Written and illustrated by Diane deGroat, Good Night, Sleep Tight, Don't Let The Bedbugs Bite! is a lovely story about young raccoon, skunk, and porcupine children going to sleep-away camp for the first time. With the important moral message that it's okay to be afraid of the dark, yet the power to be brave lies within us all, Good Night, Sleep Tight, Don't Let The Bedbugs Bite! is an excellent and recommended picturebook to prepare young children for the rigors of spending days and nights away from home.

Leonard Everett Fisher has created such a beautiful set of portraits of this ancient and mysterious culture. My elementary students laughed in delight of the rhythmical musings of the great emperor and were able to remain focused during the entire story. The story as written by Mr. Fisher lent itself to further discussions about the implications of building the Great Wall, including a cost-benefit analysis of the labor lost in constructing such a feat of wonder! I highly recommend this book to anyone for its illustrous drawings and the language chosen to convey this important part of human history.

As a tremendous fan of Louisa May Alcott's works, especially Little Women, I enjoy reading anything related to the novel. Ms. Penner's book contains ideas on crafts, hairstyles, edible treats, games, celebrations, and more, all corresponding to the March sisters' experiences. Although aimed at girls in the 8-12 age range, the book will appeal to anyone young at heart. It is charmingly accented throughout with watercolor illustrations. This book would make a wonderful gift for any girl who loves Little Women and desires to live as the March sisters did.

This book is a wonderful tale with an environmental message for children and adults alike. The value of trees is concisely shown within the context of a wonderful story and humorous illustrations. This book is out of print.

I purchased this book for my 2 aunts when my Grandmother passed away. It is a wonderful book about how people really feel. I found it quite therapeutic after my Grandma died. The grandma in the book reminded me of my grandmother - same sweater, liked to have her nails painted and the same hair style. I read it to my children. It is a wonderful and touching book.

This is a terrific book, and not just for Halloween. The story of Gilbert the opossum and his mishaps was cute enough to reread several hundred times. I know this because my 3-year-old fell in love with Gilbert and Lola and we're still reading the book in May. I'm looking forward to reading deGroat's other Gilbert books, but it took me a long time to find them online. If you're looking for more Gilbert books, here's the list: Roses Are Pink, Your Feet Really Stink (1996), Happy Birthday to You, You Belong in a Zoo (1999), Jingle Bells, Homework Smells (2000), We Gather Together...Now Please Get Lost! (2001), Good Night, Sleep Tight, Don't Let the Bedbugs Bite! (2002).

Researchers constantly find that reading to children is valuable in a variety of ways, not least of which are instilling a love of reading and improved reading skills. With better parent-child bonding from reading, your child will also be more emotionally secure and able to relate better to others. Intellectual performance will expand as well. Spending time together watching television fails as a substitute.

To help other parents apply this advice, as a parent of four I consulted an expert, our youngest child, and asked her to share with me her favorite books that were read to her as a young child. The Wrong-Way Rabbit was one of her picks.

This book is designed to be a beginning reader, and starts with instructions about reading to your child . . . and having your child read aloud to you. It's sound advice. If you only read that page, you would be well served by this book.

This is a story of a most unusual rabbit -- he does everything differently. Tibbar Jack says "olleh" instead of hello. When the sun comes up, he says, "Good night!" He pours his juice into his bowl and his cornflakes into his cup. His socks go on his ears, so he can't hear very well. May be that's why he brought home goats when he Mother asked for oats. At school, he knows his CBAs. He goes up the down stair case. He likes his night time stories read from back to front -- that way he knows how they end and he feels very smart.

Can you think of why his name might be Tibbar Jack?

This story will keep almost any child in stitches, which will encourage them to want to read it. Also, it makes their own mistakes seem teeny compared to Tibbar Jack's. On the other hand, there are advantages to some of this (like reading the stories backward), so Tibbar Jack may have some good lessons to share.

At another level, this is a book about encouraging creativity. Your child may not have ever considered going against so many conventions. In the 70s a popular bumper sticker was "Question Authority." A good one for now might be to "Embrace Differences." Anyone who reads this book is going to feel more confident about following her or his instincts wherever they may take her or him.

Overcome your misconception stall that we must always conform, and enjoy life more!

I read all of the Great Brain books as a child, and enjoyed them thoroughly. I was thrilled to discover this new (to me) volume out. It does follow the same formula as the other books, with chapters where Tom's money loving heart swindles the kids out of their money, as well as chapters where his Great Brain saves the day. The characters are all there, too: J. D., Sweyn, Frankie, Parley, Basil, Danny, and the other kids in the town, as well as Mamma, Papa, and a new influence on Tom's Great Brain: a girl!

There's nothing new here, as the anecdotes are like those in the other books. I enjoyed best the chapters with the Paiute tribe and the fishing expedition, as it reminds me that life on one hand may not be the same, but maybe on the other hand it is.

