Children's Series Books Books

As a children's librarian, I bought this book for my library based on reviews and the pictured cover. When I buy my own cookbooks, I look for color photos of the recipe. The pairing of the recipe and final product are truly appetizing and certainly sell, not only the food, but also the cookbook. However, open Kids Cook! and find colorless pages! In fact, it truly looks like a coloring book. At first, I was really annoyed. Children also deserve color photos. Then I reread the reviews and re-examined the cookbook. OK, true, it is a fine little cookbook, easy to read, easy to follow.

With those things in mind, I came up with a way to write a totally positive review. After (you and) the child puts the product in the oven, s/he can sit down and color the recipe page! I suggest keeping nearby a big box of colors--one with bunches of choices in order to get the colors of the food just right. Unless the cook has homework, what better way to use the time while the food cooks?! Pairing a second creative talent with the first! Not only that, but the child can keep up with what has been tried at a glance. On the inside cover, create a chart of good/bad and all between ratings and then mark each colored recipe accordingly! What fun!

The perfect cookbook for kids, kids and parents, and parents alone! Great recipes for all ages. Nutritional tips and info are a wonderful plus for kids learning to cook. Be sure to try the chicken salad recipe.

What a great cookbook! Real food for real kids and their real parents. Not only is the layout easy to follow, the book contains good basic info on measuring, cooking techniques, and equipment. It also has invaluable information (in the margins on every page) on safety, nutrition, and other fun facts. The recipes are rated easy to more difficult so that cooks of all levels can enjoy this book. I may even get one for my cooking-phobic sister-in-law!

I bought this for our kids weekly "kids cook night" and they (9 and 10) had very little kitchen experience. This has a nice variety of dishes and gives very detailed "kidese" directions.

"Kids Cook!: Fabulous Food For The Whole Family" by Sarah and Zachary Williamson is a compilation of more than 150 delicious and easy-to-prepare recipes specifically designed to be 'kid friendly' and thereby allowing children to learn the joy of cooking in their family kitchens. From breakfast dishes that include 'Easy French Toast' and 'Breakfast Sundaes', to luncheon favorites like 'Chicken Shirt Pocket' and 'Roast Beef Super Sub', to savory salads including 'A Whale of a Fruit Salad' and 'Veggies and Shells', to snacks like 'Jammed Potato Skins' and 'Nacho Nibbles', to special treats such as 'Easy Hot Fudge' and 'Orange Creamsicle', to dinner entrees like Pizza Originale" and 'Stuffed Burgers', to simply wonderful desserts including 'Chocolate Surprise Cupcakes', and 'Autumn Apple Crisp', "Kids Cook!" offers a wide and savory range of make-it-yourself dishes that would grace any family table. Also very highly recommended for children's cookbook collections is Deanna F. Cook's "The Kids' Multicultural Cookbook: Food & Fund Around The World".

I bought this book for one reason: "Now Q is for Quincy, she was rough and ready. The first fire engine in our state; let's go boys, hold her steady!" I was born & raised in Quincy, Illinois and when I saw this book on a shelf at a conference in Chicago, I promised myself I'd buy it if my hometown qualified for mention. So it did. And so I did.

This book is subtitled "An Illinois Alphabet" and is part of a nationwide series. Every state in the union has its alphabet book with titles like S Is for Show Me (Missouri) and E Is for Empire (New York). I don't know if these book are really great for learning your A, B, Cs but, if you feel connected to your state, they are fun books to read. In addition to the short verse for each letter, these books contain longer passages in the margins giving more detailed information and the artwork by Mr. van Frankenhuyzen is quite enjoyable.

Ultimately, this is a book that would have to be shared between an adult and child. I can see myself using the verses to help teach my child to read and then sharing the more difficult marginal passages. I think a child learning to read would have a tough time with these. But maybe having an adult and child share the reading chores is not such a bad thing. Find your state and share something of it with your children.

Kathy-Jo is a state treasure of Michigan, where she has been creating her unique books for children (and their parents) for many years. She has worked on other volumes in the fabulous SLEEPING BEAR state alphabet series, including the "M IS FOR MITTEN" book which describes her own home state of Michigan (with its two hands across the water of the upper and lower peninsula, that look a bit like mittens, especially to the young'uns). And also she is responsible for V IS FOR VIKING (Minnesota of course) and the B IS FOR BADGER volume which gives us a peek at Wisconsin the cheese state.

