Great book 2010-07-10

Reviewer: Brassy

A great book with a very important message.
In an age where kids want the next best thing, this book puts money into prospective.

Prompts interaction 2010-05-09

Reviewer: Ashwagonda

Grand kids loved it. We stayed up way past bedtime talking about all kinds of stuff this book got them to think about. I learend a lot more about them before we got half way through the book.

Dyer is a Scientologist 2010-01-03

Reviewer: Child of God

Folks need to be careful when introducing their young children to Dyer. He is not what he seems to be. Please read all of this.
Do some in depth research before you subject yourself or your loved ones to this guys ideals.
I will say this, he believes that if you concentrate enough on any one thing you can manifest it. He believes he did this with a pair of needle nose pliers. I watched a short YouTube video a few weeks ago while looking into this guy for a friend that had just purchased one of his books.
Dyer will mention a god in little g form just enough to get you sucked into believing that he is talking about God the Creator of the universe.
His followers are enamored with him.
In this particular children's book as you can see in the contents #4 says You have the power to get what you want: Please read on,I heard him tell an adult audience on a YouTube video that they can manifest anything they want out of thin air just by concentrating hard enough on that one thing, that if you are inspired enough in spirit and alert to the sprouting of seeds by your manifestation that this inner divine intelligence will cooperate with you when your pictures come within your inner spirit. Because it is what allows you to breathe, think, listen and hear.
Now, I am not a theologian by far, but any normal thinking person can see that this kind of idealism is way out there.
It is not something I would want to expose my family too.
And if that is not enough to dissuade you look at content #9 You
Earned it...Enjoy it: What about the teachings that what ever we earn we only have because our Lord gave us the ability the strength and the gifts to earn, and what we have really belongs to Him and we are only the stewards of it for our time here on this earth.

It's Not Got It 2008-07-26

Reviewer: Allison D

I read this book with no prior familiarity with the author. Although it seemed very promising and innovative at first, I won't be adding it to my list of recommended books for children.

I would put this book in the same category as "Oh The Places You'll Go" (Dr. Seuss) and "I Knew That You Could" (Dorfman and Ong). All three contain pithy advice about life, set to rhyme, and illustrated for children. Unfortunately, these books tend to appeal far more to adults than to children.

In my experience, rhyming read-alouds are best for children up to about kindergarten-age. Only more sophisticated illustration or writing will extend the use-life of the book into early or mid elementary. In the case of "It's Not What You've Got," the ideas presented in the book will be difficult to grasp for young children with little life experience. By the time they are old enough to understand and make use of the advice, the book will seem far too childish. Therefore, I can imagine adults really loving the idea of a book like this, and giving it as a gift, only to see it gather dust. The illustration style is so unremarkable that I doubt that many kids will be drawn to it. Further, the wordy title just screams "Educational Book!" and will repel most children browsing the shelves for a bedtime story or something to idly pass the time.

As for the book's advice, I find most of it to be sound, but I agree with a previous reviewer that Tip #4 (You Have the Power to Get What You Want) is somewhat at odds with the advice to be happy with what you have, especially with the picture of a girl aspiring to own a car, a pony, a bg house, an expensive handbag, and dreaming about travel and adventure. I believe strongly in the power of positive thinking, but wealth and riches are not the only things to envision in one's future. This double-page spread could have been much more thoughtfully designed.

I suggest that "It's Not What You've Got" be used by parents and teachers as a source for ideas on how to speak about money with children. The individual tips could be used for lesson planning, and many of the discussion questions at the end could be woven into conversation or discussion quite easily without seeming too preachy. Repetition of the ideas in different contexts is what will help them sink in. As long as the kids never lay eyes on the book itself, I see some promise.

It;s Not What You've Got 2008-07-20

Reviewer: Shelley A. Elhatton

I love this book and is a must for all children especially in todays society where everyone wants so much material "things" This book reminds us that we are not "our stuff" and that the best things in life are free......
Every child needs to be reminded of thins including there parents!!