A young boy has to move out West and is worried that all the things he has heard about Western life are true.......

"Out West I'll look silly all the time. I'll have to wear chaps and spurs and a bandanna and a hat so big that nobody can find me underneath it. And I'll have to ride a horse to school every day and I don't know how."

Marjorie Weinman Sharmat deals with anxiety about change and stereotypes in a light and humorous manner along with Barton's earth tone illustrations. What a great way to help children learn about stereotyping. A subject that can do a lot of harm to our society if left to mature into an adult mind.

Although geared for a bit older children (5yrs. and up), all ages will get a kick out of following the young boy out West to see if gila monsters really do meet you at the airport!

"Gila Monsters" has to be one of my favorite children's books. It addresses the fear of a young boy from New York, whos "parents are moving out west." His friend told him that "Gila Monsters Meet You at the Airport," and he knows it's true, because he read it in a book.

When he finally arrives at the airport, he meets another young boy who is moving to New York and filled with fears, because there are alligators in the sewers. He knows it's true, because he read it in a book.

This book is a great way to defuse a child's fear of an upcoming move. And it's a fun read for adults as well!

This book shows basically all of Sid Fleischman's career life. This is from when he was a boy to now. In his first career he wanted to be a magician, and that's what this book is mainly about.

Do you want to become a writer? Here's how. First become a magician, then travel the high seas, drop into a reporter's job and start having a family. Once done write a few screen plays and use your kids to critique your work. Does the above sound unbelievable? Yes indeed, except that it is true. Sid Fleischman did live such a life and now is sharing it with his fans.

You will enjoy this entertaining autobiography of one of america's famous children's authors. Sid's life is a fantasy of adventure and excitement as you see how he becomes an author. It was not intentional and took a long time but it was worth it in the end.

Enjoy his life story filled with unexpected escapades and happenings over his illustrious career. He share with us his family and their crazyness and keeps us entertained. You will enjoy his life and his telling of how his characters were born.

I was surprised to see that a reviewer called this a book that could teach kids how to write. Of course it can, but it can teach *anyone* of any age how to be a better writer. Sid Fleischman's sweet, gentle humor shines through on every page. His advice to aspiring magicians, authors, parents, human beings in general is so sound and so commonsensical that at first it seems simplistic. It isn't. Nothing he advises is obvious; it's just that he expresses it so well and it makes so much sense that his words slip into your work and make it, and you, better.

This was my two-year-old's favorite book; for some time he and it were inseparable. Bold, simple illustrations on bright backgrounds make a terrific fist visual introduction to the process dinosaur bones undergo for extraction, study, and display. Thanks to this book, mine was the only toddler in his peer group who could identify a paleontologist and explain what one des. Inspired by the story, to this day one of his favorite games is to "dig" for imaginary dinosaur bones in the sand, "wrap" them, pack them in "crates," load them on the "truck" (his stroller), and transport them to the "museum" (our living room), where they are unloaded, assembled into "skeletons," and carefully studied for the remainder of the day.

Byron Barton's "Bones, Bones..." has the simple, inevitable story line that my son loves, plus the building up of the dinosaur image from the bones found in an archeological expedition. For any dinosaur kid who is at the developmental stage of building up from the pieces - seeing the bones uncovered, packed, transported and unpacked before assembly into a dino skeleton (T Rex, of course) is a daily delight.

It is a simple story, though, so choose for younger readers.

You wouldn't expect it from Prelutsky's better know works, but this book is really creepy! The grey illustrations really enhance the effect. I'm told that I loved it before I was old enough to understand the words, so parents searched high and low for a copy. When they finally got a hold of this library edition (pre-internet) the poems scared me. Now i love it again - especially the snopp - poor lonely snopp - and the wozzit in the closet (it's eaten mother's dress!!)!

"At first I thought, "I'll touch it,"/and then I thought, "I won't,"/and when again I thought, "I will,"/the snopp said softly, "Don't."" These amusing and lyrical rhymes of imaginary creatures such as the snopp (who looks a mop), the gibble, the monumental meath, and many others will keep children and their adults giggling and wanting more. Lots of new words are made up along the way (read Flonster Poem to discover more about flimes, floobers, flummies and fleemies) which children will enjoy tremendously. The monochromatic illustrations of some most unusual creatures wearing human garb help tell the poem's stories as well as spark young reader's imaginations. Twelve poems in all, of various lengths to suit many time lines. A fun introduction to poetry to read aloud to very young children or for older children to read on their own.

Truck Song by Diane Siebert is a beautifully-written tribute tointerstate-trucking. The colorful verse draws young children into thestory, at the same time that the rhythm of the poem evokes the rhythm of a cross-country haul. The illustrations by Byron Barton vividly illustrate the poem's content, as one trucker sees his load to its destination. My two-year-old loved the easy-paced verse, and enjoyed the pictures of the different trucks. This was one book my husband and I actually enjoyed rereading multiple times in a sitting. Truck Song is sure to become a much-loved classic in our family,

I have no complaints about the book itself. The colors are vibrant and it is fun. However, there isn't enough text. When I bought this I at least exspected a paragraph every page or so. This is a picture book with a few words. I would not have purchased it for my children (Middle Elementary age) had I know that one fact. Great for preschool aged children. Stacey

Simple factual text and brightly colored pictures in clear black outlines all combine to make this a book that should be fascinating to toddlers.

Byron Barton gets another A+ in my book for clear, simple pictures and text. This book is geared for the toddler/preschooler crowd with its primary colors and constuction basics. It would be a great book for anyone in the process of building a house or watching houses being built in their neighborhood.

My 2 year old sons are really starting to associate the similarities between this book and some of the construction sites we visit. While Barton's pictures are simple, there is enough detail to expand beyond the written text. For example, on the page with words "They put up walls.", we are able to find the windows, the floor and foundation. On the page with the plumber, they like to point out the future shower, toilet, and sink. (And of course, being 2, they like to expand on the functions of the staples of every bathroom!)

Our only complaint is that the finished house needs a little decorator's touch. After all, it is totally green and red with no landscaping whatsoever! Even my guys noticed there are no trees. But overall a great book for all our future builders.

I'd hoped for diagrams for a variety of paper airplanes, but that's not what the book's about.Instead, it deals mostly with the physics of flight. It does suggest useful, inexpensive experiments for those with a scientific bent.

I used this book with my 3rd Grade class and found it invaluable. The explanations, diagrams, and experiments were right on their level.