My daughter started pre-school at age two and this book was a wonderful way to address the issues of separation, love and the fact that I was always coming back to her. She loves to read the book and repeat "Oh my baby, little one" with me. As a mother who has to leave her little one to work part time, this loving book brings tears to my eyes. It really sums up the feelings for a Mother leaving her child in a very age appropriate way for small children. I love it.

I received this as a gift and cried my eyes out the first time I read it. I am a working mom who hates to say goodbye to my little one each morning. My son is a year old and will bring it to me to read to him. I still get teary eyed when I read it. I am going to buy one for all of my working-mom friends. Highly recommend this book.

This is a wonderful book to read about the concept of being apart for a time during the day. The illustrations and text are sweet and enjoyable. My daughter loved the fact that a small heart is visible in almost every picture, although you must look carefully. Look for the "swirl" of heart over mom's coffee on one page. We read it when she started school, then I cut some small hearts from felt and tucked them into her pocket or bookbag. It was a small secret for us to share and made the transition easier for both of us.

Presented in a traditionally Cajun rhythm, Appelt's lullaby includes creatures native to a bayou, including crawdads, bullfrogs and (of course!) mosquitoes. Rhythms are those of human speech, and include Creole language. This awesome book will appeal to a variety of ages!

This is my all time favorite children's book. I found it in a children's book store in New Orleans several years back and have memorized the words to lull my youngest to sleep at night.

Anyone who has ever been in the land of the Cajuns or seen the, "muddy waters chocolate , where tadpoles hide and seek," will be enchanted with this dreamy tale.

I don't know which of us likes this better, my son or me! It makes a perfect last-book-of-the-night, with its nocturnal images and lilting lyricism. It's one book you won't get bored reading out loud to your little one---the words are like candy in your mouth, and they seem to soothe my son deeply. Great!

We received this book from a friend when we were expecting our first baby, and now, six years and three children later, it is still one of the most prized books in our family library. The rhyme beautifully expresses a child's faith in God, and the illustrations are gorgeous. A must-have book!

This book has a great message that young children can easily understand. The illistrator did a wonderful job! The entire book is just beautiful. Our two year old follows the little girl from sitting up in bed at the start of the book to laying down at the end. The flow of words is soothing and is easy for our daughter to memorize as well. This book is always in the "must read" pile at bedtime and is cherished by everyone in the family.

Not only does this story have a wonderful message that God is always nearby, the illustrations are absolutely captivating! My son just loves the pictures in this book, and you know what? So do I!!! I think this book is worth the purchase just for the beautiful illustrations which make this old favorite come alive!

My 24 months old daughter just can not get enough of this book.
Perfecr rhyming text, familiar pictures.
She shows and repeats body parts mentioned in the book (elbows, shoulder, fingers, toes..).
Highly recommend

I bought this book after seeing it in the "Oppenheim Toy Portfolio" guide. My 21 month-old daughter and I instantly fell in love with it after reading only the first few pages. The rhyme is fun and the illustrations are lovely and colorful. *Great* read-aloud book - highly recommended!

All night long the bats get down on American Batstand and at each hour the bats take up a different dance as Click Dark, their host, introduces a new tune. Children will love the sotry and feel absolutely brilliant once they've discovered that they can use this story to learn to tell time or help reinforce what they already know all on their own.

The Marching Bat Band parades down the Grand Promenade to the tune of "Stars and Stripes." From two times two to ten times ten, the bats demonstrate multiplication. This book has 385 bats strutting their stuff and is a great follow up to Bat Jamboree by the same author and illustrator. Full of colorful, active illustrations with the right number of bats on each page (to help in counting), this is a wonderful book.

This is one of the funniest books. One of my co-workers laughed so hard while reading it her mascara ran down her face. I've used it in Pre-school storytime all week and its been very popular with the 3 to 5 year old crowd. The illustrations are priceless and the charaters a riot.

Kathi Appelt's book of poetry is my favorite book to use with intermediate and high school readers. After twelve years in the classroom, no book comes close to the success I have experienced with Just People.

The book is organized into two sections -- one containing transcendent free-verse poems focusing on the adolescent experience, and the second an exploration of Appelt's own writing process with specific invitations to respond to each poem.

The title poem "Just People" stuns my students. They visualize the story so easily thanks to Appelt's imagery that they share Marsha Cates' loss when her boyfriend is killed by a drunk driver. "Emergence" captures every teen's desire for breaking out and venturing into the unknown of adulthood. Appelt focuses on the simple image of a young person sitting in a parked car in the driving rain, yet the yearning is universal. "Javier" is a poem of rebirth. A young boy waits outside a library in the early morning cold. A compassionate school librarian breaks the rules and lets him in early. His life is transformed through the warmth of books.

I've had the opportunity to present with Kathi Appelt and have her speak to my students. She is a writer of uncommon grace who can take young readers on emotional roller-coaster rides. I love this book!

Prediction is infused into the text through the counting scheme, where each successively larger group of animals joins the rain dance. A strong rhyme is used at each simple, spare stanza's end.

I just adored this book, the pictures and the lyrics(yes I said lyrics) were like a sweet bedtime lullaby that could be read to your children night after night. I purchased this book for my husband for his birthday, and he loved it. I have also purchased it for other members of my family. What a special book and one to treasure for a lifetime. Beautiful-Beautiful. Since this purchase I have become a huge Kathi Appelt fan!

My little 3-year old cowboy loves to read this book before bedtime. It's lulling, rhythmic text is a wonderful "wind-down" book before turning in. It has helped to perpetuate his cowboy dream and has taught him about different wildlife present in the desert or on the "range." He's even nicknamed himself Cowpoke and his brother, Camp Cookie, after reading this so many times. It's one of our favorites!! Perfect for any boy or girl showing interested in the cowboy or cowgirl life!

This is a fun book to read at bed time that offers something different than the usual good night books. It's wonderful the way the words roll off of your tongue - you almost can't help reading it with a slight 'twang'. The illustrations are beautiful, too. This is one of the few books my son and I both enjoy reading.