This was one of my favorite books back in the 70's as a kid
919682
This was one of my favorite books back in the 70's as a kid. Can't believe I found it. I ordered it just to have a copy.
4545641
This was one of my favorite books as a kid, and I grew up to be a proud feminist.  I always felt poorly-served by the usual tomboy characters in kids' books since you don't have to be boyish to be empowered.
944503
I loved this book as a child. And, after 30 years and 3 children of my own, it has - unfortunately - been loved to pieces. Literally. The cover binding is no longer attached although the interior stitching is intact and fully functional.

This book - with the Queen of Lollipops, dream shoes, dream pillows, dragons, mouse houses, pirate ships & more was one of my favorites (as evidenced by my insistence on holding on to it through many moves & life events).

My only regret is that I will have to spend ~$100 to replace it so that it will still be around when I wind up with grandchildren.

This really is a magical, imaginative book. Of course, the last thing I wanted to do when I finished it was actually go to sleep.
3507889
I loved this book as a kid and now I got to read it to my daughter.  She loved it too.
666137
I loved this book as a child in the early 1980s, and I loved reading it with my little boy a few years ago. It has such a charming old-fashioned feel to it.
1813287
I'm currently 29 and this was one of my favorite books growing up.  Glad to see they're still reprinting some classics instead of going along with the current trend of having computer animated anthropomorphic vehicles (See Disney Pixar's "Cars" franchise).  The relative realism this book conveyed as compared to some of the other "kidcentric" books out there was the most entertaining and interesting part to me.
981056
I remember reading this when I was a kid in the early 80s and now my 3 year old nieces LOVE it. They're really into families, and relationships, and this book gives them lots of people posed in different relationships for them to talk about.
2948495
I read this in grade school, brings back memories.
153072
I had fond memories of this from reading it when I was a kid - I had to pick up the e-book when I found. it.
3649584
I loved this book as a kid, and I enjoy reading it to our daughter.
3690661
This is one of my absolute favorite books from when I was a kid. The pictures are vivid and amazing.  There are holes cut out along the sides for your hands to go through as if you were actually piloting the controls to the sub. My wife and I are having our first child soon and I can't wait for her to be old enough to start enjoying this book like I did!
3209835
A book from my childhood - brought back some good memories - so glad found it - mine was lost somewhere along the line
1680608
I had this book as a child in the 1970s, I am so glad to have it again!
3197882
This was one of my favorite books growing up and now my 3 year old son loves this book too.  He really got into at age 3.5 and it is one of the few non-electrical things that can get him to sit quietly for 20 minutes or more.  He loves looking at the machines and pipes and electrical lines and tracing how things "go" or are made.  I like this book as a parent since it shows how things work and that houses, letters, food, clothes, wood, electricity, roads, and clean water don't magically appear but are the end result of a long process.  Plus, I like that it shows capitalism at work and how money is exchanged for goods and services and nothing is "free".  It was going to become my standard gift for 3rd birthdays, but when I ordered a copy from Amazon for a friend's child I was disappointed to see that this book is now abridged.  My 1968 edition is 93 pages, whereas the "new" 1979 edition is 63 pages with 6 of the original stories missing and it no longer has the the inside covers that show the people of Busytown.  My son loves looking at the back inside cover which shows everyone sitting down to dinner together; he likes to pretend he's eating the mountain of hot dogs, the giant ice cream cone, etc...

  The missing stories are:
Mother's Work is Never Done, Sergeant Murphy of the Busytown Police Dept, The Airplane Ride, Digging Coal to Make Electricity Work for Us, Cotton and How We Use It, and Water.

  The included stories are:
Everyone is a Worker, Building a New House, Mailing a Letter, A Voyage on a Ship, Firemen to the Rescue, A Visit to the Hospital, The Train Trip, The Story of Seeds and How They Grow (corn), Wood and How We Use It, Building a New Road, and Where Bread Comes From.

Of the missing stories, The Airplane Ride, Coal & Electricity, and Water are among my son's favorites and I like reading him the Cotton story since it shows how cotton is spun, dyed, woven, and turned into clothes.

  I'm bummed that this is not the book I remember and I am not as excited to be giving it as a gift.  Now it's just a good book instead of a GREAT book.  I hope Random House will pay attention to these reviews and reprint the original unabridged book.  And I hope my kids treat MY book gently because apparently it's irreplaceable.
4522413
This was a childhood favorite of mine.  If I were a child, I'd probably rate it a 5.  When I read it again as an adult, it seemed to have lost some of its magic, but was still enjoyable.
159069
I loved this book as a kid and, when my daughter was born, it was one of the first I hunted down to add to our library. It's just as I remember it, maybe even better now that I can enjoy it with my own kiddos - it's quite the hoot when my little asks to read "Wife-ish" and chimes in on the fun with her own, "Bart barked!" A rip-roaring good read.
4776328
This was one of my favourite books as a kid, and I just appreciate it more now! Definite recommendation. I would highly suggest this to ten-to-thirteen year olds - or pretty much anyone who was willing to accept that it was a kids book. The characterisation fits well and the banter is hilarious.