From the first time that I have read this book, I have loved it. The story is all about a young boy, and his desire to be big like his father. The relationship between father and son is wonderful, and the story is soothing. The illustrations lend to the story, and create a GREAT bedtime story. A MUST READ. Don't miss this one dads.

Simply but effectively written by Francine Poppo Rich and beautifully illustrated by Thomas P. DiFilippi, Small, Not Tall is a heartwarming picturebook about a young boy who wants his small life to be bigger. His toy car, his feet, and his stool are too small, and he can't reach anything beyond the sink faucet. But then he learns something really terrific about being small that makes it special. The gentle, slightly abstract illustrations and short, simple sentences make Small, Not Tall an excellent book for young readers just getting started and perfect for parent/child bonding and bedtime reading.

This is a poor attempt to teach children about self-control. Children learn to control impulses by either being in real situations or maybe pretend situations. They do not relate to overly anthropomorphic characterizations of animals. Let's either teach children or talk about realistic animals. Most publishers know how to do this.

I think this book is a great way to teach kids about their special gifts that are unique only to them--not necessarily a book that attempts to teach self-control in a "ridiculous" way, as one fellow reviewer wrote. And I completely disagree that we can teach self-control to children only by involving them in "real-life" situations. For example, we don't teach children about the dangers of fire by going out there, starting a fire, and then telling children not to follow our leads. No. We get a nice, big, animated bear with a hat to bring the message. Children completely relate to anthropomorphism. Yes, most publishers do know that--espcially the publisher of this book!

Why Can't I Spray Today? is the poetic, picturebook story of PeeWee Pipes, a young, playful skunk who discovers that he cannot make his tail sprayer spray just because he thinks it's fun to do so. He learns that he must treat his spray with respect and use it only when he is in danger. Along the way to this insight he slips and slides, jumps and hides, and even toe-taps and prances. The last page of Why Can't I Spray Today? includes factual information about skunks and their behavior along with a photo of Jezebel, an actual baby skunk who inspired the creation of PeeWee Pipes. Rich's entertaining story is engagingly showcased with Thomas Bone's charming artwork.

I'm confused by the subject matter of his book. In the story the skunk has to decide what's more important...friendship or a meal. I don't think children can relate to this situation at all. How many children view their friends as edible?

Great little story on many levels! Kids will relate to the friendship theme between the skunk and the butterfly. Also, the book teaches children some accurate information about the food chain and about flying squirrels! And there is a lot of rhyme, which makes the story pleasant and soothing. I recommend it!

We own both books in the PeeWee Pipes series and love them. Our children (2 & 4) request that we read them several times each night. The stories are well written and have a great morals. The illustrations in this book are better than the first, which were great. This is a MUST HAVE for your children.