But has she ever written a book as filled with fun and info as L IS FOR LINCOLN AN ILLINOIS ALPHABET? I don't think so. It's a natural for her, a state so big and boisterous she could have written two books about it. Did you know that the original Ferris Wheel was built in Chicago and it could carry whole classrooms filled with kids in one car? Yes, up to fifty people crammed in! Kathy-Jo's little rhymes carry the day, with everything from favorite dishes to the natural landmarks of our beloved Illinois.

L Is For Lincoln is another great book is what is becoming an impressive series of books. In this one, readers travel across the state of Illinois and learn lots of great history, culture and tidbits! The illustrations are very nice and the rhymes flow easily for reading aloud to children. If you are familar with this run of books, then this one won't disappoint you. L Is For Lincoln is a welcome addition to the series that features titles like S is for Sunshine(Florida), V Is For Volunteer(Tennessee) and M is for Maple(Canda). If you are new to these books, you may find yourself spending alot of time traveling around North America from your favority easy chair!

When my children were young I began collecting state alphabet books. It was a way we all learned about our states. Some were good , some were not so good. This "L is for Lincoln" is a wonderful learning tool for readers of all ages. It's format has poetry as well as side-bar information for older readers. The bright and creative illustrations are marvelous. I hope the author and llustrator do more state books. This book holds the title "the best" in my collection of over 200 alphabet books. Buy it you'll like it.

Another great collaboration for the Wargin-Van Frankenhuyzen team. This is a terriffic book and the poetry / informative text makes it a great read for preschoolers through late elementary ages. Along with the fabulous pictures, the author once again has combined an enjoyable read with a great history lesson on the state of Illinois. The pictures are so well done, that they compell you to want to read more about each place or event. An altogether great book for your children's library.

The Mom's Choice Awards® honors excellence in family-friendly media, products and services. An esteemed panel of judges includes education, media and other experts as well as parents, children, librarians, performing artists, producers, medical and business professionals, authors, scientists and others. A sampling of the panel members includes: Dr. Twila C. Liggett, Ten-time Emmy-winner, professor and founder of Reading Rainbow; Julie Aigner-Clark, Creator of Baby Einstein and The Safe Side Project; Jodee Blanco, New York Times Best-Selling Author; LeAnn Thieman, Motivational speaker and coauthor of seven Chicken Soup For The Soul books; Tara Paterson, Certified Parent Coach, and founder of The Just For Mom Foundation(tm) and the Mom's Choice Awards®. Parents and educators look for the Mom's Choice Awards® seal in selecting quality materials and products for children and families. This book has been honored by this distinguished award.

Wonderful read for horse lovers everywhere. Very exciting and entertaining, truly a book to get lost in. Must have for any young reader.

Most horse books are designed for children, and that's exactly who enjoys them. But Lady's Big Surprise is enjoyable for anyone of any age. You don't even have to be a horse person to understand it; Dawson explains all the horse terms she uses and even has an informative glossary at the back. This book is a great read, and I myself learned a lot of horse sense from reading it!

For all of you who haven't read lady's big surprise you need to go buy it. JoAnn has a wonderful story about her and her horse along with her best friend and her horse.
I read the book and it was the best book I have ever read. It made me want to cry i loved it though. JoAnn is selling her books at borders starting 0ctober 10, 2004.
You will love this book expecially if you love horses!!!
Melissa Proctor
age 12

I sent this book to my neice as a Christmas present. She isn't one to like reading but she finished this book and re-read it several times. After I read it, I understood why. The author created believable characters and situations that children AND adults can identify with. There's a terrific glossary of terms in the back of the book for people who have never been on a horse. Can't wait for the rest of the series.

I like this book because it was sweet and fun. I loved that Rose never gave up. I also loved the ending.

Out of all of the Ellis Island books, this one is by far the best!

