Heart of Texas: A Lone Star ABC

Reviewed by Sophia (age 6.5) and Madeline (age 8) McElroy for Reader Views (7/09) Sophia: I like this book a lot because it has horses and it is about Texas. There is a funny page about longhorns and cowboys. The artwork is pretty cool. Big Bend National Park sounds fun to visit. I also liked learning about the Oil Wells. I would like to visit the Cowgirl Museum, it sounds neat. I also liked the painting of the cowboys dressed up as clowns. Madeline: I like this book because it has lots of horses and longhorns and because it is about Texas. My favorite artwork in the book is the page that says Wildflowers, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center; did you know she was the one who started the wildflower research? If I could make 100,000 stars for this book it would mean this book is awesome! I learned a lot of things about Texas I never knew before. Parent: We are new to Texas and this book is filled with a lot of interesting information. We are in the planning stages of going to Padre Island, near Corpus Christi, because of reading this book. I asked a native Texan friend of mine about some of the places in the book and she was unaware of many of them. The kids really enjoyed the fun artwork and there is just enough information to keep them interested in "Heart of Texas: A Lone Star ABC" by Laura Krauss Melmed.

This is a perfect book for any child who is into geography, history or trivia. The illustrations go very well with the tid-bits of knowledge that accompany them and give a good taste of Texas.