Book 360: Thomas' Train

Thomas' Train, by The Rev. W. Awdry, Scholastic, 2001.


Such a fun book for a young Thomas fan!  Especially a Thomas fan named Thomas.  My five-year-old Thomas could read quite a bit of this book just by knowing a few words and being able to recognize his name.  And, as in all good Thomas books, there is a gentle moral to the story.

Book 359: Theodore Mouse Goes to Sea

Theodore Mouse Goes to Sea, by Michaela Muntean, illustrated by Lucinda McQueen, Little Golden Book, 1983.


This book has such a fun and exciting way of saying "There is no place like home".   At least, as readers, we get to along with Theodore on his bed-boat adventure.

Very sweet, 1980s illustrations.

Book 358: Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, by Seth Grahame-Smith, Grand Central Publishing, 2010.


Someone gave me this book, and I did not have high expectations for it.  So that I liked it at all rather surprised me.

I have a law/library background, so Abraham Lincoln is one of my heroes.  I was not going to like anything that made him appear ridiculous.  This book, amazingly does not.  It ties bits of Lincoln's personal history together with an underlying vampire story, and it works.  The book was rather well-written, fun to read, and somewhere between silly and thought-provoking.

Book 357: My Little Color Book

My Little Color Book, by Bob Staake, Little Simon, 2001.


I bought this book at EXACTLY the same time and for EXACTLY the same reason I bought the numbers book and the opposites book -- to teach my five-year-old son how to use shapes to draw.  Oh, and because he LOVES Bob Staake.

The added bonus with this book is that colors are on his "word wall" in Kindergarten and he's been able to read the names of colors for well over three weeks (and he's only been in Kindergarten for five weeks).

Book 356: The Dot and the Line

The Dot and the Line, by Norton Juster, Chronicle Books 1963.


I loved this very nearly perfect book.  It was, of course, a story so it was about words and wordplay.  And it was about Art.  And it was most definitely about Mathematics, and perhaps as advertised about "lower Mathematics", but I would argue that Norton Juster elevated the Mathematics to a much higher level.

Book 355: The Boscombe Valley Mystery

The Boscombe Valley Mystery (Sherlock Holmes), by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.


A delightful, although not insoluble, mystery.  Of course, it may be that I found this one so delightful because I was imagining Benedict Cumberbatch's Sherlock delivering some of these choice lines to Rupert Graves' Lestrade.

Book 354: Acquired Tastes

Acquired Tastes, by Peter Mayle, Bantam Books, 1992.

This book will not change your life.  That's OK -- It doesn't need to.  The writing is entertaining and fun, and very well done.  Mayle gives insight into the ways of the affluent from the point of view of a man of ordinary means.  I have never been wealthy, nor do I ever expect to become wealthy, but, just in case, I am so prepared.

Book 353: Lady Cottington's Pressed Fairy Book

Lady Cottington's Pressed Fairy Book, written by Terry Jones, illustrated by Brian Froud, Turner Publishing, 1994.

I bought this book back in 1994, or 1995 at the latest. For the longest time I had a pressed fairy on the windscreen of my car (a Nova --the Chevy/Toyota mashup) until the fairy faded away into nothing. 

This book is hilarious (Terry Jones) and beautiful (Brian Froud) -- what more can I say?

Book 352: Rose's Garden

Rose's Garden, by Peter H. Reynolds, Candlewick, 2009.

We checked out this book during "white cover book day" at our house; my five-year-old son picked up this book from the library. 

My son liked this book with its sweet story and lovely illustrations, but I LOVED this book. This title went straight to my "Must Own It Immediately!" list.  So I ordered myself a copy. 

Book 351: Botticelli's Bed and Breakfast

Botticelli's Bed and Breakfast, Jan Pienkowksi, Simon & Schuster, 1997.

I LOVE this brilliantly-designed pop-up book so much.  I bought this book back in 1997, before I worked as a children's librarian and before I had a child.  I read a review of it somewhere, so I tracked it down and bought it.  And I've loved it since then.  I have yet to show this book to my five-year-old son (because I love it so much and I'd like to keep it intact), but when he gets a little older, what a fun way to learn about works of Art!