I LOVED this book! I just wish that it didn't end without anything about her little sisters. For me, it ended too abruptly.

this book was fab!! i nearly fell in love w/tim!! he was so awesome...but her dad was a joke...i mean how horrible was he to promise never to drink another drop and go out to Casey's he pisses me off! but then he was sweet in his own way...it was soooo good!! everyone...maybe every girl...should read this book!! i give it a 5* rating

This book was my second favorite out of the series. It's with sadness, adventure, and romance. I recommened this book to anybody who likes historical fiction.

I like the spiral binding, easy to keep the pages flat, you get a large number of music pieces, many well known, nice variety. The only problem is they are not exactly easy for a beginner and I found one piece (so far) where the note just does not fit, it sounds off comparing to what I remembered, however that may be just me.

I have been playing for about 10 months and enjoy this book, but most of it's too hard for me. The advantages - LOTS of music, a good variety, not just classical like in some books (though there's nothing remotely modern in here - no pop or rock or anything). But as one reviewer said, it's not "easy", just easier, and it's not for beginners. For example, most beginner books have most or all the music in C, F or G or their minors (either no or one sharp or flat), in this book, a lot is in keys with 2 or more sharps or flats. The two isn't so bad, but the "or more" is a challenge. Also, the music requires a lot of playing both hands simultaneously (as opposed to beginner books that have more playing mainly chords and close half or quarter notes on the left hand, so that the amount of simultaneous movement is reduced).

This AMSCO Publications product (1998) contains some of the same
compositions found in their Library of Piano Classics book (1987); but the latter has 350 pgs of unaltered (I think) classical music, while the former
has 239 pgs of simplified classics and light standards.

Both books contain Debussy's Le Petit Negre in the same form. Therefore I suppose that the publisher considers the real composition easy enough to include it unaltered in Easy Piano Favorites. But other classical
compositions common to both books are indeed simplified. This is
accomplished by using fewer notes, rewriting in "easier" keys, and shortening
the original compositions so as to leave out hard parts. For instance, Liszt's
Liebestraum in the "hard" book is six pgs. long and is written in the key of
A flat (4 flats). In the Easy Piano Favorites book it is two pages long and is
presented in the key of F (1 flat). Beethoven's Fur Elise, generally considered
to be easy enough (key of C, etc) that generations of piano teachers have
taught it to generations of students, is 4 pgs in the original. In Easy Piano
Favorites it remains in the key of C, but has a different (easier?) bass and takes
up only one page.

Your reviewer, who once played reasonably well in his youth in his own
living room, has forgotten most of his piano skills in his old age. But I can play much that is in Easy Piano Favorites, and expect to be able to play most of it
in the foreseeabe future. I'll never be able to say that about the contents of
the more difficult Favorite Piano Classics.

What a nice surprise to open a book with almost 150 of the world's best classics in easy to play arrangements! This book contains 237 pages of music from the early composers such as Bach, Handel, Beethoven, Mozart, Brahms, Chopin, Grieg, Liszt, Mendelssohn, Schubert, Schumann, Tchaikovsky, etc. It also contains music of such great composers like John Philip Sousa, George Gershwin, George M. Cohan, Gonoud, Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin, etc . This book is beautifully bound with a sturdy, plastic comb making the pages easy to turn on the piano. The pages are quite legible and bright. This book is highly recommended for all ages. My students love it. It is a spectacular collection and quite a bargain for this amount of repertoire.

A great book for first or second year piano players. Covers classical as well as favorites. The spiral binding helps to keep the book open. Both my daughter and I are enjoying this book.

I didn't think I would have picked up a book with "Beauty Queen" in the title, but I enjoyed reading the first book, Lucy and the Liberty Quilt so much to my little sister that I bought the second book. Lucy and the Beauty Queen: Book 2 is really good! I'm a young man in my teens, and even I was drawn into Lucy's adventures in ancient Egypt. The writing is so descriptive that I can visualize each scene and character. Wonderful pacing of the book, too - fast. It keeps you reading until you finish the book! This book had action, romance, comedy, drama, and fantasy. Amazingly, Victoria London also manages to beautifully tie in historical significance, a lesson about self-image/self-esteem, and the battle between good and evil. I truly enjoyed this book. It's mature enough for parents to enjoy, yet entertaining enough for young readers to be drawn into its story. Victoria London's works is likely to become classics - the next Madeline L' Engle!

