Perfect book for those getting weary of flap books. Hi Goldbug, wherever you are!
581905
To call this book anything less than a classic picture book for young readers, and families would be an insult to this book.

Growing up, I thought I had been introduced to a wide range of books. I am the son of a newspaper editor and the grandson of a former librarian. Books and reading are in our blood. We were never told no, when it came to getting a new book, and there was never I time when we did not read together as a family growing up. But, this is one of those books I don't recall being part of my childhood, and that makes me sad.

I purchased this book on a whim about 10 months ago as a surprise for our then 2 1/2 year old son when we were going to be away on a trip and he was going to be staying at home with my parents. It was one of his "one small surprise from Mom and Dad a day" to help count down our return, to give him something to look forward to each day, and also give them all something new to do each day, as they were all activity focused.

When I first read the description of Cars and Trucks and Things That Go I thought it would be the perfect book to capture his imagination. Silly vehicles, animals, construction, and a little mix of Where's Waldo with a hunt for Goldbug.

What I was not prepared for was how in love our son would fall with the simple, but great storyline that flows through these pages. He takes immense pleasure not only in pointing out Goldbug wherever he may be, but also finding Dingo, Officer Flossy and Mistress Mouse. He has his favorite pages, his favorite cars, and we always need to make sure we make a stop and see Adam's Apples.

We have been on a two week phase of this book in our house, reading it at least once a day, sometimes three times. There are so many different ways to make it interesting, even for the adults. I can't say the same for most 'flap books' on the market. There is just too much going on on each page, too many stories to be made up, too many questions to prompt conversations. For us, this has been a magical book, and when we mentioned that there were other books with Goldbug, our son's eyes sparkled, and he told us that we needed to go to Amazon immediately.
4779852
An old neighbor of mine gave me the ABC version of this book and my son really took a liking to it.  After "reading" that book over and over, I decided to look online to see if I could find any other flap books by these authors and found this one...he loves it and it is definitley a book we have in high rotation!  It would be nice if there was a little pouch included that could hold the game pieces..he had the book out one day and pieces were everywhere and who knows where they are now.
2128008
This book is EXACTLY what I was hoping it would be! The author includes plenty of research about friendship/connections and it's obvious that she's done a lot of reading and meeting with different experts to help her with her search/writing this book. Some reviews say that it's obviously just a reason for her to write a book, but who cares about that!? (I don't think that's true, though, she seems sincere to me.) I find myself with fewer friends than I'd like and a regular feeling of loneliness. This books makes it ok to talk about those things, gives me research to feel validated and then also gives me a ton of tips on how to find more potential friends. It. Was. Perfect. If you're finding yourself in a similar situation, this book is for you!
1743110
Not too big, not too small. Just the right amount of information.  This book is exceptionally easy to read.  It's well organized, funny and full of good science and interesting lore. Two other qualities makes this book outstanding. First, it describes and illustrates only the birds that you  are most likely to see. Other books gave me too many choices. This was my  first try at birding and of the 55 different birds I saw, all but one were  in this book.  Second, this book also covers all the other wildlife that  you may be lucky enough to see. Monkeys, lizards, coatis, and red poison-  dart frogs - they're all in there. However, if you like being a loner don't  buy this book. It's a friend maker - everyone wanted to borrow it. Wherever  we went it was "Can I see your book for a minute please?  You may want to  bring or read more books but...this is the one you'll always carry in your  backpack and bring to the breakfast table. Enjoy!
176853
This book fill a void in our library. It is amazing because Sukie's line of thinking is so hysterical to those of us non-anxious folks but at the time same time so true to what a child with anxiety goes through on a daily basis. It has provided me a perfect basis to discuss how to handle the many fears that control my daughter's every move. Thank you for this beautiful book and the opportunity to understand what it is like to be afraid that lobsters could be anywhere.
1280874
I love this book.  The flip format with the tear out pages is fantastic.  Easy to use in the book but you can also easily remove pages if you want.  The clue is at the bottom of the page, upside-down and in grey, so I don't have any trouble with accidentally seeing it if I don't want to.  The letters are clear and well spaced.  My only regret is that I will someday finish all the puzzles.
885639
I got this book for my 2 1/2 year old son who loved the original Merriweather Farm lift-flap book. He adores this one as well and I will soon be purchasing one of the others in the series. My son knows each of the little phrases under each flap by heart! Great book, excellent quality.
39096
Great book- very durable unlike other lift the flap books my little guy (14 months) has destroyed...He really enjoys turning the board book pages and looking under the flaps...Great- entertaining (we call it "portable peek a boo" keeps him busy in his highchair when out eating or in the car), simple illustrations...

All around a great purchase!
2409602
Mr. Wiggle's book is a great way to introduce and review correct care of library books.  The illustrations are bright and colorful and the language is easily understood by small children.  The kids in my library loved it!
236487
My son loves things that go and flap books and this book is filled with both!  The characters are really cute and each page is a different location, like the train station or airport. My 22 month old likes to look through it while on the potty.
4476452
Our almost 5 year old grandson loved this book!!  I had found the same book that I read to his Mom, aunt & uncle when they were little but it was in bad shape so I ordered a new book, it's new reading again for another generation.  We loved finding Gold Bug.
1769868
Just love this book.  I purchased it over 30 years ago for my son.  I bought it again for my 1 yr old grandson.  It's a must have.  So much fun finding the Goldbug on each page !
4055310
My 1 year old twins love this book so much---especially my boy---that after destroying the first copy (it's what babies do!), I had to buy several more "back-up" copies.  My little boy wondered all the time, where his "buh, buh" (for "bug") book was.  The book is nice cause the bugs rotate out when pulled upon.  Thick, cardboard pages are perfect.
197270
wife here:  Perfect book!  A toddler can play with the 'lift the flap' features when you are not reading it to them.  It is so sturdy and beautifully made.  Top notch. So adorable.
1064436
This is the book you have been looking for. I've purchased a number of other books about children's publishing, but this one has more wisdom and more real technique than any of them.

The title might make you think this book is about illustrating children's books. Yes, an illustrator can get a graduate degree from the material here. But the title doesn't really do the book justice, because Shulevitz covers both writing and illustration. He covers both topics together, showing how the text and the pictures move a story forward to a satisfactory conclusion. Quoting from the book (p. 29):

"When the actor-stage relationship is clear, when the picture code is consistent, when the progression is appropriate to the action, the picture sequence will 'speak' to the reader. The more clearly the picture sequence speaks, the more enjoyment the reader will be able to get from it. And giving a feeling of satisfaction is essential in children's books."

This book has literally hundreds of example illustrations and text excerpts. Most are pencil and ink sketches, but don't be fooled: the author created most of them specifically to illustrate this book. They do a great job.

I'm done gushing. If you are interested in this topic, buy the book. You won't be disappointed.
2857880
Ohmygoodness this book is awesome! One of my pet peeves is when I am reading a book that I need to study and the print is small. This book has nicely spaced, easy to read. There was plenty of room left for my own notes in the margins. I received this product in exchange for my honest and unbiased review. This book came really fast with my Prime shipping and was in perfect condition!
277724
I have specifically appreciated the golden ration part of the book. The whole chapter 4 is full of creative and easy to use tips & tricks that will immediately refresh your design. Highly recommended!