Trucks, Planes, and Trains

written and illustrated by Byron Barton

Published by HarperCollins Children’s Books

Each 34 Pages

Ages 3-7

Publishers Summary:

Trucks: The tow trucks, cement trucks, and newspaper delivery trucks pictured here all help people and will fascinate small children.

Planes: Children explore the many ways we use airplanes, from seaplanes to crop dusters to planes that write messages in the sky.

Trains: All aboard as the train journeys through a town, past workers repairing a rail and into the station.

These very simple picture books about transportation will delight the youngest, and have enough meat for older preschoolers and beginning readers.

The Turkeybird Speaks: “Now this is the part where I tell you to pull up a chair and your favorite snack so you can settle into a great book. Does it really get any better than trucks, planes, and trains? I would say not! They move, they have wheels, they go fast and they do all sorts of fun things. I especially liked reading my plane book when we traveled cross country to our new home. It was neat to look out the window and see the same sky that I was looking at in my book. These books are a must have for every home. Go get them!”

Mom’s Two Cents: “I have to agree with The Turkeybird and the publishers summary. We initially purchased the Trucks book when he was very little and it instantly became a favorite. Now that he is quite a bit older (at least two years have passed) he still picks them out of our full bookshelf. As he mentioned, we traveled by plane this last summer to move from the DC area to California and the Planes book was a huge hit! There are images of people getting on and off planes in the book and because of the small airport we initially left from, we were able to get aboard the plane just as they did in the book, which he loved! And though you would think these books wouldn’t appeal to girls, even The Littlebug picked the Plane book out yesterday as her book of choice.

“Now, onto the technical side of the book. What I, as a parent, really like about these books are the simple text and straight forward images. It’s not going to be the most beautiful book on your shelf, nor will the words be drawn out and elaborate, but it still holds an entertainment and educational value I can’t deny. Each page has between 3 to 5 words with a simple illustration demonstrating the text. For smaller kids it can often times be overwhelming to have a book filled with words and dramatic images, but these books though not elegant are still captivating. I highly recommend these books for beginning readers and even for older children who may need a respite between larger, more complicated books.”

These books were purchased for our home library.
Purchasing products by clicking through the links in this post will provide us a modest commission through our affiliate relationship with Amazon.com.

Due to the fact that the site is so new we thought we’d take a little time out over the next few days to introduce the reviewers on board. As you know there’s The1stdaughter, The Turkeybird and Littlebug. We thought it would give you, our great readers a chance to understand why a certain book interests and stays with us long after some have fallen by the wayside. So, without further ado we give you The Turkeybird (or just Turkey for short, as his mom often refers to him)!

The Turkeybird Speaks:

“Well, I’ll start out with the basics. In March I will finally be 3 years old and officially way bigger than my little sister Bug. I’m a native Virginian that has been transplanted into the sandy beach state of California (and no girls, I don’t like long walks on the beach, besides my mom would kill me if I started dating anytime soon). Everything but my nose likes it here, which has been getting some crazy bloody noses recently, but that’s a story for another day. I love having my Grandma’s and Papa’s so close now and being able to play with my cousins sometimes is fun too.

My days usually consist of reading and learning out of my activity books with my mom, but sometimes she wants to read so it can only last so long. When that happens I spend my down-time doing typical boy things. I love my train set, legos, tools, and of course anything with wheels (cars, trucks, planes, helicopters, etc.). I’m also an avid baker and I love making anything with chocolate when my dad (the Baker) will help me. Besides chocolate I love cheese, yogurt and crackers. My favorite TV shows and movies (yep my mom lets me watch TV, occasionally) are Little Einsteins, Olivia, The Incredibles and Cars. Other than that, I’m a normal boy who loves running, the outdoors and just being crazy.”

Mom’s Two Cents:

“Everything about The Turkeybird is a hundred miles a minute and it’s been that way since he was born. Even when he occasionally gets sick he still gets up and goes! When he was very little he didn’t like to sleep too much and has always been a “thinker”. Up until his sister came along he never really talked too much except to read, that was one of the only exceptions. The Turkeybird began reading around 16 to 18 months old and I mean READ. He could pick up a book you’d read a couple of times at most and recite it cover to cover.