This series really complements Harry Potter. If you like stories about extraordinary kids, then here's another series - only the Christian or religious crowd would have no problem with the Gifted Girls Series at all.

I'm 13 years old, and I loved reading about Lucy. In the first book, she hasn't learn how to use her gift yet. But in this book, she uses it often. This book isn't all about being goody-twoshoes. Lucy faces temptation, dark forces, and even a sinister plot against her new friend, Queen Cleopatra. I'm not going to tell you how the story ends, but Lucy learns a lot more than she bargained for in this book. Good adventures and plot, I'd recommend it even to boys.

This is the BEST BOOK I've read in a long time!!! Better than the first book in this series. I want to read the next. VICTORIA LONDON --- PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE WRITE SOME MORE OF LUCY'S ADVENTURES! Don't keep me in suspense. No wonder why the Gifted Girls books are getting so popular!

Lucy and the Beauty Queen, the second book to the Lucy series in Gifted Girls, shows another side to the mysterious Cleopatra. This is a side imaginatively told, of a young Cleopatra who must rise to lead a weak Egypt. How does this relate back to Lucy? Lucy is in a quest to find her explorer father. Through her gift and through her journey back in time to find her father, Lucy learns about bravery and courage. This is not your typical girl's book where everything is sunny and bright, but a book that reminds you of a shorter version of a Wrinkle in Time. And it is charming. Mrs. Potter and her dog Mr. Smithy is vivid and lovable. Lucy is spunky, and Nellie Ham is funny. When I read the Emily Cobbs Collection, another character in the Gifted Girls Series, I was compelled to read the Lucy books. In Emily Cobbs, the Explorer Society becomes more prominent, and there is more of a backstory on the Gifted Girls. A wonderful new series that have been under the radar, but has caught the attention of schools and parents since it is among the recommendation lists. My younger sister loves this series.

I am in awe of the subjects Heather Gemmen tackles! What a fabulous way to expose young people to the serious global issues we face today! To do this through Christian eyes is even cooler, because it reminds us that we, as Christians, have a responsibility to our planet and to people in need all over the world. Lydia Barnes is like a modern Nancy Drew with a kick. After reading the first two books I'm eagerly awaiting the release of the third.

I am 11 years old and I like this book because I really wanted to keep reading and usually I don't want to keep reading unless it's good.

I like it that Lydia's dad is so cool and that they got to go to Africa. There was one part that made me sooooooo sad. You will cry.

K. That's all. Tx.

Fair Warning: I'm in love with this author, who happens to be my wife in addition to being a great novelist.

That said, as a professional editor I rarely find a writer who can connect so well with her target audience. KIDS LOVE THIS BOOK!

Every child I've seen within arm's reach of it has devoured it from cover to cover. Most adults do too.

This is a fun read, and the author manages to work a strong message into it without harming the story.

Lydia Barnes and the Blood Diamond Treasure is an exciting start to a promising adventure series. Fourteen-year-old Lydia travels to West Africa with her very cool dad and confronts many issues socially, spiritually, and personally. She takes to heart how the epidemic of AIDS affects people personally. She meets people who have been deeply wounded by the hardships of war. She struggles with the loss of her own mother and learns to trust God.

This book is a page-turner and a tear-jerker. No matter what your age, you'll read it through in one sitting.

Regardless if you're a kid by age or by heart, you'll love Lydia Barnes and the Blood Diamond Treasure! I bought a copy for myself and 5 of the young preteens in my life. I couldn't put it down, finishing it in one sitting, and the girls were almost as bad. I finally had to make them put the book away when the day got too dark outside to read where we were.

I highly recommend this book. You'll fall in love with Lydia, her dad, and the friends they live with in this book. Join Lydia as she discovers Liberia, learns more about herself and her faith, and understands the struggles of people in other parts of the world.

What I like best about this book is its straightforwardness. It is not mushy nor is it unnecessarily upsetting. Rather it is an honest and clear-eyed account of a wonderful woman, her colorful family, and their harrowing experiences during and after WWII.
My 14-year-old daughter read it also and talked about it for weeks. Ms. Blaikie is her new hero. And she is one of my heroes too.

