Educational Books

This book has been a 5 star publication since it's inception! I have never seen a child not love this book! It is definitely a winner!

It's about monsters, for crying out loud! Why on earth would you want to plant the idea of fear and worry with your children just before bedtime? I remember being terrified of this book when I was a child. I will not read it with my kids. I know they will be introduced to it somewhere along the line, and I hope they are not frightened by it. I just do not understand everyone who says they love this book.

According to the characteristics of picture storybooks, this is a high quality book. The text and illustrations equally convey with the storyline. The shape and size of the book is rectangular and does not have page numbers. It includes all of the literary elements. The book's strength is its illustrations. The book received a Caldecott Medal for its illustrations. The author does a nice job of telling the story through the illustrations. The illustrations get larger as Max's imagination grows and start to decrease in size as he returns home. The colors in the beginning of the book are duller than the end of the book. As Max's feelings and mood change, the pictures get brighter. The book's reading level is 3.4 and geared toward a lower grade interest level, however, can be enjoyed by older ages. One concern is that there are monsters in the story even though it is a children's book. Introducing this book to primary students may lead to questions and misconceptions. One instructional activity to handle this situation would be to talk about the monsters. Ask Were they scary? Did they change? Show the pictures of Max being carried by the monsters and the way they dance and play. Talk about feelings and emotions (the monsters and Max were not sure about each other at first, but then they grew to like each other and play together). The students can then draw monster faces depicting an emotion.

Second best children's book ever. My 15 month old son LOVES it, as did his older siblings when they were little. The song "wild thing" fits in well when the wild rumpus begins... highly recommended!

After having read a copy of this to my oldest grandson, and having the pages worn and dog eared, I had to buy one each for my other 2 grandsons. They are as mesmerized as the 1st was. Can't get enough of it. Fascinated by the little boy's antics. Constantly amused.

I had to buy a new copy of this book because the one I got for my oldest daughter was worn out! This is my youngest daughters new favorite book! She already knows her colors but she loves the rhyming and animals are always a big hit with her.

We actually own TWO of these books... one for the car and long trips, one for home. It is definitely a favorite!

This is a great book. My 3 yr old daughter loves it! It is the one she asks for over and over.

My 7 month baby girl can't get enough of this book. She loves the rhyming verse and the big color pictures. I definately recommend it!

This is my daughter's favorite book of all time. I read it to her daily. This is definitely a book that all children should have. The colorful animals in the book are fun to look at, while the words are pleasant to read and listen to. Very nice book!

This is a great book! It touches on important subjects in a gentle yet informative manner. My daughter is soon to be 10 and we are reading it together. I wish I had this book when I was growing up!!

I got this book along with the two feelings book from American Girl for my 12 years old step daughter and she loved it...Her mom really hasn't sat down with her to discuss her body changes and the importance of how things will not happen over night...we found it helpful to let her read it first and then come to us with any questions...she found the book especially helpful for her upcoming braces and how to care for them, she takes it every where with her...THANKS AMERICAN GIRL this book is great!!!

The Care & Keeping of You: The Body Book for Girls (American Girl Library)
The best guide I have ever seen in helping explain the facts of life! Made having "the talk" much easier. Excellent examples of problems girls face. Does not just explain the changes in the body, but changes in perception, peer pressure, even what size of pads to buy. Covers all the changes they go through, hair, shaving, diet, self perception, and sleep. My daughter has read it actively for the last three nights, which has opened the door to a great conversation on all the ways her body and life will change with puberty. I wish my mom had it!

THIS BOOK IS TRULY A PARENT'S LITTLE HELPER! I GAVE IT TO MY 10 YEAR OLD TO HELP EXPLAIN HER PERIOD.(YES, SHES ONLY 10. AND YES SHE JUST GOT HER PERIOD!)
THAT BOOK HAD AN ANSWER FOR EVERY QUESTION MY CHILD ASKED.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH, "AMERICAN GIRL!" YOU ARE A LIFE SAVER!!

