Customer Reviews

Thomas and the Magic Railroad

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

 

 

This book is a telegraphic, disjointed list of things that happen in the movie. There is no real narrative to speak of. I got the book for my 3-year-old before we saw the movie, and until then, it made no sense. Now, it is useful as a way of warding off having to go see that dreadfully acted movie again. As much as my son loves (and I appreciate) Thomas the Tank Engine, this book does a disservice to the characters and themes of the original series. The other two movie-based softcover books (one about Diesel 10 and one about Lady) are somewhat better -- they don't have the lessons of the original series, but at least they make some sense on their own.

Incredibly disappointing - not anywhere near the quaint stories written by the Rev. Awdry and son. This story has so many possibilities, yet never lives up to its potential.

I have to agree with the previous reviewer who said this book is disjointed. I cringe everytime I read it to my son (2 yrs). He likes it so we read it most nights before bed.

We've never seen the movie (where presumably the gaps, which account for ~50% of the book, are filled in). But, having read the book, I never want to see the movie.

Buy this book only if you want to suffer through countless nights reading about how Mr. Conductor gets thrown from Diesel 10's claw to the base of a windmill where there just happens to be a clue to the source of the gold dust. And that's about as much context as the book itself gives you.

It's no secret among (most) parents of Thomas enthusiasts that Britt Allcroft is a horrible writer. For those unfamiliar, Britt Allcroft is a British lady who has written stories, capitalzing on the Thomas the Tank Engine series written by Rev. W. Awdry. She has made a bundle, judging by all the Thomas train sets, DVD's, books, and other paraphanalia.

Thomas and the Tank Engine is a very lame movie featuring the very poor writing of Britt Allcroft. Alec Baldwin is great as Mr. Conductor, and Diesel 10 has hilarious lines (his part *must* have been written by someone else!) The rest of the acting is utterly horrible and embarrassing to watch. (If I'm not mistaken, Allcroft directed...so maybe that had something to do with it.) In addition to poor writing, the Allcroft Thomas stories often feature trains harrassing and bullying one another with dubious "lessons" sometimes intertwined. (Whether Awdry wrote the trains like this or it's Allcroft's invention, I do not know.)

Anyway, the Thomas and the Magic Railroad is based on Allcroft's film. If you're not familiar with the story, it won't make much sense to you. (Not that little ones will care). Heck, even the movie didn't make much sense! However, my son LOVES this book. He spotted this one and another Thomas book the other day while in a "Stuff Mart". My son actually wanted these two books instead of a PS2 game! Hey, I'll always be glad when my son chooses books over video games!

As books go, this is a very nice hardback with 14 semi-glossy pages. Junior, Lily, Mutt and Burnett Stone--they're here. However, the characters do not resemble the actors from the movie. (Stacy and Patch don't make an appearance). The illustrations are bright and colorful, and the print is quite large.

My son requests this book be read to him *every* night...so he loves it. So while adults may not enjoy it--finding it silly or downright idiotic--little fans of Thomas the Tank Engine (and the movie) will likely love this book.

Well,this book is great for parents to read to their child.It has a plot based on the movie.It's a great book that parents can enjoy,too.I think Thomas The Tank Engine was meant to be made because all of the family can enjoy this series.I rate this as an excellent book that has 5 stars.

My son and daughter went to see the movie. This coloring book gave them a chance to remember and retell the movies' events. They were so excited about the book, I had to order another one!

This book is just plain awful. My kids seem to like it, but personally I try to avoid reading it to them, the story is just too incoherent. Basically, it's a short summary of the movie (which is almost as bad). Also, for some unknown reason the "creators" of the book (and movie) introduces characters and situations that just don't match the Thomas universe that I'm familiar with (the whole concept of the "villain" Diesel 10 as well as Mr. Conductor and the gold dust thing just doesn't work for me). On the other hand, Lady is a wonderful character which is way underdeveloped.