Later we came to understand that he’s mildly Hyperlexic, but has grown out of most of the socialization problems typical Hyperlexic children have. Basically, what it means is that at a very young age he could read and comprehend words on a page. By the time his sister arrived at 23 months old he could recite his ABC’s and count to 10. I’m not saying this to brag, but to help you understand where he’s coming from when he or I say he’s ‘grown out’ of a certain book. It’s actually made things a little complicated, because finding the right balance of entertainment and education has been difficult at times. But I think a lot of parents have these difficulties and that’s why I share it with you.

I hope this helps in understanding a little more about The Turkeybird. His love of reading is truly something that began from the time he could barely sit up on his own and I know it will continue throughout his life.”

The Turkeybird’s favorite books currently:

Merry Christmas, Mouse! By Laura Numeroff Illustrated by Felicia Bond

Originally Published by HarperCollins Children’s Books in 2007
24 Pages
Ages: 1 to 4 years

Publishers Summary: Join Mouse from If You Give a Mouse a Cookie as he decorates his Christmas tree in a holiday counting adventure.

The Turkeybird Speaks:

“Soldiers! Rockets! 5…6…7. Counting and the Mouse from some of my favorites like The Best Mouse Cookie makes this so much fun. I’m really just more impressed that Mouse thought to make sure to put Rockets on his Christmas tree. Great minds think alike. Although, I think I would have also added some tractors as well.”

Mom’s Two Cents:

“I love this series of books, not just the Mouse but all of the animals. When I was young my own mother actually went to one of the first book signings I can remember and it was for the original If You Give A Mouse A Cookie book. Out of all the books though, this is not my favorite. It seemed a little basic, but if your little one is just learning to count this could make it very fun. The Turkeybird really does get into all of the fun items Mouse adds to the tree. I’m not so sure that this would be a great book for a four year old, as I expect the Turkeybird to grow out of this after this Christmas season. All in all a fun book for little counters to have some fun learning to incorporate numbers into everyday activities.”

This book was purchased for our home library.
Purchasing products by clicking through the links in this post will provide us a modest commission through our affiliate relationship with Amazon.com.

I’ve Seen Santa! by David Bedford Illustrated by Tim Warnes

Originally Published by Tiger Tales in 2006

32 pages

Ages: 3-7 years

Publishers Summary: It’s Christmas Eve and Little Bear can’t wait to see Santa! “Santa will come just as soon as you go to sleep,” Mommy Bear says. But Little Bear doesn’t want to go to sleep. He wants to see Santa! Suddenly. . . glug, glug, glug, glug! What’s that noise? Someone is downstairs! Will Little Bear really get to see Santa? Expertly capturing all of a child’s anticipation and excitement on Christmas Eve night, David Bedford’s cozy family tale is a joyful read-aloud for the holiday season.

The Turkeybird Speaks:

“Santa! Santa! This is such a good book! I can’t wait to finally stay up to see Santa this year and every night until Christmas I will be requesting this book just to get ready for that night. I’ve already asked mom if we can set out milk and pies. And I have my flashlight ready, but unlike Little Bear, I’m not going to fall asleep before I see Santa.”

Mom’s Two Cents:

“The Turkeybird absolutely loves this book and every night for the last two weeks he’s asked for it by name. Because he will only be 3 this next year this will be his first Christmas where actually “gets” the idea of Christmas. It’s wonderful because this book has playfully described the excitement of that great night and its magical guest. I know I’m now more excited just to see the Turkeybird’s expression when he sees the magic of Santa for the “first” time.”

This book was purchased for our home library.
Purchasing products by clicking through the links in this post will provide us a modest commission through our affiliate relationship with Amazon.com.

I am happy to announce the official beginning of There’s A Book! The Turkeybird, Littlebug and I are so excited to share our thoughts about our love for a variety of books. My purpose in starting this site is first to share my love of books with all of you out there and secondly to help parents find great books for their children. In sharing the likes and dislikes of myself and my two kiddos I hope to provide direction in what can be an overwhelming task for any parent or reader. There are so many great books out there, but they may not be the best books for you or your own kiddos. Hopefully through our trial and error we can provide enough information to help you along your very own transformation into a world of imagination and wonder.

Along the way you will find all sorts of funny faces to help guide you. Here are a few examples of The Turkeybird and Littlebug letting their “true feelings” shine through:

So, please take a seat and enjoy what’s to come. I’m so glad you found us! Explore, look around, and make sure to come back on a regular basis to see what’s new. Each week you can expect to see at least one review from each of us and with any luck we will have some extras that will ignite your own love of reading and knowledge. Again, thanks for stopping by! Make sure to say hi and let us know what you think.

Much Love, the1stdaughter