Sinve the first Thomas stories written by a father for his son over 60 years ago, Thomas the Tank Engine continues to delight children everywhere. This collection contains 14 of the best-loved titles of the Reverend W Awdry’s classic Railway Series and includes the most famous adventures of Thomas and his Really Useful Engine friends. These exciting and funny tales, over 55 of them, are enhanced by the original artwork in this stunning new gift edition.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
158 of 160 people found the following review helpful
By G. Hamilton
Format:Hardcover
These are not the railway series stories. They have been re-written to go with the 'Thomas & Friends' franchise. Rev. Awdrey's introductory notes have been rewritten, too.
We bought this book to replace ours when it wore out from being read so often, but we will have to return it, since it is not the book it claims to be. The Fat Director/Fat Controller has been replaced by 'Sir Toppam Hat' and the trucks are now freight cars.
If you are looking for 'Thomas & Friends' stories, then this will probably be fine for you, but if you wanted to read to your children the stories that Rev. Awdrey wrote, be aware that these are not it. You can find them here:Thomas the Tank Engine: The Complete Collection (Railway Series)
We bought this book to replace ours when it wore out from being read so often, but we will have to return it, since it is not the book it claims to be. The Fat Director/Fat Controller has been replaced by 'Sir Toppam Hat' and the trucks are now freight cars.
If you are looking for 'Thomas & Friends' stories, then this will probably be fine for you, but if you wanted to read to your children the stories that Rev. Awdrey wrote, be aware that these are not it. You can find them here:Thomas the Tank Engine: The Complete Collection (Railway Series)
52 of 57 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This book is great! The illustrations and layout are warm and inviting making it easy to see and read. There are so many stories within this book that you really get your money's worth and then some. There is also a built in ribbon placemarker so you don't lose your spot. This must have every Thomas story ever written all in one big hardcover high quality book! We love it. For those who prefer to shelter their children from bad behavior may not like the Thomas stories. I have heard that complaint a lot about Thomas. Personally I think these stories provide a great way to teach our children why these behaviors aren't good in society. Any train who has an undesirable behavior always ends up getting his own in the end and I think that shows children that is doesn't pay to behave in some of the ways the trains do.
45 of 52 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I fear being one of the few to not be crazy over this book, but I have to admit that this book is far from being my top pick from our son's "library."
The stories themselves are great - we'd have no Thomas the Tank Engine without them, after all - and the illustrations are good as well. However, I feel like there is a pretty big text:picture ratio such that this book is not as engrossing to a young child, even a Thomas devotee, as one might expect. This is less and less of a problem as my child gets older, but when we first started to read this book - somewhere between 2 and 2 1/2 - my son would rapidly lose interest in the stories, look away from the book, squirm to get off my lap, etc. Now that he is just a week shy of 3, it seems he has grown into this somewhat, but I still have a problem with the book itself, physically speaking.
This is a BIG book.
I like to read to my son sitting in the glider, with him sitting in my lap. This lets him see the pictures and become familiar with the words as I read them. It is rather akward and uncomfortable for me to hold this particular book in this particular fashion, due to its size and weight. I have to either hold it up, which gets tiring on the wrists and forearms very quickly, or I have to rest it in my son's lap, which makes him tell me to get it off (to such a small person, it probably feels like it is crushing him). I feel like this book is more suited to sitting next to your child's bed and reading aloud, every so often turning the book to show the pictures, but I prefer to hold my child in my lap and will probably do so for a good while yet.
We have since gotten a few of the thin, square, soft-cover "picture back" Thomas books and these seem to work a lot better for us.... Read more ›
The stories themselves are great - we'd have no Thomas the Tank Engine without them, after all - and the illustrations are good as well. However, I feel like there is a pretty big text:picture ratio such that this book is not as engrossing to a young child, even a Thomas devotee, as one might expect. This is less and less of a problem as my child gets older, but when we first started to read this book - somewhere between 2 and 2 1/2 - my son would rapidly lose interest in the stories, look away from the book, squirm to get off my lap, etc. Now that he is just a week shy of 3, it seems he has grown into this somewhat, but I still have a problem with the book itself, physically speaking.
This is a BIG book.
I like to read to my son sitting in the glider, with him sitting in my lap. This lets him see the pictures and become familiar with the words as I read them. It is rather akward and uncomfortable for me to hold this particular book in this particular fashion, due to its size and weight. I have to either hold it up, which gets tiring on the wrists and forearms very quickly, or I have to rest it in my son's lap, which makes him tell me to get it off (to such a small person, it probably feels like it is crushing him). I feel like this book is more suited to sitting next to your child's bed and reading aloud, every so often turning the book to show the pictures, but I prefer to hold my child in my lap and will probably do so for a good while yet.
