A Child's Garden of Verses: A Classic Illustrated Edition [Board book]

Robert Louis Stevenson (Author), Cooper Edens (Compiler)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 2003 | Grade Level: P and up | Series: Classic Illustrated

This beautiful board book features eight of Robert Louis Stevenson's classic poems with antique illustrations by some of the best-known children's book illustrators of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, including Charles Robinson, H. Willebeek Le Mair and Jessie Willcox Smith. An unforgettable treat for the very youngest readers.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Cooper Edens is an author and illustrator who lives in Seattle, Washington. His other books include The Night Before Christmas (0-8118-1712-1), The Glorious Christmas Songbook (0-8118-2204-4), and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (0-8118-2274-5), all publi

Product Details

• Board book: 20 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (December 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811841685
• ISBN-13: 978-0811841689
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #512,940 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #21 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > Authors, A-Z > ( S ) > Stevenson, Robert Louis
  • #22 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( S ) > Stevenson, Robert Louis
  • #53 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Literature > Literary Criticism & Collections

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Nice Introduction to Robert Louis Stevenson, November 6, 2004

By 

Ms. N (USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Child's Garden of Verses: A Classic Illustrated Edition (Board book)

This is a nice, extra-sturdy book for toddlers. It includes these eight complete poems: The Land of Counterpane, The Lamplighter, Happy Thought, Foreign Lands, The Cow, My Shadow, The Swing, My Bed is a Boat. Most toddlers won't sit still for the complete poems, but you can just read the first few lines until they grow into them, and they'll have fun looking at the pictures. There are various vintage illustrations in full color by different artists including one of a boy in a tree by Jessie Willcox Smith (Foreign Lands), a charming colored drawing of a Mom showing a bird to her four little ones (Happy Thought), a simple but cute picture of a little girl watching a cow (The Cow) and a picture by one of my favorite Child's Garden of Verses illustrators, Eulalie (My Bed is a Boat). Yet, the cutest picture is the one on the cover by Jessie Willcox Smith. It begs one to wonder why they didn't use her pictures for all the poems. This book is a nice size, bigger than most board books, but still small enough to be handled easily by even very young children.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Short Version of a Great Stevenson Classic, September 16, 2005

By 

A.Trendl HungarianBookstore.com "What should ... (Glen Ellyn, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: A Child's Garden of Verses: A Classic Illustrated Edition (Board book)

Thirty years ago, I was taught to read with this. Different pictures, same poems. I learned to imagine and believe in ordinary, yet beautiful things. Even today, in my own writing, I smile realizing how and when I learned a technique, just by listening to my mother whisper these poems nightly.

Aptly named, RLS has the reader remembering the wonderful days of playing alone and with friends, of delighting in the moment.

This edition only has eight poems. The original collection has many more. As a sampler for your child, this edition may serve well. If you are confident your child will enjoy poetry, buy a longer version, and enjoy many times the pleasure and warmth.

All of these years later, these lines to "The Land of Counterpane" come to mind:

I was the giant great and still

That sits upon the pillow-hill,

And sees before him, dale and plain,

The pleasant land of counterpane.

Your child will gain an understanding of classic children's poetry, of the rhythm and rhyme. They sound eloquent aloud, and read gentle at bedtime.

I fullt recommend "A Child's Garden of Verses" by Robert Louis Stevenson.

Anthony Trendl

editor, HungarianBookstore.com

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Child's Garden of Verses, August 8, 2009

By 

J. Liebherr "avid reader" (Waukesha, WI USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Child's Garden of Verses: A Classic Illustrated Edition (Board book)

The book itself is a good book. But, due to damage in shipping I hesitated to give it as part of a baby shower gift. In Shipping it came to me with a bent cover and a nicked corner. I believe it was sent in good shape, but the plastic bag it was in was torn and greasy. I think that the book should at least been wrapped in bubble wrap or in a padded envelope. They gave me the book for only the cost of the shipping, I straightened out the book as best I could and told the girl what happened and that was that. The book was what it was advertised as, the illustrations were great, it was just the shipping problem. It also didn't get here in time for the shower but came 2 days later, for $3.98 shipping they could have got it to me in a couple days by regular mail.