Product Description

"As I've traveled our great country, I have been struck again and again by its beauty and variety and reminded of how rich our history is. Travel a few miles in any direction, and you'll encounter an amazing story that helps explain all the multitude of ways our country came to be." -- Lynne Cheney

Lynne Cheney and Robin Preiss Glasser, creators of the bestselling America: A Patriotic Primer and A is for Abigail: An Almanac of Amazing American Women, take you on an unforgettable tour of America -- from the Everglades of Florida to the grasslands of Kentucky to the Sierra Mountains of California.

Listening to her grandchildren's enthusiastic account of all they saw and did on a family road trip inspired Lynne Cheney to collaborate with Robin Preiss Glasser and create Our 50 States -- the greatest family vacation imaginable. Pack your bags and celebrate our diverse heritage state by state and sea to shining sea in this treasure trove of America's people, places, and history.

A scholar of American history, Mrs. Cheney has drawn on a lifetime of study and travel for Our 50 States. Robin Preiss Glasser has brought her inimitable wit and exuberance to every illustration. Together they have created a joyful book that reminds us how fortunate we are to call America our home.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #57268 in Books
• Published on: 2006-10-24
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 74 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. The creators of America: A Patriotic Primer and A Is for Abigail have compiled their most encompassing paean to the U.S. yet, here bypassing an alphabetical roundup in favor of a cross-country road trip. An opening gatefold previews for readers the route that five affable family members will take as they set off from their Massachusetts home. They traverse the other 47 contiguous states (and Washington, D.C.) before making final stops in Alaska and Hawaii. The creatively cluttered pages collect words and images that present a pleasing potpourri of past and present: Glasser depicts the touring family viewing landmarks and natural wonders alongside portraits of influential individuals who hail or hailed from each state. The children's snippets of communications to those back home convey welcome personal observations: the boy text-messages a friend; and the girl pens notes to her grandmother (e.g., "Dear Grandma, I want to live in Hershey, PA—the air smells like chocolate, and even the streelights are shaped like Hershey's kisses!"). Glasser utilizes every spare inch of space, including decorative borders that accommodate memorable quotations, song lyrics and historical data. Young armchair explorers will savor this spirited, whistle-stop celebration of America. All ages. (Oct.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal
Grade 2–5—The beauty and diversity of America are celebrated as three children, their parents, and their dog travel across the country in high spirits. Starting in Massachusetts, the family finds interesting details: Dr. Seuss National Memorial, the first post office, and famous people like Deborah Sampson and Herman Melville. The pages are alive with many small pictures, text, and maps. Some captions are hand lettered, and watercolor-and-ink drawings are numerous and appealing. Design elements for each state pull the book together: a "photograph" of the family enjoying a site, the background map, borders reflecting a dominant feature of the state. Readers will search for the children to read their messages: Annie writes letters to Grandma; Ben stays in touch with Grandpa, and with his friend Alex by text messaging: "alex. I'm watching a guy make shoes in the 19th century. kidding! it's at old sturbridge village. ben." Some states enjoy a spread, but most fit comfortably on one page. A foldout map shows the route the family followed, and Cheney introduces the book enthusiastically: "Perhaps none of us will ever be lucky enough to take such a grand road trip…but surely we are fortunate to live in a country where all these things-and so many more-form the fabric of our national life." There are just enough visual details and fascinating facts to keep children absorbed for hours.—Lee Bock, Glenbrook Elementary School, Pulaski, WI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
In the third patriotic collaboration between Cheney and Preiss Glasser, the information density is impressively high. Then again, not every writer has a "cadre of staff assistants and interns" at her disposal, references to which suggest that Cheney may have managed this book more than authored it. However it came about, this almanac-like celebration of the 50 states is one libraries will want to have on hand. Sprightly line-and-watercolor artwork furthers the conceit that readers are charting a particular family's marathon state-by-state tour. The missives of siblings who jot (or text-message) trivia to pals at home combine with a slew of additional historical, cultural, and geographical tidbits, all of which will prove gold for state studies projects, despite pages that occasionally seem dizzyingly cluttered. A useful gatefold map shows the bigger picture to children, who will enjoy looking up their home state and planning visits to other destinations highlighted--which include, unsurprisingly, the Wyoming birthplace of "the husband of the author" and D.C.'s vice-presidential residence. Jennifer Mattson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Customer Reviews

Family Adventure; a visit across 50 states
Loved the way the book looked. It is for a gift for a 10 year old.

Turns my stomach
I'm very sorry I purchased this book. At the time I didn't realize it was written by Lynn Cheney. The entire time I read the book all I could think about was that I'd put more of my hard earned money into Dick Cheney's pocket and supported his propaganda. It makes me sick to have made such a purchase.

Geography & History
Teachers will love this book! It puts facts into a child's perspective
instead of just memorizing facts.