A Little Book of Manners

Rating:
Summary: Sensitivity in text and illustrations = charming book
Review: Dear Ms. Barnes,

Thank you so very much for A LITTLE BOOK OF MANNERS: COURTESY AND KINDNESS FOR YOUNG LADIES. It has made all the difference in our lives.

One evening my husband and I experienced one of the most embarrassing moments of our entire lives when we took our granddaughters out to dinner. I suddenly realized that they simply had not been taught some pretty basic manners. Modern parents are so busy with two careers and hectic schedules, I suppose.

Imagine how thrilled I was to find this book and how even more delighted to discover that when they read it, both girls took the lessons to heart and began to practice them. It saved me the further embarrassment of telling their parents about the painful incident. You back me up on that one: "Don't point out other people's bad manners," -- remember? Of course, grandmothers have special advantages in that area, but tact and sometimes even reticence is often the better part of valor.

"Five good reasons to write thank you notes!" and
"The heart of all good manners is the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." What brave and wonderful things to write to youngsters in a society that sneers at manners and religion as "sentimental" and "old-fashioned."

Because of the lessons here -- from thank you notes to how to entertain friends to telephone manners to introductions and party manners and more -- we are now proud to take the girls anywhere. Their introductions (which we had fun practicing) are truly graceful.

Another very important point you make is to treat brothers and sisters like friends. That is, with respect. Practicing that one little idea can change the entire atmosphere in a home.

Thank you, Emilie Barnes, for a very important book. This one was so successful for us that I bought the companion volume, A LITTLE BOOK OF MANNERS FOR BOYS and look forward to seeing equally triumphant results among our grandsons.

Michel Sparks's illustrations are colorful and delightfully whimsical. The visual appeal and emphasis they add to the text makes this a very special book indeed.

Thank you again for the lovely and sensitive addition to our children's library and to our lives.

Rating:
Summary: I wish she would write a book for boys too.
Review: Excuse me, could I please tell you about a book I just read? Well, this is what Emilie Marie would say if she could walk off the pages and into your life. She also believes that the heart of all good manners is the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. This is a little girl you would happily invite over for a tea party!

This is just an enchanting book for helping young ladies learn courtesy and kindness. Emilie Marie introduces herself in a most polite way, then explains how her Aunt Evelyn has been helping her practice her manners.

This book helps girls to learn how to meet people, shake hands, answer the phone, be a good friend and so much more. I loved the section on the heart of Good Manners. I must say we adults could learn a few things from this book. Emilie Marie learns how to write thank you notes and how to answer invitations to a party.

To give this book to a little girl is also a way to give the gift of happiness to all those who know her. Michal Sparks has illustrated the pink and yellow pages in the most charming way possible. The blue bow on the cover is just adorable.

Thank you for reading my review and I really hope you will buy this book for someone you know. I bought it for my nieces and they love it. I must say they are turning out to be polite little ladies themselves.

It was so nice to meet you.

Rating:
Summary: Lovely and effective!
Review: My child went from exhibiting the most atrocious of table manners to conducting herself at table with perfect grace! After reading this book, she was eager for opportunities to practice her new manners on the telephone and at the table. Knowing "the rules" made her feel confident. Framing the need to be respectful of grown-ups as an issue of manners rather than power has made her rethink her behavior at school as well. Granted, this book takes an old-fashioned approach to proper behaviors (it is, for example, gender-specific, as the title clearly shows), but it has affected the way my behavior-challenged 6-year-old (though it's geared toward a slightly older audience) thinks about her actions. The illustrations are beautiful, and the prose -- from the perspective of a fictive childhood Emilie Barnes -- engages the socially-conscious child's mind. I only wish there were more, and that boys could be privy to this way of thinking about social interactions as well.