The New York Times Guide to the Best Children's Videos

Rating:
Summary: A Helpful Guide for a Busy Parent
Review: I agree with the reviewer Maureen from Maryland -- I was vastly disappointed with this book, and wish I hadn't bought it. I like the idea of separate kid and adult juries, and some of the reviews are well-written and informative, but other reviews read like advertisements or sounded rather vague. And the movies! Raggedy Ann, ok, but Reality Bites? Rosemary's Baby? Room with a View? Just because a movie might be ok for an older, mature teenager doesn't make it a "children's video". Thumbs down.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I agree with the reviewer Maureen from Maryland -- I was vastly disappointed with this book, and wish I hadn't bought it. I like the idea of separate kid and adult juries, and some of the reviews are well-written and informative, but other reviews read like advertisements or sounded rather vague. And the movies! Raggedy Ann, ok, but Reality Bites? Rosemary's Baby? Room with a View? Just because a movie might be ok for an older, mature teenager doesn't make it a "children's video". Thumbs down.

Rating:
Summary: A Helpful Guide for a Busy Parent
Review: I found this guide extremely helpful in letting me and my children know the content of videos that were new to us. I would love to say that I have time to pre-screen everything they see, but the reality is I look to books like this to help me make the right choices for my children. I am impressed that Kids' First has taken the time and effort to review this material and made it easier for me to know what my children are watching. We are all looking forward the next edition.

Rating:
Summary: Seems useful so far
Review: I had great hopes for this book, but was very disappointed. The reviews are for the most mixed bag of movies I have ever seen. Non-fiction mixed with fiction. Very old, unrelated movies (such as The Court Jester with Danny Kaye) panned and mixed in with new releases for no reason. The parent/child review format would seem to make sense, but the comments of "wouldn't want to see it again" or "enjoyed it" were not very helpful. Disturbing to me was the list of recommended movies for teens. I have a hard time putting "Something About Mary" on a recommended list for my soon-to-be 13 year old daughter. The author seemed to be a fan of certain actors and included their movies, not caring about a movie's individual merit. This is not a book to be put on the family bookshelf. Try Nell Minow's.

Rating:
Summary: Seems useful so far
Review: I have only had this book for a couple of months, but I have repeatedly found its assessments right on target. I especially like the way that it covers both movies and CD-ROMs, and the way that it breaks reviews down into fairly narrow age groups (just a few years wide). All my actual experience with the book has been only with movies for those in the category covering 5- and 6-year-olds, but in each case it has helped me identify a movie that has been suitable for my kids without being incredibly boring for me and my wife. Movies that we've gotten that are not reviewed in the book, in contrast, have almost always been problems along one dimension or the other.