The perspective of a Jewish child growing up in the sureal world of German occupied Hungary tears at your heart. An amazing adventure of survival. Surprising, very good

I could not put it down! It is funny and sad, the life's ironies are well described. This is more than a holocoust story. Anybody, who is interested in the effect of war on children should read it. This is a feminist book in the best meaning of the word feminist. A woman's strugle for identity, which is well decribed here, is one of the most important goal of the feminist literature.

We are living in a time, when children are victims of wars. We should think about them and their future.

Evi Blakie is one of a "new" group of Holocaust survivors - the hidden children who spent their earliest and most formative years living false identities. These children began their lives when the war was over, trying to forge a new and genuine identity, trying to just to "normal" after spending their entire lives thinking war was normal. Like more recent children of war (in Rwanda, Bosnia, etc.) they must spend their entire lives trying to figure out who they are. But what makes this book so wonderful is that it not only tells a story not previously told, and not even that it is a more universal story than we would like to believe - but that she writes well - with strong language and vivid imagery that holds the reader spellbound throughout the telling - and breathless at the end.

I am a New Yorker who reads on the subway commuting to the office. On two occasions I missed my stop because I was so engrossed in "Magda's Daughter".

This book is a tale of human adaptation and resilence. When I finished the book I was in great admiration of Ms. Blaikie. She is a woman of strength and insight.

It certainly made an impression on how lucky I was to be born in the US after the war and reminded me of the immense suffering caused by the Nazis and the horrendous consequences of the Holocaust.

Thanks for such a good read. It was a pleasure to get to know Ms. Blaikie.

Years ago, I stumbled across a book by Edward Eager (Knight's Castle, I believe). This guy wrote books for his children when he ran out of E. Nesbit stories to read to them. So, I discovered E. Nesbit through Edward Eager. When I started reading her, it rapidly became clear that many of my favorite authors were likely influenced by her, so when I found a book that I had not read yet, I was excited.

It's good. It's not as good as her more famous books, and it does not age well. However, there is more creativity in this work than in anything of hers that I have read. Sadly, I'm also older now, and was able to see things in this book that I would not have noticed when I was younger.

The story introduces two children who are forced to live together when their caretakers marry. (Unlike The Ogre Downstairs, I don't find fault with this plot device because the book is set around 1900. Culture was quite different then.) The girl (Lucy) quite likes the boy (Phillip), but he does not return her affection because he's upset that his life has changed. This continues when they both get magically sucked into a world that was created when Phillip built a city out of various things around the house.

This is where it gets difficult to read, due to cultural differences. See, the city is populated by the toys that the boy used to build the city. Additionally, the things in the books that he used for walls sometimes come out. So, there are a LOT of references to toys and educational materials that simply aren't common any longer. However, her writing more than makes up for the cultural divide. I am going to share some with you. If you do not wish the spoilers, buy it and read it yourself.


'I was about to tell you,' said Mr. Noah, 'and I will not answer questions. Of course it is magic. Everything in the world is magic, until you understand it.
(Mr. Noah is a character from the Noah's Ark toy set.)


'Because,' he said, 'I'm more likely to meet Lucy. Girls always keep to paths. They never explore.'

Which just shows how little he knew about girls.
(This is after Philip loses Lucy due to a strange series of circumstances.)


'But laws can't be useful and beautiful, can they?'

'They can certainly be useful,' said Mr. Noah, 'and,' he added with modest pride, 'my laws are beautiful. What do you think of this? "Everybody must try to be kind to everybody else. Any one who has been unkind must be sorry and say so."'
(Mr. Noah is also the Chief Judge, so he gets to make the laws.)


'Is it something we shall be afraid of too?' Lucy asked. And Philip at once said, 'Oh, then she really did mean to come, did she? But she wasn't to if she was afraid. Girls weren't expected to be brave.'

'They are, here,' said Mr. Noah, 'the girls are expected to be brave and the boys kind.'
(That fact that I grew up reading stuff like this goes a long way to explain my attitudes towards gender, I suppose.)


The sun was shining--there was a sun, and Mr. Noah had told the children that it came out of the poetry books, together with rain and flowers and the changing seasons--and in spite of the strange, almost-tumble-no-it's-all-right-but-you'd-better-look-out way in which the camel walked, the two travellers were very happy. The dogs bounded along in the best of spirits, and even the camel seemed less a prey than usual to that proud melancholy which you must have noticed in your visits to the Zoo as his most striking quality.
(It's true, camels are quite mournful beasts. I'll try to take photos for you some time.)


