I love this book! It reminds me of summer, when mom had to beg us kids to come inside after a long day of imaginary play in our 'pine-tree village'. What fun we had creating homes, shops, schools, using rocks, pinecones and anything else we could find to make our little village like home. This book is so similar I could just eat it up! It tells the tale (a true one at that) of a group of children who create their own village with rocks and boxes (get it? Roxaboxen?). The thing I love about this book are the illustrations---simple, yet beautiful, and of course the wonderful story of how the children used their imagination and creativity to create a timeless adventure. In this day of gameboys and computer games, this book is a refreshing change of pace. My four year old loves this book as much as I do, and we can't wait to create our own Roxaboxen this summer. Buy this book for your kids...or yourself! You won't regret it!

The sky in Arizona is like looking into God's eyes. In its quiet way, this powerful book takes us directly into the realm of imagination and play that resourceful children inhabit. There is a cozy, dreamy drift to the tale, which describes the imaginary town of Roxaboxen, and the activities of the children who created and peopled it. The real gift of this book is how it illuminates that magical realm's fundamental importance to the spirit of both children and adults. Not one of the children from Roxaboxen ever forgot about it; it stayed with them for life. And it should for us all. Barbara Cooney works wonders with colorful, evocative illustrations that are even more beautiful and touching than those in Mrs. Rumphius. This marvelous book demonstrates that the best children's literature is equally enjoyable and valuable for adults.

This book reminds me of when I was little and how my brother and sister and my neighbors and I would set up our own town. We had a jail and a market and a toy store and a gas station and we would use our bikes for our cars.
This book allows children to make up their own towns and rules on how they would like it to be. It allows their imagination to wander.
The story is based on the author's mother's childhood. Roxaboxen is a real place on the corner of Second Avenue and Eighth Street, in Yuma, Arizona. The author was able to write this story by getting information from diaries, memories from relatives, and letter and maps frm inhabitants of Roxaboxon.
I would highly recommend this book!

I found this book again while cleaning my daughter's room; I found it years ago and it is such a wonderful and uplifting story. Perhaps it was more than serendipity that I found it again, for it seemed the perfect message to send to an adult friend who needed some TLC -- for its main message, to my mind, is one of hope, and of believing in the power of love.

This story is one of the true classics of children's literature, even though it is an unkown. I collect children's books, and this is one of my all - time favorites. If you want a story with substance, meaning, and still a wonderful story - buy this one. The illustrations are outstanding, also. Have a kleenex handy, though.

This is one of the most beautiful books that I have ever read. It is love. Love that is indeed essential. Like water for chocolate type of love. Whenever I read this book it amazes me how as to how real the author personified the characters.

This story not only clarifies the necessity to of the need for love but it brings it forth with such astounding boldness. The mountain in its isolation literally almost gives up in the midst of its quest for companionship.

This book is not only a book for children -- it is can also be a literary piece for adults. In the quest for the mountain's security; the bird leaves behind generation upon generation of offspring to provide the mountain with a sense of love and security for many, many, many years to come.

Beautiful -- is a mere word that describes an element of something that is precious, astounding, and good. I cannot find the perfect word for this book. It seems to me that beautiful is hardly enough.

Roxaboxen is one of my favorite picture books because it reminds me so strongly of the place I can visit, only in memory, where my childhood friends and I used to play. I'm sure many of us share that special memory place. It was a delight to learn that Roxaboxen was a real place, and to discover the stories of the children who played there. The author does such a good job of relating this "story behind the story" that one can feel the summer sand and sense the Arizona winds. The photos and design of the book enhance this experience, as does the special journal tucked inside the book. Thanks to Alice McLerran for sharing her family's story with us in this very special way.

The Legacy of Roxaboxen is a delightful memoir, a tribute to a young girl who created, along with her sisters and neighborhood playmates, an imaginary town situated on a small desert hill in Yuma, Arizona, in the early days of World War I. The book is an intimate look into the life of Marian Doan, the author's mother, who penned a history of the children's "settlement," Roxaboxen, where "homes" were outlined with rocks, boxes, and desert glass, and where the children fought legendary wars and traded their wares in imaginary stores. Relying on memoirs of aunts, cousins, and her mother's childhood friends, Alice McLerran has created a loving daughter's tribute to her mother's life and creativity, as well as a reverent salute to the wonderful world reserved for the mind of children. Roxaboxen is a real place, and has been preserved as a natural desert park for local and visiting children to enjoy and in which to imagine. The Legacy of Roxaboxen intertwines Marian's early life and the history of Roxaboxen with the events of the era. The book, and McLerran's picture book "Roxaboxen" will encourage readers to unearth their own memories of childhood play. It is a rare gem -- a must read for anyone who values family, friendship, and the unmatchable imaginations of children!

As a personal friend of the author, I obviously enjoy all of her work. This is her first young adult novel and it is done very well. It was written when I was in my adolescent years and I really enjoyed reading it. The plot line is great for adolescents. This book sprung my interest in the Russian language in which I began studying and continue to do so.