Customer Reviews

You Can't Take a Balloon into the Metropolitan Museum

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

We love this book! It has made the Metropolitan real for my 2-1/2 year old. She keeps telling me she wants to go back to see more pictures. We cannot go through a pedestrian tunnel in Central Park without talking about elephants getting stuck in them. I can't wait to take her to the Zoo and what she calls the "Plaza Hotel Museum". Why doesn't the Met do a map of the art? Why don't the authors publish a map of the sites for people who don't know NYC as well as they do? Why don't you go buy this book and fall in love with its immediacy and joy, too?

Once in a long while a book comes along that is so simple yet so complex and innovative that it can be enjoyed time and again by both children and adults and is destined to become a classic. This is one of those books.

Having myself been taken at a very young age by my father to the Metropolitan Museum, this book has awoken within me wonderful memories that have instilled me with a love of museums (and especially of the Met). Although my children have not had the experience of seeing the Metropolitan as we live outside the U.S., this book has afforded me the opportunity to describe the museum to them and relive my experiences with them and at the same time take a rollicking educational ride through this romp.

I can actually feel the joy these two sisters must have had in working on this project. It is a work that comes from the heart and kudos to their collaboration of story and artwork that raises the story above the mundane.

Wordless picture books have always held an honored place in the hearts (and lesson plans) of all teachers who promote a love of reading. YOU CAN'T TAKE A BALLOON INTO THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM takes that tradition to new heights with its exquisite detail, subtle parallel events, humor and excitement. It has all the elements of story: setting, lively characterization, the conflict and the chase...not to mention a most satisfying ending! But beyond all these delights, teachers of children of all ages will be drawn to this book for its potential to lead young minds on a quest for further information in many areas: art, art history, cultural tradition. It will find its place in creative writing lessons and in lessons about cultural history. And it will inevitably fix the images of a great museum in the minds of "readers," many of whom will find their way to The Met to discover these visual treasures in "real life." --Ann P. Kaganoff, PhD, Certified Educational Therapist; President, Association of Educational Therapists

This book is beautiful with rich, entertainig pictures. A book like this is a great source to use when a teacher has her students are working on creating short stories.

What a fabulous book! It is even more charming and far more complicated than Eloise...and much more up-to-date! What a wonderful way to introduce children of any age (and, given its wordlessness, any language) to sites in and around Central Park! What a cheerful, gentle guidebook! Why isn't it in every bookstore's travel section, as well as its children's section? Why doesn't every New Yorker give it to every child they know who is going to visit the City? Why doesn't every New York parent give it to their young children? Why don't school teachers use it as the basis of field trips? In short, RUN, DO NOT WALK TO GET YOUR HANDS ON THIS MARVELOUS, HUMOROUS, LOVELY BOOK!

This is one of my favorite books of all time. It captures the spirit of New York while showcasing numerous works of art from the Metropolitan Museum in the city. Juxtaposed together, children will love the fun drawings and adults will appreciate the cleverness contained in each page. I have bought this book as gifts for friends, and also bought two copies for myself. One sits proudly on my shelf, and I have matted and framed some of my favorite pages from the other copy to hang on my wall. If you love New York, art, and/or wonderful children's books you must discover this book for yourself.

Jacqueline Weitzman is brilliant! I love the way everything is connected. Every page grabs and holds your attention and is so intricate that a few pages later you'll be wondering how some of the people got caught up in the chase. I think it must be an incredible mind that can make a picture book so simple and yet so complex. Make sure to check out her latest. . .it's even better than the first!

I read my girls two books every night. We have a reasonably sized collection but let's face it, some children's books just don't stand up to repitition. When my oldest (5) goes to pick out a book from the shelf I get nervous -- if she picks out the fairy tale book I glaze over. You Can't Take a Baloon into the Metropolitan Museum is one of the books you just look forward to reading with your children. It's engaging, we see new things in it all the time, and it even gets them excited about art!! What's not to love?! We're waiting for more from Ms. Preiss-Weitzman!

This is my favorite book. It is livly with beutful pictures. It compares it's pictures to the pictures of the metropoliyim musim. It is so fun the day after a got it I looked at every detail everyday. I adore it.

A delightful illustration book! There are no words to this story, just whimsical illustrations detailing each turn of events.

When a young girl can't take her yellow balloon into the museum, the kind doorman offers to watch over it for her. But when the balloon escapes a series of chase-scenes ensue, each getting more and more elaborate (and somewhat unbelieveable, but that's part of the charm).
The illustrations are endearing, and the use of color is wonderful! It's also great how the actions of the book are mirrored by the art the girl views at the museum. It's a nice way to introduce art to children without it being too boring. In fact, happily, I felt that the story came first, followed by the selection of the piece of art to go with the scene, instead of the other way around, which it probably was, but thankfully didn't feel that way.

There's lots to take in on each page and would probably be a wonderful re-"read" :)