This tale of Farmer Brown has quickly become one of our family favorites. My two year-old loves the rhyming text, and my six year-old enjoys knowing how the wool is made into yarn and eventually into clothing. Also, as a teacher, it is wonderful to have such an educational book with interesting, rhyming text. We are looking forward to new adventures with Farmer Brown!

This book is just wonderful. My 3 year-olds love it. It's silly and entertaining and also educational. If anyone in your family is a knitter, spinner or weaver buy it for them (no matter how old they are). It's a great book for grandparents who knit, etc. to share with little ones.In this time when we are more and more removed from the land this book does a great job of showing children how the sweater came to be on their back. You just can't go wrong with this one.

This is a great book for 3-5 year olds. Everything rhymes, so it's fun to read and the "plot" is even better! The farmer shears his sheep, has it washed, carded, made into yarn and dyed. All the while, his sheep are chasing after him, wanting their wool back! Finally, the farmer knits them "brightly-colored cardigans" and from then on, the sheep can't wait to be sheared. If only life were that simple.... :)

The Eye Of The Needle is a retelling of a Yupik tale from the Alaskan northwest, with Teri Sloat engagingly recounting and colorfully illustrating the story of Little Amik, a boy who lived with his grandmother in a tiny sod hut on the shores of the Northern Pacific. In this Native American fairytale, Amik swallows an enormous quantity of sea life (including a whale) along with the ocean waters until he is to large to enter his grandmother's house. Grandmother releases the magic in her sewing needle and all that Amik swallowed comes flowing and tumbling out as he finally learns the importance of sharing. A very highly recommended picturebook for young readers ages 4 and up.

This book has delightful and accurate illustrations of thearea. It is an exceptional outline or guideline for a storyteller,and helps students see another culture. The ending can be changed, or explained to children that the author decided to give Amik another chance. The book is a very good introduction to arctic and sub-arctic culture and traditional ways. Every group of students I have read this story to has absolutely enjoyed the story and helped with the swallowing sound effects.

Teri Sloat is the author of several books including: The Thing That Bothered Farmer Brown, and she lives near a farm. Nadine Bernard Westcott is also no stranger to farms and animal sounds.

All the animals are just comical. The cat is also quite cute. At the beginning, all the animals are making their normal animally sounds. The pigs are oinking, the cows moo.

But then he heard a rumbling sound That made his smile turn upside down. ...."Look out!" he cried. "A twister's coming!"

The following pages will bring giggles as all the animals get caught up in the clothes line and the expressions on the sheep's faces.....you just have to see it!

When the twister drops them all, the sheep are clucking and the cows are oinking. More silliness continues as the sheep take over the roost and the muddy, oinking cows get slopped.

The rooster takes over the farmer's job and tells everyone what to do. Fortunately another twister hits and sets things right again.

"Except on days when strong winds blew...."

A purely silly delight!

My kids and I both love the whimsical nature of both Farmer Brown books by Teri Sloat. The wording and pictures go perfectly together and are good for a laugh and putting us all in a fun and silly mood. I hope there are more Farmer Brown adventures to come!

If you are looking for a wonderful autumn book that is entertaining and educational, look no more.
Patty's pumpkin patch is wonderfully illustrated and maps out the entire life cycle of a pumpkin plant from seeds and planting to the actual growth and harvest. In addition to giving a simplified view of plant growth cycles the author cleverly introduces every letter of the alphabet and an illustration of its example on the bottom of each page. As an added treat it even includes traditons revolved around pumpkins like jack-o-latern carving and roasting pumpkin seeds.
Cheerfully written, wonderfully illustrated, entertaining and informative.

Never has autumn looked so alluring. A delightfully created watercolor, acrylic and oil pastel artistic masterpiece combined with a rhyming, alphabetical story about a pumpkin patch.

Wonderous to look at and read. Youngsters will be amused at all the tiny details from ladybugs and dragonflies to wrens and xylem leaves.

This book would be a perfect prelude to the closing of autumn or a visit to a real pumpkin patch.

The Christmas pieces in Teri Sloat's imaginatively conceived rhyming tale are the stamps on letters to Santa Claus sent from all over the world. It is through these stamps that readers are introduced to different cultures and climes.

