Muscles: Our Muscular System by Seymour Simon

 'Muscles: Our Muscular System' by Seymour Simon is a book made to teach children about the red stuff that runs your body. I have a good feeling that this book has turned more than one child onto science and medicine. 

This is a big colorful book that is well made to help children learn about their bodies and that gets a stamp of approval from me right off the bat. 

Who should read this book: Everyone

Books read: L

Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown

'Flat Stanley' by Jeff Brown is a fun little book about a boy who gets
flattened by a bulletin board and lives a cartoon like life after that. He goes through the mail, gets flown like a kite, and becomes a hero.

One way of looking at this books is that it is something of a comparison to an injury like a broken arm. You have a cast and that makes you different.  The thing to do is make the best of it however you can and that is what Stanley does. 

Children will never have so whimsical an experience as but they will feel the truth in this book. They will understand the sibling rivalry and the humanity of this book. 

Who should read this book? Everyone

Books read: 270 of 5000

"The Great Cookie Thief" by Emily Perl Kingsley Book Review

"The Great Cookie Thief" by Emily 

Perl Kingsley is the story of a wild west town plagued by a googly-eyed cookie bandit. This is before we worried about our kids getting diabetes and the world was a simpler place. 

It's a funny little story that teaches children basic words and makes them laugh. I mean, we have no reason to fear the cookie thief, but the town's people all shiver in their boots at him.

Who should read this book? Children learning to read.

Books read 218 of 5000

"The Sun, the Wind and the Rain" by Westberg Peters book review

"The Sun, the Wind and the Rain" by Westberg Peters is the story

of two mountains. One was made by the earth and the other by a little girl playing on the beach. The story of the first mountain is that of millions of years. It is the story of magma and the powers of the earth. The second mountain is that of sand made by a little girl and as permanent as any mound on the beach. 









This is a great story the shows the power of nature and the impermanence of humanity in the wake of it's majesty. 


Who should read this book? Everyone. 

Books read: 204 of 5000

"Corduroy" by Don Freeman

"Corduroy" by Don Freeman is a book about a living teddy bear

who wants to be part of a family and not live in a store any longer.  Someone mentions that he is old and missing a button so he gets up at night and searches for his missing button. 

Corduroy is a bear with a childlike mind and a curiosity to match. This is a fun story with a divers cast that will ti a child's imagination. The visuals remind me of the art work of the early 20th century America with a definite older vibe.

Who should read this book? Everyone

Books read: 187 of 5000

"Berenstain's A Book" by Stan & Jan Berenstain

"Berenstain's A Book" by Stan & Jan Berenstain is a book with a

lot of words starting with 'A'. It follows a progression of angry ants advancing over many different objects. 

This is a solid book in most respects, and if your a fan of the Berenstain Bears it really has to be a must read. However, if you're a fan of the books then how can learning what an 'A' is be useful? 

Further along that line, the book mentions something called and Angleworm. Now I looked it up and an angleworm is a worm used for fishing. It's a shortening of angler's worm. However, the worm in question was not on a hook or used to catch a fish.  

This book is unremarkable and pandering to fans. If you're a fan go for it, and if not then leave it pass. 

Who should read this book? Berenstain fans 

Books read: 176 of 5000

"Shadow" by Suzy Lee Book Review

"Shadow" by Suzy Lee is an odd book in that you do very little

reading in the nature of absorbing the material. This is the story of a little girl seeing stories in her shadows in the attic of her house. 

We are treated here to an odd array of spooky artworks and childish adventures that tickle the imagination. This is a fun book that teachers children that books are worth reading. It's an abnormal little book that I'm glad I now have in my collection. 

Who should read this book? Any one

Books read: 174 of 5000

Not This Bear: A first Day of School Story by Alyssa Satin Capuchilli

'Not This Bear: A first Day of School Story' by Alyssa

Satin Capuchilli is a book about a young bear going to school for the first time. It is a story were the bear is just named bear and fear is overcome by experience. 

This is a good little story with fun art work and a great lesson for young children going to school for the first time. 

This is a great book for reading to your child before bed time as it's nice and large and well made. I have to say I very much enjoyed this story. 

Who should read this book? anyone. 

Books read: 172

Orange by Sharon Gordon

'Orange' by Sharon Gordon is your good old book on color. It 

names a number of things that are orange and what you do with them. This is a book for very young children that teaches you things like what a basket ball is and what an orange looks like. If your child has progressed to the point that they no longer have and issue naming the colors then this book is not for them.

Who should read this book? Very young children. 