Initially picked this up at the library to introduce my 8 1/2 year old daughter to the subject of her developing body. She read it cover to cover several times and we needed to buy it because she wanted to be able to use it as a reference book! This was the easiest way to introduce the subject and initiated hours of conversation between us. Highly recommended!

My second book by Torey Hayden, but definitely not my last.

ONE CHILD is the story of Sheila, a young girl who was abandoned on the side of a highway by her mother. Now the charge of her drunken father, Sheila is wild, sometimes crazy, and never cries.

What follows after her arrival in Ms. Hayden's classroom (following an incident that is truly chilling) is the relationship that grows, in a short period of time, between Sheila and Torey.

A very good but emotional read. I highly recommend it, and also recommend picking up a copy of The Tiger's Child, which is the continuation of Sheila's story.

At age six, Sheila had already endured a lifetime of horrors. Her mother abandoned her on a highway at age four; her alcoholic father neglected and traumatized her. Thus, it was scarcely a shock to anyone when the coarse, hate-filled child attacked a three-year-old boy, nearly burning him to death.

At such a tender age, Sheila's fate seemed inevitable - a lifetime in a psychiatric ward. Yet while the state awaited placement, they decided to put her in Hayden's special needs classroom.

Initially skeptical of a child with such a background, Hayden nonetheless did her best. Quickly, she glimpsed an intensely intelligent child, who longed for love and acceptance.

This wasn't to say it was an easy job. Nor was there any fairy-tale ending. Often, Sheila went into uncontrollable rages, damaging property, once even throttling pet gerbils when she perceived she had been wronged. Yet after glimpsing the inner Sheila, Torey Hayden refused to give up on her.

Then one day, several months after Sheila arrived in Hayden's classroom, the teacher received a call -- the psychiatric hospital was ready for Sheila. Despite having made a breakthrough with the child, would Sheila's life really be taken away before she had a chance to start it?

As always, Hayden's stories about the children with whom she has worked are deeply moving and memorable. By no means does she attempt to portray herself as a miracle worker; she freely admits her mistakes along with her triumphs as she merely dedicates her life to helping turn young lives around.

Readers interested in learning more about Sheila may be interested in the sequel, The Tiger's Child, which picks up when the girl is 13 and recently reunited with Hayden.

I heard about this book during am assembly and needed a book to read for my english project so i chose this book. Im not a huge fan of non fiction but this book was just amazing!! the writing style the author had made me want to read it more and more and it made me be like woah i cant believe this actually could have happened. I recommend this book to anyone!

This book is amazing. It will have you laughing, crying, and everything in between as you learn about a little girl who due to the insight, love, empathy, and dedication of her teacher overcame great odds. It will also introduce you to what a teacher of emotionally impaired students might have to deal.

I have used the book in a speed reading class several times and the students have loved it. I am now going to use it in another reading class to broaden the students' point of view and cultural awareness. Everyone I have shared the book with, has loved it and shared it with others. The read will keep you involved and make you want to read other books by Torey Hayen.

This is one I could not put down. Possibly Torey's best book!

Shelia, a bright 6-year-old girl who tied up a 4-year-old and set him on fire and was put in Torey's "crazy kid" class until a space opened up in the State mental hospital for her. She had a high IQ, was a bed wetter, had an abusive, alcoholic father and was abandoned on a freeway by her mother who kept her younger brother. She was quite a terror, but Tory "tamed" her and became very attached to her. She was cut bad by her uncle who raped her and was in the hospital for a month. She was able to enter regular classes again. Very good book, but left you wondering what happened to Sheila. Have to read the sequel: The Tiger's Child

Karen Arlettaz Zemek, author of "My Funny Dad, Harry"

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!

We absolutely love Yolen and Teague's 'Dinosaur' books. The text is fun and rhythmic and the pictures are just incredible. My son is eight years old and loves these books, just now when he came in as I was on the computer he pointed to the books and said "thanks!!!". We have only one comment. Please, please, please, make all of them available in large book editions. The board books are simply too small to appreciate the amazing detail in the illustrations.

My three year old has been into dinosaurs for a year and is still going strong. He received this for his third birthday and it quickly became his favorite bedtime story. We always end with a kiss and he roars a goodnight. Lol.