We have since gotten a few of the thin, square, soft-cover "picture back" Thomas books and these seem to work a lot better for us.... Read more ›
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
We had decided to buy this over the out-of-print Thomas collection because it was cheaper, new, and we could live with (though not happy with) things like "trucks" being changed to "freight cars" or "Fat Controller" being changed to "Sir Topham Hatt".
However, upon receiving the book we were very disappointed by two things and will be returning this book and buying a copy of the out-of-print collection (Thomas the Tank Engine: The Complete Collection).
1) This collection only has 14 of Rev. Awdrey's books. The OOP one has all 26.
2) More importantly, this book butchers many (most?) of the illustrations. Many illustrations are cropped to a zoomed-in circle focusing on the engine's face. Other illustrations have their borders cropped. In yet other cases, an engine is photoshopped out of the illustration and is just shown against the plain page instead of the original background. As we view the Thomas illustrations to be on a par of importance with the stories, this is a dealbreaker for us.
However, upon receiving the book we were very disappointed by two things and will be returning this book and buying a copy of the out-of-print collection (Thomas the Tank Engine: The Complete Collection).
1) This collection only has 14 of Rev. Awdrey's books. The OOP one has all 26.
2) More importantly, this book butchers many (most?) of the illustrations. Many illustrations are cropped to a zoomed-in circle focusing on the engine's face. Other illustrations have their borders cropped. In yet other cases, an engine is photoshopped out of the illustration and is just shown against the plain page instead of the original background. As we view the Thomas illustrations to be on a par of importance with the stories, this is a dealbreaker for us.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
A previous reviewer said that this was a complete collection with original drawings - and while it is with original drawings, this is NOT a complete collection. It is fourteen complete books of the twenty-six written by Rev. W. Awdry.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
By D. M. Tyler
Format:Hardcover
This is an excellent book both from the standpoint of the writing and it is produced in a quality binding that will last for many years. My grandson is only 2 years old, but he is a very big fan of Thomas. As he grows in his ability to read he will be able to view the excellent illustrations and begin to read the accompanying words at his own pace. The book, if properly maintained, should be a good one for him to pass down to his children...it is that well made.
21 of 26 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is a complete collection with original drawings. This includes the little train at the bottom of the page that progresses from left to right as each story progresses.
A bonus is a beautiful Island of Sodor map in the inside covers. Many, if not all, of these stories have been animated in the PBS show Thomas and Friends. The originals are really great stories for reading and have some twists such as an early black James and blue Henry.
A bonus is a beautiful Island of Sodor map in the inside covers. Many, if not all, of these stories have been animated in the PBS show Thomas and Friends. The originals are really great stories for reading and have some twists such as an early black James and blue Henry.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
historical but dated
My son loves Thomas the Tank Engine and so I thought he would love this addition to his books. It looks great and is of good quality. Read more
Published 1 day ago by kathykreates
4.0 out of 5 stars
Very thick collection!
I bought this book but didn't realise how thick the collection was! in any case, it's made very well, and the print and drawings are of a very high quality. Read more
Published 8 days ago by Godfrey Lim
5.0 out of 5 stars
Thomas Story Collection
This is a great collection that my son will keep forever. Right now he is five and loves Thomas and all trains. Read more
Published 20 days ago by Lisa Grady-Willis
5.0 out of 5 stars
Timeless stories for children of all ages.
Both my son [3 yrs] and daughter [5 yrs] beg for these stories at bedtime. With beautiful illustrations these stories captivate and entertain easily. Read more
Published 1 month ago by maineiac
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good collection
This book provides robust versions of those smaller individual Thomas stories, with more historical artwork. Read more
Published 1 month ago by SailorJoe
5.0 out of 5 stars
Train Lover
Bought this book for my son and he loved it. Many different stories inside, and are easy reads for children.
Published 2 months ago by cristal quijada
5.0 out of 5 stars
Nighttime reader
My grandson loves Thomas the Train and my daughter reads to him every night. Found this at our local library and had to buy it.
Published 2 months ago by Frances Gill
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great train book
It has all the stories my son loved and the illustrations were great. An old school book with a modern feel
Published 4 months ago by Keith D
4.0 out of 5 stars
Christmas Item
Mom of three year old child, who loves Thomas the Train, requested this for Christmas. It's definitely an adult book to read to a child.
Published 6 months ago by Patrick E. Garrett
5.0 out of 5 stars
3 year old LOVES this.
This book is read nearly every night in our home by my husband to our 3 year old son. The length of the stories is good, the stories themselves are engaging, and the pictures are... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Cup'o'java
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