Carrot Seed

Rating:
Summary: my first book from the library
Review: About 55 years ago, The Carrot Seed was the first book that I checked out from the local library. I loved it then and I still respect it for its clarity and simplicity. Every child should read it or have it read to him or her--many times. Then the child should proceed onto others by the same author and on to a life of loving books and the library.

Rating:
Summary: Have a little kid? Need this one!
Review: Don't be misled by the teachings that small children only like bright colored books. Trust me, I am a mother of 4, and this book is on the top 10 most read list with my boys. It is a story of faith, hope and perseverance. It is a great quick read. It is perfect when you are too tired to get through a long book.

A long time ago, BC, Before Children, I never would have considered "Horton Hears a Who" a long book, but after trying to read it, tired, to a 2 year old, I found out how long some of the classics are.

If you have little ones, forget the long books, find short treasures like "The Carrot Seed", "Harold and the Purple Crayon", "Are you My Mother?", and the Sandra Boynton books. You'll have time later for the longer books.

Rating:
Summary: Naysayers
Review: I do not feel the important lesson from this book is simple perserverance (as others have said). Nor do I feel it is about blind faith. The lesson I take from it is perseverance in the face of all the naysayers in life who would bring you down with them. Dare to dream big, work hard, and have faith in oneself in the face of adversity. This is the only children's book I have seen with such a theme.

Rating:
Summary: My favorite book then, my favorite book now
Review: My parents gave me the paperback version of this book as a child many years ago (which I still have), and I recall reading it over and over and over during my formative years. My mom bought me the hardback version again when I graduated from high school. I am nearly 30 years old now, and I still gravitate toward the very simple yet profound message it teaches all of us: have a quiet childlike faith, trust, persist, persevere and you will be richly rewarded. Today, I run a $2.5 million a year professional organization, and we recently completed a large corporate visioning project for the next several years. I read Krauss' book at the close of the first phase of our vision meeting. My colleagues--with a cumulative total of nearly 75 years of professional business experience--spontaneously applauded at the end of the book, no joke! I also purchased several copies of the book to give to my team as a reminder of the core values it espouses--simple, yet profound values that will guide us and lead us to the next level. It is a book of timeless value that touches my heart each time I read it--and one that you, your child, your family, your peers, or your colleagues will treasure for years to come. Buy it and share it with others, if you haven't done so already.

Rating:
Summary: Simple, yet profound
Review: This is one of my 2 year old son's favorite books. He "reads" it over and over (he has every word memorized.) It's so simple, and yet the message is so profound. It's a message that many children don't get from other sources- one of faith and perserverance. At first, I was not impressed with the brown and yellow illustrations, but my son seems to prefer them over other more colorfully illustrated books. The simple pictures mirror the simple message of the book.