Cars

The Little Auto by Lois Lenski

ISBN: 0375810730

Fun for toddlers today, as it was over 60 years ago, this classic was originally published in 1934 and was republished by Random House in 2001. In it you and your child follow Mr. Small thoughout is care of his auto and his driving of it on trips to town.

Our two year old asked for this one to be read often.

The simple and appealing illustration style Lois Lenski used back in 1934 has a great 'retro' look to it that is endearing to adults, and clear and uncluttered for children to follow Mr. Small and his auto throughout their day's accomplishments.

Because it was written over sixty years ago, it provides great examples of things that were common in the past, that you can point out to your child to enhance their understanding of the world around them.

For example, Mr. Small and his auto pass a horse and carriage. Today horses and carriages are mainly for special events, but you can tell your child that when (Great)Grandpa and (Great)Grandma were their age, that most people had horses and carriages and not many people had cars.

Likewise, the policeman directing traffic is a rarity today - as is Full Service gas stations, and roads that are shared with streetcars on rail.

Each page only has an average of 20 words of simple toddler relevant vocabulary that can help expand your child's horizons while keeping their interest in the world of Mr. Small and his auto. This is a fun book to read, that doesn't grow tiresome with each repetition - as some other books do.

5 stars out of 5.