I like how the dinosaurs are named in the pictures because it not only teaches bedtime manners, but also dinosaur identification. Believe it or not, the boy can name dinosaurs better than he knows the alphabet.

If your little one is into dinosaurs, this is highly recommended for the collection.

WE REALLY LOVE THESE BOOKS WITH THE HUGE PICTURES OF REALLY REAL LOOKING PICTURES OF THE DINOS & WHAT IT MIGHT BE LIKE IF ONE WERE REALLY LIVING AS A HUMAN CHILD INSIDE A HUMAN'S HOUSE! FAST TO READ & GREAT EYE CANDY. THIS SERIES OF DINO BOOKS LEAVE U WANTING MORE! THERE ISN'T 1 AT ALL DISSAPPOINTING! WE HIDE THESE FROM GRANDMA SO THEY R ONLY TO BE READ BY ME & THE KIDS! THEY R OUR SECRET TREASURES WE ENJOY!
GRANDMA NEEDED TO FIND HER OWN TREASURES TO SHARE WITH THE KIDS...

My son was given this book as a gift. I was disturbed by the text. It makes children feel that they should just do what they are told like "good" little children. Children should be allowed to express their anxiety about bedtime, not just shut up and go right to sleep because their parents said so. Children ask for that one last drink, that one last story, etc, because they want to make sure their parents are there for them. They want to feel secure. Some children have a hard time transitioning at the end of the day and need those reassurances. That is why this book bothered me. I do think the illustrations are great, which is why I gave it 2 stars instead of one.

This book gets high marks for every aspect. The illustrations are really well done and so funny. My daughter loves the silly antics while my husband and I appreciate the looks on the faces of their human parents. Adults experienced in trying to get a little one to bed will appreciate the wry humor while children will love the general silliness. The absurdity of the huge dinosaurs in tiny human beds is greatly amusing to my daughters. The prose is also really well done and very easy to read, lending itself to some dramatics and a nice song-like rhythm.

This is the story that captivated by interest in this author's storytelling. My students love the books! Plus, the book came in excellent condition.

If you give a mouse a cookie is a fabulous book from the mouth watering food pictures, to the non-stop hilerious literature. I love the cute little mouse shown in every fantastic image. I would recommend this for ages 1 to 100. It starts out as a tiny mouse wanting a cookie, then wants more and more. A fun picture book, estatic is a great way to describe this grand piece of art.

If you give a mouse a cookie is a fabulous book from the mouth watering food pictures, to the non-stop hilerious literature. I love the cute little mouse shown in every fantastic image. I would recommend this for ages 1 to 100. It starts out as a tiny mouse wanting a cookie, then wants more and more. A fun picture book, estatic is a great way to describe this grand piece of art.

This book "If you give a mouse a cookie" is a great childrens book! It"s one of Laura Numeroff's great books. Its appropriate for age groups k-5 and maybe younger. Its a book that has a little boy that offers a mouse a cookie then the mouse will keep asking for more and more stuff. It's a book that keeps you on the edge of your seat to see what the mouse will ask for next.

BOTTOM LINE:

Numeroff does it again!
Anyone who gives this less than 4 stars is a soulless android. There is NOTHING to not like about this book in a series of 'If you give a ...'! It is laugh out loud funny, great to read, and the pictures are cute and hilarious! The story has a nice touch of irony without forcing a MESSAGE.

I think its wonderful to have a children's book that is so clever and whimsical - hard to find one nowadays. Not only does my 6-yr old love it, but I love it myself. :-)

For the past 4-5 years I've been trying to learn how to cook and of all the cooking books I have, this is one that is ALWAYS stuck between my desk and my kitchen for easy grabbing. No other book as been as handy as this, with the exception of my substitution book that sits right next to it.

It's also a great idea to include this in start kits for new cooks. Anytime one of my friends asks me what books they should get as starters I recommend this.

A marvelous book. Full of facts about food along with interesting related information. Truly a fun-to-read book as well as a valuable reference.

