The Great Race

The Great Race - This book tells the story of how the animals who represent the Chinese zodiac were chosen and why they are in the order they are in. This version differs from the one I was familiar with, so reading it for the first time was almost like reading a whole new story (except I had a pretty good idea of the ending).

It probably won't surprise you to learn that I buy a lot of Barefoot Books, some specifically for my children, but many of them are purchased just to have on hand--I call them my "samples" so my youngest daughter does not think they are all for her. We do read most of them, so I can get her reaction and familiarize myself with the books. Well, I read this to my 3 year old, and she went wild over it. She begged me to let her keep it, something she has never done before. She even tried to give me back my older daughter's copy of Odysseus so I could have enough samples. Of course I let her have it! We have since read it many times. She loves all of the animals (the rat is her favorite) and likes to look at the astrological information in the back and have me tell her who we know who was born in each year.

This is fun book with great illustrations. To really bring the book to life or for an awesome gift, consider pairing it with our:


Folkmanis Red Dragon Puppet - This is a beautiful puppet--seriously. My daughter saw it and wanted one so badly she bought it with her own money. And this is my 15 year old I am talking about!