Telling Time Book

Humorous text explains the concept of time, from seconds to hours on both analog and digital clocks, from years to millennia on the calendar.

Children's Literature

"When people talk about telling time, they don't mean, 'Hey, Time, I've got something to tell you!" So begins this wonderful, funny book. Using an offbeat sense of humor, it takes a subject that could be dry or difficult, and makes it really fun. The book engages the reader, by asking questions and rewarding with smiley faces. It also shows kids why telling time is important. After all, knowing how to tell time can keep you from showing up to school 2 hours early, or missing the beginning of a movie. Taking a wide definition of time, it covers "big chunks" of time, like months and years and millenniums, as well as the "shrimps," like seconds and minutes. The book explains both digital and analog clocks. Colorful cartoons, featuring ethnically diverse characters and lots of clocks in fun shapes, complement the humor in the text. A poem at the end reminds children how many seconds are in a minute, how many minutes are in an hour, and so on. The book includes a list of time websites for kids and another list for their parents and teachers. 2000, Charlesbridge, Ages 6 to 9, $6.95. Reviewer: Emily Schuster