'Oh, anybody can steer then,' said Billy; 'you if you like.' So it was Lucy who steered the ark into harbour, under Mr. Noah's directions. Arks are very easy to steer if you only know the way. Of course arks are not like other vessels; they require neither sails nor steam engines, nor oars to make them move. The very arkishness of the ark makes it move just as the steersman wishes. He only has to say 'Port,' 'Starboard,' 'Right ahead,' 'Slow' and so on, and the ark (unlike many people I know) immediately does as it is told.
(I probably picked up my proclivity for parentheticals from E. Nesbit as well. Oh, and who can not bask in the awesomeness that is the word "arkishness"?)


* * * * * *

I'm sorry this chapter is cut up into bits with lines of stars, but stars are difficult to avoid when you have to tell about a lot of different things happening all at once. That is why it is much better always to keep your party together if you can. And I have allowed mine to get separated so that Philip, the parrot and the rest of the company are going through three sets of adventures all at the same time. This is most trying for me, and fully accounts for the stars. Which I hope you'll excuse. However.
(Nothing special to say here. I'm just going to let the beauty of that paragraph stand on its own.)


'The more a present costs you, the more it's worth,' said Mr. Noah. 'This has cost you so much, it's the most splendid present in the world.'
(Look, a moral lesson - just hiding in there waiting to jump out at the unwary reader.)


'Oh, dear,' said Lucy despairingly, 'aren't there any women here? They always have more sense than men.'

'What you say is rude as well as untrue,' said the red leader; 'but to avoid fuss we will lead you and your fierce dog to the huts of the women. And then perhaps you will allow us to go to sleep.'
(More gender-preconception correction. Also, note the presence of "red leader". George Lucas must have read E. Nesbit as well.)


So there you go, excellent writing and a story about creativity, magic and the imagination. How can you go wrong?

Well, you can make reference to numerous things that are no longer commonplace (Noah's Ark set, motor veils, white dominoes, draughts, blotting pads, lead soldiers, wooden dollhouse food, etc). You can also casually accept the fact that, at that time, there was a strict social hierarchy in England and only address this book to young children of the upper class. (This is very slightly addressed in the end, but not by much.) Oh, and you can suggest that it's a good idea for children to lick lead paint off of wooden toys.

However, if you can accept the book as a product of its time, and one that did try to address inequality and prejudice, just not everywhere, it's a very enjoyable read. I burst out laughing several times (especially at the end, which I shan't spoil for you). If you like reading children's stories, it's a delight. If you have children, this would be a good read-aloud book. It's not a good children's read-on-your-own book, because of the cultural differences.

I'd give this book six stars, but E. Nesbit already did

I loved this book as a child and still read it from time to time now. I think children who like to create imaginary worlds with their toys will enjoy this book.

Edith Nesbit is one of the most imaginitive children's writers around - and she's been around for a hundred years!

This is her best book. A boy dreams and finds himself in an equally real world, made up of the pretend cities he's made while awake.

I read The Magic City back in 1989 and spent years searching in second hand books stores for my own copy until I tracked it down on amazon.com!

Years before I even heard of Harry Potter, my mother picked up the 1910 Macmillan hardcover version of this book at a garage sale for a mere fifty cents. (Imagine, a turn-of-the-century copy of a great book for fifty cents!) At first I was put off by its volume (333 pages with illustrations) but I managed to lap up every last word of it...about seven times, I think.

Philip Haldane, our hero, and his half-sister Helen are orphans. Helen has been Philip's sister, teacher and playmate for what seemed like all his life, and there wasn't a shadow of a doubt in his mind that this would go on for ever; he wanted it to. But the unimaginable happens -- Helen marries and goes honeymooning around Europe, leaving Philip at his new residence, friendless and bitter. But soon his new, seemingly dreary life is changed by his embarking on an exciting adventure, so splendid and picturesque that he never would have dreamed that he had built it with his own hands. You see, Philip had always played building games, and he built not with plain old building blocks but with...well, everything -- everything from ink-wells to bronze Egyptian figurines! And it was while he was in the depths of his misery and pining harder than ever to see his sister again that he, the Creator, discovered it -- his Magic City -- and its delightful secrets.

