2 comments about Journey, Easter Journey.

1. Gene Barretta has got to be one of the best illustrators working today. His illustrations are so creative and vivid and detailed. They are breathtaking and add tremendously to the beautiful story.



2. My 20 month old little girl will not put this book down. She chooses it from the bookcase all by herself and wants it read over and over. The rhyming text is wonderful, a true joy to read. The illustrations are magnificant. Thank you Mr Mackall for allowing God to use you to bring my family this wonderful tool for teaching the true meaning of Easter. It has become a true treasure for us and we will certainly be passing it on through gift giving. If you buy one book for Easter this is the one.

1 comments about Disney's Can You Find the Easter Eggs, Pooh?: A Lift-The-Flap Book (Learn and Grow.).

1. Not highly recommended, but the book has some nice pluses. First, I generally find that lift-the-flap books keep little ones interested when you are reading to children of different ages. The book also counts backwards rather than forwards. My mother-in-law, who sent the book, is a teacher and has said that children are unable to count backward from ten to one when they enter school. This book nicely counts down from 7 with 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1 more egg to go. However, the language in the book is nothing to write home about: I could create a more compelling story line. So while the lessons of learning to count backward can be appreciated by an adult, the kids are disinterested in the text after only a few readings.

No comments about Easter Bunnies Everywhere (Top This! Book).

2 comments about Witzy's Backyard Easter Hunt (Little Suzy's Zoo).

1. Bright, colorful, and happy, which are characteristics of Suzy's work, this concept book teaches children to count as they sharpen their observation skills and learn more about Easter. Witzy's Backyard Easter Hunt provides great fun for younger children as a read-along and helps to introduce children to numbers in a safe and fun environment.



2. Lots of beautiful, colourful pages giving your child a chance to find the hidden objects and count too. The text is simple (It wouldn't be Easter without a special bonnet to wear. Can you help all 4 friends find their dressy hats?), the tabs on the book have a picture so you know what to look for on each page, and overall just a lot of fun!

No comments about Animal Snuggles: Easter Bunny.

1 comments about Easter Bunny's Amazing Egg Machine (Pictureback(R)).

1. This is a delightful story about how the Easter Bunny after having been ill has to catch up with easter egg decorating.Soon it is the night before Easter and he isn't going to make it in time. So he invents and builds a machine that will do it for him. At first the machine is perfect and the eggs are beautiful.But of course , things go wrong and the machine breaks down.Now he will never make it in time for Easter morining.His animal friends from the forest have been watching all the activity in his house and realize that something isn't right and they soon pitch in to help. Delightful story, wonderful illustrations.Should be an Easter favorite.

1 comments about The Spring Rabbit.

1. the story was fine, but not "magical" and the illustrations were cute. If your child was anticipating a baby brother or sister, it might resonate a little more with your family. My daughter did listen while I read this to her, but it wasn't one she asked me to read over and over. And although I wouldn't classify this as one of my "must-haves", it was a fine book, and certainly a lot more readable than others I have encountered.

1 comments about Easter Egg Hunt (Pop-Up).

1. Join the fun in this darling fourteen page, paperback, pop-up book about an "Easter Egg Hunt". It is Easter morning, and a busy, little bunny is hopping about hiding Easter eggs for the up-coming festivities. The children enter the scene on the next page. They literally leap off the page and, begin racing eggs down a large grassy knoll. Attached to the pop-up is a pull-tab that simulates running, when pulled. This fun, interactive feature actually works, and enhances the enjoyment of the book. The hunt in on... the children chase to and fro hunting for eggs. They search up and down, and in and around, while a friendly squirrel pops out of a tree, and the Easter Bunny pops out from behind a flowerpot. This scene is very cute, and celebrates the joy of the holiday. On the next page, a very proud, little boy pops off the page. He is holding a basket-full of eggs and says, "We'll find all the eggs, I'll find a whole bunch." Turn the page, and the entire scene pop's-up. A group of children are sitting under some trees eating sandwiches and they announce, "Then tomorrow we'll eat egg salad for lunch."

   The watercolor images are full-color spreads, and each page features a pop-up highlight. There is a folksy flavor to Ms. Westcott's illustrations ~ simple, yet colorful, and always amusing. This particular publication is quite vivid, and cheerful! One might say it is appropriately spring-like. The text appears on both sides of the book, and it flows like a river. "Easter Egg Hunt" is a well-written story with delightful pop-up renderings that my son adores. Two-years and up.

   P.S. If you do not own a Nadine Bernard Westcott, do yourself a favor, and pick one up. My personal favorites ~ The Farmer Brown series.

No comments about Easter Egg Hunt (Little Easter Pops).

4 comments about An Outlaw Thanksgiving.

1. Fun and educational reading for the whole family. After reading the book my family would like to learn more about the famous outlaws and the old west.



2. With picture books for children like this, it is no wonder our kids have trouble making choices and identifying real heroes! All that glitters is not gold...but you won't learn it here! May I suggest you save the money you were going to spend on this book to buy a book like Leah's Pony by Elizabeth Friedrich instead!



3. I was suckered in by the beautiful watercolors of this Victorian age and the steam engines, etc. My 3 year-old is a train addict and I thought this looked wonderful and a great way to combine Thanksgiving and trains, but didn't read the text before buying it. The moral issue is the girl knows that she is in the room with a wanted criminal and she decides not to turn him in. Later, she again decides not to tell her mother because she is afraid her mother will get scared. The third opportunity is when they meet up with their father and she again decides not to tell that she knows where the criminal is. The reason is that she likes the criminal "as a person" and thinks he is nice. The train robber told her that he robs from the rich and gives to the poor and therefore he is doing good and is a nice person, and the girl believes this, also mentioned by the robber is that the real robbers are the capitalist railroad owners. The author's note at the end again references that the railroad builders/owners were terrible people who had a monopoly on the railroad system--rather than the train robbers being the criminal. WACKO value systems here--not what I want to teach my children. I think children should know right from wrong and that if one is in a situation with a known/wanted criminal, the child should have turned him in.



4. This book tells of a moment in time in the lives of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid when they were just trying to create a good time for their friends at the holidays. The wild west and outlaws are unique to the North American past and we should embrace the stories just as we do of all history. Right or wrong, these people exhisted, and had interesting lives. They are not celebrated in this book - it is just a story that is fun and interesting. Don't be afraid to read this to your children - my children owned this book and haven't yet grown up to be outlaws.