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A review by tippyloohoo
It's a Book by Lane Smith
5.0
A while back, while going through some things that had been delivered to the library, a co-worker and myself come across a stack of adorable book marks. There was nothing fancy about them, simply a cartoon monkey reading a book with the word READ at the top. The bookmark matches what is now my favorite childrens picture book. It's a Book by Lane Smith. It is quite simply a story about the joys of reading an actual book rather than relying on technology. I fell in love. Don't get me wrong I love technology; I can't live without my iPhone and a constant internet connection. But no e-reader will ever beat actually opening up a book and turning the pages.
Now, it has been said that this book is not appropriate for kids. This stems from the use of one word. The very last word uttered in the book. And it is, in fact, the name of one of the characters. You see, the characters don't have names like Steve or Bill, instead they are simply named for what they are: Monkey, Mouse, and Jackass. I can see you shaking your head. Let me tell you, I read this to my five year old daughter, and she loved it almost as much as I did. At the end, after she told me I said a bad word, we got to have a wonderful talk about language, and how some words can mean more than one thing not to mention the fact that she got to see me giggle like a little girl.
But back to what It's a Book is actually about. What a book can do. Can it text? Blog? Scroll? Wi-Fi? Tweet? These are all questions posed to the Monkey to which he responds, each time, "No, it's a book". So what can it do? Well, we find out when eventually the donkey sits down and actually reads the thing, and he refuses to give the book, Treasure Island, back. What does the Monkey do then? Why, he goes to the library, of course!
Now, it has been said that this book is not appropriate for kids. This stems from the use of one word. The very last word uttered in the book. And it is, in fact, the name of one of the characters. You see, the characters don't have names like Steve or Bill, instead they are simply named for what they are: Monkey, Mouse, and Jackass. I can see you shaking your head. Let me tell you, I read this to my five year old daughter, and she loved it almost as much as I did. At the end, after she told me I said a bad word, we got to have a wonderful talk about language, and how some words can mean more than one thing not to mention the fact that she got to see me giggle like a little girl.
But back to what It's a Book is actually about. What a book can do. Can it text? Blog? Scroll? Wi-Fi? Tweet? These are all questions posed to the Monkey to which he responds, each time, "No, it's a book". So what can it do? Well, we find out when eventually the donkey sits down and actually reads the thing, and he refuses to give the book, Treasure Island, back. What does the Monkey do then? Why, he goes to the library, of course!