Now, to look at it from a Harry Potter fan's viewpoint. I shouldn't be giving any clues, you really should have read this book at least once before comparing it with HP, but I'll just say...Philip is of course the Harry Potter of this book, but he is also the Ron Weasley because of his initial malice towards his new stepsister, Lucy -- the Hermoine Granger of this book. The Grey Nurse is the Snape/Malfoy/Voldermort figure of this book. The Great Sloth is rather like Scabbers, and Polly is somewhat Hedwig-like. And Mr. Noah is almost EXACTLY like Professor Dumbledore; if you look at the part of the book when he goes to visit the prison, you'll know what I mean :)

If that still doesn't grab the average Potter fan's attention, how about this: J.K. Rowling favours E. Nesbit as one of her must-reads! Enjoy...

More than a quarter of a century ago my sisters and I were captivated by E. Nesbit, and particularly by THE MAGIC CITY. Long unavailable (I have scoured used book shops and the Net for copies for various children) it is great to have it easily available once more. I am happy to report that my own daughter was as taken with it as her aunts and I a generation earlier, and like us she at once began building magic cities of her own. I realize that I risk the wrath of Potterites everywhere, but I suspect that in a hundred years children and their parents will still be enjoying The Magic City while Harry is at most the subject of earnest dissertations on odd trends in the early 21st century. If you have a spark of imagination and an eager child handy, grab this book.

What a beautifully illustrated book! This was a wonderful book based on a true story. I used it with pre-schoolers and they really enjoyed the story as well as the beautiful artwork. I highly recommend it!

I have long been a fan of Linnea in Monet's Garden - so I was very excited to find this new series of books by Laurence Anholt. Anholt's approach to introducing children to these artists - he has covered Monet, Picasso, Van Gogh, Degas, and DaVinci - is to use their art to create the backgrounds and settings for his characters. This book in particular is my favorite of the series because it is crowned with a fold out of Monet's vivid Waterlilies with a tiny boat floating across it carrying the story's members - Monet and a little girl who happens upon his garden. Before it is over, the little girl plucks one of the lilies from the famous painting as a memoir. My daughter loves this picture - and it is almost surreal to me to see Monet's art coming to life in such a manner. I can hardly wait until she visits the museum and sees the real painting. Watching her make this connection should be very exciting.

Aside from this stunning mixture of Monet's work and Anholt's own lush artwork - carefully drawn to compliment the featured art - the book gives some great educational information about Monet by weaving it into the story - all this without ever starting to sound like a textbook. The story retains its' focus and its' charm without becoming boring. That is an amazing accomplishment in my opinion.

I hope to purchase the entire set for a lovely and educational Christmas gift. These are sure to become beloved classics. Any children's book that learns to entertain both child and parent equally often does.

Anholt's lovely book about Monet is my favorite of the series about famous artists. He demystifies impressionism and actually inspires children to paint their own "magical gardens"!!

The Magical Garden of Claude Monet is a great way to expose young children to impressionist art. My son loved the story of Julie in Monet's garden. Julie is a young French girl who takes a train with her Mother to visit Monet's garden. As they arrive into the countryside, her dog runs away and is found in Monet's garden. Soon the painter and Julie become friends. The illustrations are bright and colorful. You almost feel as if you are inside one of Monet's paintings. Children will be captivated by the story as well as the beautiful pictures.

Fine art apprecation was a lost thing among adults let alone children, encouraging an understanding of art at a young age will encorage intrest in art in children and their caregivers alike. Help kids enjoy art and culture while reading a fun story. With this book, (and the others in the series) they introduce kids to the famous artworks of great painters throughout history while encoraging a childs imagination to be creative and tell a story with each picture.

This story is even better because it is based on factual people, even the little girl. She embarks on a journey with her mother to visit a friend..the little girl ends up chasing her runaway dog on the trip and finds herself in a most magnificent garden..only to find out that is the "friend" they were going to visit. This book is wonderful, historical, educational, and fun. It encourages children to think about paintings, and to form images and stories for each one, to think about "what would it be like to be inside that painting".