Customer Reviews

George and Martha: The Complete Stories of Two Best Friends

5 star:		(53)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As a family we have read this book numerous times and love it. They are best friends. They are really funny when they are frightened.My sister aged 4 loves the stories and they are simple enough for me to read to her. Every child should read this book.

I showed this book to a friend of mine when we were both graduate students. He rolled his eyes, but when I came back into the room after having stepped out for a moment, he was laughing at it. A co-worker of mine was looking for some book recommendations, and I suggested this one for his nieces and nephews. He told me he could not make it all the way through the book when he was reading it out loud to them because he was laughing so hard he was crying. Do I need to say anything else to persuade you to buy this book? George and Martha are two of the funniest children's book characters of all time, and James Marshall is a much missed genius of children's stories. Enjoy it. You may even find yourself reading it once the kids have gone to bed.

As a second grade teacher I have read George and Martha to hundreds of seven and eight year olds. This book is about what true friendship really is. Knowing the stories by heart I sometimes double over laughing before I even read the page. When I ask, "Who's your teacher's favorite author?" Everyone responds, "James Marshall!!" This anthology was a true gift and one of my prized posessions. If I could have just one book on a desert island, this would be it.

Have you or anyone you know ever been troubled by the complexities of friendship? This endearing collection of vignettes in the lives of two very dear friends, models how to get through the peaks and troughs of human relations. I have had two best friends for over thirty years and I know friendships take a lot of work. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote wonderfully about friendship but James Marshall wrote these profoundly simple, almost poetic stories about two hippos who err, forgive, sacrifice, love, and put up with each other in a most charming and edifying fashion that everyone can understand. George and Martha books are adored by children and adults; they are well illustrated, in simple language and highly allegorical. I have given them as greeting cards to celebrate, apologize, teach, support, and grovel. I bought this full collection as a birthday present for a teenager who loved the stories as a child, and deeply appreciates the lessons as an emerging adult. (Frankly, I wanted to keep it for myself -- but that would have been too selfish, so I bought another.) Enjoy this book and benefits of dear friends.

I met George and Martha when I was a kid and grew to love their antics. Now, as an adult, I love to introduce them to a new generation of kids. What I particularly appreciate is that neither of these two characters is perfect. George peeks in windows; Martha can be vain. They both have bouts of naughtiness. Still, while their antics are different in each story, the message is the same: When you love someone, you forgive his foibles with the same enthusiasm that you celebrate his virtues.

I'll take "George and Martha" over "The Book of Virtues" any day!

I'm going broke buying copies for friends, relatives' children, etc. No way am I going to give up MY copy. It's simply too essential to my sense of humor and mental health. I'm just glad someone had the incredible idea to compile a collection of George and Martha's adventures into one tome. THANK YOU! As far as I'm concerned, George and Martha are just as real as any humans I ever met (and a lot more fun than most!). Their trials and travails reflect what all of us deal with in trying to stay true blue to our pals. I miss James Marshall so much. It's hard to believe we won't get any new adventures in the George and Martha saga (did you know he named them after the main characters in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolfe? "). The mind wobbles.

We started watching the George and Martha TV series while living in Australia. I don't know who is more enamoured with the series - my daughters, or myself. These stories, different from the tv show as far as I can tell, all teach a lesson in friendship. It's a fun way to let those lessons about being a good friend sink in with your child. George and Martha are hilarious, and we love following their adventures. It is a book that even an adult without children might enjoy reading. A real page turner and a well made, quality book!

As the mother of a 3-year old who constantly clamors "Read me a story!" I can't say how happy I was she got this for Christmas! It is a struggle to stop at just one, or five, or ten stories. George and Martha are enchanting, and we laugh out loud at the dry humor of the stories and the drawings. A+!

My son absolutely adores George and Martha. You won't soon find a funnier couple in print. Just beware, your child will probably want you to read the ENTIRE book every night. This volume contains all of the stories that James Marshall ever wrote, so be sure to get comfy before you start reading this immensely enjoyable and hysterically funny collection.

As I read these stories to my son it occurs to me that I am learning how to be a better friend too! In one of his lessons George teaches us about friendship when Martha gets a sunburn after having been told by George to put on sun tan lotion. When she gets burned he does not say "I told you so" because that is "not what friends are for"! That is the kind of person I would love my son to be. That is what person I want to be. Thanks!