Customer Reviews

The Police Cloud

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

THE POLICE CLOUD is a huge hit in our house, we've been reading it almost every night and for at least 10 minutes at a pop, pretty amazing considering the typical attention span of a not-quite two year old. And unlike my son's previous favorite, a book of cars/trucks/boats/etc which I finally had to hide because I couldn't stand having to read it night after night after night, I highly recommend this one as a book both kids AND parents will enjoy!

It's so charming, sweet and smart and full of great details both visual -- the illustration of the angry parkgoers makes me laugh out loud every time -- and in the writing itself. My son loves pointing out the cloud's police hat, the helicopter, the part where the thief gets away (he yells "stop!" and points his finger at the burglar), the crash at the intersection ("oh no!"), the part where the cloud gets sad ("cloud crying!"), of course the arrival of the fire truck, and then the ending, with the smiling cloud ("cloud happy!"). He even loves the back cover, which he keeps flipping upside down (to make the overturned truck become right side up) and back again, over and over and over, laughing and exclaiming all the while. He is smitten, and so am I.

This is our new favorite, hands down, and will be our standard birthday party gift for the under six set for a while to come.

My 5 y.o. daughter brought this book home from the library, and after reading it to her last night I was laughing my patookus off. This book is sooo true. You see, I'm a firefighter and I work with a bunch of ex-cops-and they're all so much happier- it never does go the other way around. The primary moral of the story is all fine and well, but the execution takes on a deeper meaning if you are, or were a cop or firefighter. So here I am reviewing this book & buying a copy for my firehouse. Great stuff!!
{possible insurance disclaimer: this does not apply in any way shape or form, intended or unintended to highway cops}

My kids - and their 4-,5-, and 6-year old friends - love the police cloud!
This perky little character and his helicopter friend are just too cute. And I love the message behind the adventure: follow your dreams! What looks like a setback can turn out to be the solution to a problem!

This book is marvelous. Ingenious, funny, sweet and endearing. I loved it, the children in my family loved it, as did my older relatives! I recommend this book wholeheartedly for children of ages! Also, the illustrations are gorgeous--Christoph Niemann is simply brilliant.

Police Cloud is a sweet book with fantastic colors and pictures. Both boys and girls will love this book. The cloud's friend, helicopter, helps get him a job as a police cloud- his dream come true. He tries and tries, but realizes he's not cut out for the job. His true calling is revealed at the end of the book and kids can't help but cheer for him.

Between the pictures and plot, you will not tire of reading this cute story.

My best friend & I bought this for her nephews (their dad is a cop) and they love it! The message is a little discouraging to me as an adult but it's great for the children!(:

This is definitely written for the 3 year old in your house to snuggle up with you on the couch. If there are 500 words in the book I would be amazed. Christoph Niemann is first and foremost an artist. It comes through in the pictures of the book, and I am sure they will enchant the little ones in your house.

I bought it for my wife, who teaches pre-school, and helps with after school care. I thought this would be a good book for her to share with her 5-7 year olds, but I think that even a 7 year old would be done with this book in 5 minutes. It is also not a "group storytime" book due to the length.

But it is a sweet story. The plot basically flows thus: "Mr. Cloud always wanted to be a policeman and gets his chance. For various cloudy reasons, he isn't a good one. Sad and crying, he finds out that he makes a great firefighter."

Moral of the story: There is excellence inside you, even if you don't see it yet.


Pros:

* Good artwork. Your little one will enjoy flipping through the pictures.

* Encouraging message.

* Quick read (you can still sit down for 5 minutes to read with your child on the busiest of days).


Cons:

* Very Short - kids older than 7 will find it insulting to their intelligence if you gave this to them as a gift. (For older kids, a good longer story would be The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins (Classic Seuss). Per another user's review, it takes about 20 minutes to read aloud.)

* No Depth - the message is nice, but there's no why addressed in the book. (i.e. WHY should I keep going after I didn't succeed at X? WHY do I feel bad when I fail, and HOW do I get back up? etc.)

* Not a Group Reading book.

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Final Thoughts:

I am glad I got this book for my wife, and we will definitely keep it. That said, it is for really young kids who need to be read to, or have just graduated to their first real books.

Again, pages full of artwork.

I bought the book for my 5 year old grandson. He can't have enough of it and frankly neither can I. We both love it!

My 4 year old loves the story about the cloud who wants to be a police officer. He especially likes when the cars crash because the cloud blocks everybody's field of vision (typical boy). It did take a couple of readings for him to grasp why the cloud was not successful as a police officer, but he was readily able to understand why being a fireman was a much better alternative.

Your eyes are under arrest for visual trespassing. Here is a simple tale your kids will enjoy from illustrator Christoph Niemann`s first book and who is a regular contributor to the New Yorker, Atlantic Monthly, and New York Times. He captures the soft side of childhood wishes of job wanting but finding out that maybe sometimes you are better at other tasks. This illustrated book will appeal to all ages. Book `em, and get your kids Christoph's book.

See also Cloud Boy