I work at a library and we came across this book. It is very cute and funny, his facial expressions are the best! Made us chuckle for a few days!-

A very humorous story accompanied by marvelous illustrations. Great sense of design. Children will want to hear this story read again and again!

Tres Seymour does a tremendous job with this historical account of the first expedition of flight. The story is told through the eyes of a teenage boy who wonders at the strange actions of his neighbor, Melville Murrell. The boy has heard of ridiculous tales of Mr. Murrell, but now he is beginning to see them for himself. However, the young boy may find that the strange, strange man isn't so strange after all. This is a great book, which includes a theme of working until ones dreams are fulfilled. The illustrations are lively and entertaning as well. The book is a must-have for all libraries!

Seymour's book is a swift parable of success in any age, be it the pre-industrial or internet. Have a dream and don't be swayed. The book's kind message stands to inspire a young dreamer somewhere. "Stange" can be a good personal trait. The launch of the Great American Flying Machine, while the Wright brothers were still in short pants, is a significant achievement not to be overlooked. Put this one in the school libraries.

This book shows how O.Z. feels about his strange and unwanted life. He shares his journal and his feelings with Rebecca. The strange attractions for each other is shown through this book.

Hunting the White Cow is a favorite book at our house. It is one of the few books that even mom wants to read again, as soon as it is over. The reading level is designed for a school-aged child, but my 2 year old will sit captivated through the entire story. We read a lot of picture books, but it is rare that a picture book has such a thoughtful and well developed story. The pictures are beautiful and help to illustrate some of the quaint references for our suburban children, who might not recognize a tobacco plant or a "saw brier" if they saw it. I can tell already that some day when my boy is grown, he will come across this book, maybe with his own children, and he will say, I loved this stroy when I was child.

There is much to like about this book, whatever the age of the person reading (or being read to). The story is wonderful and wonderfully told, with a very distinctive voice that makes it fun to read over and over and over and over. The detailed pictures are beautiful, and each reading can reveal new details, especially in the smaller 'frames' at the bottom of the pages, which tell more of the story. And if you see a real white cow in your travels, be prepared to discuss where that wayward cow might have come from.

This book is a delightful story, lending itself to read-aloud with Kentucky country dialect and a repeated story pattern. Lower elementary readers (K-2) are likely to miss the essence of the story and be disappointed in the ending, which reuires a degree of maturity and abstract thinking to appreciate. The most significant events in the story are those that take place in the reader's imagination. While the menfolk, who are repeatedly outwitted by the elusive white cow, place their quarry on a higher ahd higher pedestal, the reader is clued in to the cow's antics by the detail in the text and pictures, and by the background comments Mama makes. This book elicits so much engagement on the part of the reader that it can't help but be enjoyed!

The review indicates that this book is appropriate for children 4 to 8 years of age. The words in the book are appropriate for that age range and it has very good pictures and presents in an extremely short form the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald. It also references a couple of other ships that sank. Personally, I would rather stick to lighthearted/silly books to read to my children or for my children to read.

An illustrated tale of a boy whose passion for unusual household pets (i.e. iguana, buzzard, warthog) inspires his mother to leave home! The story leaves you wondering if she will return when the animals are gone. The text is repetitive: "I love my... and my ... loves me" but new vocabulary words are introduced on each page. Children LOVE this story. It is a great read-aloud!

The illustrations are beautiful and the cause is noble, but unless you feel like explaining to your young child why people are shooting guns at poor pole dog, or why pole dog is eating garbage I would pass this one by. It may work for older children, but it's definitely rated PG.

This is one of the best stories ever written on the plight of abandoned animals. It is told in such a way as to let us glimpse into the mind and feelings of the poor dog. It's also a great way to demonstrate how effective simple rhyming verse can be when it is well written. I read this to my students every year as part of a public service project to support local animal shelters. It never fails to strike a nerve, even in "cynical middle schoolers". I get teary eyed even thinking about this sweet book. Buy it if you can find it.

A review by Trevor

Bruce is a goodie to shoes that doesn't do anything wrong. He has 3 good friends named Jack, Carrie, and Theresa. Jack is a little on the wild side, Carrie is a goodie good also. Theresa is like jack. His 3 friends and a kid named Ellis get drunk at school. Bruce was absent over this time and when he comes back they tell him. A teacher finds evidence of the 4 drinking and Bruce rats on them. The four won't talk to him and in the end of the story his 3 friends leave Ellis and become friend with Bruce again.

The characters in the story were believable but did some things that wouldn't happen. I liked Bruce but he got in a crash and didn't get hurt at all. Then he walked the rest of the way to school, this wouldn't happen. Jack was my favorite character in the book because he was daring and dangerous. Carrie was very boring and wasn't talked about much. Theresa was cool because she was the first to start talking to Bruce. The subject didn't really appeal to me. It might have sounded like it was real. I don't really like hearing about people's problems. The author says the story very fast, but to where you could understand it. I wasn't relieved at the end of the story because I was never worried. The story was perfect length and easier to read.

I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone, I had too much detail. I think eleven or twelve year olds would enjoy it because the people in the book are that age.

Bruce Wells is a lost student in a large high school in this book. Bruce has a small group of students that he hangs out with but he doesn't really fit in. He has a strong moral code that none of them understand. In one chapter, Bruce believes that Jack is wrong, when Jack takes quarters from a broken pay phone. The rest of the group envy Jack's luck. Because of Bruce's beliefs, the rest of the kids start calling him Saint Bruce. He struggles with this title but not enough. The others do not realize what is involved in Sainthood. "The Disciples of Saint Bruce" get into trouble and expect Bruce not tell. But it is not in his nature to lie when asked to tell the truth. The "Disciples" suffer dire consequences from Bruce's confession, but so does Bruce. Who is right? Who is wrong? There is no clear cut answer. This is a thought provoking book. Several of the characters have trouble fitting in at school and kids today will relate to this. To make matters fuzzier, faculty members do not help in this story. Most are more concerned about keeping their jobs than helping the students. This book will make kids think which might make some readers uncomfortable.

This book, shockingly aimed primarily at children, tells the horrific story of a group of Nottingham Forest supporters, known as the "Smash-Up gang" - a powerful, subversive offshoot of the "Tricky Trees". Through bloody, and often stomach churning prose, Seymour describes their rampage through the centre of local rivals Derby's city centre, and with almost child-like glee revels in the telling of wanton violence and destruction. As a concerned parent, and Derby County fan, I am appalled that this kind of material be so easily and readily available for young children to read. I had to stop reading the chapter devoted to the Smash-Up breaking into the Fat Cat Cafe Bar beer cellar and urinating into the Speckled Hen as it was too distressing to carry on. Awful. Avoid, like a yellow pint.

I thought it important to counteract the other reviewer's comments since he obviously is either confused or joking. This is a book about a demolition derby in the US in the 20th century, not some bunch of English characters prancing about. My kids love this book. The illustrations are are precise and interesting. The story is written with a poetic ear that definetely keeps even a two year old's attention. And it makes the commonplace seem special. I don't mind reading this one every night.

Sometimes there is a reason a book doesn't sell well. At first, I was pleased with the book. The language is well-spoken and poetic as a young boy looks up at the birds in the sky. However I was jolted when, in the middle of the book, the author said that people who didn't like the birds had poisoned them with bitter seed.....and there was the depressing and graphic picture of 30 dead birds. I didn't think it was suitable for children. After thinking about it, I decided to cut that page out of the book. Now my daughter enjoys the story, and so do I.