Wow! America! by Robert Neubecker

Wow! America! by Robert Neubecker

Rating: 5 patriotic stars

Confession: I'm an Army brat.  Because of that, and because I lived abroad for several years as an adult, I really love and appreciate America.  And I've been to 47 of the 50 states. (Rhode Island, Arkansas, and Alaska, in case you're wondering.)  And when I was little, my parents made the wise decision to really focus on discovering our own country.  When we moved to a new place, my parents would make a point to visit lots of touristy places as well as plenty of out-of-the-way spots.  That meant that when we lived in Hawaii Dad would drag us to Shark's Cove instead of just going to Barber's Point where all our friends would be.  And when we did go on a vacation that didn't involve visiting family back in Erie, Pennsylvania, we went somewhere amazing in this great country. 

And we drove to nearly all of our destinations (except in Hawaii, where inter-island flights called "hops" were the way to go).  Our first stop?  A bookstore.  Hmmm...I was a reader as a child and now my children are readers...

We came across Wow! School! last week at the library; a smart librarian had propped it up on top of the stacks and we picked it up and shoved it in our overflowing, very heavy library bag.  All three of us fell in love with it, especially because Lorelei will start --gasp!-- preschool in the fall.  I'll review that book later...  We ordered Wow! America! the next day and picked it up this morning (when the sitter didn't show up.  Grrr). 

I am in love, love, love with this book!  This is one we might have to buy.  Maybe I'll just suggest to the grandparents that this is a great book...hint, hint... Enter sheepish grin here.

Izzy, the star of all the books in this series (Wow! City! is next on our list), is in all the pages, with her yellow Labrador, too.  And in this book, her little sister Jo.  They scamper across the country.  For me, it was like a journey into my childhood--we moved around a whole lot, plus my husband's from Louisiana and lived in New York City for almost a decade.  So the New Orleans page and the New York page came with an extra story with them.  Then the Grand Canyon, which I've never seen.  It opens up to a third page!  And the cowboys page...well, I do love me a good cowboy book, and I'll take just one page if that's all I'm given.  And the Washington, DC, one is great because we live nearby and my husband works even nearer by. 

And, coincidentally, we leave for Missouri tomorrow, so the pages for the Mississippi River were appreciated and timely.  Finally, my husband and I are going on a leaving-the-kids-with-Grammy trip to the Rocky Mountains, so...wouldn't you know it?  There's a page for the Rocky Mountains!  I couldn't have asked for a better display of the U.S.  Bravo, Neubecker, and thank you for this great one.  I hope more people find it and appreciate it as much as we do.

I just took a bunch of pictures to let you see the great illustrations for yourself.  It is a really great book, with a lot going on, with minimal words so kids like Lorelei who are learning to read can focus on just a few at a time.  Go buy it!  Go check it out!  Trust me!