Books read: 171 

Discovering Math: Multiplication by David Stienecker Book Review

Discovering Math: Multiplication by David Stienecker is a book

designed to make math fun and exciting. To do this it relies on fun graphics and math tricks to tickle the imagination of children. I'm not sure how this fits into the new way of doing math I keep hearing about.

However, I think this book is fun in a math related way and it may be the thing that turns a child into a math geek when they grow up. Then again, it may just be another book sitting on a shelf. 

Who should read this book? People trying to make math fun. 

Books read: 146 of 5000

'Astronomy Now: A Look at Mars' by Mary R. Dunn Book Review

'Astronomy Now: A Look at Mars' by Mary R. Dunn is what it

sounds like. It's a book about the planet Mars. Populated with wonderful photographs and facts about the red planet. 

This is sure to tickle the little astronomer in your child's head and make them more interested in space. Or at least that's what it does to me because I loved space as a kid and I still love it now. 

The problem with text books for kids is that if your child is not already interested in the topic at hand the book won't get them interested. I loved this book but I'm a sucker for space facts. 

Who should read this book? Your little astronomer. 

Books read: 142 of 5000

Food Dudes: M&M Mars Candy Makers by Joanne Mattern Book Review

Food Dudes: M&M Mars Candy Makers by Joanne Mattern is the

story of how we got modern chocolate bars. I've heard the story of how M&Ms came about and this book puts it well. The whole idea of candy that can survive a train ride in someone's pocket sound so normal to us but was so great at the time.

This books gives children and idea of how business works and the clear understanding that you don't need to start off well to do well. I really liked this book.

Who should read this book? Everyone. 

Books read: 139 of 5000

'A is for Awesome' by Dallas Clayton Book Review

'A is for Awesome' by Dallas Clayton is a book about learning the

alphabet. That gives you many picture examples of what words that start with the letters the book is on. 

The art work is kind of childlike for the sake of your child just liking the book a bit more. After that, there isn't much about this book to distinguish it from other books.

The large format makes it easy to read this book with your child and ask 'so what is that word?' and is designed for parent child participation. 

Who should read this book? Parents with their children

Books read: 124 of 5000

Girls A to Z by Eve Bunting Book Review

'Girls A to Z' by Eve Bunting is a book that depicts girl children

playing in both traditional and nontraditional societal roles. This is a great way to tell your girl child that she is not limited by society or tradition. As for boys, well, they can still enjoy the fun artwork and detailed images.

As ABCs books go this one is better than a number I've read and it's a fun read. I would have to say that this was a great idea for an otherwise overdone format.   

Who should read this book: Everyone.

Books read: 121 of 5000

Line graphs by Sherra G. Edgar Book Review

Line graphs by Sherra G. Edgar is a book bout line graphs which is

a good topic for a young child to know given that we use them in every day life. 

I will point out that I don't think I ever needed explanation in what a line graph is but then I have an I.Q. of a hundred and thirty so that's no big feet. 

All in all, not a bad book for your children.

Who should read this book? the children of parents who want them to do well in math. 

Books Read: 104 of 5000

Prepositions (Language Rules!) by Ann Heinrichs

Prepositions (Language Rules!) by Ann Heinrichs is a book about

the English language. The subject being prepositions makes it a little hard for me to take in the data so it's one of those books I'd like to hold on to because I have so much trouble with the topic. 

After that, all the books in this set are learning books with fun imagery that will make children happy just by looking at them. They are very well made and the slick cover is stain resistant. 

Who should read this book? Everyone.

Books read: 99 of 5000

Parsley by Ludwig Bemelmans

'Parsley' by Ludwig Bemelmans starts out as the story of a tree that

is not named Parsley, but it befriends a deer who eats Parsley, and then is named Parsley. 

This is something of a reverse of the story of 'Bambi' which was originally a German story. It has deer and a hunter and a woods. 

Who should read this book? People who like deer.

Books read: 93 of 5000

Children’s Book Publisher

Last year I had the bad idea of writing children’s books. To be honest with you I should have hooked up with an artist or something of that nature, but perhaps in the future I will have better luck.

18^th May 2010

Dear (Publisher of) Children’s Books,

What you have here is a children’s picture book manuscript written in rhyme and teaching children the difference between three sets of homonyms. You will note that the work is set in twenty-eight sections one for each layout. There are two stories that could be one or two books dependent on how you would like to package them.

I yield to your better authority on how it is to be edited and produced. I have only the experience of reading to children as my guide in the area. I do know something of art work and printing so I can easily understand what limitations you set up.

I have been published three times in the past as a poet in periodicals. Once with my junior high school and twice in high school but have published nothing professionally.

Thank you for your time,

Richard Leland Neal