Emily's First 100 Days of School [Hardcover]

Rosemary Wells (Author)

Book Description

Grade Level: P and up

Starting with number one for the first day of school, Emily learns the numbers to one hundred in many different ways.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

On the first day of school, Emily's teacher, Miss Cribbage, tells the class that they will make a new number friend every day for the first 100 days of school. Everyone will have a number book in which to write numerical discoveries and musings. Eager Emily dives right into the project. On the second day of school, Miss Cribbage teaches a song called "Tea for Two." On day three, Emily writes about her school bus, No. 3. In square dancing, Emily learns that there are four corners to a dancing square. She picks five different vegetables from her garden for her father to use in his tomato-zucchini-pepper-carrot-eggplant soup. From day one to day 100, Emily and her classmates expand their creative and mathematical skills as they immerse themselves in the exciting early days of school.

Rosemary Wells, beloved author and illustrator of dozens of picture books, and creator of the mischievous Max character (Max's First Word, Max's Chocolate Chicken, and others), has accomplished a remarkable feat: finding 100 days' worth of entertaining "number friends." The 100th day of school can be an important milestone--and a great learning tool! Emily is an adorable Wellsian bunny, complete with pudgy cheeks and sweet little jumpers and overalls. For more excellent 100-day picture books, try Margery Cuyler's 100th Day Worries and Joseph Slate's Miss Bindergarten Celebrates the 100th Day of Kindergarten. (Ages 4 to 8) --Emilie Coulter

From Publishers Weekly

As Wells's (My Very First Mother Goose) sparkling, ambitious book opens, EmilyAa childlike bunny who could easily be kin to Max and RubyAattends her first day of school. Her teacher, a guinea pig named Miss Cribbage, explains that every morning the class will "make a new number friend," and she promises a party when they reach 100 days. "No one believes we will ever get to one hundred days," says Emily. Wells not only counts the intervening days, she finds a context to make each numeral meaningful. On day two, for example, Emily reports that Miss Cribbage teaches the song "Tea for Two." Along the way, readers observe Emily participate in her warm family life, gain and lose a friend and learn from Miss Cribbage's imaginative lessons. Humor comes naturally (e.g., day 89: "'There are only eighty-nine calories in my tomato soup,' says Aunt Mim. 'I can't see any,' says [Emily's little brother] Leo"). Remarkably, only a few entries feel contrived (Papa claims there are 51 reasons why Emily's big sister can't go into the city with her friends; Mama says she can find 56 ways to answer "How Do I Love Thee?"). The spreads, varying from full-page art to panels, are crisp, colorful and winningly detailed, as Wells's fans have come to expect. Except for some production flawsAsuch as the misspelled "ninteen" and several stylistic inconsistenciesAthis oversize volume scores big. Ages 3-6. (May)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children; 1st edition (January 1, 1900)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786805072
• ISBN-13: 978-0786805075
• Product Dimensions: 12 x 10.3 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #605,862 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Born in New York City, Rosemary Wells grew up in a house "filled with books, dogs, and nineteenth-century music." Her childhood years were spent between her parents' home near Red Bank, New Jersey, and her grandmother's rambling stucco house on the Jersey Shore. Most of her sentimental memories, both good and bad, stem from that place and time. Her mother was a dancer in the Russian Ballet, and her father a playwright and actor. Mrs. Wells says, "Both my parents flooded me with books and stories. My grandmother took me on special trips to the theater and museums in New York. "Rosemary Wells's career as an author and illustrator spans more than 30 years and 60 books. She has won numerous awards, and has given readers such unforgettable characters as Max and Ruby, Noisy Nora, and Yoko. She has also given Mother Goose new life in two enormous, definitive editions, published by Candlewick. Wells wrote and illustrated Unfortunately Harriet, her first book with Dial, in 1972. One year later she wrote the popular Noisy Nora. "The children and our home life have inspired, in part, many of my books. Our West Highland white terrier, Angus, had the shape and expressions to become Benjamin and Tulip, Timothy, and all the other animals I have made up for my stories." Her daughters Victoria and Beezoo were constant inspirations, especially for the now famous "Max" board book series. "Simple incidents from childhood are universal," Wells says. "The dynamics between older and younger siblings are common to all families."But not all of Wells' ideas come from within the family circle. Many times when speaking, Mrs. Wells is asked where her ideas come from. She usually answers, "It's a writer's job to have ideas." Sometimes an idea comes from something she reads or hears about, as in the case of her recent book, Mary on Horseback, a story based on the life of Mary Breckenridge, who founded the Frontier Nursing Service. Timothy Goes to School was based on an incident in which her daughter was teased for wearing the wrong clothes to a Christmas concert. Her dogs, west highland terriers, Lucy and Snowy, work their way into her drawings in expression and body position. She admits, "I put into my books all of the things I remember. I am an accomplished eavesdropper in restaurants, trains, and gatherings of any kind. These remembrances are jumbled up and changed because fiction is always more palatable than truth. Memories become more true as they are honed and whittled into characters and stories."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

62 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Emily's 100 days, May 11, 2000

By 

Victoria Wells (Washington, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Emily's First 100 Days of School (Hardcover)

Emily is so excited to go to Kindergarten. Her teacher helps the children to count off the first 100 days of school, and every day has a number.

Each page has from 1 - 4 days of school illustrated on it. Each numbered day is significant, either on a historical, cultural or kindergarten level.

Future and current kindergartners and their parents will be charmed by this book.

My only reservation about it is that it is 58 pages long. This is not a book that you could read in one sitting with your average 5 or 6 year-old. My recommendation would be to do it in small chunks - once a week or once a month - throughout the beginning of the school year.

It has wonderful ideas of how to celebrate and enjoy the school year in small ways, including the traditions of many cultures. Not only is it a great way to count, but also a way to explore cultural diversity.

Any fan of Rosemary Wells will be well satisfied with this book.

If you are looking for a book that you can read in one sitting with your child, try Miss Bindergarten Celebrates the 100th Day by Joseph Slate. This book is actually an alphabet book in which each student's name starts with a different letter, and there is a sentence telling what each is bringing to celebrate the 100th day.

39 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Emily's First 100 Days of School is a delightful book., June 19, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Emily's First 100 Days of School (Hardcover)

In this very charming book, Emily starts school and her teacher, Miss Cribbage, has them write a number down in their number books for each of the first 100 days of school. The pages are bright and colorful and the numbers are easy for small children to read. Each number has a lesson to be learned from it. Ms. Wells' characters are as always cute and adoreable. My twin four year girls absolutely loved this book. It is an excellent book for teaching numbers from 1 to 100. I would recommend it to anyone.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another winner by Rosemary Wells--just delightful!, June 19, 2000

By 

Suzanne Amara (MA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Emily's First 100 Days of School (Hardcover)

This book is really special! Emily counts off the first 100 days of school by talking about each and every number and matching it up with something to do with that day--her sister Eloise learning to play Seventy Six Trombones, her class learning about the nine planets, the prizewinning pumpkin at the fair weighing 33 pounds, and so on! The book is oversized, and filled with great Wells pictures. In the short piece of info given with each number, we get to know Emily's family and the joys and sorrows of her first year of school. We've read this book over and over. It's great for a child just starting to get excited about numbers, as they can look up their favorite ones to see what that number has associated with it. It would also be a great book for a child starting school. If you love Rosemary Wells, as I do, you knew you would like this book, but even I was impressed with how special it is!