I Love Tools! by Philemon Sturges

I Love Tools! by Philemon Sturges, illustrated by Shari Halpern

Rating: 4 stars

Like I said, we can't stop reading these books!  They are each very simple but fun and a wonderful introduction to basic but important concepts.  Like tools.  I found myself really excited, in a super dorky way, about reading what little snippets Sturges found on each tool on the front and back cover/jackets (is there a right word for this?!) of the book.  He didn't disappoint!

Here are some of his random factoids:

 - The earliest rulers were based on the length of people's feet, hands, or fingers.
 - Because a hammer has so many uses, including making other tools, it is sometimes called the "king of tools."  (Is there a queen of tools?  I'm going to guess not.)
 - If you live in a typical American home, your house was probably built using around 200 pounds of nails!

The book introduces tools as a family of four (including both a son and daughter) build a bird house together, making this book a fantastic one as a springing board for such a project at home.  Lorelei will be ready to do this sort of project in the Spring, which means Ben will be, too.

I Love Planes! by Philemen Sturges

I Love Planes! by Philomen Sturges, illustrated by Shari Halpern

Rating: 4 stars

I have a great friend who is completely addicted to Alexander McCall Smith's books.  Every time she sends out an update about what books she's read/is reading on the book group/website thingy we both belong to, one or two of his books are in there, with an apology (to whom?  I'm not sure!) that she knows she should stop but she just can't help herself!  They are so good!  There are so many!  She just can't stop!

Well, I finally understand.

These books are so good!  There are so many!  We just can't stop!  (Ok, there are actually not over a hundred, though I wish there were.  I think there are 8 or so.) 

These are quickly becoming equals to our Byron Barton favorites!  I really wish that they came in board books--if they did, I would definitely be buying them for a bunch of first birthdays for little boys.  The drawings and text and rhymes are so appropriate for a 1 or 2 year-old, and are the perfect little books to help kids get interested in books.  Because who doesn't love looking up in the sky to see if it's a helicopter or jet or Blue Angel or little propeller plane flying over us?!  I still do.

If you've got a little guy (or girl!) who is 2ish years old, just check out every single one of these.  We grab one or two every time we go to the library--sometimes they are new ones, and sometimes we've read them before.  It's like seeing an old friend, or being excited to meet a new one!

I Love School! by Philemen Sturges

I Love School! by Philomen Sturges, illustrated by Shari Halpern

Rating: 4.5

There really isn't much to this big series of books, but they are each so cute and engaging that they're worth a blurb here and a check out there.  They are basic, introductory books on which you can expand if you want--or, if you're just pooped, you can just read it and save the extension exercises for another day. 

I do learn a few facts with every book; on the front and back inside cover are fun tidbits about school: that the world's largest peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich contained 150 pounds of peanuts and 50 pounds of jelly.  Or that more than 450,000 school buses transport close to 24 million students in the U.S. to school every day.  I appreciate that Sturges throws this stuff in for the older reader--whether that's 4 or 5 or, in my case, 34.

Since Lorelei is starting preschool in just five or six weeks, I am keeping a constant flow of books about school, about starting school, about making friends at school, and anything that has any positive vibe about school.  I really do think she'll do fine in the transition--when we moved from the Mommy and me gymnastics class to the "big girl" Mommy-sits-on-the-sides class she didn't look back once, and her crying fits of "I don't want to do that!" disappeared completely.  So I think she's ready.  I think.  I hope.  Am I ready?  I don't know.

The other books in this series:
I Love Trucks!
I Love Trains!
I Love Bugs! (review here)
I Love Tools!
I Love Planes!