A lizard sends good wishes, and wildebeests dance; holidays are observed on mountaintops and in Antarctica. Each stamp from a faraway place reminds us that we are united in joy at this time of year.

Then, when Santa's rounds are complete we find "Santa sleeps 'neath a quilt and a blanket of down. He dreams of a world that sleeps safe and sound With a feeling of peace all the year round, While pieces of Christmas cover the ground."

Recommended for ages 4 - 8.

- Gail Cooke

The Christmas pieces in Teri Sloat's imaginatively conceived rhyming tale are the stamps on letters to Santa Claus sent from all over the world. It is through these stamps that readers are introduced to different cultures and climes.

A lizard sends good wishes, and wildebeests dance; holidays are observed on mountaintops and in Antarctica. Each stamp from a faraway place reminds us that we are united in joy at this time of year.

Then, when Santa's rounds are complete we find "Santa sleeps 'neath a quilt and a blanket of down. He dreams of a world that sleeps safe and sound With a feeling of peace all the year round, While pieces of Christmas cover the ground...

I watched my (almost 3 yr old) daughter sift through the pages of this book today at the library. I was a bit surprised that she was so taken to it. She was drawn to the very large drawings of each of the letters both in caps & lowercase. I like that they have both upper & lowercase on the same page as my daughter is just learning lowercase & has difficulty with many that don't look similar.

Within each of the uppercase letters there are many beautiful illustrations of things that start with that letter. The lowercase letters (to the right) are surrounded by a scene that depicts events or things that start with that letter also. At the bottom of each page there is a list of words that correspond to the above pictures. I appreciated the fact that while there were very common things in the drawings, there were also many not-so-common drawings. Makes an adult stop & look!

This book is beautifully illustrated (no cartoons). I see this book as being very versatile while being usable for baby preschoolers to young elementary. There's always something strange or interesting to talk about on each page. I will definitely be purchasing this book soon.

Teri Sloat's Hark The Aardvark Angels Sing tells of aardvark angels who manage to help the mail carriers delivery all the good cheer during the holiday season. Set to the Christmas song, this certainly is something different.

My son loves all of the Farmer Brown books, but I think he loves this one the most because I make that "tiny, whiny humming sound" when I read it to him!

This repetitive "Up jumped a big black bear!" folk tale is enjoyed by "younguns" of all ages. They are delighted to find a recipe of the old woman's bakin' soda biscuits at the end. The illustrations are beautiful.

I selected this book for Pre-school Storytime and for class tours at the public library. The children loved the down home atmosphere of the story and listened in wide-eyed, open-mouthed silence until they joined in on "up popped the big brown bear."
The ending is ingenious, the pictures lovely and it was a blast to read aloud. I will definitely make this a mainstay of my read-aloud library.

I used this book as part of a lesson unit plan centering on "the good old days." The quick pace and repetitive style make this book particularly suited for use with younger students. In addition, the biscuit receipe at the end gives students the opportunity to practice those "real world" math skills.

I'm not a big fan of the song/rhyme "There Was an Old Woman Who Swallowed a Fly", but I do like this quirky book. The old woman is now an old lady, and she no longer swallows flies, cats, and dogs. Instead, she swallows, trout, salmon, otters, and other animals indigenous to the Pacific Northwest. She no longer dies, either--although she does become dangerously large after swallowing the ocean. This book is a lot of fun. The change of venue does wonders for the old rhyme, and Reynold Ruffins' colorful, folk-artsy illustrations are a pleasure. Sure, it's a cross-cultural gimmick, but it works. My two-year-old and I love singing this book together.

I am a Nursery School Teacher's Aid, and I pick out the books and
read the my classes- I work with three year olds- We LOVE this book, we loved I knew an Old Lady who Swallowed a Fly- but this one is equally as good.

I can't wait to read the Old lady who Swallowed a Pie!

Enjoy-

EMw

What a fun book!! My preschoolers love it. The illustrations are both colorful and beautiful and certainly depict the Pacific Northwest. It's such a great participation book, all the children love to join in and never tire of it.