The Children's Book of Virtues [Hardcover]

William J. Bennett (Editor), Michael Hague (Illustrator)

Book Description

Release date: October 1, 1995 | Age Range: 5 and up

The perfect companion to William J. Bennett's number-one bestseller; The Book of Virtues, The Children's Book of Virtues is the ideal storybook for parents and children to enjoy together:

With selections from The Book of Virtues, from Aesop and Robert Frost to George Washington's life as well as Native American and African folklore, The Children's Book of Virtues brings together timeless stories and poems from around the world.

The stories have been chosen especially for a young audience to help parents introduce to their children the essentials of good character: Courage, Perseverance, Responsibility, Work, Self-discipline, Compassion, Faith, Honesty, Loyalty, and Friendship.

Lavishly illustrated by the well-known artist Michael Hague, these wonderful stories and the virtues they illustrate come to life on these pages.

The Children's Book of Virtues is an enduring treasury of literature and art that will help lead young minds toward what is noble and gentle and fine.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Ages 4^-8. Using portions of his best-selling adult work Book of Virtues, former secretary of education William Bennett teams up with artist Michael Hague to create a collection of stories, poems, and fables in a format more suitable for children. Noting in his introduction that his goal is to further the "moral education of the young," Bennett has chosen selections to illustrate 10 virtues, which he further divides into four groups, among them, courage/perseverance and compassion/faith. Many selections, such as the Aesop fables, are easily found elsewhere, but Bennett has also included some full-length versions of poems and tales known only vaguely today. A few selections seem badly dated or unbearably heavy-handed (for example, the story of the boy whose "please" didn't get enough fresh air so it ran away to another boy's mouth), and the apocryphal tale of George Washington and the cherry tree should have been labeled as such. Hague's plentiful artwork adds enormously to the charm of the collection. In keeping with each selection, his style ranges widely, from the comical to the lushly romantic and sweetly old-fashioned. Susan Dove Lempke

Review

Children will enjoy this book together with their parents: it requires good reading skills or parental intervention but presents a set of fine stories and colorful illustrations of virtues ranging from work and self-discipline to faith and loyalty. The old-fashioned pictures and virtues extolled will please parents seeking to instill values in the very young. -- Midwest Book Review

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 112 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; 1st edition (October 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 068481353X
• ISBN-13: 978-0684813530
• Product Dimensions: 1.2 x 0.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (54 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,547 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #4 in Books > Children's Books > Literature & Fiction > Literary Criticism & Collections
  • #19 in Books > Children's Books > Social Situations > Values
  • #20 in Books > Literature & Fiction > History & Criticism > Criticism & Theory

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

78 of 80 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Morals, Good Stories, Well Illustrated May 19, 2000

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover

We're on our second read through of this book of children's morality tales.

With poems, short homilies and stories, Bill Bennett entertains young children as life's good lessons are imparted. The accompanying illustrations are visually delightful.

Some of the stories, because of word usage, appeal to a slightly older audience than my four and five year olds, but they can appreciate most of the vignettes. A good book that helps parents in childhood instruction.

95 of 100 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars It is great for kids! June 6, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover

My name is David. I am eight years old. I am reading The Children's Book of Virtues, edited by William J. Bennett. My favorite story so far is "The Honest Woodman." It is about a poor woodcutter who looses his old axe in a river. A water fairy brought up a silver axe and a gold axe. The woodcutter said that they were not his. When she brought up his steel axe, he said it was his. The water fairy gave him all the axes for telling the truth. Telling the truth is very important.

55 of 59 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Children's Book of Virtues May 11, 2000

By A Customer

Format:Audio Cassette

This is an excellent book to read to your young ones (4+) The stories are old yet the principles are ageless. The children will curl up and live these tales. I find myself truely enjoying this special time. When they get to six or seven I would strongly recommend moving to the Book of Virtues by William J. Bennett. The stories will sweep you and the children away. MY childrens favorite time is reading these stories. They actually ask for the book and seldom does anything else draw such smiles and "Thank You Daddys". Enjoy the experience.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars wonderful November 16, 2005

By C. Wymer

Format:Hardcover

I had this book when I was a little kid. I honestly think that by reading it, it changed how I viewed things as a child. Partially because of this book, when I was little I had strong feelings about responsiblity, kindness, courage, perserverance, and many of the other subjects illustrated in The Children's Book of Virtues. I loved reading it and the stories affected me greatly.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous moral stories...the best compilation I've found so far... September 8, 2005

By Amy in Abq.

Format:Hardcover

As a homeschool mother I am always looking for great stories for my almost 7 yo and my 2.5 yo. This book is part of the curriculum for Sonlight and it is fabulous. My daughter's favorite is about two brothers, one who doesn't let his "please" out of his mouth so the "please" jumps into the other brothers' mouth (which makes him say all his "pleases" twice). Eventually though, the "please-less" mouth wants his please back and his "please" is thrilled to be at home and allowed to get some fresh air. The stories are grouped by moral or attribute (compassion, courage, etc.). Both male and female main characters throughout the stories and the poems makes this book appropriate for both boys and girls. I highly, highly recommend this book, no qualms about it.

23 of 26 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars wonderful book of virtues, beautifully illustrated September 15, 2004

By Lisa M. Bednar

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

My daughter (6 yo) loves this book, and I do too. The stories are entertaining and engaging, and the illustrations are wonderful.

The book hearkens back to good old-fashioned values and morals, and is completely unashamed in doing so. Mr. Bennett writes in the foreword that the process of intentionally instructing the young in virtues was done without embarrassment in our recent past. I enjoyed the frankness of the approach in this book. Each selection is headed by a summary of the lesson contained in it.

This collection includes poems, fables from Aesop, adaptations of fairy tales, and other stories from cultures around the world in order to illustrate certain virtues, such as responsibility, kindness, honesty, and good manners. The selections are of a good length to sustain the interest of a young(4 - 8 yo) child. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to inculcate good values.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars It's About The Message, Not The Messenger September 16, 2005

By Ellie Reasoner

Format:Hardcover

These tales were collected from virtually every corner of the globe and some go far back into the reaches of antiquity. Bennett and his collaborators did a fine job of finding stories of universal, fairly non-controversial appeal that we can all cite without worrying about the inherent differences in religion or politics that might otherwise divide us. Segregated according to the principles being celebrated (Honesty, Courage, etc.) these fables and true life stories demonstrate virtues of conduct far too often left unstressed in our morally-undermined society.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful compilation of literature with lessons April 9, 2005

By snoopygirl

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have been looking for a great collection of stories that convey important values for quite some time. I had not been able to find anything good enough (or easy enough) for my 5 year old son to find interesting...until now.

The Children's Book of Virtues is a compilation of short stories and poems, many of which I remember from my youth. The book is well organized, with stories/poems grouped by the virtue they represent (courage, perserverence, etc.). So if I want my son to think about a particular virtue, maybe due to what happened that day, I can easily find an appropriate story in this book.

The illustrations are also so well done. They are colorful and expressive, catching my son's attention as I read to him.

Thank you for this book. I hope additional volumes may be developed.