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Most of these stories don't flow naturally. Story points jump around. And the pictures too often don't go with the story being told. Many of these "read to me" books will have something a bit off, but this is the worst offender.
But after some excitement at the mines, Percy is rewarded with having a new coat of paint put upon him.Finally, Sir Topham Hatt has trouble getting to Lady Hatt's birthday celebration. These are in keeping with the television show, but not the original stories by Reverend Awdry. Three stories, Cranky Bugs, Put-Upon Percy, and Lady Hatt's Birthday. Utilizing many vehicles, and getting dirtier with each one, he manages to get to the celebration just in time.Each of the three stories is illustrated with stills from the television show. For instance you will notice references to Sir Topham Hatt as he is known on television (in the books he is The Fat Controller).In Cranky Bugs, Thomas and Percy have to deal with a new crane at the docks. Cranky, the crane, does not like small engines but learns his lesson.Put-Upon Percy has Percy working very hard and getting very dirty. Some are small and some are large. While it may seem absurd to an adult that a piece up burlap can hold back an avalanche (in Put-Upon Percy), kids really enjoy these stories.
Please don't confuse this Read To Me series with other Thomas the Tank books. I don't like the tiny photos for pictures where the text takes up just as much room as the photos, and I agree with another reviewer that the photos are dark. For instance, Catch me, Catch me is called a Pictureback Reader, and although it is meant for 4 or 5 year olds to learn how to read, my 21 month old loves it--the extremely simple text is all her attention span can take. The Cranky Day, however, has a lot of writing and is meant for the longer attention spans of 3 or 4 plus year olds. The full page drawings in Catch Me Catch Me are much better, as are the simplistic drawings in Thomas the Tank Engines Big Blue Treasury. Depends upon the age of the child I guess, when it comes to selecting Thomas books.
It is bad enough that the text is taken straight from the video tape, but some editing would greatly improve the stories. While my three year old son recognizes his favorite Thomas characters, this book is poorly written and edited. The first story, "Cranky Bugs" is especially annoying because little sensitivity was used to match the pictures with the text. How sad that the Britt Allcroft empire has reduced the original, wonderful stories from Rev. Awdry to such rubbish.
This one is REALLY popular with my Thomas fans, and you can read the stories one at a time or all three at once. THE CRANKY DAY is made up of three stories: Cranky Bugs, Put-Upon Percy, and Lady Hatt's Birthday Party. But beware -- when you're finished they're going to want you to read it again. This inexpensive paperback is perfect for the Thomas fan. It has the colorful photographic "illustrations" that look like the series we're familiar with. and again. and again.
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