This is a great reference book for anyone who loves to cook or just has an interest in foods of the world. At date I have bought 12 of them and have given them as gifts to friends arouond the world.

I think this is an essential for all kitchens. Often, a recipe book will use a term that may be unfamiliar or use ingredients that are regionally unavailable. This book gives clear definitions, offers substitute suggestions and is generally the best resource to have in a "cooking" kitchen. I HIGHLY recommend it. I purchase it as part of a shower gift for all brides.

As a professional working in the industry, my yearning for culinary information never subsides. It may very well be insanity that causes me to focus so strongly on my profession, but I'm always reading and watching culinary related books and TV shows. Very often, you'll find that books and television don't always explain certain bits of information as well as you'd like if at all. And even then, their information is sometimes flat out wrong. That's when I turn to this book. It took years of convincing for me to give this book a try, but now it's the only food reference book that has it's very own place on my desk at home.

The book is basically a food related dictionary that describes a bit about history or culinary uses of nearly every culinary item, ingredient, or term. It also has a very helpful appendix that lists ingredient equivalents such as 8oz dry pasta noodles equals 4 cups of cooked, 15 graham squares equals a cup of crumbs, or 1 cup of dried pinto beans equals 2 1/4 cups of cooked. The appendix also lists substitutes for both ingredients and volume, high altitude baking adjustments, boiling points, temperature and metric conversions, oil smoke points and food label terms as well as consumer information sources.

If I'm looking for extremely in depth information on an ingredient or foodstuff, I may open up Larousse Gastronomic. But if I need the quick down and dirty on a cooking term or a conversion of some sort, which is more often than not the case, I grab this book.

The is a wonderfully, great, terrific book! They need to re-release the Great Brain movie from 1978 starring little Jimmy Osmond! Also, if I may suggest, try reading the Adventures With Boys book series-- Just as good!!!;)

I poured through these books continuously in my youth. I would beg for a trip to the library so I could find just one more I hadn't read.

I had all but forgotten about them until my oldest showed a keenness for reading. Now I'm ordering them for her for Christmas. I hope she gleans as much joy as I did from them! I used to love to pretend that Papa was handing out his sage advice directly to me.

This is such a wonderfully written series for young readers. You really can't go wrong with them, and hopefully my daughter will review this for you some time after Christmas!

This is a wonderful book for all ages. Its about a 10 year old boy that is always thinking of money making schemes!!!

I hope AMAZON reads this, but the ages of 4 to 8 years is not correct. I think they mean 4th-8th grade, not years. My son is in 5th grade and is just getting where he can read it. I read it when I was young, one of my favorite books...but not for K-2nd grade!! Amazon, if you read this, you may want to change the Reading Level! Thanks!!

This book reminded me of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. It is so well
written. It is full of wit and heartwarming understanding of the workings
of young boys. I enjoyed it as much as any book I have read all year and
would highly recommend it to any age group.

Sheep in a Jeep is a fun book using rhythmic wording. The pictures are humorous. My disappointment was with the small size of the board book. No where did it say the miniature dimensions of the book. I prefer board books that are in the larger format of 8x11.

I was first introduced to this book when a friend's toddler received it for Christmas. He loved it. That was 5 or 6 years ago. Recently we found it at the library and my boys loved it so much that we bought our own. My 2yo son loves it and even the 4yo still asks to read it. It's a keeper!

Our school district had a paperback version of this book (not cardboard) as a part of the reading curriculum for the kinders and it was so cute I had to buy it in order to keep it at home. The facial expressions of these sheep are too adorable, the sentence structure is kept simple, and it rhymes. Plus, the kids love it :^).

As a Jeep owner, when I saw this book at my library's book fair - I just HAD to get it for my toddler. A year later, we still love reading it. The rhymes are great and so memorable that we find ourselves using some of the lines whenever a mishap occurs in our daily lives. Whether you're a Jeep owner or not - this book is a MUST have!

Good basic rhyming vocabulary with plenty of humor. Nicely done lesson on consequences of not focusing on the task at hand. Good clear illustrations. Good to hear now with lots of sound effects and to read alone later.