Backseat A-B-See by Maria van Lieshout

 Backseat A-B-See by Maria van Lieshout

Rating: 3.5 stars

I was just talking about how Ben is the biggest little backseat driver...and then he found this book at the library!  Thanks to this book,  Ben is armed with new, helpful information to help me navigate through suburbia.

Not only can Ben remind me when to go and stop at stoplights, he can now:

• Tell me where the D for detours are.
• Remind me to get G for gas.
• Yell at me to pay attention when there's a M for merge up ahead.
• Scream at me when the O for one way is not going our way.
• Request a T for taxi when my car doesn't cut it.

Handy, huh?

Hopper and Wilson by Maria Van Lieshout

Hopper and Wilson by Maria Van Lieshout

Rating: 4 stars

Ever listen in to a funny little conversation between two small children?  I love listening to Lorelei and Ben chat about something they know little about--there is something ridiculously charming their exchange, filled with questions and answers which are both innocent and curious.  This book begins with one such conversation.

Hopper: "What do you think it's like at the end of the world?"

Wilson:  "Not sure...but I bet there's lots of lemonade!  I love lemonade."

Hopper:  "And a staircase to the moon!  So I can touch it."

Wilson:  "Well, there's only one way to find out."

(I love the sense of adventure!  The confidence that little Wilson portrays.)

Hopper couldn't hear a thing except the roar of the crashing waves.

So they make a newspaper boat, wave good-bye to their cactus, hop on, and off they sail on their adventure.  They bob on the waves and dream about what they'll find.  Soon, though, a storm hits, and they cling desperately to their boat.  When the sea calms down, Hopper is gone.

For anyone who has suddenly and sadly lost someone they love, this is a sad page.  Possibly, for some sensitive kids, it's too sad.

Wilson sails on, searching.  He doesn't care about the destination anymore; he just wants to find his friend.  (Oh what a lesson!  Who cares where you're going if you don't have someone you love beside you?!)  He quizzes every animal he comes across until he finds his friend, who is funnily floating on a balloon.

A reunion!

"I missed you, Wilson."

"I missed you, Hopper."

(Sniff, sniff.)