Elephants Books

Alexander's Midnight Snack is a little delight of a book. Alexander, a cute little elephant, wakes up in the middle of the night and goes to the kitchen in search of a snack. He ends up eating his way through the entire alphabet! Wonderful illustrations accompany a cleverly written, easy to read text. Your children will especially like the x-ray of Alexander's tummy near the end, and the mess that is left in the kitchen for his Mom to find the next morning. This was my son's favorite book for almost two years, as he was learning his ABC's and then as he was learning to read. I wholeheartedly recommend it.

I remember reading this book with my sister when I was about 10 yrs old and she was 4. We must have read it a hundred times or more! Truly a treasure - I'm very sad to see that it is out of print. I will definitely try to track it down.

I used this book to teach the letter x to my preschool class. It is an excellent teaching tool because it uses x in many different ways and is also entertaining to children.

The true story of the first elephant conceived by artificial insemination who was born at the Indianapolis Zoo in 2000. It may sound like a difficult topic for a children's book but the author does a marvolous job. The bright colors change the typical pachyderm to look like pop art effect from the 1960's. The story is a moving one but the illustrations are what make the book a true gem.
A great gift for children of all ages.

This book is interesting. It never occured to me to ask when the US got its first elephant. The story delves into the mysterious world of how many circus and zoo animals got here in the early days.

When I assigned *The Amoral Elephant* to my upper division college students, I was looking for a relatively simple book, critical of "globalization." What we got instead was a difficult, but rewarding book about the emerging hegemony of finance capitalism. My students feel overwhelmed with the macroeconomics--they are befuddled by Tabb's casual use of terms such as deflation, the World Bank, interest rates, and Shumpeterian growth. Anyone lacking some background in macroeconomics might want to avoid this book--or at least have a good reference text in hand.

But for those of us with some basic fluency in global capitalism and its financial mechanisms, Tabb's book is a rewarding and insightful adventure. Though I have a Ph.D, I feel quite educated by Tabb in ways which I did not anticipate.

What Tabb helped me to see is the sudden emergence of finance capitalism since the 1970s--that the global economy has undergone a fundamental shift in terms of shareholder domination, capital flight, multinational production and ownership, and political control. Where large productive industries (cars, steel, etc.) once collaborated with Keynesian policies in the US, Europe, and elsewhere, they are suddenly unshackled, and have fully embraced neoliberal economics.

It is Tabb who has helped me to understand this more than any other: more than Giovanni Arrighi, David Harvey, Marjorie Kelly, Amy Chua, or the goodly field of "anti-globalization" scholars. With Tabb in hand, I feel a deep comprehension of the new global economy; one which had really eluded me.

Although Tabb is a leftist, I think that middlers and conservatives might benefit from *The Amoral Elephant* as well. Of course, they'll be bothered by his slant, but hopefully enlightened about the emergence of finance capitalism since the 1970s. For one thing, Tabb shows the serious risks which capitalism presents to itself. Like billionaire George Soros, Tabb sees the paucity of regulation as a serious threat to capitalism, as it weakens societies, foments rebellion, and undercuts the ability of consumers to absorb growing output. Even a Republican or a Tory could be alarmed by the specter of global recessions, violent insurgencies, and widespread poverty.

Tabb's book is an excellent history of capitalist political economies in the twentieth century. From railroads to microchips, Tabb takes the reader on a journey which spells out a post-World War II consensus (though he omits relevant discussion of Cold War neo-colonialism, CIA fueled coups and wars, etc.): high-wage, socially liberal "Western" states, extracting wealth from the third world, and creating a somewhat mutually profitable alliance between labor and capital. He then traces the emergence of neoliberalism, wherein labor around the world is suppressed and major stockowners are enriched, where capital surges in and out of booms, leaving horrendous busts in its wake.

No matter where you fall politically, you will benefit from Tabb's book, which shows the rise of a neoliberalism. This juggernaut is rivaled only by a growing movement of critics around the world, from Seattle to Brazil to Mecca. It is a shockingly new and powerful regime which affects the lives of most everyone on the planet. Read Tabb's book, and decide how you feel about the prospects of democracy, wealth, and power in this new epoch.

Anansi stories are always interesting because the clever spider trickster is always landing in some kind of adventure or trouble...many time of his own greedy, impulsive design. Bobby & Sherry Norfolk offer several Anansi stories that are full of humor and important character-building lessons. This book follows that same tried and true pattern.

If your child has a vivid imagination and a sense of humor, he / she would probably enjoy this cause and effect story where Anansi actually wins the day by succeeding in his trickery: convincing two very large animals that he, a little spider, is stronger than they are. Educationally, the tale presents themes about consideration, pride, boasting, overconfidence, respect, listening, and the Virtue of the Small. This book is worth reading to and discussing with children. The story illustrates the fact that sometimes brains can win over brawn.

The companion websites from August House & StoryCove are enjoyable for young people as well.

In a mere 32 pages this book covers the animal's natural habitat, characteristics, prey and predator and much more. The pictures are simply beautiful and I love that they used bold large font so that kids and parents can read it without squinting. The way the facts are layed out throughout the book seems more like a game so kids won't even think of it as "learning" or "hard work". I purchased the whole set-18 books individually. They are ridiciously cheap on Amazon on other websites they are going for over $200 for the set. Makes a great gift for an animal lover or an excellent way to start an inexpensive animal encyclopedia in your home.

An Anniversary Blessing showcases universal perspectives on the truths that underlie significant occasions in married life. Each blessing is a quotable celebration of a lovely and peaceful home; good conversation and quiet companionship; an awareness of the beautiful tings discovered each day; and continued enjoyment of all that has been revealed and shared together. Each blessing is illuminated by a painting or photograph showcasing the rich diversity of author Welleran Poltarnees' sources. An Anniversary Blessing is an ideal gift for marital celebrations, recommended for individual and shared readings.

A nice, quick story about Fiona, who can't remember anything. Coming from a family of elephants (who, legend has it, never forget), this is a glaring problem. When she signs up for a class with her friend, Felicity, it's important to her that she remember, so her family helps her by suggesting things like using a calendar and tying a string around her trunk. That these tricks work, sort of, makes Aren't You Forgetting Something, Fiona? a neat teaching tool for little ones.

The text is simple for beginning readers and the illustrations are eye-catching for the read-to-me set.