The Little Engine That Could: The Complete, Original Edition (A Platt & Munk Classic) (Hardcover)

by Watty Piper (Author), George Hauman (Author), Doris Hauman (Author) "Chug, chug, chug. Puff, puff, puff. Ding-dong, ding-dong. The little train rumbled over the tracks..." (more)
Key Phrases: Little Blue Engine, Toy Clown

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
The unknowing progenitor of a whole generation of self-help books, Wally Piper's The Little Engine That Could is one of the greatest tales of motivation and the power of positive thinking ever told. In this well-loved classic, a little train carrying oodles of toys to all of the good boys and girls is confronted with a towering, seemingly impassable mountain. As nicely as they ask, the toys cannot convince the Shiny New Engine or the Big Strong Engine--far too impressed with themselves--to say anything but "I can not. I can not." It is left up to the Little Blue Engine to overcome insurmountable odds and pull the train to the other side. The Little Engine That Could is an entertaining and inspirational favorite, and the Little Blue Engine's rallying mantra "I think I can--I think I can" will resonate for a lifetime in the head of every child who hears it. (Ages 4 to 8))

Product Description
"A good example of pioneer feminist lore, with girl engine as 'hero'."--Publishers Weekly. The classic story of optimistic thinking that has delighted generations of children. Full-color illustrations.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Hardcover: 48 pages
• Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap; Complete original ed edition (March 1, 1978)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0448405202
• ISBN-13: 978-0448405209
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 7.1 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (76 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #21,460 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #37 in	Books > Children's Books > Sports & Activities > Activities & Toys
  #40 in	Books > Children's Books > Science, Nature & How It Works > Transportation
  #48 in	Books > Children's Books > People & Places > Social Situations > Self-Esteem & Self-Respect > Fiction

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Breaks the language barrier, July 23, 2001

By	Alyssa A. Lappen (Earth) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Few books are so gratifying to read to children for the first time. A child does not even need to understand English to "get" it. On first meeting our four-year-old son, who had never heard a world of English until then, I put him on my knee and impersonated each engine character chugging through these pages. He was scared and shy, but he loved the "characters," which I could only differentiate for him by sound, and he especially loved the famous repeating line "I think I can." As my whispers rose to crescendo, he squealed in delight. Nowadays he reads much harder books before going to sleep at night. But he likes every now and then to come back to this one: He well remembers the first moments of bonding with me, and with this book. Alyssa A. Lappen

31 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Which Engine Do You Remember?, March 20, 2003

By	Craig Rucin (Oak Lawn, IL United States) - See all my reviews

I wanted to buy this book for my children because it was my favorite as a kid. However, when I read the book I was surprised because it wasn't what I remembered. After doing research on this, I discovered there was another version of this story, "The Pony Engine" by Wonder Books, which I purchased used. This was the version I grew up with. What's the difference? The "Watty Piper" version makes the good engines girls and the bad engines boys and the version I grew up with does not make any [gender] distinction for the engines. If you are looking for the same book you grew up with, you may want to consider which version you want to read to your kids. Which is the true version? That is debated and you can read about it...

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Too bad it is abridged, August 22, 2001

By	Elizabeth G. Melillo "gloriana" - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Little Engine That Could: 60th Anniversary Edition (Hardcover)

The current self-help genre tends to be dwelling on hurts and self-pity, then finding magical solutions. Our Little Engine just has healthy self-confidence and determination. And please don't stress even that when reading it to the kids who will love it, since they find their own more imaginative interpretations.

The unabridged version is a lifetime favourite of mine, and, for classroom use or that with older children, find a copy at all costs. This version does retain much of the essence, however, and is great for the pre-school set. The only "negative" I can think of is that the kids so love the repetition that parents may grow a bit tired of the daily requests for it to be re-read, especially if the particular child wants to hear only certain sections (I knew one who always wanted "the clown part," the other "the food part.")

The same enjoyable repetition makes this a favourite story to read to children in primary grades. Yes, be sure you don't stop the kids from all joining in "I think I can..."

This remains one book that every favourite kid of mine receives as a present. If it disappoints any of your children, that will be a first, in my experience!