If you enjoy the Great Brain books, and would like some new stories, pick this book up. If you've never read the Great Brain before, go back and read them in order, or try a few of the paperback editions first.

I am now 33 years old and still love the Great Brain series. I read them as a child and bought the paperback set then. I still have it.......covers off, torn pages and raggedy books overall, but I still love them. The Great Brain series is great for kids..........it teaches them a lot about what life was like back then with no t.v or computers. It is also a great series for adults. Takes you back to a childhood like the Wonder Years series. You will love it. Makes a great gift. The person you gift it to will love you for it!!

John Dennis Fitzgerald intended to chronicle his youth in Utah for adults, not children. His publisher thought otherwise and the result are these gems. I don't even call them children's lit gems because I find them just as enjoyable as an adult. Before I go on, you should know that Fitzgerald wrote one book about his youth that is for adults, called "Papa Married a Mormon". It is one of the most amazing books on the American west that I have ever read. Sadly, it is out of print, and you may, like me, have to pay an exorbitant sum to get a copy. Trust me, save up and do it. Now back to this book. Every single Great Brain book in the series is pure gold, and the entire set can be had cheaply, so I say buy them all at once. I "put my money where my mouth is" as Tom the Great Brain would say, and bought the lot.

Would you like to know what a avarage 10- year-old girls life is like? In Anastasia Krupnik a ten year old girl named Anastasia Krupnik deals with a hard life. She has a green notebook that she has a page that has a Things I Hate list and a Things I Love list. At first her Things I Hate list was longer than her things I love list. In the middle of the book she found out that her mom was pregnant. Near the end of the book she starts to try stuff on her Things I Hate list and moved it to her Things I Love list. At the end of the book she finfds out that her grandmother died and the only thing only thing on her Things I Hate list is liver because she tried new things. If you like reading searies about a normal girls life then I would recommend this book and the whole series. You do not have to read the books in order.

This is a great book for kids. I wouldn't say it's the best in the series, but it is really well-written. It ranks right up there with the Ramona books by Beverly Cleary and the Fudge books by Judy Blume. I had never heard of the Anastasia books until recently, when I bought a bunch of them at a used bookstore. I wish I had known about them when I was a child. I would have loved them. The Anastasia books are great to analyze for character development, which I like to do because I am also a writer. Even her parents are great characters! The only thing that bothers me about this book is the way it deals with another race. Honestly, it enforces a stereotype that makes blacks look really stupid. So, if you are African-American, it may irk you. Even though it is sort of a mild slur, it did bother me a little bit, even though I am not black. Overall, though, it was a good book, and it really makes you want to read more of them.

Ten-year-old Anastasia Krupnik has a lot on her mind, and the easiest way for her to make sense of everything is by making lists in her private green notebook. Her current list is a two-columned page of everything she hates and loves. Some things can change sporadically from one column to the next--like her parents, babies (especially the one her parents are expecting; the same one she's nicknamed One-Ball Reilly), her name, her friends, and Washburn Cummings (the troublemaker she has a crush on)--, but others (like liver) remain the same: in the hate category.

This is a great book for 9 to 12-year-old girls. If you liked this one, don't miss any of the other Anastasia books: Anastasia Again!; Anastasia at Your Service; Anastasia Has the Answers; Anastasia on Her Own; Anastasia's Chosen Career; Anastasia, Ask Your Analyst; Anastasia at This Address; and Anastasia, Absolutely.

This book is about Thanksgiving. We all thought that this book was really funny. We learned that having friends is good. Our class learned some new words. The book told us what happens at Thanksgiving. Everyone one should read this good book.

When selecting books for our children, I try to pick stories that will hold their attention, provide an important message, and involve animals and/or nature. Eve Bunting’s book A Turkey For Thanksgiving has all of these criteria - and more! It is also a good book for children who are vegetarians or vegans.
In A Turkey For Thanksgiving Mrs. Moose is preparing a Thanksgiving dinner for her and Mr. Moose’s animal friends. However, this year she has decided that she wants a turkey for dinner so Mr. Moose, joined by his friends, sets off to find one. Eventually a turkey is found by the river and brought back for dinner. The terrified turkey is delighted, and relieved, to learn that he isn’t the main course, but a guest at this vegetarian feast! This delightful book evokes the true spirit of Thanksgiving. –Reviewed by Glenn Perrett

Mr. Moose wants to make his wife happy by finding her a turkey for their Thanksgiving dinner. All the guests join in to look for the bird. The poor turkey is so afraid that he is reluctent to go with them. He (and we readers) find out in the end that they don't want him to be ON the table. Instead they want him to be AT the table to celebrate the holiday with them together.
I like this book because its surprising and heart-warming ending. When I was told that TURKEY is a symbol of Thanksgiving, I used to think "Of course, turkey is the main dish in our Thanksgiving dinner". Now I have discovered the new meaning of Thanksgiving.