it. Who cares! It's funny, heartbreaking, and uplifting. "Fine madness" is the point, after all.

Some people may think this is a stretch, but I see this book as a healthy mixture of Hemingway's prose, Faulkner's yarns, and an enthusiasm for animals

This book is going to stay with me for a long time, and for that reason, I recommend it to a broad range of readers.

You will enjoy this book.

Very interesting account of Gary Paulsen's experience preparing for and running the Iditarod. Although it identifies some of the colder sides of nature, it is a warm wonderful book with an excellent sense of humor...one that makes you laugh out loud as you read. This hard to put down book will leave you looking at life in a different way.

This is likely the most fabulous pop-up book I've ever seen. I first saw it in my doctor's waiting area with the kids' items. I immediately emailed my husband the title so that I could buy one myself. We'll definitely have to be extra careful with it around my three year old because it would surely be pretty easy to destroy, but that's a small price to pay for such a fabulous book. It's almost like a work of art. A must have for any dinosaur enthusiast over 6.

This is the most beautiful book on dinosaurs I've ever seen. The pop-ups are amazing and they're hidden everywhere! The information on each 'type' of beast is very comprehensive and the colors and weight of the paper/pages are remarkable. A child younger than 10 is not going to appreciate it and unless the child is a real expert on the subject I'd wait until he/she is 11 or 12. It will be well worth the wait.

I first saw this book at a library and was intrigued and delighted. Unique, informative, fun -- it stayed with me.
Though my daughter's in high school, I remember well her early obsession with dinasours. On a lark, I bought the book. She loves it as do all the adults and children we share it with. It is beautifully done.

This is an amazing pop-up book full of dinosaurs that "POP" right off the page. I purchased this for my 3 1/2 yr. old daughter. She is mezmerized by it and will spend a good 20 minutes looking at it and it's many mini-pop-ups as well. She likes comparing the dinos and making up stories about them. Truly wonderful book and a great gift for any child.

This is a beautiful book. It is the second one I've purchased for a gift. I think if you are a person interested in dragon lore, then this is a great book to buy. The quality of the "pop ups" is amazing. The text interesting and informative.