Customer Reviews

911: With Ambulance (Matchbox Books)

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ISBN 1584854073 - Printed in China (boo hiss to Wisconsin based publisher Pleasant Company for offshoring those jobs). Ages 3 and up. Books that come with toys can be awesome. I like the idea that we can use a toy to interest them in a book, for once, rather than the other way around. In this case, the 911 aspect is a teaching tool, too, so this book gets extra props from me.

Brian and his mother spot an accident on the highway and call 911 for help. The highway patrol, firefighters and an ambulance respond, keeping traffic moving and working to get a driver out of his car. The driver is rushed to the hospital and the officer on the scene assures Brian that the driver will be okay, thanks to his call. The last pages give directions on how and when to call 911 and 911 phone stickers are included. The book comes with a Matchbox toy ambulance.

The board book pages are thick enough to take some abuse but because they're so long, they're a little prone to bending. No author or illustrator is mentioned on the book. The text is simple and complete, although maybe a little dated in one spot. Brian calls 911 from the car phone. It's great that his mother, who is driving, doesn't make the call, but who still owns a car phone? (The book was published in 2001 and I don't think anyone still had car phones then, either) The illustrations are all right, nothing special. They're somewhat fuzzy and dark, but they do the job well enough. The bonus here, the 911 instructions, are what makes this really worthwhile for parents; the toy is what makes it really worthwhile to a kid.

- AnnaLovesBooks